Sports Will Be Back Soon. Will You Be Ready?
I am looking over the original schedule for my school’s 2020 football season. It’s going to be different. Not just coming back from the pandemic and the ripple effects from that, but it’s going to be different because we have a new region to play in this year. Instead of traveling north through the hills of northeast Georgia, the flat pine tree laden trips down I-20 toward South Carolina await.
As I look at the schedule, I am thinking about things I want to improve and things that we did right. I’ll save the things to improve for later, but the biggest thing we have gotten right the last 2 years has been our audio and communication during live events.
Two years ago, I started talking with the folks from Henry Engineering, because they had an “idea that would be groundbreaking for school sports broadcasting.” We chatted for several months, sharing ideas, drawings, concepts, and ended up with the Henry Engineering SportsCaster.
The SportsCaster is a “one stop shop” for everything audio during a live event. It’s a 6-channel audio mixer with a built-in Intercom system. In one rack unit, you can mix three on-air announcers who are using their Sports Pods, add sideline reports with the “field” input, plus ambient mics with the two “aux” inputs. Now, you have a fully built, well-rounded broadcast.
The power of the SportsCaster is how much it accomplishes that would otherwise cost thousands to achieve. The companion Sports Pods give the talent the control they need. They can control their mic, mix their headphone audio, and use the Intercom to talk offline with the producer or director. They connect easily to the SportsCaster with a single daisy-chained run of cat5 cable, which supplies power, headphones, and intercom audio.
Add an XLR cable back from each Sports Pod and now you have all three fully operational talent stations. The beauty of the Sports Pod is that each person can mix their headphones exactly how they like. If they want a lot of themselves and a little bit of the producer, simple. If they want themselves in both ears and the producer in the right ear, simple - slide the Return switch to the “R.”
To add a sideline reporter, just plug in a wireless microphone into the “field” input and you are good to go. If they are a really good sideline reporter, they are going to be pitching you content throughout the broadcast. Mix him to the Intercom, so the producer and air talent can coordinate before he goes live. Then hit one button and his report is on the air - very professional!
How does the sideline reporter hear? That’s simple too! There is a “field” output on the back of the SportsCaster that, when paired with a wireless listening device, he can hear both the producer intercom and the main on-air mix!
If you are looking to give your camera ops some feedback during the show, you can send headphone audio to them, including the producer’s intercom! On the front panel of the SportsCaster, with the push of a button, the producer can talk directly to the talent in the booth, or the sideline reporter, or the camera ops! The producer can also tweak how they want to hear everyone too. They can put their program feed in both ears, the sideline reporter’s cue in their right ear, and the analyst’s talk back in the left... all with a simple slide of a switch to the desired location.
The main air talent, sideline reporter, camera ops, and producer can ALL set their headphone audio to be exactly what THEY want to hear. And they can ALL communicate with each other as needed.
This is the power of the SportsCaster: its ability to integrate ALL of these important functions into a comprehensive system that’s easy to install and use! It mixes your mics (that’s the easy part), but also allows everyone on the broadcast team to HEAR what they need to hear, and to COMMUNICATE with their team members. It’s this coordination that produces an error-free broadcast that sounds as professional as the big networks!
As you look at your broadcasts from last year and wonder how to make them better, I highly suggest that you take a look at the Henry Engineering SportsCaster and Sports Pods. They’ll make ALL elements of your show better. Too often, the audio and video “aren’t on the same page,” but these tools will allow you to communicate your vision for the show to everyone and make sure everyone’s audio has a professional presentation.
An important note from the manufacturer:
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, SportsCaster production was interrupted. Our stock of SportsCaster units is fully sold-out. Production will resume in June. If you intend to order a SportsCaster system, we suggest placing your order very soon, as it could be a while before our production is able to catch-up with existing orders! Call Hank Landsberg at Henry Engineering: 562-493-3589 or send an email to henryeng@aol.com. Full product information is available at https://henryeng.com/sportscaster/.
Meet the Author, Tom White
Tom White is the digital media instructor at Morgan County High School in Madison, GA. Currently teaching TV production and animation pathways, Tom's programs have received state and national honors including the 2016 NFHS Network School Broadcast Program Of The Year.
Prior to teaching, Tom was a marketing, promotions, and online content director for a major radio corporation in Atlanta. Tom studied exercise science at High Point University prior to his radio career. Despite his winding career path, his mother still thinks he is special.
