Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) Productions is using a Calrec Sigma with Bluefin console in its new 53-foot expando used to cover major auto races nationwide this summer.
IMS is using the 64-fader board to provide digital audio mixing, including 5.1 surround sound, in the new truck, which debuted in April when it covered the Honda Grand Prix in St. Petersburg, Fla. The truck, which was also used to broadcast from the Indy 500 in late May, will be deployed to cover Indiana Pacers Basketball as well as Purdue and Indiana University football after the racing season concludes in the fall. In addition to the Calrec console, the truck—which is IMS Production’s first HD production vehicle, replacing its two existing analog trucks—is outfitted with 16 cameras, a Thomson Grass Valley Kalypso switcher, EVS production switchers and an Evertz monitor wall.
During the Indy 500, IMS deployed some 40 microphones and three submix consoles—pit, effects and radio—as well as multiple music playback devices for a total of 128 sources, all handled by the Calrec Sigma, which is equipped with 320 channel processing paths packaged as 108 stereo and 104 mono channels. Sigma can handle as many as 52 5.1 surround sound channels, according to Calrec.
“The amount of signal processing that the Sigma with Bluefin can accomplish in a small amount of real estate is amazing, but in the mobile business, it’s also necessary,” said Dave Gass, senior director of field operations and engineering for IMS Productions.
