Shure today unveiled its long-awaited DCA901 Planar Array microphone at the IBC Show in Amsterdam (Stand 8.C32). Designed in large part around broadcast sports applications — particularly professional basketball games, where prototypes have been tested during Summer League — its digitally steerable lobes and onboard DSP enable engineers to better isolate sources, reduce ambient noise, and maintain greater control over the mix.
“The DCA901 can completely change workflows in any broadcast sport because it provides ultimate capture flexibility and allows you to change things in an instant if needed,” commented Dave Grundtvig, veteran senior audio supervisor, remote operations. “It won’t compromise any element of the show. I deployed them in an NBA game and was completely shocked at the amount of coverage: that two arrays could cover the whole NBA floor. I would have needed twelve mics to try to capture the same thing. It was unbelievable.”
According to Shure, the DCA901 replaces traditional workflows and complex setups with a streamlined, high-fidelity solution. “DCA901 represents a strategic milestone, expanding Shure’s presence in digital broadcast and sports audio capture, aligning with the Company’s vision of seamless, scalable, and software-driven audio systems,” the company said in a statement.
“Conventional methods for capturing audio have become increasingly complex as broadcast production standards and audience expectations continue to rise,” said Nick Wood, Associate Vice President of Global Marketing and Product Management, at Shure. “With DCA901, audio engineers can now do more with less, delivering sound that pulls viewers even closer to the action with fewer microphones and cables.”
Available next year, the DCA901 is the first product in Shure’s incipient Arqos portfolio, which Shure says is designed with the intent of bringing together array microphones, signal processing, and software to deliver cleaner and more precise audio acquisition, remote management, and greater efficiency for productions.
Lengthy Development
The product’s development was lengthy and involved, over the course of more than two years on two continents.
“We tested production hardware with prototype firmware very early on, with various A1 engineers and sound supervisors in the US and Europe,” Bill Oakley, Shure’s product manager for DCA901, told SVG exclusively. “In-field testing took place with these subject matter experts, receiving new firmware updates every few weeks, and more frequently as we got closer to feature completion.”
Those who experienced the DCA901 in that process were impressed. Brian Robertson, an audio engineer for MLB, NBA, NHL and PGA broadcasts, felt the unit delivered more than traditional parabolic microphones.
“The sound that I was hearing was a more natural replication of a wooden bat hitting a baseball,” he says. “It had more definition to it, and I would have to say captured the sound of the ball hitting the bat better than the current parabolic microphones.”
Martin Farrelly, broadcast-audio engineer for MLB, NBA, NHL and UFC shows, was also effusive.
“The DCA901 changes the way we approach mixing,” he explains. “The biggest difference is its ability to capture larger moments in a sequence rather than just a snapshot. It allows you to think about where the action is leading and where it will end, instead of merely capturing a single moment in time.”
Oakley adds that real-world testing by end users was an important part of the development process.
“Our customers’ feedback was key in the development of DCA901,” he says, noting that it had has been tested and used in professional basketball, baseball, soccer, and golf applications.
Features & Capabilities
As per Shure, CA901 features and capabilities include:
- Exceptional Sonic Detail — DCA901 advances immersive experiences and multichannel audio by capturing elusive elements like talent dialog and on-set or on-field movements. Its digitally steerable lobes isolate voices and action, minimizing crowd noise and bleed. DCA901 provides wider coverage than analog sources, and delivers up to eight isolated channels of focused, high-fidelity audio. Additionally, DCA901 can simultaneously and seamlessly capture 5.1 and stereo conversion, supporting both modern and traditional broadcast formats.
- Superior Control — DCA901 provides real-time digital tools that can adapt instantly. Integrated DSP with automixing, EQ, compression, and delay deliver consistent quality audio with minimal post-processing.
- Simplified Workflows — Designed for ease of use and engineer-friendly deployment, DCA901’s digitally steerable lobes can replace multiple shotgun or parabolic mics, reducing complexity and onsite setup time. A single-cable Dante or AES67 connection simplifies routing and reduces cable infrastructure, combining audio, power, and control into one source. Remote control capabilities allow audio professionals to adjust pickup zones without onsite intervention, while also supporting REMI workflows and alternate feeds with flexible routing. The low-profile, all-black design blends seamlessly into stadiums, studios, and mobile sets without disrupting camera-ready environments.
Partnership with EDGE Sound
Shure is collaborating with EDGE Sound Research to pair the DCA901 with that startup’s Virtual Sound Enginesoftware. Working in tandem, the two tools adapt in real-time to follow the movement of players, referees, or the ball, individually or in combination, able to reveal moments that were once buried in the mix and offering engineers more adaptability and creative control.
“Using Shure’s DCA901 in live sports enables the pairing of world-class capture with our Virtual Sound Engine to advance the future of sports storytelling,” said Valtteri Salomaki, Co-Founder & CEO of EDGE Sound Research. “Together, we are moving beyond static mixes into dynamic, object-based broadcasts that bring fans closer to the game and enhance the live viewing experience.”
Shure will have more information on the DCA901 at its booth, 8.C32, at the IBC Show. An online videoillustrates the product’s features and applications.
