KMBC-TV, KCWE-TV offer HD local news from new studios
Nov 1, 2008 12:00 PM, By Jerry Agresti
Content is transcoded by a Masstech MassMedia Box and then pushed to Harris NEXIO 4000 series servers and a two-frame SAN with about 460 hours of SD storage. HD playback is through a Harris NEXIO 3600 series server, all under the direction of Harris automation. We are using Harmonic MV500 and MV100 encoders for both HD and SD channels. Once the video is encoded, it is routed to ProStream multiplexers via an IP connection. Presently, most of our broadcasts are in SD, so KMBC and KCWE use an SD master control switcher that enables automated routing of the HD channels. However, that will change to HD-only air paths early in 2009.
Currently, the system generates a combined ASI stream that is sent over an MRC digital microwave and demultiplexed at the transmitter site. This ASI stream is simultaneously sent via fiber to the transmitter as a backup STL. The TSL equipment for returning ENG and city cams to the studio from the tower uses Harmonic MV45 encoders with a ProStream mux combination, and the signal is decoded at the studio using Harmonic 6050 IRDs.
In the studio, we shoot our local news broadcasts in HD 16:9 on five Sony HDC-1400 cameras with Canon HJ22×7.6 lenses and Autoscript teleprompters. Three of the cameras are supported by Vinten Radamec Fusion robotic pedestals, while the other two are stationary pedestals supporting Vitec 105 pan/tilt heads. Camera system control is centered in production control next to the technical director position. A 64-input Sony MVS-8000G HD production switcher and a two-channel MVE800A digital multi-effects processor handle news switching.
News content is shot in the field on Sony SD-XD cameras in 16:9 format. Once at the station, it is ingested by Avid NewsCutters and AirSpeeds through Interplay into a Unity ISIS system. As the stories are edited, they are pushed to AirSpeed DDRs, configured for 1+1 redundancy, for playback to air. Some content is edited in the field, also with NewsCutters, and sent back to the station via microwave. It is then checked into Interplay, stored on the ISIS and pushed to AirSpeed.
For now, all archiving is done on DVCPRO tape, which also provides us with a backup for the news playback system. The KMBC newsroom has six edit cubicles alongside two enclosed Avid edit rooms. Also important to the newsroom, and indeed throughout the station, is a Cisco VoIP phone system managed by a centralized Hearst NOC. The phones are GigE-capable and provide connectivity for the computers and workstations in the newsroom and business cubicle areas. This saved on wiring costs.
Our creative services department also has three Avid NewsCutters with Adrenaline that are connected to the ISIS system. An additional NewsCutter edit station located in the newsroom is used exclusively for news promotion, which is also shot on Sony XD cameras.
In the studio, we have a wide range of monitors, everything from typical XVGA screens to Panasonic 42in plasmas that use either HD or SD input cards, depending on where they are located on the set. For projection, we have one Panasonic RSP positioned in a corner of the studio with a 114in diagonal screen using a Da-Lite Millennium mirror system. Studio lighting consists of a combination of DeSisti florescent and tungsten fixtures. Some of the fixtures are equipped with SeaChange color engines. The dimmer console and electronics are ETC.
Moving to the production control room, the monitor wall consists of six NEC 46in LCD displays driven by an Evertz MVP system that incorporates both SD and HD inputs. One monitor is for the audio booth, while the other five are in production control. An Evertz VIP system provides redundancy in case of a monitor failure. For audio, we are using a 24-fader Wheatstone D-10 console with three remote analog/digital cage routers.
Power from the local utility comes through a 1600 A main; the entire building is supported by an 800kW Caterpillar generator. A Powerware 180kVA UPS supplies all the power for the tech side, including a clean power drop at all workstations in the newsroom, sales, traffic, executive and engineering offices. To effectively test the generator, we switch the entire building's electrical load over to it at least once a month.
A multi-unit, chilled water system moderates Kansas City's notoriously humid summer temperatures for personnel as well as our equipment. The system offers redundancy or additional cooling when it's required. The air handler unit that services the second floor has been designed so that it can redirect its flow to the tech core in case of an air handler failure.
Conclusion
It seems almost inevitable that you start a project with what seems like plenty of lead time, but in the end there's a rush to the finish. As the end of the lease on the Lyric Opera House loomed in the spring and summer of 2007, crews worked 12- to 14-hour days to ensure that we could vacate the old building and be up and running well before the start of the fall ratings period.
With all hands on deck, we made our deadline, and we continue to be proud of the results. We are confident that our new facility, besides being beautiful to employees and visitors, as well as functional right now, will also have the flexibility to meet our needs well into the future.
Jerry Agresti is director of engineering for KMBC/KCWE-TV.
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