Live from the RNC

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)

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

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

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