CBS Television City Upgrades with Utah Scientific

Overhauls routing infrastructure with new switcher

By Glen Dickson -- Broadcasting & Cable, 8/30/2010 5:02:47 PM

Routing supplier Utah Scientific announced that CBS Television City in Los Angeles has replaced five legacy routing switchers with a new UTAH-400/XL HD router, along with associated control panels.

The digital router, with a 1056 matrix and the ability to handle multiple signal types, supports an infrastructure expansion at the giant production, broadcast, and transmission facility.

The UTAH-400/XL HD router, housed in a 1056x1056 frame, was loaded with 528 inputs and 528 outputs when it was initially installed but was soon expanded to 528x563. It is supported by Utah Scientific SC-4 control software, and a MC-4000 two-channel master control system with an MCP-2020 control panel. The Utah Scientific master control system is used to insert graphics and lower thirds into the network feed from New York, which is then returned for distribution to CBS affiliates nationwide. 

During the implementation process, Utah Scientific engineers worked with CBS to customize several system features, including enabling preset of multiple destinations on the soft panels and the addition of colored alert lights to the hard panels so operators can instantly see whether the router is working from the preset or the direct source. 

"With eight TV studios, CBS Television City is known as the best live studio facility around, and we do work for all the networks as well as the top production companies," said Marc Hurd, VP of technical and production operations for CBS Television City, in a statement. "We know we have a reputation to maintain, so when it came time to buy a router, we wanted something robust, reliable, easy to maintain, and scalable for the future."