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NAB 2012
I have been lacking on posts this year. Personally it has been tough with family issues culminating in the passing of my Dad. It adds to the lack of motivation. Now it is time to get back on track. A kick start: the NAB show is back! I’ve printed some floor maps this year and I have a list of 32 vendors I want to harass, I mean talk to and look at. All for various reasons from the obvious to the “what they He** would I want to look at them” is on that list. What are your agenda for this year?
1. Talk with those of which I still have some issues. Harris is one. Do they intend to make a new exciter that is a bit more reliable? Am I looking at having to budget for a new Exporter that may correct some of the issues? BTW, I received an email that specifically states that I “should have no need to move the equipment to the transmitter site,” so I hopefully am on track to eliminate or better manage my issues.
2. Telos: I am going to ask you point blank and face to face: Why do I have 2 Console Directors that just go to sleep and you guys cannot help with a solution? Only two. I am going to swap one out today with a different one just to see if the problem follows again, though I have done it before.. Gotta do though.
3. 305 Broadcast. A new distributor on the block. I figure I will see what they have to offer and how they compare or plan to compete with the likes of BGS and BSW.
The list goes on, but you get the gist. I will also just wander around aimlessly because I can. The largest road block to moving forward is money. No budget. I can plan and think and plan and think. Ouch, maybe not so much thinking!
Hope to see you there!
Tech Week Review: I’m Tired
This week was a full week if there ever was one. We managed to dodge a bullet in the power department, survived another AT&T T1 failure, rebounded from an RCS mess, and finished the first steps of a studio upgrade.
Power. We take it for granted. A normal facility would have enough available capacity to grow. Here we do neither. This is tied into our RCS NexGen installation where we had to add a server room to accommodate the hardware intensive system. (not our choice, but we do what we do.) The facility was built in the mid-80’s for two stations. Today it house 4 stations, a minimal amount of production space, and a tech center that was expanded to handle the PPM equipment. The tech panel is connected to a generator and is only capable of 40 Amps, max. The limit is the generator which we cannot do anything about, yet (future project and story will accompany it), at 12.5kW. We are max-ed out on the panel with only 5 Amps of headroom on two phases and 0 Amps on the third phase. With a bit of juggling and shedding non-critical equipment, racks, and even production rooms, we managed to fire up all 18 server class computers and their peripheral equipment. Mr. Goldberg would be proud of this accomplishment.
Since I dropped the RCS NexGen mess into this and it is associated with this hell, we received the equipment and it was NOT configured with IP addresses which we were told was done. We were also not given instructions on the Dell FX100 KVM extenders which even Dell does not support. We ended up finding out that Dell re-brands them under the model FX100 and they actually come from a Canadian company of which our IT dude contacted. We find they are obsolete and no longer manufactured. He did receive instructions and got them to work! We can now proceed on learning how this beast runs and begin to deploy such beast.
On that note, in conjunction with the RCS project we are upgraded a production room. It is finally getting equipped with a SAS Rubicon console. Finally all our main facilities will be on the same system. This was a project that has been postponed for 3 years! I had the furniture modified to accommodate the smaller frame, a PR&E/Harris Legacy console was removed, and a new Rubicon 16 installed. The console was up and running by the end of the day as I pre-configured it between the other headaches of the week. All we need to do is finish connecting peripherals and attend to details. I am the resident expert on SAS having installed 8 consoles in our facility, one configured as a split-console. One issue that has arisen in this installation is the Telos Console Director. The display starts out good, but then messes up. Operation is not an issue, just the display. Next week begins with a call to Telos to see what I can do to verify anything unusual. I know the cable from the I/O to the director is good and I know the Desktop Director works just fine. Interesting that I seem to have issues with Console Directors. I still have no resolve on my other two that just go stupid and shut down. A mystery that needs solving!
In the middle of this fun was our routine T1 outage from our friendly folks at AT&T. This came in the middle of our power management project. We finally got to deal with a tech that knew what he was doing. He was baffled by the fact that the circuit was down hard for 2 hours with no signs of problems before or after in the logs. He proceeded to tear out the circuit and test all the way back to the CO. He found 80 Volts of cross-battery and had new pairs assigned. Let’s see how long we go this time. This circuit has issues at least 3-4 months, and each time AT&T says it tests good.
I did manage to make it to the SBE meeting to hear what Nautel has to offer in the future. Now there is a company I have not problems with at the moment.
I continue the installation of the Burk ARC Plus system as time permits. All projects are running together now and two of our stations have gone into live broadcast mode. We do the best we can to cover everything, it just means we delay projects to accommodate them.
On that note, it was tiring this week. It took time off today and spent time with my daughter. We attack next week and fit all in everything in between 3 live broadcasts. Busy is good, it just makes it difficult to do it right and in the time allotted. Have a great weekend!
Telos, I Have A Problem
Telos,
I have a problem with a Console Director. I have had this problem for over 2 years now. I have sent the Console Director back for evaluation. You said no problem found. I continue to have problems with it. I get calls at all hours and I explain how to reset it. I am annoyed.
The problem is the Console Director goes dead. Totally blank. To get it back we unplug the Console Director and plug it back in. It is good to go for another random amount of time. We have changed ports on the Studio I/O. We added an in-line power supply. We swapped it with a different room. Ah, a Studio I/O issue? Oh, swapped that too. Power issues? New UPS.
I have a new issue that points to the Studio I/O. It spontaneously reboots at random times. Power supply swap. Odd, I have done that before. Problem persists.
I have 7 Studio I/O units and 5 Console Directors. Two of the CDs experience this issue stated. Yes, the second one has gone back, too. No problem found. No other issues with I/Os.
Can anyone draw a line on how all the parts work together? 2101 Hub, I/O, and Console Director? By the way, I have several Desktop Directors that have no issues, even the one in this particular studio. Another twist. No issue with the Desktop Director.
All this leads to frustration, annoyance, and bewilderment. Anyone out there ever experience something like this? Is it time to consider a new product? A different manufacturer?
If I ever figure this out, I will surely follow up. And don’t call me Surely.
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Summary of Life
Oh there is so much to write about. I’ve been on vacation, and now back this week to much to do. Twitter has been good for updates. I sure would like to drill down and give you guys some substance, but here we are summarizing the fun we have had this week.
HVAC. Finally, after 6 or so years, we have air conditioning at our Class A transmitter site. The R2D2 type units just were not cutting it and when I had the vendor out to get the quote, one of the units would not stay on. Now that the new unit is in, the room is consistent and hopefully will be much cleaner as it is a closed system. We had a Fujitsu 2.5 ton split system installed. It is quiet; almost too quiet. The residence at the house will appreciate that. It is rated at 19 SEARS, so it is efficient. Let’s see how efficient over time. Check that off the list.
I received my RF load for a station that had one under-sized since the HD installation. That needs to go. The thing showed up the day before I left on vacation. I will squeeze that in shortly. Should be straight forward. Of course I plan on making the project a bit more complicated as the RF coax switch on that station needs to be rotated 90 degrees as the interlocks do not line up properly with the controller, position-wise. Now that will be fun. Drop switch, rotate it, and make plumb again.
New Avaya phone system was installed. Some minor adjustments are required, but we had the first phones up and running 1 hour after the old system was turned off. We’re good. I congratulate the IT dude on his planning and the folks at GSolutionz for providing a good installation experience. Can’t wait to play with the new features. I do have one thing we are attempting to solve: Connecting the system to the Telos 2101. I have Green, but I do not have the numbers and the two systems are not quite talking with each other. I’m waiting for a call from Telos now (been 2 hours already) on the error codes that are showing so I can get the techs to adjust the Avaya to provide what Telos needs. Anyone else connect a phones system to the Telos? Any luck, trouble, solutions?
I continue to find the time to run tests and evaluate the Orban 8600. Stay tuned for a user report somewhere. Hint: I like it. Now will Omnia step up and let me dig on that one?
I continue to rotate 6 year old Aphex 230 processors through as they fail. All the same vintage and all getting capacitors replaced. I am still not told which ones, but at least I know they get recalibrated when sent in for service. Believe it or not, one unit had a tube replaced. I need to dig up the type and get a couple replacements in house. My oldest is 7 years old.
Keeping busy is good. Makes the days fly by. If there is a subject you would like to hear about, let me know. I appreciate all comments, good and bad.
Have a great 4th of July weekend!
Weekly Update: 1/21/2011
Yup, still no good idea on a title. Actually I really haven’t thought much about it! There, the truth. Mostly routine stuff again this week. I like it slow as I can spend a bit of time relaxing and getting ready for whatever big thing that may strike.
Had our Telos Console Director go batty again. Just doesn’t want to communicate with the Studio I/O. Emailed Telos. No response. I know they are busy and have bigger things to worry about like marketing the Omnia processor or Axia studio systems. I let it set for a few days and then reconnected. It works again. Hmmmm? As a new test I placed an in-line power supply on that sucker with the thought that if I buffer it from the I/O we may see less trouble. So far we are good this week. Well, I should say no reports as the folks are pretty much trained to disconnect and reconnect at will. We will not discuss the concept of using the Desktop Director through the console as this seems to go way over the operators’ heads. For those interested this issues has been with us for coming up on 3 years. No solution has ever been found. Very annoying.
AT&T bummed our remote control line again this week. False alarms have stopped, so maybe they fixed it again. Also spent some time checking and ISDN (yes they still exist) at a venue. I replaced the block. Have you tried to order ISDN recently? It is nearly impossible with AT&T. Lead time is 4 weeks. Good thing we do not use ISDN much anymore. IP is our main transport of remote audio now.
Had a timed relay replaced on the transfer switch at a transmitter site. It works for the time being. While that was done we dug a trench for conduit getting ready for a new STL line pull. The landlord is preparing to “organize” the site’s STL dishes. I’m looking forward to a less than 600-foot run and no more iso-coupler.
Sorry for the boring update. Seems that the start of the year is follows the end of a year: slow. I will give an interesting report of the new iMedia logger we just purchased as soon as it comes it. Should be interesting to see how that goes. After 8 years, the old system just can’t cut it any longer. Why iMedia? It is the system we currently have and we will be getting the Websecure feature.
Till the next update, have a good weekend.
Updates & and New Morning Show
Wow, has it been that long since I posted? For all 3 of you who follow diligently, thanks for staying tuned. It has been wild to say the least; if you follow my Twitter you have been up to date without details. We started a new morning show, and what comes with a new morning show is what we all expect: Headaches! If only they gave us time to prepare for their arrival. Where would the fun be in that, eh?
First surprise is that it is a talk-it-up show with 5 people. Nice. We have not had a talking-heads type show here in years, so we only have the basics in place. As we are a “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” mentality here on equipment that works, we do not update it. We’ve been caught too many times with updates that bit us in the ass. This one was better, though we did find you can mess up the whole system briefly with a “server” crash. Being talk, we had to integrate the Assistant Producer call screening software from Telos into the mix. We use the 2101 system. We found you can choose a Show/Studio combination with it such that if that combination does not exist in reality, it barfs the hub/server briefly. A call to Telos confirmed the older software was to blame. Time to upgrade after how many years?
After a little preparation and another call to Telos, we figured out the best procedure to upgrade the 2101 Hub and Studio I/Os to the latest and greatest; an upgrade released 3 years ago! I figured I would try to do each I/O via the front panel and quickly ruled that out. Telnet is the way to go. I have to say the update was smooth and all I/Os and Hub are up to date. I got the latest release of the Assistant Producer software and away we went. Well, until we discovered that we once again are able to choose a Show/Studio combination that make the AP application drop connection with the server. At least the whole system did not go down. As we now know the situation, we happily run AP.
As an added feature, we purchased an wireless VGA “extender” so the Assistant Producer computer in the air studio can be viewed on our 32″ LCD T.V. With a little font enlargement and making the entries bold, it works pretty darn well.
I think I may review the microphone the talent requested time permitting. It is a Blue Blueberry microphone. My first impression is it sounds good, though ascetically it is a bit ugly for me and bulky. It is paired with an Aphex 230 voice processor. As the main microphone is a Neuman BCM-104, I find there is not much difference between the two with this guy’s voice. Part of this is he seems to know how to work a good mic. It turns out the Blue mic is more expensive, too. So much for the budget!
Carry on!
Tech Notes from the Field 