
Zest4.tv's managing director, Simon Roe, looks at the ways in which compact OB Vans are the epitome of efficiency, proving that size does not limit their power when it comes to live coverage
By Contributor
Published: September 29, 2023
Zest4.tv's managing director, Simon Roe, looks at the ways in which compact OB Vans are the epitome of efficiency, proving that size does not limit their power when it comes to live coverage
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin>
Compact OB vans are the unsung heroes of the production world. These small but mighty vehicles are revolutionising how we bring live events to audiences around the globe. With their advanced technology and versatility, they offer a seamless experience for both event organisers and viewers alike. Zest4.tv's compact OB vans have become an essential tool for delivering high-quality live events. Whether it's festivals, sports matches, concerts, studio projects or even royal engagements, these agile vehicles are perfect for capturing all the action.
At Zest4.tv we film live events, outside broadcasts, live streams and corporate productions. We're located in Sunbury-on-Thames, where we currently house two OB vans. The first truck, named OB1, is constructed on a sturdy 7.2T IVECO Daily chassis and can house up to 10 camera control units with a vision mixer capable of 40 inputs. OB1 also boasts three distinct seated galleries, with 4 seats dedicated to production, 2 allocated for engineering, and another seat for sound.
The compact OBMini is atop a nimble 3.5T Mercedes Sprinter chassis, can house 8 cameras and also has a vision mixer capable of 40 inputs. This mobile unit has 4 production seats and 2 engineering seats in the rear.
OB1 at the Cannes Film Festival Compact OB vans have proven to be incredibly convenient while operating in Central London, as they can easily fit outside most venues. We successfully stationed ourselves outside KOKO Camden for a corporate event, the Kentish Town Forum for a YungBlud concert, and even managed to squeeze into a narrow space on the side of the road during the Cannes Film Festival in France. The tightest space we've squeezed into was at the back of the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury music festival - anything a metre longer would not have fitted.
Smaller vehicles produce less emissions than larger trucks. Their use in an OB fleet aligns with a company's commitment to use more sustainable practices in broadcast production - for example in larger productions that want to be accredited as an albert+ sustainable production.
The use of smaller vehicles does not affect the ability to provide full production facilities (vision mixing, engineering, audio mix, EVS and graphics) or as an on-site engineering facility for remote productions (where the remote gallery is at a third party location or at our bespoke MCR in Sunbury-On-Thames, for example).
Small vehicles can also be combined to provide an increasingly powerful solution. Both OB1 and OBMini house ERECA Stage Racer 2 units. Two single-mode fibres allow 24 video, 32 audio, data and GPI signals to be transferred between vehicles as if they were a single, larger, truck.
Behind the scenes at Glastonbury 2022 OB1 and OBMini can also serve as an additional facility for larger events or OBs, for example as a truck for Pres (Presenter) coverage or combining feeds from multiple sources for a specific broadcast. For example, at the Glastonbury Festival in 2022, OB1 had 19 cameras on the mixer for the live IMAG screens during the Paul McCartney Pyramid Stage headline set. This combined a mixture of in-truck cameras, and external OB cameras from the separate BBC OB and artist cameras.
Smaller vans are frequently employed as a more cost-effective option compared to their counterparts. Cameras, graphics, audio and comms can be added bespoke to requirements and budget.
With our vans and expert engineers at the ready, we can easily deploy our compact OB vans at a moment's notice. We've worked on countless productions where we've stepped in at the last minute and pulled together resources to make it happen.
Europe Stories
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
12/03/2026
Staines-upon-Thames, UK, 11th March, 2026 - Yospace, the trusted leader in Dyna...
12/03/2026
In Latin America, women are shaping music and defining its future. To kick off t...
12/03/2026
En Am rica Latina, las mujeres est n moldeando la m sica y definiendo su futuro....
12/03/2026
Let's turn back the clock 20 years: The music landscape was a world away fro...
12/03/2026
Bad Bunny is no stranger to Spotify's Billions Club. In fact, he has a whopp...
12/03/2026
Spotify was at the London Book Fair this week, joining conversations across the publishing industry about how people can make reading part of their daily lives....
12/03/2026
Mastering tool improves mono compatibility
Tokyo Dawn Labs' Ohlhorst Digital range is a series of mastering-focused plug-ins developed by Jan Ohlhorst, ...
12/03/2026
Wave FX processor integrated into four products
Lewitt have teamed up with Elgato to create a new processor for the company's Wave Next product range, i...
12/03/2026
Free tool for annotating audio files
Mix Notes is a new, free iOS App that provides users with a simple way to annotate their audio files. It's been cre...
12/03/2026
Side-chain ducking tool gets an upgrade
Devious Machines' popular side-chaining and envelope-shaping tool has just been kitted out with an improved enve...
12/03/2026
Ceremony to take place on 16 April 2026
The MPG (Music Producers Guild) have revealed the full shortlist for this year's MPG Awards, which will be takin...
12/03/2026
Emulates three classic dbx 160 variants
The latest arrival to Overloud's Gem Series plug-in range faithfully recreates not one, but three versions of th...
12/03/2026
New granular soft synth announced
Said to be their most advanced software synthesizer to date, Baby Audio's latest release has been built on a new granu...
12/03/2026
Latest version now live!
Edit 11 March 2026 - Bitwig Studio 6 is now live, and available for all to download!
The latest version of Bitwig's DAW softwa...
12/03/2026
Latest free eBook now available!
Designed for recording engineers, audio-technology students and technically minded musicians, our latest free eBook deliver...
12/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz Cybersecurity expands SITLine network encryptor portfolio - more...
12/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz to showcase future-proof EMC testing solutions at EMV 2026 Rohde & Schwarz will participate in EMV 2026, Europe's premier trade fair and c...
12/03/2026
Modern media operations demand a platform that unites automation, orchestration, and human oversight without compromise. In this post, we explore the six key te...
12/03/2026
A deep dive into the platform
Architecture The Blue Lucy platform follows a distributed microservices architecture, meaning the overall operational capability...
12/03/2026
Orchestration platform enables broadcasters to deploy multiple AI models safely with full auditability, rights protection, and regulatory oversight.
LONDON, En...
12/03/2026
Wuppertal March 12, 2026
Riedel Expands Managed Technology Division in the Ame...
12/03/2026
Advanced Media Server Delivers Double the Channel Density at Half the Cost per C...
12/03/2026
The Late Late Show Show St Patrick's Day special
Dancing with the Stars f...
11/03/2026
First Medium-Earth Orbit (MEO) deployment of the emergency.lu platform for refugees and their host communities' use provides dependable broadband for humani...
11/03/2026
Following a successful first series, UKTV today announces the commission of two ...
11/03/2026
Wednesday 11 March 2026
Sky and CANAL launch new partnership to develop English-language drama
Sky and CANAL are today announcing a strategic co commissioni...
11/03/2026
NTCA, Cartesian Release New Report on the Business Case for USF
March 11, 2026
Network Economics
News
NTCA - March 11, 2026 - As the FCC and Congr...
11/03/2026
TELL US YOUR (SHORT) STORIES
The 2026 RT Short Story Competition is now open for entries
Recognising and rewarding the best new Irish fiction writing for...
11/03/2026
RT 's The Traitors Ireland is among the nominees for the 2026 Celtic Media Festival Torc Awards for Excellence, announced today....
10/03/2026
10 Mar 2026
VEON's Largest Market Pakistan Almost Triples Mobile Spectrum i...
09/03/2026
Contains all six dual-ensemble libraries
VSL's Duality Strings series offers an intriguing alternative to your average string library, capturing two str...
09/03/2026
Outstanding Contribution To UK Music
Photo: Samuel Bradley
Ahead of their upcoming MPG Awards, the Music Producers Guild (MPG) have revealed the latest win...
09/03/2026
Two new high-quality DI boxes announced
Boasting some impressive technical specifications and versatile routing options, Strymon's latest active DI boxe...
09/03/2026
Latest MPE-capable Soundbox library released
The follow-up release for Sonora Cinematic's Pure Nylon has arrived, and becomes the latest addition to the...
09/03/2026
Popular wireless mic head design revived
Sennheiser have revealed that the MD 9235, a cardioid mic head designed to pair up with their handheld wireless sys...
09/03/2026
Captures two sought-after Dumble combo amps
The latest TONEX release captures a pair of sought-after Dumble amplifiers from IK Multimedia's private amp ...
09/03/2026
Flexible all-analogue insert matrix joins line-up
HUM Audio Devices don't tend to do things by halves - even the quickest of glances at the likes of the...
09/03/2026
Captures three sought-after pianos
Rhodes latest software release brings together a collection of three virtual pianos: a concert grand, an acoustic upright...
09/03/2026
Flagship compressor gets an upgrade
Techivation's flagship compressor plug-in has just been treated to a ground-up rebuild that kits it out with some po...
09/03/2026
Profiler OS 14.0 enters open beta
Kemper's amp-modelling systems already have a great reputation, but the latest update to their systems' underlying...
09/03/2026
Procedural stems smasher & recomposition engine
Blinksonic have recently launched a new Reaktor-based tool which they say takes a radical departure from yo...
09/03/2026
13 - 15 March 2026 at University of Warwick Conference Centre
The Institute of Professional Sound (IPS) have announced that The IPS Training Weekend 2026 wi...
09/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and NETGEAR collaborate for next generation Wi-Fi 8 access point...
09/03/2026
UKTV has agreed a new partnership deal with Samsung that makes UKTV's free linear channels available to internet-only Samsung TV viewers in the UK for the f...