ADM Attributes and MCA Labels
Content Kind & ADM Attributes
To describe specific composites ("mixes", e.g. Complete Main, Music & Effects, Audio Description Mix etc.), certain attributes are defined in ADM for <audioContent> components. In the ADM4Legacy (Step 1) use case, with a strict 1:1 relationship between <audioProgramme> and <audioContent>, these are directly referenced.
Here's an overview of the most commonly applied types (printed in bold) as defined in specifications like EBU R123, ITU-R BS.2102 or ARD-ZDF-ORF TPR 2025
Reference: ITU-R BS.2076-3 §5.7.3
| TYPE | CODE (within block <audioContent>. . .</audioContent> |
German Term |
|---|---|---|
| COMPLETE MAIN (mixed) | <dialogue mixedContentKind="1“>2</dialogue> |
Sendeton (Standard) |
| Music & Effects | <dialogue nonDialogueContentKind="3“>0</dialogue> |
IT/ME (Musik & Effekte) |
| AD/VI (mixed) | <dialogue mixedContentKind="4“>2</dialogue> |
Audiodeskription (gemischt) |
| Clear Speech (mixed) | <dialogue mixedContentKind="3“>2</dialogue> |
Klare Sprache (gemischt) |
| Music (only) | <dialogue nonDialogueContentKind="1“>0</dialogue> |
Musik (solo) |
| Effects (only) | <dialogue nonDialogueContentKind="2“>0</dialogue> |
Effekte (solo) |
| Mixed "Bed" (unspec. mixed) | <dialogue mixedContentKind="2">2</dialogue> |
BED ( unspec.) |
| Dialogue (only) | <dialogue dialogueContentKind="1“>1</dialogue> |
Sprache/Dialog (solo) |
| Voice over (only) | <dialogue dialogueContentKind="2“>1</dialogue> |
Übersetzung (solo) |
| Spoken Subtitles (only) | <dialogue dialogueContentKind="3“>1</dialogue> |
Gesprochene Untertitel (solo) |
| AD (only) | <dialogue dialogueContentKind="4“>1</dialogue> |
Audiodeskription (solo) |
| Commentary (only) | <dialogue dialogueContentKind="5“>1</dialogue> |
Kommentar (solo) |
| Emergency (only) | <dialogue dialogueContentKind="6“>1</dialogue> |
Notfallansage |
| Undefined | <dialogue nonDialogueContentKind="0">0</dialogue> |
Unbekannt |
Set languages in ADM
Languages for <audioProgrammeLanguage> and <audioContentLanguage> shall be set according to ISO 639-2 with 3 characters.
Here some examples:
| Language | ISO 639-2 Code |
|---|---|
| ENGLISH | eng |
| FRENCH | fra/fre |
| GERMAN | deu |
| ITALIAN | ita |
| (Music & Effects) | zxx |
>>Note that Music&Effects/International Sound shall be set as non-linguistic content: 'zxx'
How to signal "Original Language Version" in ADM
Usually, versions dubbed in the local language are prioritised in delivery and set as default <audioProgramme>.
More and more, "Original Versions" are being offered as alternative.
However, the ADM vocabulary (so far) does not offer an immediate code for distinction between "original" and "dubbed".
Therefore it is recommended to signal original language versions by naming them in <audioProgrammeand <audioContent>
as well as in <audioProgrammeLabel> (incl. different terms assigned via tags options).
Sample <axml>
>>This sample contains all of the above mentioned features describing a typical ADM4Lagecy configuration as defined in EBU R123 or ITU-R BS.2102
Content Kind & MCA Labels
If applied in MXF OP1-A using SMPTE ST 2131, additional signalling in MCA Labels is recommended.
This table provides an overview how to describe composites ("mixes") with MCA properties (most common types in bold)
Reference: SMPTE-ST377-41-2023
| TYPE | MCAContent meaning | MCA SYMBOL | MCA USE CLASS | German Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| COMPLETE MAIN (mixed) | Primary | PRM |
FCMP |
Sendeton (Standard) |
| Music & Effects | Music & Effects | ME |
ICMP |
IT/ME (Musik & Effekte) |
| AD/VI (mixed) | Descriptive Video | DV |
FCMP |
Audiodeskription (gemischt) |
| Clear Speech (mixed) | Hearing Impaired | HI |
n/a | Klare Sprache (gemischt) |
| Music (only) | Music | MX |
ICMP |
Musik (solo) |
| Effects (only) | Effects/Foley | FX/FOL |
ICMP |
Effekte/Geräusche (solo) |
| Mixed "Bed" (unspec. mixed) | n/a | n/a | n/a | BED ( unspec.) |
| Dialogue (only) | Dialogue | DX |
ICMP |
Sprache/Dialog (solo) |
| Voice over (only) | Voice-Over | VO |
SING |
Übersetzung (solo) |
| Spoken Subtitles (only) | n/a | n/a | n/a | Gesprochene Untertitel (solo) |
| AD (only) | Visually Impaired | VI |
SING |
Audiodeskription (solo) |
| Commentary (only) | Recorded Commentary | CM |
SING |
Kommentar (solo) |
| Emergency | n/a | n/a | n/a | Notfallansage |
| Undefined | n/a | n/a | n/a | Unbekannt |
| (Silence) | Silence | MOS |
SMPL |
(Stille) |
Note: MCAContentLabels do not consider "objects"-only composites and elements. To distinguish these, MCAUseClasses are defined:
| MCAUseClass | Symbol | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| Finished Composite | FCMP |
The associated MCA Content is a composite, complete work and need not be mixed prior to presentation. It can be mixed with other Soundfield Groups to create other particular desired content per the allowed combinations in Table 4. |
| Intermediary Composite | ICMP |
The associated MCA Content is a composite but requires mixing with other elements prior to presentation. It can be mixed with other Soundfield Groups to create desired FCMP content per the allowed combinations in Table 4. |
| Simplified | SMPL |
The associated MCA Content contains a simplified mix, typically mono, stereo or Lt-Rt, intended for special uses. It can be mixed with other SMPL Soundfield Groups to create desired SMPL content per the allowed combinations in Table 4. |
| Singular | SING |
Element contains a single content (such as narration voice) that can be output on its own or be mixed with other Soundfield Groups. |
Therefore, the MCA Content label descriptors have limited correspondences with the object-based concept of ADM.
Set languages in MCA
Note: MCA labels require RFC5646 IETF language tags Some examples
| Language | RFC5646 Code |
|---|---|
| ENGLISH GB | en-GB |
| ENGLISH US | en-US |
| FRENCH | fr-FR |
| GERMAN | de-DE |
| ITALIAN | it-IT |
How to signal "Original Language Version" in MCA
MCA offers a simple way to distinguish between "original" and "dubbed" language: MCASpokenLanguageAttribute
| MCASpokenLaguageAttribute | Symbol | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| Original | ORIGINAL |
Indicates that the MCA Content contains the original spoken dialog |
| Dubbed | DUBBED |
Indicates that the MCA Content contains dubbed dialog which replaces some or all of the original spoken dialog with another language |
Sample MCA
The test vector 1.1.6 in the 1st ADM Plugfest (June 2026) was modelled similar to a typical "ADM4Legacy" use case containing different channel-based mixes:
- Complete Main (Sendeton) 2.0
- Music & Effects (IT(ME) 2.0
- Audio Description Mix (AD) 2.0
- Original Version (OV) 2.0
- Complete Main (Sendeton) 5.1
The mca-label.txt file created for the conversion/muxing of the BW64-ADM.wav in bmx tool for MXF contained
0
# audioProgramme_1
ADM, chunk_id=axml, RFC5646SpokenLanguage="de-DE", MCATitle="MAIN_MIX_2.0-SENDETON_GER", MCATitleVersion="n/a", MCAContent="PRM", MCAUseClass="FCMP", ADMAudioProgrammeID="APR_1001"
# audioProgramme_2
ADM, chunk_id=axml, MCATitle="IT/ME 2.0", MCATitleVersion="n/a", MCAContent="ME", MCAUseClass="ICMP", ADMAudioProgrammeID="APR_1002"
# audioProgramme_3
ADM, chunk_id=axml, RFC5646SpokenLanguage="de-DE", MCATitle="AD-MIX_2.0", MCATitleVersion="n/a", MCAContent="DV", MCAUseClass="FCMP", ADMAudioProgrammeID="APR_1003"
# audioProgramme_4
ADM, chunk_id=axml, RFC5646SpokenLanguage="en-GB", MCATitle="n/a", MCATitleVersion="n/a", MCAContent="PRM", MCAUseClass="FCMP", MCASpokenLanguageAttribute="ORIGINAL", ADMAudioProgrammeID="APR_1004"
# audioProgramme_5
ADM, chunk_id=axml, RFC5646SpokenLanguage="de-DE", MCATitle="MAIN_MIX_5.1-SENDETON_GER", MCATitleVersion="n/a", MCAContent="PRM", MCAUseClass="FCMP", ADMAudioProgrammeID="APR_1005"
The final command line to mux the ADM.wav into a MXF ST2131 with bmx followed this pattern:
raw2bmx -t op1a -o OUTPUT-ADM.mxf --audio-layout adm --track-mca-labels x mca-ADM-label-PF26-TV_1_1_6.txt --adm-wave-chunk axml,urn:smpte:ul:060e2b34.0401010d.04020211.02020000 --wave INPUT-ADM.wav
>>Note: The urn:smpte:ul:060e2b34.0401010d.04020211.02020000 refers to the SMPTE Registry signalling the ADM_ITU2168_Emission_V1_L1 as defined in ITU-R BS.2168-0
See this table of Labels for reference on the defined ADM Profiles and Levels.