Austrian host broadcaster, ORF, marked the 60th anniversary of the world’s oldest
televised song contest – Eurovision Song Contest – by providing a spectacular TV
and stage show with a technically innovative production concept. More than 200
million viewers in 80 countries witnessed Sweden’s Mans Zelmerlow outscore his 26
co-finalists, but would have been unaware that all of the contest’s audio signals
were routed via a RAVENNA/AES67-based IP infrastructure for the first time at a
Eurovision event. Both the Lawo Nova 73 audio matrix – including all connected
DALLIS I/O systems used by ORF’s broadcast supplier, VideoHouse – and the video
and audio distribution of the Lawo commentary solution were based on IP
networking technology.
All of the audio signals were collected by a central audio router, to be distributed to
all of the event’s suppliers and OB vans. This setup minimised equipment and
cabling requirements while significantly increasing the flexibility of the installation.
The central audio infrastructure was based on a Lawo Nova 73HD audio routing
core, which formed the heart of the audio operation. Ten DALLIS I/O systems were
connected to the core via RAVENNA audio-over-IP technology, allowing
decentralised collection and distribution of all signals in the venue, including 96
Sennheiser wireless microphones, 32 Sennheiser in-ear systems and a Pro Tools
playback system. The Lawo infrastructure also enabled distribution of all of the sync
and timecode signals needed for the production.
In total, the Lawo Nova infrastructure routed more than 6,600 audio signals to six
OB vans, as well as to the FOH and monitor consoles inside the hall. All OB trucks –
including three vehicles from ORF and three from VideoHouse – were equipped with
Lawo m² 66 or mc²56 digital mixing consoles. In addition, the VideoHouse trucks
were equipped with Lawo V__pro8 video processing systems for audio embedding,
de-embedding and format conversion. A VSM system from L–S–B was used for
managing and controlling the whole installation.
The Lawo commentary system used by ORF was also based completely on IP
networking technology. The 14-member Lawo crew equipped 45 commentator
cabins with Lawo LCU commentary units, which were networked via
RAVENNA/AES67 with the commentary control room and the commentary
equipment room. Here, the signals were forwarded to the Prodys ISDN and IP
codecs connecting broadcasters worldwide with the venue. The Lawo commentary
system was developed in collaboration with HBS for the 2014 World Cup, and HBS
also supported the setup in Vienna with equipment and personnel. The video signals
for the 90 video screens in the Eurovision commentary boxes were streamed to the
commentary boxes via Lawo V__link4 video-over-IP systems. These video screens
provided additional information for the commentators, in addition to what they
witnessed taking place in the hall.
The project was managed by Lawo as a turnkey solution, including developing the
technical concept, implementation, on-site support and equipment from Lawo’s
rental partner, Audio Broadcast Services (ABS). In total, ABS delivered 15 tons of
Lawo equipment to Vienna.
