Digital 9000 – Sennheiser’s Digital Wireless System Makes Waves in Its First Year

OLD LYME, Conn. - Sept. 26, 2013 - PRLog -- Old Lyme, CT – Launched at last year’s IBC, Sennheiser’s Digital 9000 wireless system has since become an integral part of the broadcasting, theatre and live audio worlds. The high-end solution is the first digital wireless system that can work without compression, transmitting full HD audio.

The Best Sound, the Biggest Broadcast Events:

Praised by engineers and artists alike for its incredible sound, the Digital 9000 system is the perfect solution for music broadcasts. In its first year, Digital 9000 has already powered prestigious shows such as the Eurovision Song Contest and The Voice of Switzerland.

The 2013 LOGIE Awards, Australia:
The first use of a Digital 9000 system in Australia was at the 2013 LOGIE Awards. The Logies are one of the biggest broadcast events in the Australian TV calendar. As with previous years, the wireless microphones and in-ear monitor systems for the event were all Sennheiser and supplied and operated by SSSH! Audio. There were well over 80 channels of wireless microphone systems and another 18 channels of IEM in use on the Red Carpet, at the awards show itself and on Nine’s Today show the next morning.

Digital 9000 at Wimbledon Presentations:
At this year’s Wimbledon Championship men’s final, all eyes were on Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic. With peak viewing figures at 17.3 million, the televised coverage drew the biggest audience since 1990. The feast was not only visual, but aural as well, with Sennheiser’s flagship Digital 9000 wireless microphones used on Centre Court by BBC presenter Sue Barker.

Digital 9000 Took Centre Court at the US Open:
The U.S. Open was the final major Grand Slam tennis tournament of 2013, with a purse of $34 million and an audience of over 700,000 attending between 26 August and 9 September. The tournament traditionally began with the Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day, which was televised by CBS Sports and included a special appearance by the First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama.

The New First Choice for Broadcasters:
Norway’s TV 2 became the first broadcaster in northern Europe to invest in Digital 9000. TV 2 selected the system in December 2012 after intensively comparing a range of different digital wireless solutions.

Televisa Delivers Outstanding Music Programmes:
Televisa was the first broadcaster in Latin America to opt for Digital 9000. In November 2012, Televisa acquired a 24-channel system which was immediately used for the second season of The Voice Mexico, and later for Teletón, a popular music and entertainment show that raises money for charity and operates – via the Teletón Foundation – more than 20 rehabilitation centres for children and teenagers across Mexico.

Taking to the Stage – A Smash Hit in Theatres:

Digital 9000 also proved strong in the theatre world, as can be seen by three recent installations in Finland, open-air events in Switzerland and Germany and pioneering sound design work in the UK.

Transparent HD Sound for Helsinki City Theatre:
In Finland, Petteri Murto and Jonas Næsby of Sennheiser Nordic worked to facilitate the installation of Digital 9000 in three prestigious theatres, one of them being the renowned Helsinki City Theatre.

Dear World at Charing Cross Theatre:
An all-star cast came together at the Charing Cross theatre for the London production of Broadway musical, Dear World. Sound designer Mike Walker, a longtime Sennheiser user, saw the production as the ideal way to see how the Digital 9000 system sounded.

Dramatically Better Sound for Merrily We Roll Along:
At the Harold Pinter theatre, Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along was awarded more five-star reviews than any other West End show in history. Sound designer Gareth Owen had first tried the Digital 9000 system on last winter’s production of Jack and The Beanstalk in Glasgow – the UK’s only arena pantomime.

Switzerland Turns a Whole Village Into a Stage:
In the Swiss monastic village of Einsiedeln, “Das Einsiedler Welttheater” (“World Theatre of Einsiedeln”) celebrated its premiere on 21 June, turning the impressive monastery square into a huge open air stage with 2,700 seats. The play by Tim Krohn is based on a 17th century work by Calderón de la Barca, and describes the individual’s quest for happiness and perfection in a world where medicine promises to cure all physical and mental ailments via genetic manipulation.

Opera at the Lakeside with “Klassik am See”:
Once a year, the lakeside of idyllic Dechsendorfer Weiher in Germany turns into a fully-fledged open-air opera house. At the end of July 2013, opera enthusiasts enjoyed Verdi’s La Traviata in a semi-dramatised production conducted by Ljubka Biagioni. Alongside various wired MKH condenser microphones for the orchestra, the opera made use of a 14-channel Digital 9000 system for the soloists and hosts. While the hosts of the opera night spoke into SKM 9000 with ME 9005 heads, the soloists of La Traviata were fitted with SK 9000 bodypack transmitters and HSP 4 head-worn mics.

Making Live Audio Come Alive:

In its first year, the Digital 9000 has proved itself with some of the world’s top performers.

Benny Ibarra:
Benny Ibarra is the first Latin American artist to switch from a Sennheiser 5000 Series system to Digital 9000. In July, the singer, producer and actor from Mexico City acquired an 8-channel system including three SKM 9000 handheld transmitters with MD 9235 capsules and five SK 9000 bodypacks with instrument cables.

Claudia Leitte:
One of Brazil’s biggest stars, Claudia Leitte, brought her unmistakable axé sound to the Montreux Jazz Festival in July. Using a Digital 9000 microphone system, she thrilled the audience in the Auditorium Stravinski with the musical style that originated in Bahia in the 1980s and that quickly spread over the whole of Brazil.

Leona Lewis:
British superstar Leona Lewis has become a regular user of Digital 9000, and also used the system on her Glassheart tour in May.