New MMG OB van equipped with Lawo AoIP tech

Leipzig-based Media Mobil GmbH, which specializes in producing and broadcasting sporting, cultural and entertainment events, has a new flagship outside broadcast van, dubbed “UHD1”, with Lawo AoIP audio infrastructure at its heart.

UHD1 is a compact beast. It weighs 15 tonnes, is 9.5 meters long and 4.5 meters wide with the sidewall extended, yielding a working production area of around 40m². A companion set-up truck has more workspace for editing, graphics or as an EVS workstation. A fully redundant MacMini-based QLab audio feed system connects to the A__UHD Core via Merging Ravenna, allowing for multitrack recording. The van also has a fully redundant UHD/HD satellite broadcasting system. 

Lawo equipment onboard includes an mc²56 production console with 48 faders, with three WAN-capable A__stage 64 units serving as internal and external stage boxes. At the same time, a Lawo A__madi6 brings in audio from the Riedel system, EVS VIA video server, and the video control room. 

After commissioning in November 2020, Lawo delivered and installed the equipment in November the following year. That same month, the new OB truck passed its baptism of fire with the production of the MDR show “Riverboat,” one of the channel’s biggest talk shows, followed by the KIKA Award ceremony live from Erfurt on Nov. 26, last year. 

“The decision to go with Lawo is no coincidence,” said Robert Hänsel, managing director of MMG. “We have had good experiences with Lawo over many years, so choosing the audio infrastructure for the UHD1 was not difficult when we compared the options. We looked closely and decided on Lawo again. Important considerations, besides the quality, functionality and reliability of the mc²56, were the compact dimensions of the console and the immense space, weight and energy savings of the A__UHD core.”