Australian station Tank FM makes the leap to Dante with AEQ technology

The radio station in the Australian city of Kempsey in New South Wales launches a new 100% digital studio using the latest AoIP technology based on the Dante interconnection protocol.

Tank FM, a radio station from the Australian city of Kempsey in New South Wales founded in 1992 and with a strong commitment to public service, changed location last year, taking the opportunity to carry out a migration to a digital environment.

With the help of the integrating company in the area, Broadcast Components, certain premises were set to begin the work: it would be a 100% digital studio, it would use the latest AoIP technology based on the Dante interconnection protocol (from the Australian company Audinate), they needed equipment of proven reliability, robustness, simplicity of operation and with reliable local support.

The station's technical manager, Ross Delaforce, identified the need to introduce a robust system that was easy to use since not all programs have dedicated staff, there are specific slots that are operated by volunteers or by the presenters themselves with different technical capabilities.

“We needed a system that we could program and with which we could replicate the same operability of analog consoles to keep the level of confidence of all presenters high during their learning and subsequent use,” says Delaforce.

Tank FM found great support in the company Broadcast Components in installation, technical support and provider of the latest broadcast technology.

The successful integration of the first studio with the audio interface AEQ Netbox 32 made the station opt for a second integration with Dante technology by installing the mixing console AEQ Forum IP in studio 2 that will begin broadcasting next July.

Furthermore, after testing the recent acquisition of the AEQ Phoenix Venus 3 AoIP audiocodec, Tank FM is determined to trust the Spanish brand's codecs by purchasing the AEQ Phoenix Alio portable audiocoder, to simplify and streamline its outdoor contributions.

Advantages of Dante Network

Delaforce recognizes that "the use of Dante technology in the audio network translates into a great advantage when adding new services and resources to the network. To do this, the device will simply be purchased and, prior to a simple configuration of its inputs and outputs and adjustments of advanced options via software, it will be connected to the network. In our case this has allowed us to connect the new AEQ and PCS equipment to the network in a simple way without needing an expert."

Broadcast Components, socio local de AEQ en Australia, ha colaborado muy estrechamente con Tank FM en numerosos proyectos durante los últimos años. La empresa integradora dejó la consola AEQ Forum IP y los interfaces AEQ Netbox (destinados a zonas de la emisora que permanecerán en analógico) en demostración para que la cadena pudiera probar la interoperatividad en la infraestructura existente.

The tests carried out by Tank FM were more than satisfactory, and at the beginning of 2018 the new Tank FM radio studios are already working on the AEQ Forum digital console, with the rest of the rooms being interconnected with this new corporate Dante network thanks to AEQ Netbox interfaces as analog and digital audio converters to Dante, and vice versa.

The AEQ Forum IP digital console, thanks to its modular design, adapts perfectly to different scenarios: self-control, studio control, television production controls, sound production, mixed configurations, integration in large installations...

Simplicity and control power are combined in this console to cover both the most basic and most advanced operating needs, starting with a minimum control surface of 4 faders and can be easily expanded up to 8 and 12 independent channels with the standard chassis and up to 20 channels with the Grand Forum chassis.

The entire project has been led by the commercial manager of Broadcast Components, Sean Pritchard, in collaboration with AEQ's central technical services in Madrid and Antonio Pérez as the company's Area Sales Manager for Asia-Pacific.