ProSiebenSat.1 Produktion has installed 12 RTW TM9 TouchMonitor audio metering systems at its base in Unterföhring, near Munich, as part of a project to equip its four HD control rooms and eight edit suites to meet the EBU R128 loudness requirements, writes David Fox.
The HD control rooms are used for preproduction and broadcast. Four of the TM9 units are located on script carts in the each control room, three of which are equipped with Lawo mc² 66 digital consoles. The other eight TM9 units will be implemented in ProTools-based edit suites for post-processing and editing voice recordings and movies (including 5.1 productions). All twelve TM9 units have a mixed analogue and digital audio-interface configuration.
ProSiebenSat.1 Produktion provides TV productions and technical services within the ProSiebenSat.1 group, and nearly all ProSieben productions are created here. Like the majority of European broadcasters, ProSiebenSat.1 is adapting its infrastructure to comply with the EBU R128 loudness metering standards, and RTW’s TouchMonitor adheres to all the major standards, including R128, ITU-R BS.1770-2/1771, ATSC A/85 and ARIB. With the latest firmware, the TouchMonitor now offers RTW’s innovative MagicLRA instrument for an integrated view of loudness and loudness range.
“We have used RTW metering systems for a long time, so it was clear to me very early in the planning stage of this essential project that we would once more rely on that proven technology,” explained Joachim Hentschel, solution architect of media-based systems at ProSiebenSat.1 Produktion and the person in charge of converting and reconstructing the studios. He is on the left in the photograph, with RTW’s Technical Director, Mike Kahsnitz.
“A large number of RTW’s classic peak meters and SurroundMonitor 10800XM are already in use at ProSiebenSat.1 Produktion and we are very thrilled to add the TouchMonitor TM9 to our studio. Since our edit suites also include Tektronix video meters that integrate the RTW-licensed surround sound analyzer, we already know the intuitive surround view designed by RTW and will definitely use the same functionality provided by our new TouchMonitors.”
RTW offers two versions of the TouchMonitor, the seven-inch TM7 and nine-inch TM9 touch-sensitive displays. Their software can visualize multiple sources simultaneously and display the same signal on multiple instruments in parallel, each with dedicated defaults with both horizontal and vertical operation. It visualizes up to 16 analogue and/or digital sources at once, although the TM9 can provide a view of up to 32 digital channels if the 3G SDI option is implemented.
The technical team at ProSiebenSat.1 has also shown interest in the compact TM3 TouchMonitor, which will be begin shipping in April.
