A summer of high-profile sports reminds us all that delivering a higher quality and more immersive experience for consumers remains a key driver in a highly competitive broadcast landscape that increasingly must span a huge array of consumer devices – many of which are on the move.

Satisfying that demand requires a set of decisions about which formats to capture in and where in the production supply chain, cross conversion may be needed. Traditional wisdom dictates that one should always capture at the highest resolution possible and down-convert as required, but with HDR to SDR this can prove troublesome. Expect debate over whether it is easier and perhaps even more effective to capture SDR and up-convert – we have heard conflicting views. The visual challenges are combined with new workflow challenges; the rise of distributed teams, remote production, hybrid SDI-IP infrastructure and the incorporation of new cloud-powered software centric workflows. The technical challenges are diverse but thankfully vendors continually rise to the challenge with cross-conversion technology in flexible forms that can be fitted into various stages of production workflow.

On the IBC Show floor expect to see a wealth of technical innovation and a diverse selection of technologies that mean the precise combination of features, functionality and hopefully budget to suit your very specific requirements is there somewhere.

Vendor Focus

Lawo (Stand 8.B90) will demonstrate its innovative and rapidly expanding HOME Apps server-based processing platform that runs on standard servers. Lawo HOME Apps address a range of different aspects of creative production workflow with exceptional flexibility and scalability.

The current line-up reads as follows: HOME Multiviewer, HOME UDX Converter with HDR processing, HOME Stream Transcoder and HOME Graphic Inserter are joined by the first audio app, HOME mc² DSP, HOME Test Pattern/Test Tone Generator (TPG), a powerful HOME Color Corrector with HDR Processing, a must-have HOME Timecode Generator, and HOME Delay for alignment purposes. 

The ‘HOME Stream Transcoder’ App performs SD, HD, UHD, and 3G conversion with SMPTE ST2110-20/22, NDI, SRT, and JPEG XS I/O.

The Lawo ‘HOME UDX ­Converter with HDR processing’ provides video format and aspect ratio conversions. It offers a deinterlacer, HDR/color processor, a scaler, and two outputs. Each output can use a different format with a different overlay, and can be set to “i” or “p”. It delivers conversions between SD, HD, 3G and UHD as well as ST2110, SRT and NDI in the HOME Apps ecosystem. One example would be: UHD to both 3G and HD, either with or without graphics, e.g. for simultaneous “clean” feed and “dirty” feed output during global events.

Users can also perform conversions from one protocol (e.g. ST2110) to another (e.g. SRT) as well as from HDR to SDR and vice versa in HLG and PQ using 3D LUT (.cube) tetrahedral interpolation.

Apantac (Stand 10.F45) will be showing its newest “SDR <> HDR Up/Down/Cross Converter for the openGear Platform,” the OG-HDR-UDX. The openGear device is Dashboard control enabled. It converts from SDR to HDR, HDR to SDR, either PQ or HLG. It also cross-converts from PQ to HLG and vice versa, and from HDMI to SDI and vice versa.

Another crucial feature is resolution/frame rate conversion with independent adjustments of the HDMI and SDI output. The OG-HDR-UDX card also contains a built-in test pattern for calibration and troubleshooting. The Apantac OG-HDR-UDX integrates Sublima SDR<>HDR Conversion technology from B-Com.

Riedel (Stand 10.A31) will demonstrate its MediorNet HorizoN distributed video infrastructures for routing, multiviewing and processing. It allows for hybrid solutions that combine the best of both worlds and support a smooth, incremental transition to IP workflows.

In addition to providing extensive and powerful video processing capabilities such as UHD up/down/cross conversion, SDR-HDR conversion, and color correction, the innovative hybrid processing platform blurs the boundary between SDI-based and SMPTE ST 2110 infrastructures with a dense array of UHD gateways. With its software-based app concept, HorizoN is set to bring next-level flexibility and simplicity to video ecosystems.

HorizoN houses 16 independent and individually configurable processing engines within a single rack unit, facilitating flexible processing while seamlessly bridging the gap between baseband and IP systems. The platform provides up to 128 SDI - IP gateways, up to 32 channels of SDR-HDR conversion and color correction, or up to 16 up/down/cross conversions and color corrections. SFP-based baseband video I/O completes the package, making HorizoN an extremely versatile solution capable of handling even the toughest challenges in a modern production environment.

Blackmagic Design (Stand 7.C49) contribute to the world of standards conversion for broadcast workflows with the Teranex Express. Teranex 1RU standards converters promise visually transparent real time SD, HD and Ultra HD conversions for all formats up to 2160p60. There’s optical fiber for running video over long distances, 10‑bit image processing, and support for 16 channels of embedded audio, subtitles, AFD/WSS data and more. 

Teranex Express features 12G‑SDI and the more AV oriented Teranex AV adds HDMI 2.0a, XLR audio and more.

Arkona (Stand 9.D01) team up with Manifold to present a hybrid hardware/software ecosystem under the platform name ‘EASY-IP’. The system spans a number of key technology areas including SDI-IP gateways, multiviewers, keying & colour correction, SDR/HDR conversion, and audio routing & processing, Arkona provide the hardware element with their BLADE//runner rack units which are designed to provide a distributed, networked and software defined architecture. They offer modular slot based (1U, 2U or 3U) frames housing high density AT300 FPGA PAC processing blades with various connectivity options. Manifold provide a software suite that brings additional processing & control functionality alongside Arkona’s own control & configuration software suite. Each AT300 blade provides 16x16 SDI to IP conversions across dual 100GE network interfaces. BLADE//runner scales linearly in-line with each facility’s specific requirements, enabling any number of conversions to be added wherever they are needed. Every I/O is capable of handling UHD as standard. A Master Clock option provides PTP GM and Master Clock functionality, including the ability to lock to GPS with an antenna. 

From a video workflow perspective EASY-IP includes video frame-sync for all I/Os, delays of up to 52 seconds for 1080P60 video signals, and test-signal generation. EASY-IP offers a range of additional processing capabilities that integrate as pooled resources with options including; video mixing and down-stream keying to create versioning and branding; proc-amp, color-correction and HDR-SDR conversion for shading and color-space conversion; flexible licensing options for broadcast quality up/down/cross conversions; and JPEG-XS encode/decode for low-latency high-quality video compression.

Evertz (Stand 2.B51).  As you might expect from a company that has been in broadcast since 1966 Evertz have a very wide and deep technology portfolio. Focusing on the latest news releases from Evertz runs the risk of missing the point of what they do. They are a solid port of call if you are looking for robust technology and expert advice on most aspects of broadcast infrastructure. They are one of the handful of brands that genuinely do have a pretty comprehensive range.

Alongside its extensive collection of stand-alone converter cards Evertz will show its new PREFEX Media Processing Edge (MPE). This ultra-high-density platform offers a high encapsulation IP gateway, along with video processing tools including frame sync, up/down/cross conversion, and audio shuffling – in a 1RU frame. For bulk signal processing and conversion, Evertz will also be releasing a new up/down/cross conversion app for the ev670-X30-HW-V2 – their FPGA based modular media processing platform. This app will feature up/down/cross conversion (up to UHD), interlace support, HDR conversion using LUT (selectable), video processing, video and audio delay adjustments, and audio grooming.

Lynx Technik (Stand 10.A20) will showcase how their greenMachine SDR <> HDR conversion & test unit and range of yellobrik converters work together to form a versatile high quality conversion platform when combined with their Lynx Centraal software. Lynx will also introducing the new PEC 1464, a 12G-SDI, HDMI H.264/265 Streamer and Recorder at IBC. This latest addition to their yellobrik range of converters is a solution for users who need to stream and record content simultaneously. Features include 12G support and compatibility with SRT, and support for RTMPS (Real-Time Messaging Protocol Secure), which provides a higher level of security for live streaming. It also streams multiple protocols simultaneously.

This new yellobrik supports video formats up to 12G / 4K UHD and HDMI up to WQUXGA, as well as all popular streaming formats. Video processing capabilities encompass a wide range of functionalities to enhance content presentation. This includes automatic logo insertion and the ability to insert custom images. Downscaling features optimize resolution management, while frame rate down conversion supports seamless playback compatibility. Text overlay capabilities further enrich content with dynamic textual elements. Their logo inserter supports multiple formats and additionally, a transmission fallback option ensures continuity with a test pattern when needed. It also includes 8-channel embedded audio processing. Their mobile-friendly web user interface is included for settings configuration, and the PEC 1484 is compatible with the LynxCentraal configuration and control software.

Other IBC Show exhibits worthy of search for SD/HD/UHD and SDR/HDR Video Workflow solutions are AJA (7.B19), Grass Valley (9.A01), and Ross Video (8.B91). 

Other articles in this IBC 2024 'Show Focus' series:

The Broadcast Bridge will be at the IBC Show – on stand 8.A52. Please come and see us and share your thoughts on what we do and what you would like to see from us in the coming year.