Glensound Beatrice B1 – Dante / AES67 Intercom Beltpack (4-Pin XLR Male) Glensound

The Glensound BEATRICE B1 is an ultra compact, robust, portable single channel beltpack intercom designed for broadcast, theatre and professional audio applications.

It is part of the Beatrice intercom system that utilises the reliable and proven Dante network audio transmission protocol to allow real time distribution of uncompressed audio across standard ethernet networks. As such the BEATRICE B1 is also fully compatible with other manufacturers’ equipment using the Dante protocol. It is also AES67 compliant.

This small beltpack was designed to be very easy to use for the operator and simple to set up for the technician. It includes all the basic functionality required for small intercom systems and none of the overly complex installation requirements normally associated with large systems.

Single Channel
One single user connected to the unit can listen and communicate with 1 other circuit on the network. Depending upon how the Dante network has been routed the incoming audio circuits and outgoing circuits can be different locations.

Dante Routing / Partyline Mode
Audio routing to/ from other devices is setup using Dante controller which allows for point to multipoint routing on outgoing circuits (but only 1 single incoming circuit for an incoming channel). An inbuilt partyline facility allows the incoming circuit to be routed to the output circuit making a simple partyline.

External Mic Input
A good quality, clear sounding microphone amplifier, designed for communication purposes, is fitted which also has the benefit of a compressor/ limiter circuit to help keep levels and intelligibility consistent even when the operator gets overly excited. Twelve Volt Phantom power is also available and can be turned on/ off as required.

Volume and Panning
The front panel features an easy to use volume control.
When in configuration mode, this control can also be used to pan the incoming circuit to one ear or the other.

PoE Powered
The Beatrice B1 is powered via the Ethernet cable by standard PoE (Power over Ethernet), which can be supplied by an external PoE switch or a midspan power injector.

Headphone Output
One of our unique headphone amplifiers is fitted to the Beatrice B1. This allows either low or high impedance headphones to be used, and automatically adjusts the output level to match the impedance of headphones in use. The headphone amplifier is stereo and sources can be panned to left or right ears as desired. The unique headphone amplifier can also drive mono earpieces from its stereo output without any performance issues.

Multipin XLR Headset Connector
As standard the Beatrice B1 is fitted with a 5 pin balanced XLR socket for the microphone input and headphone output. It can also be supplied with a 4 XLR plug.

Call Function
A simple call function is inbuilt allowing the operator of one unit to call/alert other users that they want to communicate with them. To call another user the operator double taps the speak key of the channel they want to call, this then flashes a bright yellow call LED on the other user’s keypanel, which continues to flash until the call is answered. As well as flashing a LED at the receiving end of the call, an audible ‘beep’ can be set to alert the user that an incoming call has been placed to them.

Call/ Presence Indicator
Each channel has its own red LED that acts as a called/ presence detector on the incoming audio circuit. When audio is detected the LED is lit and it stays lit for a short period after the incoming audio stops. When an incoming call is detected then the LED will flash.

Ultra Compact
The Beatrice B1 is manufactured using lightweight but strong aluminium. It has laser etched aluminium front and rear panels and powder coated aluminium sides. The form factor has been carefully designed to be as small as the internal electronics allow whilst keeping user buttons, microphone and headphone output ergonomically positioned for optimum user experience. Weighing in at just 230g it is light enough to transport easily, and at just 65 x 131 x 36mm it won’t get in the way.