“You don’t need to have a big mixer because Ovation has a very powerful mixing engine as part of its backbone” — Chris Hollebone, Merging Technologies
individually adjust the volume of dialogue, music or sound effects within a single broadcast programme. The technology is claimed to be the first of its kind to enable this level of audio control at the low bit-rates required for broadcasting. The new technology brings
control to the listener and helps broadcasters to meet the demand for better speech intelligibility and enables radio or TV listeners to increase or decrease the volume of specific audio elements to their taste. Fraunhofer’s dialogue enhancement technology allows for efficient transportation of individual audio objects, such as a commentator’s voice or stadium atmosphere, in a compatible mono or stereo downmix. Since the BBC trial, Fraunhofer has received significant interest from other broadcasters and is working with a major Scandinavian broadcaster towards trials in mid 2012.
Monitoring tracks Genelec displayed its 1238CF Tri- Amplified DSP Monitoring System at NAB this year. The 1238CF is a compact three-way DSP monitoring loudspeaker including a slim speaker enclosure, two eight-inch (210-mm) long- throw bass drivers, a five-inch (130-mm) proprietary Genelec midrange driver and a one-inch (25-mm) metal dome tweeter, multiple power amplifiers, digital signal processing (DSP) circuitry and active, low-level crossovers. Designed for medium-sized control rooms, this system is suitable for film and video post production, broadcast monitoring, music recording studios and project studios, Three new products were launched by Glensound Electronics at NAB 2012: a digital audio snake, single unit commentary units and a headphone amp.
The Glensound GSnake 400M comprises two units, a 2U 19-inch base station, and a 2U free standing or stackable stage box. The Glensound Solo units were designed as a simple to operate and cost effective single position commentary or voice-over unit. High quality mic amps are used, along with Glensound’s broadcast specific compressor/limiter system, to ensure consistent audio levels. The audio inputs and outputs
are transformer balanced to provide audio isolation when used in outside broadcast environments, and there is an external input for headphone monitoring — usually the main programme feed. Sidetone is also available in the headphones via a rear panel adjustable POT.
Sky’s the limit Broadcast audio equipment supplier HHB Communications was chosen by Sky to provide audio equipment for the broadcaster’s new production facility, Sky Studios. In addition
to staging critical listening evaluations and supplying about 370 Genelec monitors, HHB assisted with the supply of the ‘audio glue’ necessary to ensure efficient workflow throughout the facility.
TVBEurope 45 NAB Wrap-Up Integrated multi-format
3G/HD-SDI video monitoring and audio de-embedding alongside loudness metering, Dolby and SMPTE2020 metadata analysis comes courtesy of 98 Wohler AMP2-16V-3G rackmounting
devices, part of a total complement of more than 200 Wohler boxes employed within the building. The sound control rooms are equipped with 5.1 Dynaudio loudspeaker systems and include digital audio processing tools