Sultan Qaboos University goes 4K with Pixel

Oman:

Omani integrator Pixel Solutions has completed an installation at the Sultan Qaboos University in Muscat to outfit its auditorium with a new 4K camera system. The University was previously making do with a portable camera setup for events and was seeking a more permanent solution.

“The client asked us to propose a solution with high-end cameras capable of recording all the events taking place in their auditorium,” explained Pixel Solutions CEO Anas Al-Kurdi. “It would need to have a high resolution compared to regular recording cameras, include a production and control room, and allow the client to switch completely from portable cameras to a wall-mounted solution. We were invited to submit our offer together with many other competitors and were awarded the project having proposed the best solution at a low cost.”

To meet the University’s requirements, Pixel proposed 4K BRC-X1000 cameras from Sony. “These offered us an excellent choice of clarity and resolution capable of achieving the client’s requested result,” noted Al-Kurdi.

The BRC-X1000 PTZ cameras are powered by PoE switch and can be remote controlled via a Blackmagic Design ATEM Television Studio Pro switcher and Sony RM-IP500/1 joystick controller. “The customer is able to use the joystick controller to zoom in more than 20m to a selected spot on the stage and yet still retain a high-resolution signal,” added the CEO.

While there were no major hurdles for the team to overcome during the physical installation aside from hiding the cabling within the existing room construction, Pixel did have some trouble sourcing a high-power PoE+ switch from the local market and had to look elsewhere to find the NetGear GS310TP Smart Managed Pro PoE+ switch it specified that was capable of powering all of the cameras.

“It was a great honour for me to participate in this project as part of the design and installation team,” commented Hisham Mohammed, pre sales engineer at Pixel Solutions. “We solved the customer’s pain by providing modern 4K PTZ digital cameras with a switching and control system for recording and streaming purposes, which completely replaced the regular analogue ‘event supporting’ camera setup the customer had previously.”

“The client was very happy with the installed system and are now planning to have it installed in other locations around the campus,” concluded Al-Kurdi. “We were also asked to provide other items and accessories related to the recording solution which were not included in the original scope and we have provided them and will cover the installation with one year of maintenance and support. The customer is very much satisfied about the overall result.”