Dutch broadcast provider equips new OB truck with Lawo technology

Inside United’s new Lawo-equipped OB16 facility

Dutch outside broadcast service provider United, headquartered in Hilversum, has installed a Lawo mc²56 audio mixing console as the centrepiece of its new OB16 truck. The move sees the company follow a series of other broadcasters and production companies operating multi-camera outside broadcast (OB) and studio services in adopting Lawo technology.

Local distributor, LDM Audiovisual Systems, based in Lint, Belgium, made the delivery and has carried out the console configuration for United. The desk’s core is housed in its own rack and integrates its own DSP with a Nova73 compact core, which is also a large audio router. The router is equipped with MADI, allowing the simultaneous transfer of up to 64 audio channels over a single fiber-optic link. This signal capacity has reduced the wiring that would otherwise be required in the vehicle, and eliminated much of the conventional assembly and soldering.

The truck’s Riedel Artist Intercom System is connected to the Lawo audio distribution architecture via MADI, providing high-quality audio throughout. In addition to the mc²56 consoles, LDM installed L-S-B’s Virtual Studio Manager (VSM) in OB16. This software provides overall control for central automation of all systems in the vehicle, integrating the video, audio and intercom router, and also the multi-viewer. The operators at the 15 different workplaces can select their specific visualisation. The system’s buttons are LCDs that dynamically display signal labels. Previously, this required changing the set-up and re-configuration, plus re-naming the tally signals. Now this can be programmed centrally, making the workstations very flexible. Even though the vehicle is with United LSM could, if required, configure the system from any location.

LDM also supplied its new Lawo V_pro8 video processing and routing unit for the installation. The V_pro8 has eight 3G HD-SDI video embedders and eight processors, and sample rate-converters, as well as an 8×8 matrix with extensive video processing capabilities.