When it comes to television pictures, the public has enjoyed a seemingly ceaseless run of improvements.
Look no further than the sheer size of the TVs viewers watch, as the average screen size in Europe has climbed from 32 inches 15 years ago to 50 inches in 2024. What’s on those screens hasn’t stood still either.
Standard definition gave way to high definition, which is slowly giving way to 4K UHD. That’s roughly 20x more pixels than an SD set. And don’t forget the superior dynamic range between the darkest darks and brightest brights—not to mention the far greater colour palette—that today’s HDR TVs offer.
Progress on the audio side of the TV equation, however, has proven to be a bit slower. Of course, there’s 5.1 and 7.1 surround sound. Even immersive sound, leveraging object-based audio technology, is steadily advancing. But each of these has proven to be a complicated art, especially when it comes to mic’ing and mixing live sports.
Fortunately for those producing and watching live sports, Shure recently unveiled the DCA901 Digital Broadcast Array, powered by advanced lobe-steering algorithms that utilise 78 array elements, two built-in automixers, and eight steerable lobes to capture and isolate on-field sound with exceptional precision, giving home audiences audio that’s every bit as engaging as the game itself.
Sports audio challenges
Audio pickup at sporting events is a well-established discipline. A combination of shotgun, parabolic and wireless lavalier mics is typically used and quite effective. However, there are limitations.
Often, it’s difficult to cover all of the areas of the field. Crowd noise can make it impossible to pick up desired sound from the field in certain situations, and frequently, sports leagues and organisations impose strict requirements on mic placement, which can compound problems with total field coverage.
In September at IBC2025 in Amsterdam, Shure unveiled its new DCA901 to address these limitations. It offers unprecedented audio pickup and control for a wide range of sports, including basketball and football (soccer), as well as news studios and entertainment productions.
The timing of the introduction could not have been better. In the lead-up to the largest international football tournament in the world, the DCA901 gives broadcasters a far more capable drop-in replacement for the governing association’s 12 mandated positions for shotgun microphones. (That is three along each sideline, one in each corner and one behind each goal.)
When paired with control software, such as Edge Sound Research’s positioning data-driven solution, Virtual Sound Engine, the DCA901 delivers total coverage of the pitch, ensuring even the sound of a kick 30 or more metres away from the sideline is captured.
The tech and setup
The DCA901’s 78 elements fan out to pick up audio from eight individually steerable lobes, offering far wider coverage than traditional analogue setups. Being able to steer each lobe makes pre-game setup easy.
Eliminating spatial aliasing and phase misalignment with synchronised processing, the DCA901 relies upon a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) to provide eight audio channels, stereo and mono automix outputs and Pre-Fader Listen (PFL).
Typically, the automixers select the maximum number of lobes based on acoustic energy. However, when used with software from Edge Sound Research or similar control software, tracking data automatically controls which lobes are active to ensure pickup of the desired sound from the pitch.
The DCA901’s DSP also enables beamforming with precise directional control as well as noise reduction to minimise ambient sound for clear audio in loud environments like football stadiums and Parametric Equalising (PEQ) to fine-tune for tonal clarity.
Dropping in 12 DCA901 arrays in place of shotgun mics for football blankets the pitch with 96 steerable lobes (eight lobes per array) to ensure that wherever sound originates on the pitch, it will be captured.
Replacing shotgun mics with the arrays and Edge Sound Research control software solves the problem of football crowd noise, which frequently is so loud that it is nearly impossible to capture sound on the pitch.
The Edge Sound Research Virtual Sound Engine software leverages tracking data from an in-venue tracking system, such as Hawkeye, and, based on the ball’s or a player’s location, turns on only the channels where the desired action is occurring. That could be two lobes or more, depending on the location of the target.
The software makes gating decisions based on the tracking data rather than acoustic energy but also provides for manual control with a finger touch on a touchscreen.
Beyond the pitch
Of course, the DCA901 is perfect for any other TV production application beyond the football pitch. It’s well-suited to basketball, golf, baseball and other sports productions. Depending on the sport, different setups are recommended. For instance, in basketball, two DCA901s—one on each backboard stanchion—provide full-court coverage, picking up shoe squeaks and dribbles as players run down the court.
In documentary work, the DCA901 enables producers to capture the full sound field with a single array, even when there are strict restrictions on crew size and the amount of technology available.
In TV studios, the array supports a couple of important applications. The DCA901’s steerable lobes ensure the voice of a reporter, anchor or meteorologist walking around a set will be picked up regardless of location. An array can also be mounted in the lighting grid as a backup to ensure pick up of usable audio in the event a wireless mic on talent fails.
With unmatched performance on and off the pitch and so many possibilities, it’s easy to see why the Shure DCA901 will make its presence felt in TV production for years to come.
