@av pro's what do i need to connect multiple (10+) screens ?

[benz0]

Hi all,

At my workplace (nonprofit) we use a large meeting room for conferences.

In those meetings we rent a large projector, large screens and some smaller displays (for chairman etc). Basically we're paying through the nose for renting the gear and want to buy a basic set up to use each time instead of renting. We will go through a pro AV integrator to do this but before we begin making appointments i want to figure out exactly what type of gear we need as im not very hot on pro av terminology yet.

We would need to be able to do the following:

1) easily move the gear in and out of the room (fixed installation not possible so i'm thinking screens on trolleys)
2) set up two different groups of screens
3) switch between the two groups of screens showing the same feed or each group showing a different feed (e.g. a video on group 1 and PowerPoint slide on group 2)

Connect easily with variety of different inputs due to attendees bringing their own devices

All feedback gratefully received.

[benz0]

Hi there,
VC not required, it's all just in person discussion and presentations.

[benz0]

hornmeister said:

You need a computer (Likely desktop) that can run dual external displays.
Most reasonable desktops can do this with the onboard graphics but I'd recommend getting one with on-board graphics and an add in card to give you more power and flexibility.

I personally have a computer with 2 separate graphics cards The on board graphics can support 2 separate displays and each card can support 2 separate displays so that's 6 different screens in all.

Then it's just a case of getting monitor splitters for the number of screens you wish to drive on each output. Anything more than 2 and I'd recommend an active box rather than just splitter cables.

Assuming you're going HDMI then something like 2 of these 4 way jobs should do.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ports-Powered-Splitter-Su...


I reckon £4-500 for the pc.
£100 for 2x splitter boxes and a load of hdmi cables
and then Amazon are jobbing out Philips 18" monitors at £65 quid each at the moment.

Edited by hornmeister on Wednesday 11th July 12:43

That's not what im after sorry. Picture there being two different attendees both with their own laptops. Each one is outputting their own video feed into (presumably) a matrix splitter/switch

[benz0]

TheRainMaker said:

It won't be cheap to do it properly, below will give you a starting point.

Switcher - Barco E2 Jr https://www.barco.com/en/product/e2-jr#specs
Screens - Panasonic https://business.panasonic.co.uk/visual-system/pro...
Stands - Unicol https://www.unicol.com/Results-html.aspx?w4id=WMR0...
Distribution - Kramer https://www.kramerav.com/Product/VM-12HDCP
Cat 5 extenders transmitter - Kramer https://www.kramerav.com/Product/PT-571HDCP
Cat 5 extenders receiver - Kramer https://www.kramerav.com/Product/PT-572HDCP+
Cables - VDC trading https://www.vdctrading.com

Who you would go to get the training I have no idea

Very helpful thanks. At the moment we are renting the gear and its costing a stack. Based on current rental charges i think we're looking at quite a quick break even point if we own or lease the gear instead.

In any case, we would go through an AV integrator and contractor to have them maintain and operate the gear.. It's just the rental and time spent wiring up the room thay we are getting screwed on hence the preference to streamline the setup/own or lease the gear.

I'm also now looking at flexible meeting furniture that would have the AV interfaces and cabling built into them. Any recommendations for manufacturers and integrators for that kind of stuff appreciated.

Edited by benz0 on Friday 13th July 20:03

[benz0]

VEX said:

I doubt Richer Sounds would be able to help, there B2B teams are still very much focused on selling screens and projectors and less about the custom distribution of the video.

From what you have discribed, I would say you really need an IP based system to give you complete flexability throughout the building which will allow you to have both transmitters (PC's sending in images) and receivers (Screens displaying the images) distributed throughout the building, then a central control system to switch which to where etc. They even allow you to display multiple images in a video tile / wall layout with multiple screens displayed in one.

These are starting to appear in larger hi end homes and yatchs now.

Those that come to mind are:
justaddpower (the inovators of the format)
Wyrestrom
BlueStream
also look at CYP and Kramer, but they tend to be a little more pricey.

However, you spec is far to wide / woolly at the moment and you would desperately need to see several AV Integrators or employ a AV Specifier to help you get the kit list together before going out to market.

HTH

V.

Thanks. To be clearer about what exactly I'm after:

Inputs: up to 6 simultaneous sources (mostly a mixture of laptops and sometimes VC.
Input connectivity: HDMI, VGA, Displayport, weird apple st etc.

Output connectivity: HDMI into HDBaseT or Hd over IP

Output feed: three separate simultaneous feeds to 3 groups of screens (or ability to create groups from the screens on the fly)

Additional options: two input feeds split screen onto one output feed (e.g. video conference and PowerPoint side by side on one monitor)

Displays - probably around 40 x 24" monitors fitted on twin arm mounts on participant's desks, along with a few larger free standing lcds (less than 10).

Resolution: 1080p minimum but perhaps 4k support in the distribution gear might be worth it.

Other notes - will be used alongside an interpretation system. Not sure to what extent the two systems can be combined in terms of reducing cabling when using video over ip etc.

[benz0]

So I've taken a look and our current rental contractor is using the following setup:

- Analog Way mixer/matrix
- HDMI - SDI converter/amplifier
- Kramer HDMI distribution Amplifier
- Mixture of large free standing and smaller screens.

Surprised to see they are even using commercial TV screens instead of professional grade displays.

Next step I guess is to start contacting integrators. Essentially we want to keep things simple but at the same time I am drawn to the idea of having a more sophisticated control solution for the monitors using HD over IP. We would need to have the flexibility that the Analog way box provides though, i.e. allowing us to connect in all manner of video inputs.

[benz0]

TheRainMaker said:

I would avoid anything over IP in a live mobile environment.

Can't go wrong with SDI or direct CAT5 senders and receivers.

I also won't bother with 4K at the moment, the switcher might be able to cope with it, but that will be about it, cable runs will also be a nightmare.

Noted - thank you. Out of interest - why would the cable runs be a nightmare with 4k? Why would it be different to sending 1080p across something like an SDI system? Is it because of lack of standardisation with 4k?

[benz0]

megaphone said:

OP where are you based?

I'm on the continent (fled the UK a few years ago)

[benz0]

Mr Pointy said:

The first thing you need to do is define your sources & destinations. How many sources, & what format. How many screens, what size & what input format. The sensible thing to do is to convert everything to a single format - maybe HDMI if the majority of sources are PC or laptop. Why is SDI involved? Do you have broadcast sources?

Most AV places use domestic screens because 'professional' ones offer little or no practical advantage. You might have a slot you can plug an SDI input card into but it's an expensive option. The biggest issue with screens is the model going out of production so you can't get an exact replacement & that's true of professional screens as well. They're basically disposable items so it makes sense to use the cheapest.

Many thanks. Re. sources and screens:

Sources:

1) Primarily multiple windows and Mac Laptops. Variety of resolutions and connectivity (HDMI, Displayport, VGA, DVI, Apple etc). Will usually be 1080p landscape extended desktop. Occasionally portrait will be needed instead.
2) (very occasionally a Lifesize video conferencing unit)


Screens:

1) 40 ish 24' LCD monitors split into either two or three groups. Normally in landscape but sometimes in portrait. Imagine each table having up to 3 monitors side by side displaying three separate feeds.
2) up to 8 x 40 - 70" LCD monitors freestanding. Split into groups as per the above - normally just used as background screens repeating what is on the desktop monitors (for instance sometimes we don't want to lay out small screens for everyone and use a few big screens instead). Normally in landscape but sometimes in portrait.

Re. SDI - I think this is used due to the number of screens and the transmission distance as it is quite big room (about 35m by 20m). There are no broadcast sources, just a large number of participants in a conference room type environment. Reliability is key.

Re. domestic / professional screens - I had not realised this - so thanks. I had thought there might be additional benefits to professional screens for issues like brightness, glare, ruggedness (will be trolley mounted). But I suppose cheap and disposable works too.

Edited by benz0 on Monday 23 July 11:10

Edited by benz0 on Monday 23 July 11:11

Edited by benz0 on Monday 23 July 11:11

[benz0]

TheRainMaker said:

There are actually a fair few reasons to use professional screens IMO.

They are designed to be used for much longer periods of time.
They will work with a much bigger range of resolutions (which you might think you won't need, but sometimes you will).
They are designed with robustness in mind.
They will have more input options.
Domestic screens won't be as bright as a general rule.
You will lose any warranty you have with a domestic screen as soon as you use it for commercial work. (not sure how they would find out though)

The only time the companies (including us) I know use domestic screens will be if someone wants a TV, other than that it's pro stuff.

Thank you. For the bigger screens, I was thinking about something like this:

http://www.theflightcasecompany.com/motorised-tv-l...

As we will need to move the big screens in and out of the room, up ramps etc. Seems to be perfect in terms of protecting the screen whilst moving it and when not in use (compared with a wheeled stand), and saving time when setting up and packing away.

Anyone have any experience of these types of products?

Edited by benz0 on Monday 23 July 12:01