NEP Group has acquired multiple Sony NXL-ME80 media edge processors to work on a remote hub project, now underway in New Zealand, using Sony’s HEVC Ultra Low Latency encoding.
NEP Group has acquired multiple Sony NXL-ME80 media edge processors to work on a remote hub project, now underway in New Zealand.
The NXL-ME80 is the first product to support the HEVC Ultra Low Latency encoding that Sony developed recently, combining a high compression ratio, very low latency and an ability to maintain high picture quality for remote and distributed live productions. The processor, handling multiple-channel conversion, compression and transmission, is also a main component of the Sony Networked Live production environment.
NEP New Zealand Technology Manager Sam Scally said, “As multi-channel encoders using ultra-low latency compression, they are especially well suited to live production applications and work with both ST-2110 and SDI interfaces. We have been using them successfully so far on our hub project.”
Sixteen Streams
The Networked Live production system manages live production between on-premise, cloud, hardware or software resources. Organisations can use it to connect, use and share facilities and venues, processing equipment and services, and people – regardless of their locations – and also to optimise the configurations for each project.
Sony NXL-ME80 media edge processors
For this project, NEP is transferring 16 streams from their main live cameras using two NXL-ME80 units on 5Gb links carrying diverse formats and codecs, at 45Mb per stream.
The NXL-ME80 units are managed from the NEP hub at both ends. Sam said, “The NXL-ME80s form part of a wider remote production system that connects 13 cricket venues around the country back to our Auckland CBD hub facility. We operate on links as low as 1Gb/s.
“We are sending signals from cameras and third-party providers, capturing the matches via SDI protocol out of our existing trucks. They are sent to an NXL-ME80 in our Auckland hub where they are decoded from SDI, and then encapsulated to 2110. We are using the ME80s in conjunction with a Sony MLS-X1 switcher.”
Network Gateway
By serving as a gateway on the edge between LAN and WAN, the NXL-ME80’s functionality helps the user keep latency and bit rates low, and preserve image quality. When transmitting across multiple locations, its efficient use of network bandwidth helps NEP to control network costs for remote production, and gives teams more flexibility for live production.
In 4K mode, the NXL-ME80 can handle two channels, and up to eight channels in HD mode. The selectable interface of SDI or ST2110 on the LAN side helps ease installation.
Sam mentioned that originally, when NEP had started looking for the NXL-ME80, their core requirement was an encoder and decoder that could send signals across a small network pipe while working with a traditional broadcast environment using both SDI and 2110.
“When using the workflow we developed for the cricket venue network, the NXL-ME80s produce excellent video and have been very reliable,” he said. “Supporting multiple streams, the NXL-ME80 accommodates individual live production demands efficiently. With the ability to convert and compress video channels, it’s possible to transmit content with high picture quality, even with our limited network bandwidth.” pro.sony
