Mention the word Dante in the wrong circles and many people think of a bad Pierce Brosnan movie from the late 90s. However, in the high tech audio world, we now think of Audinate's Dante Audio Over IP solution and maybe the Focusrite RedNet range of high-end interfaces.  

Enter the new Tascam ML-16D and ML-32D Analogue to Dante converters with either 16 or 32 channels of A-D and D-A conversion respectively at up to 96KHz sample rate.

Tascam ML-16D & ML-32D

The ML-16D and ML-32D are two compact 1U rack high-quality analogue-Dante-analogue converters designed to transfer 16 or 32 analogue audio channels over a Dante network in both directions (A/D and D/A). The rear panel features 25-pin D-sub connectors which save on connectivity space giving balanced line level I/O. Two Ethernet connectors (Dante Primary/Secondary) are available for redundant operation using two separate networks.

The units feature indicators for operation status and current sample rate as well as overload LEDs for each input and signal LEDs for each input and output. Switches on the rear side allow the user to set the required maximum input/output level. Any other settings, such as sampling frequency, channel routing or latency, can be made by the freely available “Dante Controller”  application.

Main Features

• Analogue-Dante-Analogue converter for 16 (ML-16D) or 32 (ML-32D) line-level audio channels
• Dante interface allows up to 16/32 audio channels to be transferred over an Ethernet network
• Two LAN connectors for primary and secondary networks provide redundancy
• Flexible routing with ”Dante Controller” software
• AES67 is supported to allow connection with Ravenna and other compatible audio network technologies
• Up to 96 kHz sampling rate and 24 bit resolution
• Indicators for operation status and current sample rate
• Overload indicators for analogue input signals
• Signal indicators for analogue input and output signals
• Five different reference levels available to adapt to virtually any application in consumer, professional or broadcast environments (selectable via rear-side switches)
• 25-pin D-sub connectors for balanced line inputs/outputs (AES59-2012:TASCAM pin assignment)
• Euro Block breakout box can be used for fixed installation (BO-32DE)
• XLR breakout boxes can be used for live music or studio applications (BO-16DX/IN, BO-16DX/OUT)
• 19-inch rack-mountable chassis (1U) 

For any of us who either already have a collection of high-end mic preamps or record using an analogue console, these units could be the solutions we are looking for to move into the world of Audio Over IP and have the best of both the old-school and new-world way of working. 

At the time of going live with this story, there are no prices available but we very much look forward to seeing these units in the flesh at the NAMM show later in January 2018.