MARLBOROUGH, MASS.—D2 Productions began operations in 2008 as a full service production company specializing in the live streaming event production, with strong specialization in multicamera sports, education, concerts, corporate event production. We offer a wide array of services, including single and multicamera field production, post-production from our edit suites, live and on-demand streaming media services, along with a fully equipped production studio in our Marlborough facility.
During the past two years, we’ve expanded into full mobile production, offering an extensive array of live and live-to-tape field video production services with our mobile HD production units, “Genesis” and “Zeppelin,” as well as other multicamera and single camera high-definition production systems. We have a full range of mobile production for exterior shoots and rackmounted equipment for locations where a production truck isn’t feasible.

ROBUSTNESS AND HIGH QUALITY
When we decided to get into the mobile production truck business, we knew that we had to have equipment that would stand up to the multiple challenges presented in non-studio environments. We also wanted gear with good that would allow us to maintain our high production values and equipment that was user-friendly when it came to setup and operation.
For us, Hitachi stood out with strong performing image quality, build solid, and with controls and buttons where a cameraman wants them to be. We have been impressed since the day we launched “Genesis,” our first mobile vehicle.

With our truck constantly on the go, when we pull out the gear, shoot the event, pack them up —and often times, in extreme weather conditions—and the same, day-in and day-out, our cameras have to perform. And our Hitachi cameras have held up very well under these extreme circumstances, heat, humidity and moisture.

With our second truck “Zeppelin” we now have a 40-foot production facility and we have again selected Hitachi cameras. Both trucks have the same complement of five Hitachi Z-HD5000’s with CU-HD500 CCU’s operating with SMPTE fiber and RU-1000VR RCU’s. Each truck also carries four Hitachi HDF-700H studio viewfinders and three VF-402 ENG viewfinders.

We’ve been pleased by the camera’s performance, quality and ability to “take the heat.” We have also experienced from Hitachi the same “high-touch” experience that we see ourselves providing to our customers. We associate the cameras with the people at Hitachi. When we’re able to associate the camera with its people, this lends a level of confidence because we know there are people standing behind their product.
The Hitachi brand is extremely well represented by the people there and it’s not a faceless brand like so many others; we associate our cameras with the personalities of the technical and sales people who stand behind them. We couldn’t be happier with how Hitachi cameras have integrated into our productions and how the Hitachi team has been there to make sure that integration has been smooth.

Hitachi cameras roll out real easy, and Hitachi team members are there to make sure that everything comes out okay. At D2, we have an uncommon belief in a thing called respect—respect for you, and for your bottom line. Hitachi is a good fit for us.

David Walzer is general partner of D2 Productions and Damon Movitz is managing partner of the company. They may be contacted through info@d2productions.com.

For additional information, contact Hitachi Kokusai America at 516-682-4431 or visit www.hitachikokusai.us

HITACHI Z-HD5000 Cameras Elevate In-Venue and Broadcast Sports Productions for Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell

Stellar image fidelity, operational ease and flexibility enable high-quality live streaming broadcasts while increasing on-site fan engagement

Woodbury, NY, August 22, 2017 — Furthering its commitment to delivering high-quality entertainment experiences, the Tsongas Center at the University of Massachusetts Lowell (“UMass Lowell”) has expanded its complement of Z-HD5000 cameras from Hitachi Kokusai Electric America Ltd. (Hitachi Kokusai) to boost its live production capabilities and take optimal advantage of expanding distribution opportunities.

Owned by the university and managed by Spectra Venue Management by Comcast Spectacor, the multi-purpose Tsongas Center facility is home to the NCAA Division I UMass Lowell River Hawks hockey and basketball teams. Seating up to 7,000 visitors, the venue also hosts a variety of non-sporting events including concerts, job fairs, graduations, and major university activities. 

An agreement between the NCAA’s America East Conference and ESPN to bring live basketball games to multi-screen sports network ESPN3 created the need for the Tsongas Center to upgrade its video equipment roster. Previously using two HITACHI Z-HD5000s alongside other vendors’ cameras for productions shown on the venue’s in-house video boards, the university and Spectra’s on-site team chose to standardize on HITACHI cameras for their ESPN3 broadcasts, in-venue displays, and other distribution outlets.

“We were very pleased with the quality and reliability of the existing HITACHI cameras we’d been using to drive our scoreboard productions, so when we looked to increase our production flexibility and ensure visual consistency for our new ESPN3 streams, the Z-HD5000s were ideal for our upgrade,” said Ben Jewart, director of audio visual services at Tsongas Center. “We did our due diligence and evaluated all of the other major camera brands too, but everything led us right back to Hitachi Kokusai.”

Four HITACHI Z-HD5000s are now used for the university’s live hockey and basketball streaming broadcasts. Two of the cameras are stationed in fixed positions capturing high and tight shots, while the other two Z-HD5000s are operated handheld at ice or court level. While the school’s ESPN3 broadcasts typically use freelance crewmembers, other event productions often use current and former students as camera operators, making the Z-HD5000’s short learning curve valuable.

“The great usability of the Z-HD5000 makes it an excellent teaching platform,” said Nolan Mercer, AV manager at Tsongas Center. “It is a huge benefit to have cameras that we can quickly show students how to use, and to have the students jump right in and immediately understand their operation. The industry-standard nature of the HITACHI cameras has also been helpful in attracting volunteers, as the students know they are getting practical experience on equipment they may encounter professionally.”

Jewart also touts the video quality produced by the HITACHI cameras as a major boost for the center’s broadcasts. “The Z-HD5000’s low-noise, 2/3” chips and digital signal processing gave us a significant improvement in quality over the other camera models we had used,” he explained. “The colors really ‘pop’, and we get consistently high image quality even under dramatically changing lighting conditions, such as when we darken the arena for effect before games, or when we chase the lights when goals are scored.”

Sports from the Tsongas Center are now streamed live on ESPN3, the America East Conference website (www.AmericaEast.tv) or the university’s own GoRiverHawks.tv site. Beyond the streaming broadcasts, the shooting flexibility provided by the HITACHI cameras and accompanying Fujinon lenses has elevated the center’s in-venue productions and raised fan involvement. “Whether shooting all the way across the court or further into the crowd, we’re now able to get great-quality video at angles we couldn’t capture before,” said Jewart.

“This enables us to incorporate more interactivity with the crowd, which has increased fan engagement and excitement,” added Mercer. “Our mission is to create memorable fan experiences, and the HITACHI cameras play a key role in doing that.”

Sebouh Majarian, assistant director of new media at UMass Lowell, echoes the positive impact that the new cameras have had for both the Tsongas Center team and its audiences. “Our experience with HITACHI cameras has been tremendous,” he said. “They have been easy for our operators to use, and helped shape and advance the quality of both our in-venue and broadcast productions. Our job is to put on a good show for our teams’ fans, and the Z-HD5000s have helped us achieve that.”

About Hitachi Kokusai Electric Inc.
Hitachi Kokusai Electric Inc. (TSE: 6756), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is a company that manufactures broadcasting systems, security and surveillance systems, wireless communications and information systems, and semiconductor manufacturing equipment. Fiscal 2016 (ended March 31, 2017) consolidated net sales totaled 171,857 million Yen ($1,531million). For more information on Hitachi Kokusai Electric Inc., please visit the company’s website at http://www.hitachi-kokusai.co.jp/global/en/index.html.

HITACHI Z-HD5000 Cameras Elevate In-Venue and Broadcast Sports
Productions for Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell

Stellar image fidelity, operational ease and flexibility enable high-quality live streaming broadcasts while increasing on-site fan engagement

Woodbury, NY, August 22, 2017 — Furthering its commitment to delivering high-quality entertainment experiences, the Tsongas Center at the University of Massachusetts Lowell (“UMass Lowell”) has expanded its complement of Z-HD5000 cameras from Hitachi Kokusai Electric America Ltd. (Hitachi Kokusai) to boost its live production capabilities and take optimal advantage of expanding distribution opportunities.

Owned by the university and managed by Spectra Venue Management by Comcast Spectacor, the multi-purpose Tsongas Center facility is home to the NCAA Division I UMass Lowell River Hawks hockey and basketball teams. Seating up to 7,000 visitors, the venue also hosts a variety of non-sporting events including concerts, job fairs, graduations, and major university activities.

An agreement between the NCAA’s America East Conference and ESPN to bring live basketball games to multi-screen sports network ESPN3 created the need for the Tsongas Center to upgrade its video equipment roster. Previously using two HITACHI Z-HD5000s alongside other vendors’ cameras for productions shown on the venue’s in-house video boards, the university and Spectra’s on-site team chose to standardize on HITACHI cameras for their ESPN3 broadcasts, in-venue displays, and other distribution outlets.

“We were very pleased with the quality and reliability of the existing HITACHI cameras we’d been using to drive our scoreboard productions, so when we looked to increase our production flexibility and ensure visual consistency for our new ESPN3 streams, the Z-HD5000s were ideal for our upgrade,” said Ben Jewart, director of audio visual services at Tsongas Center. “We did our due diligence and evaluated all of the other major camera brands too, but everything led us right back to Hitachi Kokusai.”

Four HITACHI Z-HD5000s are now used for the university’s live hockey and basketball streaming broadcasts. Two of the cameras are stationed in fixed positions capturing high and tight shots, while the other two Z-HD5000s are operated handheld at ice or court level. While the school’s ESPN3 broadcasts typically use freelance crewmembers, other event productions often use current and former students as camera operators, making the Z-HD5000’s short learning curve valuable.

“The great usability of the Z-HD5000 makes it an excellent teaching platform,” said Nolan Mercer, AV manager at Tsongas Center. “It is a huge benefit to have cameras that we can quickly show students how to use, and to have the students jump right in and immediately understand their operation. The industry-standard nature of the HITACHI cameras has also been helpful in attracting volunteers, as the students know they are getting practical experience on equipment they may encounter professionally.” Jewart also touts the video quality produced by the HITACHI cameras as a major boost for the center’s broadcasts. “The Z-HD5000’s low-noise, 2/3” chips and digital signal processing gave us a significant improvement in quality over the other camera models we had used,” he explained. “The colors really ‘pop’, and we get consistently high image quality even under dramatically changing lighting conditions, such as when we darken the arena for effect before games, or when we chase the lights when goals are scored.” Sports from the Tsongas Center are now streamed live on ESPN3, the America East Conference website ( www.AmericaEast.tv ) or the university’s own GoRiverHawks.tv site. Beyond the streaming broadcasts, the shooting flexibility provided by the HITACHI cameras and accompanying Fujinon lenses has elevated the center’s in-venue productions and raised fan involvement. “Whether shooting all the way across the court or further into the crowd, we’re now able to get great-quality video at angles we couldn’t capture before,” said Jewart.

“This enables us to incorporate more interactivity with the crowd, which has increased fan engagement and excitement,” added Mercer. “Our mission is to create memorable fan experiences, and the HITACHI cameras play a key role in doing that.” Sebouh Majarian, assistant director of new media at UMass Lowell, echoes the positive impact that the new cameras have had for both the Tsongas Center team and its audiences. “Our experience with HITACHI cameras has been tremendous,” he said.

“They have been easy for our operators to use, and helped shape and advance the quality of both our in-venue and broadcast productions. Our job is to put on a good show for our teams’ fans, and the Z-HD5000s have helped us achieve that.”

About Hitachi Kokusai Electric Inc.
Hitachi Kokusai Electric Inc. (TSE: 6756), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is a company that manufactures broadcasting systems, security and surveillance systems, wireless communications and information systems, and semiconductor manufacturing equipment. Fiscal 2016 (ended March 31, 2017) consolidated net sales totaled 171,857 million Yen ($1,531million).

For more information on Hitachi Kokusai Electric Inc., please visit the company’s website at http://www.hitachi-kokusai.co.jp/global/en/index.html.

Schenectady, NY—May 2019… Although Union College has only 2,600 undergraduate students, the private liberal arts college’s men’s ice hockey team competes quite successfully with much larger schools in NCAA Division 1. The Union Dutchmen even won the 2014 national championship over such sports powers as Minnesota, Boston College, and Providence. Four years later, the Upstate New York school brought in AV systems integrators Com Tech of neighboring Albany to work on video production, and Com Tech wound up also designing and installing a new audio system for the Frank L. Messa Rink, the home of Union’s men’s and women’s hockey teams.
“The old system was inadequate, with outdated technology,” recalls Com Tech owner Chuck Zarriello. “It had been slowly failing over the years and was not intelligible, so we installed an almost entirely new sound system.” Zarrielo specified a powerful, flexible Dante audio system based on four Linea Research 44C06 power amplifiers, EM Acoustics loudspeakers, and a Symetrix Radius EX 12×8 DSP. 
“This was one of our first Linea Research installs,” Zarriello reveals. “Their manufacturer representative, Rich Trombitas of Cardone, Solomon & Associates, brought them to our attention. We liked the fact that Linea Research amplifiers have lots of power in a small footprint because we didn’t have the ability add more rack real estate to the sound booth.”
In addition to needing high-quality sound and modern network features, Union College Director of Athletics Jim McLaughlin’s wanted a system that was very simple for their non-technical operators to use—and he needed it done quickly. “This project had an extremely tight build schedule,” relates Zarriello. “They wanted it in time for the opening of their season in early October. There was no spare time; we were offloading speakers from the airline transport company as they were preparing the ice for practice the next morning. We liked that Linea Research amplifiers were deliverable within our very tight schedule—and they worked out of the box. There were no surprises. That met all of our objectives.”
Linea Research 44C series amplifiers integrate 96 kHz DSP running manufacturer-crafted algorithms for such features as LIR linear phase filters and the powerful VX Limiter suite. “We set certain parameters with the amplifier DSP, limiting output power because we didn’t need all the power that the Linea had to offer,” notes Zarriello. “So we had plenty of headroom, and coupled with the EM Acoustics speakers, it really was a nice marriage.” 
Each EM Acoustics loudspeaker cluster in the new main system incorporates MSE-159, Halo-CS, and EMS-121X loudspeakers, all integrated in a custom flying frame. “Another thing we did that made the client extremely happy was to relocate and reuse the existing speakers that were still working in some areas that had no audio reinforcement,” Zarriello adds.
The Symetrix Radius EX managed the network while meeting director McLaughlin’s ease-of-use requirement. “This was not my first rodeo with Symetrix,” reports Zarriello. “We used Symetrix because of our previous experience with it, our knowledge of the product, and its reliability. By using the Symetrix DSP, limiting the window of gains for the different microphones, and limiting the output of the Linea Research amplifiers, the system has more than adequate SPL where it needs to be. We gave them simple controls with a couple of Symetrix ARC-3 wall panels and SymVue software running in the control booth. The staff could literally take somebody off the street and show them in 15 to 20 minutes how to use the system, and they’d be able to operate it.”
The combination of Linea Research amplifiers, EM Acoustics loudspeakers, and Symetrix DSP and control has been a winner at Union College. “This was our first major project with Union College,” avers Zarriello. “The system is in use and the client is completely happy with it. I will absolutely use Linea Research again when the opportunity arises.”