MONTREAL— Miranda Technologies has installed its iTX integrated playout platform, along with Nvision routing, Densité signal processing and Belden connectivity solutions, at Westar Satellite Services’ new centralized master control facility in Cedar Hill, Texas.
Westar Master Control Services currently provides video playback services to 15 commercial and public broadcasting customers and is a fully owned subsidiary of New York-based All Mobile Video.
“When we decided to launch an outsourced centralized master control service, we knew that a core component would have to be the most dependable playout solution we could find to streamline operations for all the stations we serve,” Westar President Richard Duke said. “We are a long-time user of Miranda’s Kaleido multiviewers in our mobile production units, so we had a great deal of trust in the Miranda brand. We’ve come to rely on the efficiency and dependability of their solutions and we knew that the iTX playout platform would surpass our performance requirements.”
In Westar’s case, each iTX output server is also equipped with graphics capabilities that can be used to enhance channel branding and differentiate individual services.
Westar’s core video infrastructure is built around Miranda’s Nvision 8280 144 x 144 router with an NV9000 dual controller through which all incoming and outgoing video signals are managed. End-to-end data, sound and video signal transmission is supported throughout by high-performance cables from Belden, all of which are built to the industry’s highest quality and reliability standards.
Each baseband ingest feed of satellite-based content is equipped with a Miranda XVP-3901-F or FRS-3901 frame synchronizer processor to manage aspect ratio and control audio levels before they are routed to an ingest server, or to air. File ingest, regardless of workflow, is retained in the media store function of iTX. In addition, Miranda’s multichannel EdgeVision monitoring ensures QoE for each channel by enabling Westar operators to accurately see and hear the quality of signals received in viewers' homes.
