Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1434375
C A S Q U A R T E R L Y I W I N T E R 2 0 2 2 27 performance is well established. I was still using Lectrosonics WBL Venues, which are analog output, so I used the Ferrofish A32 Dante to convert into a Dante stream. This also gave me a return path for program listen and IFB feeds. I needed command and control for the remote receivers, so I again turned to my pal Peter at Gotham Sound for some pro tips. He lined me up with the proper switches to convert to TCP/ IP control for the Venues. Now, I could fully remote all of the receivers, use Wireless Designer from Lectrosonics to control all of them and manage the RF scanning and coordination, and then move all of the audio over a single Ethernet cable with a near zero latency. This system worked and it was astonishing. I thought that I was done, but I still wanted to make it bigger, faster, better… Digital radio seemed to be the next target for me for many reasons, most of which involved the lack of intermodula- tion issues when cramming large amounts of transmitters into a small airspace. Digital radio mics from various manufacturers were really getting more and more popular, and more vendors were entering that market segment so it seemed that this was going to be the direction to move in to be ahead of the curve. Additionally, the wideband RF capability was solving so many issues. The ability to not be locked into a specif- ic range or block of RF effectively made the digital wideband radio a near future- proof piece of kit. The fact that some makers were offering these radio receiv- ers in a Dante-capable version became the icing on the proverbial cake. I was all in. To go back in time a bit, I had originally designed this system in my head to be a rapid deployment, easily configurable, easily maintained, RF and audio distribution package that would work well in nearly any location or stage and on any format from narrative to reality. I even created (in my mind) a rapid deployment bag-drop Dante kit for mixers who needed something small, light, and fast. Then COVID… Full-stop, shut it down, and we are all in a crazy new world. Dante for Distance A fully distant work pattern is going to be the new norm for the foreseeable future. In order for me to go back to work, and to do it safely and socially distanced, a remote operation is going to be mandatory. I needed to go full throttle on the Dante and fiber builds. So that's what I did. In the early part of 2020, I was one of the first to go back to work, and I immediately deployed my remote Dante racks. At that time, they were rather rudimentary because the dollars just weren't there to support anything more. But the technology worked. It wasn't pretty yet, but it was working, and that meant I was working. Producers were absolutely on board with the new-to-them design because it checked so many boxes. COVID compliance, limited persons on the hot set, pristine audio, and no downtime. After a couple of gigs where I refined and improved the remote rack, I received what I considered to be a career- changing call. In mid-2020, I was hired to be the head of the audio department at Tyler Perry Studios (TPS). They were going back to work, and they were all-in on COVID compliance. They had the base infrastructure, the funding, and the desire to make it happen. Because TPS is easily one of the most technologically advanced studio lots in all of North America, and because I had already spent a great deal of time there mixing their movies and working on some of the episodic shows, I was familiar with the very unique needs and desires there. They knew me, I knew them, and we each knew I could get it done under these monstrously challenging conditions where the future was anything but certain. Some of the unique components of the property include roughly 140 acres of film lot filled with standing sets, stages, and buildings of all kinds. Everything is tied together with fiber- optic networks and it all feeds back to the main control room, or can be tapped from nearly anywhere on the property. That means when the system is up and running properly, it is possible to mix from the control room in the main building, or from any other location on the property, while receiving signal from anywhere else on the property, which may be as far as a mile away. Also, the execs can be in their offices and watch anything, from anywhere, in real time, with full audio and video. The tech involved is substantial and I both wanted and needed to model that in my rig. The next step in that process was to simply convert Dante to fiber Here: My "Digital Diesel" truck. Below: The Digital Diesel on location at the courthouse in Roswell, GA, while filming Step Up 3 in the Spring of 2021.