回顾:进口技术Spinnaker S3000

来自Inlet的另一个获奖实时编码器.
价格:9995美元
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进口技术
www.inlethd.com

When I first got the weighty Federal Express shipment for the 进口技术 Spinnaker S3000 real-time encoder, I figured something that weighed that much was sure to be huge. I was surprised, then, when I opened the box to find what looked like a shrunken "pizza box" server.

The distinctively blue unit is the standard width for mounting in a 19" rack (1 rack unit [RU]) but only 18.2“深. 深度, 比标准1ru短3 -6英寸, means that this unit can fit in a standard audio-video rack that is 20" deep, 而不需要服务器机架, which is ideal for the type of place this device is used.

Packing all the server features into a smaller-than-a-server box means that it’s got some heft to it—my review unit weighed 35 pounds, and I figured I could use it to replace my weight machine—and it tends to be a bit noisy. 别开玩笑了, 虽然, Inlet has been able to pack this unit with features, 包括多个千兆以太网端口, 一个前面板, multiline display that signals device status as well as alarms, and a full complement of analog and digital video and audio connectors.

产品定位
Inlet positions the Spinnaker line as its real-time encoding solution, 而不是其超高品质的Fathom系列, where encodes take longer than real time to accomplish in return for what many consider the highest-quality encodes on the market. Many content owners use the Fathom to transcode HD content for Blu-ray and HD DVD, and broadcasters can use Spinnaker to simultaneously stream their live programming feeds out to multiple bitrates and multiple formats.

输入
Inlet understands that quality input aids in quality output, honed over years of its founding engineers’ work at Osprey, 哪个ViewCast后来被收购了, so Spinnaker offers multiple analog and digital inputs: the standard definition (SD) serial digital interface (SDI) connectors allow input of up to 270Mbps component digital video along with six channels of AES/EBU digital audio, 而模拟输入可以是组件, 超级视频, 或合成视频和平衡(XLR)音频. 提取AES/EBU音频, 或de-embedded, from the SDI video signal and is paired in stereo channels 1&2, 3&4、5&6日分别. The six-output audio scenario cuts a good line between today’s standard AES/EBU four-channel de-embedders and the next round of broadcast de-embedders that work with four stereo pairs or eight channels. 如果选择模拟视频, 一个立体声平衡对通道是可用的, so SDI audio/analog video cannot be mixed and matched for 5.1环绕选项.

编码
Spinnaker uses a web interface to access encoding and status settings. The interface is accessed by connecting to a portion of the network that any of the three Ethernet ports are on. 两个千兆以太网端口, 为提供编码视频而设计, 与100Mbps的维护端口并排吗. 维护端口, normally put onto a separate part of the local area network (LAN), 在这种情况下是完全无限制的吗, meaning that it can also be used to serve up video streams in a pinch—al虽然 that’s not recommended.

这是典型的进口产品, audio and video settings can be extremely detailed, delving into most of the compression parameters that the codec’s creator reveals in an API. This is a great feature for those familiar with the intricacies of codecs such as VC-1 or On2 VP6 (Flash 8), but it can be quite overwhelming for the average user. I’m not suggesting that they hide parts of the API—after all, the Inlet team is one of the best when it comes to giving full control over codec parameters—but it would be helpful, if the product is aimed at the mass encoding market, for Inlet’s engineers to modify the user interface to put the key 信息 front and center. 当他们在做的时候, they could write the user documentation so it reads less like an engineering document. Some of the more esoteric 信息 isn’t quite complete, so users learn by rote to set a setting at 250; if the documentation could explain why a particular setting should be 250 instead of 15 or 2000, it would serve to make the product accessible to those who focus on content more than engineering.

回到设置和预设. Once all the settings are selected, a preset can be saved and named for future use. This is helpful for those who have tweaked a few key settings and are trying out the differences between encodes, but presets are far more helpful for the average user who is responsible for day-in, 所编码.

编码 sessions can be scheduled using either custom settings or presets, and the schedule can also be overridden by a manual start/stop encoding process. 给定入口处理预设的方式, 虽然—saving presets after all settings have been completed rather than creating a preset and then adding to it—changing parameters or creating presets cannot be accomplished during an encoding session.