IP-Audio networking chosen by New York News/Talk powerhouse.
5 April 2005, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
Axia Audio, the IP-Audio networking division of Telos, announces the sale of an Axia IP-Audio networking system to legendary news/talk station WOR (www.wor710.com). WOR, Buckley Broadcasting’s New York flagship, has been a technology pioneer throughout its 80-year history; its notable firsts include being the first AM station to broadcast full-time in HD Radio™. Now, WOR has become the first station in the US’ #1 market to employ switched Ethernet for audio routing and transport.
WOR’s new facility in Manhattan includes four Talk Studios, four Control Rooms and a Production Room for a total of nine studios, plus six news booths and a master control/tech center which produce unique satellite and Internet feeds daily in addition to local New York programming. Included in WOR’s purchase are nine Axia SmartSurface Studio Control Surfaces and Studio Mixing Engines, and dozens of Audio Nodes which connect analog and digital audio sources to the switched-Ethernet-based Axia IP-Audio Network.
In planning WOR’s move to the new studios, Tom Ray, Buckley Broadcasting’s Vice President/Corporate Director of Engineering, found that only an Axia IP-Audio Network would permit construction and wiring of an entire radio facility without “breaking the bank.” “WOR was looking for a high tech digital solution that was also cost effective,” says Ray, who is also the chairman of New York’s Society of Broadcast Engineers Chapter 15. “The Axia system provides all the flexibility the WOR operation requires, allows a mixture of analog and digital I/O, and was extremely cost effective. Choosing the Axia system was a slam-dunk.”
Since so many programs are produced daily at WOR, Ray especially likes the fact that any show can easily be produced in any studio. “The ability to access any audio source anywhere in the facility is mind-boggling. We're looking forward to the extreme flexibility Axia will bring to the WOR operation.”
A veteran of many studio build-outs, Ray also praises Axia’s easy installation process: “Being able to use off the shelf CAT-6 cable for all connections – audio and interconnect network – is something we really appreciate.“ That’s a sentiment echoed by Andrew Rosenberg, CEO and Chief Engineer of Creative Studio Solutions (www.creativestudiosolutions.com), the respected Colorado-based contract-engineering firm responsible for installing the Axia network.
“The Axia network’s design characteristics made the installation a relatively easy operation,” says Rosenberg. “In big build-outs like this, our company is accustomed to running tremendous amounts of multi-pair wire and lots of punch blocks – even with router-based systems that use CAT-5 for audio. With the WOR installation, there was very little multi-pair, and very few punch blocks.”
“This was an installation that took far less time than it could have, thanks to Axia,” said Rosenberg.
“WOR has many unique operating requirements, so Buckley’s evaluation and selection process was quite stringent,” says Michael Dosch, President of Axia Audio. “They generate an enormous amount of mission-critical programming, so absolute reliability is paramount. We’re honored to have been chosen for this important project.”
Using the Axia IP-Audio system, broadcasters can build audio networks of any size using standard Switched Ethernet to connect a few rooms — or an entire facility. Because an Axia audio network can carry hundreds of digital stereo audio channels over standard CAT-6 cables, much of the cost normally associated with wiring labor and infrastructure is eliminated.
The Axia system includes a family of “audio nodes” to interface to microphone, analog line and AES/EBU devices, IP-Audio drivers to eliminate PC soundcards, DSP mixing/processing engines, PathFinderPC matrix control PC software, and the SmartSurface Studio Control Surface, and the new Element Modular Control Surface debuting at NAB.
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Axia, a Telos company, builds network-based professional audio products for broadcast, production, sound-reinforcement and commercial audio applications. Products include digital audio routers, DSP mixers and processors and software for configuring, managing, and interfacing networked audio systems.