Mobile broadcasting studio for Radio 24.

Radio 24 broadcasts with fully integrated mobile broadcasting studio.

J+C Intersonic AG has completed a new ENG truck for Radio 24. Apart from providing self-sufficient production facilities, the truck offers a complete broadcasting studio, which only requires two ISDN lines (audio and control) for full connection to the radio station. Consequently, its output can be fully integrated with the station’s workflow.

 

Technical equipment in the truck includes a Lawo 12-fader zirkon mixing console, two CD players, a MD player, a post pro system, monitor speakers, PA speakers, wireless microphones and headsets, fixed line and mobile phones, plus more.

 

To reduce the equipment preparation time to a minimum, no computer based production system (DigiMedia) or server were installed in the ENG truck, but access to the on-air system at the radio station is enabled by remote control. As a result, no doubling-up of databases is necessary, and all items in the central broadcasting database (music, commercials and other contributions) can be accessed within seconds, in complete and up-to-the-minute versions.

 

Because running a program via DigiRemote control software is not the same as studio-based radio operation, the need arose to have the on-air channels on faders, so that the operator can manually control, for example, background music, whose level must be faded down or cross-faded between items.

 

In addition, J+C installed another Lawo zirkon system in the radio station’s equipment room. There, amongst other things, automated contributions are added to the ENG truck’s program output.  A 4-fader unit in the truck is used for remote control of the zirkon in the equipment room. Also, the DigiMedia system is connected to the zirkon via a customized software module using serial protocol, because DigiMedia has not use the Monitora protocol.

 

As well as fader starts and PFL on individual channels, the DigiMedia system controls the zirkon‘s motorized faders. This improves normal operations, even when compared to the current radio studio. When operating under automation, this degree of interface enables, for example, control of the DigiMedia to be switched from the radio studio to the ENG truck without any interruption to station output.

 

Another benefit was discovered: Activating the ENG truck no longer requires assistance from someone in the radio station and, once on line, subsequent operation can take place independently; staff are no longer required in the radio station for Saturday night programmes!

 

Because the truck ‘studio’ can be a real substitute for the radio studio, ISDN-Codecs (for traffic news, football coverage etc.) are also connected to the zirkon in the equipment room. When the codecs are required, a 4-fader unit can be switched from the zirkon system in the ENG truck to the zirkon system in the equipment room, thus enabling parallel use of the codecs.

 

In addition, the radio studio’s newscaster can go on air when the associated channel fader is opened in the ENG truck.

 

The zirkon fader modules are connected to the zirkon in the equipment room by a special ISDN (64 kbit/s, B-Ch) Ethernet adapter. Furthermore, the zirkon offers the unique possibility of limiting the data rate in the console communication bus, so that it functions more reliably; operation is extremely smooth, in spite of the data conversion and the length of the cable. The ISDN control connections are established automatically, within 100 ms, as soon as they are plugged up.

 

As far as audio is concerned, the truck is linked to the radio station via an AETA Hifiscoop 3 ISDN-Codec (4SB) with separate T/B channel / 3 kHz (in each case mono, 2 B-channels combined). The 4SB ADPCM codecs allow the final mix (ENG truck and equipment room) to be monitored with a very low delay (8msec); a program that has to be mixed quickly can be easily handled.

 

Thanks to the flexible configuration of the zirkon system and its associated Vis-Tool software, both mixing consoles (in the truck and the equipment room), even with their limited broadcast capability (two channels), in operation feel like one mixing console. The handling of functions such as PFL, source recording (for truck and equipment room), separate T/B to different channels (radio studio, headphones, codecs — in some cases with a ‘Red Light Lock’ function), monitoring, etc. can therefore be made very intuitively. Both ‘stand alone’ and ‘radio studio’ operating modes are clearly defined by specific locks in the setup.

 

System operation of the truck has been designed for, on the one hand, the radio studio, and on the other hand, the specific demands of mobile situations. This means that every DJ can mix his/her show with minimum training, even from the truck and, in addition, use its well-designed additional facilities (e.g. reporting with radio microphones etc.).

 

J+C Intersonic AG devised this project as a complete ‘system’. Once the design and planning stages were completed, the multi-systems, IT components, ISDN-Codecs, peripheral equipment, interior cladding and furniture, were all installed and hooked up without a hitch. Then equipment programming took place right up to the system implementation.

 

The project was successfully concluded within four months of the confirmed order.

 

By courtesy of J+C Intersonic

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