Grass Valley Live Production Technologies Supports Super Bowl Broadcasters

Deployed by the country’s largest and most experienced mobile production companies, a wide variety of live production equipment from Grass Valley will once again be used for this year’s highly anticipated Super Bowl XLVI high-definition telecast—as well as for a number of related programs shot during the week leading up to the big game.

This year, NBC Sports will broadcast the game in the US, live from Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. The broadcast will be supported by NEP Broadcasting and Game Creek Video. Game Creek is also working with ESPN on a variety of related shows leading up to the big event.

NEP Supershooters
NEP Supershooters – a division of NEP Broadcasting – will have a total of ten trucks on-site in Indianapolis. Its “ND3,” “ND4,” and “SS24” (54-foot) rigs will cover the main game telecast, while another six trucks will help produce a variety of game-related programming on location. Many of these trucks feature Grass Valley HD production gear—cameras, video production switchers, routers, and signal conversion modules—in a variety of configurations.

NEP’s SS24 HD mobile production truck, which is one of the largest in the country and is comprised oftwo 53-foot double expando trailers combined, features a Grass Valley Kalypso Video Production Center switcher, as well as Trinix NXT and Concerto Series routing switchers. The company’s SS25 truck will be used for the NFL’s World Feed and carries a Grass Valley Kalypso Video Production Center switcher, more than one dozen Grass Valley LDK 8000 Elite WorldCam HD cameras, as well as Grass Valley Trinix and Concerto Series routers.

NEP’s “California” truck will help broadcast the live halftime show featuring Madonna and its “Summit” truck will cover the NFL Hall of Fame event. The ND4, California, and Summit vehicles all include a Grass Valley Kalypso Video Production Center switcher on board.

“With the entire world watching, it’s critical that our productions look the best they can,” said George Hoover, Chief Technology Officer at NEP Broadcasting (a.k.a. Supershooters). “For our money, that means using Grass Valley equipment where it’s appropriate. We are a long-time fan of their production switchers and cameras, and continue to use them whenever our clients need uncompromising quality and flexibility.”

Game Creek Video
Game Creek will have several of its mobile production trucks on hand in Indianapolis to help produce programs for ESPN and NBC. The company’s “Freedom” truck, complete with a Grass Valley Kalypso Video Production Center switcher with dual external HD GVeous effects units, will handle various ESPN studio shows during the entire week from Pan Am Plaza. The company’s “Northstar” truck, with a Grass Valley Kayenne™ Video Production Center switcher on board, will cover ESPN’s “Sports Center” live coverage also from Pan Am Plaza, while the “Larkspur” mobile unit, also with a Kayenne, will broadcast for ESPN from Lucas Oil Stadium. For NBC, Game Creek’s “Victory” truck, complete with a Kayenne Video Production Center switcher, is being used to produce the “Live Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” show on location in Indianapolis.

“Live sports production is a main focus of our company and we’ve supported high-profile productions like the Super Bowl for many years, because quality and reliability matters most,” said Jeff Rosica, Executive Vice President of Grass Valley. “Customers like Game Creek and NEP Broadcasting are at the top of their game and demand the absolute best that current technology has to offer. We’re proud to say that they continue to come to us for new equipment and we’re happy to support them in any way we can.”