Played this year at US Airways Centre, home of the Phoenix Suns, the game went to air with the able assistance of David Grundtvig, senior audio engineer, for the event. A 10-year sound crew veteran of the roundball matchup, Grundtvig used a dozen MX391s taped directly to the floor around all sides of the court perimeter to build his broadcast mix. Orchestrating his efforts from behind a digital console, he is one of the originators of the audio blueprint, having refined it over the years to bring an added element of realism to viewers at home.
"What we're putting over the air is essentially the same as the real, live experience that you would get if you were sitting right here in the arena," he explains. "Taking that concept one step further, actually you are gaining an experience that you could only find in a few seats here in the house around the center court line."
Halftime entertainment at this year's NBA All-Star Game featured a performance by Colombian pop sensation and Shure endorser Juanes and R&B singer John Legend. Singing Legend's 2008 hit If You're Out There backed by the Phoenix Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church Gospel Choir, both used Shure KSM9 microphones.
See Shure Distribution UK at PLASA Focus, Leeds - 28-19 April 2009.
(Jim Evans)
