Glensound Paradiso Commentators Box

Glensound Paradiso is a commentators box for 3 commentators. It can be used by itself to provide the commentary facilities alongside an OB truck for small events or multiple Paradisos can be used at large events that require Worldwide broadcast coverage.

Audio links between the Paradiso and other equipment are by Dante (AES67 compliant) complete with redundant copper & fibre links. Analogue I/O and AES3 I/O are also provided directly from the unit for local connections and/ or another layer of redundancy.

The Paradiso has been designed to be intuitive & easy to use for Commentators’ who would rather be talking about the game than working out how the equipment works, and is also built to our exacting rugged & robust standard to make it a reliable piece of broadcast equipment for the busy engineer.

8 off Audio Volume Controls for Each Commentators with Pan

On the top panel are 24 rotary headphone volume encoders. Internally they are connected to a DSP matrix and the sources can be set depending upon your preference.
Next to each encoder is an ePaper display which provides a visual indication of both the position of the volume control and the current panning position of the source in the commentators headphones.
Turning the encoder adjusts the volume, and simultaneously pressing down and turning the encoder adjusts the pan.

ePaper Displays

The ePaper displays provide an indication of headphone volume and pan position. They also display the name of the associated audio source/ destination. The display name can be custom set or taken from the routed source name from within the Dante network. The bottom ePaper display that has no associated switch or encoder can be programmed to display a users name, but this is overridden temporarily when the associated inputs gain control is adjusted and the display shows the gain in dB of the input.

Peak Programme Meter (PPM) 

The source of the PPM can be customised but is normally the outgoing programme mix. When a front panel gain control is adjusted the PPM automatically shows just the level from that input.

Robust Mic on and Talkback Buttons

There are 4 off round bright illuminated talkback buttons and 1 large square illuminated mic on button for each of the 3 commentators. The audio circuits that the outputs of these switches are routed to can be fully configured. The operation of these switches (momentary, latching etc) and the interaction of these switches (i.e. pressing a talkback switches mutes the main mic) can be fully configured by the windows 10 app.

Audio Inputs

There are 3 balanced audio inputs one for each commentator. Each of these inputs can be selected to accept a Microphone or Line level source. 48V phantom power can be turned on if in microphone mode.
A very high quality remote controlled microphone amplifier has been used followed by exception analogue to digital convertor to make the audio quality the best that it can possibly be.

Gain Control

The gain control is a rotary encoder with a clear plastic shaft. When the gain control is operated the ePaper display above the control indicates the current amount of gain being applied and the front panel PPM automatically solos the source to allow unambiguous gain settings. The clear plastic shaft has an internal red LED that is illuminated if an input level is close to clipping, thus allowing quick diagnostics of a gain level that has been set too high.

Intelligent Headphone Output Circuits 

Our unique intelligent headphone output circuits automatically adjust the output level to suit both high and low impedance headphones. Traditional broadcast high impedance headphones require a large output level to produce enough volume in the headphones, whereas low impedance headphones require much less level to produce a proportional output level. This means that whatever headphones you connect to the Paradiso you’ll enough audio output for even the loudest of environments. 
Plus our headphone amplifiers can accept mono as well as stereo headphones.

Aux In

In addition to the three commentators inputs there is a 4th ‘Auxiliary’ Input. This is provided on a stereo 3.5mm jack socket and is suitable for connection to the outputs of domestic recording devices such as a mobile phone.

Redundant Powering Options

The Pardiso can be powered from any of 4 different sources:
1) Wide range Mains Input (suitable fo Worlwide use)
2) PoE on the Primary CAT5 Network link
3) PoE on the Secondary CAT5 Network link
4) External 12V DC

Primary & Secondary Fibre Connections

Two industry standard Neutrik Opticons are fitted for fibre connectivity to the IP network. These are connected internally to single mode fibre drivers, but multimode can be supplied if required instead.The primary & secondary network circuits allow for glitch free redundancy across both the Fibre & Copper network interfaces. 

Primary & Secondary Copper Network Connections with PoE

Two CAT6 connections on Neutrik Ethercons (that accept standard networking cables) are provided to allow copper connections to local network switches to carry the Dante/ AES67 audio. Two connections are fitted to allow redundant circuits to be used if required.
Both these connectors can accept a PoE power source for providing the power to the Inferno.

Analogue Inputs & Outputs

Five analogue inputs and outputs are provided for backup or local I/O purposes. These circuits are routed internally via the DSP and therefore can be routed to and from any location including Dante circuits required.

AES & GPIO

A D9 socket provides 2 general purpose outputs (GPO) for connection to red lights & TB systems, 2 general purpose inputs (GPI) are also fitted for external triggering. The same D9 socket also has an AES3 input & output circuit for further audio connectivity.

Features: 

• Comprehensive commentary unit
• Suitable for 3 commentators on 1 programme or 3 seperate programmes
• Glitch free redundant Dante network audio
• Two copper & two fibre network interfaces
• Multiple power sources (PoE x 2), Mains & DC
• Best microphone amplifiers available
• ePaper displays to make the commentators life easy
• Local analogue and AES3 inputs & outputs for extra redundancy
• Includes our much revered Referee compressor/ limiter
• Windows 10 app for remote control & setup
• No expense spared to make this the best commentary unit ever

Paradiso Commentators’ Box

• Dante (AES67 compliant) commentary box for 3 users
• System is scalable with multiple Paradisos as part of a large Dante network
• Can connect to any Dante compatible device.
• 5 analogue inputs and outputs
• 1 AES3 (2 channels) of inputs & outputs
• Ultra low noise mic/line/48v inputs 
• Our popular Referee compressor/limiter keeps even the loudest commentator sounding natural.
• 3 Headphone amplifiers each with 8 audio inputs each with their own headphone volume control.
• Each headphone input has panning between left/ right ear.
• Each commentator has 4 talkback circuits
• Multiple power options including PoE, Mains & External DC
• Network connections on Copper (Cat5) and Fibre (Neutrik Opticons)
• Primary & Secondary network connections allowing completely transparent network redundancy. 
• Unique ePaper displays for commentators interface.
• Large bright PPM level meter
• Remote control via Windows 10 app for setup and live controls (app released in stages throughout 2017) 
• GPIO (General purpose inputs/outputs) interface for interaction with talkback systems or studio red lights.

DANTE Audio Network

• AES67 Compliant
• Multi channel, digital media network technology
• Offers compatibility with hundreds of systems from other manufacturers
• Scalable from a pair up to thousands of channels. 
• Fully redundant glitch free audio transport