Al Jazeera broadcasts HD audio with Sennheiser

QATAR: Sennheiser’s wireless microphone and in-ear monitoring systems have been deployed at Al Jazeera’s studios in Doha. The project was a joint effort between the manufacturer and systems integrator Sony Professional Solutions MEA, and is Sennheiser’s largest broadcast project in the Middle East to date, with future work ensured, as the system will provide the template for the broadcaster‘s other studios across the globe.

As part of the project, Sennheiser’s Digital 9000 wireless system was integrated, offering HD audio. The system was designed to operate with the highest channel counts and within a dense frequency environment, transmitting uncompressed audio. ‘We selected systems that we knew would give us the optimum level of performance while leaving little room for error,’ noted network specialist sound and audio acoustics - network operations standards at Al Jazeera Media Network, Allie Kader Gaffoor. ‘Quality audio is integral to viewer satisfaction and this is particularly true for a network such as Al Jazeera given the nature of our content. We have therefore equipped our studios with the latest technologies available in the market for the broadcast industry.’

Allowing for convenience and flexibility once up and running, the wireless system did require careful RF planning from Sennheiser and Sony PSMEA across Al Jazeera’s headquarters, which consists of over 15 studios. As explained by Ryan Burr, technical sales manager for Sennheiser Middle East, ‘This is by no means an easy feat as all the wireless microphone and in-ear monitoring systems required radio frequency coordination to ensure that there is no interference between them, even if presenters walk from studio to studio whilst wearing their transmitters.

‘To ensure Al Jazeera has complete flexibility with their wireless microphones, we designed all 75 channels of D9000 to operate within the same frequency bandwidth, allowing them to use all transmitters in any studio,’ Mr Burr continued. ‘We also utilised this approach with the 72 channels of the 2000 Series IEMs, which operate within a different bandwidth to the wireless microphones to avoid interference.’

The setup is described as allowing Al Jazeera ‘to deliver crystal clear audio for its viewers’, while an infrared synchronisation between the transmitters and receiver ‘greatly aids the system setup’. The local Sennheiser team was assisted by the company’s German customer development and application engineering team, which designed bespoke multi-antenna systems to cater for seamless wireless coverage across the facility.

‘The D9000 wireless microphone system is like no other in that it uses technology that is unique to Sennheiser and is the only microphone system capable of transmitting uncompressed audio,’ added Mr Burr, ‘This means that it delivers the highest resolution audio quality with a cable-like purity.’

As well as serving as the standard template for the audio systems to be implemented across Al Jazeera’s worldwide studios, the Sennheiser system offers future upgrade possibilities. ‘We selected audio equipment that can easily facilitate any future growth required by our studio or production needs,’ Mr Gaffoor concluded. ‘Our viewers will therefore benefit from the continuous advancement of our systems and capabilities. This project perfectly showcases our commitment to delivering the very best experience for our subscribers’.

www.sennheiser.com