(Image credit: Michael Sill)
SOUTH BEND, Ind.–Founded in November 1842, the University of Notre Dame is America’s leading Catholic, undergraduate research institution. It’s home to approximately 8,900 undergraduate students, 4,200 graduate/professional students, and hosts several of the United States’ most renowned athletics teams. Collectively known as the “Fighting Irish,” as their sporting prowess has developed, so has the desire to produce better live game coverage.
Built in 2017, our Notre Dame Studios production facility was designed to be a fully IP from the start, however it’s not part of the athletics department. As part of the Office of Informational Technology (OIT), we’re a centralized production facility that serves all of the Notre Dame campus. We produce a variety of events year-round, ranging from performing arts and academic events to weekly coverage of the Catholic Mass from the Basilica of the Sacred Heart.
Our Calrec Installs
Our three studios encompass a range of content, from simple studio shoots to linear broadcasts, covering approximately 125 annual athletic contests for ESPN’s ACC Network. More recently we have provided the backbone for all of Notre Dame’s home ice hockey games to NBC’s Peacock streaming service.
Our commitment to NBC made us rethink our audio infrastructure. The sheer number of microphones we have in place around the rink, combined with providing content between periods, means we produce a whole professional show for NBC. We knew we needed to upgrade to provide the level of audio quality that NBC required.
After seeking advice from our own A1, Garry Elghammer, as well as several visiting NBC A1s with whom we share feeds, we installed a Calrec Artemis audio console, Type R surface and IP ImPulse cores into our Rex and Alice A. Martin Media Center. The Artemis is installed in Audio Control Room 2 (ACR2), the Type R is in ACR1, and we operate three smaller control rooms that use Axia Fusion consoles.
The Artemis is the heart of the entire audio system, and it’s when covering hockey that we really stretch its legs! It’s a 48-fader console with an empty bay that will enable us to extend to 56 faders in the future, which is NBC’s minimum requirement for football coverage. It has redundant ImPulse cores, which not only allow us to maintain our full IP workflows but means that the whole Notre Dame facility can interoperate on the same SMPTE 2110 network, whether that’s an audio product like Calrec or Axia, or a video product like Evertz.
Network Flexibility
We have a modular I/O unit in the equipment room for interfacing, a 32x32 EDAC I/O unit in ACR2, a 12x4 fixed format I/O box located in one of our studios, and three portable 24x8 fixed format units that we use around campus. It enables us to work like a REMI; with fiber operating between all our venues we can facilitate various types of productions. It makes bringing in all the different audio feeds really easy, and it means that the Calrec network benefits the whole university and not just athletics.
With I/O boxes strategically placed across campus, we have enough flexibility to cover a variety of events. ACR1’s Type R is a more compact 36 fader surface but has all the features of a larger production console, enabling us to mix for shows for ESPN, and it’s well understood by visiting A1s, which increases the pool of contractors/freelancers we can use.
Our Calrec IP infrastructure enables us to flex our network when required to service the whole university. We’re also committed to training the next generation in all areas of broadcast, even non-broadcast students are learning operational skills to give them valuable, real-world paid experience in professional audio with many students seriously considering a career in broadcast.
For more information on Calrec visit https://calrec.com.
