FAQ SDR Modulator PAL

Q: Is there software included at the RESI SDR Modulator

A:Yes, a software for linux is included

Q. How many cards we can put into one PC ?

A: Two SDR cards is the maximum, because a main part is working in software and needs a high-performance System, like:

- Intel CPU with Quicksync (SD/HD Hardwaredecoding)

- Intel® Core i7-6700K

- Xeon E3-1275-V5

- AMD® Ryzen (A/V-Softwaredecoding)

- Minimum of 8 GB RAM

- One vacant PCIe slot (x4 to x16)

Q: What is needed to run 2 or more modulators in one server.

A: CPU power, memory bandwidth and enough PCIe x4 Slots.

A Xeon E3-1275-v5 sustains 26 channels at 90-95% CPU load.
HT enabled, CPU speed 3.7 GHz, QuickSync, 16 GB Ram using
both memeory channels.
(Without HT this would need a 5 core processor).

Q: Are the E5-26XX processors of the first and higher generation being supported?

A: A Xeon E5 2690 first generation, has 8 cores + HT running @2.9 GHz.
On a dual socket system with memory on all 8 channels it looks like
80 channels is possible.
BUT this figure doesn't include less efficient CPU architecture (alone the
missing AVX2 support gives a big hit) and the additional CPU power
needed for software decoding.

In general we target skylake or newer processors for this reason.

Q: How many input streams are supported in the application ?

A: It is possible to create per card max 16 Transponders, but it’s also depended by system performance !

Q: Is it possible to use UDP/RTP multicast and unicast?

A:Yes, it is possible to input RTP/UDP multicast streams (MPTS or SPTS) also unicast Streams are possible. A sample configuration for multicast streams in the config file for the demodulator would be:

# [MODULATOR]
power: 87
#
[TUNER]
1 mcast: eth0 239.9.2.1 6670
2 mcast: eth0 239.9.2.2 6670
#
[CHANNELS]
K05: 175.25  "Stream 1"              1 28106
K06: 182.25  "Stream 2"              2 28006
#

Q: Is it possible to use MPTS streams (Multiple Program Transport Streams)?

A: Yes this is possible !

Q: Does the software have some input buffer for input streams ?

A: Yes it have !

Q: Does this card support MPEG4/H.264 ?

A: Yes, you can input a H.262 or H.264 Stream. With H.264 streams more CPU performance is needed. Possible that end of performance of the system is reached, before all channels on the SDR is used.

Q: Is it possible to use Streams from DVB Input ?

A: You can use the Digital Devices DVB-C tuner cards (like. DD Max A8i) as source for input the modulated DVB-C Streams from your headend station. In the configuration file it shows like this:

#
# SAMPLE
#
[MODULATOR]
power: 87
#
[TUNER]
1 dvbc: 0 314
2 dvbc: 1 338
3 dvbc: 2 330
4 dvbc: 3 178
5 dvbc: 4 450
6 dvbc: 5 282
7 dvbc: 6 306
8 dvbc: 7 130
[CHANNELS]
K05: 175.25  "Channel 1"              1 28106 100 101 102 104
K06: 182.25  "Channel 2"              2 28006 100 110 120 130
K07: 189.25  "Channel 3"              1 28111 600 601 602 604
.
.
.
 

Q: Is this card made for 24/7 working environment ?

A: Yes, it is designed for running in self build headends 24/7 as long your system is designed for this.

Our recommendation:
http://www.fujitsu.com/global/products/computing/peripheral/mainboards/industrial-mainboards/d34462s.html
with a Xeon E3-1275-V5, 16GB ECC, SSD.
This will support 26 PAL Channels from a H.262 (MPEG2) SD Source.

Q: Do I need Quicksync support in the processors?

A: No, But keep in mind that software decoding requires additional CPU power.
We have currently no figure for that.