Blackmagic Design has announced a trio of new ATEM SDI switchers, the ATEM SDI, ATEM SDI Pro ISO and ATEM SDI Extreme ISO.
The new units, which Blackmagic says are designed for video content creators who need both portability and power, are designed to be easy to use and quick to set-up.
Despite their smaller size, Blackmagic has packed a lot of features in to these switchers.
Some of these include, standards converters on all inputs, a built in Fairlight audio mixer with 6 band parametric EQ, compressor and limiter on all inputs, internal DVEs, chroma keyers, professional transitions and more.
Both the ATEM SDI and ATEM SDI Pro ISO models feature four SDI inputs while the largest of the three, the ATEM SDI Extreme ISO model, boasts eight.
The SDI inputs on all three models feature standards converters and support DVEs for picture in picture effects.
Each 3G-SDI video input features its own dedicated standards converter, meaning that ATEM SDI automatically converts 1080p, 1080i and 720p sources to the switcher video standard.
On the ATEM SDI model, USB works as a webcam when connecting a video source to a computer, while the Pro and Extreme models feature built in streaming over ethernet without the need to connect to a computer.
The all-in-one design on all models includes a control panel as well as connections.
The front panel includes easy to use buttons for selecting sources, video effects and transitions as well as buttons for audio mixing.
The ATEM SDI Pro and and larger Extreme models feature buttons for recording and streaming control, as well as output selection allowing users to change the video output between program, direct camera feeds and multiview.
On the back are the SDI connections for cameras, extra microphone inputs, USB for webcam plus multiple SDI “aux” outputs for program video, with the number and type of connections varying depending on the model.
Blackmagic says that all connected video sources will re-sync to the switcher, even if they operate at different video standards.
Both the ATEM SDI Pro and ATEM SDI Extreme models feature a built-in hardware streaming engine that allows them to live stream to their streaming favourite platform via their ethernet connections.
ATEM Software Control features palettes for streaming setup, and streaming status, and in the Multiview, there is a data rate indicator that shows the internet speed required for the video format in use.
For live production on location, both the SDI Pro and Extreme models support connecting an Apple or Android phone to the USB port to use mobile data when an ethernet connect is unavailable.
Both models also support direct recording of streaming data to USB flash disks, providing the ability to record in the same H.264 video files with AAC audio that was original streamed for later upload to a video site such as YouTube or Vimeo. Both models also support recording to multiple disks via a USB hub allowing for continuous recording to a secondary drive if the first one fills up.
The SDI Pro ISO or Extreme ISO models, are capable of recording multiple video steams, including clean feeds of all inputs and program, which can then be edited and broadcast during a live event.
Media pool images and audio sources are also saved with the video files, including metadata tags such as synced timecode and camera numbers.
The ISO models will save a DaVinci Resolve project file, that can load all cuts, dissolves and media pool graphics allowing users to fine tune edit points or even completely replace shots.
Using the DaVinci Resolve Sync Bin lets users edit shots via the multiview interface, with all ISO files automatically aligned by timecode.
The ATEM SDI Extreme model includes four independent upstream chroma keyers allowing users to build virtual sets for up to four different cameras.
Its two independent DVEs are combined with a SuperSource multi layer processor offering four extra DVE layers plus a background layer, that can be layered together over a media pool custom background.
The ATEM SDI Pro and ATEM SDI Extreme models also include a professional multiview, allowing users to view all video inputs, preview and program on a single SDI monitor.
ATEM SDI Switchers Features
