Snell & Wilcox has released the Alchemist Ph.C– HD TX motion-compensated framerate standards converter, a new version of the company’s HD standards converter optimized for teleports, earth stations, and telcos.

It offers simultaneous SD and HD conversion in 3 RU mainframe and provides a means for transmission facilities to enter the international HD program exchange market, according to the company.

The Alchemist Ph.C — HD TX leverages Snell & Wilcox’s proprietary Ph.C motion-compensation technology to provide virtually transparent, HD frame rate conversion between 50 Hz and 60 Hz HD standards for both 1080i and 720p formats, as well as SD frame-rate conversion between 50 Hz and 60 Hz material. The converter accepts any input (525, 625, 720p50, 720p59, 1080i50, and 1080i59) and has built-in aspect ratio conversion. The Dolby E-capable system handles 16 channels of audio, and is designed to accommodate foreseeable audio needs without requiring outboard decoders and encoders.

Two variants of the Alchemist Ph.C — HD TX are available. The TX50 is designed for applications in which the desired outputs are 625, 720p50, and 1080i50. The TX60 is designed for applications requiring outputs in 525, 720p59, and 1080i59.

Optional extras for the standards converter include an active front panel for local control of the unit, as well as a secondary output that enables simultaneous SD/HD output and eliminates the need for an external up/down/cross-converter.