Uniguest MediaStar and ENCOD3R encoders — HD and 4K HEVC appliances and blades with SDI, HDMI and component inputs, for putting live sources onto an IPTV network.

Encoders handle the sources broadcast gateways cannot

A gateway converts broadcast RF. An encoder takes a baseband video source — a camera, a lectern PC, a production switcher output, a courtroom feed — and compresses it into an IP stream.

In practice most installations need both: gateways for television, encoders for everything the building generates itself.

Latency is the specification that matters

Standard encoding introduces delay of several seconds, which is fine for television distribution and unacceptable for anything interactive. If a presenter is on camera and the audience is watching a screen in the same room, delay is immediately visible.

The ENCOD3R-LH2 and ENCOD3R-LK41/LK42 are low-latency models for exactly that case — overflow rooms, lecture capture with live relay, command centres, houses of worship. Specify low latency where the source and the screen share a space.

HEVC or H.264

HEVC (H.265) delivers 4K at roughly half the bitrate of H.264, which matters on a constrained network. The trade is decoder support — every endpoint has to handle HEVC, so confirm the player side before committing the headend.

The ENCOD3R-LK41/LK42 covers 4K HEVC; the 798 blade handles H.264 HD with an HDCP Pro option.

HDCP is not a detail

Protected sources — streaming boxes, Blu-ray, some laptops — will not pass through an encoder without HDCP handling. The 798 offers an HDCP Pro option for that reason. Establish which sources are protected during design, because the fix after installation is a hardware change.

Blade models need a chassis

The 798 is a blade and mounts in a MediaStar chassis (769 single-slot or 770 multi-slot). The 785 and the ENCOD3R range are standalone 1U appliances.

Creation Networks specifies encoding against the actual sources, confirms latency and HDCP requirements before ordering, and commissions the result. Call 888-230-3661 or email sales@creationnetworks.net.