NAB Show Product Preview: Remote & Satellite

There used to be just a couple of ways for a broadcaster to get a good quality signal from outside the studio: microwave and satellite. Along the way, the definition of “broadcaster” changed, and the methods used to get a broadcast-quality signal back to the studio—if there even is a studio—have multiplied.

Like many other facets of the broadcast industry, the convergence of IP and television has led to dizzying changes. Many of these changes have been well exploited by enterprising new companies for a wealth of products and systems that transport signals from one point to another.

SATELLITE
ARTEL
will showcase its DLC510, a dual-port L-band demodulator and satellite scanner that adds automatic L-band satellite-scanning functionality to the company’s media transport solutions.

VISLINK will debut its SatWare computing platform, which allows file-based workflow, data and voice communications to be easily accessed by remote reporters over WiFi, allowing them to talk and share files across continents. Powered by XipLink, SatWare provides up to 4Mbps of optimized bandwidth using SCPS-TP and streaming compression, and DVB-S2 video.

MICROWAVE
MOSELEY
will showcase its Event HD ENG microwave transmitter, which can support multiple videos on a single link that can carry as much as 155 Mbps.

BMS will highlight its Video Assist camera kit that pairs a small camera-back microwave transmitter with the company’s CarryViewer 4 (CV4) digital touchscreen receiver/monitor.

INTEGRATED MICROWAVE TECHNOLOGIES will debut its DragonFly small lightweight microwave transmitter for applications (such as drones) where weight and size are critical. Featuring 50mW of power and COFDM modulation, the DragonFly will transmit broadcast-quality HD video up to two miles.

IP & STREAMING
ACCELERATED MEDIA TECHNOLOGIES
(AMT) will showcase ENGenesis, its bidirectional 2/7GHZ BAS system that uses IP and radio technologies with BAS bands for remote connectivity.

AVIWest DMNG Laptop

AVIWEST will feature its DMNG Laptop, a newsgathering application compatible with Apple MacBook Pro computers. By integrating an H.264/AVC and H.265/HEVC encoder into a MacBook Pro, the DMNG Laptop reduces the amount of equipment required for newsgathering and improves broadcast video quality. The company will also unveil v4.0 of its DMNG mobile app designed for live streaming via bonded 3G/4G and WiFi.

BLUEBELL OPTICOMM will spotlight the BCX-760 Series, a 10G Ethernet point-to-point fiber link that mounts to a camera back. Mapping all the signals at the back of the camera onto a 10G Ethernet link, the BCX-760 provides the bidirectional signals necessary for live production.

COMREX will showcase Opal, a studio internet audio portal that serves a web page to anyone who accesses it through a computer or Android device (with a microphone, earpiece and browser). The web page will allow a user to click a button and broadcast from their computer or phone in high fidelity, with high-quality return audio provided to the guest.

DEJERO will spotlight its Live+ EnGo mobile video transmitter that can be camera mounted, carried in a sling bag or in a new, ergonomic backpack. Key features include a user-accessible SIM module, global roaming packages and the ability to transmit multichannel audio.

LiveU Solo plug-and-play streaming device

DVEO will feature its Brutus VI IP/IP: Telco adaptive transcoder for processing signals at headends for OTT, mobile and Telco TV multiscreen services. The unit ships with H.264 capability and optional H.265/HEVC transcoding is available.

LIVEU will feature a live studio in collaboration with BeTerrific.tv, an online live-streaming video network. Visitors will be able to go behind-the-scenes and see how the broadcast is being produced using LiveU solutions working with other companies’ products. Content will include feeds from roving reporters covering the different halls from the show. The company will also showcase its LiveU Solo plug-and-play streaming device that’s designed around the company’s established bonding technology.

RIEDEL will showcase its MediorNet Control App for the company’s RSP-2318 SmartPanel multifunctional user interface. In addition to linking the SmartPanel directly into a Riedel MediorNet media network as a dedicated control panel, the new MediorNet Control App gives users simultaneous intercom functionality, enabling them to route, control and communicate using a single 1RU system.

TVU Networks MLink TE4500 rack-mount HEVC encoder

TVU NETWORKS will feature the MLink TE4500 H.265/HEVC rackmount encoder, TVU RPS, TVU One mobile IP transmitter and TVU Anywhere app. The company also promises enhanced support for H.265 encoding.

WIRELESS
IDX
will highlight its CWF25 wireless HD-SDI transmission system that transmits H.264 High Profile video at up to 25Mbps. The CW-F25 has an adaptive variable bitrate to prevent sudden disconnection, and the system’s range is enhanced by the use of beam forming technology.

VIDOVATION will feature the VidOwave 60G 750 PA, a 60GHz millimeter-wave broadband and wireless data connectivity solution. It delivers low-latency and full-duplex GigE transport at speeds up to 1.25 Gbps in a small, rugged and easy-to-install enclosure.

VISLINK will debut ViewBack, a lowpower, dual-channel diversity receiver/decoder, supporting the company’s LMST demodulation and operating in the 2GHz licensed band, designed to return video from the studio to a field location. This allows camera operators to check the final studio production of their shots, combined with any graphics or text.

Bob Kovacs

Bob Kovacs is the former Technology Editor for TV Tech and editor of Government Video. He is a long-time video engineer and writer, who now works as a video producer for a government agency. In 2020, Kovacs won several awards as the editor and co-producer of the short film "Rendezvous."