RENNES, France — Sept. 8, 2010 — Thomson Video Networks (formerly the digital headend division of Grass Valley) has announced the ViBE EM2000 Quad, a new four-channel MPEG-2/4 encoder delivering exceptional picture quality at minimal bitrates for satellite, cable, IPTV, and terrestrial network applications. The ViBE EM2000 Quad allows broadcasters to increase infrastructure density and features an industry first — the inclusion of built-in DVB subtitle transcoding capabilities.
With a rich feature set, the Thomson ViBE EM2000 Quad makes it possible to reduce the footprint and power consumption of equipment required at the headend while maintaining the uncompromised picture quality that is a hallmark of the ViBE range. Functions include transcoding of DVB subtitles, logo insertion with fade in/out support, encoding of up to four stereo pairs per channel, and dual power supply support.
Based on the most advanced video compression engine on the market today, the ViBE EM2000 Quad encoder establishes a new benchmark for multichannel encoding. It supports all the required audio and video interfaces in one unit (SDI, composite, analog, and AES audio), with both ASI and GigEthernet output interfaces, and features the latest filtering and preprocessing technology for MPEG encoding. Now available in single, dual, or quad versions, the flexible ViBE EM2000 meets the requirements of even the most stringent broadcasters.
The DVB subtitling transcoder functionality is based on technology from Cavena, a world leader in DVB subtitling solutions that provide market-leading economy in bitrate consumption and proven interoperability with the widest range of set-top boxes. Moreover, the integration of this feature directly into the encoder platform solves major issues in terms of global redundancy and simplifies operation.
“The ViBE EM2000 Quad encoder offers a major step up in terms of infrastructure efficiency for the headend,” said Christophe Delahousse, president of Thomson Video Networks. “Operators now have the option to make substantial savings on space, power consumption, and expensive external equipment for subtitle processing, with the ViBE EM2000 Quad providing native redundancy.”
Combining compression efficiency features, including the complete MPEG-4 AVC toolset and advanced preprocessing, the ViBE range of encoders delivers clearer pictures with increased depth and clarity. Including a powerful compression engine and true multipass encoding, the ViBE encoders deliver MPEG-4 AVC compression at more than 50 percent efficiency compared to existing MPEG-2 systems.
