Streams, Formats, HDCP and EDID

Let’s talk about the specifics of video stream capabilities of the NV Series endpoints.

The number of streams that NV Series device can either encode

or decode are determined by the resolution of the inputs and outputs.

If your content is standard 1080p60 HD video,

then you can set the NV Series to “encoder”

and can stream all three of its inputs into the Q-SYS Ecosystem simultaneously.

Likewise, an NV Series set to “decoder”

can decode up to two 1080p60 streams simultaneously to two different displays.

However, if you’re using Ultra High Definition 4K content, commonly known as 4K,

then each encoder and decoder is limited to encoding or decoding a single 4K source at a time.

That means you could still connect three 4K sources to an encoder

as long as it’s only ever sending one of those streams out at a time…

… but if you need to send two or more sources from a single encoder,

then those video sources will be forced to 1080 rather than 4K.

What if you need multiple 4K sources encoded on the network?

Forget it Patrick, you’re out of your element.

You simply need multiple NV Series set to “encoders” to do this.

Similarly, an NV Series set to decode mode

can only operate in 4K mode if you’re only decoding a single 4K output –

– using both outputs will not only automatically set the decode output to 1080p,

but it will also lower your sources to 1080p as well, regardless of any other destinations.

So even though your display will say it's displaying at 4k,

it's actually displaying a 1080p signal that's being scaled to fit your monitor's resolution.

Before we dive into the software,

let’s make sure that everyone’s on the same page about 4K versus 1080,

because if you’re relatively new to video this can sometimes be confusing.

1080 refers to a resolution of 1920 pixels wide by 1080 pixels high, which is a Full HD widescreen format.

You’ll usually see this as 1080p, which stands for “progressive scan”,

which basically means that all 1080 horizontal lines are refreshed with every frame,

as opposed to 1080i which “interlaces” every other line on every other frame.

1080p is pretty much the standard for most media out there, as of 2019.

But higher resolution sources are becoming more and more readily available.

UHD, or Ultra High-Definition, is a resolution of 3840 pixels wide by 2160 pixels high,

which is slightly different than 4K which is most commonly found in Cinemas, which is 4096x2160.

But we don’t call these 2160. Why not?

Well those math geniuses amongst you can guess that 2160 sounds like it’s only twice as good as 1080,

but in reality it’s four times better, because when we double the height we also double the width.

And since the length is approximately 4,000 pixels, this resolution is known as 4K,

probably because it sounds like it’s 4 times greater than 1080, which is about 1K.

So yeah. 1080 refers to height, 4K refers to width,

and if you have a problem with that then you can go talk to the beautiful minds who decide these things.

For both formats, you’ll also see another number after the resolution, such as 4k60.

This refers to the number of frames per second.

60 frames per second gives you incredibly smooth fluid motion and is very responsive to change.

This is highly valuable in meeting room content like Word, Excel and presentations,

as well as video games and sports.

On the flip side, most movies are shot in a cinematic 24 frames per second

and it will create a lot more motion blur for the viewer.

And if you try to watch one in 60 frames per second

then it often looks unnatural or more like a “camcorder” (which is actually 30 frames per second).

More frames per second means, you guessed it, more data transmitted on the network!

But don’t worry, you’re not going to see any limitations at different frame rates using the NV-32-H.

The main thing you need to consider is your resolution, because as we discussed earlier,

the use of 4K sources will be the big determining factor for your topology.

Also, an important thing to keep in mind

is that it doesn’t matter how high the format of your content is if your display device isn’t up to snuff!

If your display isn’t 4K, then you’re wasting your network bandwidth by transmitting 4K content.

On the other side, you may want to consider the SIZE of your display.

The smaller the display, the less likely that you’ll be able to see a difference

between a 4K source and a 1080p source in the first place.

There are also a few other general concepts that you should be aware of: HDCP and EDID.

HDCP, or High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection,

is a digital standard designed to prevent encrypted content like movies or TV shows from being copied

or even played on devices that aren’t HDCP compliant.

When you have an HDCP-encrypted source connected to your system,

they go through an authentication process that ensures that all connected devices are HDCP compliant,

or else it won’t play.

The most commonly used HDCP standards are HDCP 1.4 and 2.2,

both of which are supported by NV Series endpoints.

There are a few places in the software where you can investigate the HDCP status of your devices,

which may be important when you’re troubleshooting.

EDID stands for Extended Display Identification Data,

which is another handshaking process between devices

that lets a video source know which formats are available, unavailable,

or preferred by a particular video display.

The EDID tells the source device which resolution and frame rate settings are optimal for the display

in order to properly show your video content.

Once again,

you’ll see a number of places in the software where you can see the results of this EDID handshake,

and select from available video sources.

You can even copy a display’s EDID to your Core Manager

and apply it directly to a source, ensuring the right format will be used.

Hopefully you won’t have to become an expert on either of these topics,

but since you’ll see information on HDCP and EDID throughout the software,

we wanted to make sure you have at least a passing understanding of what they are.

In most circumstances, HDCP and EDID authentication take place invisibly behind the scenes,

and all you’ll have to worry about is wiring your system properly, which we’ll look at in the next video.

So take a quick break…

But I’ll be back …

and we’ll start connecting your system together in the Q-SYS Designer software. Thanks for watching.