The What: Video Devices, a brand of video products developed by Sound Devices, LLC, will feature its complete line of PIX-E Series 4K recording field monitors and accessories at InfoComm 2016 (booth C6443). Video Devices will preview two new features for the line at the show—the addition of the H.264 codec and the capability to simultaneously recording a high-quality, edit-ready Apple ProRes file and a much smaller size H.264 MP4 file.
The What Else: These new features will be available at no cost to PIX-E owners in a future firmware update.
“The ability to record in H.264 is ideal for web streaming, houses of worship, corporate clients, and educational facilities, as they will have a more direct way to get their presentations to the web for online viewing,” says Paul Isaacs, director of product management and design, Sound Devices. “We’re excited to preview our latest updates to our PIX-E Series monitors at InfoComm.”
Universally supported for viewing on PCs, Macs, and browsers, the H.264 codec offers a good balance between compression and quality to reach low data rates and small file sizes. As a result, it is commonly used for web streaming and long duration recording. The codec also makes for faster file uploads and easier emailing of recorded files.
While the PIX-E Series has always featured the full-range of ProRes codecs—from proxy up to 4444 XQ—these upcoming features will let end users simultaneously record an H.264 MP4 file and a ProRes MOV file. While recording 4K in ProRes, the PIX-E will automatically scale the 4K to 1080p for recording H.264, thereby reducing its file size even further. Both recordings will also include audio—up to eight channels with ProRes and two channels with H.264.
The PIX-E Series includes two five-inch models, PIX-E5 and PIX-E5H, as well as the seven-inch PIX-E7. The PIX-E5H features HDMI I/O only, while both the PIX-E5 and PIX-E7 monitors have SDI and HDMI I/O. The monitors are equipped with advanced features, such as LUTs, anamorphic desqueeze, and LCD orientation, while also boasting a full suite of precision monitoring tools and scopes for clear focus, and proper exposure.
Video Devices will also showcase several PIX-E Series accessories, including both the groundbreaking PIX-LR audio interface and SpeedDrive™ recording and file-delivery enclosure. The complete line of PIX-E Series monitors and accessories is currently shipping worldwide.
The Bottom Line: With the same quality standards as Sound Devices the Video Devices brand of PIX-E recording monitors are built in die-cast metal housings with scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass 2. In addition to durability, the high-resolution monitors are available as 1920x1080 (PIX-E5 and PIX-E5H) or 1920x1200 (PIX-E7) LCD displays, which are color accurate and offer 179-degree angle of view, even in sunlight.
