Datapath Raises Bar with Flagship FX4-HDR Processor

Available to order in February and on show for the first time at ISE 2020, the Fx4-HDR brings all the familiarity of the ever-popular x-Series products, but with features and power that make it the ideal fit for today’s ultra-high-quality video requirements.

Building on the success of its Fx4 and x4 predecessors, the Datapath Fx4-HDR brings superb HDR 10-bit colour clarity, 4K60 resolution as well as audio support into the mix. Supporting a choice of HDMI 2.0 and two additional 1.4 inputs, the Fx4-HDR is fully HDCP2.2 capable and supports a high bandwidth loop-through for daisy-chaining multiple devices and creating large video walls.

The advancements bring an added dimension to creative digital signage, as Mark Rogers, product manager for Datapath, explains: “Digital display solutions that stand out from the crowd need a suitable creative display controller capable of stand-out performance. We are immensely proud of the success of our Fx4 processor and, with the arrival of the Fx4-HDR, we have a video processor that is perfectly suited for the latest ultra-high resolution, high dynamic range solutions. Similarly to its predecessor, we expect the Fx4-HDR to become the go-to choice for creative digital signage and display applications.”

Suitable for the most creative of displays, the Fx4-HDR can take its input from any region of the input canvas with all of the required cropping, scaling, rotation and frame-rate conversion handled by the Fx4-HDR hardware. These regions can overlap to allow any output to replicate another or can be configured to support any creative splice of the source material. 

This then allows the support of many non-rectangular screen arrangements, as well as any mix of monitor orientations allowing users to create an almost unlimited multi-monitor canvas. Further, downscaling support on each output allows each selected content region to be output and contained within an arbitrary area of the screen, filling the rest of the screen with a flat colour of user choice. This can be used to correct content aspect ratio when displaying logos etc on non-standard screen arrangements, or to drive multiple LED controllers with exactly the correct pixels for each section of a connected LED fixture.

Network Connectivity

The Datapath Fx4-HDR has dual Ethernet ports to allow users to add the device to their networks. Only one device in the chain requires connection to the physical LAN as Ethernet loop-through is supported on the second port, meaning multiple devices can be connected.

Wall Designer

Datapath’s hugely popular multi-screen design tool, Wall Designer has also been updated to incorporate Fx4-HDR. Wall Designer allows users to add displays from the ever-expanding database of monitors, visualise their content by adding inputs and adjusting display regions and finally instantly program all devices either via USB or the network ports.