New Century Media, part of the Ackerley Group, purchased and installed five Telos Systems' TWOx12 Multi-line Talkshow Systems for its four-station group in Seattle. The four stations - highly-rated urban KUBE-FM, Mix 95.7 KJR-FM, sports-talk KJR-AM and KHHO-AM - began broadcasting from new studios in July. Chief Engineer John Miller notes that the high call-in volume required a phone system upgrade.

Miller says that the ability of the TWOx12 to handle both ISDN and POTS made it the perfect choice for the station's applications. The stations' staffs are especially pleased with the quality of the sound and ease of use.

"The high audio quality of the ISDN lines was a dramatic improvement. The TWOx12 has a wonderful sound and everyone - including the talent - loves it. We have a high volume of calls and lots of different users, all of whom were able to operate the system in a very short time with some basic training." Miller notes.

Miller installed the TWOx12 systems in three of the four stations' control rooms (KHHO is currently simulcasting) and in two different production studios. He explains that the stations especially like the Assistant Producer Program, which integrates easily with the stations' LAN and each of the TWOx12s, providing even more versatility. He says that users are impressed with the icons indicating the status of each call and giving information such as whether or not the call has been screened.

"We do a lot of call-ins, interviews and contests, so a reliable, high-quality system is important for us. Overall, I've had good experience with Telos products, and we liked the results with the TWOx12," Miller says.

The TWOx12 Multi-Line Talkshow System is a multi-line telephone system designed for fast-paced talkshow production. It gives users the flexibility to connect to digital ISDN telephone lines as well as traditional analog POTS lines. Its 12-line capacity offers increased flexibility for producers, unique icon-based visual call management, improved line status signaling and Caller ID support when used with digital phone lines for better control of a station's on-air environment.