Comrex Road Warriors - Live & Local

CBC In the Philippines

noreply@blogger.com (Chris@Comrex) — Mon, 25 Nov 2013 16:30:00 +0000

In light of the horrible tragedy in the Philippines, many broadcasters from around the globe converged on the island nation to report on rescue and recovery efforts. This story from the CBC first appeared on Twitter and a very nice "how-to" was subsequently posted on a CBC blog.

http://www.cbc.ca/newsblogs/community/editorsblog/2013/11/on-assignment-david-common.html#more-340581

Talk Show Boot Camp:New Orleans

noreply@blogger.com (Chris@Comrex) — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 01:29:00 +0000

XM Sirius Satellite Radio Talk Show Host, Dr. Daliah Wachs, stopped by the Comrex booth at the Talentmasters TSBC in New Orleans to tell us that she loves her ACCESS Portable IP Codec. She uses it whenever she is on the road to broadcast her show on America's Talk Channel 166.

ACCESS in Delaware

noreply@blogger.com (Chris@Comrex) — Fri, 07 Sep 2012 12:01:00 +0000

This just in from our friend John Harper:

The new Delaware 105.9 doing what will be a weekly remote using an Access portable. (Until 9 a.m. EDT) http://www.ustream.tv/channel/catchitlive-com

More from the DNC in Charlotte

noreply@blogger.com (Chris@Comrex) — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 16:21:00 +0000

James Taylor is just doing his soundcheck getting ready for a BIG night at the DNC.

Charlotte Welcomes the DNC 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Chris@Comrex) — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 22:37:00 +0000

Balloons, Romney's and Ryan's in Tampa

An excited Democrat stuffed arena in Charlotte

After week in Tampa for the Republican National Convention, we've moved the show (rather shows...lots of them) up the road to Charlotte for the Democratic National Convention. But sites have been fabulous hosts. And both sites have provided their own challenges and excitement as well. It very flattering to see so much of our gear being used to provide live convention coverage in so many different ways. But the Talk Radio Rows have really been giving us a workout.

There have been lots of interviews with politicians and lots of good radio. Below are just a few of the shows we worked with in Charlotte.

The podium where the Oklahoma delegates will announce their votes.

Cliff Kelley from WVON/Chicago with Illinois Governor Pat Quinn

Dave Miller from Oregon Public Radio interviews delegates

Hank Morse and Matt Shearer from NewsTalk 96.9 Boston prep for the next break.

Lori Lundin from America's Radio News Network talks to NY Rep. Dan Nadler

A busy day for politicos

noreply@blogger.com (Chris@Comrex) — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 16:13:00 +0000

Former Governor of New Hampshire and White House Chief of Staff under President George H.W. Bush, John Sununu talks with Breitbart Radio.

Former Republican Presidential Candidate Herman Cain tries to navigate Radio Row through throngs of reporters.

Television Game Show Host turned Radio Talk Show Host Chuck Wollery broadcasts live from Radio Row.

More from RNC 2012 Radio Row

noreply@blogger.com (Chris@Comrex) — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 13:39:00 +0000

Comrex Tech Director Tom Hartnett is a huge Laura Ingraham fan so we thought he would enjoy this shot of the nationally syndicated host broadcasting live on a Comrex Nexus.

Also, Daytona, FL host Marc Bernier interviews Georgia US Congressman Phil Gingrey.

Good Morning, Tampa

noreply@blogger.com (Chris@Comrex) — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 11:34:00 +0000

Geraldo made his rounds on Radio Row this morning before getting ready to do his own syndicated show live from the RNC in Tampa. He's seen here on Boston's 96.9 FM.

Live from the RNC

noreply@blogger.com (Chris@Comrex) — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 15:07:00 +0000

Every four years, the two main political parties in the US convene their conventions to enunciate their party platform and nominate their respective candidates for the Presidency of the United States.

That is exactly what is happening right now in Tampa, Florida where the Republican National Convention is taking place...despite a near miss hurricane and daunting security.

And you can believe that whereever there are politicians, there's lots of talk and lots of Talk Radio. The RNCs Radio Row features about 120 radio stations from all over the country. The majority of these folks depend on Comrex to get them on the air by delivering their audio from the convention hall to all parts far and wide.

Comrex is here in Tampa to support our customers and next week it will be off to Charlotte, North Carolina to join the Democratic party. Well, not really join the party...but we will enjoy it.

Keep checking back for photos of Comrex in action from both conventions.

98 Rock 2012 Summer Beach Bash (and we're envious)

noreply@blogger.com (Chris@Comrex) — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 18:32:00 +0000

Our good friend and Comrex ACCESS user, Kerry Plackmeyer, station engineer with Hearst Radio in Baltimore, is a man of few words...well at least in his email. He recently sent a photo with the following text: "Remote. The 4G MiFi made the ACCESS awesome." We've been hearing that a lot lately. But we were curious. So, what of this "Beach Bash" remote? We hit our favorite search engine to learn more about what 98 Rock was up to this Summer.

What Kerry didn't bother to tell us is that the Baltimore Ravens Cheerleaders were there, too! So, I'm sure 98 Rock listeners were doubly delighted with great audio from the remote site in Ocean City, Maryland AND the Ravens Cheerleaders! Thanks for the note, Kerry.

One Ravens Cheerleader is just never enough.

98 Rock Music Director and "VP in Charge of Nothing", Steve Huber, marvels at the miracle of modern technology.

Sports Guy Keith Mills with 98 Rock Midday Star Sarah Fleischer (left), ACCESS Portable (center) and Promotions Goddess Jessica Drake

You can see more photos from the 98 Rock 2012 Summer Beach Bash by clicking here.

92.9 FM Rides for Prince Margaret Hospital

noreply@blogger.com (Chris@Comrex) — Thu, 28 Jun 2012 22:11:00 +0000

At Comrex, we often hear about great and exciting new ways that broadcasters are using our gear to reach out to their listeners. A few years ago we had a Morning Show presenter that broadcast his show from a bicycle in the Netherlands. Just yesterday, we found out that a whole breakfast team in Perth, Australia mounted their bikes and took to the road and broadcast their show during a 90k Bike-A-Thon to benefit the Princess Margaret Hospital.
The 92.9FM Breakfast Team of Lisa, Paul and Baz set out with an initial goal of $5000 but ended up raising well over $30,000. You can read the story on the local Perth Now website.

But serious credit needs to be given to station engineer Dan Jackson for tricking out his bike and turning it into a complete mobile studio! You can also listen to a Podcast of the broadcast which utilized a Comrex ACCESS IP Codec with Mixer transmitting over 4G Wireless back to the studio. You can see the photos of their ACCESS setup below.

92.9 FM hosts Paul Hogan and Lisa Fernandez prepare for their live "Bike-A-Thon" broadcast with the help of station engineer Dan Jackson.

What a great cause and what an incredible remote! Good on ya, mates! Thanks for taking Comrex along for the ride.

You can see more photo of the Kids Appeal Bike-A-Thon on the 92.9 FM Website

Listen to a podcast of the broadcast HERE!

ACCESS reaches Chilean Miners

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 21 May 2012 19:47:00 +0000

At the recent annual convention of ARCHI (Asociacion de Radio Chile) in Copiapo, Chile, radio broadcaster Nostalgica FM (www.radionostalgica.cl) was on hand to cover the event for its listeners back in Santiago. Making the event even more compelling was the presence of four very special guests at the opening dinner and reception.

A presenter from Nostalgica FM covers the ARCHI event

The ARCHI event was held not far from the site of the mine that captivated a worldwide television audience in the Summer of 2010. 33 miners, who were trapped 622 meters below the surface of the San Jose mine, were eventually rescued after 69 grueling days trapped in unimaginable circumstances. Four of the 33 Chilean miners were on hand to welcome the broadcasters to the Copiapo Province as ambassadors for the region.

Nostalgica FM was able to use the meeting room's Wi-Fi to connect back to their station using their Comrex ACCESS Portable IP Codec to broadcast the event in its entirety.

Jim Godfrey, Comrex Latin America Sales, with one of the rescued miners

Also at the event was Comrex Latin America Sales hombre, Jim Godfrey, who in addition to loving "rubber chicken" never misses out on an opportunity to glom onto somebody else's 15-minutes of fame. On word that a Hollywood movie will now be made about this miracle rescue, Jim immediately suggested that actor Clint Eastwood should be chosen to play the part of Jim Godfrey for the silver screen re-enactment. Jim offered his services to Mr. Eastwood as a dialect coach to help him best emulate the East Texas accent.

All kidding aside, congratulations to the miners and to our friends at Nostalgica FM for great radio coverage for their listeners.

Four of the rescued Chilean miners are ambassadors of the Copiapo Province

....and on to New Hampshire!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 16:15:00 +0000

We are very very excited about the success our customers have been having with their Comrex ACCESS codecs used via the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE (Pantech UML290) modem.

Several major radio networks have been deploying this combo throughout Iowa and New Hampshire and other states that are holding US Presidential Primaries in January 2012.

We recently learned that NPR has been using ACCESS live on the air and came across this audio sample of one of their live reports on their flagship program "All Things Considered." In this audio clip, ATC's Melissa Block interviewed Ari Shapiro live at 5:06pm on Thursday, January 5th this evening as candidate Mitt Romney visited Peterborough, New Hampshire. Audio is here.

Comrex support personnel with be in Manchester, New Hampshire on Monday, January 9th and Tuesday January 10th to assist customers with setup and troubleshooting!!! You'll be able to find Andy and Paul from Comrex at the Radisson Hotel on those days or just give us a call at 800-237-1776.

Here we go a Caucusing!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 20:14:00 +0000

We just love it when a good plan comes together. US broadcaster, NPR is currently in Iowa to kick off the 2012 Primary Season. Armed with their Comrex ACCESS Portables and some Verizon Wireless 4G LTE modems, they are literally inside the Caucuses to report the unfolding events to the nation.

We've managed to get our hands on the audio for a couple of their reports. Take a listen!

From downtown Des Moines. Audio is here.

· 12 noon from a high school in West Des Moines. Audio is here.

If you've got audio or photos using your Comrex gear from your Presidential Primaries coverage, send them to us so we can put them here on the Road Warrior Blog!!

Comrex Named Verizon Innovation Center Partner

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 16:44:00 +0000

Devens, MA – August 19, 2011 – Comrex Corporation has recently been added to the Verizon Wireless LTE Innovation Center Program. The Innovation Center, located in Waltham, Massachusetts, provides manufacturers of Machine-to-Machine (M2M) solutions with integration support for devices that utilize the Verizon 4G LTE Wireless Network. Comrex, the leading provider of high-quality audio and video codecs for professional broadcast applications says that the partnership has already produced results with new drivers for several Verizon LTE devices incorporated in the latest ACCESS IP Audio Codec firmware.

"The ultimate goal of the ACCESS product is to make wireless connections simple," said Comrex Technical Director, Tom Hartnett. "This partnership allows us direct contact with not only the provider of the best-deployed 4G network in the US, but also a relationship with modem device manufacturers for easier integration. 4G has substantial benefits for our IP audio codecs and will really shine when used with our forthcoming LiveShot IP Video Codec."

Comrex has recently launched a campaign called "4G Simplicity" which provides a plug-and-play experience on Verizon LTE. Customers purchasing ACCESS IP codecs receive hardware pre-programmed with the BRIC Traversal Server and configured to make "one touch" connections over Verizon 4G LTE and other 4G services.

Jesus Cabrera of Verizon Wireless gives Steve Richardson of Comrex a tour of the Verizon Experience Center (but not before they texted and posted to Facebook about it first).

Comrex Corporation, a privately held, employee-owned company, celebrates its 50^th year as a leading innovator in the development and manufacture of professional broadcast equipment used by radio and television broadcasters worldwide. For more information about Comrex products, contact Comrex Corporation: 978-784-1776, e-mail: info@comrex.com or on the web at: www.comrex.com

Colorado Public Radio's first use of ACCESS

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 16:44:00 +0000

CPR Puts ACCESS to the Test.

CPR Audio Producer, Dave Fender, posted on our Facebook wall today:

"This is the first interview we conducted with our new ACCESS Portable system. I met Gov. Hickenlooper in his office at the state capitol and used my HTC Thunderbolt phone as a 4G wireless hotspot, connecting to it with the WIFI antenna on the ACCESS."

Apparently, the interview went well because it sounded great to us! Dave also added, "So far, this is one of the best equipment purchases that I've ever made and I'm really looking forward to figuring out different ways to use it."

Thanks Dave and CPR!

CLICK HERE TO HEAR THE INTERVIEW

NPR uses ACCESS 2USB and Verizon 4G LTE to help "Fix The National Debt" and follow the President

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 15:26:00 +0000

At Comrex, we love happy customers. And these days, Washington, DC-based NPR is one of the happiest! On the April 7th broadcast of the public broadcaster's program, Talk of the Nation, United States Senator Kent Conrad (pictured below) was able to participate in the program live and in full studio quality thanks to NPR producer John Asante who grabbed his ACCESS 2USB and a Verizon 4G LTE card (Pantech's UML290) and set up the gear in the Senator's office at the Hart Senate Office Building.

US Senator Kent Conrad on NPR's Talk of the Nation

Commented Program Producer Scott Cameron to fellow staffers,

"I don’t know how things went behind the scenes, but on the air Sen. Conrad’s connection sounded great! Thank you for the help, and I hope we can make more use of this technology. Especially in cases like this where congress people can’t leave their offices."

LISTEN TO ACCESS 2USB being used on Talk of the Nation

NPR used the same technology combo on its flagship program, All Things Considered. The April 21st broadcast featured a segment with White House Correspondent Ari Shapiro who was literally on the move after President Obama's visit to Facebook headquarters in Palo Alto, CA.

LISTEN TO ACCESS 2USB being used on All Things Considered

According to NPR Director of Operations, Charlie Mayer, "A month ago—before LTE—this interview would have been on a cell phone. The listening experience for our audience would not have been so good.

This is a preview of what we can expect from the 2012 election season. The campaign trail is where the mobility of the Comrex ACCESS and the speed of LTE change how we work and the quality of what we put on the air."

Calle Ocho! ACCESS is HOT in Miami!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:17:00 +0000

ACCESS and the new 4G LTE service have gotten together once again to benefit radio listeners and advertisers. This time in Miami. Comrex customer, George Corso, from Beasley Broadcasting just sent us this note:

"Sunday we used the ACCESS with our Verizon broadband card at Calle Ocho, an outdoor festival that brings over a million folks to 8^th Street in Miami. This year both our CHR station Power 96 and 99.9 KISS Country (“The Gringo Stage”) broadcast all day. We had two stages, 5 blocks apart, and cut-in live several times per hour. We never missed a break. Even with a third of the population of South Florida walking 8^th Street between 12^th Ave and 27^th Ave the Access never let us down!

Thank you,

George Corso, CSRE

Regional Director of Engineering

Beasley Broadcast Group, Inc."

WOR Rules the Air with Comrex ACCESS & Verizon 4G LTE

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 14:31:00 +0000

New York, NY – January 14, 2011 – WOR-AM successfully broadcast the two hour "Joan Hamburg Show" from the prestigious 21 Club via Comrex ACCESS utilizing the new Verizon 4G LTE wireless data service. The broadcast was originally scheduled to use a POTS codec with a 4G backup, but phone line issues forced a switch to the ACCESS system at the beginning of the broadcast, where it performed flawlessly.

"The skyscraper-lined streets of Manhattan have often presented special challenges for radio remote broadcasts," said Tom Hartnett, Comrex Technical Director, who participated in the test. "ISDN is difficult and expensive to install and 3G signals are notoriously overloaded. The new Verizon 4G service allows ACCESS to deliver incredible quality and low delay in environments that couldn't previously support any wireless remote broadcasts. The 700MHz band used by Verizon LTE provides for superior building penetration."

The WOR technical crew utilized the ACCESS portable codec with the Verizon Pantech UML290 4G adapter attached via USB. Tom Ray, Corporate Director for Engineering at Buckley Broadcasting/WOR said, "We had attempted ACCESS remotes on 3G in NYC before. It simply doesn't work well inside the city. So I was skeptical about using 4G in Manhattan. We were in an area that is notorious for poor cellular calls. But the 4G just - simply - worked. I must say that I'm impressed."

Support for the Verizon UML290 4G modem is included in ACCESS firmware version 2.8, available from the Comrex website at comrex.com

SPH Union Works goes LIVE & LOCAL in Southeast Asia

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 15:09:00 +0000

As an early SE Asia adopter of remote broadcast IP codec technology, Singapore’s SPH Union Works has been using the Comrex ACCESS system to great advantage over the last few months. We caught up with the broadcaster’s Director of Marketing, Dawn Lee SY, to see how things were going.

Why did SPH Radio invest in Comrex IP codec systems at this time?

SPH: Needless to say, all broadcasters are interested in fresh programming concepts. At SPH, we decided to add smart, mobile entertainment to our existing mix. We were especially interested in doing remote broadcasts from our many sponsor locations. We sought to liberate our DJs from the studio and get them out into the field. That would put the DJs in direct contact with the listeners and promote viral excitement for the shows while allowing us to target programming and advertising geographically.

To accomplish this, we needed an easy-to-use, totally mobile remote transmitting solution that provided crystal clear audio. After looking at everything available, we found the Comrex ACCESS system to be ideal for our needs.

Can you describe the benefits of this approach for your listeners?

SPH: This approach and technology brings Radio closer to the listeners allowing them to see our DJs in a cool, fresh, sexy way. Listeners get to see their favorite Radio personalities at work. This creates a terrific rapport between the talent, the listeners and the local advertisers. It’s been a game-changing strategy for us.

Can you give us some examples of your remote broadcasting strategy at work?

SPH: Sure, let’s begin with our first Comrex remote… A famous SE Asian snack food chain, Old Chang Kee (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Chang_Kee) wanted to reinforce their brand and build awareness of their latest F&B concept, "The Mushroom Café." A special weekend was planned for a "Healthy Morning Walk-About" at Mac Ritchie Reservoir where they catered to more than 150 people. Armed with their Comrex ACCESS Portables, our DJs Jianwen, Ah Dong, Xinying and Kemin, were walking with the participants as they did ‘live talk’ sets while allowing walkers to share their actual experience, on air, as it happened.

Next, we were invited by the Hong Kong Tourism Board to do a remote broadcast highlighting the Hong Kong Winter Fest 2010. Two of our DJs, Jianwen and Limei, flew to Hong Kong with an ACCESS Portable to do a special, four-hour remote segment. The DJs toured Hong Kong's iconic attractions while sharing their experiences and comments with our Singapore listeners. In that single effort, live broadcast was actually conducted at The Peak, Lam Kwai Fong, Central and Causeway Bay. Such a time-line was simply not possible with our previous OB equipment. The entire trip was also photographed so listeners could savor the Hong Kong spirit via our website and Facebook page on their computers or mobile devices.

Last month, our Radio 1003 was invited to visit a local museum by Singapore’s National Heritage Board as part of their 'I Love Museums' Campaign. With an objective to let Singaporeans see Museums in a ‘fun and different light,’ they got our DJs to wear a different hat and act as tour guides for that day. We used the ACCESS Portable for this project, where our DJs Kemin and Ah Dong did ‘live talk’ sets as they toured the museum – interacting with visitors and sharing their ‘observations’ to enhance the museum experience with our listeners. The event was also photographed and fed live to Facebook to incorporate listener comments into the program.

One final application I have to share is the broadcast for the Top Korean “boy band” – Super Junior Concert. Our Radio 1003 was the official radio station for the concert and -- as this was a highly popular group -- quite a number of media companies came to cover the event. The organizers for the event were ‘thrilled’ when we introduced a live mobile studio concept via our Comrex ACCESS system. This allowed real time updates to ‘KPOP’ fans instead of a delayed news update the next day. Our DJ, Ken, was also able to share the actual happenings on the ground, such as reporting crazy ticket queues. Comrex ACCESS helped us to stir up real time excitement due to easy, high quality local transmissions.

BBC World Service uses ACCESS for Commonwealth Games

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:21:00 +0000

According to the Jeff Brown from the BBC's World Service, having a Comrex ACCESS at the recent Commonweath Games, in Delhi, India was a great asset. Jeff sent us these photos and comments:

"First transmission for BBC World Service's Sports World at The Commonwealth Games, Delhi. Poolside at the Lalit. BGAN [had some technical difficulties with the ISDN service] before we went on air so we did 40 minutes on the Comrex with a Tata Photon 3G stick Worked a treat and saved the transmission!"

"The Comrex ACCESS (attached to 3G) is set up as the backup here. When it works, the BGAN is OK, but we've had a few instances here of it dropping off, so 3G is the next option. We're using Comrex's to report from venues where there are no ISDN's available and they are getting the thumbs up from our reporters..."

"This is BBC World Service's Sports News reporter, Alex Capstick, reporting live from outside the JN stadium, prior to to the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games."

You can connect to the World Service's Sports World page at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/sport/2009/03/000000_sportsworld.shtml

Radio New Zealand uses ARC for "Grab and Go" Reporting

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 20:52:00 +0000

Radio New Zealand, the country's public broadcaster, has been putting the Comrex ACCESS Reporter Codec, or ARC, through its paces as it has been giving it a trial run using some recently acquired Motorola Milestone Android-based smartphones. ARC had been used successfully in a couple of big stories recently... the aftermath of an earthquake and snow storm.

Here is a sample of one of the broadcasts using ARC:

http://www.comrex.com/downloads/audio/pool-19800101-1200-ARC_1-128.mp3

Radio New Zealand's web site can be found at: http://www.radionz.co.nz

98.1 WOGL/Philly puts ACCESS to work for Children's Hospital

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 15:12:00 +0000

Longtime Comrex user and our good friend Tom MacDonald sent us this email this morning. What a GREAT way to start off a work week!

"I was doing a telethon for Children's Hospital in Philadelphia for WOGL-FM using ISDN when we heard the story of a 14 year-old boy who was finally going to get a heart transplant. The producer on the scene wanted to go outside the operating room to talk to the parents. The first thing suggested was to pull out a cell phone. I wanted audio quality, so I suggested the ACCESS, since the hospital had an open WI-FI system available everywhere. A quick check of the battery, grab a microphone and run to the operating room with the talent. The unit connected seamlessly and worked without a dropout as we found out the young boy's new heart was beating. We were there to tell the story, and it was crystal clear thanks to Comrex and the AAC-ELD setting. The producer was amazed, I was happy, but I knew all the time with the portability and battery power of the Comrex ACCESS we were going to get the job done. It was amazing, using the hospital Wi-Fi...the producer called it a game-changer for this type of remote...next year they want to go to the different wards of the hospital and interview children who can't come to our remote in the lobby."

Tom MacDonald

TRM Corp.

The 98.1 WOGL Loves Our Kids Radiothon raised $475,030 this past weekend for The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. You can read, see and hear more at: http://wogl.radio.com/98-1-wogl-loves-our-kids-radiothon/

Also at: http://giving.chop.edu/site/PageServer

Up, Up and Away...with ACCESS!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 14:44:00 +0000

Here at Comrex, one of our favorite "off the clock" pastimes is "Facebook stalking." We've checked with our attorney's and have learned that its perfectly legal. Anyway, an unnamed Comrex FB stalker...er...person stumbled across this lovely photo:

We weren't exactly sure what was going on in this photo. Perhaps a nice Remote Gift Basket? But wait! It appears that there are trees in the background...several hundred feet below.

Well, naturally we needed to find out more. After a bit of digging around, we sent a note to the owner of the Facebook page and received the following:

Please hang on tightly via the handy neoprene strap!

Dear Comrex,

I'm the news person at 610 WTVN who loves it when engineering lets me play with our toys, so I was quite blown away by your request and am VERY happy to help you. The Access is a fantastic piece of equipment.

The Giant Eagle is full of hot air.

We were invited to ride-along in a hot air balloon to help promote the Grove City Balloons and Tunes Festival near Columbus. When I got the assignment Thursday afternoon I ran straight to our engineering department and asked about doing a live shot from 2,000 feet up. It didn't take long for them to develop a plan and the first place they looked was the shelf with our Comrex Access on it. We'd tested it in the field a couple of times in the news department. The most recent use was a visit to a Columbus family's backyard by President Obama a couple of weeks ago. Our biggest concern was how the cell coverage would be in the air. We got up to about 2,500 feet and even over a rural area of Franklin County, Ohio we had decent cell service from AT&T. We had some droppouts, which we expected, but the unit did a great job, also as we expected. Thanks so much for making a GREAT product like the Comrex Access - so easy even a news person can use it!

Just a little corny.

I called our Chief Engineer, Greg Savoldi, to tell him about your request. He expects a new portable unit in exchange for the photos ;)

matt bruning

newstalk 610 wtvn
news reporter/anchor

Matt, thank you very much for the letter and the great photos!! Greg, you're an old buddy of ours and we really like you. But, come on! We might be able to scrounge up a very nice ARC t-shirt for you and Matt.

Comrex Lends Support for 2010 National Scout Jamboree

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 17:05:00 +0000

With nearly 50,000 Scouts, Scouters and volunteers gathering together at Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of Scouting in the U.S., the 2010 National Scout Jamboree became the State of Virginia's 13th largest city...virtually overnight. Scouts from all over the world arrived on the Jamboree site on Monday, July 26th for the 10-day event. As they arrived, they were greeted by music, news and information provided by QBSA, 102.9 FM, The Eagle! The low-power FM was operated under a Special Temporary Authority granted by the FCC to the Boy Scouts of America for the limited duration of the event under the call sign WB4XSA.

Scouts gather for the opening arena show

Tens of thousands of Scouts pour into the Arena

Earlier in 2010, Comrex was contacted by the Boy Scouts to find out about improving the quality and flexibility of QBSA remote broadcasts from around the sprawling encampment. With a couple of Eagle Scouts on the Comrex staff, how could we refuse? So, armed with some ACCESS Portable codecs, we took advantage of the AT&T 3G and Wi-Fi service that was specially implemented for this event. Not only were Comrex ACCESS codecs used for daily remotes but they were also used to broadcast the live arena shows which were carried live on QBSA and streamed on the web for worldwide broadcast.

Ed Evans interviews Scouts preparing breakfast

In addition to providing our own gear, other vendors were recruited to assist and were more than happy to help support this effort. Wheatstone, ENCO, Symetrix and BSW all provided equipment and supplies to help get the three studio facility on the air.

QBSA Morning Host Lars Lifrak

One of the primary missions of QBSA was to give Scouts the opportunity to "DJ" their own 15-minute air shift. Scouts were given a 20-minute training course to cover the basic of radio broadcasting and then allowed to select three songs to play on the air. All Scout shows were produced in the giant QBSA Boom Box from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Its estimated that between Scout air shifts and live interviews, nearly 2000 Scouts got on the air.

The QBSA Staff in front of the Boom Box

Expanding the overall reach of the station was a live web stream that was accessed from the Jamboree's home page. Listeners were tuning in from all over the globe and making requests on the QBSA Facebook page. Family and friends of Scouts posted their requests and shout outs from as far away as Saudi Arabia, Ireland, Sweden, Australia and all parts of the U.S. The station proved itself a vital link to Jamboree for parents of Scouts back at home. In just ten days, QBSA's Facebook page grew to nearly 2600 fans!

QBSA was truly at the heart of the Jamboree. The station featured live interviews with television host Mike Rowe (from Discovery's Dirty Jobs), rock band Switchfoot, and even an evening of Latin music called Latin Connection that was attended by Scouts from several Latin American nations.

QBSA Staffer Margaret Fletcher inteviews TV Personality Mike Rowe

QBSA Latin Connection night

Chris Crump interviews Scouts from Northeast Georgia Council

The next National Scout Jamboree is scheduled for 2013 at its new permanent home, The Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve in West Virginia and QBSA will be there broadcasting live.