At The Star in Singapore, a new pipeline based on AJA gear and ToolsOnAir's just:in mac recording software gives the venue access to multiple live recording workflows for live events.
Performing arts venues have been gaining expertise in staging memorable entertainment experiences, attracting audiences to live performances and in-venue audio visual production. Recent technological developments have been helping to improve the quality of real-time shows, from complex projection mappings to more immersive audio and video projects.
On the backend, they also make it possible for venues like The Star Theatre at The Star Performing Arts Centre in Singapore to deliver high-fidelity event and performance recordings to productions that use their facilities.
Systems integrator Broadcast Engineering Services (BES) worked with The Star to upgrade its legacy video ingest system with a new HD and 4K recording pipeline, comprising AJA Io 4K Plus and Io X3 I/O devices integrated with ToolsOnAir's just:in mac multi-channel video recording software.
"The Star originally intended to upgrade its HD recording pipeline, combined with support for 4K, because it anticipates future client demand for higher resolution files. Having deployed AJA's I/O devices and just:in mac across other installations, we knew the combination would suit their needs," said BES Project Director Brian Li Chuan.
The Apple Mac Studio on the left and AJA Io 4K Plus on the right
"Beyond meeting their technical specifications, the setup was attractive to their team because it would allow them to ingest multiple HD and 4K ingest sources using an Apple Mac Studio for a really cost-efficient system for multi-channel HD and 4K capture," said Brian.
The equipment deployed across productions at The Star varies depending on the artist, group, or event. With 15 cameras in-house, the venue AV team typically uses from two to all 15 of its cameras and a switcher for each event, from which HD signals are sent through to Io X3 devices and ingested into just:in mac for recording.
Occasionally, clients bring their own cameras and ancillary equipment. In those cases, the signals are patched into the theatre control room and fed through an Io X3 in a similar way and recorded via just:in mac. If a client requests 4K, The Star can ingest signals through its Io 4K Plus units. After each event wraps, its team hands over the files to the client, so they can use the recordings however suits them.
"Having a single interface running on AJA I/O gear and just:in mac, where The Star's AV team can manage multiple concurrent camera recordings, has been a very positive change for us. It's now quite easy for one team member to stop, start and pause recordings from one central interface, whereas earlier on, the team had to switch between multiple PCs to do each recording," Brian said.
TolsOnAir just:in mac
"With just:in mac, The Star's AV team can also listen to audio feeds coming through the recording system from different sources to ensure everything is in sync. The Io X3 and Io 4K Plus make it simple to select and assign various recording profiles across sources, including MP4, Apple ProRes and other codecs."
Shen Li at The Star said, "Brian and his team’s implementation of the AJA gear and ToolsOnAir was extremely smooth. The GUI is straightforward to use, and if our client's team prefers to take over the control room for an event or performance, they can move in quickly and start working with the devices and software. The speed of the Thunderbolt connectivity on our AJA devices is another advantage."
Anticipating their net moves, BES and The Star are exploring the potential to transition the facility from baseband video to SMPTE 2110 in the near future. With their experience in helping clients adapt to new trends and technology to evolve venue AV systems, Brian commented, "While we're proud of our achievements to date, in this industry, our work is never complete. We're already thinking about emerging trends and how we can better prepare our clients to keep up to date. AJA’s reliability and versatility will inevitably make them part of those discussions." www.aja.com
