CBS Television has selected a Solid State Logic C100 digital broadcast console for use in the makeover of its fabled Los Angeles Studio 33.
The studio was home to Jack Benny and Danny Thomas and many others since its creation. Studio 33 is now used for "The Price Is Right" and HBO's "Real Time with Bill Maher" and "Helpline," among other productions.
The facility is being upgraded as part of the network's overall conversion to digital infrastructure.
Marc Hurd, director of technical operations at CBS Television said the installation of the new console was of particular importance in Studio 33, due to the requirement for quick changes between shows.
Greg Doughty, one of the audio mixers assigned to Studio 33 said that with the C100, "It takes just a couple of minutes and a few patches to get your show set up. It used to take forever--you had to go through every pot and every button manually. Now, when a show comes in, even if it's once a year, you can store your setup on the console; when they come back in, we recall it and are set to go."
Doughty said that CBS Television still has a number of SSL analog consoles in service and it's not difficult for operators to transition to the new digital models.
"The way it's laid out makes it easy to learn," Doughty said. "It's laid out like an analog console, so you don't have one knob that does everything. You have a whole EQ section, dynamics, everything. It's a lot quicker to learn from an analog console."
With the installation of the C156 in Studio 33, CBS Television is now using four C-series SSL consoles.
