Sonnet and Audinate Partner to Certify PCIe Sound Cards for Sonnet Thunderbolt 2-to-PCIe Expansion Systems

Audinate's Dante PCIe-R, Focusrite's RedNet PCIe Card, and Yamaha's Dante Accelerator PCIe-R Soundcard Now Work Seamlessly With Sonnet's Echo Express, xMac mini Server, and xMac Pro Server Solutions

IRVINE, Calif. -- Nov. 18, 2014 --Sonnet Technologies today announced a collaboration with Audinate, inventor of the Dante(TM) family of digital media networking solutions, to certify compatibility of the Dante PCIe-R, a PCI Express(R) (PCIe(R)) sound card, with Sonnet's full range of Thunderbolt(TM) 2-to-PCIe card expansion chassis. The Dante PCIe-R, also available as the Focusrite(R) RedNet(R) PCIe Card, and Yamaha's Dante Accelerator PCIe-R Soundcard, is now seamlessly compatible with Sonnet's full range of Echo(TM) Express products (excluding the Echo Express SEL due to size limits), as well as the Sonnet xMac(TM) mini Server and xMac Pro Server solutions.

"As cost-effective solutions for high-performance recording and audio processing workflows, Audinate's Dante PCIe-R and Focusrite's RedNet PCIe Card are very popular with our customers. As a result, they have been anxiously waiting for these cards to be certified as compatible with our Echo Express and xMac product lines," said Greg LaPorte, vice president of sales and marketing, Sonnet Technologies. "Now, customers can build highly versatile and cost-effective audio workstations that enable the cards to be connected directly to any Mac computer with a Thunderbolt port - including the new Mac mini and the new Mac Pro."

The Sonnet Echo Express product line enables any Mac(R) computer equipped with Thunderbolt 2 or Thunderbolt ports to interface with high-performance PCIe cards such as the Dante PCIe-R and Focusrite RedNet or the Yamaha Dante Accelerator PCIe-R Soundcard. The Echo Express family includes the Echo Express SE II two-slot desktop chassis and the Echo Express III-D (desktop) and III-R (rackmount) three-slot solutions. The xMac mini Server extends Thunderbolt 2-to-PCIe expansion to a Mac mini with a Thunderbolt port and provides a 1U rackmount enclosure for the computer. In similar fashion, the xMac Pro Server provides a 4U rackmount enclosure to securely mount a Mac Pro computer and connect three PCIe 2.0 slots via Thunderbolt 2.

Dante PCIe-R and Focusrite RedNet sound cards are designed to meet the needs of the most demanding audio professionals by enabling a simple, self-configuring, true plug-and-play digital audio network over standard IP and Ethernet networks at Gigabit speeds. The cards provide 256 channels of uncompressed digital audio with near-zero latency and glitch-free redundancy.

"Our partnership with Sonnet is an important link in our strategy to make the Dante PCIe-R available to sound professionals in the complete range of on-location as well as studio workflows," said Gary Southwell, Audinate's vice president of product management. "With Sonnet's Thunderbolt 2-to-PCIe expansion systems, our customers will be able to take advantage of Thunderbolt's lightning-fast connectivity by connecting the high-performance Dante PCIe-R to any computer lacking expansion slots."

"Certification of Sonnet's wide array of Thunderbolt 2-to-PCIe expansion systems with our RedNet PCIe Card means our customers now have more ways than ever to easily integrate RedNet Ethernet audio interfaces into their workflows," said Ted White, Focusrite RedNet product specialist. "With Sonnet's rackmount and desktop expansion solutions at users' disposal, the lack of internal expansion card slots in a computer no longer matters. Users can use any modern computer with a Thunderbolt port instead."

More information on Sonnet and its products is available at www.sonnettech.com.

# # #

About Audinate
Audinate revolutionizes AV systems to enable customers to thrive in a networked world. Audinate's Dante(TM) media networking technology has been adopted by the leading OEM manufacturers and has become the standard and dominant networking technology in the professional AV industry. Dante is used extensively for live performance events, commercial installation, broadcast, recording and production, and communications systems. Audinate offices are located in the U.S., U.K., and Australia. Visit www.audinate.com for the latest news and information on the company. Dante is Digital Media Networking Perfected.

Dante is a trademark of Audinate Pty Ltd. Audinate is a registered trademark of Audinate Pty Ltd.

About Sonnet Technologies
Sonnet Technologies Inc. is a leading provider of Thunderbolt(TM) 2-to-PCIe(R) card expansion systems, pro media readers, RAID storage systems, and storage, network, and other interface cards for pro users in the audio, video, and broadcast industries. Sonnet's Thunderbolt expansion products enable the use of pro audio I/O and DSP cards, pro video capture and transcoding cards, network and storage interface cards, and other high-performance PCIe cards with Thunderbolt technology-enabled computers. For nearly 30 years Sonnet has pioneered and brought to market innovative and award-winning products that enhance the performance and connectivity of Mac(R), Windows(R), and other industry-standard computers. More information is available at www.sonnettech.com.

All trademarks appearing herein are the property of their respective owners.

For your convenience, links to French, German, and Spanish translations have been provided.

Link to French translation: www.wallstcom.com/sonnet/141118FR.htm
Link to German translation: www.wallstcom.com/sonnet/141118GM.htm
Link to Spanish translation: www.wallstcom.com/sonnet/141118SP.htm

Photo Link: www.wallstcom.com/sonnet/sonnet-echo_family_audinate_pcie.jpg
Photo Caption:Sonnet Echo Express Family with Audinate PCIe-R Sound Card

CATEGORIES