Reel-Stream Andromeda: Record 4:4:4 36-bit Uncompressed on your DVX

P

pertierr

Well-known member
Hello,

I am pleased to announce that ReelStream will debut the final form of the Andromeda device at NAB2005.

The Andromeda device, when installed on the DVX-100(A), allows the user to record the pristine Uncompressed video right after it is digitized from the CCD's and before it is altered or degraded by any of the in-camera processes. This results in Uncompressed color content of up to 4:4:4 RGB and 36-bit precision, a dramatic increase in dynamic range(latitude), and frame resolutions utilizing all the available CCD surface area, up to 720P HD by making use of the physical pixel shift inherent in the camera hardware.

The final price will be announced during NAB, and it will be under the price of a new DVX with huge discounts for hardware beta testers. We are scheduled to begin installations after NAB.

Please stay tuned to www.reel-stream.com for more information, and a major webpage update coming up next week.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me directly: Juan@reel-stream.com

Cheers,
Juan P. Pertierra
 
Interesting ... another option available to us all. Will look forward to what you will have available.
 
Great stuff Juan. For a while, I thought that your project was on hold. It's great news indeed. Can't wait to see it in action.
 
Hummm, I am confused now. Shall I buy the new HVX or shall I upgrade my dvx with andromeda?
This is hard choice.

Once again, I am curious to hear from those attending NAB 2005.

All the best

Fidel.
 
Great stuff, Juan. Can't wait to see the new website. Anyone at NAB: Please check this out and report your experiences. This seems like a great upgrade to the DVX, instead of having to buy a brand new camera.

Juan, does the Andromeda work with the original DVX100 (non-A) ?
 
I would think that it would be in fact *better* to use a DVX100 rather than the 100A. My understanding is that the Reelstream bypasses all the in-camera processing like gamma curves and what not, so it would be cheaper and make more sense to use a 100. That is, if the 100 can be used with Andromeda. ~reservoir~
 
I wonder how much something like this will cost...I'm intrigued.

What would the data rate be?
 
Yes, it will work with both the A and non-A versions. The Andromeda output is the same because both cameras are identical up to the A/D converters.

The data rate is configurable. That is you can take your pick from sampling patterns from 4:1:1 up to 4:4:4, and color precision from 24-bits up to 36-bits in both log and linear. One interesting note is that the data rate does not change whether you are targetting HD or SD because all the information from the 3 CCD's is recorded anyway.

About the cost, it will be announced during NAB(will be posted on the webpage the same day), but like I said it will be under the market price for a DVX100A. If you become a hardware beta tester then the price will be about half of the full price.

Cheers,
Juan
 
We will be putting up a form on our website during NAB that anyone can fill out to apply for hardware beta testing.

Cheers,
Juan
 
My question is...since the andromeda system bypasses all the in camera settings, and the viewfinder of the dvx will not show an accurate read out of what the final image that the andromeda will record looks like, how are we to get an accurate lighting and dof preview? Is the only option to use a laptop and the SculptorHD program during recording?
 
... What about a GL1? Would it work with that? Also, do the NLE's support it? What's it recorded onto? Tape? Laptop HDD? I'm very interested, and yes, I will be attending NAB next week. I'll try to keep everyone informed! ^_^
 
Hello,

About the exposure/scene setup:

Keep in mind that the whole concept of Andromeda is to give you access to the full capabilities of the hardware. Since the output has an increased dynamic range, and color precision, there are several ways in which you can use the system.

For example, some people are interested in having a DV tape backup no matter what. For this case, you can have the tape running while you use Andromeda, and expose just as if you where exposing for DV tape. Andromeda has a logarithmic mode which exploits all the detail in the dynamic range normally used by DV, while still using the full dynamic range of the CCD. This gives the same levels as DV, but with all the advantages of uncompressed undecimated footage and increased latitude: no artifacts, increased resolution, incredibly reduced(many times eliminated) highlights, sharp and smooth color, etc.

You can also expose such that you use the full dynamic range of Andromeda, in say, a linear color mode. In this case, you are right...the DV viewfinder will look overexposed, but in my experienced it is still usefull for rough scene alignment. For careful exposure settings, the computer to which Andromeda is hooked up to provides a real-time preview of the raw data, which allows you to expose for the raw footage correctly.

It records to whatever medium you have on your computer/laptop that will handle the data rate selected. For example, we are running a unit right now that runs at 18MB/sec uncompressed. We can easily stream this to any 5400RPM hard drive, and even the newer super-tiny external firewire drives that power from the firewire bus. It's up to the user to decide where the data goes.

About formats, the original 'take' files contain all the uncompressed information for the selected decimation, color precision, etc. Our included software, SculptorHD, allows the user to preview, do some adjustments and export in a multitude of formats, from individual frame images in any popular image format, to clips in any of the formats that is supported by Quicktime PRO(Final Cut Pro, Shake, etc).

So for example, you can take your 4:4:4 footage, color corrected uncompressed, and then do a final export to, say, DVCPRO50 or DVCPROHD, depending on what you want. If you are going to film you probably want to create a lean set of editing clips encoded in DV or some other small format, as well as individual uncompressed frames(DPX, Cineon, TIFF, etc) to do the final output using an EDL.

The possibilities are endless, we just give you all the data and you then mold it to fit your vision.

Hope this helps,
Juan
 
what about a warranty?

what about a warranty?

it sounds awesome, but what's going to happen to my warranty? will you be providing your own warranty?
 
Juan,

I think it would be fair to let everyone know there are currently only two monitors on the market that will display a 4:4:4 RGB image natively.

Every single other display currently manufactured converts the native 4:4:4 RGB signal to a form it can work with. During conversion to a less advantageous format, much of the original color information is lost. The Sony is $40,000.00 and the Barco is $47,000.00.

brian wells
from a family of Purdue graduates and professors : )
 
Juan what sort of affect does changing the response between logarithmic and linear have on the footage besides the exposure difference? Why would we want to use linear if our eyes are logarithmic?
 
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