NAB: The Surge Of 4K Technology - Pt 2

The new technologies deployed are: a method of analysis and design based on wave optics that permits fast and precise computation of wave-optics phenomena; device optimisation technologies for creating micro colour splitters that control the phase of the light passing through a transparent and highly-refractive plate-like structure to separate colours at a microscopic scale using diffraction; and, layout technologies and unique algorithms that allow highly sensitive and precise colour reproduction by combining the light that falls on detectors separated by the micro colour splitters and processing the detected signals.
Miranda Technologies also has a link to Arri, the camera vendor utilising the Telecast CopperHead fiber optic camera transceiver system as an integral component of its new fiber remote option.
Connection and remote control is managed via SMPTE 311M fiber, and proprietary software developed by ARRI makes it possible to control RGB gain, gamma, shutter, iris and all other parameters typically associated with broadcast cameras while retaining a 35mm filmic look. Miranda’s NAB exhibit will showcase cable and connectivity solutions from its parent company, Belden, plus its full range of Telecast Fiber Systems solutions.
New Miranda products for NAB will be led by the iTX render service for Adobe After Effects CS6 software.
This is introduced as a completely new approach to graphics creation that inserts the full creative output of After Effects CS6 into the play out workflow.
The SME-1901 streaming media module slots into a wide range of IP monitoring applications, combining high density with high quality to perform H.264 video and AAC audio encoding for up to 20 streams per frame. A Miranda 4K technology demo will highlight a series of solutions that are already suitable for 4K. These will be routing and monitoring technologies.
Matrox has been one of the wider enablers for decades. For live streaming production it has produced the VS4, a quad HD capture and ISO recording card for Telestream Wirecast for Windows live streaming production software. It provides up to four independent HD inputs with up to eight embedded audio channels per source.
The latest Matrox multi-viewer is the MicroQuad - a four-channel SDI-to-HDMI multi-viewer for 3G/HD/SD that allows users to deploy an affordable HDMI display to view up to four SDI video signals and show or hide labels and VU meters. It has a 10-bit scaling engine and advanced filtering algorithms.
Matrox I/O devices for editing and live streaming production start with the MX02 Le Max, which provides broadcast-quality input, output and monitoring for editing apps from Adobe, Apple and Avid. At core it uses H.264 encoding. For video over IP Matrox has the Maevex for delivering one-to-one unicast or one-to-many multicast full-HD 1080p60 video extension and playback over standard TCP/IP networks. These encoders and decoders capture, stream, and decode video from a variety of sources and allow for software-based decoding on non-Maevex devices.  
Jünger Audio will give Americans their first view of V*AP, a two-channel voice processor designed to make life easier for engineers working in radio stations and TV production voice-over studios.
In terms of voice processing, this involves new tools and algorithms, the main role for V*AP being to provide perfect control of microphone recordings. The extra elements are processing such as HP/LP filtering, dynamic section, full parametric EQ and de-essing.
The big claim is that this is ‘hassle free’ for any journalist or reporter to use. Jünger has also provided a dedicated voice leveler combined with a voice over circuit to help integrate voice programs into loudness-based broadcasting on the fly.
V*AP comes with Spectral Signature, Jünger’s automatic spectral sound management algorithm that dynamically boosts and attenuates frequency bands to preserve natural balance while achieving station sound.
New at NAB will be the M*AP audio loudness processor. This combines an audio monitor controller and a loudness measurement device. Designed for quality checking surround (5.1) and/or stereo programs, M*AP can be used for live monitoring and also to ensure compliance with today’s standards and regulations (ITU 1770/1/2/3, ATSC A85 or EBU R128).
Touching on the central principle of scalability, AmberFin CTO Bruce Devlin said: "With iCR, facilities can use the same technology in their single standalone PC used in the proof of concept, as in a network of 100 workstations. Furthermore, each iCR workstation operates all the software required to implement the four main functions of media ingest - file transcode, playback and quality control."
The new feature set ORCA activity manager enables both group and local orchestration of workflow tasks to create a desired outcome. You could set up very specific conditional types of transcode, ingest and QC operations.
Also new will be application specific modules for ingest and transcode to MXF AS11 and metadata support for the Digital Production Partnership; ingest and transcode to the most popular MPEG2, XDCAM and IMX formats; best of breed playback, QC review, annotation and metadata entry or tape layback for a wide range of codecs and wrappers; file-based proxy generator; and a fully featured PC workstation for the creation and preparation of MXF-AS12 compliant deliverables, especially the creation of AS-12 commercials.
AmberFin will also discuss its strategy for supporting IMF (Interoperable Master Format) the new SMPTE file format. "What the standard does is separate the content into various ingredients or components (namely, AS02 MXF media files), a number of ‘recipes’ (composition play lists) and a selection of instructions (or output program lists) appropriate for each of those audiences,” said Devlin.
Softel, a recent Belden/Miranda acquisition, will lead with Swift, a family of re-architected solutions for closed captioning/subtitling and video description software. This allows content producers, broadcasters and network operators to comply with the FCC Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA) mandates for closed captioning video content delivered over IP.
Swift Create is a subtitling and captioning workstation that allows the preparation and repurposing of subtitles and captions. Swift Create supports all formats of Open, Closed and DVD/Blu-ray subtitles and captions. Swift vTX enables broadcasters to repurpose content regardless of file format.
MediaSphere is an interactivity platform that supports an array of interactive technologies, including connected TV, second screen and set-top-boxes. A second screen solution, it connects to broadcast automation from any major manufacturer.
Eyeheight will introduce its LE-2M-K legaliser to the American market, its appeal being that unlike traditional video legalisers or automated loudness control devices, the LE-2M-K keeps a timed log of every non-compliant video or audio event requiring correction in the course of a 24-hour transmission schedule.
Read the article in the online edition of Regional Film and Video here.