A major refurbishment of University Radio Nottingham in the UK has seen the installation of Studer OnAir 1500 audio mixers in each of its two studios.

Replacing the core of its technical infrastructures with new equipment, cabling and studio furniture, the station’s facilities are now digital, using the OnAir 1500 mixers, a DirectOut Andiamo Madi audio router and Lynx digital sound cards. The digital audio equipment package was specified and supplied by HHB Communications, and the installation work was carried out by radio staff.

University Radio Nottingham delivers 16 hours of programming, seven days a week over AM radio and the internet. Retaining the traditional dual studio plus central news/production office layout, the routing functions of the Studer OnAir 1500 mixers has been configured to create a facility wide audio matrix. Both mixers are fitted with Madi expansion cards and the Relink I/O sharing software option. A DirectOut Andiamo (analogue-to-Madi converter) is installed in the central technical rack and fibre Madi cables have been used to create a multichannel audio loop. Lynx Studio AES16e (AES PCIe audio) cards are fitted to the station’s audio computers and connect to the OnAir 1500’s AES/EBU ports. Audio signals from each area can be routed and shared across the facility with a high degree of flexibility.

‘This is first major upgrade of the studio facilities in more than ten years,’ says Robin Murphy, the outgoing Station Editor. ‘We run a diverse range of radio programmes from news, sports, outside broadcasts to music shows, and with a large number of presenters with different levels of experience. The Studer mixers offer an impressive level of flexibility and we’ve been able to integrate them with our playout systems and red-light switching. The Madi distribution system has allowed us to rationalise the audio cabling and replace analogue multi-core with fibre cables.’

‘University Radio Nottingham’s new facility is very impressive and professional,’ states HHB Educational Sales Manager Andrew Hingley. ‘The staff is largely made up of a very knowledgeable group of volunteers and many of the installation team have already graduated from the University. This installation also highlights that the continued popularity of Madi technology has made it affordable for radio facilities of all sizes.’

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