Inside interface: TV Skyline flagship Ü7 truck

Based in Mainz and with a fleet of OB vans, SNGs, and production vehicles, TV Skyline is a leading service provider for broadcast and multimedia events – providing clients with turnkey solutions for events ranging from the FIFA World Cup to the Wagner festival in Bayreuth. Flagship truck Ü7 was launched in April 2014 and features 22 cameras and three separate control rooms.

This new vehicle is targeted at high-end TV production and sports coverage, including the E-Sports event League of Legends All-Star tournament in Paris, and therefore a particular focus was put on the quality of the signal processing and product reliability when selecting the equipment. Based on previous experience and company reputation, TV Skyline selected 51 Crystal Vision boards to provide the up and down conversion, synchronisation, audio embedding and signal distribution.

TV Skyline is using 24 Up-Down-AS 3G synchronising up/down/cross converters, along with six Q-Down-AG 3G down converters. Featuring both motion adaptive video de-interlacing and Crystal Vision’s proprietary down conversion, Up-Down-AS 3G can convert 3Gb/s, HD and SD sources, handles up to four groups of embedded audio and – with its on-board synchronisers – can give a clean output in two different formats.

Video signals are being distributed using eleven 3GDA111N and 3GDA105R digital distribution amplifiers and seven VDA110M HD analogue video DAs. The multi-format 3GDA105R and 3GDA111N can distribute 3Gb/s, HD and SD sources, with the 3GDA111N providing eleven non-reclocked outputs and the 3GDA105R providing five reclocked outputs along with remote monitoring of input present and signal type.

The 51 boards are housed in a mixture of 2U and 1U frames: five Indigo 2SE and two Indigo 1SE-DP, with third party control via SNMP from L-S-B’s Virtual Studio Manager Broadcast Control and Monitoring System.

TV Skyline’s owner and Managing Director, Wolfgang Reeh, explained his decision: “We know that Crystal Vision equipment is reliable and its compact size makes it ideal for OB truck applications. The quality of the video up/down converters is one of the best on the market and this is important for a truck which will cover some of the highest profile sporting events in the world.” The order was co-ordinated by Crystal Vision’s German distributor, SHM Broadcast.