Anyone who has ever had their vehicle stolen will understand exactly how radio broadcast engineer Jay Rose felt when his truck was taken from a hotel car park in Las Vegas. But what made his experience so much worse is that not only did he lose his vehicle, he also lost a collection of tools and audio test equipment that had taken him more than 30 years to accumulate.
“It was absolutely gut-wrenching,” Jay Rose explains. “I was in Vegas working on a project for KVEG when the truck went. I was in total chaos and I can honestly say it was one of the worst days of my life.”
But it seems that even the blackest cloud has a silver lining because the loss all his equipment gave San Francisco-based Rose the opportunity to re-evaluate what he needed, particularly in terms of audio test equipment.
“I was effectively starting again, so I decided to use the opportunity to look at what was new on the market.” he says. “After much research I kept running into the name Prism Sound. I made a few calls and found myself talking to the company’s US representative Doug Ordon. When he heard what had happened, he jumped on a plane and brought me a Prism Sound dScope Series III audio analyzer to demo. We spent the whole day together and I drilled him on every possible function of the unit. I was so impressed that I immediately bought the unit and wouldn’t let Doug take it back with him. I spent the next two days familiarizing myself with it and writing my own test configurations. Losing everything I’d worked so hard to build up was dreadful, but buying the dScope Series III went a long way towards making things better.” more
For the first time ever, BBC coverage of the UEFA European Football Championship will be broadcast in both High Definition and 5.1 surround sound when the 2008 tournament gets underway on June 7th.
To ensure the quality of its surround sound signal, BBC Resources is equipping its gallery at the IBC Centre in Vienna with MSD600M++ and PT0660M audio meters, supplied by Danish manufacturer DK-Technologies. Both meters accept up to 32 input signals and have 4 configurable input slots and 4 output slots. Available modules include analogue, AES3 and SD-SDI formats.
The MSD600M++ offers multi-channel audio metering, along with DK’s proprietary StarFish™ display technology, which makes it ideal for surround sound applications. It also has ITU-Recommended algorithms to control perceived loudness of the broadcast signal – an issue that many broadcasters are looking to address.
DK-Technologies is supplying the MSD600M++ meter with its recently launched BLITS 5.1 surround sound test tone sequence software, which BBC Resources will use as a BLITS generator, thus saving valuable rack space in the studio.
Prism Sound will be showing new software for its dScope Series III audio analyzer at this year‘s NAB Convention in Las Vegas - Booth N5935.
The Version 1.2 software represents a major upgrade to the functionality of the dScope Series III unit. Many new features have been added at the request of the audio test community, including new tools for acoustic measurements, PC audio and 192kHz sampling on digital audio interfaces. more
Following the release of V1.2 software for the dScope Series III audio analyzer, Prism Sound has been developing and enhancing the acoustics measurement capabilities of the dScope Series III platform. These new developments will be on show at NAB in Las Vegas on the Prism Sound booth N5935. more
Waveform monitoring is about to undergo a revolution thanks to a new product that DK-Technologies will be launching at this year‘s NAB Convention in Las Vegas.
Targeted squarely at Outside Broadcast vehicles, production studios and Master Control Rooms, the DK PT0760 is effectively four HD/SD waveform monitors in one box. This lightweight and easy to operate unit is also ideal for Camera Control Units as it can monitor up to four cameras from one compact box.
“We are convinced the new DK PT0760 will be a show-stopper at this year‘s NAB because it is exactly what the broadcast industry has been waiting for,” says DK‘s Director of Sales and Marketing Richard Kelley. “We demonstrated a pre-production unit to key clients and it was incredibly well received. We have already received a number of orders that will be delivered as soon as the unit starts shipping in May this year.” more
DK-Technologies will be using the NAB 2008 platform to show a colour analyser set that measures both CRT and LCD monitors.
The PM5639 CRT/LCD KIT, which will be on show at the company‘s booth (N1533), includes an LCD probe, a CRT probe and a display unit. The LCD probe has a stand to hold it steady in front of the monitor screen, while the CRT probe comes with a suction cup to secure it to the screen. The entire set is packaged in a handy flightcase, making it easy to transport and offering it protection when it is not in use.
DK-Technologies is targeting the PM5639 CRT/LCD KIT at broadcast and post production facilities, particularly those who are making the switch from CRT to LCD and need an easy to use product that can calibrate both types of monitor. more
DK-Technologies will be premiering its new MSD100C Loudness meter at this year‘s NAB Convention in Las Vegas. The meter will be on show at DK‘s booth: N1533.
Developed in response to requests from key broadcasters and production houses, including SKY, ITV, the BBC and RAI in Italy, the MSD100C Loudness is designed to tackle the issue of the perceived loudness of audio signals.
There is no doubt that loudness is a hot topic for the broadcast and post production industries. As anyone who has ever reached for the TV volume control during a commercial break will know, today‘s sound processing can lead to remarkably high perceived sound levels without sound exceeding the maximum permitted signal peak levels.
DK-Technologies‘ new MSD100C Loudness is a stand-alone unit that incorporates ITU Recommendations BS.1770 and BS.1771, which specify the algorithms that should be used to measure audio programme loudness. It is able to display the loudness of the individual audio channels, as well as the sum of the left and right signals, and can be used in any broadcast or post production facility as a health check during production or prior to transmission. more
Rome, Italy: Fox Channels Italy has become the first broadcaster to invest in DK-Technologies‘ new MSD100C Loudness meter, which is designed to tackle the issue of the perceived loudness of audio signals.
The new meter has been installed at Fox Channels Italy‘s studios in Rome where it is being used as part of the Broadcast Content Management chain to meter and normalize the loudness of programmes ingested into the video server, before transmission. FOX Channels Italy has also upgraded the MSD600M++ meters that it is using in its audio post production department to incorporate DK‘s new loudness software.
DK-Technologies MSD100C Loudness incorporates ITU Recommendations BS.1770 and BS.1771, which specify the algorithms that should be used to measure audio programme loudness. Many broadcast authorities are now looking to formally adopt the ITU recommendations in order to improve the quality of broadcast audio by making it consistent across all channels and programmes. more
Prism Sound has supplied a dScope Series III audio analyzer and VISIO adapter to Business Line Cellular Systems, a division of NXP Semiconductors. The company is using the unit to test the audio performance of Handsfree and Earphone amplifiers for mobile telephones.
NXP Business Line Cellular Systems is a multi-site, multi-national organisation with offices in France, The Netherlands, China, Germany and Switzerland. Its activities cover the whole semiconductor content of a cellular phone. more
DK-Technologies has appointed ALLYN as its main distributor in Italy, with responsibility for its entire range of high-end audio and video products.
ALLYN distributes high quality, reliable products and integrated solutions to the professional audio and broadcast markets. The company plays an important role in the implementation of innovative digital technologies for the production/distribution and preservation of high-quality content and offers dedicated tools and applications for the conversion and restoration of archival and new material - both in Standard and High Definition.
Its customers include both public and commercial Italian TV networks and TV and Cinema production and post-production facilities, such as RAI, SKY, LA7, EUROSCENA and SBP. Among the brands it distributes are Harris, Ross, Ikegami, Softel, DFN, Volicon, Telestream and Sonic Solutions. more
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