Without the Prodigy . MP as it is now , it probably wouldn ’ t be even possible to reach that level of redundancy . I would have had to use many more products and the more you are combining different products , the harder it is to let them communicate properly in order to have an automatic redundancy switch .
Adding the possibility to control all the devices as if they were just one , it ’ s an incredible advantage of course . The software that guarantees that is Globcon , the global control ecosystem I designed and started developing with my engineering team four years ago . All the DirectOut products deployed at Eurovision 2022 have Globcon plug-ins available .
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A couple weeks after our conversation , and just two days after Eurovision 2022 wrapped up , I emailed Giaroli to find out how it went . For fans watching on TV , it was a resounding success with not a single hiccup seen or heard . But given the multiple layers of redundancy built into the system to avoid TV viewers witnessing any such problem , I was curious how smoothly it went behind the scenes .
“ As usual , the more backups you have in place , the less likely something will actually happen ,” he wrote back . “ We didn ’ t experience any failure or problem at all and with this ESC edition , we have achieved a bunch of world records : the highest level of redundancy ever ; first level of redundant actions totally automated ; and not a single audio sample lost , nor passed through sample rate converters during the two semifinals and the grand finale . Monitors , FOH , PA , and broadcast worked perfectly in synch for the whole show . In one word : perfection !”
And with that , the bar has been raised for future worldwide live TV events .
Michael Raine is the Editor-In-Chief of Professional Sound .
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