The Funchal Issuing Post increases its production and emission capacities with AEQ

The Forum IP Split consoles, the Phoenix Alio, Mercury and Venus 4 codecs, the Systel IP conferencing system and the Netbox 32 AD interface from AEQ They are the protagonists of the latest renovation of the Funchal transmitting station, a project born to increase its production and broadcasting capacities.

The Funchal Issuing Post (PEF) It was founded in 1948 and quickly became one of the main references of social communication in the Autonomous Region of Madeira. In 2025, it celebrated 77 years of uninterrupted activity, consolidating its mission to inform accurately, accompany social and cultural transformations and give voice to the Madeiran identity. Its history is intertwined with that of the region itself, reflecting profound political, technological and social transformations over time.

Recently, the station has completely transformed its technical infrastructure. The project involved the complete renovation of the broadcast studios, the recording islands for journalists, the external reporting systems and the technical center, guaranteeing flexibility, redundancy and integration with IP networks. For Nuno Figueira, responsible for the transition from analog to digital at the PEF, “this modernization places the Funchal station at the forefront of broadcasting technology, which allows us to offer our listeners greater quality and reliability.”

Each studio was equipped with the AEQ Forum IP Split modular broadcast console, a system designed for broadcast and production applications, fully compatible with Dante/AES67. The three main studios received FR CORE racks, FR CTRL-CS control modules with 20 programmable keys, 4-fader FR CH-CS Forum IP Split modules, as well as analog and digital input and output cards, FR14 AoIP modules and VirtualForum and ForumScreen software for local and remote operation. Likewise, two recording islands equipped with Rode Rodecaster consoles and Dante ESI22C interfaces were installed, which allow full integration with the station's audio over IP network.

Mobility and live connectivity are enhanced with AEQ Phoenix Alio and Mercury audio codecs, both of which support multiple high-quality encoding algorithms and can operate both locally and remotely. Likewise, in the technical center, AEQ provided high-capacity and connectivity solutions: the Netbox 32 AD interface, with 32 input and output channels; the Venus 4 Dante audio codec, dual channel with Dante/AES67 integration, and the Systel IP Basic multi-conference system, with 12 lines expandable to 20, suitable for stations with a high volume of live calls.