RT UK Installs Summa Digital Audio Console

Calrec Audio has announced that RT UK has installed a Summa digital audio console in its London bureau to manage audio signals for its live news operation.

The sale marks Calrec's first Summa installation in the U.K.

"With the number and complexity of news programs we produce each week, and the number of audio sources required to do it, we needed a console that would keep pace with our dynamic operation, with comprehensive channel processing and bus facilities that could cater to every clean-feed scenario. The Summa console meets our every requirement," said Eric Wisby, sound supervisor for RT UK, who worked with fellow sound supervisor Tony Cosaitis to manage the console's configuration and installation on behalf of RT UK. "Summa's relatively small size makes it useful for small TV control galleries and outside broadcast vehicles. It carries a lot of capability in a reasonably sized footprint. And it is a given that any Calrec mixer is going to produce excellent sound."

RT UK installed a Summa 128 with a 3U modular I/O box furnished with a specific combination of cards to provide 24 mic/line inputs, 32 analog line inputs, 24 analog line outputs, eight opto inputs/16 relays, and 32 digital AES inputs and outputs. Hydra2 mic pre-amps, six bands of EQ in every channel, and four automixers all contribute to a clean high-quality sound. Off-air conference and auto-minus facilities provide sophisticated solutions to various and sometimes complex clean-feed requirements, including RT UK's need for studio presenters to be able to talk to contributors via Skype or line feed while the program is on the air and while video contribution is being played. This mix-minus talkback capability is also important for allowing operators and presenters to talk to remote guests off the air before those guests contribute to a program.

With the Summa console, RT UK produces five half-hour live news bulletins every weekday and three in-depth news programs every week, all of which include studio presentation; interviews with guests in the studio and from remote sources via line feeds and Skype; video and audio inserts played from a server and audio player; stings and bumpers to punctuate different sections of the programs; and varying levels of production value and style. During off-air times, RT UK runs dummy programs from old news broadcast scripts to aid in cross-training and to give operators a chance to experiment with new techniques. The layout and controls accommodate multiple users and let RT UK's occasional freelance operators come up to speed quickly.

UK systems integrator CVP, a Calrec partner, was instrumental in the sale and installation.

www.calrec.com