Los Angeles Arena Relies on Axient® and UHF-R®
NILES, Ill., Dec. 2, 2015— STAPLES Center in Los Angeles is home to four professional sports teams, mega concert tours, and a range of private events. In total, the venue operates more than 250 ticketed events annually. Located in the heart of downtown LA, handling audio for the arena’s attractions is no easy feat, due to crowded RF and shrinking spectrum. The man behind the facility’s audio operation is Sound Engineer Dustin Delker, who recently adopted the Shure Axient® Wireless Management Network to better navigate available frequencies.
“Whether it’s Lakers coverage, LA Kings reporting, or details about a new event coming through over the weekend, we’ve got news trucks coming in and out nearly every hour of the day,” said Delker. “STAPLES Center is one of the busiest venues in the country, which makes it critical for us to have a wireless system that can identify and run on the best available frequencies. This is exactly why we turned to Axient. We cannot afford to drop on air.”
Delker relies on eight channels of Axient Wireless with KSM9 handhelds, another eight channels of UHF-R® Wireless with bodypack transmitters, and Shure lavalier mics. The microphones support all in-game entertainment for the NBA’s Lakers and Clippers, NHL’s Kings, and WNBA’s Sparks. This includes the national anthem, half-time performances, on-camera player and coach Q&A, and team introductions. The gear is also used for each of the team’s pre- and post-game press conferences.
Axient features that include Frequency Diversity and Interference Detection and Avoidance, as well as the ShowLink® Access Point were big selling points for Delker. With Frequency Diversity mode enabled, the Axient receiver continuously analyzes signal quality and uses both frequencies to provide optimized audio on a single channel. With two frequencies transmitting the same audio, the presence of direct RF interference on one frequency causes zero interruption. In the event of signal degradation, Axient Interference Avoidance technology enables engineers to move to a clean, compatible frequency—manually or automatically. ShowLink Remote Control enables comprehensive, real-time control of transmitters and the unprecedented ability to make instantaneous remote adjustments to all transmitter settings.
The STAPLES Center audio team has also benefited from Axient’s Spectrum Manager and Shure rechargeable battery options. The Spectrum Manager provides detailed RF spectrum scans in rich visual displays, along with compatible frequency coordination for even the highest channel counts. Shure lithium-ion rechargeable batteries provide up to eight hours of battery life for extended performance, zero memory effect, and real-time metering of remaining charge and other battery status parameters.
“Since we’ve began to operate Axient, it has performed as expected—flawlessly,” added Delker. “During the Kings season home opener this year, I had over 100 frequencies come in. Using Spectrum Manager, I
A graduate of DeVry Institute of Technology, Doug has been in the Technology industry since 1976 and actively oversees Fearing’s daily operations. Along with his wife, Lois, and three others, Doug started Fearing’s in a 600 square-foot facility in Portage, Wisconsin. In the 25 years since, the company has grown to over 30 employees with offices in Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Doug likes to say he’s a “TV Technician with a dream� going back to his history with the family’s original business-Fearing’s TV and Appliance.
Doug values time with family, watersports, hiking, snowshoeing and skiing. In addition to being a devoted member of his church, Doug serves as Board President for Kinship Mentoring of Columbia County, Board member of Schools for Haiti and Scripture Chair of the Gideons-Portage camp.
A graduate of MATC, Lois oversees Fearing’s daily book keeping along with various HR responsibilities.
Along with Doug, Lois is deeply connected to community outreach, serving as a Board member and Fundraising Committee Chairperson for Kinship Mentoring of Columbia County. She also serves on the Schools for Haiti Fundraising committee. In addition, Lois’ ongoing passion and commitment to provide care for the elderly comes from her 10-year history of working in a Reedsburg, Wisconsin Nursing home.
Lois enjoys singing, hiking, sunny days on the pontoon, and spending time with her 4 grandchildren.
Ehren drives Fearing’s technology by continually seeking out trends to enhance capabilities while supporting Sales, Engineering and Installation teams. Throughout his years with Fearing’s, Ehren’s talent and vision have joined forces to create a wide variety of projects and strategic solutions that exceed expectation.
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With 10 years with Fearing’s and over twice that long in the industry, Ben continues to lead, coordinate, and develop the Commercial AV team.
By consistently delivering an outstanding experience and outcome, Ben contributes to the Fearing’s legacy of long-lasting partnerships that truly make a difference. Whatever the Commercial AV need may be, Ben and team deliver at the highest level.
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Married for 19 years with 3 children, Chris enjoys skiing, hiking, fishing, boating, hunting, camping and golf. He’s also been actively involved as a Youth Football and Softball coach for his family and others.
