Emerson College, a premier higher education institution in the U.S. devoted to communication and the arts, has upgraded its Tufte Performance and Production Center to include LDX cameras and Karrera K-Frame S-series switchers from Grass Valley, a Belden Brand.
The move was part of Emerson’s upgrade of its entire television production facility, which supports student production of educational, sports and long-form program programming. The LDX cameras, currently operating in the Di Bona Family Television Studio at 1080p60 and in Teaching Studio B at 720p60, offer varying levels of operational flexibility to meet every production need, while the Karrera K-Frame S-series switchers combine ultimate mid-range switcher performance, along with proven workflows and simplified control of complex productions. With Grass Valley’s upgradeable architecture, the cameras and switchers can be upgraded easily to UHD with 4K, HDR, WCG and HFR capabilities.
“We take pride in preparing our students for successful careers, and that means helping them develop the best skills and teaching them how to use the best equipment,” said Brooke Knight, chair of Emerson’s Visual and Media Arts Department. “We’re excited about how our new live production facility will further enhance our students’ learning experiences.”
The recent purchase includes four LDX 86 WorldCam cameras and four LDX 80 Flex cameras—all of which came with Fujinon lenses. Emerson also selected a Karrera K-Frame S-series 3 M/E switcher and a Karrera K-Frame S-series 2 M/E switcher. Installation was handled by The Systems Group, a Grass Valley premiere systems integrator for more than 20 years.
The LDX 86 WorldCam offers traditional HD/3G acquisition, as well as the ability to upgrade to LDX 86 4K functionality and then further upgrade to LDX 86 Universe functionality, adding 6X HD and 3X HD/3G high-frame-rate capture. The new Extended Dynamic Range (XDR) capability is also available as a software upgrade to enable 15 f-stops of dynamic range in single-speed operation.
Built for business flexibility and operational excellence, with superior imaging, processing and performance, the LDX 80 Flex is an advanced imaging, single-format 1080i or 720p camera. With the GV-eLicense program, users have the ability to upgrade the LDX 80 Flex to any other camera in the LDX 80 Series, based on business and production needs.
Karrera K-Frame S-series switchers deliver unmatched creative freedom for highly produced content and offer up to 6 M/Es across two suites, with four keyers per M/E, and up to eight floating iDPMs. Switching of 4K is offered without the need for any hardware or software upgrades, and the switchers are now available with IP I/O for SMPTE 2022-6 connectivity.
This marks the latest Grass Valley equipment installation at Emerson. The school already utilizes a number of other Grass Valley solutions in its Journalism Production Center, including the Kaleido-X multiviewer and a legacy Concerto router.
“This equipment gives Emerson College students unrivaled capabilities and unmatched freedom,” said Stephen Stubelt, senior vice president, sales and marketing, Grass Valley. “And when these Emerson students graduate, they’ll have unlimited potential because of the experience they are having with some of the most advanced broadcast solutions on the market.”
