RTL Netherlands

New LED Video Wall is first high resolution on-set screen

RTL Netherlands, subsidiary of the media company, RTL Group, has deployed fine pitch LED video wall technology in the studios of its new RTL Z daily television news channel. RTL Netherlands is the first Dutch TV station to install a fine pitch LED video wall, and did so upon seeing the high resolution, image quality and other features of the Planar TVH Series, including its suitability to the constrained space of the studio environment.

RTL Z studios is located south of Amsterdam, where it broadcasts men's-oriented programming – including soccer, auto racing and motorcycle sports – 24 hours per day. The studio chose the Planar TVH Series as an on-set video wall solution that is visible in many camera shots. The left side of the video wall measures 3.2 meters wide by 1.8 meters high and the right, curved section, measures 6.4 meters wide by 0.9 meters high. The display features a slim depth of 93 mm, further defining RTL Z as a high-tech broadcaster.

Planar TVH Series is engineered to accommodate TV studio environment

The Planar TVH Series was recommended to RTL by SIGHT, a systems integration and consulting company. SIGHT evaluated a number of video walls on the market, ultimately choosing the Planar TVH1.6 model with a 1.6mm pixel pitch. Marco Bruines, Managing Director of SIGHT, says the 1.6mm pitch is key, "It is the appropriate solution given the various markets we serve, and it meets unique requirements such as RTL's elongated screen with its 90-degree angle." Bruines adds that the short 1.6 mm distance engineers well with cabinet construction and software, "and that it was all delivered and brought online within our tight timeframe was an added plus." Further, the video wall delivers a 1080p resolution and the deepest level of black, and its advanced calibration provides full color and brightness uniformity. "Altogether, these features produce a bright, crisp and natural image, and that's what the station wants for its viewers." In addition, Planar TVH Series LED video walls feature fanless operation. This makes them ideally suited to the studio environment where equipment noise must be kept to a minimum.

LED Video wall installed easily, enabled quicker uptime and lower costs

The RTL Z video wall is made up of 96 Planar TVH Series LED video wall cabinets, each measuring a compact 400mm by 300mm in size, which allows them to be used in tight-space applications and design curved configurations such as RTL Z's, and makes them easy to handle and mount.

Features such as high contrast ratio, refresh rate and low-noise also make the TVH Series right for the project, as do their light output – in relation to studio camera requirements - and their stable grey values.

Lastly, the Planar TVH Series of LED video walls is available with redundant video and power options and they are driven by two HD-SDI signals in 1080P resolution, which suits the many programs RTL airs. RTL "Also, given the short distance between the presenters and the screen made finding the right solution all the more important. SIGHT provided us concrete and clear advice from that perspective," says Hank van de Loo, Manager Broadcast Technique for RTL.

Accommodating variety of applications

In addition to the 1.6mm model Planar provided to RTL Z, the Planar TVH Series is also available in 1.9mm and 2.5mm pixel pitches. Also, it is optimized for a 16:9 aspect ratio, and can easily scale Full HD content and sources. As a result, the Planar TVH Series can meet the need of virtually any application whether it be in a television studio or almost any other demanding environment.