Calrec gives broadcasters freedom of choice at NAB Show...

Calrec will be located at Booth 444.

Freedom to choose

The media landscape is evolving quickly, and the broadcasters best placed for what comes next will be the ones with the freedom to choose how each production is built. As audiences spread across streaming, social and FAST platforms and rights costs keep rising, theres real value in capacity that scales to every occasion, from the biggest to the smallest. What matters now is being able to match each production to the job in front of it.

At NAB Show New York, Calrec will demonstrate how its IP-native ecosystem, with the award-winning Argo console range at its centre, gives broadcasters that freedom, and outline how its commitment to open, software-defined frameworks is set to extend it further.

Ecosystem in action

On Calrecs Booth 444, visitors will see a 36-fader Argo S console running on an ImPulse IP processing core acting as the main controller. It will be linked through True Control 2.0 to a 24-fader Argo M running on internal DSP, and the new 12-fader Type RT compact console. The company will also showcase its new Apex M6 1U modular I/O platform.

True Control 2.0 gives full control over EQ, dynamics, routing, direct outputs and delay from any connected console. A single controller can manage up to five other Calrec consoles or processing cores at once. Wherever the processing sits, the operators experience stays the same.

US debut: Type RT and Apex M6

Launched in September, Type RT is Calrecs most compact all-in-one digital console and an accessible way into the companys ecosystem. DSP, control processing, I/O, monitoring and USB audio are all built in. It supports native ST 2110 AoIP connectivity, with Dante and MADI available as options, and its fanless design keeps it silent. That makes it well suited to sports venues, radio, local TV, podcast studios, corporate events and houses of worship. Available as 6-, 12- or 18-fader options, every model shares the same capability, so users choose the surface size, not the level of performance.

Apex M6 is Calrecs new compact 1U modular I/O platform for audio interfacing, routing, bridging and network edge connectivity. It has six configurable module slots, two built-in MADI interfaces, a 512 x 512 internal router and NMOS-native operation. It works across Calrecs console range or independently of it, which suits facilities moving to IP, expanding existing networks or mixing formats.

Open by design

Freedom of choice only holds if it extends beyond a single vendors technology. That is why Calrec is backing the EBUs Dynamic Media Facility (DMF) project. DMF envisions a shared server stack hosting all the production software a facility needs, with users spinning up whichever tools a job requires.

The EBUs associated Media eXchange Layer (MXL) was developed as an open-source project in collaboration with the North American Broadcasters Association (NABA) under the Linux Foundation. It lets containerised software from multiple vendors exchange audio, video and metadata through shared memory on the same server. Calrec has committed to adding MXL support to ImPulseV, its virtualised audio mixing engine.

US preview: ImPulseV v1.5

ImPulseV v1.5 takes that openness further:

Support for Grass Valleys AMPP control SDK gives AMPP applications direct control over console parameters, including faders.

Calrecs AMPP Bridge application provides bidirectional control between an ImPulse core and the AMPP environment.

ImPulseV supports COTS hardware, reducing reliance on niche equipment.

ImPulseV will also be available on NEPs Platform.

NDI connectivity is added alongside Dante.

Automated deployment is supported through Cloud-Init and Terraform, and new online licences can be added by key rather than file.

New 96- and 140-path DSP packs join the existing 256-path configuration. Short-term licences of one year, 12 weeks and four weeks let broadcasters add capacity for a single event or season without a long-term commitment.

US preview: Argo v1.5

Argo v1.5 also gets its first US showing:

Offline Assist lets users configure shows, memories and presets without an ImPulse core or Argo surface, including against a specific physical surface.

New True Peak Limiters keep output within broadcast loudness standards.

I/O patching has been streamlined for faster switching.

A new Bulk Advanced Configuration option saves advanced settings across multiple devices in one action.

NAB Show New York marks the first opportunity for the US market to get hands-on with our new Type RT consoles and Apex M6 platform, says Henry Goodman, Director of Product Management at Calrec. Together with Argo, they show how broadcasters can build exactly the system they need, at the scale they need it. Freedom of choice is ultimately a business decision. When the cost of a production tracks the scale of the job, broadcasters can say yes to more content, on more platforms, without overcommitting their budgets.

Every element connects back to one ecosystem, from compact Type RT to Argo, and from hardware cores to virtualised DSP running alongside other vendors software. However, broadcasters choose to produce content, Calrecs approach puts that decision with them.

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