HD-1500 Fiber Optic Link Used in ActionCam’s Final Four Debut; Upcoming HBO Production
LOCUST VALLEY, NY – While ActionCam’s aerial camera made history flying over the Michigan State vs. University of Connecticut showdown during the CBS 2009 NCAA Final Four, a tiny fiber optic link provided by MultiDyne Video & Fiber Optic Systems was working overtime transmitting the broadcast’s HD-SDI and SDI TV signals. MultiDyne, a premier provider of fiber optic-based video and audio transport solutions for broadcast and pro A/V applications, supplied the company’s HD-1500 Fiber Optic Link incorporated into ActionCam’s aerial camera, ensuring seamless transmission during the Final Four broadcast.
“Getting an over-the-court shot for the first time in live broadcast basketball was a major component of our company’s national debut, and MultiDyne was a part of that,” says PJ Bennett, president and CEO of ActionCam, a next-generation aerial camera provider specializing in sports events, feature films, entertainment and commercials. “We’ve been using the MultiDyne HD-1500 link from day one, and it is a primary element of our aerial camera system. When we do an event like the Final Four for a major network, we have to get video routed from our camera to the production truck, and then to the network’s production truck. We go through a lot of chains, and MultiDyne’s HD-1500 fiber optic link allows us to send high-quality video, across long distances, on a singlemode fiber without any transmission or display errors. It works flawlessly.”
The MultiDyne HD-1500 is used in the camera head of the ActionCam aerial camera system to send video to the ActionCam production truck, supporting rates of 5 Mbps to 1.5 Gbps. Using singlemode operation, the link distance for the HD-1500 is up to 12.4 miles (20km) at 1.485Gbps. In addition, multiple MultiDyne HD-1500 units are used in the ActionCam production truck to route video to the network’s truck and then to the operator station. The HD-1500 is available in stand-alone and compact rack-mount configurations, simplifying installation in mobile production trucks and giving ActionCam the ability to rack six units using one rack. ActionCam’s full set-up of broadcast-quality HD camera equipment for aerial shots also includes a Panasonic HC 1500 camera and Fujinion HD lens. MultiDyne’s HD-1500 will also be used in future ActionCam projects, including the September 19 Floyd Mayweather “comeback” fight that will be filmed for HBO from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
“For a major national broadcast, high-quality, fully SMPTE compliant, fiber optic transport gear is the only way to go,” says Jim Jachetta, senior vice president of engineering and product development for MultiDyne. “Now more than ever there’s a demand for smaller solutions with the capability to transport HD video over longer distances, and the reclocked, jitter eliminating HD-1500 is designed to do just that. ActionCam’s overhead shot of the Final Four was truly groundbreaking, and we’re proud to have been a part of getting that killer shot for the viewers at home.”
For ActionCam, beyond selecting a fiber optic link with HD video capability, a key factor was cost efficiency. “One of the things we provide to the industry is a better aerial camera system at a better price, so we need to be focused on building our systems at the best cost we can,” says Bennett. “MultiDyne’s HD-1500 is a low-cost solution that fits our needs. What’s even better is that not only is the MultiDyne solution cost-effective, but it also provides looped inputs and dual outputs, so we can get our video routed without a separate router switch.”
The loop through input is equalized, re-clocked and buffered, and the solution also provides for dual re-clocked outputs. Several SMPTE standards are supported, including SMPTE 292M 1.485 Gbps, SMPTE 259M 270 Mbps, SMPTE 310M 19.4 Mbps, M2S or DBV-ASI 270 Mbps, SMPTE 344M 540 Mbps and SMPTE 305M SDTi rates.
About MultiDyne:
For more than 30 years, MultiDyne has been a leading provider of innovative and outstanding video and fiber optic-based transport systems for the broadcast, cable, satellite, production, digital cinema, pro A/V, corporate, retail, surveillance, teleconferencing, judicial arraignment, transportation, government, military, and healthcare markets. MultiDyne’s fiber optic transport systems for video, SDI, 3G HD, DVB/ASI, VGA, DVI, HDMI, audio, AES, Ethernet, data, CATV, as well as the company’s other broadcast accessories are used worldwide by such industry leaders as ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, RAI, BBC and the Department of Transportation. MultiDyne provides a seven-year warranty on its core product line. For more information, call MultiDyne at 1-877-MULTIDYNE or 1-516-671-7278, visit the company’s Web site at www.multidyne.com, or send an e-mail to sales@multidyne.com.
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