Broadcast
 Broadcast Pix switchers are used by leading broadcasters worldwide in a wide variety of live video production applications. TV stations use them to do the news, weather and other live shows. Large stations use Broadcast Pix switchers as compact ancillary studios that are a far less costly and easier to staff than building a traditional control room. The compact size of a Broadcast Pix switcher makes it popular for mobile productions, including vans and flight packs. Broadcasters take advantage of the built-in graphics system and clips stores, and especially appreciated the integrated Multi-View monitor as it provides unprecedented visual feedback to the switcher operator. The Slate 2100 switcher, which features an iBoB or intelligent Break-out-Box are especially popular with Broadcasters for highly robust systems with added redundancy.
Broadcast Pix User Reports
Broadcast Pix ships its 200th Slate HD unit, and its 1000th system, to WRAL-TV
 Broadcast Pix™ has sold its 200th Slate HD unit and 1000th overall Broadcast Pix SD or HD system, by Technical Video Systems in Cary NC, to WRAL-TV, a CBS affiliate that broadcasts to the Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina market. The pioneering digital TV broadcaster has purchased two Broadcast Pix Slate™ 5000 HD live production systems for WRAL NewsChannel, a 24-hour channel offering WRAL news, sports and weather. The systems will be installed in new chroma key studios built specifically for pre-production of WRAL NewsChannel HD programming, and will go live in December.
wral-com.gifWRAL has long been a digital TV innovator, transmitting the first live terrestrial digital signal in July 1996. In 2005, WRAL began transmitting sports, news and other live programming to Sprint wireless customers using the “News Over Wireless” platform developed by station owner Capitol Broadcasting’s CBC New Media Group. The new Slate 5000 HD systems will also be used for pre-production of WRAL News Over Wireless programming.
WRAL has been a Broadcast Pix customer for three years, using its Slate SD platform for WRAL NewsChannel standard definition programming. According to Pete Sockett, Chief Engineer for WRAL-TV, cost-savings and single-operator approach of Broadcast Pix drove the decision to purchase Slate 5000 HD systems for his new studios.
“This all comes down to being a one-man band,” said Sockett. “The integration of a clip store, still store and graphics makes it simple for one person to run the control room. And compared to building legacy HD control rooms, the Slate 5000 HD reduces equipment costs by as much as $100,000 per studio because it integrates so many production elements into a single unit.”
According to Sockett, the new chroma key studios will drive WRAL’s focus to produce more local programming without impeding on the production workflow in the main control room. The compact, single-operator platform of the Slate 5000 HD allowed Sockett and his team to build out “mini studios” for talking head interviews, web programming, News Over Wireless updates, and special green-screen projects. The Slate 5000 HD is the centerpiece of the new studios. The Broadcast Pix Slate 5000™ HD is the only live 2 M/E production switcher to include an integrated multi-view monitoring system, clip stores, still stores, character generator and aspect and format conversion. A solo operator can manage complex graphics, animations, clips and effects, as well as control robotic cameras, audio mixers, and video servers. It provides a dramatic improvement over conventional 2 M/E control rooms which typically cost three times as much to buy and three times as much to staff.
KHQ-DT using Broadcast Pix Slate 2100 Live TV Production System to Produce ‘Weather Plus Updates’ for DTV and Web Broadcasts
Slate 2100 switcher with integrated graphics, clips and monitoring offloads main control room
April 10, 2007
KHQ-DT, the NBC affiliate in Spokane, Washington, is using its Slate™ 2100 live television production system for single-operator production of the station’s “Weather Plus Updates.” The weather report is broadcast daily on its DTV channel 6-2; carried locally by Comcast Cablevision, and available from the station’s Web site, www.khq.com. The updates are also fed to two other Central Washington stations owned by KHQ—KNDO-DT in Yakima and KNDU-DT in Kennewick—for broadcast on their DTV secondary channels and Web sites. All three stations rely on the Slate 2100 system’s performance when producing the updates since the weather can change rapidly and dramatically throughout the region.
The Broadcast Pix Slate 2100 system integrates a production switcher, production control panel, Inscriber CG, transitional effects, chromakeyer, clip store, and multi-view monitoring, among other functions, in a single workstation-based system. The system can be operated with a production switcher-style control panel or by using a keyboard and mouse interface. In addition to the Slate 2100 system’s integrated design, KHQ found the system’s compact footprint ideal for its situation. The Slate 1000, installed in late 2006, now serves as the centerpiece for a new space called Production Control 2.
“During the first year that we produced Weather Plus Updates, we had been using our main production control room,” said Doug Miles, KHQ’s production manager. “We soon found that sharing these resources with the other daily productions that needed to be done from the same rooms made things logistically difficult. Our Weather Plus Updates were tying up the main control room and studio for about five hours a day, and we didn’t always have the rooms available to take Weather Plus Updates live in severe weather emergencies. Since Production Control 2 is extremely space-challenged, it was critical to have an integrated production switcher that could be managed entirely by a single operator, as opposed to our main production control room which requires a director, technical director, and audio person.”
Weather Plus Updates are polished TV weather reports formatted as two or four-minute recorded segments and updated seven times a day using the Slate 2100 platform. A KHQ meteorologist provides the latest weather forecast illustrated by satellite and Doppler radar maps, 3D animated weather maps, as well as live video shots showing current weather conditions. The video plays inside a window that’s bordered by an “L-Bar” graphic that displays the humidity, time, and temperature in the left-hand vertical bar, and icons for the six day forecast along the horizontal bar underneath the video.
Another feature that empowers a single operator to manage every aspect of a video production is Scripts, a companion software to the Broadcast Pix system that automates program execution, including chromakeys, camera takes, dissolves, and graphics and other roll-ins.
“With Scripts, the Slate 2100 remembers all your button pushes from start to finish as you go through your show–which cameras to take, which lower third supers to display, and rolling in any video and music elements. Then in subsequent production run-throughs, it can automatically recall all of those moves in their precise order,” said Miles. “All the operator has to do is push a button and cue the talent. This feature can store the settings for several different show formats, which will be useful should we expand our ‘Updates’ programming in the future.”
Formerly a newsroom edit suite, Production Control 2 is a six by six foot space adjacent to an auxiliary set dedicated to producing Weather Plus Updates, as well as news and elections updates. The studio, which is equipped with several four Panasonic robotic cameras, has a green screen chromakey wall for keying weather graphics generated by a WSI weather graphics presentation system.
While the Slate 2100 packs the functionality of an entire television production control room in a single box, KHQ chose to supplement it with two large Sony flat screen color monitors for program and preview displays; as well as a small Tascam audio board, MP3 player for music beds, and an Avid Airspeed playout server for bringing video roll-ins into the system. The operator can also route two or more sources from anywhere in the station, such as a live video shot from a field camera.
About KHQ-DT Located in Spokane, Washington, KHQ-DT is an NBC affiliate owned by Coles Company which airs programming daily in both HDTV and SDTV. KHQ produces a two-hour live morning show from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m., as well as live newscasts at 5 p.m., 6 p.m., 9 p.m., and 11 p.m. Also, at 10 p.m., KHQ’s news department produces the live 10 p.m. newscast for KAYU, the local FOX affiliate, from KHQ’s main studio and control room. The station also offers regular news and weather updates on its DTV secondary channel 6-2, which is carried by Comcast Cablevision in Spokane on its Channel 115, as well as via video on demand at its Web site, www.khq.com
WLAE-TV Selects Broadcast Pix Based on All-in-One Capability, Compact Size
 PBS affiliate, WLAE-TV in New Orleans, recently installed a Broadcast Pix 2000 switcher in a remote truck being used by the station’s production company, LAE Productions. LAE Productions won a contract to begin broadcasting area high school football games on the local cable system, Cox Cable of Baton Rouge. The first game was broadcast live on August 25, 2006.
Broadcast Pix was the only switcher that featured a built-in CG and clip store. We can complete a production with our new switcher and never need to run anything through post. Plus, it’s really compact, so fits easily within our truck. Because of its high-quality graphics and integrated approach, we’re confident it will greatly improve the quality of our field productions as well increase our overall speed and efficiency.
- Ron Yager, Station Manager
WLAE-TV and LAE Productions, New Orleans, LA
HD Pioneer WRAL Uses Broadcast Pix to Tailor HD for SD Newscasts
from the October 2006 issue of TV Technology
Using the same HD footage and graphics residing in the BitCentral server and the ENPS rundowns, our news producers work to build our 15 minute SD news wheel. We built-a small studio with a Broadcast Pix production switcher that a single TD or producer can operate to switch between two cameras, as well as handle all of the lower third supers and over the shoulder graphics overlays.
- Pete Sockett, Chief Engineer
WRAL
CBS Affiliate
Raleigh-Durham, NC
Broadcast Pix Helps Startup FOX Affiliate Launch Cost-Effective
Local News Presence
from the June 2006 issue of TV Technology
By: Dave Cox, Chief Engineer, WPFO-TV, Portland, Maine
All startup television stations are faced with an immediate series of challenges in the early years as the direction of the station takes shape. None of these challenges loom larger than those of the financial nature. These financial challenges are usually tied to technology and programming decisions that will ultimately drive the station’s success with local viewers.
WPFO-TV, the FOX affiliate for Portland, Maine, launched in late 2003. The station’s current and previous general managers decided against initially launching a traditional 30-60 minute dedicated news program, and turned to more creative ideas for a local news presence. The station struck a relationship with WLOB-AM-FM, a local radio station with a popular morning show heard throughout much of the state. The partnership would allow WPFO to broadcast live news updates from the radio show over the local television airwaves.
We started evaluating technology in July 2005, with a plan to launch the show November 1. The tight deadline, along with budgetary concerns, required a cost-effective production facility with easy-to-install equipment. We soon settled on the Broadcast Pix 2000 system.
The Broadcast Pix system offered several benefits over competitive live production systems, notably its amazing versatility. Still, the cost savings were tremendous; we immediately saved up to $60-70K compared to traditional production switchers, not mention the separate graphics and monitoring systems that would be required for a traditional production crew. Staffing costs were also reduced since only one dedicated operator was required to run the system.
The system is housed in a dedicated production control room that ties to WPFO master control. TheBroadcast Pix suite also features a Mackie Onyx audio board, a Denon CD player, Panasonic monitors, and various synchronization components. This equipment is all instrumental in the final product we create for live broadcast. The system also offers plenty of analog outputs, 601 digital outputs, and component outputs for monitoring to provide maximum flexibility.
The Broadcast Pix 2000 switcher is designed like a traditional switcher, with all of the keying capabilities an operator requires to create a high quality on-air look. The learning curve was amazingly simple as the layout provides everything the operator needs with reduced complexity. The main switcher features a joystick to control two Sony BRC-300 robotic cameras at the radio studio for capturing video. Fiber-optic lines connect the two studios over a four-mile distance, using the RS-232 control standard with Broadcast Pix software to remotely control camera movements over a bidirectional data link. The operators can also recall camera presets through the switcher to manipulate specific live shots.
The news updates run approximately every 15 minutes in five-to-seven minute increments. Our operators produce news spots in between segments and incorporate them into the Broadcast Pix 2000, often obtaining stories from FOX News. They can also produce bumpers with a Denon CD player that connects directly to a Broadcast Pix input.
The Broadcast Pix 2000 offers Internet connectivity as a major benefit. Co-host Ray Richardson often has political guests call in or appear on the set. Our head operator, Brian McArthur, creates files of political guests and recalls them through the switcher. The graphics are created using the system’s internal Inscriber graphics system. Brian can connect to the Internet, download headshots and related graphical information (such as titles), and create files for future use. He often builds graphics on the fly for immediate live broadcast when new guests appear without warning.
 The fiber network features several audio and video channels to feed the material originating at WLOB back to the WPFO studio. The audio is run through the Mackie board and we manipulate the levels to create the best possible quality for the television broadcast. The audio is split two ways: it feeds the Mackie after passing through an audio distribution amplifier and an audio delay, which synchronizes the audio with the Broadcast Pix-produced video. A second parallel feed is sent to a Leitch frame synchronizer to time all programming elements as they are sent into the master control switcher. This setup allows the video and audio to be routed separately to master control while being perfectly synchronized.
Monitoring is achieved by connecting the Broadcast Pix system’s component outputs to Panasonic LCD displays, which is another benefit for our space limitations. The monitors are used for Program and Preview monitoring, while the computer monitor provides a complete look at the Broadcast Pix system for live show production, WLOB communications (usually instant messaging or e-mail), and Internet access for building graphics on the fly.
The Broadcast Pix 2000 is an extremely versatile system that has provided our station with a cost-effective, technically sound entry into live production. Our expectation is that in addition to helping us continually improve the quality of our broadcast, this system will eventually help us achieve new revenue streams as the quality of the show’s content improves.
Dave Cox is Chief Engineer with WPFO-TV. He has a rich background in broadcast engineering, dating to his work in the service with Armed Forces Radio and Television. He has since built a resume of RF and studio engineering at call letter stations.
Broadcast Pix Wins Success with Broadcasters in Finland
By: Eero Saarinen, President of Mediatrade (www.mediatrade.fi)
Since its launch two years ago, the Broadcast Pix Studio 2000 has become a very popular product in Finland for customers who want a compact but powerful mixing solution with full featured graphics and keying. Mediatrade Oy, the Broadcast Pix distributor in Finland, has created special applications using Broadcast Pix systems for the educational market and a national broadcaster. A total of seven (7) Broadcast Pix Studio 2000 systems are currently in use throughout Finland.
Transportable studios
Utilizing the unique capability to control cameras and pan/tilt systems, Mediatrade created transportable systems monitoring instructional methods at the University of Oulu. Four (4) Hitachi HV-30 cameras are remote controlled from Broadcast Pix, and the camera feeds and the mixed output are delivered to a multi-channel Proxsys MAM recorder at high quality. Proxies are automatically generated and uploaded to a server for examination by scientists using a web browsing application. Metadata and search material can be added to create EDLs and DVDs with the system. This is quite a leap from the previous workflow using multiple VHS tapes. Two other systems integrate Broadcast Pix and Canon XL-H1s to a transportable studio for educational and digital signage applications.
Automated Local News
Mediatrade has also created a system with a national broadcaster to produce automated local news in eight locations throughout the country. We suggested Broadcast Pix for both technical and financial reasons. The latter was especially important: With only a ten minute news bulletin scheduled for daily production and broadcast daily, it was imperative that both investment and operational cost were kept to a minimum low. Broadcast Pix Studio 2000 allowed the broadcaster to achieve this goal, as only two people were required to produce each bulletin (the anchor and one technical operator in the gallery).
Based on commands from a playout server, Studio 2000 selects the cameras and keys simultaneously and sends graphical backgrounds to each camera signal. Three remote controlled Hitachi cameras connect to three system inputs. The system’s three independent still stores allow the broadcaster to send signals from the cameras back to the switcher without delays. The result is actually a simple virtual studio. The integrated Inscriber character generator in Studio 2000 generates the lower thirds and supplementary graphics based on commands from the server.
In summary, the integrated capability of the Broadcast Pix Studio 2000 provides highly cost effective solutions to many different needs in television today. Not only does an integrated studio give a cost saving on the capital investment but also on the manpower needs in the studio, and no product on the market provides the quality level and value for money that Broadcast Pix provides.
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The cost savings were tremendous. Staffing costs were also reduced since only one dedicated operator was required to run the system.