Dalet Intros News Pack, New Configurations for Brio Servers, and Dalet Cube

Dalet Digital Media Systems has introduced Dalet News Pack, a fully packaged, end-to-end, HD newsroom solution that includes hardware and software and will be featured at NAB 2013 (Booth SL4524). This turnkey offering is extremely cost-effective and ideal for small and mid-sized newsrooms.

Dalet News Pack is a “plug-and-play” solution and comes with preconfigured workflows that still allow for individual customer choices, such as adaptable metadata sets. This powerful solution can be used for traditional TV broadcasting as well as for web and mobile distribution. It is packaged with high performance HP servers and scalable NetApp storage (minimum of 250 hours in XDCAM HD). Up to two Dalet Brio servers (up to 8 ins/8 outs total) manage SD/HD ingest and playout.

“News Pack offers tremendous value to the customer. It’s delivered ready-to-go with highly reliable hardware and all the functionality needed to run a first-class news operation,” says Raoul Cospen, director of marketing & business development, Dalet. “The full-featured embedded apps are geared to high quality, fast-paced news production and distribution. It’s cost-effective and the ease of deployment makes it perfect for greenfield installations or for replacing outdated newsroom systems.”

Dalet News Pack boasts the same software elements of Dalet News Suite that have proven so successful at more than 150 installations around the word:

• a full newsroom computer system (NRCS)
• a complete range of desktop and centralized video ingest tools
• video production tools such as desktop browsing, searching and cataloguing, logging, news video editing, and desktop voiceover tool
• A/B roll playout tools

A number of options are available for Dalet News Pack:

• Dalet Cube module, which provides end-to-end graphics production and playout
• Dalet Xtend module, which provides seamless integrations between News Pack and industry-standard NLEs from Avid, Adobe and Apple
• News Pack integrations for other third-party systems such as graphics and NRCS using iii or MOS.
• Web clients for remote production
• A robotic archiving system

Key Components of Dalet News Pack: 

• Dalet NRCS — functionality includes agency wire acquisition, planning, text and script editing, notifications, approval processes, rundown management, graphics management with full timing control, and many other features
• Dalet Ingest — provides a range of desktop and centralized ingest tools to record live feeds, to record from VTRs, and to import files from Panasonic P2 and Sony XDCAM cameras
• Dalet Media Logger — used for “cuts only” editing, shot selection and metadata logging
• Dalet Media Cutter — desktop editing tool designed for news. It enables fast proxy editing while content is being recorded.
• Dalet On Air — the module used for live playout with A/B roll controlling two ports of the Dalet Brio server. As an option it can be backed up and can play in continuity mode.
• Dalet Brio Video Server — built on standard IT hardware, Brio delivers rock-solid performance. It supports SD and HD ingest and playout and formats including XDCAM HD and DVCPRO 25/50.

Dalet Brio Servers
Dalet has also announced new configurations for the Dalet Brio servers that offer broadcasters flexibility for all types of ingest, production, and playout workflows. The Brio servers can now be scaled to a maximum of 12 ports in a single server, through a four-port extension board, offering tremendous density and flexibility to broadcasters. When combined with the range of Dalet or third-party tools, the Dalet Brio servers provide even greater versatility with more improvements for workflows in news, sports, studio production and MAM.

Flexible, Proven Brio Solutions
Dalet Brio units are designed to ingest and playout broadcast quality video in SD and HD formats. These cost-effective servers are built on IT-standard components and delivered in a compact 2RU chassis with a choice of inputs and outputs (up to 12 simultaneous channels) and storage combinations (local or direct connection to SAN). The unique “Ingest Once, Write Many” feature of the Dalet Brio helps operators optimize their overall infrastructure while providing reliability and high performance.

“Since its introduction in 2010, Dalet Brio has been a great success. It has proven its flexibility and its reliability to the broadcast industry. Today, there are more than 300 Brio servers deployed worldwide and this is just the beginning. For instance, Mediaset in Italy has combined a number of Brio units to accommodate 288 ingest ports and 470 playout ports that are used for sports, news and studio production, automation, and backup automation,” says Raoul Cospen, director of marketing and business development, Dalet. “The success of Brio has always been related to its great flexibility in terms of codecs, wrappers, and I/O configurations. We are now proposing even more flexibility and a lower cost per channel by adding these additional configurations.”

Extensive Format Support
All Dalet Brio servers support broadcast quality video in a wide range of codecs including DV25, DV50, DVCPRO 25 and 50, DVCPRO HD, IMX, XDCAM HD, XDCAM EX, AVC-Intra 50-100, Apple ProRes, DNxHD, and others. Dalet Brio servers can play any supported files, including a mix of SD and HD, on the same timeline. Dalet Brio allows for on-the-fly cross-up and down-conversion of the video signal, as well as aspect ratio modifications. Brio also natively includes graphic capabilities for simple branding with bugs/logo insertion, text crawlers or animation.

Dalet Cube
The company is also featuring Dalet Cube, a cost-effective 3D graphics solution for news production at NAB 2013. This IT-based offering is available as an optional package that integrates natively with Dalet News Suite and Dalet News Pack.

Dalet Cube has already been deployed by dozens of customers who also use Dalet News solutions, including Mediaset and TeleNorba. This modular suite incorporates many tools to create a smooth production workflow for high-quality graphics creation and playout. Graphics artists can use the Cube Designer to construct multilayered, pixel-accurate 3D animations that project the style and individual look of different programs and channels. Design models from Adobe After Effects and other software programs can also be easily imported. In the newsroom, journalists can use Dalet Cube Filler to quickly and easily select templates and add any number of upper/lower third graphics; they simply fill in the required data fields. The Cube Engine delivers CG playout in real time with fill-and-key or path-through mode. Additional modules make it possible to feed live data and deliver more complex elements such as videos, stills, 3D animations, and sequences. The Dalet Cube Studio module, which has an easy-to-use, fully customizable layout, is perfect for live studio events such as weather, talk shows or election graphics playout.

“Because Dalet Cube is natively integrated with Dalet news solutions, there’s no need for expensive third-party integrations, making it a very cost-effective offering. And the fact that the tools are accessible from our other news apps makes user training easier. From an administration point of view, system maintenance and ongoing support are also more efficient and less costly,” says Raoul Cospen, director of marketing and business development, Dalet. “It’s a highly reliable solution for the production and playout of graphics in news operations. All the tools are geared to the fast pace of busy newsrooms where information can change right up to the last minute, even while a newscast is on air. Dalet Cube is geared to that nonstop environment with ease of use, high-production values and flexible control options.”

Both Dalet News Suite and Dalet News Pack are open to integration with third-party systems, including graphics systems other than Dalet Cube.