KitPlus | Articles

Capture and Produce

Issue 94 - October 2014One of the hot topics at this year’s IBC was undoubtedly the growing adoption of end-to-end IP production and the imminent death of SDI. During a panel session, hosted by Mediasmiths and Cognizant, and including representatives from BBC, Sony and more, the key point made was that the adoption of IP production technology and w...

Submitted by Will Strauss#

Published 01 November 2014

Guaranteed Training?

by Mark Reed Issue 93 - September 2014 My dictionary says that training is “the action of teaching a person or animal a particular skill”. I’m not sure how many animals work in the TV industry but the point is, sound in the broadcast arena definitely requires taught skills. I consider myself one of the lucky ones. I went to a college recognised as...

Submitted by Mark Reed

Published 01 October 2014

Audio monitoring: critical to visual media services

by Simen Frostad Issue 89 - May 2014 Its a fact of TV broadcasting that audiences will tolerate reduced visual quality much more readily than any impairment to the audio. So long as the audio continues and is intelligible, viewers tend to put up with glitches in the video or even temporary loss of picture. But if a broadcaster lets the audio qualit...

Submitted by Simen Frostad

Published 01 June 2014

Object of desire

by Will Strauss Issue 89 - May 2014 If NAB is a decent yardstick, 2014 is all about 4k and why, when and how it might become a mainstream TV proposition. But in amongst all this pixel counting and discussion about higher frame rates, there is a subject that often gets forgotten but definitely deserves a mention, one that is closely linked to the in...

Submitted by Will Strauss#

Published 01 June 2014

Taking legacy content into the 4K world

by Josef MarcIssue 84 - December 2013 There are 780,000 UHDTVs already manufactured and poised to hit the marketplace, and the effects of those devices (and the factories that continue to make them) are unstoppable. UHDTV and 4K will be everywhere, sponsored by UHDTV manufacturers and content owners. 4K tablets are shipping as well. As the drumbeat...

Submitted by Josef Marc

Published 01 January 2014

Royal College of Art targets loudness with NUGEN Audio

by Mike WyeldIssue 83 - November 2013 In the world of cinema and filmmaking I like to imagine the UK\'s Royal College of Art needs no introduction. Weve had some amazing alumni; Director Sir Ridley Scott, novelist Len Deighton, and Sgt Pepper artist Peter Blake have all walked the halls. Vacuum designer James Dyson imagined his revolutionary vacuum...

Submitted by Mike Wyeld

Published 01 December 2013

Addressing lingering loudnes challenges

by Andrew SachsIssue 83 - November 2013 Why and how has loudness become such prominent issue?The loudness of the television commercials aired between program segments has been the source of consumer complaints and subsequent regulatory action in countries around the world. These complaints stem from the networks and advertisers economic incentives...

Submitted by Andrew Sachs

Published 01 December 2013

Will Strauss rounds up IBC 2013

by Will StraussIssue 82 - October 2013 Dear Reader. I have a confession. I did not visit every single one of the many hundreds of stands at IBC this year. In fact, I didnt even visit all 11 halls within the RAI. And I didnt talk to all 52,974 attendees. I was there. I have the stroopwafels to prove it. Its just that IBC is a massive show. And I am...

Submitted by Will Strauss#

Published 01 November 2013

Will Strauss looks at the growth of MediaCityUK and dock...

by Will StraussIssue 81 - September 2013 Whats up Dock?In less than three years Dock 10 has grown from a mere studio operator with add-ons to a fully-fledged digital media service provider. Will Strauss tracks the changes. MediaCityUK in Salford, Greater Manchester is exactly as the name suggests: a towering metropolis pumping out TV, radio and dig...

Submitted by Will Strauss#

Published 01 October 2013

A preview of this years IBC with Will Strauss

by Will StraussIssue 80 - August 2013 Writing an IBC preview when the show itself is still seven weeks away is never easy. Despite best intentions, lots of exhibitors havent yet shown their hands (or are still deciding which cards to play) and many of those that have, are really not giving much away. However, fear not dear reader. The next two page...

Submitted by Will Strauss#

Published 01 September 2013

Demystifying the black art of digital audio

by Alan WheableIssue 79 - July 2013 At the pure analogue end of the audio world (which these days is very narrow with much of the audio content being captured digitally) it is quite straight forward to check that an audio channel is present, that it sounds right and has the right levels. Likewise if the audio channel has hum or a buzz on it is rela...

Submitted by Alan Wheable

Published 01 August 2013

Ask the experts: Content readiness in time-deferred workf...

by Sudeep BoseIssue 79 - July 2013 What are the fundamental considerations that must be addressed to ensure the quality of non-real-time content, whether played out from a broadcasters media server or time-shifted for VOD and other OTT services?When focusing on the actual content itself, rather than the service, network or other components, the key...

Submitted by Sudeep Bose

Published 01 August 2013

Product spotlight: Sonifex Redbox RG-TGHDB

The Sonifex Redbox RB-TGHDB Multi-Channel High Definition Tone GeneratorThe Sonifex Redbox RB-TGHD is an 8 channel audio tone generator that provides line identification for multi-channel audio systems, including BLITS 5.1 and 7.1 surround sound typically used in high definition television broadcasts. By using a range of widely accepted industry st...

Submitted by KitPlus

Published 01 August 2013

Singularity - QA and compliance monitoring in one box

by Martin DysterIssue 79 - July 2013 The task of maintaining loudness-compliant, high-quality delivery for broadcast audio is no longer a question of simply using ones ears. Audio channels produced for todays fast-paced productions come in embedded SDI workflow with streaming signals containing a mix of mono, stereo, surround, Dolby encoded and des...

Submitted by Martin Dyster

Published 01 August 2013

Managing Loudness for Broadcast TV

Often viewed as the “ugly sister” when compared to its more glamorous rival video, audio is finally receiving some much deserved attention in broadcast circles. The trigger for this realisation is an increasing shift in awareness that viewers are interested in not just the pictures they are seeing, but equally the sound they are hearing. In particu...

Submitted by Anothony Wilkins

Published 01 June 2013