In a sweeping host of advancements that Bridge Technologies will be announcing for its VB440 production probe in the run-up to IBC2023 (Booth 1.A71), the expansion of its audio panel, which facilitates virtually unlimited audio monitoring across an unrestricted number of flows, and which now additionally allows for single channel isolation to pinpoint audio issues.

The expansions represent Bridge Technologies’ positioning of the probe as a single appliance that gives creatives and technicians alike access to the in-depth information they need to complete their work, whilst at the same time eliminating as much as five rack units’ worth of space, equipment and associated energy draw.

The new audio control panel allows for audio monitoring across a practically unlimited number of flows in a service, with each flow capable of maintaining 64 channels grouped into any required audio bond, from monoaural and stereo channels to fully immersive 7.1.4, with all current Dolby audio standards supported by the probe.

As well as providing extensive visual insight into the performance of audio groups with a range of LUFS, Gonio and room meters, users can now also isolate a solo audio channel in order to engage in closer listening for problem identification.

This is on top of the existing ability to listen to any audio grouping – including 7.1 – in a stereo downmix through the browser. Combined, these features allow audio engineers to ensure that both channels and flows match expected outputs, not only in terms of audio quality, but actual audio content.

A further additional feature is the ability to access audio quick-controls from any given VB440 screen, allowing the user to toggle audio on and off, or increase and decrease decibel level even whilst they are engaged with the multitude of other engineering and visual analysis tools included within the probe.

This range of extensions to the audio capabilities of the VB440 yet further cements the centrality of the probe in busy IP and SDI-encapsulated production environments, delivering ultra-low latency analytics of compressed and uncompressed data to facilitate not just technological engineering oversight, but – through intuitive visualisation – the production activities of visual creatives and audio engineers.

Allowing access to eight users at a time through any HTML-5 browser, production professionals are granted all of the tools they need to complete work even – indeed, particularly – in a remote or distributed environment.

Speaking of these new audio enhancements, Chairman of Bridge Technologies Simen Frostad said: ‘We are incredibly proud of the quality of the audio visualisation tools that were already embedded within our VB440. But first and foremost, an audio engineer wants to determine what they can hear. Crystal clear audio is fine, unless it happens to be crystal clear French commentary going out on your live English-language sports broadcast. Only listening can tell you that’.

He continued: ‘The range of listening tools now incorporated into the VB440, from single-channel isolation to 7.1 stereo downmix, and the fact that they can be applied to 64 individual channels within each flow with no limit on flow numbers, is really quite remarkable. It’s even more remarkable when you consider that audio monitoring is just one a much vaster range of production functions handled by the probe’.