Eye Filmmuseum Modernises With Lightware

Eye Filmmuseum, the Netherlands' premier film museum, has completed a full AV infrastructure upgrade across its four public screening auditoriums. The project was led by Toon Bouman, Head of Operations, and freelance video engineer Yorrick de Nooijer, and was necessary because the previous system, which was installed in 2011, had reached the end of its life. The museum invested in all-new 4K projectors from Christie for its four auditoriums, which necessitated a modern signal infrastructure to support the latest technologies with ultra-HD compatibility. Lightware's Taurus product line was chosen to form the core of the new AV system.

"The existing AV system had reached the end of its life, having been installed almost 15 years ago," said de Nooijer. "Eye invested in all new 4K projectors from Christie for the four auditoriums and therefore required a modern signal infrastructure to support the latest technologies with ultra-HD compatibility."

The previous system had been added to over the years and had grown in complexity. The upgrade project represented an opportunity to design a modern system from scratch and to standardise and streamline the behind-the-scenes operations. The key objectives of the upgrade project were to bring 4K60 ultra-HD video support across all auditoriums, create a coherent, modular AV infrastructure in all projection rooms, unify signal management for both old analogue and new digital content and implement a new future-proof system that could be scaled as required. Lightware's Taurus product line formed the core of the new AV system.

With the transition to 4K UHD content and new Christie projectors, the Eye team needed a solution that could handle high-bandwidth video, legacy formats and complex signal routing across multiple auditoriums.

The central component of the new system is Lightware's Taurus TPX transmitters and receivers (UCX-2x1-TPX-TX20 and UCX-3x3-TPX-RX20), which manage video distribution between source devices and projectors across all four auditoriums. In larger or more demanding show configurations, the UCX-4x3-TPX-TX20 provides additional input/output capacity and enhanced flexibility for managing speaker content, return video feeds and technician monitors.

For even more flexible signal extension, Lightware's HDMI-TPX-TX106 point-to-point extenders and HDMI-TPX-RX107A-SR scaling receivers are also in use. This versatility is essential, as the scaling receivers ensure compatibility across a variety of input resolutions and legacy devices. The Taurus TPX 2x1 units located on stage allow presenters to connect a single cable that delivers audio, video, network, and power to their devices.

"Lightware supports multiple control interfaces; hardware buttons via GPIO, playlist-based automation and a customizable web interface," explains Bouman. "With this choice, our projectionists can respond quickly and ensure transitions between events are as smooth as possible. We've also found that the new system reduces operator training time."

With the transition to 4K UHD content and new Christie projectors, the Eye team needed a solution that could handle high-bandwidth video, legacy formats and complex signal routing across multiple auditoriums.

The central component of the new system is Lightware's Taurus TPX transmitters and receivers (UCX-2x1-TPX-TX20 and UCX-3x3-TPX-RX20), which manage video distribution between source devices and projectors across all four auditoriums. In larger or more demanding show configurations, the UCX-4x3-TPX-TX20 provides additional input/output capacity and enhanced flexibility for managing speaker content, return video feeds and technician monitors.

For even more flexible signal extension, Lightware's HDMI-TPX-TX106 point-to-point extenders and HDMI-TPX-RX107A-SR scaling receivers are also in use. This versatility is essential, as the scaling receivers ensure compatibility across a variety of input resolutions and legacy devices. The Taurus TPX 2x1 units located on stage allow presenters to connect a single cable that delivers audio, video, network, and power to their devices.

"Lightware supports multiple control interfaces; hardware buttons via GPIO, playlist-based automation and a customizable web interface," explains Bouman. "With this choice, our projectionists can respond quickly and ensure transitions between events are as smooth as possible. We've also found that the new system reduces operator training time."

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