The annual Totally Sold Out (TSO) concert attracts a crowd of more than 10,000 to the grounds of the Kenyatta International Convention Center in Nairobi. For the 2017 event K-Krew (operated by Kubamba Radio) abandoned its traditional OB van, to ‘go virtual’ with Lawo’s new Rǝlay Virtual Radio Mixer software for the broadcast of the event.

Rǝlay Virtual Radio Mixer software uses virtualisation technology adapted from the IT industry to put an eight-fader mixer, complete with audio processing (dynamics, EQ, compression/expansion) and AES67 networking, onto a single PC. Rǝlay software is multi-touch enabled for use with touchscreen computers – making mixing with Rǝlay as fast and intuitive as using a physical mixer.

Kubamba Radio worked with BYCE Broadcast of Nairobi to assemble a remote kit using Rǝlay VRX8 Virtual Radio Mixer software. BYCE CEO Benson Nyagah ran the Rǝlay set-up during the show, which involved 17 hours of continuous radio programming. The mixer was fed by stage mics and stage inputs, plus a live DJ feed; playout software installed on the laptop also sent its audio to a Rǝlay input, so that music could be played to the crowd through PA speakers during news breaks. Programme output was fed to the radio station via G4 codecs for final on-air transmission.

According to Benson Nyagah, the show’s production using the Rǝlay Virtual Radio Mixer was a big success, with Kumbaba Radio impressed with the ease of using the Rǝlay touchscreen mixing interface, and by the audio quality itself. ‘Every weekend, K-Krew are doing live shows, but this important show using the Rǝlay kit turned out to be of the best quality ever,’ he says. ‘I can see definite opportunities to use Rǝlay again for future broadcasts – perhaps even in the main studio.’