Testimonials - Synergy 3

Ross Synergy - The New King of Switchers at KEYT

Don Katich
Director of Broadcast Operations
KEYT
Santa Barbara, California

After 17 years, 5 chief engineers, 3 ownerships, and no technical support or spare parts, it was finally time to retire our GVG-1680 News / Production switcher. Our chief engineer gave notice and left broadcasting - and he was the only one who knew where to kick the 1680 in order to keep it working. Without a CE or technical support, I could smell blood. I needed to find a switcher and fast. Obviously, with digital upon us and SD & HD in our not so distant future, how should a market #113 station meet this challenge? Like most stations our size, capital is limited and a digital switcher would require a significant portion of this vital life blood. In addition, our NEC System-10 DVE finally died. Our local news product has increased 300% over the past 10 years and the complexity of our productions and news demanded extensive keying and an integrated DVE.

The criteria implored in evaluating the news switcher was

a. Expense
b. Technical Support
c. Reliability
d. Upward/Downward Integration
e. Expandibility
f. Training

I set out to find a digital switcher that could easily plug into our analog facility without A to D's costing more than the entire switcher. I also needed a DVE that was completely integrated into the switcher. This was very important to limit timing and control issues. I received a quote from the King of switchers which broke the bank, DOA.

Our old GVG lasted 17 years and this new acquisition should be able to last at least 10 years. Also, engineers tend to turn over often, so technical support with a proven manufacturer was critical.

As the only legitimate news source in Santa Barbara, having a reliable switcher was also critical. Smaller markets do not have the redundancy that larger markets have. If the news switcher fails, we don't have a newscast.

I needed a switcher that could easily integrate into our analog facility while maintaining the capacity for future digital integration and expandibility as our production and news requirements changed. I needed a 2 ME switcher, however, I purchased a 3 ME frame, so future expansion was now an option.

Ultimately, no switcher is functional unless you have trained TD's who can make it work. Being in a small market, the majority of my TD's are virgins. This is their first TD employment. Finding a switcher that was user friendly was vital. I was also concerned that if I purchased a 4000, my young TD's would learn the switcher and immediately move 60 miles south to LA and make 4 times the money.

Ultimately, I purchased a ROSS Synergy 3 with 4 integrated DVE's and A to D converters. The cost was significantly less than comparable manufacturers and the personalized training from ROSS was the best service I have seen in broadcasting. The Flash memory, redundant power supplies both in the main frame and control panel makes this switcher extremely reliable. The integrated DVE's are managed by both the switcher EMEM and the 192 macros. VTR Roll buttons follow preset bus and downstream chroma keys allow for greater flexibility. As we evolve from analog to digital one piece of gear at a time, the Synergy 3 keeps us competitive in a market with our LA friends to the south