News
08 July 2004
Trantec on Big Brother 5 with Roll To Record
RF specialist and leading manufacturer Trantec has recently supplied its international award winning S6000 miniature radio microphone system to OB specialist Roll 2 Record (RTR). Deployed on location for Endemol UK Production’s fifth series of Big Brother, it enabled the live broadcast of one of Channel 4’s most successful and highest rating series in its 20-year history.
As a mould-breaking series, Big Brother shuts away 12 total strangers in a purpose-built house for 70 days. Cut off from any outside contact, the housemates must live, cook, eat and sleep together 24/7. The contestants are miked up and filmed constantly with over 30 cameras positioned around their purpose built home.
RTR’s experienced team headed by MD, Pete Webber, has worked with Endemol’s production team since its first series, supplying all the technical television facilities for the shows live broadcast across nine platforms. Using Trantec’s S6000 for the first time, it proved invaluable as an intuitive wideband system.
Pete Webber collaborated with the Trantec team of RF specialists, to specify the sophisticated 16 channel x S6000 system, required for the project, which was used in conjunction with numerous channels of Trantec IEM’s and other radio systems.
The S6000’s miniature transmitter scored highly with both star presenter Davina McCall and the contestants for its aesthetic value. The transmitter is very compact, lightweight and above all for this type of show, extremely frugal on battery power. The transmitters can be worn for long periods without becoming obtrusive and using only one standard AA battery cell, will run for 8 hours and at least doubling that period using the NEW Lithium cells, unlike cumbersome and bulky alternatives. Enabling the transmitters to function at peak performance for extremely long periods without a battery change, it is a great tool for use in today’s new vogue, the Reality Show.
The show’s engineers enjoyed the easy programming and constant monitoring of all the contestants radio microphones with the help of the S6000 on-board computer. The Spectrum Analyser function and its intuitive frequency scanning software proved extremely helpful, when selecting a frequency plan for the very busy Elstree team. The number of shows running simultaneously at Elstree, which all employ RF equipment means that the venue has the potential to be a RF headache without frequency planning equipment such as the S6000. On-site engineers found that changing channels could really not be easier.
RTR’s MD, Peter Webber, enthused: “The S6000 gives us a low weight small profile transmitter with the added bonus of a PC based programmability and extended battery life that makes this the ideal system for our reality shows.”
The design and manufacture of the S6000 underlines Trantec’s commitment to creating radio products that continue to push boundaries and provide audio solutions for the most challenging contemporary broadcast applications.
For Press enquiries contact:Anna Webb @ Litmus Communications
36 Greville St London EC1N 8TB
Tel: 020 7242 1460