Riedel brings Star of the Seas entertainment to life

Continuing with their long collaboration, Riedel Communications and the Nordic multimedia technology company Media Tailors have joined forces again to offer a broadcasting infrastructure, state-of-the-art audiovisual and communications aboard the new Royal Caribbean International ship, el Star of the Seas.

He Star of the Seas, which shares the title of the largest cruise ship in the world with its sister ship, el Icon of the Seas, is designed to deliver large-scale entertainment experiences at sea, the ship has more than 30 theaters, spaces for live performances and multimedia rooms, as well as ice and water rinks.

The multimedia infrastructure covering all these entertainment venues and a centralized broadcast center is based on a fully decentralized Riedel MediorNet network, seamlessly controlled via Riedel's hi human interface platform and complemented by a Riedel Artist intercom ecosystem, Bolero and PunQtum.

The broadcast center houses two production galleries and a main rack room for signal routing, the recording, reproduction, post-production and graphics. More than 20 MediorNet MicroN UHD nodes, MicroN y Compact provide capabilities distributed routing, signal processing y multivision throughout the ship, which reduces wiring, saves space and ensures reliability at sea.

Tuomas Niemelä, commercial director of shipbuilding at Media Tailor, states that “Creating a broadcast and audiovisual environment of this magnitude requires a unified system that works as one. That is what Riedel allows. Riedel's decentralized architecture allows operators to route video, real-time audio and data throughout the vessel with incredible efficiency and resilience, which is vital when working in the middle of the ocean”.

As a central control platform for all audiovisual systems, broadcasting and entertainment, the control system hi human interface from Riedel provides intuitive control and fluid system management. Deployed with three servers and four dedicated hardware panels, hi extends its reach to the entire ship through software panels accessible from PC and iPad in entertainment rooms and control rooms.

In addition to system management, hi also unifies the MediorNet and Dante networks of the ship routing all Dante audio (Audinate), automatically converting embedded SDI audio and grouping related video and audio signals into unified port containers. This gives operators greater flexibility to manage routing and monitoring across all locations., whether for live entertainment, video playback or communications throughout the boat. At the same time, hi manages GPIO based automation, connecting directly to the boat's PA/GA system to activate features such as automatic muting or signal redirection during safety announcements.

Intercom Artist

Complementing the video and audio infrastructure is the Artist intercom system by Riedel, which has a matriz Artist-1024, further of 50 SmartPanels, 55 Bolero wireless beltpacks and systems PunQtum wired partyline. Together, These components form a unified, scalable communications ecosystem for production teams across the ship..

Philippe Genar, Riedel regional sales director, remember that “our collaboration with Media Tailor and Royal Caribbean goes back more than a decade. Each project pushes the boundaries of what is possible at sea, and Star of the Seas is a perfect example of how Riedel technology, combined with Media Tailor's innovative design and multimedia technology expertise, offers seamless connectivity, operational efficiency and an exceptional entertainment experience in the maritime sector”.

“Media Tailor and Riedel have once again provided an integrated broadcast infrastructure, communications and audiovisual that offers unparalleled flexibility and operational efficiency throughout our ship. Their experience gives our teams the confidence to produce spectacular live experiences for our guests., every day, anywhere in the world”, concludes Christopher Vlassopulos, director of new construction at Royal Caribbean.