NBA Tipoff 2021: TNT Sports Will Deploy Shure Linear Mic Arrays Precise control, clarity are the goals of the broadcaster's audio effort By Dan Daley, Audio Editor
Tuesday, October 19, 2021 - 12:17 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
When TNT Sports begins its NBA season this week, viewers can expect to hear the same great audio they've become accustomed to, but the way that sound is captured will differ significantly from previous methods. In addition to a variety of shotgun, condenser, parabolic, and other types of microphones deployed across and around the court, three or four Shure MX710 linear-array microphone assemblies will be placed in key locations.
A rectangular array is mounted where the vertical support meets the horizontal arm supporting the backboard.
The ultimate goal is to have four of these on or around the court, says TNT Sports Sound Designer Dave Grundtvig. Even with three, we'll be able to capture virtually all of the sound we've always gotten for NBA.
A rectangular array will be mounted on each backboard, just at the 90-degree point where the vertical support meets the horizontal arm supporting the backboard. A third will be placed just in front of the announcers' table, about an inch from the floor. A fourth array will be placed on the opposite side of the court, in front of the scorers' table if the league allows.
The array mics, originally intended for use mainly in corporate-meeting or education applications, are remotely steerable, via a Dante processor. This will allow the broadcast A1 to keep the microphone lobes (the transducer elements' pickup pattern) focused on the play as it moves around the court.
Grundtvig experimented with this type of microphone array during the NBA's Summer League in Las Vegas last August, providing the proof of concept. The array's low profile and high sensitivity make it a good pick for wide fields of play, and the use of several together provides up to 16 additional channels of audio. He had also experimented with it as a source for Dolby Atmos broadcasts, providing overhead audio. He had pitched it to MLB for postseason use; however, the baseball application was declined by the league because, ironically, the array was too sensitive, able to pick up a lot of random sound, including player chatter, on a field that's often not as subject to natural masking noise as other sports environments can be.
TNT tried out the linear microphone array for the NBA's Summer League in August.
Grundtvig, who is also lead A1 for TBS Sports' MLB coverage, will miss the first week of NBA play as he mixes the MLB NLCS series for the network. Mixer Pat Thornton will substitute for him. Both will work with submixer Victor Victoria.
In addition to the new arrays, Grundtvig will also deploy the same Shure dual-diaphragm TwinPlex lavalier mics he usually affixes to the hoops to catch score swooshes and backboard hits. And an under-court array of custom-made piezo transducers will pick up ball bounces, sneaker squeaks, and other vibrational sounds - the array he developed for the NBA bubble in Orlando during the league's pandemic-shortened season.
In addition, the league will deploy an updated version of the Q5X PlayerMic, sewn into the athletes' jersey and controlled by the NBA's own A1, to catch player sound.
We'll hear everything we've heard before, notes Grundtvig, but we'll be able to control it more precisely and hear it more clearly. It's going to be a great season.
Most recent headlines
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...
03/01/2026
A still from OBEX by Albert Birney, an official selection of the 2025 Sundance...
02/01/2026
Freezing Florida: NHL's EVP, Entertainment Bob Chesterman on Taking the Wint...
02/01/2026
NHL Winter Classic 2026: TNT Sports Prepares for First NHL Outdoor Game in Sunsh...
02/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
02/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
02/01/2026
Any Given Day: Cork University Hospital premieres Wednesday 7 January on RT One and RT Player at 9:35pm
RT will debut a powerful new six-part documentary se...
02/01/2026
Friday 2 January 2026
All episodes of Heated Rivalry will be landing on Sky and...
02/01/2026
Sequins, chat shows, live sporting action, ground-breaking docuseries and brand-new Irish drama to kick off 2026
New Year, New Content Coming Soon across RT
...
01/01/2026
Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation Announces 2026 Noel Schajris Scholarship The scholarship will cover tuition and housing for one Berklee College of Music stud...
01/01/2026
New year, new games, all with RTX 5080-powered cloud energy. GeForce NOW is kicking off 2026 by looking back at an unforgettable year of wins and wildly high fr...
31/12/2025
Back to All News
NFL Christmas Gameday on Netflix Scores Again With the Lions-V...
30/12/2025
As the College Football Playoff Enters the Quarterfinals, ESPN Blows Out Its Meg...
30/12/2025
SVG's Best of 2025: Original ArticlesTake a look back at all our coverage of big-time productions, game-changing technologies, and state-of-the-art new faci...
30/12/2025
MELBOURNE, Fla., Dec. 30, 2025 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) will release its fourth quarter 2025 financial results before the market opens on Thursday, J...
30/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
30/12/2025
Your live countdown to 2026 with Inhaler, David Gray, Lyra, Garron Noone, Sharon...
30/12/2025
It marked the first civilian operational authorization for a HAPS flight in Europe, led by Space42's subsidiary, Mira Aerospace
The flight demonstrated HAP...
29/12/2025
San Francisco 49ers Strike Gold With Halftime Laser SpectacularStunning display caps $200 million renovation of Levi's Stadium techBy Dan Daley, Audio Edito...
29/12/2025
The Cup's Around the Corner: An Inside Look at Broadcast Preparations for th...
29/12/2025
SVG's Best of 2025: Longform VideoWatch the standout keynote conversations, deep dives, and panel discussions from the year for free on SVG PLAY!By Brandon ...
29/12/2025
From crisper Lossless audio and immersive music videos in beta to new Audiobooks+ plans, custom transitions between tracks, and in-app Messages, we keep levelin...
29/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
27/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
26/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
26/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
25/12/2025
Holiday lights are twinkling, hot cocoa's on the stove and gamers are settling in for a well-earned break.
Whether staying in or heading on a winter getawa...
24/12/2025
What is AI good for? Posted by MTI Film on December 24, 2025
What is AI good for?
What is AI good for?
It's been three years since ChatGPT first cap...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
RT has unveiled an exclusive first look at the new Dancing with the Stars promo...
24/12/2025
Back to All News
The Boyfriend' Season 2 Unveils Heartwarming Trailer, Key...
24/12/2025
Back to All News
Love, Fights, and Everything in Between: Badly in Love' Returns for Season 2
Entertainment
24 December 2025
GlobalJapan
Link copied t...
24/12/2025
Scripps Research study links sleep variability with sleep apnea and hypertension How consumers' digital activity trackers could enable personalized health s...
23/12/2025
How guilas Cibae as Dominican Winter League Games Are Locally Produced for Glob...
23/12/2025
BitFire's Jim Akimchuk on Supplying Scalability and Customization in the Clo...
23/12/2025
CAMB.AI Enables European Athletics to Offer Multi-Language SupportPlan is to eventually offer translation into all languages spoken in EuropeBy Ken Kerschbaumer...
23/12/2025
Analysis: As sports media values trend negative, scarcity and quality are king By Callum McCarthy, Editor-at-Large
Monday, December 22, 2025 - 14:08
Print ...
23/12/2025
ESPN, Disney, and NBA Return to the Animated Altcast Fray With Second Edition of...
23/12/2025
End the Year on a High Note and Donate to the Sports Broadcasting Fund Today!By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Tuesday, December 23, 2025 - 12:25 pm
P...
23/12/2025
The year is winding down, the weather outside is frightful, and it's the perfect time to escape into a story that warms the heart. For listeners looking for...
23/12/2025
A Zeus motor is hot fire tested at L3Harris' Camden, Arkansas, solid rocket ...
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
Lightware will exhibit several major product innovations at ISE 2026, including the new USB-C BOOSTER-V1, Google Meet. integration for various Taurus UCX models...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
NBA Tipoff 2021: TNT Sports Will Deploy Shure Linear Mic Arrays Precise control, clarity are the goals of the broadcaster's audio effort By Dan Daley, Audio Editor 
