Sound Devices Announces Scorpio Flagship 36 Channel Mixer and 32 Track Recorder

When it comes to location recording for any type of media production, Sound Devices has become a leading reference with its astonishingly complete and high quality range of portable recorders and mixers. Now, the company announced a new flagship model with… 32 channels of audio recording and 36 track mixer in a portable format roughly the size of the 688. It’s called Scorpio and it’s an impressively powerful machine, already with Dante I/O, USB-C and Bluetooth 5.

For professionals involved in content creation, or those keen on amassing large quantities of media files simply because they like/need to keep their assets private and locally stored, there is now a new great solution. Drobo has launched the new Drobo 8D, a Thunderbolt 3 Direct Attached Storage (DAS) solution which brings a 10x performance increase, allowing to mix and match hard disks or SSD drives on 8 bays, and featuring Intelligent Volume Management and a new SSD accelerator bay, increasing performance by up to 30% for frequently accessed data.

In my previous report on IBC 2018, I addressed some key technology trends from the IBC show in Amsterdam (September 13-18, 2018), in the perspective of audio technology, content production, and distribution. Of course, on the backbone of all the tremendous changes that are currently happening in the media business, broadcast, and professional production, the topic of audio-over-IP (AoIP) and the ongoing transition to fully IP-enabled operations in all platforms - traditional linear television, radio (digital, hybrid, virtual, etc.), and new over-the-top and on-demand streaming services - is front and center.

At IBC 2018, Amsterdam 14-18, Sennheiser and Neumann will showcase their full range of media production tools. Among the highlights is the introduction of the new Memory Mic, a wireless microphone for smartphones, and the accompanying video app. Sennheiser will also premiere the new IE 40 PRO in-ear monitors, the company’s entry model in a series of brand-new professional in-ears.

There is a new important file specification for media exchange now specified by the SMPTE and published in document number SMPTE TSP 2121:2018, titled "IMF Application DPP (ProRes)." This new specification was proposed by the Digital Production Partnership (DPP) and builds on the existing Interoperable Master Format (IMF) standard developed and published by the SMPTE, which was originally designed for streamlining the distribution of premium feature film content.