Blackmagic HDLink and EX1 for HD-SDI out to DVI-D

[Jason Bodnar]

Anyone using a Blackmagic HDLink and EX1 for HD-SDI out to DVI=D in on say a Dell monitor or similar? Just curious of how it looks and or works compared to staying HD-SDI and more expensive monitor. Resolution is still 1920 x 1200 or better on the much cheaper DVI monitors.

Jason

[Jason Bodnar]

A lot of veiws but no responses, Anybody? Should I go with an HDlink or save my 500.00?

[Louis Nel]

Hi Jason,
I was also planning to use an HD-SDI to HDMI converter to monitor off my EX1. However I'm leaning towards the AJA Hi5. My understanding is that the blackmagic HD-Link does not deliver audio in the hdmi signal but the Aja converter does. That would make it a more generally useful device. I was planning to use it also for timeline monitoring during editing and for that you definitely want the audio imbedded in the hdmi signal as well.

...Lou

[Steven Thomas]

First of all, don't spend 500 on the HDLINK. I bought mine from B&H (sponsor) for $399.

It works great with the EX1. It sends your 1080 24P over 60i, so you'll have to remove pulldown. You could use Cineform NEO HD to do this for you.

Here's some info on this using other cameras, but the EX1 would be the same as the other cameras listed. The 24P is encapsulated in 60i (59.94i), known as telecine.
http://www.cineform.com/products/Tec...seTelecine.htm

When I hook the HDLINK directly to my DELL 2405 24" 1920x1080 monitor it looks real sharp and offers the full raster (1:1), but the dell does not offer pulldown. When there is movement with the dell you can see interlace artifacts.

Having said this, using the above mentioned capture method would work great. You could use something like BM Intensity Pro which has analog audio in 24 bit converters.

[Jason Bodnar]

Louis, thanks for the reply. Yes I was wondering about that Audio part and that it does not stay embedded with the HDlink which is not ideal. I will have to take a look at the AJA. I am hoping others have maybe used both and can chime in with their real world experience with these devices.

Steven, good to hear from you. I thought it was you that was using an HDlink. Yers I would buy from B&H so that is a better pricetag. Also, I use Vegas so I would not be using this for capture so the loss of the embedded audio is not that big of an issue. I just want to be able to monitor on a cheaper DVI-D monitor at full rez. The motion issues with the Dell you mention because of Pulldown seems to be a an issue. I will read ove the Cineform link and try and get my head around what will work and what wont.

[Paul Cook]

I've also been looking for a monitoring solution such as this but Im stuck trying to figure out calibration. Ive read a lot on how its ideal for monitoring and coloring but nowhere can I find exactly HOW one can correctly color calibrate the lcd on the end of the HDlink so that the colours are accurate.

Is there some way it works with a spyder or ione display 2 colorimeter as otherwise I simply cant see how you could correctly calibrate it?

Anyone know?

[Louis Nel]

Hi Paul,

I've been doing a "poor man's calibration" with my blackmagic intensity card.
I use a "spyder" like calibrator on my computer monitor to get it right. Then I project the same test image on the computer monitor and out the intesity hdmi to my HD screen. Then I fiddle with the HDTV settings to match it as best as possible. This at least gives me a first approximation to a calibrated big screen. I don't think the intensity card, or those cards in general, can take a picture profile the way a conventional graphics card and computer monitor do.

...Lou

[Steven Thomas]

You can program the BM HDLINK via USB for color adjustments.

I'd like to find the settings for HDLINK to get my Dell 2405 24" monitor a bit closer.
Maybe I should get off my arse and do it myself. LOL!

[Paul Cook]

Hey Guys - see that’s the point Im unclear on - either you do an approximation by eye (never good) or you can 'program' the HDlink given as I understand it it has 1D LUT built in.

BUT as I understand it given every monitor will display incorrect colours and no two are the same - without using something like a spyder WHILE you program the HDlink - how can the HDlink ever know what colors need to be compensated for given your particular monitor?

My understanding is in a normal situation, say Photoshop sends a signal for a red square. It says that square is RED 255 (or whatever) this goes to the graphics card and then onto the monitor. What a spider will do is detect what ACTUAL red the monitor is showing. So by however much it is off (and it always will be) the spyder then adjusts the LUT in the graphics card so that it gets as close to RED 255 as the monitor can ever be. But once you take the monitor of the graphics card – its still the same old incorrect uncalibrated monitor as before you started.

SO the only way it would work is if the spyder can talk to the LUT in the HDlink – OR the HDlink can somehow import the spyder calibrated LUT from the graphics card?

OR perhaps the only other option would be to spring for a high end LCD with an internal LUT - calibrate it - then hook it up to the HDlink?

[Bill Ravens]

The profiles built by the spyder are stored as ICC profiles in the %\WINDOWS\system32\spool\drivers\color directory. It would be nice if this can be exported to the LUT in the HDlink.

[Louis Nel]

While we are on the subject of blackmagic and timeline monitoring, maybe you guys could offer your suggestions based on the following.

I've switched from HDV to XDCAM ex now. For HDV edits I was using a QuadCore PC, Premiere Pro and a black magic intensity card to monitor the timeline on an HDMI TV. What I did not like about this setup was that I was "forced" to use the MJPEG codec mostly just so that I could monitor the timeline with the intensity card.

My new setup is a 8-core Mac Pro and Final Cut Pro. Again I have to figure out how to get an HDMI timeline monitor signal out. I'm hoping (and reading suggests) that if I use the intensity card in that environment I would have a better choice of codecs. Would you suggest working in the prores 422 codec for all the xdcam ex work and getting an hdmi timeline signal as I've suggested or what else?

At this point I would like to keep working compressed (as opposed to uncompressed with a RAID) and also it seems that if I want only an HDMI monitor signal that using an HD-SDI card followed by an SDI-HDMI converter seems like expensive overkill.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

...Lou

[Paul Cook]

Thanks Bill - Ive sent an email to BM in Australia yesterday but as of yet have heard nothing back on the matter.

I sent the same email to BM USA today so once I hear back from someone Ill post it here.

[Paul Cook]

OK I got a reply from BM - basically there are two options depending on what type of monitor you have:

For LCD’s with internal LUT’s:
Calibrate the internal LUT of the monitor via computer and leave the HDlink alone

For LCD’s without LUT’s
Calibrate the LCD via computer and then import the LUT from the O/S into the HDlink itself.

So looks to be doable in any situation. I would still like to hear from someone who has one along with a calibration device and how well the importing LUT's actually works.

For me Im leaning toward purchasing an NEC 2490WUXi which is a 24” wide pro color critical monitor with uniform backlighting, H-ips panel and internal LUT's - all for only $1,100 US ($1,260 AU).

That way you should be covered from location monitoring right up to the most critical color work..least that’s the theory…

[Sean Donnelly]

I'm looking at a similar setup, HDLink Pro and LaCie 324. 1920x1200 and 95% of Adobe RGB color space, with advanced image processing controls. Anyone else heard anything about this one?

-Sean