LYNCHBURG, Va.—At Liberty University, we have an active and growing Digital Media and Journalism department, and for this we need best-in-class technology to help our students thrive in areas such as media production, broadcast journalism, sound design and audio engineering.
That is why we work with Calrec audio consoles, and it explains why our roster of Calrec solutions is growing. Currently, we use Calrec’s Type R for Radio, Summa, Artemis and several Brio consoles.
Our most recent expansion of Calrec technology includes a trio of new consoles including Artemis and Brio consoles and we’ve gone remote with the addition of Calrec’s VP2 virtualized mixing system.
Hands-On Experience
The Calrec equipment is used across a variety of live and pre-recorded sports and entertainment shows as well as providing students one-on-one broadcast audio training on industry-standard technology. Students receive hands-on experience on Calrec consoles and the opportunity to operate as an A1 on certain productions. Additionally, academic classes can utilize the school’s production control rooms during classes.
More specifically, the consoles are being used to live stream various NCAA Division 1 sport competitions on ESPN+ as well as three linear FBS Football Broadcasts on other ESPN networks. We also use the studios for our weekly Emmy Award-winning syndicated live sports talk show “Flames Central,” as well as for more corporate and entertainment shows. This includes Liberty University Convocation, which is hosting guests this semester such as Dr. Tony Evans, journalist Shannon Bream, and New York Times Best Selling author Jon Acuff. There is also a music component to these shows, with a full band that can include up to eight vocalists.
Type R for Radio was purchased as part of a new radio studio build and is being used for live radio shows and podcast recordings. The second Brio was purchased to upgrade a smaller control room, and the second Artemis replaced a Summa console, which was moved into our mobile production unit. We also wanted both of our main production control rooms to have the same console, making it even easier to move shows between rooms.
Virtualized Mixing
We purchased Calrec’s VP2 based on what we experienced and learned while doing production during the Covid-19 pandemic. The VP2 is a virtualized mixing system with no physical control surface; it uses Calrec’s Assist software for setup and control so that we can work even more flexibly. Working with Calrec’s shared Hydra2 network router core allows us to adapt to whatever we are tasked with so we’re able to accomplish a lot of different projects with little lead time.
Perhaps the biggest advantage of using Calrec is the ability to quickly build a show from scratch, while the integration with Evertz via Hydra2 to TDM allows us to have 1,536 channels going from our six Calrec consoles to our router, providing an incredible amount of versatility.
Calrec really does have a solution for every broadcast requirement, including radio, alongside a variety of networked and virtual products, and the work that we’re doing here Liberty University is certainly proof of that.
It’s incredibly rewarding for us to be able to prepare our students for a future in a professional broadcast environment, and we have Calrec to thank for that.
For more information visit https://calrec.com/.
