At WLOH we were looking for an inexpensive IP-based option to deliver high quality audio from virtually anywhere. Our previous positive experience with the Tieline Technology's Bridge-IT IP codec as a studio-to-transmitter link led us back to Tieline and the Report-IT Enterprise Edition for the iPhone.

Based on our previous IP remote experience, we developed our wish list of what we would like to accomplish. First, because non-technical people were going to be using it, we wanted a system that was easy to use. The field setup needed to be simple without the need to enter IP addresses and port assignments, or negotiate through firewalls to establish a connection. Since our announcers need to be able to hear audio from the studio, the system needed to be bi-directional with low latency. And cost was also a major consideration. We have looked at other systems only to find the cost of entry was prohibitively high.

Building a system

The Tieline Report-IT system at WLOH is comprised of three components. At the studio end, we use a Tieline Bridge-IT IP codec. The remote "unit" is an Apple iPhone 4 with Tieline's Report-IT App installed. We purchased Tieline's Enterprise Edition, which allows us to install and use it on up to ten iPhones. We also purchased a Tieline Mic Adapter for iPhone. With sales tax and shipping, the entire system was assembled for approximately $2,500.00.

Once your purchase is processed, Tieline supplies an administrator user name and password to access and set up the Tieline TieServer. This Tieline server acts as a middleman for routing the data to and from your remote location. From this administrator webpage, we give the studio codec a custom name and enter its IP address and port assignments. This is also where individual users and their associated passwords are entered. There are also variables like the default bitrate that can be configured by the administrator.

The Tieline Report-IT App itself is downloaded from the Apple App store. According to Tieline, the app will run on any iPhone device. However the current Tieline Mic Adapter is specifically designed for the iPhone 4 and works on our 4S. We purchased a new iPhone 4 with Verizon 3G service. The Report-IT App will work either via the phone's 3G or over Wi-Fi if it is available.

Using the Report-IT App on our new iPhone was easy. Once launched, a user login dialog box opens. We enter the assigned user name and password and the Report-IT App verifies that we are a registered user. Once logged in, we just press the Connect button and within a few seconds we are connected to the studio.

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