Viz Engine Administrator Guide

Version 5.1 | Published November 09, 2023 ©

Prerequisites

Frame accurate playout can be achieved by using a Timecode Reader card (for example, Plura AVPCL) and sending timed commands from any control application (like Media Sequencer). Scenes need to be loaded and cued some time ahead and then taken On Air at a given timecode. To make sure clip handling is fast, the system has to be configured to use either a RAID-0 hard disc configuration or SSDs.

Plura AVPCL boards can be used by Viz Engine if the driver is installed correctly. Please note that the config file needs to be modified to enable the Timecode sources within Viz Engine:

  • The Timecode Reader Card for Viz Engine needs to be enabled in the Viz Config File by setting TCReaderUsage = 1.

  • The correct timecode source must be set by using TCReaderSource. Viz Engine supports LTC, VITC, ATC_LTC, ATC_VITC, HANC_LTC, HANC_VITC, and FIELDS. To specify multiple sources the format would be: TCReaderSource = LTC | VITC.

Frame accuracy is only supported on Matrox boards. For further details, see the Configure Frame Accurate Output section.

Clips need to be defined within the stage and the pending player needs to be active. As all of the clip players are initialized at first use, it is necessary to do so prior to starting a frame accurate scene. Do this by loading a dummy scene that has all clip channels set to either DVE or texture mode and a valid clip name given.

Note: It can take up to four seconds for the clip players to initialize. Do this a second time to also initialize the pending clip players. Please keep in mind that this procedure is only needed after a fresh restart of Viz Artist/Engine.