In today’s fast-paced production environments, capturing high-fidelity audio is essential. Audiences expect immersive audio in sports and live entertainment that enhances their experience and brings them closer to the action.

As audio engineers, you know the challenge: covering wide spaces with precision, while minimizing gear and setup time. The DCA901 Broadcast Microphone Array was built to meet that challenge with steerable lobes that deliver clean, focused sound with less hardware. 

Understanding the DCA901: Digital Microphone Array

The DCA901 delivers eight channels of high-fidelity audio through a single network cable. Its directional capture is powered by 85 internal microphones, processed individually through eight separate processing chains to form highly directional pickup patterns. This method allows for independent lobe control while maintaining a coherent, immersive experience. 

DCA901 Overview:

• Captures wider coverage than traditional analog setups
• Eliminates spatial aliasing and phase misalignment with synchronized processing
• Provides eight channels, plus stereo and mono automix outputs and a PFL channel in a single-unit design
• Streamlines deployment with a single compact unit
• Offers digital lobe steering to reduce manual adjustments
• Isolates key audio elements while minimizing unwanted crowd or ambient noise
• Higher directionality captures clearer audio in noisy settings

With the DCA901, you can shape sound with greater control and deliver an immersive, front-row experience.

How Do Steerable Lobes Work?

The DCA901 stands apart with its digitally steerable lobes, which are controlled through an embedded web-based GUI. A steerable lobe acts as a highly directional pickup zone, formed by the internal processing chains within the array. The DCA901 offers eight individual lobes, along with a single mono automix, a 2-channel stereo automix, and a PFL channel. The PFL channel enables isolation of individual channels for monitoring without affecting automix decisions. 

Each lobe can be set to narrow, medium, or wide, depending on the desired pickup range. You can steer each lobe independently and even assign multiple lobes to the same target area using different widths for layered coverage. Additional tools like PEQ (parametric equalizer) allow you to refine the sound further and emphasize desired sounds. This setup provides complete independence and flexibility in shaping the sound pickup as required.

Controlling the Lobes: Inside the GUI

To set up the DCA901, you'll need the Shure Discovery app to discover it on your network. Alternatively, you can use the Shure Update Utility app, to discover and update firmware on the device. Follow the user guide to confirm that you selected the network the array is on and access the GUI either by manually entering the IP address in your browser with https as a prefix, or by double-clicking it to open in your browser.

Up to five users can access the GUI simultaneously, with the most recent command taking precedence.

GUI Highlights:

• Dual Views: The left side provides a fixed POV from the array’s perspective (with LED orientation), while the right side offers a movable 3D view to align lobes with visual
• Lobe Control: Shape and steer lobes directly in the interface. In quieter environments, use auto positioning to get the intended direction. For noisier settings, manually steer each lobe, followed by fine-tuning as needed. Lobe positioning should be verified with a talkout.
• Configuration Example: For a basketball setup, mount the array 8 feet high and aim toward the free-throw line, 24 feet away. Use a laser distance measurer to calculate the diagonal value, adjust the X-axis angle, and set the lobe width based on coverage needs.
• Preset Management: Save and export presets immediately to avoid losing configurations during firmware updates. Label files clearly for future reuse.
• Monitoring: Use your ears as the final reference. The GUI provides visual feedback, but the true measure of performance is what you hear.

Streamlined Setup and Routing

With a single Dante/AES67 connection handling audio, power and control, the DCA901 streamlines setup and reduces cable clutter.

For example, one professional basketball deployment, from physical setup to first audio capture, was completed in just 90 minutes. When installed into an environment with existing infrastructure, setup time was reduced to just 15 minutes. The DCA901 is built for fast, efficient integration into professional broadcast workflows. 

Elevating Audio Capture with Built-In DSP

The DCA901’s internal DSP is central to its performance, offering advanced tools to shape and refine your mix:

• Beamforming provides precise directional control
• Automixing balances sources automatically with minimal manual adjustment
• PEQ fine-tunes frequencies for tonal clarity
• Noise reduction minimizes ambient sound, ensuring clarity in loud environments

Together these features allow engineers to capture clean, natural audio with less manual intervention.

Real-World Applications

The DCA901 offers versatile audio capture and opens new possibilities in media production to deliver exceptional results. It’s user-friendly setup and dynamic lobe control streamline workflows and expand creative options.

Deployment in Sports:

• Basketball: Mount a DCA901 under each stanchion to cover key areas within 35 feet using five lobes, fanned across the three-point line and focused on the free-throw and low post zones. An additional 2 lobes can be used to complete the coverage under the basket at the baseline.

• Soccer: When paired with Edge Sound Research Virtual Sound Engine, the DCA901 activates specific lobes based on ball and player movements, providing engineers with unprecedented control. Replacing traditional shotgun mics, the DCA901 units installed around the field can increase coverage from 12 channels, up to 96.

Unlocking Creative Solutions

The DCA901 has sparked creative audio moments beyond initial deployments. Engineers are impressed by the dynamic steerability, which allows for quick adjustments such as moving a lobe away from a distracting sound while maintaining overall coverage. 

The internal automixer helps reduce eight lobes to a manageable two-channel stereo output while preserving spatial awareness. In studio environments, the built-in noise reduction algorithm significantly reduces static interference. 

Rethinking Broadcast Mic Strategy with the DCA901

The DCA901 simplifies setup, reduces gear requirements, and gives you precise control over what you capture. Whether you’re producing live sports or in-studio broadcasts, it delivers the coverage and flexibility today’s productions demand.

Want to see it in action? Visit www.shure.com/dca901 to book a demo and learn more about how the DCA901 can elevate your workflow.