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What is Dante?
A primer on Dante audio networking for AV professionals
Dante is an audio-over-IP networking protocol developed by Audinate. It transports high-quality, low-latency audio over standard managed Ethernet infrastructure — replacing analog cable runs, patchbays, and fixed-channel snakes with a software-defined, fully routable audio network. Any device can send audio to any other device on the same network, in any channel configuration, with routing managed in software via Audinate’s free Dante Controller application.
How Dante Works
Dante operates as a Layer 3 IP multicast/unicast audio transport over standard Ethernet. Each device connects via RJ45 to a managed switch. Audio channels are transmitted as UDP/IP packets and received by subscribed devices on the same VLAN.
Two mechanisms underpin Dante: mDNS/Bonjour discovery — devices announce themselves automatically, no manual IP entry required — and PTP clock sync (IEEE 1588) — all devices synchronize to a shared network clock for sample-accurate audio alignment. Clock master role is negotiated automatically.
Dante vs. Analog Audio
| Feature | Analog | Dante |
|---|---|---|
| Infrastructure | Dedicated cable per channel | Standard Ethernet — shared |
| Distance | Limited, signal degrades | 100m copper / km via fiber |
| Routing changes | Physical recabling | Software — Dante Controller |
| Signal quality | Susceptible to noise, ground loops | Bit-perfect digital, no degradation |
| Latency | ~0ms | 1ms / 4ms / 10ms (configurable) |
Audio Quality
Dante supports PCM audio at 44.1kHz, 48kHz, 88.2kHz, and 96kHz sample rates at 16-bit and 24-bit word depth. All KanexPro Dante products operate at 48kHz/24-bit by default. Audio is transported bit-perfectly — no compression, no lossy encoding, no signal degradation regardless of distance.
AES67 Interoperability
AES67 is an IEEE/AES standard defining a common interoperability layer for audio-over-IP systems. Dante devices with AES67 mode enabled can exchange audio with any AES67-compliant device regardless of underlying protocol — Ravenna, SMPTE ST 2110, AES67-native DSPs.
This allows KanexPro Dante products to integrate with DSPs from QSC, Biamp, and BSS; mixers from Yamaha and Allen & Heath; and wireless systems from Shure, Sennheiser, and Audio-Technica — without analog bridging hardware.
Dante Latency Presets
1msLowest latency. Requires a dedicated, well-configured Dante-only network. Suitable for live sound monitoring. 4ms (default)Recommended for most professional AV installations. Perceptually equivalent to a sound source ~1.4m away — imperceptible in virtually all AV applications. 10msMaximum tolerance. For longer network paths, higher switch hop counts, or less tightly controlled infrastructure.What Dante Requires
⚠ RequiredA managed network switch is required. Unmanaged switches do not reliably support Dante multicast.
- IGMP snooping enabled on the Dante VLAN
- QoS configured with DSCP EF (46) priority
- STP PortFast enabled on all Dante device ports
- Flow control disabled on Dante ports
- Dedicated Dante VLAN (strongly recommended)
