DBC Network Bridge
Operation Manual page 75
8.1 Glossary
The following glossary explains network terminology. It is
arranged in logical order rather than alphabetical order.
Network: A group of interconnected components, such
as a central computer, network switching equipment, and
other computers or devices.
TCP/IQ network: A network made of a computer, network
switching equipment, and other audio devices such as IQ-
PIP cards plugged into power amps. Since each I-Tech
amp connects directly to a network, each amp is also a
network component.
Subnet: A small network within a larger network. For
example, a TCP/IQ audio network might be a subnet of a
venue’s network, which could include computers through-
out the building. Or an audio network might be divided
into subnets. For example, one audio subnet might be for
the house system and another audio subnet might be for
the paging system.
IP address: An identifier for a computer or device on a
TCP/IP network. Each device in a network has its own IP
address to identify it. Example: 126.126.17.42. Networks
using the TCP/IP protocol route messages based on the IP
address of the destination. An IP address is made of four
numbers separated by periods. Each number can be zero
to 255. The last number can never be a zero or 255. For
example, 126.126.17.1 could be an IP address.
126.126.17.0 would not be a valid IP address.
A TCP/ IP or IP address has two parts: the NETWORK ID
and the HOST ID. The NETWORK ID identifies the network,
and the HOST ID identifies either the subnet and device, or
just the device if there is no subnet.
The subnet mask is a code that indicates which part of
the TCP/IP address is the NETWORK ID and which part is
the HOST ID. In subnet-mask code, 255 means “This part
of the address is the NETWORK ID”.
Example:
Suppose the IP ADDRESS of a device is 126.126.17.42
and the SUBNET MASK is 255.255.0.0.
That means, (126.126) is the NETWORK ID. The remaining
set of numbers (17.42) is the HOST ID. If your audio net-
work stands alone (it is not part of a larger network) then
the HOST ID identifies each device in the network.
If your audio network is part of a venue’s larger network,
your network is actually a sub-network or subnet. In this
case, the HOST ID can be further divided into two or more
parts. The first part is the SUBNET ID. The other part is the
DEVICE ID. The first part of the HOST ID identifies the sub-
net of your audio system, and the remaining part identifies
the particular device within that subnet.
So in this case, a complete IP address is in the form
NETWORK ID - SUBNET ID - DEVICE ID.
All devices in the network have the same network ID. All
devices in a subnet have the same subnet ID.
There are many resources available on the Internet for IP
and subnet calculation. For a stand-alone system, Crown
has provided a worksheet of a tested configuration in Sec-
tion 1.2.5.
DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol): This
is a protocol for automatically assigning IP addresses to
devices on a network. With dynamic (DHCP) addressing, a
device might have a different IP address every time it con-
nects to the network. If a computer is NOT connected to a
network with a DHCP server, the computer will place a
default network ID into the TCP/IP address and Subnet
Masks.
TCP/IQ does not use DHCP. A computer attached to a
TCP/IQ network must have its IP addresses assigned stati-
cally (manually).
8 Appendix A: TCP-IQ Network Basics