Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/683118
28 About two weeks after the RF survey, we conducted another survey purely for the purpose of measuring the property. Every stage; the distance between stages, every performance area and the distance between performance areas and every potential cable run. After reviewing my measurements, I decided that along the north wall of Stage 26 would be the best place for the master RF rack. The satellite rack on Stage 23 would also be placed along the north wall near the cable access ports for that stage. The satellite rack for the K build- ing would be located in the tech center behind the Rydell High School hallway set. There would be four intermediate cable runs that would link the satellite antenna rack on Stage 23 to the master rack on Stage 26. These cable runs were six hundred feet in length each. There also would be five intermediate cable runs that would link Stage 26 to the K building; four for the satel- lite system and one of them for the Jessie J in-ear monitor system. These runs would be seven hundred and fifty feet in length each. The design of the system would be straightforward. We would break the project into four zones: Stage 26, the Dressing Rooms, the K building and Stage 23. Each zone would have a discreet Phoenix satellite antenna system that would oper- ate independently of the other three satellite systems. All four systems would be combined at a master system rack location on Stage 26. Each system would be assigned an RF technician with a spectrum analyzer. I would be responsible for the systems on Stage 26 which would include the Stage 26 satellite system, the Dressing Rooms satellite system and the master antenna system rack which would also be the home of all of wireless microphone receivers. Corey Dodd would be responsible for the K building system and Grant Greene would be responsible for Stage 23 system. All four systems could be monitored from the master rack location on Stage 26. The K building and Stage 23 systems could be monitored locally. Before we go any further, I think it would be appropriate to provide a brief description of the Phoenix system and some of the advantages of using it, especially in view of the fact that we will be using four of them on this show. We will begin at the antenna. The antenna is connected with a short piece of coax to a four-channel gain adjustable filter set, capable of providing 15 dB of gain. The gain is used to compensate for cable loss and nothing more. The filter set is connected to a much longer piece of coax that runs back to the RF rack where it is connected to a control module. The control module can power the filter set via the coax or power it down if necessary. The control module then feeds a band past antenna distribution amplifier (DA) which can feed up to thirty-two receivers. Since the filter is capable of supplying gain, the length of the coax is all but irrelevant. Two hundred and fifty feet is not considered to be a long cable run. The antenna can now be optimally placed virtu- ally without cable length restrictions. A Phoenix VIII control module is capable of supporting eight filter set/antenna locations. If two Phoenix VIII control modules are used, one feeding the "A" side of the antenna distribution amplifier and the other feeding the "B" side of the antenna distribu- tion amplifier, the system is capable of supporting sixteen filter set/antenna locations. Because each antenna can be optimally placed, the Phoenix system can be tailored to the show and the antennas focused on where the transmitters are actually working during the show. When balancing a Phoenix system, the frequencies in the 500 MHz to 700 MHz range are set at 8 dB below reference gain, the frequencies in the 902 MHz to 928 MHz range are set at 4 dB below refer- ence gain and the frequencies in the 944 MHz to 960 MHz range are set at 2 dB below reference gain. The gain can be further reduced if necessary, either globally at the antenna DA or at individual antenna locations. Our first official installation day was December 16, 2015. The schedule called for ESU of the entire property by the end of the day on December 17. There would be two dark days, then on-camera rehearsals would begin on Stage 23 on December Jessie J rehearsing her opening walk. (Photo: Daniel Weddick) Master RF rack on Stage 26