Lawo technology was installed in the "Philharmonie Production Complex" of Cologne-based German public broadcaster Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR) as part of a fundamental modernization. The Lawo equipment was integrated into the audio network, which had also been upgraded. Internally, the overall project responsibility was on the WDR Department for Music and Production, and it was carried out by the WDR Planning and Project Engineering Department. The system integration was implemented by the Cologne-based company Mediatec Video- und Audio-Service GmbH. The renewal of WDRs own infrastructure in the auditorium and the structural measures in the control complex had to be completed within six weeks during the 2018 summer break. Until the completion of the new control rooms, the recordings and transmissions of the concerts were taken over by an OB truck, which was already using the new hall infrastructure. The entire project was completed on schedule after three months.
The Cologne Philharmonie in close vicinity of the cathedral is not only used for productions and concert recordings of all WDR music ensembles (WDR Symphony Orchestra, WDR Big Band, WDR Broadcast Orchestra, WDR Radio Choir), but is also the venue for a wide-ranging cultural program, including concerts of various styles and readings.
The heart of the modernized audio equipment is an IP-based Lawo mc 96 Grand Production Console in the recording control room for mixing and recording concerts and transferring audio signals to a new sapphire compact radio broadcast mixing console installed in the on-site speakers room for moderation and broadcast-relevant contributions. The new installation had become necessary because the console of another manufacturer, which had been installed so far, could no longer guarantee operational reliability due to its age and could no longer meet the constantly increasing requirements for ever more ambitious music recordings in 96 kHz with increasing channel volume and correspondingly more DSP performance and routing capacity. The decision for the Lawo console was preceded by an evaluation process in which the flagship of the mc family was ultimately chosen. The contract was awarded by WDR at the beginning of 2018.
Depending on the production and quality requirements, the new mc 96 can be operated with a sampling rate of either 96 kHz or 48 kHz. With a processing capacity of 192 (384) DSP channels at 96 (48) kHz, a router board with 8192 x 8192 crosspoints and 72 faders on the user interface, the console offers numerous options for future projects.
Important issues for the decision to install the mc 96 were, among other things, the possibility of using the integrated screens to display the DAW PCs, and the flexibility of user-definable functions that can be operated via user buttons. Comprehensive redundancy - router card, DSP card and redundant power supplies - ensure maximum operational reliability.
The sapphire compact is located in the speakers room of the Philharmonie and can be operated either independently or in combination with the mc 96. For live broadcasts from the Philharmonie, it is used for moderations before and after the concerts as well as for interviews, and for this purpose is looped into the transmission chain during the current program - triggered via router of the mc 96 from the console's surface - without clicking. In order to avoid level jumps during the takeover, the sapphires takeover control is set to the correct position by remote control from the mc 96. The transmission signals in 5.1 surround and stereo are then transmitted from the mc 96 via RAVENNA connection to the main control room of the WDR radio station and transmitted live, e.g. on the WDR 3 Classic Wave.
In the course of the modernization, a new cabling concept for the microphone paths via DALLIS I/O systems as stage boxes was implemented, as well as a new connection to the hall technology, FoH and monitor position (concert operation) and transmission technology (television broadcasts and streaming). Thanks to short cable routes to the microphone preamplifiers under the stage and in the ceiling as well as the connection of the mc HD core and the signal distribution via fiber optic, the signal quality could be further increased. Modern electric equipment, the renovation of the facilities and the optimization of the acoustics in the control rooms also led to the optimization of the listening conditions.
In addition to the symphony orchestra, the Philharmonie production complex also houses the WDR Big Band, which uses the facilities also for concerts and recordings. Since the Big Band postproductions of its recordings are done in its own control room with an mc 66, the new Lawo mixing console in the Philharmonie contributes to the efficiency of the music production, since sound engineers who work in both SCRs can use a familiar working surface. An additional advantage of this solution not to be underestimated is that Lawo already has considerable know-how of Lawo equipment, both in the production areas and in the service department.
Most recent headlines
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Taking the Stage at Carnegie Hall-On a Global Scale Boston Conservatory Orchestra students reflect on their epic concert marking the 80th session of the UN Gene...
22/12/2025
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Presidio's Neerav Shah on the Role of Its Captiva...
22/12/2025
Hitting the bullseye: Sky Sports readies itself for the biggest PDC World Darts ...
22/12/2025
Unique skillset: Bringing new directors to the world of darts at The Worlds with...
22/12/2025
Gravity Media prepares for a flight of fancy with the PDC World Darts Championsh...
22/12/2025
One hundred and eighty: Gravity Media on hitting the production bullseye at the ...
22/12/2025
The Famous Group's Jon Slusser on Fascinating Fans Through Immersive Content...
22/12/2025
ESPN's Meg Aronowitz on Continuing High-Quality Broadcasts of Collegiate Spo...
22/12/2025
ESPN Takes Data-Driven Storytelling to New Heights with MNF Playbook with Next ...
22/12/2025
For a decade, popular German podcast Fest & Flauschig has hosted an annual Chris...
22/12/2025
Paramount Scores Largest Share Increase Among Distributors as Paramount and CBS...
22/12/2025
New multi-year deal integrates Roku's data to fuel Nielsen's measurement suite
Roku gains access to Nielsen's streaming ratings, showing The Roku C...
22/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
22/12/2025
Berklee Wrapped 2025: Our Top News and Stories A look back at a year highlighted by faculty milestones, major film and television projects, Bob Dylan's ho...
22/12/2025
The works of Plato state that when humans have an experience, some level of change occurs in their brain, which is powered by memory - specifically long-term me...
22/12/2025
Partnership integrates complementary satellite data and AI analytics to enhance security, infrastructure, and environmental monitoring solutions for global cust...
22/12/2025
Workflows allow you to create a sequence of planned events which may be added to your template(s) or inserted directly into your sequential or background playli...
22/12/2025
Monday 22 December 2025
Sky extends PGA TOUR partnership until 2029, as Sky Spo...
22/12/2025
Back to All News
Global Anime Hits and New Releases Take Center Stage at Jump Festa 2026
Entertainment
22 December 2025
GlobalJapan
Link copied to clipboar...
22/12/2025
Siobh n McSweeney, Rory McIlroy, Elon Musk, Catherine Connolly, Jim Gavin, Ivan Yates and Traitor Paudie Moloney lead new characters for Callan Kicks the Year 2...
22/12/2025
Winner announced in the picturesque surroundings of Wicklow's Avondale Tower and Treetop Walk
Andrew Trimble wins the show in his first series as coach
Th...
22/12/2025
The 2025 winners have been announced today, Sunday 21 December, for Ireland's largest choral competition Choirs for Christmas hosted by RT lyric fm.
Ove...
21/12/2025
Back to All News
Legoshi and Haru's Story Reaches Its Finale: BEASTARS Fin...
21/12/2025
John Shortt named Young Sportsperson of the Year Kerry are the Team of the Year
...
20/12/2025
Atomos announced the immediate availability of a new firmware update for its Ninja TX GO and Ninja TX monitor-recorders, unlocking ProRes RAW recording from the...
20/12/2025
CJP Broadcast has completed the digitisation of the European Gymnastics tape archive, converting 328 tapes containing more than forty years of recorded material...
20/12/2025
Bitmovin, the leading provider of video streaming solutions, today announced the launch of the Stream Lab MCP Server, to give AI agents and large language model...
20/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
20/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
20/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
20/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
20/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
20/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
20/12/2025
Barack Obama Includes Laufey on His 2025 Favorite Music List The former presidents roundup of books, music, and movies includes a song from the Berklee alums ...
20/12/2025
Study reveals a key hormonal circuit in the kidneys Scripps Research scientists identify the protein that helps kidney cells regulate renin, providing foundatio...
19/12/2025
With Playout Release 2025.4, ToolsOnAir continues to push professional playout w...
19/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Diversified's Jared Timmins on AI for Broadcast Sports and Cre...
19/12/2025
2025 SVG Summit Audio Recap: Say What?The Audio Production and Distribution Workshop at the SVG Summit 20 took on issues including speech intelligibility, Next-...
19/12/2025
Gamified fun: Channel 5 on its NFL Big Game Night ambitions with Hungry Bear Med...
19/12/2025
College Football Playoff Preview: For ESPN, Round 1 is a Fantastic Yet Familia...
19/12/2025
AWS's Jason Dvorkin on Developing Partnerships With the NBA and PGA Tour, Em...
19/12/2025
Netflix Kicks Off Packed Sports Week with Paul-Joshua Fight Before Shifting to N...
19/12/2025
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Presidio's Nareev Shah on the Role of Its Captiva...
19/12/2025
Mounted to the pylon of an AH-1Z Viper helicopter, a Red Wolf vehicle successful...
Lawo technology was installed in the "Philharmonie Production Complex" of Cologne-based German public broadcaster Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR) as part of a fundamental modernization. The Lawo equipment was integrated into the audio network, which had also been upgraded. Internally, the overall project responsibility was on the WDR Department for Music and Production, and it was carried out by the WDR Planning and Project Engineering Department. The system integration was implemented by the Cologne-based company Mediatec Video- und Audio-Service GmbH. The renewal of WDRs own infrastructure in the auditorium and the structural measures in the control complex had to be completed within six weeks during the 2018 summer break. Until the completion of the new control rooms, the recordings and transmissions of the concerts were taken over by an OB truck, which was already using the new hall infrastructure. The entire project was completed on schedule after three months.
