Grass Valley has announced an extension of its K2 media server family with K2 Edge, the centerpiece of the company’s overall integrated playout solution. Housed in a compact 1RU chassis, K2 Edge is a robust and proven Linux-based system with a purpose-built, high-availability architecture for mission-critical 24/7 playout applications.
The K2 Edge range is available in three levels of capability:
• K2 Edge Express, for entry-level channels with minimal graphics needs;
• K2 Edge Pro, for main-line channels with more sophisticated graphics such as picture-in-picture; and
• K2 Edge Elite systems, which offer switching for up to four HD sources and multichannel 2D and 3D graphics complete with DVE moves including credit squeeze.
Customers can easily migrate, via a software license, to any of the levels of capability within the K2 Edge range. Each K2 Edge system includes two features originally developed by PubliTronic, the Grass Valley K2 TX/MAM asset management system, with a central database and Grass Valley Cobalt playout automation software. The K2 TX/MAM server uses a Web-based GUI to control all assets, including video clips, audio clips, captioning, metadata and graphic elements. The Cobalt playout automation system manages all on-air events, and, for increased reliability, runs completely independent from the database.
