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RTV Noord chooses remote-savvy Lawo solution

by Daryl Ilbury February 18, 2022 5 min read

RTV Noord, a regional public broadcaster based in Groningen, serving the northern part of The Netherlands, has just commissioned its brand-new Lawo mc²36 audio console and A__stage64 audio-over-IP node for producing radio, TV and online content.

Two years ago, the broadcaster’s editing department said they wanted to create their own streams using one-button camera and content control based on sources available on an internal network, while also being able to retrieve press conferences from the Dutch government in The Hague — 235km away — for radio and TV. To this end, RTV Noord purchased a Lawo Power Core IP audio I/O and DSP node equipped with a Dante I/O card to include in its Dante-based radio infrastructure.

The RTV Noord’s Lawo A__stage64 audio-over-IP node all wired up

When RTV Noord was outgrowing its baseband audio core and mixing console, the station’s producers and presenters imagined what the future would look like. Remote production scenarios via a dark-fiber link connecting the studios on the outskirts to the city center of Groningen were high on the agenda, so they purchased a 32-fader Lawo mc²36 All-in-One console. This allows audio engineers to produce complete shows from RTV Noord’s control room even though the cameras and stagebox/microphones are at the remote location. Alongside the console, RTV Noord installed a Waves SuperRack SoundGrid plug-in server for effects processing during live performances

The broadcaster uses the Lawo A__stage64 audio node in the TV studio and on-location productions. Its 64 physical inputs and outputs accommodate live music programs in various strengths.

RTV Noord says it decided to choose a Lawo solution based on its plans to future-proof its infrastructure by migrating to an audio-over-IP configuration: the console natively supports SMPTE 2110. Lawo says this will come in handy when IP-native devices replace the baseband video infrastructure.

“The Lawo mc²36’s superb audio quality and high channel count give us the flexibility we need,” says Tim de Vrij, RTV Noord’s media engineer in charge of radio and TV infrastructure. “IP is clearly the future, and we are ready for it.”