Qvest Media designs new 4K/UHD OB and DSNG vehicles for Ruptly

Systems architect and ICT integrator Qvest Media has designed, developed and equipped an OB van and a DSNG vehicle with advanced 4K/UHD broadcast technology for the Berlin-based international news agency Ruptly. One of the first missions for the two vehicles was the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

As designer and systems integrator, Qvest Media planned, installed, commissioned and supplied all technical systems in addition to undertaking the actual vehicle conversion.

Qvest Media solved the special customer requirement of being able to drive both special vehicles with a normal car driver’s licence by employing an innovative body and lightweight construction method, which was developed in close cooperation with its partner Carrosserie Akkermans. Both vans are based on a Mercedes Sprinter and weigh less than the maximum of 3.5 tonnes without making any concessions in terms of fully-featured technical equipment. As a result, even 4K/UHD productions can be realised at a high quality level using the compact fleet. The crew has three acquisition sets consisting of ARRI’s Amira UHD cameras, CueScript teleprompters for the presenters and various Canon lenses.

In addition to live coverage of news, events and sports, this also enables cine-look productions of reports and documentaries. Beside a 4K/UHD video mixer from For-A, the vans also feature a Yamaha audio mixer and a 4K ingest and playout server from AJA. This way, a balanced cost/benefit ratio is ensured without having to leave out any of the required features.

“This project shows once again that a high level of technical quality can be achieved with competitive budgets even when space is at a premium”, said Norman Tettenborn, principal at Qvest Media. “No outside broadcast is like any other. So versatility always plays a central role in the design of OB vehicles.”

Additionally, the OB van and DSNG can be coupled to form one integrated production unit. This is made possible by the integrated real-time network MediorNet from Riedel. The decentralised router distributes audio and video data without delay in the workflow between the OB van, DSNG van and the integrated stageboxes. The live feed is broadcast via the fully redundant NewSwift uplink from Vislink.

Thanks to a generator that can power both vehicles, the Ruptly mobile production team can broadcast live from almost any location quickly and independently.

Ahmet Cakan, CTO of Ruptly, said: “Qvest Media has done an amazing job. The vans passed the baptism of fire during the World Cup in Russia without a hitch and made our reporting considerably easier.”

Together with Qvest Media and other partners, Ruptly will present the two vehicles at this year’s IBC in Amsterdam (stand 0.B05).