With many voters still undecided the day before the Netherland elections were held, the televised debate was anticipated as a vital part of the election process. 14 of the country’s top politicians were wearing DPA d:fine™ In-Ear Broadcast Headset Microphonesin order to perfectly capture and broadcast every word spoken.
They were the perfect choice because the politicians on stage needed to hear each other speak, while host Rob Trip needed an in-ear solution to listen to and communicate with producers backstage.
DPA’s d:fine™ In-Ear Broadcast Headset Microphones were chosen by Dutch news channel NOS, which broadcast the debate to an audience of over two million people. A total of 16 headsets were used – one for each of the 14 politicians, one for Rob Trip, and one spare. Among the politicians taking part were Prime Minister Mark Rutte, Geert Wilders of the Freedom Party; Jesse Klaver of Groen Links (the Green Party); Alexander Pechtold of D66 (Left of Centre Liberal Democrats) and Sybrand van Haesma Buma of CDA (Christian Democrats.
Live broadcast specialists Ampco Flashlight’s Project Manager Rogier van Ganzewinkel says: “The debates took place in the central hall of the Dutch Parliament building in the Hague. This is a venue with notoriously poor acoustics so on-stage monitors were not an option. We chose d:fine™ In-Ear Broadcast Headset Microphones for two reasons – sound quality and aesthetics. The headsets worked well because they were so small and discreet, plus they fitted any head size and could be used by people wearing glasses and earrings.”
“The In-Ear headsets worked perfectly and there were no sound issues,” Van Ganzewinkel says. “The presenter and the politicians were very pleased because they could hear all the off-stage directions and talkback. They also commented on how comfortable the headsets were and how quick and easy they were to fit.”
The Dutch elections took place on March 15th. The pre-election live debate is available at this link: