Pearl Nexus tech specs
The input and output connectors are listed for Pearl Nexus.
For the most up-to-date product specifications and information, go to https://www.epiphan.com/products/pearl-nexus/ .
Table 7 Specifications for Pearl Nexus
| Video inputs | Local video inputs1 | (1) 3G-SDI (2) HDMI™ 1.4a2 (2) USB 3.0 (UVC)3 - rear panel |
|---|---|---|
| Video over Ethernet | SRT (push), RTSP, and NDI | |
| Connectors | (2) HDMI type A (female) (1) BNC (female) (2) USB-A (female) - rear panel (1) RJ-45 (female) | |
| Aspect ratios | 3:2, 4:3, 16:9, 16:10, and custom aspect ratios | |
| Standard resolutions | PAL, PAL wide, NTSC, NTSC wide | |
| Resolution range | 640×480 to 1920×1200 | |
| Frame rate | Up to 60 fps | |
| Input color spaces | HDMI: RGB 4:4:4, YCRCB 4:2:2, YCRCB 4:4:4 SDI: RGB 4:4:4, YCRCB 4:2:2 | |
| Interlacing | Yes | |
| Maximum cable length for 3G SDI | 300 ft | |
| Maximum cable length for USB 3.0 | 6 ft | |
| Audio inputs | Analog audio inputs | (2) XLR mic level/pro line level (+4.0 dBu) up to 12.3 VRMS, +24 dBu (balanced/unbalanced, mono or L/R stereo pair) - Phantom optional (2) 1/4" TRS pro line level (+4.0 dBu) up to 12.3 VRMS, +24 dBu (balanced/unbalanced, mono or two L/R stereo pairs) (1) RCA consumer line level - 10 dBV (L/R stereo pair) (1) 3.5 mm stereo input for electret microphones (unbalanced) |
| Connectors | (2) XLR/TRS combo jacks (female) (2) RCA (female) (1) 3.5 mm (female) - rear panel | |
| Digital audio inputs4 | (1) SDI5 (2) HDMI (2) USB (rear panel) (2) RTSP (embedded over Ethernet) (2) SRT (embedded over Ethernet) (2) NDI | |
| Connectors | (2) HDMI type A (female) (1) BNC (female) (2) USB-A (female) - rear panel (1) RJ-45 (female) | |
| Gain control | 0 dB to +30 dB | |
| Mute | Yes | |
| Configurable audio delay | -300 ms to +300 ms | |
| Video processing | Video output color space | 4:2:0, 8 bits per color |
| Video codec | H.264/AVC (ITU H.264, ISO/IEC 14496-10) 4:2:0, 8 bit color Encoding profile: High, Main, Baseline Profile levels: 3.0, 3.1,3.2,4.0,4.1 Motion JPEG | |
| Bitrate | 1 to 50 Mbps (selectable) | |
| Bitrate control | Constant | |
| Hardware accelerated video encoding | Optional | |
| Video scaling | Software | |
| Key frames | 1/2 s, and 1 s up to 5 s in 1 second intervals | |
| Audio processing | Compression | MP3, AAC, and PCM |
| Sampling rate | MP3: 22 kHz, 44 kHz, 48 kHz AAC: 16 kHz, 22 kHz, 44 kHz, 48 kHz PCM: 22 kHz, 44 kHz, 48 kHz | |
| Bitrate | 64 to 320 kbps (MP3 and AAC) | |
| Video output | Signal types | (1) HDMI 1.4a (3) H.264/AVC digital video over Ethernet |
| Connectors | (1) HDMI (1) RJ-45 (female) | |
| Encoded channels | Up to three 1080p channels at 30 fps with one full HD video source per channel (recommended) | |
| Streaming protocols | MPEG-TS, and FLV RTSP over TCP/UDP SRT (push) over UDP HLS (push) over HTTP/HTTPS Multi-Publish to Streaming Server / CDN (SRT, RTSP, RTMP, RTMPS) HLS (pull) - Native Apple HTTP/HTTPS stream for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch | |
| Multicast streams | RTP/UDP, MPEG-TS & RTP, and MPEG-TS over UDP SAP | |
| Stream encryption and authentication | SRT: 128 bits, 192 bits, or 256 bits AES encryption (negotiated) and configurable passphrase HLS (push): MD5, SHA-256, and SHA-512 RTMPS: encryption plus CA certificate negotiation | |
| Resolution ranges | Recorded: 480p to 1920×1200p Confidence monitoring: 480p to 1920×1200p Streamed: 480p to 1920×1200p | |
| Frame rate | Up to 60 fps | |
| Formats | H.264/AVC (ITU H.264, ISO/IEC 14496-10) 4:2:0, 8 bit color Encoding profile: High, Main, Baseline Profile levels: 3.0, 3.1,3.2,4.0,4.1 Motion JPEG | |
| Network traffic shaping (multicast streams) | 4 Mbps to 95 Mbps (configurable) | |
| Audio output | Analog audio output | (1) 3.5 mm stereo headphone jack - front panel |
| Digital audio outputs | RTSP and SRT audio over Ethernet HLS audio over HTTP/HTTPS HDMI audio (embedded) | |
| USB keyboard | Connect a standard USB keyboard (optional) | |
| USB status light | Connect a single USB status light (optional), supported models: -Kuando BusyLight models: UC Alpha and UC Omega -Delcom Products USB HID single color and multi-color signal indicators | |
| Recording and storage | Record formats | AVI, MOV, MP4, and MPEG-TS |
| File upload formats | JPEG, PNG | |
| Internal storage | ESP1882 - 1 TB ESP1948 - 256 GB | |
| File transfer protocols | FTP, SFTP, SCP, AWS S3 client, and WebDAV client RSync | |
| Network file share protocols | CIFS/SMB2+ | |
| File system for USB storage | FAT16, FAT32, exFAT, XFS, EXT2, EXT3, EXT4, NTFS | |
| External USB ports | (1) USB 3.0 0.9A - front panel (2) USB 3.0 0.9A (UVC/UAC) - rear panel | |
| Bitrate | Up to 50 Mbps | |
| Communication | USB standards | USB 1.1, USB 2.0, and USB 3.0 HDCP compliant. Only content that is not HDCP-protected is captured |
| Serial port | (1) Bidirectional RS-232 (via a USB to serial adapter) | |
| Serial protocols | Data bits: 7 or 8 (default) Stop bits: 1 Parity: None Flow control: None, Hardware or Software | |
| Serial port baud rate | 19200 bps | |
| Ethernet host port | (1) RJ-45 (female) | |
| Ethernet data rate | 10/100/1000 Base-T, half/full duplex with auto detect | |
| Maximum Transmission Unit | 68 to 1500 MTU (configurable) | |
| Protocols | DHCP Option 81, TLS 1.2, LDAP, mDNS, DDNS, SAP, RTP, MPEG-TS & RTP and MPEG-TS/UDP, 802.1x, EAPOL, EAP-TTLS, EAP-TLS, PEAP, HTTP, HTTPS, NTP, PTP, FTP, SFTP, SCP AWS S3 | |
| Network discovery/Announce | SAP | |
| Network security | 802.1x EAP methods | PEAP, EAP-TLS, EAP-TTLS |
| Administration and control | Admin panel | Local web UI for full administration. Mobile UI for confidence monitoring, administration, and control. Local Admin panel access using a USB mouse, keyboard, and monitor connected directly to Pearl Nexus (local console). |
| Epiphan Live | Local web-based UI to easily control streaming, recording, and switching. | |
| Epiphan Edge | Cloud-based platform to remotely manage and control Pearl Nexus devices. Start and stop recording/streaming, monitor channels and alert dashboard, remotely log in to Admin panel for rescue troubleshooting, update firmware and more from the Internet. | |
| Secure access | Multiple user accounts and passwords. HTTPS for secure Admin panel and Epiphan Live access, as well as local network access to the live channel broadcast. | |
| Remote access | Remote login6 to cloud versions of the Admin panel and Epiphan Live. | |
| API | Yes (HTTP/HTTPS or RS-232) | |
| Crestron module | Yes See https://www.epiphan.com/support/pearl-nexus-software-documentation/#control-modules | |
| Q-SYS plugin | Yes. See https://www.qsys.com/alliances-partnerships/epiphan-video/ | |
| Integrations | Content Management Systems | Kaltura Panopto YuJa Opencast EchoVideo (Echo360) |
| Cloud access and management | Epiphan Edge | |
| General | Operating temperature: | 32° to 104° F (0° to 40° Celsius) |
| Cooling: | Fan air flow: Side to Side | |
| Enclosure: | Metal | |
| Form factor: | Portable desktop model. Rack mountable: 1U | |
| Dimensions (W × D × H) | 19" × 7.5" × 1.75" (482 mm × 190 mm × 44 mm) Rackmount ears installed and rubber feet removed | |
| Weight | 5.3 lbs (2.4 kg) | |
| Power supply | External AC/DC power adapter: 1.5 A, 100-240 VAC/12 VDC, 50 to 60 Hz (60W); 1.3 A, 100-240 VAC/12 VDC, 50 to 60 Hz (84W) | |
| Input power rating | 12 VDC, 5.0 A (maximum / 60W PSU); 12 VDC, 7.0 A (maximum / 84W PSU) | |
| Regulatory compliance | FCC compliance: Part 15 | |
| CE compliance: Directive 2014/30/EU - Electromagnetic Compatibility Directive 2014/35/EU - Low Voltage Directive Directive 2011/65/EU - RoHS | ||
| Time synchronization | NTP, TIME (RFC 868), PTP v1 (IEEE-1588-2002 V1) | |
| Country of origin | Made in Taiwan |
1Pearl Nexus supports up to three HD video sources in a single channel with two picture in picture layouts under certain conditions 2HDCP compliant. Only content that is not HDCP-protected is captured from HDMI 3You can connect a USB, RTSP, SRT, or NDI|HX source to Pearl Nexus; however, using multiple digital sources can affect performance depending on your setup. If you experience performance issues, check CPU usage and take remedial actions like: remove some configured layouts, reduce the channel's frame rate, or remove a video input. 4Digital audio is de-embedded from the digital source. 5SD-SDI audio is not supported. 6Remote login requires an Epiphan Edge Premium account.
Optimum System Load
Recommended maximum channels and inputs
For best performance, Pearl Nexus supports up to three 1080p30 channels and up to three 1080p video inputs.
HDMI and SDI inputs support up to 60 fps at 8-bit color; 3G-SDI and HDMI 1.4a support 1080p60 4:4:4 at 8-bit.
1080p30 is the recommended and safe limit for IP and USB inputs when ingesting up to two sources. Higher frame rates (1080p60 and above) can be ingested from an IP or USB source in some configurations, but the achievable combination varies significantly by setup and is not guaranteed; contact Epiphan support to evaluate a specific higher-frame-rate use case.
Mixing input types is supported — for example, 1 HDMI, 1 NDI|HX, and 1 USB. USB and IP inputs should be counted at 1.5× the load of a standard HDMI or SDI input.
Exceeding these recommendations may be possible depending on your setup; contact Epiphan support to evaluate your use case. These recommendations are fairly strict for Pearl Nexus, with limited headroom beyond them.
While Pearl Nexus is powerful, there is a limit to the number of concurrent tasks the onboard CPU can perform efficiently.
The number of concurrent tasks depends on many factors, such as:
the number of video sources
what frame rate and bitrate is used for a channel
if the video output ports are used
if a live monitor is connected to the HDMI output port (about the equivalent of an encoded 1920×1080@30 fps channel)
Other limiting factors
how many channels you have
how many layouts you have per channel
how often you switch layouts
if the system is resizing (scaling) video sources
For best results, we recommend keeping System load usage under 70%.
Recommendations
If the system load is higher than recommended, you can:
Disable the video output port (if unused).
Remove unused channels or layouts.
Reduce the number of channels created.
Stop channel(s) that are streaming or recording.
Ensure video sources come in at the right resolution so that Pearl Nexus doesn't have to up scale or down scale the video source.