HUDSON, N.H.—My role at Game Creek Video focuses on the design, maintenance, and long-term evolution of our mobile production trucks. In live production, especially at the scale we operate, broadcast technology must be flexible, dense and, above all, reliable. Over the last several years, MultiDyne has become a core technology partner for us, with several of their products playing distinct and critical roles in our workflows.

We heavily rely on three MultiDyne product lines: the VF9000 fiber-transport platform, the HUT camera acquisition system and SilverBullet miniature fiber-transport devices. Each one serves a different purpose, but together they allow us to move large amounts of video efficiently, both inside the truck and across stadiums.

All-in-One Design
The VF-9000 has become the backbone of our inter-truck fiber transport. Over the past several years, we transitioned to this platform after using other solutions, and it’s now installed across six of our mobile units, with multiple frames per truck. What drew us to the VF-9000 was its compact footprint and all-in-one design. Previously, we needed separate products for fiber transport and copper video conversion. The VF-9000 consolidates that into a single, dense and extremely stable platform.

From a production standpoint, we use the VF-9000 to move large volumes of SDI video between trucks. In a typical configuration, we’ll take up to 32 video signals from one truck, transport them over just a few strands of fiber and break them back out in another unit. That level of density allows us to share signals efficiently without running excessive fiber, which is especially valuable on large, complex shows. We primarily use the VF-9000 for video transport with embedded audio, and its CWDM (coarse-wavelength division multiplexing) capabilities allow us to maximize bandwidth while keeping our infrastructure clean and manageable.

Monitoring and troubleshooting are also major strengths of the VF-9000. The platform exposes SNMP (Simple Network Monitoring Protocol) data, which allows us to integrate it directly into our broader monitoring environment. Instead of walking into racks or checking front-panel indicators, our engineers can see real-time status, alerts and performance metrics through dashboards and web-based tools. We can even monitor the far end of a fiber link from another truck, which saves time and reduces on-site coordination during live events.

Out in the field, camera acquisition is handled primarily by the MultiDyne HUT system. HUT has proven to be one of the most universally compatible camera-transport solutions we’ve used—we haven’t encountered a camera platform in our fleet that it doesn’t support. Using SMPTE connections at the camera and single-mode fiber back to the truck, HUT allows us to leverage a venue’s existing fiber infrastructure while maintaining signal integrity and flexibility.

Alongside HUT, the SilverBullet plays an equally important role. While HUT focuses on camera transport, the Silver Bullet is our go-to solution for moving individual video feeds long distances throughout a venue. We frequently deploy them to carry monitoring feeds, auxiliary signals, or other video paths that need to travel alongside camera signals. Many venues are moving away from copper entirely, and the Silver Bullet allows us to run tactical fiber everywhere and convert back to SDI exactly where we need it.

NBA Cup Coverage
This gear was recently deployed together on high-profile broadcasts, including Prime Video’s NBA Cup coverage in Las Vegas, and it’s also in regular use on major productions like “Monday Night Football,” “Thursday Night Football” and Fox primetime football. These are demanding shows with zero tolerance for
failure. The HUT and SilverBullet are rugged, field-ready devices that just work. The VF-9000, despite its density, is modular enough that we can replace individual components without taking an entire system offline.

Our goal is to build trucks that are flexible today and ready for tomorrow as we support a variety of live productions for sports and live events. MultiDyne’s technology has helped us achieve this through reliable transport, smart monitoring, and the confidence to deliver world-class live broadcasts.

More information is available on MultiDyne’s website.

HUDSON, N.H.—Game Creek Video is a leading provider of mobile production facilities for major sports and entertainment broadcasts across the United States. Known for its state-of-the-art fleet and engineering expertise, the company supports high-profile events for networks such as Fox, CBS, ESPN and NBC. With a commitment to innovation, reliability and top-tier workflows, Game Creek builds and operates some of the most advanced remote production trucks in the industry.

We’re always looking for ways to modernize our fleet, and one of the most transformative steps we’ve taken has been deploying Riedel’s MediorNet FusioN gateways directly behind the monitors inside our trucks.

Frees Up Much-Needed Space
Previously, our monitoring designs were limited to 1080p by hybrid SDI workflows wrapped around centralized gateway racks that swallowed up valuable space and added weight. Those traditional systems also constrained how creatively we could lay out our control rooms.

When we evaluated Riedel’s FusioN platform, especially the compact FusioN 3B, the lightweight form factor immediately stood out. These devices are small enough to mount behind monitors yet powerful enough to manage the SDI-to-IP and IP-to-SDI conversions that drive our ST 2110 workflows. Balancing capability with mobility is essential, and these units offered the best of both worlds.

Placing these lightweight gateways at the edge completely changed how we build and wire our trucks. Instead of routing every monitor feed through large, centralized gateway conversion, we now mount a FusioN device directly behind each pair of screens.

This has two major advantages. First, removing large blocks of centralized hardware frees up significant space in our engineering racks. That reclaimed space gives us more flexibility in equipment layout and helps reduce overall truck weight. Since every pound affects transportation logistics and compliance, having conversion handled by lightweight devices rather than heavy racks is a major operational benefit.

Second, we drastically reduce the amount of cabling required, with no more long SDI runs snaking through the subfloor of the truck to feed every display. That reduction allows the FusioN 3B to deliver UHD to each monitor with only a six-foot run of 12G-SDI per display. This has a massive positive impact on the user-monitoring experience.

The day-to-day impact of this shift is obvious during live broadcasts. As we get into playoff runs toward the end of the football or basketball seasons, production often needs to scale up quickly, with operators requesting additional monitors or other out-of-the-box signal assignments. Because adding monitors now only requires a network link to an additional
FusioN converter, we can respond rapidly without major rework through a central point.

The monitor walls and operator workstations become far more dynamic and almost modular. The FusioN devices manage UHD and HDR conversion right at the monitor, eliminating multiple layers of processing that used to add latency and complexity. Handling conversion at the edge keeps the operator experience smooth.

Small Devices, Big Improvements
In our IP-native trucks, where ST 2110 forms the backbone of the system, this approach is incredibly valuable. The core IP fabric handles routing, but the FusioN devices allow us to drop back into SDI seamlessly whenever needed—whether we’re extending to a crowded courtside announcer table inside the venue or providing a world-class monitoring experience inside one of our mobile units. Leveraging NMOS, we can dynamically scale our broadcast infrastructure to suit the needs of our clients on any given day.

When I look at how our trucks operate today versus just a few years ago, the improvement is dramatic. By adopting these small, lightweight FusioN gateways, we’ve decentralized conversion, reduced cabling, saved space and built more flexible and responsive production environments.

What might seem like a subtle change has fundamentally redefined how we design monitor systems and control rooms. It’s a shift that improves reliability, adaptability, and day-to-day workflow and it pays off every time we roll into a new venue.

More information is available on Riedel’s website.

Game Creek Video has selected EVS’s Neuron View multiviewers to equip three of its trucks: Webby, 9 4, and Discovery. These multiviewers will replace older systems in the trucks, which are used for high-profile national and regional sports productions.

Facing the need to modernize its multiviewer infrastructure while maintaining cost efficiency, Game Creek Video said it was looking for a solution that would allow continued SDI operations while providing a seamless path to IP. EVS’s Neuron View was chosen for its ultra-fast processing, ease of configuration, and ability to function in both SDI and IP environments—ensuring Game Creek Video can transition at its own pace.

"Choosing EVS's Neuron View was a strategic decision for us," said Jason Taubman, senior vice president of technology at Game Creek Video. "Its performance, flexibility, and ease of use align with our current workflows while keeping us ready for future IP transitions. Given our longstanding collaboration with EVS, we trust in their expertise and reliability."

Neuron View is designed to meet the high demands of live production environments, offering ultra-low latency, high operational efficiency, and seamless IP stream monitoring. The deployment of EVS’s multiviewers in these three trucks expands the company’s existing partnership with EVS, whose LiveCeption replay and highlights solution is already a key component of Game Creek Video’s fleet, EVS reported.

"We’re honored that Game Creek Video has chosen EVS for this important technology upgrade," said Nestor Amaya, senior vice president of customer development, media infrastructure at EVS. "This collaboration highlights our growing role as a trusted provider of not just replay solutions, but also media infrastructure technology that helps broadcasters navigate the transition to IP."

EVS made the announcement at the 2025 NAB Show, where it is exhibiting at booth #SL3316.

HAMILTON, Ontario—Mobile production company Game Creek Video says it has deployed software from IT network integrator Providius to provide network telemetry and real-time IP media analysis in more than a dozen of its new IP-mobile production units. 

Providius’ NVRT software delivers vital network awareness and visibility plus real-time IP media analysis for Game Creek trucks equipped with an Arista network infrastructure using ST 2110. Game Creek also uses Providius’ BMG (Broadcast Media Guard) platform to acquire, decode, and analyze various IP media flows, including ST 2110-20/30/40, ST 2022-7, and PTP. .

Game Creek Video says it has increased its use of IP, with over 30% of its units now operating on an Arista network core, giving the OB company the added flexibility of networking as well as reduced vehicle weight. Providius’s NVRT software merges streaming network telemetry from the Arista infrastructure and flow metrics from the broadcast control system, delivering a comprehensive view of the infrastructure and providing real-time topology maps, network port-specific packet details, and multicast media tracing in one user dashboard. 

Providius says this simplifies monitoring for the operations team, who can quickly assess the health of their networks without extensive training, and drill down to locate any trouble spots. BMG can actively monitor any IP media on the network, and generate notifications, thereby alerting operations to any potential issues that may impact live production in real-time, according to the company.

"Providius has been an invaluable partner in helping us tackle the complexities of IP media and IT infrastructure on our ST 2110-based trucks. Their NVRT software significantly reduces the time it takes to assess network/PTP-related issues and improves the availability of our IP infrastructure. We use the BMG to identify any packet-level disruptions to our ST 2110 workflows and it provides us with the necessary feedback so we can take corrective action.  We’re happy with the ongoing partnership and look forward to continuing our collaboration." - Keith Martin, Director of Technology at Game Creek Video.

“We love working with the Game Creek team, their state-of-the-art mobile units are the go-to choice of the top broadcasters in our industry. We value our continued partnership and are committed to developing the best possible products to support their mission." - Jamie Horner, VP of Product Development & Marketing.

HUDSON, N.H.—Game Creek Video is a technical productions services company responsible for bringing some of the largest sporting and entertainment events to air through our state-of-the-art fleet of mobile production trucks and mobile units. 

We recently built several new trucks for the fall sports and entertainment season—one of them, named Centennial, is a powerful SMPTE 2110 IP-based broadcast truck designed to handle formats from HD to 4K with full support for HDR signals to ensure superior contrast and color rendering. 

Monitoring for Quality
Since quality is paramount for every production, it’s important to measure signals coming in from all cameras and ensure each source image matches the others (camera shading). It’s also important to guarantee that the high-quality output is maximizing the wide color gamut and contrast range that the HDR format provides. 

Driven by customer demand, we installed six Telestream PRISM IP/SDI waveform monitors at multiple positions within Centennial. These include camera shading positions, engineering, and the replay area where, either directly or via KVM, the TD, tech manager, and replay operators have access. 

We designed Centennial as a “Swiss Army knife” which can deliver whatever capability the client needs. Our goal is always to be as flexible and agile as possible. Centennial was also designed to expand and easily connect to other trucks which is something we pride ourselves on.

As formats and signals have evolved, waveform monitors have had to keep pace. IP-based signals also carry audio and additional metadata, so waveform monitors must also be able to monitor embedded audio signals such as Dolby as well as other ancillary metadata.

While operators need the latest features to monitor IP signals and make objective measurements of HDR, they also appreciate a traditional layout of waveform monitor and vectorscope. The Telestream team has been responsive to the marketplace by allowing two full displays from a single scope versus squeezing everything together in a single display, a unique feature our video shader positions rely on. Not having to buy two full units saves on cost and installation as well.

Although Centennial is an IP-based truck at its core, part of its flexible design is the ability to work in a mixed IP and SDI environment. The capability of PRISM waveform monitors to also work in both SDI and IP was an important feature that helps ensure this flexibility. Because the PRISM platform is app-based, our clients can customize and add tools based on their unique requirements. 

PRISM MPD200
For Centennial, two PRISM MPD200 models are installed at camera shading positions and deliver two screens for both waveform and vectorcope displays from a single unit. Three PRISM MPX2-25 are deployed with two racked in engineering and one in replay and a single PRISM MPI2-25 is racked in engineering for 2110 and 3G/12G analysis. 

Because PRISM employs a software-defined platform, it’s easy to keep these waveform monitors current with updates and any upgrades can easily be deployed in the field. This is a critical design component since there is no time to pull equipment and send it back to the factory for upgrades and modifications when the trucks are constantly on the road. 

The timeline for building Centennial was short and with worldwide shortages of parts, we were concerned about delivering the truck to schedule. When one of our main clients made the initial request for the PRISM scopes, we worried that potential supply chain issues might impact our short runway. Thankfully, Telestream was able to pull out all the stops and get us the units we required in time. For that we were very grateful. 

Jason Taubman spearheads Game Creek Video’s efforts in technology leadership and truck design while servicing the company’s vast profile of high-profile sports clients, including ABC, CBS, ESPN, FOX, HBO, NBC, MLB, NBA, the YES Network, NFL Network, and Amazon Prime Video. Since joining Game Creek in 1999, Taubman has led the design and build process for over 60 mobile unit projects, and also helped the company lead the industry to new workflows in HD, UHD, HDR, IP/2110, and remote control of mobile units by client production staff. He can be reached at jtaubman@gamecreekvideo.com or 603-882-5222.

For more information visit www.telestream.net.

HUDSON, N.H.—Game Creek Video has adopted 10 Sony shallow depth-of-field HDC-F5500 system cameras with Super 35mm 4K CMOS global shutter image sensor and high frame rate capabilities for use on the productions of its entertainment, sports and corporate customers.

Game Creek Video is using the cameras as well as others in the Sony HDC series, including the HDC-5500 with 2/3-inch 4K CMOS imagers, to achieve cinematic capture. Together, the cameras offer accurate color matching, easy systemization, complementary accessories and a familiar layout and form factor. They are also well-suited to multicamera productions, Sony said.

The HDC-F5500 High Dynamic Range (HDR) cameras offer wide color gamut support, high sensitivity, low noise, various frame rates of up to 120fps in 4K mode and a 60p output. The F5500 also includes a locally or remotely controlled motorized eight-step ND filter for precise control of the depth of field, it said.

Direct output of 4K/12G-SDI from the camera facilitates wireless operation and recording, the company said.

The F5500 is compatible with existing Camera Control Units (CCUs), which means the cameras are easy to move from truck to truck and enable the mobile facilities company to take advantage of its existing infrastructure, Sony said.

“We believe the F5500 is the future of larger sensor multi camera production,” said Riley Helsen, director of client solutions at Game Creek Video. “Our customers were asking for a solution that could properly balance the cinematic production look with the efficiency of setup that they are used to with an integrated broadcast camera system. The F5500 does that.”

More information is available on the Sony website. 

HUDSON, N.H.—Game Creek Video is a leading media production services and facilities provider that offers technical and logistical expertise behind the biggest events in sports and entertainment. Game Creek’s live events customers are constantly seeking new ways to engage with their audience and enhance the story. 

The most recent result of that pursuit is the look of the shallow depth-of-field camera.  Commonly referred to as “the cinematic look,” this style of capture has increased in popularity and helps an audience know where to direct the eyes. Shallow depth-of-field has been adopted in television and movies, where productions rely on cameras like Sony’s full-frame VENICE to achieve this new form of expression.  

Game Creek’s entertainment and corporate events clients demand a similarly functional tool that balances creative needs with the ease of setup and quick teardown that they are accustomed to in an integrated broadcast camera system. 

Multicamera Production
As long-standing Sony customers, Game Creek is excited about the HDC-F5500 system camera, with a Super 35mm 4K CMOS global shutter image sensor. Game Creek currently manages 10 of these camera chains not only because clients are requesting them, but because the company believes that this is the future of larger sensor multicamera production.

One of the key benefits of the F5500 is the ability to do a true larger-sensor, streamlined multicamera production with the efficiency of a traditional broadcast camera system.  The Super 35mm sensor look also gives a shallower depth-of-field than a typical 2/3-inch broadcast camera.  Additionally, it uses native PL-mount lenses, giving creators lots of options for optics—there is really nothing else on the market like it.

Another important consideration when purchasing these cameras is their ability to move between various trucks in the Game Creek fleet in a “plug and play” fashion, using existing CCUs, SMPTE fiber and infrastructure. This allows greater flexibility to find the right solution for a project and provides a great deal of versatility. Game Creek also appreciates the fully integrated tally, intercom and return video for multicam feeds; and the motorized ND and filter wheel control—borrowed from VENICE—is a big hit. 

Native RCP Control
Additionally, the F5500 offers native Sony RCP control with full color matrix and the ability to match cameras perfectly in a multicamera environment. Game Creek has worked closely with Sony for years and owns more than 600 Sony cameras, which means the controls and menus are familiar and there’s virtually no learning curve.  

Knowing that the F5500 intermixes seamlessly with the HDC-5500 inventory is a critical advantage because both can operate with the S-LOG3 Cine gamut and offer a consistent look for post-production. The ability to plug the F5500 into mobile unit CCUs and immediately have a fully integrated system with the existing video shading architecture in all mobile units adds great value to the overall fleet.

In live entertainment productions which often include various lighting conditions and frequently incorporate LED walls, the F5500 shines. Due to the global shutter sensor, the moire effect on LED walls was minimized or eliminated, which is a great benefit.  The cameras have performed consistently during outdoor keynote speeches, as well as dimly lit environments with strobe lights.

Overall, the cameras work phenomenally and are a popular request. Game Creek values the ability to simultaneously be in the HDR and SDR worlds, as many clients move toward an HDR environment or look to secure the future of their content through archive. As requests continue to grow for 1080P, 4K and HDR productions, Sony’s HDC-F5500 is a powerful tool to provide Game Creek’s customers with the latest creative technology. 

For more information, visit https://pro.sony/ue_US/home 

WASHINGTON—The inauguration of President Joe Biden on Jan. 20 was brought to viewers on ABC, CBS and NBC, but those three networks’ coverage was pooled together with the help of mobile production company Game Creek Video. In turn, Game Creek Video relied on a number of Canon lenses to capture the historic moments seen by millions of viewers.

Game Creek provided facilities, cameras and engineering support for the three major parts of the inauguration broadcast that were all used by ABC, CBS and NBC—NBC took care of the pool coverage, CBS the parade route coverage and ABC covered Lafayette Park.

Sony cameras outfitted with Canon lenses were used to capture the event, according to Steve Dolce, Game Creek Video’s project manager for the inauguration. The majority of the 30 cameras Game Creek used for the production were Sony 2500s, with a variety of Canon portable lenses being utilized.

Among the lenses was a UHD-Digisuper 122x (which captured the podium where the inaugural address was given), four UHD-Digisuper 100x lenses, 10-12 UHD-Digisuper 86x lenses, 10 HH WA Angles lenses and six 21-24x HH lenses.

The use of Canon lenses is part of Game Creek’s long established partnership with the brand.

“Game Creek and Canon have a great partnership,” said Dolce. “It is always a pleasure working with the folks at Canon and we have always been extremely pleased with their equipment in the field. Being a company that takes partnerships with its clients extremely seriously, the ability to cultivate the same kind of partnership with Canon, one of our key vendors, has been equally as rewarding.

"When the stakes are as high as they are for events like the inauguration, millions of people are depending on us to deliver that historical moment to their screens,” added Jason Taubman, senior vice president of Technology, Game Creek Video. “It really takes the pressure off to have a group like Canon in your corner. The shot of the inaugural address was seen around the world and Canon helped us capture it flawlessly. We are looking forward to many more years of working with Canon to make sure we provide the best product we can to our clients and their viewers."

SANTA CLARITA, Calif.—Mobile TV production facilities provider Game Creek Video is nearing completion of its fifth 4K UHD mobile unit within the past 12 months equipped with Riedel Communications’ IP gateways for inter-truck connectivity, Riedel has announced.

Game Creek video is using the Riedel MediorNet FusioN standalone IP converters to drive SMPTE ST 2110-based signal processing for each production vehicle.

The 53-foot-long expandable units are entirely IP-based facilities. Game Creek Video rolled out the first two production units, Bravo and Columbia, in late 2019. They were followed this year by Gridiron A and B and Celtic. Gotham is currently being completed.

Fox Sports will use Bravo and Gridiron for NFL and college football coverage, while CBS Sports has reserved Columbia and Celtic for its NFL and college basketball broadcasts. MSG Networks will use Gotham for its New York Rangers hockey and New York Knicks basketball coverage.

"With Bravo, we were taking a significant new direction in our facility design by trying to achieve full IP workflows within the footprint of a single mobile unit,” said Game Creek Video Engineering Project Manager Keith Martin.

“Naturally, that meant finding robust and effective solutions that could also run as cool as possible and meet the space constraints and weight restrictions of a 53-foot truck," he said. 

“Not only do the Riedel MediorNet devices check all of those boxes, but as native IP and 2110 solutions they allow us to maximize all of the benefits of IP operations, including lower cost per path, reduced setup time, connectivity with our legacy assets and overall simplicity of deployment.”

The T2T interface of MediorNet creates seamless, vendor-agnostic connectivity between the new trucks and Game Creek Video’s legacy SDI-based fleet, thereby eliminating the need to convert SDI signals from electrical copper to optical fiber and back again, Riedel said.

Using a 25-gigabit Ethernet interface, the FusioN gateways can transport signals on the SMPTE ST 2110 network and then output them as CWDM-wavelength (coarse wavelength division multiplexing) SDI directly to legacy equipment in a baseband truck.

“The ability to not only interconnect any of our 2110-based facilities with each other, but with any of our traditional baseband SDI mobile facilities, brings incredible flexibility to each production and allows us to maximize the investment in our entire fleet of vehicles,” said Martin.

“But the main reason we leaned heavily into Riedel for the T2T interface is the incredible versatility of the solution. In a single box, we have a complete solution for handling SDI, CWDM wavelength and the other complexities of the deployment.”

More information is available on the Riedel and Game Creek Video websites.  

BURNSVILLE, Minn.—RTS Intercoms proved to be a key piece of the Game Creek Video production setup during Super Bowl LIV in Miami earlier in February. RTS gear was used to help provide key communications for broadcasters during the entire weekend of the big game.

Game Creek used RTS intercoms for its entire fleet of 10 OB trucks that were on site, each with its own integrated comms system. All trucks were connected using RTS Tribus and Trunking technologies. RTS ADAM frames were used in the primary production trucks, while Game Creek’s Edit 4, its newest support truck, utilized the RTS ODIN frame connected via Dante/OMNEO networking.

“We put an OMNEO card in each matrix frame, then Dante networked everything so they could share ports,” said Jason Taubman, senior vice president of technology with Game Creek Video. “We also use RTS trunking to bring them all together, creating a network of well over 200 user stations across the production compound.”

The user stations used a variety of RTS keypanels, including new KP-5032 and KP-4016 models and legacy models like the KP-32.

In addition to Game Creek Video’s own production, its cameras were used by a separate production supplier for the Super Bowl Halftime show. Communications in that situation were also supported by RTS technology.

A Calrec Apollo digital audio console was the centerpiece in the Game Creek Video production truck used for the U.S. Open—one of several Calrec consoles deployed for the Fox Sports coverage of the event.

HUDSON, N.H.—Game Creek Video handles mobile television production for the world’s largest TV networks, production companies, and news organizations. We’ve earned a reputation for skillful coverage of sports and entertainment shows, which is why you’ll find our OB trucks and production teams in the truck compound for major events such as the Super Bowl, the World Series, NASCAR races and the FIS World Skiing Championship.

One of the biggest changes I have seen in sports coverage over the past 15 years is an increased emphasis on and commitment to audio by the broadcast networks. The networks have determined that the viewers’ audio experience is as important as the video. Audio has gone from being an afterthought to a key part of the production.

Fox Sports is one of the leaders in that charge. Last year, when covering the 2014 U.S. Open golf championship, we began planning with Fox Sports for coverage of the 2015 event. Game Creek would provide the ad hoc network at Chambers Bay golf course in Washington state, and Fox Sports would operate it. Fox is known for placing special importance on audio, particularly surround sound, because they understand the value of a high-quality audio production.

Brad Cheney, director of technical operations for Fox Sports, said it best: “We are out to capture the sounds of the course in an all-encompassing way, so we put equal emphasis on sound at every hole. It’s so important that we’ve even got additional audio engineers working in our ISO replay rooms to make sure the sounds are consistent on-air and online.”

Today’s productions place enormous demands on audio processing, and those demands would be multiplied for this event. We had to build a network to deal with 118 cameras, more than 200 microphones, and a massive number of line inputs. Audio would be coming in from a number of sources besides the microphones. For example, each replay device would have 16 channels of 5.1 audio. There would be audio associated with graphics. There would be primary and backup systems onsite.

There would also be 24 Calrec fieldboxes (small-format I/O units) sitting around the course, sending 5.1 audio to the trucks via fiber, providing a huge efficiency advantage. Not only would they save us from running DT-12 but fiber is lighter, less obtrusive, and can carry more signals than DT-12.

Fox would be producing content for its linear networks, Fox and Fox Sports1, along with complementary programming for usopen.com, usga.org and foxsports.com. In early talks, it was clear that capturing the sound Fox viewers have come to expect would require a large network of audio consoles and operators. Fox had already done its homework and determined that the only way to do it right was with Calrec consoles, specifically the Apollo.

Game Creek is an all-Calrec fleet. We built the network for Fox with four Apollo consoles, one Artemis console, and two Summa consoles, all inside of our production trucks. This would be the largest network we had ever created.

BIGGEST CHALLENGE

Calrec's Artemis console was used for the U.S. Open release mix.

The biggest challenge with a network of that size was tying all of the assets together and making them work with each other while giving the operators maximum flexibility. We had never attempted to tie five consoles together in a seamless package before. Without Calrec’s built-in Hydra2 technology we wouldn’t have been able to do it.

Fox operators mixed the broadcast with one Apollo desk and did the submix with another. They used the Artemis console for the release mix from the ISO replay rooms and mixed additional digital programming with an Apollo and two Summa consoles. While not on the network, SD10B consoles from Calrec’s sister company, DiGiCo, in the ISO production rooms, were connected via MADI to the main production truck to provide hole coverage via replay into both the main and digital programming.

The network meant Fox’s audio engineers could cover any part of the course at any moment with the full resources that are normally only available to the main show. The importance of this flexible networking capability cannot be overstated.

There were plenty of other benefits to using Calrec consoles. Over time, Calrec has expanded the number of audio sources its consoles can handle, in a way that’s efficient and instinctive for operators. That ensured that we could design a system that got the job done in the most efficient and least time-consuming way. And we knew the system would be robust and reliable—something we had to consider given the Pacific Northwest’s unpredictable June weather.

Another Calrec advantage is the company’s outstanding customer support. Their people are experts who not only helped us specify to configure the system but joined us in the field to help us set up the system to yield the best performance. That’s why Game Creek Video is a repeat customer.

The bottom line: Our business is all about making the customer happy. We know when we purchase Calrec equipment we’re going to get great reliability, great sound, great performance, great flexibility for the operator, and great service, so that ultimately we can help the customer create the very best production.

CRANBURY, N.J. – They might not have been going 200-miles an hour, but Game Creek Video’s new production trucks, PeacockOne and PeacockOne B, drew some attention during NBC Sports first NASCAR broadcast over the Fourth of July weekend. Set to help provide full coverage of races for the rest of the NASCAR season, Game Creek Video will rely on IHSE KVM matrix systems for instant replays and video production management.

PeacockOne was designed to maintain the main equipment racks and move the playout and graphics rooms to PeacockOne B. The IHSE KVM equipment allows workstations on either unit to access any available server by connecting the workstation to a specific server. Pre-configured and stored connection paths allow the replay operators to connect their data servers with no interruption to workflow.

Specifically, Game Creek went with the Draco tera enterprise 160 port matrix as the primary KVM for PeacockOne and a Draco compact hybrid 32 fiber/48 cooper matrix for PeacockOne B. Using 32 fiber interconnects, the two KVM systems are able to act as a single KVM switch system. Software control of the two KVM matrices was handled by IHSE USA’s Grid Manager.

Game Creek previously installed IHSE’s KVM equipment into its FX-HD, Riverhawk and Spirit trucks.

IHSE is a provider of KVM products for long distance signal extenders and switching based in Cranbury, N.J.

UNIVERSITY PLACE, WASH. – Jordan Spieth was crowned the new U.S. Open champion at Chambers Bay this past Sunday as Fox Sports concluded its first ever broadcast of one of golf’s major championships. Fox Sports’ broadcast was able to make some more history thanks to Game Creek Video, who was the exclusive provider of remote production facilities for what was the largest single event broadcast in remote television history, according to Game Creek.

Inside one of Game Creek's remote production facilities.

Game Creek Video captured more than 155 hours of coverage from the tournament through its various mobile units. The “Encore,” with a large scale IP-based routing system, was the primary home for event coverage, but Game Creek’s “Glory,” “Pride,” and “Justice” were also used to cover Fox Sports’ U.S. Open 360 program, studio shows and feature group/hole coverage.

Using Sony cameras, including 10 new Sony 4300s, Game Creek provided 65 of the 118 cameras on site. They also provided the Evertz EXE SDVN to facilitate router salvos, source virtual ports, destination virtual ports, images, TX Paths and discrete feeds. Game Creek also employed more than 200 microphones and stored 5,751 clips and 1600 hours of record space on the EVS Network for replays.

“We began planning for this event 18 months ago,” said Mike Copeland, Game Creek’s project manager. “Countless hours of preparation led to the largest single event in the history of remote television, and an outstanding on-air product for our longtime partner and client – Fox Sports.”

Game Creek Video is offers mobile production systems for live broadcasts and recordings. They are headquartered in Hudson, N.H.