CHARLOTTE, N.C.—NASCAR has chosen Calrec Audio’s Summa digital broadcast audio console for its studio upgrade.

Audio operators can control Summa via a 17-inch multi-touchscreen with a straightforward interface that uses established finger gestures to navigate the system. Bluefin2 technology gives Summa a pool of 180- or 128-channel processing paths, eight groups, four mains, 16 auxes and 32 tracks and its Hydra2 core provides Summa with the same integral router technology as the Apollo and Artemis consoles, the company said.

“Calrec’s reputation for sports coverage throughout the industry speaks volumes and made us the leading contender in their upgrade process,” says Rob Lewis, national technical sales, Calrec Audio. “As the most relied on brand in U.S. sports, many existing A1s are already very familiar with mixing on Calrec consoles.”

BURBANK, Calif.—As the largest privately held, minority-owned Spanish-language broadcaster in the United States, LBI Media Inc. produces more than 50 hours of original television programming at our Burbank Television Studios each week. Our Estrella TV programming catalog consists of more than 7,500 hours of original, Spanish-language television programming available nationally in genres such as talk, drama, comedy, variety, reality, music and more.

As a professional broadcasting company, with facilities nationwide and production studios in California and Texas, one of our main goals is to easily produce creative and engrossing broadcast audio as cost-effectively as possible. Our news studios’ fast-paced environments must be adaptable, quick to set up, easy to operate and able to shift focus as rapidly as the news itself. To accomplish this, we rely on Calrec Audio’s Brio 36 and Summa digital audio consoles, which enable us to work smarter (not harder) without compromising audio quality.

NEWS STUDIO UPGRADES AND BUILD-OUTS

We chose Calrec based on the company’s reputation within the industry and also to serve as a complement to the rental trucks we use, the majority of which come standard with Calrec consoles.

We purchased the Brio 36 earlier this year for LBI’s newly launched news operation in our Dallas office, while the Summa was acquired last year as part of the much-needed upgrade at our Burbank facility. When we replaced the existing console in the video control room in our Burbank facility, the audio engineers there immediately noticed a difference in the quality of the audio. Calrec delivers a pristine sound, which we were unable to attain with our previous console.

During the initial installation, Calrec also delivered top-notch technical support and training, which brought our team up to speed quickly and without interruption. I haven’t needed to speak to anybody at Calrec since; and, in all honesty, that says a lot about a company in my mind.

FAST-PACED PRODUCTIONS REQUIRE QUALITY EQUIPMENT

Smooth workflow is incredibly important to the successful operation of any broadcast operation, especially when going live. At LBI, we continually rely on both consoles for live programming for our local and national news shows, which include “Alarma TV,” “El Mameluco,” “iTestigo,” “Noticiero Cierra de Edicion,” “Noticiero Estrella TV” and “En Vivo.”

With the fast-paced nature of a live news broadcast, having Brio’s dedicated broadcast capabilities—such as scalable and managed I/O, comprehensive monitoring, surround sound and high-bus quantities—greatly improves workflow. This, in turn, ensures that LBI and its affiliate stations are producing top-notch content for viewers around the country.

SMALL SIZE, BIG (AUDIO) PUNCH

As with any studio, real estate is important in our production spaces. The compact form-factor of the Calrec Brio makes it an ideal general-purpose workhorse that can be used when needed; its connectivity with the company’s Hydra2-compatible equipment makes it even more versatile. Brio 36 even provides analog and digital I/O and GPIO, which are built into the surface, making the console ideally suited for the broadcast environment.

Both Calrec consoles have proven to be powerful, with great networking capabilities and the ability to scale to a large number of inputs and outputs. They are easy to drive, flexible and full of assistive features that allow us to concentrate on what’s coming up next.

Chris Buchanan has spent more than 30 years in television broadcast engineering. He was hired as the assistant chief engineer for KRCATV television in 1991 and was later promoted to chief engineer. When Liberman Broadcasting purchased the station, Buchanan remained on as the chief engineer and was promoted to vice president of engineering in 2005. He can be contacted atLBIinfo@lbimedia.com.

For more info, visitwww.calrec.comor contact.

HAYWARD, CALIF.—Chabot College has installed the latest upgrade to its Calrec Summa audio console. The upgrade to v.7.0 of the Summa software makes more efficient use of the college's TriCaster 8000 video production system and gives students greater control over audio content since the audio comes into the Summa first and then is passed to the TriCaster.

The 32-fader Summa console is used by broadcast students to mix audio for the TV station's entire lineup of live and recorded programs, and for hands-on training in mass communications classes. The college works in close cooperation with KPIX, the San Francisco CBS affiliate station, which also uses a Summa in its operation and provides one of its audio engineers as a part-time consultant to help students train on the console.

V.7.0 includes an upgrade to the IoS control features, which enable the mass communications instructor to operate and control the Summa using an iPad. Expanded audio-over-IP capabilities make for another improvement, important to the college since it is considering using Dante for moving uncompressed audio over a standard Ethernet network.

The community college installed the desk in its campus television studio in 2015 to enhance it hands-on training and give students experience with the same equipment they will encounter in a professional broadcast environment.

Sujoy K. Sarkar, general manager of Comcast 27 Chabot TV, the campus TV station, said the Summa has made a difference in the college’s ability to prepare broadcast students for their careers. "The students love the fact that they'll be able to go right to their first jobs with more professional experience than many of their peers from other schools,” he said in a press release.

College installations for Calrec in the United States include Chapman University, University of Missouri, New England School of Communications (NESCom) and WPSU, a PBS station out of Penn State's campus.

HEBDEN BRIDGE, ENGLAND—Penn State University’s PBS affiliate WPSU is gearing up for the new school year by updating its broadcast facility with Calrec Audio’s Summa digital mixing console.

The Summa at WPSU is linked into the network’s five studio spaces and serves as the main mixing console for the full live production lineup for the PBS station’s programs. Though the station, which has a partnership with the university’s School of Communications, installed the system in May, it will give students a chance to learn using the Summa this September.

Calrec Audio is a provider of audio mixing technology for on-air and live production.

HEBDEN BRIDGE, ENGLAND—Students in the New England School of Communications at Husson University in Bangor, Maine, now have the ability to get hands-on training with Calrec Audio’s Summa audio console.

Summa audio console

Video Production and audio engineering students use the Summa in a studio environment to produce live newscasts and recorded public affairs show. NESCom expects to expand the use of the Summa console to connect with the school’s remote production truck. Both the video production and journalism departments will also utilize the Summa console.

Calrec Audio is based in Hebden Bridge, England, and focuses on audio mixing products for on-air and live production.

HEBDEN BRIDGE, ENGLAND—Students at Chabot College in California now have the chance to train on the same equipment that their local CBS affiliate does with the addition of the Calrec Summa audio console to the college’s TV Studio.

Esmeralada Bautista, a broadcast student at Chabot College, trains on the Calrec Summa audio console.

The Calrec Summa audio console offers a 17-inch multitouch screen with a straightforward interface. It also features Bluefin2 technology that provides a pool of 180 or 128 channel processing paths, eight groups, four mains, 16 auxes, 32 tracks, and a Hyrda2 router core.

Students use the console to produce educational programs that are broadcast over close-circuit TVs to classrooms across campus and over cable television.

Calrec Audio is a provider of audio mixers based in Hebden Bridge, England.