BOGOTÁ, COLOMBIA – Caracol TV, Colombia’s leading national private broadcaster, is able to effectively monitor and adjust the loudness of its HD broadcasts with the installation of a Linear Acoustic L.A.M.B.D.A.TM Professional Digital Audio and Metadata Monitor in its Bogotá facility.
A key to the success and popularity of Caracol TV in Colombia and abroad is its state-of-the-art facility, which features the most advanced digital television equipment and technologies. When the network set out to update its equipment to HD, Caracol TV decided that it needed an easy and effective means of measuring and monitoring loudness. Equal to ease of use was accuracy of measurement. The LAMBDA is able to offer Caracol TV the control they were looking for.
“We selected LAMBDA because it is the most complete and accurate digital audio meter for loudness,” explains Juan Pablo Cañizares Arango, audio engineer for Caracol TV. “The readings from the LAMBDA display make it easy for me to know how to adjust the dialnorm so that our Dolby Digital (AC-3) signals sound the best that they can. Audio is often overlooked when it comes to broadcast solutions. I think it is very important that a company like Linear Acoustic is so focused on audio for broadcast.”
The LAMBDA displays both audio and metadata, and allows simulation of metadata effects to provide accurate monitoring. Unique front-panel controls allow quick stepping through any channel, channel pair, or downmix. The display features metering of eight audio channels plus numeric loudness and metadata indication. In addition to a numerical readout, a thin line indicating measured loudness "floats" over audio metering allowing quick verification of program loudness. Additional features found standard on the LAMBDA include AES and HD/SD-SDI inputs, ITU-R BS.1770 loudness measurement, and a premium acoustically tuned speaker system with digital crossovers and bi-amplification, full-time 2-channel LtRt or LoRo downmix via AES and balanced analog outputs, AES outputs of decoded and/or de-embedded audio channels, and a powerful front panel headphone output.
Though currently only broadcasting in stereo, Caracol TV has plans to switch over to multichannel in the next few years. To help with the switch and the loudness issues associated with surround broadcasts, the station has plans to add a Linear Acoustic AERO.air 5.1TM Ten Channel Loudness Manager for further control to their audio workflow.
