InBroadcast
p26 August http://europe.nxtbook.com/nxteu/lesommet/inbroadcast_202008/index.php?startid=26#/p/26
HDR is becoming integral to the production and distribution chain while picture quality monitoring in an IP world no longer ends at playout.
HD-HDR looks set to become the preferred production format for many broadcasters as they plan their forward development strategies. If it wasn’t for the lack of live sports, Sky’s launch of HDR in the UK would have got a lot more attention. You’ll need to subscribe to SkyQ and have an HDR telly but you can view Disney+ shows in HDR with live sport, including Olympics highlights assuming it goes ahead next Summer. What’s more, an increasing number of shows are being delivered with UHD HDR, notably for Disney+, Prime and Netflix, with monitoring critical all the way up the chain camera to post.
“When someone tells you your pictures look ‘a bit green’ or ‘a bit soft’ or ‘a bit hot’ when they’re looking at proxy images on a cheap laptop from halfway across the room it can be a bit annoying,” says Neil Thompson, a Sony Independent Certified Expert, who presents a great guide to the basics of HDR monitoring at the CVP Common Room.
The market is being flooded with HDR capable picture monitoring solutions mostly capable of working in the main HDR profiles - PQ from Dolby and Hybrid Log Gamma.
TVLogic’s F-10A is a 10-inch field monitor with HDMI 2.0 and HDCP 2.2 to support 4K HDR 60Hz and various video signals (3G HD/SD-SDI, HDMI). The unit’s three 3G-SDI ports provide plenty of options for connecting. In addition, it provides various professional functions such as camera LUTs, ARRI metadata display, waveform/vectorscope and HDR emulation including of PQ, HLG and SLog3.
The company’s LUM-242H is a 24-inch UHD monitor that offer s10-bit colour, a 178-degree viewing angle and Wide Colour Gamut (WCG). It features 1,500 nits (LUM-242H), a high contrast ratio of more than 1,000: 1 and HDR emulation function (PQ, HLG, SLog3).
The LUM-310X is a 31-inch 4K HDR reference monitor with a “true 4K” (4096x2160) resolution Dual Layer LCD that with maximum luminance of 1000 nits and 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio. This, says TV Logic, makes it possible to view deep blacks and ultra-sharp details. It supports 4K/60p through single-link 12G-SDI, Quad 3G-SDI and HDMI 2.0.
Leader’s LV5900 waveform monitor had a high-profile outing as part of BT Sport’s live 8K broadcast demo from the UK to Amsterdam last September.
“With the source feed an enormous 48 gigabits per second, a lot depends on the delivery network and choice of codecs,” said Leader Europe Business Development Manager Kevin Salvidge. “The LV5900 allows OB technicians to check video and audio signal parameters at any point in the production and delivery chain to ensure raw and encoded signal feeds conform as closely as possible to the maximum deliverable quality.”
For those not looking to deploy 8K services, the LV5900 can simultaneously display two 4K sources. A new Leader-developed focus detection algorithm applies nonlinear super-resolution technology even to low-contrast images for which focus errors were previously difficult to detect.
Leader has also developed new options for its LV5600 waveform monitor and LV7600 equivalent rasterizer for UHD HDR grading and finishing. The new feature allows operators to check chroma levels beyond the BT.709 or DCI-P3 gamut. A Cinezone HDR display gives camera crews the opportunity to monitor and adjust HDR images and optimise UHD focus in real time.
“This simplifies the task of identifying the reproduction errors which can occur when transmitting video content produced in BT.709, DCI-P3 or BT.2020 wide colour gamut or when converting content from BT.2020 to narrow colour gamut,” explains Salvidge. “With the colorimetry zone feature switched on, chroma signals exceeding the legal gamut are made immediately apparent using a false-colour substitute.”
Broadcast studio dock10 recently added a LV5600 to its UHD HDR live production system, checking incoming camera feeds from multiple studio cameras to ensure uniform alignment and colour matching.
AJA’s time HDR monitoring and analysis platform HDR Image Analyzer not only comes with 12G-SDI single-cable connectivity but now supports up to 8K/UHD2 HDR.
Developed in exclusive partnership with Colorfront the sub-$20,000 product offers waveform, histogram and vectorscope monitoring and analysis of resolutions up to 8K, HDR and WCG content for production, post, QC and mastering. It features support for scene referred ARRI, Canon, Panasonic, RED and Sony camera colour spaces. Automatic colour space conversion is based on the Colorfront Engine.
“Since its release, HDR Image Analyzer has powered HDR monitoring and analysis for a number of feature and episodic projects around the world. It became clear that a 12G version would streamline that work, so we developed the HDR Image Analyzer 12G,” says the company’s Nick Rashby.
Postium’s OBM-H series supports daylight monitoring of PQ HLG and S-Log3 in HD broadcast and motion picture applications. It provides the function of comparing HDR and SDR on the display simultaneously while another function permits viewing highlights and shadow detail of scenes at the same time. The OBM-H210 sports a 21-inch 1920×1080 resolution LCD with a maximum luminance output of 1500 cd/m².
Its most recent 4K monitor – the OBM-X241 – is designed for on-set HDR production and editorial applications and is claimed as the first 24-inch monitor to offer full 4K-DCI resolution, 1000 nit peak luminance, and dual-SFP input. “This makes it ideal for DITs monitoring on-set SDR and HDR camera feeds as well as desktop editorial and QC applications,” says president Sung Il Cho.
Broadcast production control
For critical image evaluation in broadcast production control environments Ikegami offers the HQLM-3125X, a 31-inch UHD monitor with specs including 4,096 × 2,160 pixel 10-bit resolution and 1,000 candela per square metre. Compliant with BT.2020 WCG, the monitor employs a ‘double-LCD-layer’ panel delivering a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio with ‘true’ black reproduction. Ikegami describes a layer of light-modulating cells allows pixel-by-pixel control of backlight intensity, reducing light leakage and black float while reaching a black-level of 0.001 cd/m². Standard features include two 12G/3G/HD-SDI inputs and outputs, three 3G/HD-SDI inputs and outputs plus an HDMI input. The HQLM-3125X can thus accommodate three simultaneous UHD feeds.
Blackmagic Design’s SmartScope Duo 4K model includes built-in waveform monitoring “when you need to analyse image quality more accurately than simply looking at the picture.” For U$795 you get seven of the most popular scopes most widely used in broadcast and post (waveform, vectorscope, RGB parade, YUV parade, histogram, audio phase and level scopes). You can even monitor video on one of the dual 8-inch LCDs while running a scope such as waveform, histogram or audio on the other screen. This combination means you can see the video you're monitoring alongside a real time scope measurement, all on the same unit. You can also download software to the SmartScope Duo 4K to add new types of scopes as they become available.
The unique Picture-by-Picture function of Postium’s OBM P series allows two different SDI input signals to be displayed on the screen simultaneously. “This function is very convenient for making instant adjustments to two input sources, because there is no need to individually adjust the different characteristics of two monitors,” the company explains.
The OBM-P Series embraces seven models from 18-inch to 55-inch that accept up to 1080 60P signals displayed at native HD resolution and are equipped with standard 3G/HD-SDI input interfaces as well as HDMI 1.3a and analogue inputs.
Remote and IP-based broadcast monitoring
The coronavirus has made broadcasters dramatically reassess not only how programs are produced, but also how distribution operations are managed. The move to both IT and IP-based broadcast infrastructures had already made it possible for technicians to access systems from wherever they are. This option is now widely available, meaning broadcast centres can still run efficiently, while, at the same, time allowing self-isolation and social distancing guidelines to be observed.
"Many broadcasters were already considering remote workflows but now they are a necessity, not only to keep networks running but also in ensuring that their output continues to meet the highest standards,” says Erik Otto, CEO, Mediaproxy.
By mirroring the Mediaproxy LogServer logging and analysis systems at the master control room or network operations centre in the homes of technical operators, it is possible to maintain the same level of checking and audience experience, the company explains. Through low latency links, technicians can monitor outgoing streams using exception-based monitoring on Mediaproxy’s interactive Monwall multiviewer.” Exception-based monitoring, which uses IP ‘penalty boxes’ that allow broadcasters and multiple system operators to deal with QC and compliance more efficiently.
Ross stresses the importance of having a low-latency stream of a multiviewer that can be accessed by all off-premise operators. One quick way for a user to get a low-latency multiviewer accessible to multiple people is to use a third-party SDI / HDMI capture device for Mac or PC from a vendor such as AJA or Blackmagic.
Next, with embedded audio included on the stream, operators can use a video conferencing software (i.e Teams, Zoom) and set the capture device as the webcam input. The video conferencing software is made to handle multiple simultaneous users and operates in close to real-time, which keeps the latency low.
Ross’ free DashBoard software makes it simple to control and monitor hardware products, and many of its own software applications can be accessed through remote applications. Additionally, it has cloud-ready solutions such as Inception and Streamline hosted through web servers accessed via VPNs.
Rohde & Schwarz software-based PRISMON monitoring and analysis solution enables broadcasters to evaluate the viability of transitioning master control and playout to the cloud.
US network PBS used the PRISMON to measure the latencies associated with cloud-based encoding and transport and to synchronize numerous feeds of the same content from different signal processes running in the cloud for side-by-side visual comparisons and evaluations.
The unit also provided objective measurement of the performance of various cloud-based encoding solutions, highlighting artifacts such as ‘bad’ pixels and charting errors on a frame-by-frame basis to enable data-driven comparisons with the performance of the actual hardware encoders used at PBS.
“We recognize that the quality of a broadcaster’s signal is of the utmost importance and developed the PRISMON to provide broadcasters with objective signal measurements so they can be confident in their end product regardless of whether it’s coming from the cloud or on premise,” said R&S Head of Monitoring Development Bjoern Schmid.
Bridge Technologies has debuted Integrated Services Monitoring (ISM), a turnkey suite of tools, which puts automated eyeballs on all acquisition, delivery and production media streams.
“ISM provides exactly the set of data gathering tools broadcasters need throughout the chain – from production to delivery, uncompressed to compressed,” explains Simen Frostad, Chairman. “No other company in the network monitoring and analysis space can offer such a complete, comprehensive set of automated capabilities that deliver such a high level of understanding throughout any content distribution chain.”
ISM is able to monitor both uncompressed and compressed data across various formats and in resolutions up to 8K. It allows for full motion, colour-accurate, very low-latency video to be made available from any source to any application or user – anywhere in the world, whether fixed studio, remote OB van or headend environment, such that a geographically-dispersed team can work together on the same project.
“Individual, disparate solutions become a less and less tenable approach within an industry that is now trying to do a lot more with a lot less,” Frostad adds. “ISM takes the incredible analytical ability embedded in every part of the Bridge Technologies portfolio, and deploys it in a way that captures and utilizes data in multifaceted ways to assist with accurate decision making across the whole media chain, end-to-end.”
Densitron has added three models to its UReady 2RU Control Surface range. These are large, high-resolution screens that provide a wide-angle viewing experience and can be customised as requirements change. Human Machine Interface (HMI) options can be added through the use of proprietary “tactile-touch” buttons.
Says Global Product Manager – HMI Solutions, Bazile Peter, “Whether this is a high-performance multi-touch touchscreen, or a touchscreen with transparent buttons, or a combination of buttons and touchscreen. [Densitron’s] modular approach ensures that a vast array of control and monitoring requirements are met."
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