Thundering hoofs meet chattering commentators at this weekend\u2019s Kentucky Derby. The NBC and NBC Sports Network shows will have lots of both. The NEP ND3 truck is managing the former, the NEP SS24 rig the latter, and both are using Calrec Alpha audio consoles. The effects submix is being done from ND3C using a Calrec Q2 analog console.<\/p>\n
Speaking of analog, Churchill Downs has plenty of that kind of cabling, which is fine with Wendel Stevens, the A1 who is mixing the show in discrete 5.1 surround audio. \u201cMost of our traffic is on DT-12 cables in analog, because the track is nicely wired with DT and XLRs,\u201d he explains. \u201cBut we do use six MADI streams for signal distribution throughout the compound.\u201d He will be joined by Ryan Outcalt and Dana Kirkpatrick sharing submix duties. Lee Pfanner is the A1 mixing the NBCSN shows.<\/p>\n
The track is heavily covered for sound: 16 camera mics \u2013 a mixture of Sennheiser 416 and Audio-Technica BP4029 shotguns \u2013 are blended with five mics on the starting gate, comprising four Sony ECM-77 lavaliers and a Sennheiser 416 shotgun.<\/p>\n
But lots of other sound elements are critical to providing a complete picture for viewers, including Audio-Technica BP3025 stereo microphones on the bugler, choir, and marching band. The crowd will be picked up by an array of Sennheiser ME64 cardioid condensers, which Stevens says he chooses for their high output levels.<\/p>\n
Riding atop all this over two days of shows will be 16 commentators and announcers using a total of 35 microphones. Eight of these are wireless, provided by BSI, which is also handling the IFB. The extra mics are necessary on a show that covers a lot of ground. \u201cReporters move from location to location throughout the show, sometimes switching microphones, depending on locations,\u201d he explains, noting that RF wireless often won\u2019t work reliably indoors in some environments.<\/p>\n
Stevens won\u2019t know until just before the race how many \u2014 if any \u2014 microphone sources he might have on the jockeys, for whom weight is the critical issue. \u201cWe meet the jockeys in the jockey room,\u201d he tells SVG. \u00a0\u201cThe transmitter is normally inside a pouch, which is attached with large safety pins on the jockey\u2019s inner layer of clothing. Usually, the transmitter pouch is located on the jockey\u2019s back, with each rider requesting whatever tweaks to make the mic more comfortable.<\/p>\n
\u201cBSI provides the transmitters,\u201d he continues, \u201cand the elements are Sennheiser MKE2s. The transmitters are full-size, high-powered units to provide enough power for track-wide coverage. The mic element is ideally located under the jockey\u2019s clothing in the jockey\u2019s armpit area, keeping it away from wind and dirt. The front of the jockey during a race you hear nothing but wind, slapping clothing, and dirt thumps.\u201d<\/p>\n
Like most sports, horseracing offers some peculiarities, and several can be really peculiar, such as the need to avoid leaving microphone cables coiled along the ground, which to horses look an awful lot like snakes.<\/p>\n
This year, though, so close to the anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombings, security has changed some broadcast work habits. \u201cWe have to be conscious not to wrap up field gear in black garbage bags, so that it looks like something a bad guy left lying around,\u201d Stevens says. \u201cEverything has to be clearly identified as NBC\u2019s. After the Boston Marathon bombing last year, this became a concern.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Thundering hoofs meet chattering commentators at this weekend\u2019s Kentucky Derby. The NBC and NBC Sports Network shows will have lots of both. The NEP ND3 truck is managing the former, […]\n More<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[59],"tags":[58,8088,1195,47,275,74,5222,297,63,151],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67586"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=67586"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67586\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=67586"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=67586"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=67586"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}