DHD and Thum + Mahr guarantee for rock solid BBC live transmission from Wimbledon
While the Wimbledon Championships 2019 are still running, one thing is already clear. The DHD 52XR MADI Router is once again the match winner and reliable workhorse of BBC live outside broadcasting at Wimbledon. As DHD distributor for Great Britain, Thum + Mahr has equipped the BBC with the DHD system in use and is responsible for technical support. Stefan Mertens (Chief Strategy Officer of Thum + Mahr) about the partnership with the BBC at Wimbledon: ”Tennis fans are getting top level quality of broadcasting and are able to enjoy and share their passion for their sport. It is a pleasure to be involved in such an iconic event with one of our services“.
The heart of BBC OB Wimbledon transmission: DHD 52XR MADI Router
For years, the BBC OB has been relying on the DHD 52XR MADI Router delivered and supported by Thum + Mahr, which interconnects all Wimbledon venues via fibre optical cables. Connecting every court, the interview areas, and all FX and TX feeds, all Wimbledon areas are linked by the DHD router in an easy to install and technically perfect way. This year, the BBC is sending up to 32 feeds to their Salford studios for remote production. That means that compared to previous years, less staff has to be present at the tournament itself. ”We provide the DHD 52XR MADI Router solution for BBC OB Wimbledon because it is very flexible to set up, intuitive to use and very efficient. Saving costs is always a major target for broadcasters like the BBC, so we are glad that we could reach that rise in efficiency with the help of our DHD solution for BBC OB“, explains Stefan Mertens.
Full touchscreens control for intuitive operation
At Wimbledon DHD touchscreens are used for routing and monitoring of all feeds on each court and within the international broadcast center on-site. With the help of the touch control the presenters can easily select the right broadcast network line package for each venue. For example by a simple touch on a virtual button on the DHD touch panel, the related FX/TX and TB lines can be selected by the presenter. With the help of graphical displays on the DHD TFT touch device, complex sound operations, like gain, EQ, dynamics can also directly be adjusted. To work with DHD touchscreens is how Roger Federer plays tennis: smooth, elegant and very successful. It allows the user to be a great champion in broadcasting like Federer is a great champion in his sport.
About Thum + Mahr
Building on decades of project experience, Thum + Mahr has become one of the most established service providers within the broadcast and media industry. By developing innovative and independent media concepts, Thum + Mahr assists customers. We are distinguished with a wide spectrum of services covering project management, IT system integration and support. Workflow-based approaches help to master emerging challenges and secure long-term success of diverse media clients. The company is based in Germany and operates around the world with about 50 highly qualified and unconventionally thinking employed experts. A second office is located in Paris. Selected references are BBC, ARD, ZDF, ORF, Radio France, RTL France, RTL City Luxembourg and Mediacorp Singapore.