Leader moves ahead in HD analysis sector in European market

"HD has finally arrived in Europe and it looks like being a big market," reports Paul Vos, Managing Director of European Master Distributor for Leader Electronics (elQuip).
"Interest in HD signal analysis at IBC2005 was particularly strong among the German television networks. If their plans turn into investment, German broadcasters might even overtake their UK colleagues in the roll-out of multi-format and true HD services. With HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc technologies enabling HD playback due on the market soon, broadcasters worldwide know they need to migrate from SD or risk losing audience share."
Leader itself has lived up to its name with three completely new analysers making their European exhibition debut at IBC. In addition to being easy to use, the latest Leader products conform to a uniform control interface which makes them very easy learn and to operate.
They are not just standalone units but interconnectable systems that can be integrated to operate over very wide networks.
Leader's new FS3019 remote signal analysis software takes interconnectivity a logical step further, enabling the performance of remote HD-SDI and SD-SDI equipment to be checked via a standard internet connection. This means an engineer can perform detailed checks of a broadcast module or a total system, regardless of its location. A technician operating on location could in turn help trace and rectify a fault back at base. Less dramatically, the maintenance staff of one broadcast site can now supervise practically all the equipment in an entire national or multinational network.
Leader's new LV7700 rasterising HD/SDI analyser employs almost the same front-panel controls as the portable LV5750 and studio optimised LV5700A. Waveform monitor and vectorscope functions are provided, including cursor measurements, filters, gain and timing control. Line-select capabilities allow detailed signal examination.
The actual data for each line can be reviewed in a variety of layouts. Safe action, safe-title and aspect-ratio markers can be generated over the picture display, further increasing the instrument's usefulness in production and postproduction.
The picture display can also be inspected in extreme close-up. Full audio test facilities are included as standard.
(CD/SP)