WIGE Media Sign Up SoundField For HD Sports Coverage

German broadcast production company WIGE Media AG has ordered several SoundField ST350 surround-capable microphones for use in its HD sports coverage. The deal was agreed on the SoundField stand at the recent IBC show in Amsterdam between Torsten Roeger of SEA, SoundField's German distributor, and Tobias Vees, General Manager of WIGE's Technology and Development division. The microphones will be used for WIGE's coverage of stadium-based and other large-scale spectator sports events in Germany, capturing surround ambience to accompany high-definition transmissions. The first fruits of the deal were seen just after the IBC show, when an ST350 system was used to output 5.1 stadium ambience during WIGE's coverage of an international soccer friendly between Germany and Romania in Cologne, broadcast live on Germany's main terrestrial TV station ARD.


Closing the deal at IBC (left to right): Tobias Vees, General Manager of WIGE's Technology and Development division, Robert Rick, WIGE's Chief Sound Engineer, Torsten Roeger, SEA Sales Manager, and Pieter Schillebeeckx, SoundField Head of Research & Development.

The acquisition of the ST350s by WIGE follows months of extensive testing of the SoundField systems at boxing and motor-racing events, and is another stage in WIGE's on-going build-up of HD-ready technology, alongside their recent commissioning of an HD OB truck and the development of their new compact CUNIMA MCU[1] HD/SD TV camera. According to WIGE, the ST350s were chosen for their compact design and cost in comparison to other surround microphone systems, the SoundField approach of using one relatively affordable multi-capsule microphone winning out over other, more expensive multi-microphone systems. “The SoundField ST350s provide us with an opportunity to capture the atmosphere of an event at an economically justifiable expense," commented Tobias Vees. “This technology effectively transports the TV viewer right into the heart of the stadium."

“We're delighted that WIGE AG have chosen our ST350 mic systems," comments Ken Giles, Managing Director of SoundField. “In the UK, Sky Sports have standardised on our mic systems, installing them in many of the major soccer stadiums, and in Germany, SoundField was the exclusive choice for HD 5.1 coverage of the 2006 soccer World Cup. Now that German broadcasters have had a chance to evaluate the various available surround microphone systems, it's satisfying to see them recognising the advantages of Soundfield's technology."