Arcadia: What is IFB and How to Make it Work

IFB is an audio workflow used most often in broadcast to send production audio to the on-air talent through a one-way link, most often through an IFB box which has an earpiece for the talent. Through the use of a panel or IFB talk-back unit, the production staff (Director or Producer) can “interrupt” the program audio by pressing a button to provide cues or directions to the talent. When pressing the IFB button, the program audio will dip or cut entirely so the production staff’s voice can be heard clearly. Once the button is released, production audio is re-established at full volume.

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• On-Air talent on a broadcast or webinar

• A speaker in a green room that normally plays program audio that allows a stage manager to interrupt and request things

• A speaker in a lobby that also plays program audio, but allows an usher to interrupt and inform attendees that the show is about to start

• A VOG (voice-of-God) speaker over a stage

With any IFB, there are three things to consider.

1. Source

2. Destination

3. Return

SOURCE - This is the audio that the talent (or a speaker) should be listening to. In most cases it is the main program audio from the mixing console. When it comes to a broadcast workflow for on-air talent that is in the field (not in the studio) the SOURCE is going to be a mix-minus feed, which is the program audio MINUS the microphone of the on-air talent who is talking. (Without mix-minus, the talent in the field will hear themself but with a few seconds of delay.)

DESTINATION - This is where the IFB feed should go. In a broadcast workflow it would be the IFB box in the studio, or in the case of talent in the field, their cell phone (either by dialing in to a phone number or through Clear-Com’s Agent-IC application.)

RETURN - This is the talent’s microphone. A RETURN allows a producer or director to listen to the talent’s microphone pre-fade, meaning without the microphone turned up on the audio mixing console.

Using Arcadia R4.1 or later

Goto Configuration IFB tab and Create IFB

Select the IFB source / Interruptible input - using any available port (2W, 4W, Dante)

Select the IFB Destination / IFB output - using any available port (2W, 4W, Dante)

Place the IFB button on a keypanel or Wireless Device

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Note that ‘Listens’ to IFBs in Arcadia route the signal going to the Output of the IFB to the Listening device, which allows monitoring of the IFB from the talent’s perspective, including the Program and the interrupts by Talkers.

This functionality corresponds to IFB ‘Destination Listen’ in Eclipse matrix / EHX IFBs.