Brompton Technology has shared a preview of its third-generation LED video processing at NAB for the first time. Known as the Gen 3 range, it is built on the latest Agilex 7 FPGA technology from Intel and delivers Brompton’s industry-leading functionality, image-quality and reliability, alongside support for the latest video standards.
The first product in the Gen 3 range is the flagship 8K Tessera SQ200 processor, being announced at this year’s show. It follows in the footsteps of the multi-award-winning SX40, delivering the same core feature-set and full backward-compatibility with existing Brompton-powered LED panels, as well as existing XD data distribution units, but now supporting 8K and 4x4K workflows and added support for AV-over-IP protocols such as ST2110 and IPMX. The SQ200 brings a staggering 20-fold increase in power over the SX40, making it the world’s most powerful 8K LED video processor and ensuring ample headroom for many years of continued feature innovation.
Chris Deighton, CTO and co-founder of Brompton Technology notes that Brompton “always seeks to do more than just check boxes – our aim is to deliver products that address the needs of the real world and that are future-proof to ensure great return-on-investment for our customers.” With that in mind, the SQ200 offers 100Gb Ethernet connectivity to support 8K video-over-IP at 60fps and 12bpc over a single cable. There is also a second 100Gb Ethernet input for a fully redundant video-over-IP network, meeting the requirements of Brompton’s most demanding customers.
The ‘200’ in the product name comes from it also having a massive 200Gb of Ethernet bandwidth for output to LED panels. One 100Gb Ethernet link is sufficient to drive an 8K screen at 12bpc and 60fps, with a second 100Gb Ethernet link to support fully redundant cabling. Additionally, new data distribution units support fan-out from 100Gb to 10Gb and to 1Gb Ethernet, allowing connections to existing Tessera R2, R2+, and G1 receiver cards.
Another important innovation is the support for irregular canvas sizes, which can extend up to 64K pixels in either dimension. This capability enables a single processor to handle screens that would have previously required multiple separate units.
“Thanks to its leading-edge Agilex 7 FPGA, the SQ200 sets a new benchmark when it comes to performance and offers new opportunities for feature innovation,” continues Deighton, noting how many features now closely associated with the Tessera SX40 did not exist when the product was first launched. “Things like Dynamic Calibration, support for HDR video, Frame Remapping, ShutterSync and Extended Bit Depth have all been added in free software upgrades, which is an important part of how Brompton brings extra value to its customers. Similarly, the SQ200 gives us an amazing platform for ongoing innovation, and I’m excited about what we will be able to deliver for our customers over the coming years.”
The SQ200 is just the first of several planned products in the Gen 3 range, to cover a variety of price-points and applications. “The guarantee of backwards-compatibility makes it an easy upgrade option for customers looking to enhance their existing LED inventory with new processing capabilities as well as giving them confidence that they will have access to the very latest innovations in LED video for many years to come,” Deighton concluded.
