Magna installs 15-metre LED screen for Fox Sports within 8 weeks

When Fox Sports of Australia recently decided to replace an aging hard set in its second largest studio with the largest LED screen ever installed at the sports broadcaster, the broadcaster turned to Magna Systems and its screen specialist installation partners PCB Digital.

Derek Howe, Head of Production Operations, Fox Sports, explained, “The old set in our second largest studio had come to end-of-life and needed to be replaced. The question was … go with another hard set or an ultra-wide screen? 

“After discussions with Neville Paterson and the team at PCB Digital the benefits of the big screen clearly outweighed having another hard set. We stood to enjoy fewer moving parts, better quality images, more production options and far more convenience. It really was a no-brainer.”

One of the main challenges faced by Fox Sports was the installation timeline, which had to be completed for two of the biggest sporting events of the year in Australia – the National Rugby League (NRL) Grand Finals and the Big Bash League cricket.

In eight weeks, Magna and PCB Digital completed the installation and commissioning, giving the Fox Sports production teams a state-of-the-art full studio-sized LED screen to create a more immersive and engaging experience for their viewers.

Describing this as a “truly amazing feat of customer service and engineering”, Howe added, “Images, both stills and video, look amazing on this screen, the workflow to get them there is very straightforward and the mood and feel the screen creates is instantaneous. 

“This means we have a huge variety of shots we can now play with and create promos and marketing campaigns easy and cost effective.

“In short, it’s now about as easy as it can be to create one or multiple instant environments on a 15-metre screen across the entire studio.”