Snell & Wilcox is putting its industry-leading technologies into a series of new IQ Modular products that raise the quality bar for video decoding and HDTV conversion in the broadcast infrastructure domain. Providing a must-have capability for facilities that want to transition to digital and HDTV operations at a controlled and cost-effective pace, these new additions to the company’s IQ Modular portfolio bring unrivaled performance in a compact package.
IQDEC SERIES SYNCHRONIZER/DECODER
Snell & Wilcox is well-known for its excellence in video decoding, and the introduction of the IQDEC series of modular decoder/synchronizers takes this technology to the next level. Offering higher quality, stability, and functionality than any other product in its class, the IQDEC range is the ultimate front-end processor for any type of input coming into a broadcast facility. Powerful, flexible, and robust, these modules offer features such as video decoding, frame synchronization, and powerful noise reduction. For example, the new IQDEC04 decoder and synchronizer provides premium 12-bit Golden Gate decoding technology and powerful compression-friendly noise reduction to deliver maximum picture quality while minimizing MPEG bit usage. The IQDEC’s advanced 3D decoding algorithms, powered by Golden Gate technology, extract more information from analog picture sources than other decoders, making IQDEC the ideal bridge from analog to digital or from analog direct to HD. A full-frame synchronizer with horizontal and vertical phasing controls allows the output to be timed to a facility’s master clock. Proc. amp controls and a powerful, built-in noise reducer provide a complete signal conditioning solution in a single-width module.
IQUDC SERIES HDTV UP/DOWN/CROSSCONVERTERS
The new IQUDC synchronizing HD/SD-SDI up-, down-, and crossconverters complete the transition between standard and high definition formats. Offering set-it-and-forget-it operation for multirate broadcast operations or variable input/output environments, IQUDC devices convert SD-SDI signals to HD-SDI and vice versa and crossconvert HD-SDI signals of the same frame rate (1080i and 720p). Features include a fixed-mode aspect ratio converter and closed caption support for analog line 21 formats.
With full proc. amp and synchronization built in, the IQUDC has the versatility to serve as an incoming lines module on the front end, as an HD-to-SD (or SD-to-HD) converter on the back end, or as a stand-alone aspect ratio converter, with or without conversion. Moreover, the IQUDC seamlessly handles both embedded PCM and non-PCM audio and is capable of processing up to 16 channels of embedded audio alongside the video.
“Our IQ Modular products deliver major benefits for broadcasters at every stage of the transition to digital and HD,” said Joe Zaller, vice president of marketing at Snell & Wilcox. “For example, they give smaller broadcasters the ability to upgrade to digital operations without needing to replace completely all analog studio cameras, whereas a larger facility already equipped with an SDI plant can use IT-aware IQ Modular products to bridge HD and file-based technologies.”
