Magewell will use the 2017 NAB Show as the launch pad for its new Flex I/O family
of PCIe input-output cards. Extending the company’s highly-regarded video capture
hardware benefits and expertise to playout applications for the first time, the Flex
I/O series continues Magewell’s hallmarks of superior quality, reliability and cost-
effectiveness. The Flex I/O line will make its public debut in booth SU12813 at the
show, taking place April 24-27 in Las Vegas.
The first model in the new product line, the Flex I/O SDI 4i2o, features four input
channels and two output channels with 3Gbps SDI interfaces. The Flex I/O SDI 4i2o
supports frame sizes up to 2048×1080 — including 2K digital cinema specifications
and HD video formats such as 1080p60 — plus 16 channels of embedded audio in
each SDI signal. Input channels, as well as the two outputs, can be paired for dual-
link SDI connectivity.
All inputs and outputs can be used at the same time with independent resolutions,
frame rates and processing settings, maximizing user flexibility. Each input channel
can also be routed to multiple software applications simultaneously, enabling
concurrent tasks such as live streaming, recording, preview and playout all from a
single PCIe card. While the six independent channels already provide exceptional
I/O density, multiple cards can coexist flawlessly in the same system for even
higher channel-count uses.
Like Magewell’s renowned Pro Capture cards, the Flex I/O family offers 10-bit,
FPGA-based video processing, providing high-quality video adjustments, scaling,
deinterlacing, graphic overlay and more while maximizing CPU availability for third-
party software. FPGA-based up- and down-conversion enables video to be output in
a different format than originally produced without requiring manipulation by the
playout software, while similar functionality on the input channels enables format
conversion during capture without tasking the host system CPU.
The Flex I/O series also retains all of the powerful attributes that have helped make
the Pro Capture family the preferred choice of video professionals, systems
integrators and OEM developers for ingest applications, including 4:4:4, 4:2:2 and
4:2:0 colour space support, and ultra-low latency as little as 64 video lines. The
new Flex I/O SDI 4i2o can also extract timecode and obtain ancillary data from SDI
input signals.
Flex I/O cards will initially be available with drivers for Windows and Linux
operating systems, with Mac OS X support following shortly thereafter. The Flex I/O
family will be compatible with popular APIs such as DirectShow and V4L2, while a
comprehensive SDK will enable third-party developers to directly take advantage of
the cards’ full advanced feature set and unique capabilities.
Engineering samples of the Flex I/O SDI 4i2o will be available to select customers
and partners for testing in Q2, with general availability slated for the following
quarter. Additional Flex I/O models, including an HDMI configuration, are planned
for later this year. For more information about Magewell, please visit
www.magewell.com.
