Hire a Freelance OB Sound Engineer

Looking to hire an OB Engineer? The Sab Network is home to some of the Best OB Engineers. Follow, connect, hire and be inspired.

What is an Outside Broadcast (OB) Engineer?

An Outside Broadcast (OB) Engineer is a professional who works on location to provide audio coverage of an event. This may include live transmission of music, sport, drama, or other events or recording those events on location. They work in teams in a range of locations and situations, from broadcast automation systems in studios, to transmission systems for the transmitter plant, to outside broadcasts (OB’s), post-production operations and new media, e.g. webcasts and interactive TV.  

The job description for an outside broadcast engineer will vary depending upon what type of event you are covering. For example:

What does an OB Engineer do?

An Outside Broadcast (OB) Engineer is someone who works on location to provide audio coverage of an event. Live transmissions of sports, musical or other cultural events are standard, but recordings of dramas or music taken on location away from a studio are also common. OBs are hired to offer content for TV, the web, live cinema, and corporate events from places like sports stadiums, theatres, and concert halls - as well as places with little or no direct production facilities, like farms, industries, historic buildings, and cathedrals.

An OB crew may be located in an OB truck, which is a mobile television studio with all of the same amenities as a fixed-site installation, or they may be required to set up a production gallery within a venue.

Who does an OB Engineer work with?

Behind the scenes in television, a significant technical workforce, led by the broadcast engineer, ensures the quality and production of broadcasts. Producers, studio managers, presenters, and other technical employees are among the people they work with.

What are the duties of an Outside Broadcast (OB) Engineer?

Broadcast engineers are responsible for keeping scheduled broadcasts going, setting up live broadcasts in the field or studio, maintaining and updating broadcasting hardware and software, and handling broadcasting problems as they emerge in the radio and television industries.

An OB Engineer must have an enquiring mind and a breadth of knowledge to problem solve in challenging environments.

Skills an OB Engineer needs to have

Broadcast Engineers were traditionally electrical engineers who specialised in the broadcast sector.  Their areas of specialism included radio and television broadcasting, as well as audio and RF engineering.  Modern broadcast engineers will usually also possess excellent computer engineering and IT skills as they increasingly integrate computers into the traditional broadcasting mix.

Cameras, vision, sound, media management, lighting, radio transmission systems, and networking technologies are all skills and knowledge required for this job role.

The OB Engineer must have a thorough understanding of safe working methods, a multi-skilled approach to the job, and a curious, problem-solving mentality. While this is a technical position, it also requires a high level of creativity to collaborate with a production team to provide appropriate content for the target audience and within the limits of the location.

Equipment/Software OB Engineers need to use

Broadcast engineers maintain, update, and repair the gear and systems used in television, radio, and online broadcasting.

Broadcast engineers can work directly on broadcasting programs or focus on equipment maintenance and service. They can be generalists or experts in a particular field, such as MAM Engineers, Video Encoding Engineers, MCR/Uplink Engineers, and Transmitter Engineers.

As a broadcast engineers, they'll work with hardware and broadcast systems that are used across television, radio and new media. It's their job to make sure that programmes are broadcast on time and of the highest quality. As well as operating and maintaining the systems, they'll carry out updates and repairs.

Their key responsibilities might include:

Why you need to hire an Outside Broadcast (OB) Engineer

Broadcast engineers specialise in a combination of electrical engineering, computer engineering, and information technology, resulting in television and/or radio transmission. This type of engineering has been around for decades, but it has changed dramatically as technology has progressed. Broadcast engineering can be broken down into several different fields and generally both working in a broadcast studio as well as the transmitter side of the business.

Broadcast engineers usually have a bachelor's or master's degree in electrical, electronic, telecommunications, or computer engineering, with a master's degree in information systems management or something similar thrown in for good measure.

This makes them flexible professionals capable of taking on work beyond just broadcasting specifically, allowing you to use them in ways that aren’t directly traditional broadcasting. Broadcast engineers are critical for any type of broadcast media since they assure a smooth operation and successful day-to-day operations in their fields.

Finding competent broadcast engineers can be difficult as many media platforms are shifting to the internet. Regardless, The Sab Network will provide you with access to top broadcast engineers in the industry who can help you with some of the more challenging aspects of the broadcasting business:

- Purchasing your equipment. Freelance broadcast engineers will have worked with well-known brands in the industry and will be familiar with the types of equipment utilised, as well as which pieces of equipment should be purchased to meet your project's requirements.
- Setting up your broadcasting studio’s front and backend. Setting up broadcasting equipment correctly is difficult since all components must be compatible with one another and properly calibrated.
- Establishing broadcasting schedules. Set up your broadcast schedule, including planned intermissions and transitions between broadcast content, with the help of your freelance broadcasting engineer.
- Maintaining your broadcast. Hire a freelance broadcast engineer to run scheduled maintenance for your system to ensure maximum uptime for your broadcast material. 

How much does an OB Engineer cost to hire?

Sab Network OB Sound Engineers rates are in line with BECTU guidelines and APA on commercial projects.

Why Choose The Sab Network to hire your Freelance OB Engineer?

The Sab Network is where you can locate an award-winning crew who are reliable, trustworthy and experienced. The Sab Network is a referral-only network of professionals in a variety of roles who can help you with everything you need for your production.

The very nature of The Sab Network is that the pre-filter is being in the network in the first place. It means bookers don't have to wade through CVs because they've already proven themselves to be trusted, experienced, and highly talented professionals. It assures you that they are capable of completing the task to the highest level.

We know how difficult it is to locate suitable candidates who can match our clients' requirements. Our purpose is to assist you in achieving your goals! 

Our members work for the most prestigious production companies, broadcasters and corporate entities.

Please contact us if you'd need more information about how The Sab Network works or if you'd like to discuss any element of employing freelancers.