QPAC relies on AJA to dispense with UU. MM. and focus on UHD streaming

After having rethought its technical infrastructure to make it compatible with global streaming and not depend on external production vehicles, the Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) takes another step into UHD contexts with color management, conversion, transmission and recording technologies. AJA.

Officially opened in 1985, the QPAC today has four rooms, which will soon be five, hosting a wide audience, including the concert hall with 1,800 seats and the Black Box hall with 280 seats. He Lyric Theatre hosts touring musicals, while the Playhouse hosts a wide range of art forms, including theatre, ballet and opera.

Any artist, group, performance or organization that uses the QPAC facilities has access to their live streaming and recording services. Production results vary in client function and of the license agreements, but most performances and events are broadcast live on 1080p H.264 SDR to the client's website or platform Digital Stage, which QPAC has created in Brightcove. For higher-profile performances, such as Ballet Preljocaj's recent tour, Wade's team can also broadcast live to other regional arts centers and venues.

Some clients only want an H.264 recording immediately after the event to review the performance. In other cases, Wade's team makes a recording available for your streaming or viewing VOD (video on demand) on Digital Stage. Their team also edits promotions, summaries or previews for social networks in different formats and resolutions, according to the client's needs. In most cases, this means that they record the ISO signals and the main program in Apple ProRes. All this is possible thanks to the internal configuration that Wade has created, eliminating the need for broadcast experts to achieve similar results.

New steps towards UHD

As explained Michael Wade, audiovisual director of QPAC, the center's new objective is to offer customers “content with excellent image and sound that allows its audience to get the most out of their 4K HDR televisions and Dolby Atmos sound systems.” To achieve this objective, a renovation technique that combines capture solutions with 4K resolutions and various AJA solutions, which allow “to achieve aesthetics on par with expensive high-end cameras at a fraction of the cost.”

Each enclosure and the main control room of the QPAC house a signal interface Riedel MicroN. During events and performances, signals genlock sent to analog video distribution amplifiers AJA C10DA and are distributed to a combination of cinema and PTZ cameras. All control of cameras, audio Dante and communications also run over agnostic Ethernet tunnels to the output switches.

Signals from the cameras are transmitted via SMPTE fiber to a distribution box in the studio, where Wade and his team connect the outputs, synchronize, return the image and record the signals to and from the MicroN. The signals then reach the control room, where they are sent directly to eight frame synchronizers AJA FS-HDR for color matching. FS-HDRs send the output to an SDI router, where Wade's equipment can connect to his switch and recorders AJA Ki Pro Ultra 12G. If needed, they can also split the format to record ISO in 4K HDR while switching and streaming in 1080p SDR and providing MADI to SDI audio sync and keying.

With FS-HDR, they apply a LUT and take advantage of the Proc Amp internal to adjust white, black and skin tones. For audio, they bring Dante or MADI into their audio room, where they have a master clock and a digital interface, which connects to a console where they do the mixing and embed it into the video using the FS-HDR's MADI interface. To synchronize digital audio and video, QPAC uses a Antelope Trinity. Next, a genlock split is sent to a Rosendahl MIF-4, which synchronizes the frame rate with time code (TC), then sends the time code to recorders and studio equipment. At this time, the remote operations team uses Elgato Stream Decks to change signals from monitors and cameras, and uses internal communications.

For live streaming, the streaming and recording device Helo Plus H.264 It also stands as a fundamental part of the workflow. Furthermore, to complete the infrastructure, the AJA mini converters, such as the C10DA and FiDO fiber optic converters, meet a variety of conversion needs. The FiDOs handle most of the venue's signal conversion. For editing, they cut programming and other promotional materials in-house using a few Macs and a PC for graphics and animation. All audio is later mixed and added to the video. "We use a lot of AJA equipment across the board because they are very robust and offer great support. Their equipment is affordable and performs as if it were more expensive. Updates are regular and meaningful, and the free apps are very useful," adds Wade.

With the latest update almost finished, Wade is already thinking about his next step. To do this, it has its sights set on how the OFF over IP in the coming months: "AV over IP is becoming more and more important. It's certainly something we're exploring and an area where technologies like AJA's Bridge LIVE could be really advantageous."