Evertz to demonstrate its format-agnostic broadcast infrastructure solutions at NAB 2022
As the industry continues its transition from SDI to all-IP infrastructures, Evertz is using its NAB 2022 presence to highlight a range of products that allow broadcast facilities, venues and stadiums to take advantage of the latest UHD (4K and 8K) technology, regardless of the signal type they use.
The company will be showing IP-based end-to-end solutions around its Software Defined Video Networking (SDVN) portfolio, which has now been installed in over 500 broadcast facilities worldwide. Designed to simplify workflow, reduce operational costs and increase efficiency, Evertz’ Magnum OS orchestration and control system has developed new tools to address the complexities of large IP deployments in outside broadcast trucks, remote and large-scale broadcast facilities, and facilities with multiple locations.
New learnings from these installations have further evolved Magnum OS’ bandwidth management for moving and managing large volumes of SMPTE ST2110 signals, including critical PTP signals, to and from devices spread across facilities, or multiple facilities, using 25/50/100/400GbE network connection. Fully supporting NMOS specifications, Magnum OS makes discovery and management of Evertz or third-party devices seamless. Employing Vue as the operational and control interface (as either a desktop panel or web-based interface accessible from anywhere), Magnum OS can provide comprehensive real-time analysis of all devices and signal flows within an IP network.
The company is also showing its recently introduced NatX32/64–100G network address translation router. Operating as an expansion to Evertz’ lineup of EXE and IPX routing platforms, the single rack Nat-X unit offers the power of IP with the simplicity of SDI. With built-in boundary clock support, Layer 3 functionality and 256 ports of 25GbE, Nat-X can dynamically configure and translate more than 32,000 unicast and multicast signals in real-time. Nat-X merges traditional networking with SDN networking by supporting Magnum OS orchestration for full control of high bandwidth broadcast video, audio and data signals in a simple, scalable and reliable way.
Magnum recognises new signal entry points, immediately discovers the multicast space and communicates it to Nat-X to conduct the translation in real-time to stitch a full Nat flow from end-to-end. Nat-X is also said to be suitable for remote deployments where multicasts addresses can be pre-configured without knowing the address of the endpoints prior to arriving on site. Unlike other off-the-shelf network appliances that require extensive IT knowledge and programming experience, Nat-X is a plug-and-play 25/100GbE switch fabric, customised to work within a broadcast environment.
For 12G-SDI routing solutions, Evertz is introducing Nexx, a UHD/4K router designed to be compact and robust. With its modular-based frame, redundant control, native full audio shuffling, and ability to tap into additional licence-enabled features, Nexx is designed for small to mid-sized routing environments such as regional broadcast facilities and OB trucks. Additionally, Nexx offers an integrated, software-enabled multiviewer with over 30 pre-configured layouts and uses internal Evertz X-Link signaling to remain penalty-free and avoid unnecessary output usage. Nexx has been designed to accept future I/O modules for IP and uncompressed SMPTE ST2110, providing a path to integrate future technology, protect the investment and ensure the platform can grow as customer needs arise.
“Our end-to-end solution allows broadcasters and venues to use whatever signal type they want, and in any combination,” said Fernando Solanes, director of solutions engineering for Evertz. “Every part of the broadcast chain is covered by our products, from routers and switches to processing equipment and multiviewers, and in each case we are delivering technology for today’s and tomorrow’s challenges.”
Other products on show include the Scorpion smart media processing platform, which allows for a high degree of flexibility in today’s broadcast workflows. Supporting simultaneous baseband, IP and dark fibre transport mediums, along with a broad catalogue of modular I/O, uncompressed protocol support and a range of compression codecs, the Scorpion is truly a format- and connectivity-agnostic platform for all applications.
Finally, Evertz is showing the latest additions to its multiviewer range, including the ev670-X30-HW-V2 virtualised media processing platform and the cVIP and sVIP multiviewer and monitoring platforms, which are said to make the management of high-quality video signals easier and more efficient.
ev670-X30-HW-V2 continues to support both 12G/3G/HD-SDI and IP interfaces but has added new applications that can be configured on the platform’s FPGA-based processing cores to provide multiviewers, gateway and video, audio and ancillary data processing functionality for both SDI and IP.
cVIP and sVIP multiviewers are specifically designed for cloud-based projects, especially those originating from large-scale events. cVIP is tailored for live production in the cloud, leveraging a wide range of on-premise Intel-based hardware options or cloud hardware platforms for multiviewing and monitoring needs, while sVIP combines the compute power of FPGA, CPU and GPU processors to allow customers to leverage data centre class servers (Evertz or customer provided) without sacrificing density and performance. Integrated with Evertz’ Magnum OS, both cVIP and sVIP allow remote operators to receive large multi-image video, audio and data information without taxing the network.