STOW, OH — Audio-Technica, a world leader in transducer technology, announces that over 3,000 of its microphones will be used at the XXI Winter Olympic Games, taking place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, this February. The use of Audio-Technica microphones for the broadcast of the 2010 Winter Games marks the continuation of A-T’s Olympic involvement, which has been consistent since the Summer Games in Atlanta in 1996.
Olympic Broadcast Services Vancouver (OBSV) is the Host Broadcaster for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games, responsible for producing and distributing audio and video coverage of the Games. To generate an international production, OBSV will deploy all cameras, develop graphics, and capture audio at each sporting venue. OBSV will transmit this international production to all radio and television Rights Holding Broadcasters, who will adapt the signal for transmission on their networks. In this way, each nation will receive unbiased coverage of the event, thereby avoiding any national favoritism, commercial identification, advertising or interviews.
Olympic Broadcast Services Vancouver will use the AT4050 Large Diaphragm Multi-pattern Microphone and BP4025 X/Y Stereo Field Recording Microphone to create the 5.1 surround sound ambience at the Olympic events. In Vancouver, there are several different audio environments, each of which will present unique challenges for the broadcasters and audio engineers. For instance, in ski jump alone, there are three distinct surround-sound scenarios that will employ a combination of AT4050’s and BP4025’s: the start house, which is an enclosed environment; the preparation for and start of the jump, when the skiers are ready to go down the hill; and the jump in motion – when viewers start to see the crowd, the mixers try to blend in the surround sound of the crowd base as well.
The sonic details will be added by using a large number of Audio-Technica’s shotgun microphones, including the 21.22”-long BP4071L Line + Gradient Condenser for outdoor and long-distance pickup in such sports as downhill skiing, figure skating and half-pipe sports; the AT898 Subminiature Lavalier Microphone with individual body packs in curling, operating up to 48 channels of simultaneous wireless; custom A-T boundary mics for hockey; and many more microphones.
“The sound of competitive sports is crucial, and Audio-Technica is proud to be a critical part of bringing the experience of the Games to viewers around the world,” said Michael Edwards, Audio-Technica Director of Product Management. “When Audio-Technica began a successful relationship with the Olympic broadcasters in Atlanta in 1996, we made a dedication to the capture of audio in broadcast sports. Because of this, we have been given the opportunity to help improve the sound and reduce mic visibility in the process. As a result of our experience with Olympic broadcasts, Audio-Technica continues ongoing product development in order to meet the needs of professional broadcasters in a variety of settings around the world.”
The Vancouver 2010 Winter Games will feature athletes from a projected 80+ countries competing in 86 events in seven sports, with media representatives covering the event for a worldwide audience of billions.