Outside Broadcast brings 3G HD vehicle to IBC

Belgian OB company Outside Broadcast is taking up a fair proportion of the inner courtyard of the RAI with its new 3G HD vehicle. Unit 15 made its first professional broadcast appearance during this year’s Tour de France during June and July and will be working for OBS during the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

Outside Broadcast’s technical manager, Andre Verbesselt, explains that the new vehicle was built primarily to replace an older vehicle and “renew the fleet”. The 14 x 4.7 x 4 meter, expanding sides articulated truck can accommodate up to 20 Sony HDC-2550 or Grass Valley LDK8000 Elite HD cameras.

Unit 15 also houses a Miranda 8280 288×450 hybrid router 288 x 450 with embedders, de-embedders and MADI I/O. The production switcher is a Sony MVS-7000, which can run as either HD/4 ME or 50p/2ME.

Audio is based on a 56-fader mc²66 Mk II with 192 DSP channels, 48 local mic/line inputs, 32 local line outputs and two fibre stage boxes, each with 48 mic/line inputs. Routing is through an 8k Lawo Nova HD Core, which has both Ravenna and MADI capability. Communications are provided through a Riedel Artist intercom.

Unit 15 spent three weeks on the Tour de France, providing facilities for American network NBC. It will be part of the host broadcast operation for next year’s Winter Olympics.