In Broadcast - July 2012 - 22

WWW.INBROADCAST.COM | ISSUE 10 - JULY 2012

InREVIEW
Highlights From BroadcastAsia 2012
The bulk of the exhibition was accommodated within one large hall of the Suntec convention centre, augmented by a smaller number on a lower ﬂoor between Blackmagic at one end and Panasonic at the other. All broadcasters and contentproducers in south-east Asia face similar commercial and technical challenges to their colleagues anywhere else in the world. Two exceptions are a slower transition from tape to file-based content acquisition (tape-based shooting and editing are still the norm in many south-east Asian countries) and slower adoption of automation (manpower being less costly than in, for example, Europe, the USA and Japan). Other countries in the region are highly receptive to new ideas so the show as a whole felt like a compact version of NAB or IBC. The following is a selective summary of some of the newest exhibits at this well organised show. Brainstorm Multimedia demonstrated the EasySet 3D trackless virtual set which allows a real-time 3D environment with up to four SD/HD inputs to be established and maintained from one PC. It integrates an internal chroma keyer and a live switcher mode with up to 12 live simultaneous productions that can easily transition between cameras in 3D. Images can be imported in any common ﬁle format. Canon exhibited its new EOS1D C camera which offers 4K recording at 24P or HD recording at a range of frame rates up to 60p plus additional capabilities for ﬁlm and TV production. It is designed for use with Canon’s compact EF- mount lenses. GoPro exhibited a new camera, the HD Hero2. This has an 11 megapixel sensor for stills (video remains 1920 x 1080), and an improved wide-angle lens which is claimed to be twice as sharp as the previous model. The company also announced new Wi-Fi BacPac and Wi-Fi Remote products scheduled for release in Q4. These will enable video remote control and live GoPro video output. Harmonic promoted its new ChannelPort which adds channel branding and master control switching with clip playback to the company’s Spectrum media servers. Multilayer graphics and dynamic text can be keyed over programming. The system is compatible with a wide range of automation systems and claimed to offer operational simplicity, high channel density and low power consumption. Kino Flo introduced a new line of DMX dimming and control ﬁxtures to complement the company’s remoteballast systems. These included the Celeb 200 LED location and studio softlight. The colour-variable (2700K to 5500K) LED comes complete with dial-in and programmable colour presets, ﬂicker-free dimming on a Kino-tech platform. Miranda displayed its new Lumo high-density ﬁbre converter. This provides 36 input / outputs in a single rack frame, claimed to make it the highest density electrical-tooptical and optical-to-electrical converter available. Pebble Beach Systems’ new Dolphin consists of a single-rackunit SD/HD video server, master control switcher, character generator and channel branding system. Each server delivers up to four full HD channels. 2 terabytes of internal storage equates to 100 hours of content at 50 megabits per second. Ross Video announced the MC1, described as a full function master control switcher on a single openGear card. Features include mixing, keying, onboard logo storage,
David Kirk

With 15,126 trade attendees from over 80 countries, BroadcastAsia 2012 was a remarkably crowded and buzzing event, David Kirk reports from Singapore…

BroadcastAsia 2012

Canon’s new EOS-1DC 4K digital SLR

relay programme bypass protection and Amber Alert crawl generation. It is designed to integrate with an existing routing and automation system. A touchscreen control panel allows manual operator intervention. Sonifex showed its new CMCU1 commentator unit. The line input can be conﬁgured to remain present at the mix output even if the commentator is off air, for use in routing crowd effects or pre-recorded material to the programme feed. Its presence in the commentator’s headphones is also conﬁgurable to suit the application. Four talkback output channels are available to the commentator and can be linked to allow simultaneous operation. Sony demonstrated a prototype version of its NXL-IP55, a video network unit that can transfer multiple HD image signals, audio signals and control signals over a single IP network cable. The NXLIP55 supports bi-directional IP image transfer. It can also be used with the IP transmission features built into Sony’s new HDC-2000 broadcast camera. An HDC-2000 setup consists of a camera head and a camera control unit (CCU), connected by a Gbit network transmission line. Connecting an NXL-IP55 unit to each line allows signals to be transmitted from up to three cameras. Snell exhibited the new Kahuna 360, claimed to be the world’s first native 1080p/3G switcher.

This supports any format on any input or output. Mix/effects can be conﬁgured by selecting inputs, keyers, stores, DVE, and outputs. The switcher offers up to six full mix effects, seven keyers per M/E, 120 HD/SD inputs, 64 HD/SD outputs, and a clip-store with 40 minutes SD or eight minutes HD. It also supports up to 16 simultaneous broadcast productions from a single mainframe. Thomson Video Networks introduced the ViBE CP6000 multiformat live-video contribution platform handling eight MPEG HD channels per rack unit. Based on the ATCA telecom standard it is suitable ready for 3 gigabit/s SDI applications (1080p50/59.97). Dualchannels-per-module architecture allows the platform to be used for 3D applications. Modules are hot- swappable. Vislink displayed its LiveGear family of IP-centric products. This allows camera crews working in urban areas or remote locations to get video back to base or to a web-streaming site. Included in the LiveGear range are AirCam (a combination of a COFDM microwave and 3G/4G LTE camera-back transmitter), AirStream (portable cellular ING transmission system) and the LGR-1000 LiveGear internet newsgathering receiver and playout device. BroadcastAsia 2013 is set for June 18-21, the location is yet to be conﬁrmed. ■

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In Broadcast - July 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of In Broadcast - July 2012