10October

HDBaseT – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

By Abrie du Plooy (Electrosonic SA’s NEC and GALAXY Product Manager)

Recently Kramer Electronics joined forces with Valens, the brains behind HDBaseT. The HDBaseT technology was originally developed by Valens, who formed an HDBaseT alliance (with Samsung Electronics, Sony Pictures Entertainment, and LG Electronics) to contribute to the development of the technology.

Valens is situated just around the corner from Kramer Electronics, and Kramer was hugely involved in the development of the technology, as were some big AV brands. Many AV brands have adapted their product specifications to be HDBaseT compliant.

Electrosonic SA invited Nick Mawer (from Kramer Electronics, UK) and Eli Ofek (from Valens) to tell us more about this amazing technology. What follows is a summary of their expert explanations.

What is HDBaseT?

HDBaseT is the new standard for uncompressed Digital Connectivity. It utilises a 5Play system: a signal that combines 5 elements onto a single Cat5 cable over 100 meters.

The 5 Play Components are:

Video

Full HD/3D 7 2K/4K uncompressed video
Supports all HDMI 1.4 standards
Multi-streaming Capability
CEC, EDID, HDCP and more supported
Highest video quality with Zero Latency

Audio

Digital Audio directly from HDMI chipset
All standards are supported, e.g. Dolby Digital, DTS, TrueHD, Dolby Pro Logic, Liz 7.1 & 9.1 and more.

Ethernet

Standard 100BaseT Ethernet supported
Fall back to standard Ethernet mode

Control

Dedicated Control Channel
Consumer Electronic Controls (CEC), RS-232, USB and Infrared supported

Power

Transmission of up to 100W of DC power
Can Power devices such as 60" displays
In line with Energy-Star standard
No power outlet required

These are the different specification versions:

Spec 1.0

Point to point

Integrated support for a single HDMI stream and 100Mb

Ethernet

CIR/UART support via continuous oversampling
Active/stand-by modes of operation (LPPF1/LPPF2)

Spec 1.1

Supports power over HDBaseT (PoH)

Spec 2.0

Switch/Network/Control-Point definitions
Multi-Stream support
USB 2.0, SP-Dif, IR/UART integrated support
Flexible A-Symmetric/Partial Link configurations

In short HDBaseT allows you to install a display device 100m from a source device and connect a single cable to send HD signals and power.

Why HDBaseT?

HDBaseT is an approved standard that has been adopted by many players in the industry. It's an elegant, single-cable connection with zero cable clutter. HDBaseT eliminates many multiple cable and cable distance challenges. HDBaseT can be distributed in any AV solution, whether residential, corporate, or hospitality, with a simple HDBaseT network switch - and one does not need separate power. It's especially popular for video distribution in various modes of transport applications. HDBaseT can be used as a single wire system point-to-point, or a multi-connection system. HDBaseT can be daisy chained between devices, with up to 100M between displays.

What is the next step?
Firstly, Look for the HDBaseT Logo. Many of the industry's leading brands have already adopted the technology, including Kramer Electronics, Crestron and NEC. Research the supplier's range of technologies and select a product that provides the solution. Read the vendor's collaterals for any disclaimers regarding required functionality. And lastly, test the products in a real-life working situation.

So what are you waiting for?

Electrosonic SA has many products in our arsenal that are already prepared for HDBaseT transmission and decoding. Should you need more information call our office and speak to one of our product managers.

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Posted in AV News