ATEM Mini question

aeh20s

Well-Known Member
I know I've seen that some of us on here are using Blackmagic ATEM video switchers. I was wondering if anyone is using them to feed a large format projector in their space and how far of a run they are doing to get there. I have an old VGA switcher that is quickly becoming obsolete and I would like to upgrade. The ATEM Mini or the Mini Pro seem like the perfect option but of course my control booth is in the back of a 1,000 seat auditorium and we do rear projection on a stage that is about 50' deep. With HDMI only being good at 15' runs, obviously it has to be boosted. Does someone have a favored HDMI to RJ45 convertor that actively boosts the HDMI signal over long runs? Thanks.
 
What resolution and frame rate? Cable run total length (no splices or couplers)?

Does the switcher have to be in the booth? You can remote control it via Stream Deck/Companion and IIRC, Isadora, too. Put the computer(s), switcher, etc back stage and give them their own subnet or VLAN to control via a computer/stream deck in the booth.
 
What resolution and frame rate? Cable run total length (no splices or couplers)?

Does the switcher have to be in the booth? You can remote control it via Stream Deck/Companion and IIRC, Isadora, too. Put the computer(s), switcher, etc back stage and give them their own subnet or VLAN to control via a computer/stream deck in the booth.
We are purely a rental facility so resolution and frame rate are variable. Cable run is about 300'. It would be ideal to have the switcher in the booth as our renters are such that we end up running lights/audio/video with one operator. And seeing as I work at a community college, while a VLAN wouldn't be out of the question, I would be surprised if our IT department would be amenable (or even know how to properly set it up).
 
I'd recommend the mini Pro, if only for the Multi-View output alone. It also does have an internal encoder to generate it's own streams and can record direct to USB.

On the other points, we do have it involved with our projector, but the output does not feed the projector regularly. I have a feed from our booth that splits prior to one of the ATEM inputs. One goes to the ATEM and one goes to a HDMI-Cat5 device and then eventually the projector. Framerate is going to be 60 generally coming from a PC, so it's not an issue for the ATEM. I have routed the output to the projector on the occasion we needed IMAG. The ATEM is parked at our rack and I generally control it via StreamDeck/Companion like Tim said.

Your other option for wiring is to handle your long runs with SDI like Jay said. Our circa 1995 building is wired up with a bunch of RG59 which handles 1080/60 pretty good over SDI. So we picked up a bunch of Decimator converters and I'm able to put a camera or computer wherever.
 

Ok I guess I was wrong. This is the one we got. The nice part is that it does have a HDMI thruput. So the splitter is internal to that device. Cat 5/6 to the projector and HDMI out to the atem. My splitter is on the output side to send the multiview to my booth downstairs.
 
I've used a couple of these successfully over the past year. One cool feature is that they pass power through the cable as well, so you only need one power supply plugged into either the transmitter or the receiver (whichever happens to be more convenient for you).
 
I've used a couple of these successfully over the past year. One cool feature is that they pass power through the cable as well, so you only need one power supply plugged into either the transmitter or the receiver (whichever happens to be more convenient for you).
That looks great but I need something that will push like 100m and that only does 70. Thank you for the suggestion though.
 
That looks great but I need something that will push like 100m and that only does 70. Thank you for the suggestion though.
Is this a billable-to-the-client thing? A works every time solution will be $500-$1000 and involve fibre.
 
That looks great but I need something that will push like 100m and that only does 70. Thank you for the suggestion though.
Ahh, then you're probably getting expensive... although, in theory you could daisy-chain two sets of these for a longer run.

This made me curious, so I did a quick mock-up: I happen to have two runs from my booth to a box onstage with a cable length of about 180' (one-way). Wire in the wall is shielded CAT6 or CAT6A. I put a transmitter and receiver at the stage end and connected them together with a short HDMI cable. At the booth I have a transmitter connected to my laptop and the receiver connected to a monitor with a total of about 360' of cable in between.

Since that didn't break anything, I also tried adding a 100' CAT6A patch cable on one end, so I have 280' out, the TX/RX pair of converters, and 180' back. That works too with no obvious difference in video quality. YMMV, of course, but it does seem possible. I'm not doing any critical testing--just playing a video off Youtube that has a bunch of motion so I could see if there were any obvious stutters or anything like that.

Oh, and I set it up with both power supplies in the booth, so the midspan TX/RX pair doesn't have to be near an outlet.
 
Ahh, then you're probably getting expensive... although, in theory you could daisy-chain two sets of these for a longer run.

This made me curious, so I did a quick mock-up: I happen to have two runs from my booth to a box onstage with a cable length of about 180' (one-way). Wire in the wall is shielded CAT6 or CAT6A. I put a transmitter and receiver at the stage end and connected them together with a short HDMI cable. At the booth I have a transmitter connected to my laptop and the receiver connected to a monitor with a total of about 360' of cable in between.

Since that didn't break anything, I also tried adding a 100' CAT6A patch cable on one end, so I have 280' out, the TX/RX pair of converters, and 180' back. That works too with no obvious difference in video quality. YMMV, of course, but it does seem possible. I'm not doing any critical testing--just playing a video off Youtube that has a bunch of motion so I could see if there were any obvious stutters or anything like that.

Oh, and I set it up with both power supplies in the booth, so the midspan TX/RX pair doesn't have to be near an outlet.
What resolution and frame rate, sent v received?
 
If you scroll down the Monoprice webpage, they have various models available that are rated for various distances (and I assume have prices that vary accordingly). Their top of the line model is listed as being able to transfer 4K @ 60Hz up to 120m.
 
Ahh, then you're probably getting expensive... although, in theory you could daisy-chain two sets of these for a longer run.

This made me curious, so I did a quick mock-up: I happen to have two runs from my booth to a box onstage with a cable length of about 180' (one-way). Wire in the wall is shielded CAT6 or CAT6A. I put a transmitter and receiver at the stage end and connected them together with a short HDMI cable. At the booth I have a transmitter connected to my laptop and the receiver connected to a monitor with a total of about 360' of cable in between.

Since that didn't break anything, I also tried adding a 100' CAT6A patch cable on one end, so I have 280' out, the TX/RX pair of converters, and 180' back. That works too with no obvious difference in video quality. YMMV, of course, but it does seem possible. I'm not doing any critical testing--just playing a video off Youtube that has a bunch of motion so I could see if there were any obvious stutters or anything like that.

Oh, and I set it up with both power supplies in the booth, so the midspan TX/RX pair doesn't have to be near an outlet.
That is good to know too. I'm being a bit cynical saying this but, knowing my facility the install was probably CAT5e in the wall. But who knows.

It looks like we're going to go with a decimator and a home-run SDI cable for our solution though. Thanks everyone for your input.
 

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