# Comparison of audio network protocols

The following is a comparison of audio over Ethernet and audio over IP audio network protocols and systems.
Audio network technology matrix :
| Technology | Development date | Transport | Transmission scheme | Mixed use networking | Control communications | Topology | Fault tolerance | Distance | Diameter | Network capacity | Latency | Maximum available sampling rate |
| AES47 | 2002 | ATM | Isochronous | Coexists with ATM | Any IP or ATM protocol, IEC 62379 | Mesh | Provided by ATM | Cat5=100 m, MM=2 km, SM=70 km | Unlimited | Unlimited | 125 μs per hop | 192 kHz |
| AES50 | | Ethernet physical layer | Isochronous or synchronous | dedicated Cat5 | 5 Mbit/s Ethernet | Point-to-point | FEC, redundant link | Cat5=100 m | Unlimited | 48 channels | 63 μs | 384 kHz and DSD |
| AES67 | 2013-09 | Any IP medium | Isochronous | Coexists with other traffic using DiffServ QoS | IP, SIP | Any L2 or IP network | Provided by IP | Medium dependent | Unlimited | Unlimited | 4, 1, 1⁄3, 1⁄4 and 1⁄8 ms packet times | 96 kHz |
| AudioRail | | Ethernet physical layer | Synchronous | Cat5 or fiber | Proprietary | Daisy chain | None | Cat5=100 m, MM=2 km, SM=70 km | Unlimited | 32 channels | 4.5 μs + 0.25 μs per hop | 48 kHz (32 channels), 96 kHz (16 channels) |
| AVB (using IEEE 1722 transport) | 2011-09 | Enhanced Ethernet | Isochronous | Coexists with other traffic using IEEE 802.1p QoS and admission control | IEEE 1722.1 | Spanning tree | Provided by IEEE 802.1 | Cat5=100 m, MM=2 km, SM=70 km | Dependent on latency class and network speed | Dependent on latency class and network speed | 2 ms or less | 192 kHz |
| Aviom Pro64 | | Ethernet physical layer | Synchronous | Dedicated Cat5 and fiber | Proprietary | Daisy chain (bidirectional) | Redundant links | Cat5e=120 m, MM=2 km, SM=70 km | 9520 km | 64 channels | 322 μs + 1.34 μs per hop | 208 kHz |
| CobraNet | 1996 | Ethernet data link layer | Isochronous | coexists with Ethernet | Ethernet, SNMP, MIDI | Spanning tree | Provided by IEEE 802.1 | Cat5=100 m, MM=2 km, SM=70 km | 7 hops, 10 km | Unlimited | 1+1⁄3, 2+2⁄3 and 5+1⁄3 ms | 96 kHz |
| Dante | 2006 | Any IP medium | Isochronous | Coexists with other traffic using DiffServ QoS | Proprietary Control Protocol based on IP, Bonjour | Any L2 or single IP subnet | Provided by IEEE 802.1 and redundant link | Cat5=100 m, MM=2 km, SM=70 km | Dependent on latency | Unlimited | 84 μs or greater | 192 kHz |
| EtherSound ES-100 | 2001 | Ethernet data link layer | Isochronous | Dedicated Ethernet | Proprietary | Star, daisy chain, ring | Fault tolerant ring | Cat5=140 m, MM=2 km, SM=70 km | Unlimited | 64 | 84–125 μs + 1.4 μs/node | 96 kHz |
| EtherSound ES-Giga | | Ethernet data-link layer | Isochronous | Coexists with Ethernet | Proprietary | Star, Daisy chain, ring | Fault tolerant ring | Cat5=140 m, MM=600 m, SM=70 km | Unlimited | 512 | 84–125 μs + 0.5 μs/node | 96 kHz |
| Gibson MaGIC | 1999-09-18 | Ethernet data-link layer | Isochronous | | Proprietary, MIDI | Star, Daisy chain | | Cat5=100 m | 32 channels | | 290 μs or less | 192 kHz |
| HyperMAC | | Gigabit Ethernet | Isochronous | Dedicated Cat5, Cat6, or fiber | 100 Mbit/s+ Ethernet | Point-to-point | Redundant link | Cat6=100 m, MM=500 m, SM=10 km | Unlimited | 384+ channels | 63 μs | 384 kHz and DSD |
| Livewire | 2003 | Any IP medium | Isochronous | Coexists with Ethernet | Ethernet, HTTP, XML | Any L2 or IP network | Provided by IEEE 802.1 | Cat5=100 m, MM=2 km, SM=70 km | Unlimited | 32760 channels | 0.75 ms | 48 kHz |
| Milan | 2018 | Ethernet | Isochronous | Coexist with other protocols in converged networks | IEEE 1722.1 | Star, Daisy chain | Redundant links | Cat5=100 m, MM=2 km, SM=70 km | Dependent on latency class and network speed | Unlimited | 2 ms or less | 192 kHz |
| mLAN | 2000-01 | IEEE 1394 | Isochronous | Coexists with IEEE 1394 | IEEE 1394, MIDI | Tree | Provided by IEEE 1394b | IEEE 1394 cable (2 power, 4 signal): 4.5 m | 100 m | 63 devices (800 Mbit/s) | 354.17 μs | 192 kHz |
| Optocore | | Dedicated fiber | Synchronous | Dedicated Cat5/fiber | Proprietary | Ring | Redundant ring | MM=700 m, SM=110 km | Unlimited | 1008 channels at 48 kHz | 41.6 μs | 96 kHz |
| Q-LAN | 2009 | IP over Gigabit Ethernet | Isochronous | Coexists with other traffic using DiffServ QoS | IP, HTTP, XML | Any L2 or IP network | IEEE 802.1, redundant link, IP routing | Cat5=100 m, MM=550 m, SM=10 km | 7 hops or 35 km | Unlimited | 1 ms | 48 kHz |
| RAVENNA | 2010 | Any IP medium | Isochronous | Coexists with other traffic using DiffServ QoS | IP, RTSP, Bonjour | Any L2 or IP network | Provided by IP and redundant link | Medium dependent | Unlimited | Unlimited | variable | 384 kHz and DSD |
| Riedel Rocknet | | Ethernet physical layer | Isochronous | Dedicated Cat5/fiber | Proprietary | Ring | Redundant ring | Cat5e=150 m, MM=2 km, SM=20 km | 10 km max, 99 devices | 160 channels (48 kHz/24-bit) | 400 μs at 48 kHz | 96 kHz |
| SoundGrid | | Ethernet data link layer | Isochronous | Dedicated Ethernet | Proprietary | Star, daisy chain | Device redundancy | Cat5/Cat5e/Cat6/Cat7 =100m, MM=2km, SM=70km | 3 hops | Unlimited | 166 μs or greater | 96kHz |
| Symetrix SymLink | | Ethernet physical layer | Synchronous | Dedicated Ethernet | Proprietary | Ring | None | Cat5=10 m | 16 devices | 64 channels | 83 μs per hop | 48 kHz |
| UMAN | | IEEE 1394 and Ethernet AVB | Isochronous and asynchronous | Coexists with Ethernet | IP-based XFN | Daisy chain in ring, tree, or star (with hubs) | fault tolerant ring, device redundancy | Cat5e=50 m, Cat6=75 m, MM=1 km, SM=>2 km | Unlimited | 400 channels (48 kHz/24 bit) | 354 μs + 125 μs per hop | 192 kHz |