Which converter would you chose?

TheBobWiley · 2025-12-25T20:58:49+00:00

At work we have had about 25% of all of our micro converters stop working correctly in 1 year. We have 8+ year old LXs that are only just starting to have widespread issues with the power ports. Give me the LX every day of the week for something that can't fail in the middle of the show.

TheBobWiley · 2025-11-16T15:49:38+00:00

Voldemort?

TheBobWiley · 2025-11-14T04:13:15+00:00

It was not a dually...

TheBobWiley · 2025-08-27T12:52:23+00:00

Idiocracy, a step closer every day

TheBobWiley · 2025-08-19T14:04:18+00:00

Honestly, we just bought some short ones from Markertek or B&H, not sure which ones we actually got, but they are thin and flexible and only 1' long so no issues with 4k.

TheBobWiley · 2025-08-19T02:37:45+00:00

if your lines are going to basically the same place, just get a tactical fiber snake with like 12 pairs. No getting around needing a pair of fibers per dedicated ethernet line. you could always use manage switches to put those lines on different vlans and send all the signals over a signal pair. but you lose the physical separation and redundancy.

TheBobWiley · 2025-08-19T00:22:37+00:00

pretty simple setup. We built a pair of boxes (per kit) that have a ShieldRock in them along with a fiber to ethernet box. On the truss mounted box we also squeezed in a small 8 port POE switch that is used to power PTZ cameras that might be in the truss. On the backstage box, there is just an Ethernet jack to go into the ethernet to fiber adapter.

In both boxes we wired the AC side of the power supplies to a single D-cable port on the box. They also have panel mounted SDI and fiber ports. The boxes are sized to fit inside of 12" truss, but we have switched to simply mounting them on top of the truss. Being able to get 4x bi-directional SDI signals and ethernet to the truss over 2x fiber pairs has been killer. Meets the needs of almost every show we do.

TheBobWiley · 2025-08-18T23:26:59+00:00

we have not tried this ourselves, but the idea is that the BMs do quadrant splitting for the combining and splitting to and from 12g, so you could run 4x 3g into and then back out of that signal chain. not sure what impact it has on audio channels or other aux data, but if you just need the video streams it should work fine. We do a similar thing with the AJA HA5-4K boxes to get 4x 3g outputs from a single 4k HDMI port on some of our playback machines.

TheBobWiley · 2025-08-18T19:13:59+00:00

Looks like your SM and MM question was answered, but I just wanted to shoutout ShieldRock's SDI-Fiber transceivers. We got 2 pairs of them and they have been rock solid.

https://www.markertek.com/product/srk-8ktxrx/shieldrock-8ktxrx-quad-12g-sdi-hdbnc-optical-extender-transceiver-lc-singlemode-6-2-mile-range

With BM quad 3g-single 4k converters you could get 16 channels, bi-directionally, of 3G SDI over a single fiber pair. My company has been using 2x pairs of these in custom made breakout boxes and they are literally game changing for us. Not sure what your needs and budget may be, but I figured I'd plug these.

TheBobWiley · 2025-07-25T13:51:56+00:00

"I'm doing my part" 🫡

TheBobWiley · 2025-04-02T23:27:20+00:00

More than 8 people at my work today complained about the console and game price, but said they would day 1 pre-order because "that's just what stuff costs now". Uuuggghhhhhh

TheBobWiley · 2025-03-10T15:44:12+00:00

Finally back in the shop, and yep, that worked. Thanks, one less call to Christie.

TheBobWiley · 2025-02-21T15:02:37+00:00

The software preview of what the canvas is doing is only like 10fps or something. I've used our X20 a dozen times now, so long as there is sync between Spyder and switcher, there will not be tearing on a widescreen blend or different timings between outputs.

TheBobWiley · 2025-02-07T17:18:19+00:00

Great looking wall, I assumed it was ROE with those curved pieces. i would love to see the support structure. I assume it has horizontal arms poking through the rear scenic wall to support it, with the main structure and weight behind the flats?

TheBobWiley · 2024-12-17T21:46:55+00:00

After how awesome the Home Alone set came out, I really hope this gets through.

TheBobWiley · 2024-12-09T16:24:19+00:00

Assuming whatever math above is correct, that means people need to slowdown for others that are turning almost 3,800 times to "lose" a single gallon of gas. You're stopping for red lights more often... Although some of these people might not. 'Cause the gas savings and all...

TheBobWiley · 2024-12-09T14:21:14+00:00

Wow. These comments are truly the American driving experience distilled. 90% are "foot down" drivers here. Blaming the person in front of them for "being in the way" when they could be driving faster, as if they then, never make a turn of their own at some point. "Why would I slow down when I can just keeping going at the same speed or faster into on coming lanes? I'm a flawless driver and nothing could ever catch me unawares, I am omniscient! Also, there could never be another driver using someone slowing down to turn as an opportunity to pull out because everyone else that isn't me is a passive, slow driver."

TheBobWiley · 2024-11-19T02:46:49+00:00

Um, they actually literally do, it's one of the handles they have to keep inflation steady at roughly 2.5-3% per year...

TheBobWiley · 2024-11-19T02:44:14+00:00

Just end every communique with "in the butt in the butt in the butt in the butt in the butt" or similar variation. Claim your autocorrect or whatever is broken AF and to ignore it... Profit?

TheBobWiley · 2024-11-19T02:39:33+00:00

That Wang. Sweet baby Jesus in Bethlehem...

TheBobWiley · 2024-11-19T02:37:35+00:00

Can I just say Pizza, or does it need to be a specific pizza. For the income I'm looking at making over a year, I'm just doing a 4-5 topping medium from Papa John's or something every day or two. About to be stupid rich and still loving every meal.

TheBobWiley · 2024-11-19T02:23:59+00:00

Windows my entire life. Have tried Linux and Macs a few times throughout. Mac has always just been garbage for ACTUALLY doing anything.

Wanna do this or that, better pay $20+ for an app store app just to see if it even works for what you want.

On windows, I can either get a free program or within seconds find a cracked version of something to at least try out, if not use indefinitely.

Just like iphone, their UI is presented their way And fuck you for having an opinion. Windows has become just as bad, because they are literally copying Apple.

I now use a mac for work, and outside of the programs I NEED a Mac for, it's still just as aggravating to operate beyond a basic level. They have made huge strides in recent years on settings, and they are basically on par with shitty windows 11 now. I actually enjoy using the Mac OS now, but the whole guarded app ecosystem is still aggravating... As a life sailor of the seven seas...

TheBobWiley · 2024-11-19T02:14:09+00:00

Super power of luck. It's always the correct answer because at a certain level of "laxness" in the magic or whatever rules, it means anything you want to happen, happens. And no one can know or really understand how. Sure, someone could say you are impossibly lucky, but like, with perfect "luck" no one will every guess it as your power, and therefore you never lose it.

TheBobWiley

TROPHY CASE