AMSTERDAM — Mediahuis is a European media group with assets in Belgium, the Netherlands, Ireland, Luxembourg and Germany. In the Netherlands and Flanders in Belgium, Mediahuis Nederland is a dominant player in the media landscape. Its radio offering — Mediahuis Radio — features popular brands, such as Radio Veronica, 100% NL, SLAM! and Sublime.
On April 3, 2023, Mediahuis bought out RadioCorp, which had two major radio brands in its stable — 100% NL and SLAM! Mediahuis had the station Sublime, which used to broadcast on FM and DAB+.
RadioCorp had a long record of broadcasting from Villa de Hofstede in Naarden, a building with a lot of radio history dating back to the 1970s when Radio Noordzee programs were recorded there.
Following the frequency spectrum auction in the Netherlands on July 7, 2003, 100% NL was allowed to continue broadcasting on FM. However, SLAM! lost its nationwide FM frequency and subsequently remained available on DAB+.
It now broadcasts regionally on FM in the western part of the Netherlands, the Randstad. Sublime also lost its FM frequency. In 2023, Mediahuis added another brand to its stable when it took over Radio Veronica from the Talpa Network. It also has numerous themed channels streaming online.
Moving house
In November 2023, after careful consideration, Mediahuis Nederland decided that all its Dutch radio studios would be centrally housed at its Basisweg premises in Amsterdam, an impressive building with a long history in newspapers and other publications. Tim Blankman, Mediahuis Radio’s technical manager, based at Basisweg, oversaw the significant undertaking.
The move started by relocating Sublime’s studio from Amsterdam to Naarden. This made space available to move the SLAM!, Radio Veronica, 100% NL and Sublime editorial offices to Amsterdam and house all stations on a large new editorial floor in the heart of the Basisweg building.
Everything was built from scratch within a year — five studios, three production areas, an editorial office, redundant power supplies, multiple connections and an impressive server park spread over two building locations.
The studios are identical in design and have interchangeable technical facilities. Three production areas and a fifth studio are under construction for backup and voicetracking.
Room acoustics and insulation were critical — a train line and busy highway pass in front of the building, and major construction work is planned next door.
Room acoustics and insulation were critical — a train line and busy highway pass in front of the building, and major construction work is planned next door.
“Pinna Acoustics, a Dutch company specializing in acoustics and audio design, did a great job arranging everything optimally acoustically,” says Blankman.
Moving four major, well-known radio brands relatively quickly was compounded by the fact they had to remain on air and DJs accomodated so they could quickly work in the new studios. “Because broadcasting permits are valid for a long period, costs can be amortized over time, which helps when planning on investing in good equipment,” says Blankman.
It ultimately resulted in five ultramodern radio studios entirely identical under the hood. Each studio can be adjusted at the touch of a button so that any radio station can broadcast from it. “You see the smart logic in the furniture structure, the cameras, the screens, the peripheral equipment, the software used and all other smaller items required, but mainly in Mediahuis Radio’s central server room,” he said.
A phased move
The permanent team of four engineers plus freelancers was essential for Blankman. They worked hard for a year to achieve an impressive result. Sublime, 100% NL, Radio Veronica, SLAM! and multiple themed channels have been broadcasting from Amsterdam since Oct. 14, 2024. The stations moved in phases. Radio Veronica and Sublime were the last to transfer from Naarden to Amsterdam. Blankman sees this project as the crowning glory of his work but also outlines that there is another major project every five years when something must change.
Visual radio is available in all studios, so video content is available 24/7 and used for social media channels. “Each studio is equipped with its own Blackmagic Design Atem 4ME switcher, which switches based on audio through proprietary software,” explains Blankman. “The studios are equipped with Blackmagic 4K cameras. A Blackmagic Videohub 12G 120×120 router is at the system’s heart. This is where all the studios come together and the transmission lines are connected in a separate Atem 4ME. Two video directors are available, and we can switch all studios manually. We can select the studio we want to operate in the two directions, after which, the screens, audio and the control panel switch to the selected studio.”
Infrastructure and enthusiastic feedback
Rovitech, a highly experienced ICT and network and integration specialist from Houten, implemented the essential Cat-6 glass fiber and SDI infrastructure. The DJs work with the familiar M&I OmniPlayer 2 playout software, and Orban hardware does all the audio processing. The on-air DJ has an Orban OptiMod 5500 processor to optimally fine-tune the crossover point of scheduled items while guests continue listening on a different Orban 5500. All studios feature Shure SM7B microphones, which are increasingly the standard in the Netherlands, especially when combined with Symetrix Prism DSP hardware. At the heart of each studio is a DHD.audio RX2 audio mixer. Interestingly Blankman insisted they preferred to not have motorized faders. “The DJs found the motor faders disruptive because they were quite heavy to operate,” he explains. So, he asked DHD whether it could install regular faders in the RX2 console. The company made the necessary adjustments and delivered on time.
DHD is also prominent in the server room — a redundant XD3 IP core handles all transmission lines. “In the event of a config or firmware update, switching between the two cores is seamless and inaudible, so we can perform updates during the day without the listener noticing anything,” says Blankman energetically.
Blankman is most proud of the feedback from the jocks, who were all enthusiastic after the move. “At the beginning of the project, we had a session one evening with a delegation from each station. We explained our plans at that moment, and fun and inspiring conversations started. We have incorporated the feedback from this evening as much as possible in realizing the studios.”
The author was broadcast and facilities manager at several public and commercial media companies and is now a freelance writer and media consultant in the Netherlands.
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