SSL System T Hits The Stage At The Austrian National Theatre posted: 29/11/2017
The Burgtheater - the Austrian National Theatre - is part of a group of three Austrian theatres, together with the Wiener Staatsoper (Vienna State Opera) and the Volksoper Wien opera house, and is generally considered to be one of the most important German language theatres anywhere in the world. As part of a recent upgrade to its audio systems, the theatre has installed two SSL System T networked production systems along with a building-wide, redundant Dante Audio-over-IP network and SSL Network I/O. The system was specified by David M llner (Manager, Sound & Multimedia, Burgtheater), supplied by TSAMM Professional Audio Solutions, and installed by Klangfarbe GmbH.
M llner started researching consoles back in 2012, looking for emerging technologies, technology trends, and workflows that might suit the theatre's needs. The Burgtheater was an early investor in digital audio, and its previous digital console was nearly 18 years old by the time it was replaced, so the new system would have a long legacy to live up to. As a repertory company, there is a different production on every day during our ten-month season, explains M llner. Those are chosen from a rolling repertoire of around 40 productions that include traditional drama and contemporary plays. We put on around 20 premieres during the year, all produced by us.
M llner was especially interested in the SSL Live console range when it was released and says that, from a workflow perspective, he was hooked immediately, though was ideally looking for higher path counts, and separation of control surfaces and audio engines. I then found out about System T - a larger system with similar workflow to the live console, and based on the same core Tempest Engine, but with networked audio engine and control surfaces, and a huge capacity of 800 fully-processed audio paths.
For I/O, Dante had already made a big impact with M llner, and so the native Dante capabilities of System T were another exciting prospect. 20 years ago, the old digital system already had 256 possible inputs and 256 possible outputs. We had decided that any new system should be at least capable of that. Of course, with Dante its possible to have as many inputs and outputs on the network as you want... It gives me the freedom to develop an open-ended system so if we ever need more inputs and outputs, or a different monitoring solution, for example, I can plug anything in that speaks Dante... Almost every device coming on to the market now is Dante compatible, or has a Dante option available.
The Burgtheater currently has five SSL Network I/O SB 32.24 Dante Stageboxes (each with 32 mic/line inputs, 16 analogue line outputs and 8 digital inputs and outputs), four SSL SB i16s (16 mic/line inputs), and some additional output units from other manufacturers. The system latency across the whole network has been set at 1mS.
There are actually two separate System Ts, on the same network. The main system consists of two redundant Tempest Engines, a 32-fader S500 control surface permanently installed in the control room on the 1st floor, and two T-SOLSA PC-based online and offline control systems - one with its own Fader Tile. The second system has a single Tempest Engine and a mobile 32-fader S500 control surface that can be deployed anywhere in the Burgtheater.
M llner explains that how they use these components depends entirely on that days production. For some shows, the control room is ideal, though often for rehearsals the T-SOLSA system will be positioned in the auditorium behind the Director. I can do whatever I need to do directly on that console and when rehearsals are done I can move upstairs and do the show from upstairs without doing any file transfers or synchronisation. The mobile system comes into its own for more music-orientated productions, when there's a distinct advantage to having the full control surface in the auditorium during the show.
In addition, because both systems are on the same network and share the same Dante I/O devices, the theatre can potentially bring both systems to bear on a single production.
Amongst the other System T features that impressed M llner, the integrated internal FX rack the augmented standard path processing, and discrete fade times for snapshot transitions stand out as particularly important: For us, having integrated effects is new, he says. It is now possible to store everything in the show file, load it with the show file, and store changes in snapshots. From a practical point of view this makes a lot of sense... The less external gear I have to use, the less we have to do to load and run a show.
Also, having two dynamics processes available to a signal path is very useful. I often need a compressor and a de-esser in the same path for voice processing. Thats something that was very difficult before.
The fact System T is one of the only products on the market where fade times between snapshots can be individually specified surprised M llner. The old console had this, but now only SSL and one other (partially) has this feature. This is very important for programming shows... A fixed time is not very useful in the theatre.
The last word though, goes to the sound quality. The improvement was something that the whole team recognised from the first tests. It is clearer, says M llner. You have to do far less with the EQ.
This is definitely a thing that is specific to SSL. It is like you are opening a curtain - the fog goes away. When you plug a mic in, it sounds right. When you touch an EQ its much more precise. Even when using external effects, there is an increase in the quality - hearing new detail in reverb tails is a great example.
Solid State Logic is the world's leading manufacturer of analogue and digital audio consoles and p
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
28/11/2025
Nadia Fall attends the 2025 Sundance Film Festival premiere of Brides at the Egyptian Theatre on January 24, 2025, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Donyale West/...
28/11/2025
It's easy to ignore those little red update available badges. But when it ...
28/11/2025
WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission has released a tentative agenda for the December Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Thursday, December 18, 2025 ...
28/11/2025
The Professional Fighters League is looking to super-serve fans of mixed martial...
28/11/2025
Fubo has released in beta on select Roku devices a new feature that lets users display up to four simultaneous streams at once....
28/11/2025
The WNBA playoffs and Week 4 of the NFL regular season highlight the list of live sports events airing on television this weekend....
28/11/2025
The 32nd class of honorees to the B+C Hall of Fame took to the stage at New York's Ziegfeld Ballroom on September 26 for a gala induction event. Click below...
28/11/2025
We hold in our hands the very last Next Text for Next TV, the weekly back-and-fo...
28/11/2025
DirecTV said it made a deal with EchoStar to buy EchoStar's video businesses, including satellite-TV provider Dish TV and virtual MVPD Sling TV, for $1 plus...
28/11/2025
The Broadcasting+Cable Hall of Fame, the premier industry event paying tribute to the influencers, innovators and shining lights of broadcast, cable and streami...
28/11/2025
Friday 28 November 2025
Sky Sports x Slawn drop limited-edition football jersey...
28/11/2025
Rohde & Schwarz shows resilience in a challenging environment, revenue exceeds t...
28/11/2025
Unwrapped: The Toy Show Appeal - airing this Sunday on RT One and RT Player- s...
27/11/2025
LONDON Vizrt has added several AI-driven advanced features offering improved speed, intelligence and accuracy in the newest version of its media asset managemen...
27/11/2025
Prime Video has launched AI-powered video season recaps in a beta version for select English-language Prime Original series in the U.S., a move Amazon is callin...
27/11/2025
Back to All News
Netflix's Raat Akeli Hai: The Bansal Murders Marks a Grand...
27/11/2025
27 Nov 2025
GSMA brings M360 Eurasia 2026 to Samarkand in partnership with VEON...
27/11/2025
Tahar Rahim and Izuka Hoyle star in the gripping six-part Sky Original from Acad...
27/11/2025
Thursday 27 November 2025
Sky Arts Reveals the Nation's Greatest Basslines - and Queen Reign Supreme
The UK's most iconic basslines have been revealed...
27/11/2025
Back to All News
Stranger Things 5': Prepare for One Last Adventure With O...
27/11/2025
The media industry has a paradox at its core. It's an industry built on light, color and imagination, yet behind the scenes, it's powered by one of the ...
27/11/2025
Rating reflects rating progress across areas including policies, diversity & inclusion, health & safety and Net Zero leadership
Winchester, UK, 27 November 202...
27/11/2025
What are the industry standards for Retail Media? Kathryn explains that certification is based on the IAB Europe Retail Media Measurement Standards and the IAB ...
27/11/2025
World champion boxer and Irish sporting icon Katie Taylor will be in studio this...
27/11/2025
Roblox, one of the world's most popular online gaming platforms for primary ...
27/11/2025
Black Friday is leveling up. Get ready to score one of the biggest deals of the season - 50% off the first three months of a new GeForce NOW Ultimate membership...
26/11/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Prime Video EP Mike Muriano Previews Massive Black Friday Slate Fe...
26/11/2025
A cinematic snow sculpture at the 1995 Sundance Film Festival. Photo by Randall Michelson...
26/11/2025
Book podcasts are booming. On Spotify, you'll find everything from celebrity book clubs to deep dives with bestselling authors. And in markets where audiobo...
26/11/2025
Mumbai, November 24, 2025: In a first-of-its-kind initiative, JioStar, in collab...
26/11/2025
LONDON Factual content producer ITN Productions has launched a new low-latency IP gallery for news bulletins....
26/11/2025
MIAMI TelevisaUnivision said it struck a new multiyear distribution agreement with YouTube TV that includes distribution of TelevisaUnivision's U.S. network...
26/11/2025
OpenDrives, Inc., a leader in software-defined data storage and data services, today announced the launch of the Atlas Corporate Creative Solution. This new Atl...
26/11/2025
Disguise, the industry-leading company powering the world's biggest live performances, is partnering with pioneering LED wall manufacturer DVS to give atten...
26/11/2025
HighField AI, the pioneer in agentic and multimodal automation for broadcast and media production, today announced the expansion of its global channel partner n...
26/11/2025
As high-stakes Premier League fixtures approach and additional premium content launches, with MONO positioning themselves to dominate Thailand's sports stre...
26/11/2025
Hosting a wide variety of events from high-intensity NHL games to complex live music concerts and major entertainment productions, Montreal's 21,000 capacit...
26/11/2025
Vizrt, the leader in live production technology revolutionizing viewer engagement and experience, releases AI-driven advances focusing on speed, intelligence, a...
26/11/2025
ITN Productions, an award-winning factual content producer, today launched a new low-latency IP gallery for news bulletins. Responsible for delivering a leading...
26/11/2025
Ikegami reports ongoing advances throughout 2025 in developing and delivering coordinated television production solutions that maximize quality, versatility and...
26/11/2025
Following the Nov. 21 blackout of NBCUniversal channels on Fubo, the two sides have traded barbs about their inability to reach a new carriage deal....
26/11/2025
LONDON As TV sports rights become increasingly important for both broadcasters and streamers, Ampere Analysis predicts global investment in the genre will surpa...
26/11/2025
LOS ANGELES Vubiquity said it has achieved the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Media & Entertainment Competency as part of the AWS Partner Network (APN). This designa...
26/11/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Enforcement Bureau said it has entered into a consent decree with Comcast calling for the cable company t...
26/11/2025
Berklee Named to the Hollywood Reporters Top Music Schools List The publication highlights the college's screen scoring program, industry partnerships, and ...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
Animated Series Love Through a Prism' Casts New Light on ...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
NALIP Unveils Fifth Cohort of Director Incubator
Social Impact
26 November 2025
United States
Link copied to clipboard
The National Assoc...
26/11/2025
YouView Achieves Greenly Gold Certification for SustainabilityNov 26, 2025
YouView is proud to announce a Gold Certification award from Greenly for our perform...
SSL System T Hits The Stage At The Austrian National Theatre posted: 29/11/2017 
