Concordia University St. Paul Deploys Tightrope’s ZEPLAY for Instant Replay

Concordia University, St. Paul has selected ZEPLAY, a 4-in/4-out instant replay server from Tightrope Media Systems, for their mobile production truck, which is employed in a wide variety of campus sporting events.

ZEPLAY constantly records four 100Mbps HD-SDI streams while simultaneously playing out any or all of the streams. It is designed so that a single operator can effectively manage four angles of replay, and features a high end jog/shuttle controller, a built-in multi-viewer for all eight streams, and GPI interfaces for integration into production systems. ZEPLAY also includes a sequence editor for on-the-fly highlights package creation, clip store, melts, transport controls, and frame blending in both slow motion and fast motion for super smooth replays.

“We have been a customer of Tightrope for over five years now, utilizing their Cablecast automation, Cablecast SX Video servers, and Carousel Digital Signage for our local television channel,” says Zach Schuster, Television Production Manager at Concordia University St. Paul. “When Tightrope announced their Instant Replay Server, ZEPLAY, we wanted to get it in here right away. We needed an Instant Replay Server for all of the sporting events we cover over the course of a year, and with four angles that are always recording in four separate streams, ZEPLAY is the best solution that we could find.”

Schuster also knew that he needed an instant replay system that was lightning fast in order to keep up with the action on the volleyball court with the four-peat Div. 2 National Champion Golden Bear women’s volleyball team. “We run replays all the time in volleyball,” says Schuster. “This is where ZEPLAY has proven itself over and over again. It’s incredible; as fast as the action is, ZEPLAY is always ready with the replay, from any angle, instantly.”

Concordia also needed a system that was easy to use, as their productions are often crewed by production students who are not experienced replay operators. “With all that Tightrope has packed in to ZEPLAY, it is amazingly easy to operate. The students pick it up very quickly. Even when they are thrown into the truck for the first time, by the second half of a game they are flying through the system. The other thing that Tightrope has done is to build a highlight editor right into the ZEPLAY. The same replay operator can use the built-in highlight editor to trim clips and assemble a highlight reel that I can play out at halftime and also post to the internet right after the game.”

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