RTS/Telex at the centre of a-has farewell tour broadcast

Cinevideogroup deployed the largest of its fleet of 15 OB trucks ,OB 14 (HD), for final show of a-ha’s farewell tour at Oslo’s Spectrum.

The vehicle features some 30 cameras with all processing in high definition digital quality. At the centre of the 16.5-metre truck is a 144 x 144 Advanced Digital Audio Matrix (ADAM) intercom system from RTS/Telex, linked to thirty-one key panels. Six RTS 2W/4W interfaces, as well as fifteen beltpacks from the same source, also feature in the inventory of this flagship of the celebrated Dutch service provider’s OB fleet.

Most of Cinevideogroup’s OB vans and studios are equipped with matrices and keypanels from RTS/Telex. The ADAM matrix alone is present in five of Cinevideogroup’s OB trucks, as well as four of its studios; Zeus matrices can be found in three studios and one truck; and the Cronus matrix, too, is represented in two of the OB trucks. "RTS/Telex systems have long been in widespread use, not only in this company but in our sister firms as well," explained Bolke Burnaby Lautier, Cinevideogroup’s operations manager. "One of the great advantages of this is that it means we can link up several trucks together without any complications, thereby significantly expanding the overall capacity." Among its other advantages, Lautier cited the high quality and enormous reliability of RTS/Telex equipment as well as the fact that it represents, in his view, "very good value for money".

In the case of music productions like the a-ha concerts, further criteria play a role. "During a concert, we have to be certain that all key personnel can communicate with one another," said Bolke Burnaby Lautier. "Here volume is an important factor, so the balance between the musical director, assistants and sound engineer is of decisive importance. Especially during loud rock concerts, you need quite a high volume level to preserve the integrity of communications."

Burnaby Lautier describes the RTX system as its "uncomplicated handling", for not only customers but also the sound engineers have to be able to get the hang of the system swiftly. Paradoxically, in the view of the Dutch broadcasting expert, it is not necessarily the case that the larger the system the better the performance. To the contrary, in fact, since many large systems are too complicated. "RTS/Telex systems, on the other hand, are uncomplicated and they have an intuitive layout, making them easy for crews to operate. For this a-ha production they were absolutely perfect."
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