> This page is for Beam. > For clean Markdown of any page, append .md to the page URL. > For a complete documentation index, see https://mediakind.ferndocs.com/llms.txt. > For AI client integration (Claude Code, Cursor, etc.), connect to the MCP server at https://mediakind.ferndocs.com/_mcp/server. # Tech Specs ## Compressed Input ### IP input * Type: IP (IGMPv3-based redundancy and dual multicast redundancy) * Protocols: MPEG Transport Stream (SPTS, MPTS), RTP / UDP, RTMP, SMPTE ST 2022-7 * Bitrate: Constant Bitrate (CBR) * Error Correction: ProMPEG FEC ### Reliable transport * Input: IP based * Protocols: SRT, RIST and Zixi SRT and RIST input * Carriage of UDP or RTP streams over the SRT protocol * SRT listener or caller mode * RIST sender mode * RIST listener mode Zixi input * Zixi sender * Zixi feeder or Zixi Receiver mode ### Satellite input * Standards: DVB-S, DVB-S2, DVB-S2X * Hardware requirements: Requires one or more of the following cards 2-port satellite demodulator option card with 3G-SDI/ASI output (Dektec DTA-2127) MediaKind marketing code: * MKP/HWO/DEMODSDI (Dektec DTA-2127 DVB-S2X Quad Receiver with 3G-SDI/ASI Output) The Dektec DTA-2127 option card has 2 x RF input ports. Currently MK.IO Beam only supports configuring one tuner/demodulator per RF input. Features: * Frequency range: L-band (950 – 2150 MHz) * Standards: DVB-S, DVB-S2, DVB-S2X * Modulation schemes: QPSK, 8PSK, 16APSK and 32APSK * Connector: 2 x F-type 75 ohm Each connector allows 1x independent tuner/demodulator powered by a single LNB control * Long FEC Frame only 4-port satellite demodulator option card (Digital Devices SX8) MediaKind marketing code: * MKP/HWO/PCI/SAT/DEMOD (Digital Devices SX8 Satellite Demod) The Digital Devices SX8 is only available as a full-height PCIe card and is therefore limited to servers such as the C-series. Features: * Frequency range: L-band (950 – 2150 MHz) * Standards: DVB-S, DVB-S2, DVB-S2X * Modulation schemes: QPSK, 8PSK, 16APSK, 32APSK and 64APSK * Connector: 4 x F-type 75 ohm Each connector allows 2x independent tuners/demodulators that share a single LNB control Mixing both types of satellite demodulator cards within the same server is not supported. ### ASI input * Standards: DVB-ASI * Hardware requirements: Requires one or more of the following cards 4-port ASI/SDI option card (Dektec DTA-2174B) MediaKind marketing code: * MKP/HWO/PCI/SDI/DTA (Dektec 2174B SDI/ASI) Features: * Port configurations: 4x ASI input/output * Connector: micro BNC 75 ohms 8-port ASI/SDI option card (Dektec DTA-2178) MediaKind marketing code: * MKP/HWO/PCI/SDI/8 (Dektec 2178 SDI/ASI) Features: * Port configurations: 8x ASI input/output * Connector: micro BNC 75 ohms ### Input redundancy * Dual source redundancy: Active Passive (one-hit); Active Active (one-hit); Active Active (switch on failure) Supported across input types e.g. Primary satellite input, Secondary (Backup) IP input * IP redundancy protocols: SMPTE ST 2022-7 Seamless protection switching ## Video decoding * Video codecs: MPEG-2, H.264, HEVC, JPEG-XS * Supported resolutions: 480i, 576i, 720p, 1080i, 1080p, 2160p * Chroma: 4:2:0 and 4:2:2 * Bit depth: 8-bit and 10-bit (codec-dependent) Video formats and decoding standards | Resolution | Frame Rate | Chroma | MPEG-2 | H.264 | HEVC | JPEG-XS (4:2:2 only) | | ---------- | ----------------------------------- | ------------ | ------ | ----- | ---- | -------------------- | | 2160p | 23.98, 24, 25, 29.97, 50, 59.94 fps | 4:20 / 4:2:2 | | | ✔ | ✔ | | 1080p | 50, 59.94 fps | 4:20 / 4:2:2 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | | 1080i | 25, 29.97 fps | 4:20 / 4:2:2 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | | 720p | 50, 59.94 fps | 4:20 / 4:2:2 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | | 576i | 25 fps | 4:20 / 4:2:2 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | | | 480i | 29.97 fps | 4:20 / 4:2:2 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | | Full video width scaling Horizontally subsampled video is automatically rescaled to full frame width, as detailed below. Supported for all video codecs listed above. | Input resolution | Output resolution | Expected sample aspect ratio | | ---------------- | ----------------- | ---------------------------- | | 1440 x 1080 | 1920 x 1080 | 4:3 | | 1280 x 1080 | 1920 x 1080 | 3:2 | | 960 x 1080 | 1920 x 1080 | 2:1 | | 960 x 720 | 1280 x 720 | 4:3 | | 640 x 720 | 1280 x 720 | 2:1 | Video down-conversions Supported down-conversions: * 2160p > 1080p, 1080i, 720p * 1080p > 1080i, 720p * 1080i > 720p Video up-conversions Supported up-conversions: * 1080i > 1080p * 720p > 1080i HDR to SDR conversions * Supported HDR inputs: PQ10 (HDR10), HLG10 * Output: SDR BT.709 with tone mapping ## Audio decoding * Audio codecs: MP1L2, AAC, AAC 5.1, HE-AAC v1 & v2, HE-AAC 5.1, Dolby Digital (AC-3), 2.0 & 5.1, Dolby Digital Plus (E-AC-3) 2.0 & 5.1, MPEG-H * Passthrough: Linear PCM, Dolby E, Dolby ED2, Dolby Digital (AC-3), Dolby Digital Plus (E-AC-3) * Audio sampling rate: 48 kHz * Audio Channels: Up to 8 stereo pairs per service * Phase Aligned Audio (PAA): Supported ## Ancillary Data * Closed captions: CEA-608, CEA-708 * Timecode: VITC * Teletext: SMPTE 2031, OP-47 * Metadata: AFD/BAR, VANC * Signalling: SCTE-35 conversion to SCTE-104 ## Video transcoding ### Video encoding * Codecs: MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVC (H.264), HEVC (H.265) * Chroma: 4:2:0 * Conversions: HD to HD or SD * SD to SD ### Audio encoding * Audio codecs: MPEG-1 Layer-II, AAC, HE-AAC, HE-AAC v2 1. Dolby Digital® 2.0 / 5.1, Dolby Digital Plus® 2.0, 5.1, Dolby AC-3 * Audio channels: Up to 8 stereo pairs per service. * Passthrough: Dolby E®, Dolby Digital®, Dolby Digital Plus®, Linear PCM (as SMPTE 302) * Data rate: From 4.75 kbps to 320 kbps (from 64 to 1024 kbps for DD+). ## Compressed output * Transport Stream Passthrough: IP, ASI (requires multiplexer service), unmodified or decrypted * Protocols: IP, UDP, RTP, RTMP/RTMPS, ASI SRT and RIST output * Carriage of UDP or RTP streams over the SRT protocol * SRT listener or caller mode * RIST sender mode * RIST listener mode Zixi output * Zixi sender * Zixi feeder or Zixi Receiver mode ## Uncompressed output * Output formats: SDI, SMPTE ST 2022-6, SMPTE ST 2110 ### SDI output * Standards: SDI, HD-SDI, 3G-SDI, 12G-SDI, Quad‑Link 3G‑SDI * Video formats: 480i, 576i, 720p, 1080i, 1080p, 2160p * Hardware requirements: Requires one or more of the following cards 4-port ASI/SDI option card (Dektec DTA-2174B) MediaKind marketing code: * MKP/HWO/PCI/SDI/DTA (Dektec 2174B SDI/ASI) Features: * Output configurations: 4x independent 3G-SDI/ASI input/output * 12G-SDI (Single‑link UHD) or Quadrant (Quad‑Link 3G‑SDI, ST 425‑5 Annex B — Square Division) or Interleaved (Quad‑Link 3G‑SDI, ST 425-5 Two Sample Interleave) * 12G-SDI with 3G-SDI/ASI side channel * Connector: micro BNC 75 ohms 8-port ASI/SDI option card (Dektec DTA-2178) MediaKind marketing code: * MKP/HWO/PCI/SDI/8 (Dektec 2178 SDI/ASI) Features: * Output configurations: 8x independent 3G-SDI/ASI input/output * 2x 12G-SDI (Single‑link UHD) or Quadrant (Quad‑Link 3G‑SDI, ST 425‑5 Annex B — Square Division) or Interleaved (Quad‑Link 3G‑SDI, ST 425-5 Two Sample Interleave) * 2x 12G-SDI with 2x 3G-SDI/ASI side channels * Connector: micro BNC 75 ohms 2-port satellite demodulator option card with 3G-SDI/ASI output (Dektec DTA-2127) MediaKind marketing code: * MKP/HWO/DEMODSDI (Dektec DTA-2127 DVB-S2X Quad Receiver with 3G-SDI/ASI Output) Features: * SDI output: 1x SDI output supporting SD/HD/3G-SDI * Connector: BNC 75 ohms ### SDI over IP (SMPTE ST 2022-6) output * Standards: SMPTE ST 2022-6 * Video formats: 480i, 576i, 720p, 1080i, 1080p (2160p not supported) * Hardware requirements: Any network card with sufficient network bandwidth may be used ### SMPTE ST 2110 output * Standards: SMPTE ST 2110 ST 2110-20: Uncompressed video for 480i, 576i, 720p, 1080i, 1080p, 2160p * ST 2110-30: PCM digital audio output * ST 2110-31: AES3 audio output * ST 2110-40: Ancillary data (VITC/Time code, AFD/BAR, Closed captioning, OP-47 Teletext, SMPTE 2031 Teletext) * Protocols: Supports duplicate essence streams on separate output ports to facilitate SMPTE ST 2022-7 * NMOS: NMOS IS-04 and NMOS IS-05 support * Hardware requirements: Requires one of the following cards NVIDIA ConnectX-6 Dx EN adapter card 25GbE (MCX621102AN-ADAT) MediaKind marketing code: * MKP/HWO/PCI/NIC/25G/2PORT/B (MCX621102AN-ADAT) Features: * NVIDIA Mellanox ConnectX-6 Dx EN adapter card, 25GbE, Dual-port SFP28, PCIe 4.0 x8, No Crypto NVIDIA ConnectX-6 Lx EN adapter card 25GbE (MCX631102AN-ADAT) MediaKind marketing code: * MKP/HWO/PCI/NIC/25G/2PORT/C (MCX631102AN-ADAT) Features: * NVIDIA Mellanox ConnectX-6 Lx EN adapter Card, 25GbE, Dual-Port SFP28, PCIe 4.0 x8, No Crypto NVIDIA ConnectX-6 Dx EN adapter card 100GbE (MCX623106AN-CDAT) MediaKind marketing code: * MKP/HWO/PCI/NIC/100G (MCX623106AN-CDAT) The ConnectX-6 Dx 100GbE card enables higher output bandwidth; however, it does not increase decoding capacity on a COTS platform. Features: * NVIDIA Mellanox ConnectX-6 Dx EN adapter card, 100GbE, Dual-port QSFP56, PCIe 4.0 x16, No Crypto NVIDIA / Mellanox Ethernet network adapter cards must be sourced from NVIDIA rather than Dell, as OEM variants may impose restrictions on firmware upgrades. ## Multiplexing ### Inputs and outputs * IP (UDP or RTP) input and output of MPEG Transport Streams * RTP re-ordering * IGMP V3 redundancy * Input bitrate monitoring and CC error detection * SMPTE 2022-1 FEC on input and output ### Processing * PID filtering and PID remapping by re-multiplexing input programs Real-time PSI regeneration ## Content security ### Decryption * Conditional Access (CA): BISS1, BISS2, BISS-CA, Director 6, DVB-CI * Hardware requirements: A Trusted Platform Module (TPM) may be required or suitable option cards. See details below BISS1 & BISS2 BISS version 1 (BISS1) * Modes: Mode 1 and Mode E * Key length: 48-bit * Standards: DVB-CSA BISS version 2 (BISS2) * Modes: Mode 1, Mode E and BISS-CA * Key length: 128-bit * Standards: DVB-CISSA BISS-CA A Trusted Platform Module (TPM) must be installed on the server. * Key length: 128-bit * Standards: DVB-CISSA * Features: Entitlement management, Self-generated key pairs, Injected key pairs Director 6 CA A Trusted Platform Module (TPM) must be installed on the server. * Key length: 128-bit * Features: Entitlement management, Over Air Control (OAC) Dual Common Interface (CI) option card (Digital Devices Octopus Duo CI) MediaKind marketing code: * MKP/HWO/PCI/CI/DUAL (Digital Devices Octopus Duo CI) The Digital Devices Octopus Duo CI is only available as a full-height PCIe card and is therefore limited to servers such as the C-series. Features: * DVB-CI compliant * 2x CI slots for two independent Conditional Access Modules (CAM) on each option card * Capable of processing transport streams of up to 96 Mbps per CAM (though actual bitrate may be limted by the CAM) * All major CAMs supported * Multiple Dual Common Interface (CI) option cards supported Some CA descramblers will require a Trusted Platform Module (TPM) to be installed on the server. ## Ad insertion * Ingest format: MPEG-TS over IP (SPTS), with a video buffer of 1 second minimum * Assets pre-encoded and stored locally * Scheduling control: Triggered via advanced scheduling control options: Signal-based: based on submitted SCTE-35 signal (with matching criteria) * Signal based / fallback to time: SCTE-35 expected, but not present, fallback to out-of-band operations triggering * Asset management: Storage of up to 90 minutes of assets in the unit * Assets and schedules fetched automatically from a central asset server * Automatic housekeeping of the asset store ## Monitoring & control * Remote control: Provided via the Mediakind MK.IO portal * Direct control and status monitoring: Provided via Web browser user interface and REST API * Standard protocols: SNMP, NTP, IGMP High Availability (HA) Controller * Automated (standalone) 1+1 output synchronization with PTS alignment (either SDI or ST 2110 inputs)