Granada Productions Uses DK Technology For Accurate 5.1 Dubbing

Audio and video metering specialist DK-Technologies has supplied ITV subsidiary Granada Productions with an MSD600M++ audio meter, which has been installed in the company’s post production facilities in Norwich.
Granada Productions recently landed a commission to produce 13 one-hour programmes for the National Geographic channel in the US. Entitled Animal Extractors', the programmes focus on the work of US wildlife experts whose job is to step in and help whenever a wild animal finds itself in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Each programme was shot in High Definition and final delivery had to include Dolby E encoded 5.1 surround sound. The post production sound dubbing took place at Granada Productions’ DigiDesign Pro Tools Icon-equipped facilities in Norwich.
Andrew Frost, post production manager for Granada Productions, said: “The requirement to produce these programmes in surround sound meant that we needed a different level of audio metering - one that could cope with the intricacies of 5.1 mixing. Our senior dubbing mixer Richard Collins and I saw the DK MSD600M++ at IBC and realised it was exactly what we needed. Sound is much more complex than pictures these days, but with DK’s JellyFish display it is very easy to see exactly what is happening to the audio signal.”
The MSD600M++ Master Stereo & Surround Sound Meter is a modular, multi-channel audio analyser that accepts up to 32 input channels. It has four configurable input slots and four output slots and is available with a variety of modules including analogue, AES3, SD-SDI and HD formats.
The meter also has a bright, VGA colour display with adjustable intensity, which allows adaptation to environmental light conditions. The VGA output can be directly connected to an external display, which is precisely what Granada Productions has done.
Andy Page, Director of DK-Technologies (UK), which supplied Granada’s MSD600M++ said: “We’re delighted that our technology has helped make the dubbing process easier for Granada production’s staff. With 5.1 surround sound becoming more and more the standard in studios nowadays, there has never been a greater need for accurate audio monitoring. DK’s JellyFish display is rapidly becoming the industry standard for this purpose because it presents the surround sound image in such a logical and intuitive way. The energy content of each channel is easily recognisable on the screen, while phase errors in individual vectors are immediately highlighted in red, making it simple to spot and correct mistakes.”
(DS)