Supported input and output types

For formats see Supported video formats and frame rates

AJA

See System Requirements for supported AJA video cards

Input/Output options

Input	Input source	Spigot number `1-8`
	Channel	Fill - default setting, allows for using the internal Video Keyer (default) Key - External Key - the video is keyed externally and is provided as a separate fill and key signal Fill/Key - External Key - the video is keyed externally and is provided as a combined fill and key signal Use a media input for Key - External Key. The camera system needs to be Fill.
	Metadata	Extract tracking from audio > Audio channel
	Color > Range	Learn more about SDI signal range
Output	Output destination	Spigot number `1-8`
	Output type	Fill - for internal compositing mode (default) Key - for external compositing mode Learn more about Compositing modes
	Audio	Enable Learn more about how to Configure audio output
	Color > Range	Learn more about SDI signal range
	Color > Super brights	By default super bright values are clamped, but can be allowed through for HDR workflows.

BMD

See System Requirements for supported BlackMagic Design DeckLink video cards

Blackmagic Desktop Video Setup

Set the Connector Mapping to SDI 1 In or Out in the Blackmagic Desktop Video Setup application

Blackmagic Desktop Video Setup application - Connector Mapping options

SDI 1 & 2 In, SDI 3 & 4 Out	This option requires two cables for a single input. Not something that you would often use.
SDI 1 to 4 In or Out	This option is for 8k or UHD2, it requires all four cables to be used for a single input or output. Not something that you would often use.
SDI 1 In, SDI 2 Out	This option is a full duplex mode, if you use this you must use the same spigots within Director (e.g. Camera SDI 1, and Output SDI 1). This can help if you have no reference -- but not having a Genlock reference is STRONGLY not advised.
SDI 1 In or Out	This option treats all spigots as either a single input or single output (e.g. Camera SDI 1, and Output SDI 2). This is the suggested mode for Pixotope.

Input/Output options

Input	Input source	Spigot number `1-8`
	Channel	Fill - default setting, allows for using the internal Video Keyer (default) Key - External Key - the video is keyed externally and is provided as a separate fill and key signal Fill/Key - External Key - the video is keyed externally and is provided as a combined fill and key signal Use a media input for Key - External Key. The camera system needs to be Fill.
	Metadata	Extract tracking from audio > Audio channel Learn more about SDI Audio Embedder
	Color > Range	Learn more about SDI signal range
Output	Output destination	Spigot number `1-8`
	Output type	Fill - for internal compositing mode (default) Key - for external compositing mode Learn more about Compositing modes
	Audio	Enable Learn more about how to Configure audio output
	Color > Range	Learn more about SDI signal range
	Color > Super brights	By default super bright values are clamped, but can be allowed through for HDR workflows.

NDI

Video streaming protocol - What is NDI?

Input	Input source	Any NDI stream on this network
Output	Output destination	Name of your output stream
Output	Output type	Fill Key Learn more about Compositing modes

SRT

SRT is an established open source video streaming protocol

Input and Output	Mode	Caller The Caller machine uses the IP address to establish the connection Listener - default The Listener machine is waiting for a Caller machine to establish the connection
	Send to	Applicable for Caller mode IP addresses of all connected machines Custom IP address
	Port	Port number - default: `16213`
	Codec	MPEG4 - default H264
	Latency buffer	Latency in ms - default: `120`
	Password	If a password is set, the stream is encrypted - default: no password set
	Metadata (input only)	Extract tracking from stream To prepare an SRT stream with tracking Use Pixotope’s SDI Audio Embedder Encode the SDI signal to SRT Audio needs to stay uncompressed! Learn more about SDI Audio Embedder

The frame rate of the incoming stream (caller) and the input (listener) must be the same!

If the Editor drops its frame rate well below the one chosen, it will lead to an SRT input buffer overflow. This then causes a rebuild of the videoIO pipeline which will, during rebuild, display “Misconfigured Input Signal”.

The frame rate of the output (caller) and the listener of the stream must be the same!

If the receiver of the output is not able to consume the incoming packets fast enough its SRT receiver buffer will overflow and most likely break the connection.

Ways to send an SRT stream

Pixotope

You can use another Pixotope machine to output an SRT stream.

Learn more about how to Configure routing

FFMPEG

Run ffmpeg as source via command line

CODE

ffmpeg.exe -fflags nobuffer -re -protocol_whitelist file,srt -i <here_input_file> -r 30 -g 30 -b:v 25M -vcodec mpeg4 -f mpegts srt://10.11.36.22:16210

Options used:

-fflags nobuffer- lower latency

-re - realtime playback with frame pacing here defined by -r 30

-i <here_input_file> - input source, may be a file (with path) or a url

-protocol_whitelist file,srt - on some (older or not full build) ffmpeg versions, a manual whitelisting of protocols may be required

-g 30 - GroupOfPictures size, here every the 30th frame is a key frame. Lower value means lower latency but very low values may impact quality whilst using temporal codecs (mpeg4, h264)

-b:v 25M- maximum bitrate used - here 25 MBps - quality versus required bandwidth. If user see frame drops (in the logs) it will cause broken image after decoding (broken macroblocks or whole areas of frame) should try to lower that value

-vcodec mpeg4- recommended codec

-f mpegts- transport format (only mpegts is supported)

srt://10.11.36.22:16210 - target IP and port

Ways to read an SRT stream

Pixotope

You can use the stream as an input to another Pixotope machine.

Learn more about how to Configure routing

VLC (only as Caller)

Open Network
Enter the IP address in the following format: srt://192.168.1.1:16213

FFPLAY

Run ffplay as sink via command line

CODE

ffplay.exe srt://0.0.0.0:16210?mode=listener -framerate 30

Options used:

srt://0.0.0.0:16210 - target port

-framerate 30 - for older versions of ffplay one has to specify the frame rate to secure against buffer overflow

Experimental

File input

File (experimental)

Experimental feature. Use with caution!

Supported video formats: avi, dds, mov, mp4, mpeg, mpegts, ts, webm

Supported image formats: bmp, jpeg, jpg, png, tiff

File input

This allows you to use an image or video file as input.

Go to SETUP > Configure > Routing
Set the Input to File (experimental)
Select the image or video file you want to input
- Playing of the file starts immediately and is played in a loop

Metadata

Extract tracking from stream

To prepare a file with tracking

Create an SRT stream with tracking
- See SRT above for details
Record an SRT stream with embedded audio into a .ts file using for example VLC

Learn more about SDI Audio Embedder

Limitations

No play/pause controls available
The frame rate can not be changed
There is no guarantee of fluent playback. The speed depends on the read rate of your hard drive.

GPU

GPU output (experimental)

Experimental features can be enabled in SETUP > Show > Show settings
Use with caution!

GPU output

This allows you to output to an HDMI output of your graphics card directly. The output is stretched to the whole monitor’s resolution and put in the "background". It can be used seamlessly in a dual monitor setup.

Set the Output to GPU (experimental) in SETUP > Configure > Routing
Use the Output destination to select which output on your graphics card to use
Change the Output format to a custom format if needed

GPU output does not support Genlock