IP Feed Options for Flex & VIO Servers
IP input support for the Cablecast Flex series allows users to bring in live feeds from remote locations over cost-effective IP networks directly into their Flex server.
This applies to RTP Only Network feed options offered before Cablecast 7.x. For expanded Protocol support, update your Flex server to Cablecast 7.1 or newer.
Cablecast 7.1 and newer systems
New with Cablecast 7.1 and newer on Flex and VIO Systems, you can leverage RTP and more network based inputs, including:
- RTMP
- RTSP
- HLS
Please refer to this KB Article to overview the new options. Feature Overview - Network Streaming With RTP, RTMP, RTSP, HLS and YouTube Live. This current KB article you're on now (below) is also relevant to VIO servers. This knowledge base article is not applicable to the SX family of servers or older.
IP-based workflows are becoming increasingly popular in the media industry for transporting audio and video signals. Its versatility allows for both transport within a single facility or from remote locations. An increasing number of content providers are also streaming live content through social media platforms like Facebook Live and YouTube Live (See Option #2 below).
There are two options available for dealing with these types of digital video streams.
Option 1 - Direct RTP in over a network.The IP input option, Cablecast StreamSource, expands the number of sources that a station can manage with a single Cablecast server. Cablecast Flex 4 already has 4 configurable SDI connections that can be used as inputs or outputs, but with the addition of direct IP contribution your server can add an unlimited number of inputs without consuming any of the baseband I/O. This leaves more availability for channel playout or recording. IP inputs still come with the full Cablecast feature set, including the ability to do live broadcasting, recording, channel branding and live streaming to online and mobile viewers. In this scenario, the user is only required to purchase a StreamSource license ($1,500) and a “source encoder” (either hardware or software) which will generate the IP stream and push it to the Flex server using a network connection (see wiring diagram below).
Here is a technical article on how this RTP encoder would work with your Cablecast Server.
Here is a list of the third-party encoders available to use with our internal, software based decoders.
Make / Model
Website
Nigara GoStream Mini 150
AJA Helo
Haivision Makito Classic
Haivision Makito X
Option 2 - Third Party Encoder/Decoder pairs. In this scenario, the user places an encoder (remote location) and a decoder (head end) on each end of the feed. This third party solution connects to the server through an available video input source on the attached SDI router (see diagram below). If the user is taking a feed from a streaming service, such as YouTube Live, they would simply use the Decoder to convert the IP stream into a usable HD-SDI signal.
Here is a short list of third party encoder/decoder pairs that a number of Cablecast customers use to send and receive streams. As they are third party devices, Cablecast does not provide support and offers this list only as as recommendations.
Make / Model
Website
Comrex LiveShot
Teradek (Cube, Slice, VidiU)
