Pro-Bel Equips New HD OB Truck For SOFT, France

SOFT, France has extended its relationship with Pro-Bel with the purchase and installation of routing and control equipment for their flagship HD truck.
Supplied by Pro-Bel France, the technology - Sirius HD 96 x 96 and Sirius SD 96 x 256 routers, together with control system and panels - was selected not only for performance and cost-effectiveness, but for its successful integration with existing equipment.
Yves Pianfetti, Technical Engineer with SOFT, said: "Our objective was to increase the range of services available from SOFT by taking advantage of the latest technologies; we were looking for the best and latest equipment on the market and Pro-Bel could deliver it." He added: "They’ve also proved the total reliability between the Sirius router and Snell & Wilcox Kahuna mixer, which was key to our decision."
Since the equipment has been installed, SOFT has produced several productions, one of which is 'Le Jour du Seigneur' for France 2.
The requirement was to produce an SD and an HD version – with the HD version serving as a test to qualify the workflow and the quality of the program. Everything remained in 16 x 9 which was a challenge - especially in SD.
With the chosen technology, the new OB truck is extremely versatile and is also being used by TPS Star (a French digital channel which has been bought by Canal+). They use it for both their HD programs, which are converted to SD for broadcast.
With nearly 30 years of service to the international broadcast, post-production, cable & satellite communities, Pro-Bel has a unique understanding of broadcast workflow, and is an established leader in the provision of cost-effective solutions that compromise neither performance nor quality. For further information visit www.pro-bel.com
SOFT is an organisation that supplies and installs audio-video equipment and employs over 200 people in offices based throughout France & Portugal. More information is available at www.soft.fr
(SP)