The Center for the Arts heads into the future equipped with a fully wired, high-tech broadcast room with streaming capabilities and a premier sound system by Meyer Sound.
The new Broadcast Room is dedicated in memory of Ed Hobson, former husband of Center supporter and arts advocate Judy Seabridge. Hobson was a media-industry visionary with a career that spanned more than three decades. During his career, he was a vice president at National Teleconsultants, Co-Founder of Omneon Video Networks, and President of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE).
According to Seabridge, Hobson had a propensity for engineering even as a child. He loved to take apart and reassemble old radios, which earned him the nickname of “The Professor” in his New Jersey neighborhood. After graduating with a degree in electrical engineering from Rensselear Polytechnical Institute (RPI), Hobson worked as a broadcast engineer at WTEN-TV (where he met Seabridge) and WRGB in upstate New York. In 1980, the former Grass Valley Group, manufacturers of leading television and broadcast equipment, brought Hobson and Seabridge to Nevada County. The couple immediately fell in love with the area and made it home base throughout their careers.
Seabridge remembers her partner as an extremely well-rounded individual—in addition to his brilliant career in broadcasting, he was a husband, teacher, friend, baker and cook, gardener, pianist, and pilot of his own plane. The new broadcast room at The Center is a fitting tribute to Ed Hobson—we are profoundly grateful to Judy Seabridge for her generous donation.
The Meyer Sound system being installed in the new Center features the legendary Meyer LEOPARD Compact Linear Line Array loudspeakers, eight on each side of the auditorium, and other components that will impress even the fussiest techies. Meyer Sound is a pioneer and innovator in the science of sound engineering. In designing and building their sound systems, the engineers at Meyer consider all the elements, from the audio source to how humans hear. The system will be augmented by a state-of-the-art Allen & Heath mixing console. The Meyer Sound system is made possible by the generous donations of Helen and John Meyer and Julia Amaral. Be prepared to be wowed by the sound!
Please note that although The Center cannot yet afford the equipment necessary for streaming our own shows, the new broadcast room will be wired and ready for production companies to live stream and record shows using their own equipment. We are looking forward to and exploring ideas for broadcasting our own shows in the future.
By becoming a Next Stage Member, you can help launch us into the future of broadcast streaming. Soon you will be able to watch a show broadcast live from The Grass Valley Center for the Arts anywhere in the world—the possibilities are limitless! Join the Crew
