SuperSport is a specialist sports broadcaster, based near Johannesburg in South Africa. It is part of the MultiChoice group, a leading provider of video entertainment products and services, via its linear and streaming platforms, across sub-Saharan Africa. To provide a constant flow of the best sports action, it operates its own fleet of outside broadcast trucks. South African sport is very strong on the world stage, so the OB production often produces a world feed as well as the domestic feed. Pressure from home and overseas was also driving a demand for production in 4k HDR Ultra HD.
All these factors led SuperSport to consider constructing a new and very capable unit, called IP1. “The SuperSport brand demands power,” says Prishen Govender, senior manager technical broadcasting – Outside Broadcast Services at SuperSport. “We wanted our new truck to have all the tools we need, which we could quickly configure to each job.”
Design considerations
SuperSport talked to peers around the world to identify a suitable technology partner. “Everyone knew Broadcast Solutions,” Govender says. “They all spoke highly of them. So we visited and found comfort in what they do.”
The design requirement was to produce a truck that would be able to provide virtually all of the functionality required for major sports coverage in one vehicle. “We use international cricket as our baseline,” he continues. “That defines what we need in terms of cameras, servers, and infrastructure.”
In seeking to create an all-in-one vehicle, SuperSport had a definitive advantage in that South African traffic regulations allow very large articulated vehicles to be operated normally on the roads. That meant the new trailer could be as large as 16m long, 4.3m high and 2.6m wide when travelling. With expanding sides, it opens up to 5m wide in operation. Even with all this floor space, there was still pressure to maximise the operational floor. While not the only driver, it was an important consideration in adopting an all-IP technology platform. Software processing is inherently compact, and while a baseband Ultra HD router would take most of a rack, the Arista switch needs just 8U. Thanks to these factors, Broadcast Solutions was able to propose a design, which allowed as many as 30 people to work in the truck. That is a standard requirement for international cricket, and IP1 does it comfortably.
Technology
All signals inside the truck are handled as SMPTE ST2110 streams. Where SDI/IP conversion is needed, the Imagine Communications SNP provides the bridge. This dense solution – four independent channel paths in 1U – is ideal for truck architectures. As noted, an Arista switch handles all the signal routing. The production switcher is the Sony XVS-9000. This is 4k native, with onboard HD up-conversion if required, again, contributing to a compact solution. It has a 36 input panel and 4 M/E banks. The truck is wired for 30 cameras, including Sony 3500 Ultra HD, 5500 super-motion and 4800 ultra-motion cameras. The audio area features a 64 fader Calrec Artemis mixer, which provides all the functionality required for multi-level production. The large number of faders and instant reconfiguration also makes it ideal when the truck is used for music events. Replays are by EVS, and there is space on board for as many as 14 operators.
IP in operation
“We needed more than we could do in SDI,” explains Govender. “Going IP made our workflows easier. It gives us scalability, and it gives us the power we need. Yes, moving to IP meant a lot of learnings, but it is going really well and the support from the Broadcast Solutions technical team has been brilliant.”
An important part of the success has been the use of the hi human interface control software. This is an extremely powerful control layer, developed by Broadcast Solutions for applications like outside broadcast trucks, where supervisor engineers need to be able to confidently reconfigure the truck completely to meet the needs of the job. One of the perceptions of large-scale IP broadcast installations is that they require a lot of work to enter and manage IP addresses. hi provides auto discovery of all the processes on the network, allowing users to define workflows simply and visually without the need to get involved in the details of network addressing. Anyone familiar with a smartphone can operate hi.
“We got a demonstration of hi at IBC and we were immediately sold,” says Govender. “It is very efficient: we can build what we need as we go. The transformation is such that we have subsequently installed hi in two of our older SDI trucks, to replace end-of-life equipment.”
Conclusion
“We conducted a lot of research on companies specialising in outside broadcast trucks,” Govender concludes. “Broadcast Solutions impressed us with their ideas and their capabilities. IP1 has met all our expectations and requirements, and working with Broadcast Solutions has been awesome.”
Within months of accepting delivery of IP1, SuperSport placed an order with Broadcast Solutions for IP2, a slightly down-scaled version of the original for use at venues not accessible for the big truck. It also offers the possibility – through the network capabilities of hi human interface – of linking the two into a single massive production centre for the very largest events.
