Sound Supervisor & Guarantee - Bloomberg House at WEF Davos 2026
End Client: Bloomberg TV | Technical Provider: Blue-i Europe
Bloomberg House is effectively a television studio within a modern, light, and airy café bar that is open to invited guests of Bloomberg TV. During the World Economic Forum, the usual occupier of the space, ESCHER Raumdesign, moves out, and the keys are handed to the award-winning creative agency BRANDFUEL. I work for the technical provider Blue-i Europe to design and install all the audio and visual equipment that delivers real-time sound and pictures to both room and broadcast with no separation between rehearsal and transmission. When we're live, BBTV will cut live to Bloomberg House at any moment, requiring continuous readiness and consistent sound and pictures across our four uplink streams.
The Setup (2026)
This year’s system was built around a d&b audiotechnik PA with a Yamaha broadcast/control backbone, tying together Dante, SDI, comms, and analogue I/O across a live broadcast environment.
- PA: d&b E8 loudspeakers
- Amplification: d&b D20 amplifiers
- Console: Yamaha DM7
- I/O: 2 × Yamaha Rio3224-D3 (Total 64 in / 32 out)
- Machine & Disguise Server Inputs: Audinate ADP-USB-AU-2X2
- Video Processor Barco E2 Processor
- Comms: RTS OMNEO (wired digital beltpacks + ROAMEO wireless)
- Network: Netgear AV line with LAGs between 3 zones (Racks, FOH & Green Room)
Machine audio from Disguise and graphics systems was brought in via Audinate ADP-USB interfaces, sitting on the Dante network and feeding directly into the console. The Rio racks handled the bulk of analogue copper I/O, including room feeds, broadcast paths, and 4-wire comms tie-ins. Comms ran on an RTS OMNEO system, with a mix of wired digital beltpacks and ROAMEO wireless, with full coverage throughout the building.
For broadcast integration, audio paths were split—some outputs remained on analogue, while others were routed via Dante ↔ SDI conversion using Sonifex units that embedded audio directly onto the SDI video feeds that were fed into 2x LiveViews doing the uplink to London MCR. We did this to form some redundancy but also to automate some quick patching when we had a change in audio requirements back to MCR for a couple of the presentations.
A Netgear network underpinned everything. Between the audio and video departments, we had several switches and VLANs configured to carry redundant Dante, comms, audio control, KVM control and high-capacity media transfers. Multiple LAG linked back-of-house, FOH and the green room for ultimate control and flawless conversation throughout the venue.
Infrastructure Notes
The venue itself adds another layer of complexity. Parts of Bloomberg House, particularly the basement, are designed as a bunker in wartime. This level of construction directly impacts RF and wireless microphone and IFB systems, making reliable operation impossible there. However this year we achieved working RF even in those areas along with full comms coverage and a wireless workbench for monitoring and pre-flight checks. Consequently, the basement wasn’t just usable; it became a functional technical space rather than a dead zone.
Delivery
Everything was run as a fully live environment—no reset between sessions, no separation between rehearsal and broadcast.
- All paths treated as live at all times
- Continuous readiness for BBTV cut-ins
- Seamless handling of changing contributors and formats
- On-the-fly changes managed alongside recording of VOGs (Voice of God announcements)
- No interruption to room or broadcast feeds
Final Thought
If it can go live at any moment, it has to be right at every moment.