The following are the reflections of Tedd Tramaloni, Business Development for Production Switchers and Video Servers: 

The Essence of Innovation

The Oxford Dictionary defines “innovation” as “the action or process of innovating,” which, I admit, doesn’t say much. It goes on to list almost thirty synonyms for this “action or process,” including words like “revolution,” “upheaval,” and “transformation.” Innovation, it seems, is an ongoing process rather than a static event. Truly innovative products are not just “shiny and new.” They spark a paradigm shift that can redefine an entire industry or, in extreme cases, life as we know it.  

Carbonite Makes It Debut

Carbonite production switchers debuted at NAB 2011, and during that show alone, over sixty units were ordered — an impressive accomplishment for a new product. The reason for its immediate popularity was evident: Carbonite was not simply a new product. It represented an entirely novel approach to meeting the demand for powerful, efficient, and user-friendly production switchers without breaking the bank.  

After its introduction, the Carbonite line quickly expanded, including Carbonite MultiMedia, which incorporated both digital and HDMI inputs to give users more flexibility. Even more transformative was Carbonite eXtreme, a production switcher housed in a Ross router chassis. This relationship between the switcher and router foreshadowed our current hyperconverged product line, hinting at future innovations. 

Over the years, Carbonite evolved with each generation, driven by faster and more capable FPGA hardware. This evolution brought new features and functionality, many compatible with existing hardware, allowing us to provide no-cost software upgrades to existing users. The next-generation Carbonite Black series, featuring the compact and powerful Carbonite Black Solo, and the Black and Black Plus models, offered feature sets comparable to switchers twice their size and price. Success built upon success, and Carbonite soon claimed its position as the world’s most popular mid-sized production switcher. 

But since innovative thinking is part of the Ross DNA, Carbonite has continued to evolve … 

Carbonite Evolution Continues

In the last five years alone, three new Carbonite models have been introduced: Carbonite Ultra in 2018, Ultrix Carbonite in 2021, and at NAB 2023, the largest Carbonite switcher ever produced, Carbonite Ultra 60. Each model builds upon the innovative legacy of the original Carbonite, delivering powerful feature sets that address the evolving needs of customers. 

What makes Carbonite “innovative” is not that it provides Mix/Effects Banks or Keyers but that it addresses the real-world demands of small and mid-size facilities with tools designed to help tell engaging stories economically and efficiently.  

Don’t believe us? Hear from a range of customers worldwide who have been on the Carbonite journey with us

Visit us at IBC 2023

Discover new creative possibilities at IBC 2023 with 91ĚŇɫ’s impressive showcase of end-to-end video production solutions, including the all-new Carbonite Ultra 60. As a new class of production switcher from Ross, Ultra 60 delivers big performance in a single cost-effective hardware platform. 

Designed to tackle the most demanding productions, Carbonite Ultra 60 supports an impressive I/O of up to 60×25 in HD or UHD. Its 3RU modular design offers the flexibility to start with fewer inputs and outputs, allowing facilities to prepare for present and future needs. As production requirements grow, easy upgrades become a seamless option. 

To learn more about Carbonite, or any of our other transformative products and services, visit rossvideo.com or join one of the many comprised of end-users who have embraced Ross-inspired innovation in their facilities.

The post Exploring the Carbonite Development Journey: Real-World Innovation appeared first on 91ĚŇÉ«.

As live production professionals continue to push the limits on their productions, it’s essential to have a dependable and efficient production switcher at the center of your workflow. However, with so many available options today, selecting the right switcher size to fit your specific needs can be daunting. Choosing a switcher that is too small may result in limited functionality and a lack of necessary features while selecting one that is too large can be expensive and cumbersome. Much like the popular children’s tale, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, this blog post will explore the question of what’s “just right” when it comes to production switcher size?”

Before we dive into that question, let’s be clear: “size” refers to the number of inputs and M/E banks, not the physical frame dimensions or the number of buttons on the control surface; operators rarely care about frame size and almost always want more buttons. So for inputs and M/Es, how “big” is “big enough?” While there are any number of factors that go into answering that question, here are just a few of the more obvious ones: 

What kinds of shows are being produced or planned?

• Studio-based news and talk shows generally require fewer sources and Mix Effect banks than remote sports or certain types of entertainment programs. 

How many sources are required?

• Closely related to the types of programs being planned is the number of sources, including key signals, that will be required. 

What’s the future growth forecast? 

• Planned expansions, perhaps over three to five years, should factor into the size calculations to ensure there’s enough “headroom” for the future. 

How experienced are the operators?

• It may sound counterintuitive, but less-experienced operators may require a larger number of inputs or M/Es to allow effects to be “parked” upstream. 

What’s the Budget

• Although we all like to drool over the biggest switcher out there, the reality is that size and cost are more or less directly related: the larger the switcher, the more expensive it will be. 

Given these and all the other variables that may be considered, it might seem that there is no perfect size but in fact, our market research indicates that a switcher with around 36 inputs and two or three M/Es often provides the best balance of size, cost, and power; in short, a switcher in that range is “just right.” 

Bigger Faster and More Powerful

When the Carbonite Development team was tasked with inventing “The Next Big Thing,” the number of inputs and M/E banks were certainly important considerations. Based on customer feedback, they knew that although Carbonite Ultra provides enormous capability in a very small 1RU package, it sometimes simply isn’t big enough. So… 

More Inputs: âś“  They also wanted to leverage the latest advances in hardware technology to produce a switcher that would provide powerful effects capability: 

Powerful CPU & GPU: âś“ And they wanted a switcher that provided a cost-effective upgrade path to keep pace with increased production demands: 

Expandable I/O: âś“ The result of their efforts is Carbonite Ultra 60, the latest iteration in the legendary Ross Carbonite switcher series. 

Although Ultra 60 can trace its pedigree back to Carbonite Ultra, it represents a departure from its older cousin in many ways. For one thing, it offers the largest input matrix of any Carbonite we’ve ever produced – up to 60 inputs in HD or UHD. It also features internal power supplies instead of power “bricks” which can make for a cleaner installation. And perhaps most importantly, Ultra 60 is the first modular Carbonite frame we’ve ever manufactured. Think expansion; as in “start smaller and grow as needed.” In fact, the 36-input/15-output version may hit the “sweet spot” for many facilities; big enough to meet current demand while still providing a means to add more ins and outs down the road. 

But despite the differences, under it all, Ultra 60 is still a Carbonite. Transition Keyers, MiniMEs, MediaStores, Custom Controls, UltraScene, and DashBoard integration are all still part of the package so operators coming from other Carbonites won’t miss a beat. In fact, they won’t even have to learn a new control surface since legacy Black and the newer TouchDrive panels are all compatible. They can even load Settings files from Graphite, Carbonite Ultra or Carbonite Black onto Ultra 60 and not have to rebuild Source Name tables, Button Maps and all the rest. (Figuring out what to do with all the time that saves is up to them…) 

When it was introduced over a decade ago, Carbonite created a whole new class of powerful, affordable, and operationally simple production switchers that redefined the notion of “mid-size.” Carbonite Ultra 60 continues that tradition while providing a larger and more powerful platform that for many facilities will be “just right.” 

About Tedd Tramaloni 

Before joining 91ĚŇÉ« in 2014, Tedd held a variety of positions at call-letter stations and with broadcast equipment manufacturers. He also freelanced for over twenty years as a TD and Replay Operator. You can connect with him on LinkedIn or at tedd.tramaloni@rossvideo.com.

The post Finding the Perfect Production Switcher Size appeared first on 91ĚŇÉ«.

In a recent blog post, you may recall a conversation I had with a truck engineer who wrestled with the size, weight, and power dilemma of designing a mobile system. Since that initial conversation, he’s found a solution for his small to medium-sized mobile trucks with our Ultrix-based switchers (Ultrix Acuity or Ultrix Carbonite). Months later, the engineer picked up the phone and came back to me with a new request: “I now need something bigger! I need more inputs and more M/E banks. And I still need to manage size, weight, and power requirements. So, what have you got for me now?”  â€śWell,” I responded, “Take a look at our new Ultrix FR12 chassis. It’ll provide eight M/Es, and it’s still only 12RU.” The silence on the other end of the line told me I had notched yet another point.  

The Past is Past

If you’ve been following Ross (and you should be!), you probably know that at the heart of our router/production switcher marriage lies our revolutionary Software Defined Production Engine (SDPE) blade. So far, we’ve used that blade to create both the Ultrix-based Acuity and Carbonite production switchers, and with the latest , customers can switch back and forth between them. This means that a single SDPE can be an Acuity M/E bank or a complete, multi-M/E Carbonite switcher. (Choices, choices…) But until now, the largest complement of SDPE blades that could be put into an Ultrix frame was four, and for some users, that just wasn’t enough. Unfortunately, we didn’t have a perfect answer for them – until now.  

The Secret is Out

Last year, our router team shared a secret “little” project they were working on: a larger Ultrix that would provide more I/O and accommodate more SDPE blades at the same time. Wait – a bigger Acuity? More Carbonites in a single chassis? Hmm… 

With the FR12 now officially released, users can leverage the power of Ultrix and the flexibility of our SDPE blades to create bigger, more versatile hyperconverged solutions. For example… 

• 8 ME Banks in HD or UHD – If your workflow demands 8ME Banks with access to 128 SDI inputs, then knock yourself out; the FR12 can do it.

• Mix It Up – Here’s where it gets interesting. Populate the FR12 frame with a bunch of SDPE bladed, say six or eight. License them for both Acuity and Carbonite. Now, switch back and forth as you like. Or, even better, configure some for Acuity and the rest for Carbonite. A four ME Acuity and four independent 2 ME Carbonites in one frame.

• Mind Boggling – I won’t even get into the notion of multiple frames tied together using the Broadcast Control System (BCS), which is needed to manager all the power in the FR12; it makes my brain hurt. But you get the idea

Yes, there is a point… 

And that point is that the FR12 is a big deal, and not just because it’s bigger. The larger frame opens possibilities that weren’t available just a few months ago. 

And now that our gorgeous TouchDrive panels can be used with either Ultrix Acuity or Ultrix Carbonite, managing one big switcher or multiple smaller ones is much more cost-effective and doesn’t require re-training all that muscle memory.  

So, it’s hyperconvergence amplified. But if you follow Ross (and you should!), you won’t be surprised. It’s what we do – we design and build smart live production technology that won’t break the bank.

That’s a Wrap 

“So,” I continued, “What do you think? Would the FR12 make a difference?” Predictably, my truck buddy conceded. “I guess. I’ll have to think it over.” By “think it over,” I knew what he meant. It meant he’d now have to revisit his design plans to accommodate a revolutionary solution he hadn’t anticipated. Oh well. If it was easy, anyone could do it, right?   

About Tedd Tramaloni 

Before joining 91ĚŇÉ« in 2014, Tedd held a variety of positions at call-letter stations and with broadcast equipment manufacturers. He also freelanced for over twenty years as a TD and Replay Op. You can connect with him on  or at tedd.tramaloni@rossvideo.com. 

The post Unlocking complete freedom for production system designers appeared first on 91ĚŇÉ«.

In our latest Beyond the Lens blog post, Tedd Tramaloni, Business Development Manager for Production Switchers and Video Servers, shares his thoughts on a different approach to managing size, weight, and power requirements when designing mobile trucks.

Not too long ago, I had lunch with one of my mobile truck pals. He was designing a new 53’ (16+ meter) production trailer and was frustrated by the challenge of cramming in all of the technology needed to be “self-sufficient.” It seems, he grumbled, that there are never enough DAs, frame syncs, converters, and the like to satisfy the technical and creative requirements of each show. But given the size, weight, and power constraints of this proverbial “five-pound sack,” designing even the “perfect truck” would always be a compromise. I realized that unlike that old real estate joke about “location, location, location,” the three most important words for truck designers might be size, weight, and power. How those factors are managed, individually and collectively, significantly impacts how well a truck performs and how economical it is to run.

Size

You wouldn’t think that size would be a consideration in building a mobile truck. After all, in most of the world, the maximum dimensions of a straight truck or tractor-semitrailer are set by national or regional authorities and are typically based on practical factors such as overpass heights or roadway widths. So, it should be simple: just get the biggest “box on wheels” legally allowed and then start cabling those racks.

But the reality is that increasingly, a single trailer, even an “expando,” simply isn’t enough – top-tier events now require multiple units to accommodate all the gear and operators necessary. For straight trucks, the situation is not much better. The demands of even smaller scale live event productions have grown almost exponentially, making it difficult for even moderate-size trucks to provide all the necessary components to satisfy customer demands.

Weight

Although truck and trailer weights, like size, are also set by law, there are ways to trim the load. Using aluminum frames, composite materials, different structural components, and even “rivetless” construction can shave hundreds or thousands of pounds from the empty weight of the truck or trailer.

Further weight reductions can be achieved by using lighter-weight cables and racks or installing composite-based furniture. But many of those solutions involve compromises that could result in increased long-term maintenance costs and reduced working life of the rig. So, even though shrinking the empty weight would provide more “headroom” for equipment, adding more gear might result in more headaches down the road.

Power

Power consumption is less of an issue now than it was in the past. Broadcast equipment is much more efficient because the components used are much less power-hungry than those of just a few years ago. Even as gear gets more capable and therefore more complex, the trend continues toward systems that sip rather than gulp power. And although the implications of that trend are significant, designing a new mobile unit still requires careful monitoring of the power requirements of all the broadcast and support systems needed to keep everything humming smoothly.

Solving the Size, Weight, and Power Equation

Although my truck pal may have less to grumble about than he did in the past, the thorny problems of size, weight, and power requirements are still challenging. Given that size is fixed for the most part, and weight and power can only be reduced by a few percentage points or so, how do you cram more into that “five-pound sack?” The answer, of course, is to increase density; in other words, replace lots of single-use boxes with lightweight, small-footprint components that can tackle multiple tasks simultaneously. And it just so happens that 91ĚŇÉ« offers several systems that can do just that.

We call it “hyperconvergence,” and for us, this means blending different best-in-class solutions to create a product that is more than the sum of its parts. Take, for example, our Hyperconverged Ultrix Acuity and Ultrix Carbonite systems. They combine our multi-format, multi-transport Ultrix router with our specially designed and engineered software-defined production engine (SDPE) blade to create game-changing production and routing systems that are unlike anything else on the market. With four SDPE blades and the I/O cards of your choice, Ultrix Acuity packs a fully-featured, four-ME production switcher and 88² SDI router (80² in IP) into a compact 5RU chassis.

With appropriate software, that same frame and SDPE blade complement can instead create four independent two-ME Carbonites

Hyperconvergence Redefined

The notion of merging different technologies to create more powerful and efficient hybrid solutions is not new to 91ĚŇÉ«. In fact, we’ve been doing it for years, so these new products are as much “evolution” as they are “revolution.” And there’s no question that there are all kinds of advantages that this type of fusion can offer. But does combining a router and production switcher in the same frame really save all that much space, weight, and power?

The answer is yes, partly because Ultrix is so much more than a simple routing switcher. Buried in that 5RU powerhouse is a complete audio processing system that can significantly reduce the number of audio embedders and de-embedders required. Furthermore, Ultrix can be licensed to provide MultiViewers that can be deployed around the truck without the need for another dedicated frame. And whole racks of frame syncs can be repurposed or eliminated with another Ultrix license. Now you can get rid of another big frame – the production switcher – by adding SDPE blades, and the savings can be significant.

The point here is that creative engineering solutions such as Ultrix Acuity and Ultrix Carbonite can solve problems, produce better efficiencies, and thus redefine traditional truck design.

CineVideo Unveils New Fully Loaded Mobile Truck 

Our friends at , one of Europe’s top truck design and integration companies, recently rolled out a stunning new sports truck for .

This spacious 14-meter (46’) 12G beauty boasts 18 cameras, full audio, comms, replay, and even a second production switcher for smaller events. The compact, space-saving design of the truck’s fully-loaded Ultrix Acuity helped make that possible while still providing all the production power CineVideo will need to continue producing top-tier sporting events throughout Europe.

If you’d like to learn more about our hyperconverged production solutions and how they can help optimize your mobile truck design, drop us a line. We’d love to hear from you!

About Tedd Tramaloni

Before joining 91ĚŇÉ« in 2014, Tedd held a variety of positions at call-letter stations and with broadcast equipment manufacturers. He also freelanced for over twenty years as a TD and Replay Op. You can connect with him on or at ttramaloni@rossvideo.com.

The post A New Approach to Mobile Truck Design appeared first on 91ĚŇÉ«.

How well I remember the endless joys of setting up a chroma-key at the last minute or touching up Key Clip and Gain on the fly. In those thankfully bygone days of old when a fader arm was more than just a wrist-rest, switching even the simplest show could cause heartburn. And so, multi-M/E switchers that allowed harried operators to manually set up effects upstream for later use became all the rage.

Then vs Now

Of course, the shows themselves were pretty basic, but the need then, as now, was to attract eyeballs, and for that, we needed more EFFECTS! Better wipes, and more of them! Fancier transitions! And…wow! Something called a DVE! Even though that was a separate system with its own challenges, we were free to fly boxes all over the screen while doing “elegant” modulated wipes underneath. What more could one possibly want? (By the way, switchers didn’t include Tasteful Transition Filters back then…and unfortunately, they still don’t.)

91ĚŇÉ«’s first production Switcher, the 16-4, was entirely designed and built by John Ross in the basement of his house.

But all that cool stuff meant that operators really had to be on their toes lest that pulsating pink Valentine’s Day Heart wipe show up someplace where it shouldn’t. Enter switcher memory – a way to automatically recall parameters such as source selection, transition duration, and even the precise pink hue for that Heart wipe. With switcher memory, operators could more confidently switch their shows with fewer errors. That not only made for cleaner shows and less twitchy operators, but it also reduced the decibel level and inappropriate language that you may have sometimes heard in the control room.

But as the shows got more sophisticated, so did the need for more and better tools. It was no longer enough to have “memory“; we needed different types of memory: Global Memory, M/E Memory, even Device Control Memory. Soon, other innovations such as Macros and Timelines were added, allowing operators to build and modify complex effects more quickly and easily. But since adding a new feature also meant adding the requisite knobs and buttons to manage it, panel designers faced a dilemma: how would they be able to incorporate all those different tools in a reasonably-sized control surface? The answer was to make the control panels “denser” and “smarter” by creating simple menu shortcuts, multi-function buttons and knobs, and straightforward controls that even novice operators could use intuitively.

Launched in 2007, Vision was the first switcher to use RGB buttons in full 30-bit color with a stunningly beautiful and functional result.

Today, any switcher worth its salt must have a dedicated menu monitor, several different types of Memories, Effects Dissolves, Macros, Timelines, Auto-Follows, customized Button Maps, and even menu “Favorites,” which, by the way, have nothing to do with sandwich toppings. So even though production switchers today are vastly more powerful and therefore more complex than previous generations, managing all that power and complexity is easier than ever. All of which brings us back to that TouchDrive panel I mentioned four or five paragraphs ago.

The Next Generation Switcher Panel: TouchDrive

My completely biased opinion is that TouchDrive^TM looks…well, cool. It has graceful lines and angles, it looks modern and business-like, yet it’s provocatively approachable. But the design folks who created TouchDrive weren’t interested in “just another pretty face.” They also wanted to create a powerful and user-friendly panel that would give operators a new and heightened sense of control and confidence.

From the ultra-portable TD1C to the uncompromising TD3S, TouchDrive^TMĚýcomes in various panel sizes so you can choose the right fit for your budget and production requirement

If you’ve had an opportunity to road test TouchDrive^TM, you probably agree that the designers have succeeded. The panel slants up gracefully to meet your hand as it moves to each successive M/E stripe. The exceptionally legible source displays provide instant feedback even with just a quick glance down. And Live Assist, served up courtesy of TouchDrive’s integrated DashBoard control software, makes it almost seem like the panel is anticipating your every move. In short, underneath that gorgeous glowing multi-color surface, there is a seriously impressive machine that can help even the best T.D. do their job better and with less stress.

And after all, isn’t that the point?

Learn More

To learn more about a full line-up of TouchDrive panels, visit our new product page or take a look at our detailed .

You can also listen to a recentĚýLiving Live Podcast episode: The Past, Present and Future of Production Switchers, to hear about how 91ĚŇÉ« has designed and developed production switcher solutions with a user-first mindset.

The post The Evolution of Production Switcher Control Panels appeared first on 91ĚŇÉ«.

In my last post, I wrote about SDPE, theĚýĚýthat is at the heart of our Ultrix Acuity hyper-converged production platform. In that article, I also mentioned that this innovative hardware board could be repurposed to add features and create exciting new products. Well, guess what? We’ve already got something new for you:ĚýUltrix Carbonite, the next-generation production powerhouse based on the SDPE hardware blade. With enhanced new features, the ability to accommodate differing connection schemes and signal formats, and legendary Carbonite ease of use, the world’s most popular mid-size production platform just got better. Let’s take a deeper dive into Ultrix Carbonite.

Ultrix Carbonite

First off, let’s be perfectly clear: the SDPE blade in Ultrix Carbonite is identical to the one used in Ultrix Acuity – no differences whatsoever. To be sure, Ultrix Acuity requires a CPU card that isn’t needed in Ultrix Carbonite, but the SDPE blade itself is exactly the same. And down the road, that’s going to open up some very interesting and exciting opportunities; but more about that later. For now, let’s run through some of the major features of this new platform.

For starters, Ultrix Carbonite SDPE blades can be mounted in either the FR2 (2RU) or FR5 (5RU) Ultrix frames. So for those of you with space-constrained tech cores or already-stuffed mobile units, the FR2 can be a godsend. Now obviously the larger frame can provide a bigger I/O matrix, but no matter which frame is chosen, the Carbonite blade has access to all Ultrix inputs, in groups of 18, for assignment as production switcher sources. Additionally, the blade itself has four dedicated inputs and four dedicated outputs. That means a single blade provides a 22 x 22 I/O matrix in either HD or UHD.

Each Ultrix Carbonite blade can provide up to two HD or UHD Mix/Effects banks along with four MiniME banks. (In UHD mode, two MiniME banks are available.) And for all you eagle-eyes out there who spotted the six keyer buttons on our gorgeous TouchDrive panels, you win! Ultrix Carbonite supports six full-function keyers and one transition keyer on each M/E. And don’t forget that each MiniME has two independent keyers as well, so a two M/E Ultrix Carbonite in HD provides twenty-two keyers! Add floating 2D DVEs, UltraChrome chroma-key engines, MediaStores, MultiViewers, and DashBoard integration and you’ve got one very powerful little beast.

But Wait, There’s More

Now for some of the really cool stuff. Although it may be less practical in the FR2, multiple Carbonite SDPE blades can be installed in either frame – up to two in the FR2 and four in the FR5. If you happen to have both an Acuity control panel and TouchDrive^TMĚýcontrol panel, you can even install Acuity and Carbonite SDPE blades in the same FR5 chassis as well. What’s more, each Carbonite and Acuity instance can operate in a different format! Imagine: one control room running a show in HD while another is doing a UHD program using the same chassis! Talk about space-saving! And power-saving, HVAC-saving, engineering-saving…and oh yeah, money-saving!

Want more? Well, remember how earlier I mentioned that the SDPE blade that powers Ultrix Carbonite is the exact same hardware as that of Ultrix Acuity? (Starting to see the light bulbs go on…) That’s right: with a simple firmware upgrade, you’ll be able to repurpose the blade itself to be either an Acuity, a Carbonite, or whatever other new gadgets we come up with! Think about that – a single, multi-purpose hardware card that can be reprogrammed as needed. At that point, even your shelf-spare inventory will be smaller and less expensive. That’s real-world innovation.

Learn More

For more information on Ultrix Carbonite,Ěýclick hereĚýto visit our product page.

To watch the Ross Live 2021 Ultrix Carbonite Tech Talk presentation,Ěý.

The post The Evolution of the Software-Defined Production Engine – Introducing Ultrix Carbonite appeared first on 91ĚŇÉ«.

To be sure, we do sound cool when we rattle off those incomprehensible all-caps names – after all, doesn’t “JAY-san” sound so much hipper than “JavaScript Object Notation?” (Yes, I did have to look it up…I mean, Google it…) But here’s one you may not have heard: SDPE. And before your thumbs do the walking, I’ll tell you that SDPE stands for “Software-Defined Production Engine.” Thirty-two letters, nine syllables; all in all, quite a mouthful. And frankly, “SDPE” probably gives you about as much information as “Software-Defined Production Engine” anyway.

Software-Defined Production Engine Explained

So, what is an “SDPE” and what is it used for? The answer is pretty simple: It’s a piece of hardware whose function is defined by the software that is loaded and running.

But wait, that doesn’t tell us much at all! And besides, isn’t every device these days “defined” by the software it runs? After all, your laptop or mobile device wouldn’t be much good without the operating system and applications that it uses, so aren’t all devices “software-defined?”

That’s true enough, but in the case of the Ross Software-Defined Production Engine, we’re talking about something much more interesting and exciting. But before jumping into that, let’s take a step back to ancient times; specifically, AD 2015.

It was April of that year when Ross introduced the Carbonite Black 2RU (initialism alert!) production switcher chassis. It featured a larger I/O matrix (another IA!), larger M/E count (and another!) and was paired with the beautiful new Carbonite Black series of control panels. But even as Carbonite Black was beginning to ship, the development team was asking a question: Was it possible to create an entirely different product using the Carbonite Black chassis by simply writing new software code? This idea became known internally as the “Software-Defined Production Engine,” but because we love initials as much as the next person, it was quickly shortened to SDPE.

In 2016, Ross introduced UltrachromeHR, a standalone chroma-key engine that could provide up to four high-quality keys each with additional layers and transitions. It was followed by Mosaic, a multi-channel image processing engine specially designed to help manage signals to large-scale displays such as LED walls. Both products had one thing in common: each used a standard Carbonite Black chassis. In other words, the exact same hardware was used to create three different products, each with its own unique capabilities. That was the start…

Introducing Ultrix Acuity

Fast-forward to early 2021 and the introduction of Ultrix Acuity, a powerful merger of two flagship Ross products based on the next step in the evolution of SDPE. Ultrix Acuity is, essentially, a standard Ultrix router frame that, in addition to input/output cards, is also fitted with specially designed SDPE switcher blades to produce a completely unique hybrid product. But that’s just the beginning…

The SDPE blade gives us a platform to develop completely new products with different features and capabilities. And because they share the same base hardware, a whole new world of possibilities opens up as well.

I’d love to give you a peek behind the curtain to show you what’s next for that same SDPE blade, but that would just spoil all the fun. But I can tell you that the roadmap for the SDPE blade is extensive and we’re going to have lots more to talk about in the coming weeks and months. So, as the saying goes, “stay tuned”. I can’t guarantee any new initialisms, but I can promise we’ll have more exciting news.

Learn More

For more information on Ultrix Acuity, visit our product page.

The post Alphabet Soup (AS) – Software-Defined Production Engine (SDPE) Explained appeared first on 91ĚŇÉ«.