The Switch has been in the Boston market over the past year providing broadcast TV end-users with a cost effective solution for SDI and HD-SDI local fiber circuitry.

This month's program's focus was The Switch's expansion of their switching and transmission network from six existing cities to fifty cities over the next year.  More important, The Boston Switch, located at 250 Bent Street in Cambridge, will be operational by late October/early November. The Switch will feature 3G/HD/SDI customer-controlled, community switching services as well as competitive inter-city transmissions via its Inter-City On Demand (ICOD) Network.

What does this mean to you?

• The ICOD network will comprise 50 cities using a 10 Gbps mesh network capable of transmitting in uncompressed 3G, HD, JPEG 2000 and 270 Mbps SDI.

• The Switch's existing six-city network (New York City, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Toronto and Washington D.C.) will also be upgraded.

• Unlimited 24/7/365 customer-controlled community switching for all customers connected to The Boston Switch - no need for phone calls or emails.  Local and long distance connectivity is available with the touch of a few buttons.

• Each Switch city will connect to all 50 locations through its Inter-City On Demand (ICOD) network via The Switch's pay-per-minute long haul fiber transmission service.

Eric, Howard and Meredith discussed how The Boston Switch's new services might help meet your local connectivity needs, as well as your long distance domestic and international transmission needs.

MAYAH Communications was our host for the June meeting.  MAYAH's focus is on the technology for Audio over IP, N/ACIP, SIP and other related issues with real time audio broadcast quality over IP, 3G, BGAN, ISDN, and POTS transmission to non-MAYAH codecs.

The focus of the meeting was primarily targeted on the emerging Audio over IP issues for audio codecs.  Unlike ISDN, which was very simple and reliable, IP raises new issues to provide the quality of service needed for reliable and quality audio for radio and ENG.  (ISDN is fading from the market gradually due to costs and availability).  Factors that influence effective Audio over IP were discussed, including:

• CODEC and compression algorithms

• Latency, Quality and bit rates

• N/ACIP and SIP protocol for connectively to all codecs

• Audio-via-IP Experts Group

• Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), RTP and Voice-over-IP

• vADSL vs. SDSL QOS( Quality of Service) for internet transmission

• Remote audio over IP: 3G, WLAN, BGAN

• MAYAH’s approach to ISDN and IP codecs

Lester Miyasaki of WTI presented and demonstrated its newest in the SideWinder series of mast/surveillance cameras, the SideWinder HD.  The SideWinder HD features 2-megapixel CMOS sensors, 20x optical zoom lens with a 16:9 widescreen format. 

Wireless Technology Incorporated, based in Ventura, California, was founded in 1984 and has provided innovative solutions for video surveillance systems worldwide.  WTI supplies tower, building and mast mounted cameras to numerous TV stations as well as manufacturers such as Accelerated Media, Frontline Communications and ENG Mobile Systems.

David (Shack) Haralambou, of By Request Communications discussed what you, the customer needs to do to get the most out of an outside integrator.  His topics included: 

• Why hire an outside integrator?  What are the benefits and drawbacks?

• Realistic timetables (not just the on-air date)

• Documentation deliverables from the integrator (pre-build)

• Documentation deliverables from the customer (pre-build)

• Review periods

• Access issues

• Staffing requirements from the customer side

• Labor requirements and expectations

• Standards (OK, recommended practices anyway)

• Testing and training (post-install)

• Building an issue list both the customer and integrator can agree on

• Final acceptance procedures (post-install)

• Documentation deliverables (post-install)

• Final project review (post acceptance)

Phil Owens, from Wheatstone, spoke about TV Audio and Audio Networking over IP, with details about:

• The Wheatstone D8 TV audio console -- everything needed for live audio mixing in medium and small market stations, remote trucks, or secondary on-air/production rooms in larger facilities. 30 motorized faders, 24 input channels, four submasters, two main buses and two aux buses.  True surround mixing.  Extensive on-board processing. 

• Wheatnet -- Intelligent IP system of audio networking over IP -- A look at Wheatstone's IP audio networking in a broadcast facility.

• Phil also gave a pre-NAB preview of some new goodies.

Belden presented an introduction to its 10GX Pre-Terminated Cabling System, a Category 6 Pre-Term intended to save time and money, with no

compromise to performance and reliability and a green solution.  The system has been specifically designed to support mission-critical needs for bandwidth-intensive applications such as uncompressed high resolution digital video, medical imaging, digital animation, CAD/CAM, high-speed data storage or cluster computing.

Ideal for all types of data centers, Belden understands the ultimate goal in data center networks is zero downtime or ‘extreme’ network availability.  In a risk-averse environment with very strict schedule constraints and budgets, demanding reliability and performance without compromise is a must.  Belden’s 10GX Pre-Terminated Cabling System delivers fast-deployment, with built-in reliability combined with guaranteed performance and headroom.  Moreover, the system is fully supported under Belden's IBDN 10GX Certification Program including guaranteed bandwidth of 625MHz, total support for 10 Gb/s Ethernet, and Belden’s 25-Year IBDN product warranty.

January's meeting was cancelled due to inclement weather.  (Snow in New England -- who knew?)

Steve DeFala, Northeast Regional Sales Manager - Broadcast Sales, described, and showed, an exciting new concept in ENG Van technology.  Based on the Ford Transit truck chassis, this vehicle provides a very flexible and efficient platform for today's smaller news crews and is an affordable alternative to a full size ENG van.  The compact size makes urban live shots a breeze.  A shorter wheelbase and lower center of gravity contribute to the vehicle's overall ease of maneuverability which includes parallel parking - a must for any operator in an urban environment.  The compact pneumatic mast, low maintenance design, and efficient workflow platform come together in a cost effective system.  After lunch, attendees were able to inspect the van, which was parked outside the restaurant.

This month's meeting was held during the 2010 New England Broadcast Cable Expo (NEBCExpo).  Tom Jennings of Accelerated Media Technologies spoke about their new IP-based ENG trucks.

MAYAH Communications presented a program focusing on audio over IP, N/ACIP, SIP and other related issues with real time audio broadcast quality IP, 3G, BGAN, ISDN, POTS transmission.  The products discussed included:

• C11 Product Family - C11 Ultra Small, codecs provide Audio-over-IP based on EBU N/ACIP standards using Ethernet, 3G networks, BGAN, Flashcast^TM auto-connect ISDN to all non-MAYAH codecs, ASI and POTS.  C11 is extremely compact 1/2 19" 1 RU, low power, fan less and easily stackable up to eight units in standard 19" 5RU racks with redundant power supply along with algorithms from G.711/G.722, Eapt-X^®, apt-X^® and Linear to AAC ELD. 

• SPORTY - New Portable Reporter CODEC: the ultimate tool for live reports, sports, news, voice over, radio interviewers and commentators.  Supporting audio transmissions 2 XLR + 2 Line In over Ethernet/IP, UMTS/3G, WLAN/Wi-Fi, ISDN and POTS with direct audio logging/playback to SD card or USB Stick during transmission!  Up to 5 hours battery life.

• FLASHMAN II - The Next Generation Portable Recorder IP CODEC provides two professional microphone/line XLR inputs for recording to SD card or USB Stick in both advanced and conventional audio formats.  Simultaneous live transmission over Ethernet/IP, UMTS/3G, WLAN/Wi-Fi with SIP/RTP per EBU Audio-over-IP standards.

• CENTAURI III 4000 - Radio-to-MPEG-Transcoder.  8 Stereo FM/RDS Signals are transcoded to MPEG TS!

Spectra Logic presented a program shedding light on the realities of data tape storage, covering content access and performance requirements, as well as the technology advancements that make it possible to address demanding throughput goals while preserving hundreds of thousands of hours of digital video content.  Hossein ZiaShakeri, SVP Business Development & Alliances, examined how advances in data tape make it the ideal, most viable storage platform for handling growing video data sets – all at much faster speeds and while making it easy to retrieve video content.  He also showed why tape, integrated with disk, makes sense as a pain-free component of a tiered archiving ecosystem.

Broadcast Electronics' new line of low power (1 kW - 5 kW) solid state FM transmitters, with advanced features including frequency agility, scalable output power, IP enabled and HD-compatible.  Criss Onan, Senior Eastern Regional Sales Manager at Broadcast Electronics, showed a STX-1 transmitter shell (enclosure with knobs, switches, etc., less innards) and described the new transmitters.  Criss also asked for feedback from the group so Broadcast Electronics can provide future enhancements that match the broadcasters' needs.

Did I just hear someone say "tape was easier?"  Well, sometimes file-based commercial delivery and ingest do get a little messy.  Today, master control operators have to deal with various delivery services, methods, file formats, codecs, transcoders, electronic dub lists, and the magic word that can hopefully tie it all together: metadata.  But the processes involved are far from uniform.  Cris Nuernberg from Floripa Integration discussed this topic and introduced ideas and solutions that may enhance operations at individual stations.  Perhaps it's time to provide the correct tools and standard procedures that can properly hand traffic back to the Traffic department.  What if operators could open one system and all spots were there, waiting for them?  That would be easier than tape!  http://floripaintegration.com/r/N6c2q0I

A special monthly meeting was held on a Saturday, open exclusively to SBE members, for a tour of the United States Air Force PavePAWS radar station on Cape Cod.  Very special thanks go out to Lt. Colonel Max E. Lantz II, Commander, 6th Warning Squadron Cape Cod Air Force Station, Captain Philip Menchaca and Barbara Burnett, who worked for several months to coordinate this tour for our group. The fact that Colonel Lantz, Capt. Menchaca, and the other escorts gave up free time on a weekend for the tour is sincerely appreciated.

Jim Latimer of Symetrix discussed the technology aspects of audio processing and gave a comprehensive demonstration of the latest AirTools products, including the brand new Multiband Processor 2m, and the Voice Processor 2x.

“Hear Factor” focuses on understanding the need for loudness metering and control in television audio, from original content creation, to ingest, to final transmission.  It also demonstrates some of the “gotchas” of metadata including DIALNORM, and how stations can use upmixing of stereo to surround so that their sound doesn’t collapse when transitioning from network to local programming.

Don Cardone, from Linear Acoustic, gave a presentation that examined the reasoning behind the recently published ATSC Recommended Practice A/85, “Techniques for Establishing and Maintaining Audio Loudness for Digital Television,” and revealed simple and effective means for broadcast facilities to implement the practices.  The Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation Act (CALM) legislation H.R.1084 and S.2847 passed by the U.S. House and pending in the Senate directly references A/85, mandating the FCC to enforce the recommended practices.

Keith Pelletier, Director of Engineering, SPX/Dielectric, gave a presentation on IBOC implementation for FM stations.  He focused on specific data relative to the isolation required between the analog and digital systems, and discussed common amplification and high level combining techniques.

New England Broadcast and Cable Expo, DCU Center, Worcester, MA.

T-Mobile recently launched UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service) services in the Boston area under their FCC AWS (Advanced Wireless Services) E block license (2140-2145 MHz).  They are currently preparing for continued growth in the FCC AWS A block spectrum, which is directly adjacent to channel A7r at the upper end of the 2 GHz ENG band.  Kevin Glassman and Dan Wilson from T-Mobile described the special steps T-Mobile is taking to minimize ENG interference, and shared their field trial and implementation experiences. They also outlined their AWS program and roll-out timetable for the Boston area.

Chris Regan, North American Sales Manager, APT Limited, took a look at private IP links, Metropolitan Ethernet links, and the first wide scale North American deployment of MPLS virtual network links for IP audio distribution. 

By now most of us have heard about IP audio and many are beginning to deploy it in various ways.  The majority of deployments so far have accepted compromises in order to achieve specific goals, such as better remote access (for remotes), or to achieve connections at the lowest possible cost (for low cost backup or repeater STLs).  However, when you have read about Audio over IP you will have noted that a frequent caveat is that circuits with proper Quality of Service (QoS) are recommended for pro-grade applications.

The application of these network technologies for high quality compromise-free distribution of audio were explained in detail.  In addition, these technologies were contrasted with the IP techniques designed to work over compromised networks and the advantages and disadvantages of each approach were discussed.

Dennis Heymans of Myat, Incorporated discussed a number of new technologies and solutions for broadcast transmission. His talk included: 

• The IBOC “LO-LOSS SOLUTION” —  a new and unique high level combining filter with extremely low transmission loss and better overall efficiency for the station.

• Mobile Media Filters — This is the hot new world of DVB-H transmission at 700 MHz and L-Band.

• New developments in DTV filters — You may remember that Myat pioneered temperature compensated dual mode DTV filters that need no cooling fans or thermal jackets. They didn’t stop there, and Dennis will bring us up to date on this and other developments in radio and TV systems.

Founded in the 1950’s, Myat Incorporated has grown to be a well known leader in transmission line systems and components, and is the only transmission system company that remains under its founding management.

Karl Graebener, regional sales manager of Canare Cable, discussed the new SMPTE 311 HFO (Hybrid Fiber Optic) connector for cameras and CCUs.  Canare has a series of in-wall (and equipment rack) HFO panels that allow for the simple integration of the new connector into a facility.  Additionally they provide HFO camera cables, HFO breakout assemblies, an HFO tester and the CLEPTOP HFO cleaning sticks.  Virtually all new arenas and stadiums (including the new Yankees Stadium and the Mets Citi Field) are installing HFO infrastructure.  Additionally the majority of new HD Mobile Trucks built over the last year are HFO interconnected throughout.

Another product line discussed was a Single Mode Fiber Optic system.  Canare has a series or EO/OE (Electrical to Optical/Optical to Electrical) cards that enable the transport of HD/SDI/ASI, AES audio, RS-422/232 and Ethernet over single mode fiber connections.  Up to 16 of these signals can be multiplexed onto one single mode fiber.  Canare has three different sized card cage/power supplies for these cards to allow for flexibility in deployment.

This month's meeting consisted of a special tour of the new WGBH studio facility.  In June of 2007, WGBH and WGBX began broadcasting from their brand-new facilities in Brighton.  A multi-year project, this 343,000 square-foot new location houses the two television stations as well as WGBH-FM. Special thanks to Mike Foti, Dave St. Onge and WGBH for their time and generosity in hosting the event.

Whodunit? Floripa Integration can add much needed flexibility and accountability to file-based workflows.

File-based workflows don't always (if ever) generate accountability.  In its simplest form, file-based workflows revolve around a "drop folder" monitored by a transcoding server.  This situation does not make use of available metadata, eliminate typos, or add accountability.  When things go wrong, managers often find themselves asking around for the answer to "whodunit?"

Cambridge-based Floripa Integration introduced two of its products, DLogger and DubCentral, and discussed SD/HD file-based workflow, commercial and promo distribution/ingestion, and the significance and applications of technologies such as BXF and AFD.

DubCentral offers a complete video ingestion workflow for commercials and promos by integrating with traffic systems, catch servers, transcoding software, and automation systems.  When needed, DubCentral allows operators to easily up/down convert video, remap audio channels, and manage ancillary data (without having to create new transcoder profiles or factories).  Together with Floripa's PromoBox, DubCentral creates a distribution and automatic ingest solution for promos and commercials produced in-house.  More at http://floripaintegration.com/r/o767J3A.

DLogger combines, in a single location, years of asrun logs, traffic schedules, operator sign on/off, discrepancies, and closed captioning notifications.  Some of DLogger's features include: multi-channel, multi-timezone, web-based color-coded asrun logs; real-time recon and warning system; and search across date ranges by house number, ISCI code, Ad-Id, or title.  Volicon customers can benefit from a tight integration with Observer for broadcast monitoring and review.  More at http://floripaintegration.com/r/R7d2E.  

Hirschmann Mission-Critical Ethernet systems.  Hirschmann offers Ethernet equipment that works in the environments others can't – equipment exposed to harsh weather, dusty and hot building cores, bumpy and noisy broadcast trucks, and mobile onsite equipment.

Jon Judson, Regional Sales Manager-Northeast presented an overview of Hirschmann's products, with an eye toward showing how to ensure the valuable broadcast signal will reach newsrooms even while covering  hurricanes and other disasters. Hirschmann is a division of Belden, Inc.

Arbitron is beginning the roll-out of its new PPM system of audience measurement in the Boston region.  They are presently "live" with PPM in Philadelphia and Houston, and are installing PPM in markets including Chicago, New York, San Francisco, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Atlanta, and Los Angeles. 

The Arbitron Portable People Meter^TM system uses a passive audience measurement device - about the size of a small cell phone - to track media exposure.  Carried throughout the day by randomly selected survey participants, the PPM^TM device can track when and where they listen to radio as well as how they interact with other forms of media and entertainment.  The PPM^TM detects inaudible codes embedded in the 1kHz to 3kHz portion of broadcast audio.  It is also equipped with a motion sensor, a patented quality control feature unique to the system, which allows Arbitron to confirm the compliance of the PPM^TM survey participants every day.  At the end of each day, the survey participant places the meter in a docking station that extracts the codes and sends the data to Arbitron. 

One of the first important steps in bringing PPM^TM to Boston is informing the engineers in the market about PPM^TM encoding.  For this, an SBE meeting is an ideal forum.  The presentation included a demo of the system, examples of the equipment, Q&A, etc.

Ken Freed, New England District Sales Manager for JVC, gave a presentation about JVC's ProHD line of cameras.  JVC has a range of HD products for ENG and studio applications at the most cost effective price points in the history of our industry.  As a result, for the first time JVC HD products are “on the air” in major markets every night.  The reasons for this success come from JVC's understanding of MPEG and from advanced mathematics in their cameras along with their implementation of native HD as 1280x720p60.  JVC's effective low-bandwidth native HD implementation is a perfect fit for the Native File Workflow model evolving in 2008 as mid-market stations anticipate the costs of their HD build-outs.  

John Wood, Director of Technology, Microwave Radio Corporation, presented MRC's take on the new technologies that will allow TV stations to send audio, video, and data from their ENG truck to the studio using IP file transfer techniques.

With the broadcast market looking to capitalize on multiple distribution schemes including off-air, cable interface, and multicast, the ability to monitor, manage and troubleshoot across these technologies is more than not getting caught with your pants down.  It’s good business.  As engineers, you need to get to the bottom of a revenue interrupting problem fast whether the issue is in your plant, or if it comes to you from outside.

Dave Musil of Sencore presented the MSA1850-P.  The media service analyzer interfaces ASI/310M, 8VSB/QAM, and IP.  You can remotely access the unit using a simple web browser from anywhere on the web.  You see at a glance the health of all your programs.  This portable unit goes to the problem and can analyze three streams simultaneously: one in monitor mode, two in the background.  That means the unit watches your back when you are not present, logging and recording for failure levels you parameterize for TR101290, bit rate and physical layer issues.

About Sencore

Started in 1951, Sencore Electronics designs, manufactures, sells and services world class electronic test equipment and operational gear.  Its communications division deals exclusively with compressed media solutions.  They offer the most popular receiver/decoder in the market, digital streamers used by major retailers all over the US, and MPEG, RF and IP test, monitor and analysis tools from the very inexpensive to powerful lab instruments.

Doug Thompson from RCS discussed radio station automation and its integration with three of RCS’s products...

More and more, broadcasters find ourselves immersed in an IT environment, and a very complex network structure.  This month Ipswitch, Inc. showed how WhatsUp Gold v11 can help us be proactive in the way that we manage a complex and mission critical broadcasting network infrastructure!

June, 2007

Jim Tronolone of PatchAmp described the new PatchAmp Lite system, which: