RTS constantly balances innovation efforts with value for money, combined with IT requirements for standardisation and infrastructure for centralised updates
As a public broadcaster, Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS) must constantly balance their innovation efforts with value for money. That pressure, combined with IT requirements for standardisation, prompted the Swiss network to reassess its picture finishing workflow.
“Our biggest pressure comes from IT, with regular security updates,” said Nathalie Montjouridès, post production system owner at RTS and head of the project. “That means working with managed hardware and software that can be centrally updated, while finding cost savings through IT standardisation.”
Seeking Hardware and Software Simplicity
These pressures ultimately led RTS to evaluate alternatives to its existing systems, with two core considerations. “First, the high cost of alternative hardware and support was becoming hard to justify,” said Cyril Moulin, head of ENG and post production at RTS. “A second priority was our desire to move toward a more flexible and sustainable solution, with free software support and wider industry adoption. Blackmagic DaVinci Resolve Studio addressed those concerns.”
To help evaluate the alternatives, RTS set out clear requirements. “On the software side, we needed a solution that was reliable, proven in professional environments and already in wide use within the industry,” Cyril said.
The hardware expectations were equally challenging, including GPU performance, silent operation in the grading room, compatibility with existing network storage infrastructure, dependable SDI broadcast monitoring, and long term reliability. Finally they would need a system with proven operability with DaVinci Resolve Studio to facilitate the complete workflow.
Standardising the System
For RTS, DaVinci Resolve Studio’s appeal was its breadth and familiarity. “Resolve isn’t limited to grading; it also covers finishing, online and conform, which meant we could replace several tools with one,” said Cyril. “Because it’s already used widely in the industry and has a modern interface, the transition has been straightforward.”
RTS deployed Mac Studio M3 Ultra systems featuring 28 CPU cores, 60 GPU cores and 256 GB RAM, integrated into Sonnet xMac Studio Echo III chassis – 3U rackmount enclosures with a three slot Thunderbolt to PCIe card expansion system for Mac Studio. Each system hosts a DeckLink 8K Pro G2 capture and playback device for SDI video I/O, a 10/25 GbE network adapter for storage connectivity and two 4TB NVMe SSDs for DaVinci Resolve Studio cache and fallback mode.
“This configuration is silent, compact and precisely optimised for DaVinci Resolve,” Cyril noted. “The Mac Studio was the natural fit because it integrates natively with DaVinci Resolve through Apple Silicon (GPU/CPU/unified memory), and delivers stable, high GPU and AI processing performance. The Sonnet chassis allowed us to add the broadcast essentials, including a DeckLink card for monitoring purposes and the network adapter for reliable storage connection.
Storage, MAM and Archive Integration
“RTS undertook the migration methodically to avoid disruptions. We organised one week of training for users, pre migration tests on Mac Studio systems and timed the changeover so that our support contracts ended on the previous solution.”
Today, DaVinci Resolve Studio is integrated with the broadcaster’s existing network storage infrastructure, with deeper links to MAM and archive systems under discussion.
The cost savings could be appreciated immediately. “By moving to MacOS and DaVinci Resolve we’ve saved about 150,000 CHF (Swiss francs), done away with a dedicated maintenance contract and simplified operations on standardized, IT managed hardware,” said Cyril. “It means we now have better control of the budget and less daily overhead to deal with.”
Based on RTS’ experience, he believes the transition offers value for others as well. “DaVinci Resolve has become a recognised industry standard that is technically sound and cost effective,” he commented. “The migration is manageable and advantages in cost, stability and integration are immediate.” www.blackmagicdesign.com
