February 10, 2026
Clock drama on ice
Exploring a Modern Smtpe 2110 Broadcast Truck
Inside the hockey TV truck where time rules—and fans feud over cables vs compression
TLDR: A behind-the-scenes look at a hockey TV truck showed how precise timing gear keeps live video in sync—even set by a phone app. Pros praised the complexity and reliability, while DIYers pushed for compressed, cheaper tech, sparking a cables-vs-compression debate that explains why broadcast TV still does things its own way.
A father–son tour of a St. Louis Blues TV truck lit up the comments for a very simple reason: it showed live TV is basically a rolling temple to perfect timing. The star of the show? A pair of pricey master clocks keeping everything in sync, plus a phone app used to set them—cue the snarky applause. On video: a calm, solemn control room powering chaos-free TV. In the thread: not so calm.
Pros nodded vigorously, with one insider calling the standard behind it all—SMPTE 2110, a rulebook for sending video/audio over networks—“so complex,” explaining why so much specialized gear exists. Then the tinkerers rolled in. A Linux audio fan name-dropped PipeWire and AES67 (a network audio standard) and wished the industry would embrace compressed video to save bandwidth. Purists clapped back between the lines: live sports wants zero-compromise pictures and rock-solid sync—no iffy codecs allowed.
That split—broadcast veterans defending big-iron reliability vs home-lab dreamers craving lighter, cheaper, compressed streams—became the main drama. Jokes flew about “PTP PTSD” (Precision Time Protocol, the timing glue), and everyone chuckled at the idea of a six-figure truck checking its watch with an iPhone. Solemn in the truck, spicy in the comments—the way the internet likes it.
Key Points
- •The article explores a modern SMPTE 2110 broadcast truck used at St. Louis Blues games, focusing on live IP-based production.
- •Precise PTP timing is emphasized as critical for synchronizing video, audio, and metadata in real time, analogous to legacy black burst sync.
- •The 45 Flex truck uses dual Evertz 5700MSC-IP grandmaster clocks with a 5700ACO Changeover unit, with the timing gear costing an estimated $25–30k.
- •Engineer Chris Bailey relies on a Tektronix PRISM IP analysis tool to diagnose timing and IP traffic issues.
- •Instead of GPS, the engineer demonstrated manually setting time using the Atomic Clock (Gorgy Timing) mobile app; analog copper remains in use for audio cabling.