Skymicro Merlin 2003 User Manual
Merlin 2003
DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
Users Manual
The Sky is the Limit
Copyright © 2003 by Skymicro, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this book shall be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any
means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from Skymicro,
Inc.
Windows® is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corp.
All in Wonder is a registered trademark of ATI Corp.
Norton Utilities is a registered trademark of Symantec Corp.
Premiere is a registered trademark of Adobe Corp.
Skymicro, Inc.
2060D Ave. Los Arboles PMB344
Thousand Oaks, CA 91362-1361
(805) 491-8995
www.skymicro.com
Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
Contents
1. Overview
1.0 Introduction 5
1.1 Features 6
1.2 Block Diagram 7
2. Getting Ready
2.0 System Requirements 8
2.1 Package Contents 8
2.2 Preparing Your System 9
3. Installing the Hardware
3.0 Computer Installation 10
4. Installing the Software
4.0 Driver Installation 12
4.1 Application Installation 12
5. Quick Start
5.0 Running the Application Software 15
5.1 Recording to files 16
5.2 Playing from files 17
6. Application Software
6.0 The Player Application Window 19
6.1 The Recorder Application Window 31
6.2 The Play List Editor 37
6.3 The Program Stream Generator 40
6.4 The Program Stream Splitter 41
6.5 The Batch Recorder Utility 42
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
A.0 Video Play List File Format 45
Appendix B. Audio Play List File
B.0 Audio Play List File Format 46
Appendix C. Writing your own Application
C.0 Example Source Code Using Method 1 47
C.1 Command Line Examples using Method 1 48
C.2 Simpleplay Application using Method 2 48
Appendix D. Cable Pinouts
D.0 Cable Pinouts 49
D.1 Merlin2003 Digital Cable 50
D.2 Merlin2003 Analog Cable 51
D.3 Batch Recorder Serial Cable 52
Appendix A. Video Play List File
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
1. Overview
1.0 Introduction
Skymicro’s Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder board is a complete video capture
and playback solution in a single half-sized PCI card. It is ideally suited for applications such as digital video
broadcast, video distribution applications, authoring, and nonlinear editing.
The Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder includes all the software necessary to
record, compress, process and play back audio and video clips in DV and MPEG-2 formats. The audio and video
are treated separately so audio can be added to video at a later time or vice versa. The Merlin board can also play
audio and video at variable speed. Merlin has many elaborate Non Linear Editing features; one of these is to allow
you to play back two streams of video and then transition from one to the other using many selectable transition
effects. By using a highly sophisticated processor all this can be done in Real Time. Moving from any frame to any
other frame in a video clip is a snap with Merlin. All you need to do is enter a frame number or move a slide control
and you are instantly at the desired frame. You can even give Merlin a play list to specify all the clips you wish to
play, and all the transition effects you wish to occur between your clips with starting and ending frame numbers,
and Merlin will do the rest. Merlin can even convert files to and from DV, MPEG-2 and many other picture and
video formats.
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
1.1 Key Features
Real Time DV and DVC-PRO50 Play and Record.
Real Time MPEG-1, MPEG-2 and IMX Play and Record.
Real Time 10 Bit Uncompressed Play and Record.
MPEG-2 (4:2:0) and (4:2:2) Chroma sampling supported.
DV (4:2:0), (4:1:1) and (4:2:2) Chroma sampling supported.
Variable and fixed bitrates from below 1 Mbs to 50 Mbs supported.
I - Frame only, IP, IBBP and IB GOP structures supported.
Variable resolutions supported up to 720x512(NTSC), or 720x608(PAL) including the ability to capture
lines in the blanking interval.
Variable Video Play Speed at resolutions as low as 1% normal speed.
Composite analog, S-video analog, Component (YCrCb and RGB), or SDI Serial Digital video selectable
as video input or genlock source.
Composite analog, S-video analog, Component (YCrCb and RGB), and SDI Serial Digital video
simultaneous outputs.
Supports 32K, 44.1K and 48K audio sample rates that can be locked to the video clock.
Up to 3 AES3 digital audio connections supporting PCM, AC-3, DolbyE, etc. (1 AES3 max without Panel)
Up to 8 channels of embedded audio per SDI video connection.
Up to 4 channels of analog audio. (2 channels max without Panel)
Analog video input is Time Base Corrected allowing Merlin to be used as a TBC when in pass through
mode.
SDI Serial Digital video input has jitter reduction allowing Merlin to be used as a SDI video Jitter reducer
in pass through mode.
Merlin can also be used as an Analog to SDI Serial Digital video converter and vice versa.
Decodes two DV or MPEG-2 video streams with the ability to alpha blend the 2 video streams in Real
Time for doing elaborate scene transitions such as fades, wipes, dissolves, etc.
Two independent SDI video outputs that can play 2 separate video streams at the same time.
Logo Inserter, Video Scalar and Video Color Space Converter built in.
VITC and LTC reader and generator on each input and output. VITC reader and generator can even be
used on pass through video.
Simple Play List format for playing long sequences with many video clips and transitions.
Runs on Windows™ 98/NT/2K/XP, Linux™, IRIX™, Solaris™, and Mac OS™.
Support for multiple boards per system to allow simultaneous Record and Play, including support for video
delay applications.
Conversion to and from DV, MPEG-2 and uncompressed formats at rates faster than Real Time.
Merlin can be used for DVD authoring.
Includes all the software needed to Record, Play and Edit Video and Video Play Lists.
Includes a Batch recording utility with VTR control.
Includes a Software Development Kit and many source code examples for custom application developers.
Includes a lot of field programmable logic that can be reconfigured via software allowing for easy feature
request upgrades.
Half sized PCI card that works in both 3.3V and 5 Volt PCI slots.
64 bit PCI interface that works in both 32 bit and 64 bit PCI slots.
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
1.2 Block Diagram
VIP Headers and
General Purpose
SDI Digital Video
Deserializer
SDI Digital Video
Serializer 1
SDI Digital Video
Serializer 2
Digital Audio
Transceiver
(Used for AES audio or
as a high speed link to
supply up to 10 audio
channels to a Panel Box)
Video D/A:
C-Video
S-Video
Component
Video A/D:
C-Video
S-Video
Component
Video Processing,
Analog Audio A/D
and D/A
64/32 Bit PCI Bus (Host Connection)
Merlin 2003 Block Diagram
I/O Header
FPGA 2
(300K Gates)
TBC,
Audio Embedder,
Video DMA
EEPROM
FPGA 1
(200K Gates)
PCI Bridge,
Audio Crossbar,
Audio DMA
Video
PLL
Audio
PLL
DRAM
16 Megabytes
DRAM
8 Megabytes
SUM
DV and MPEG-2
Video
Encoder/Decoder
32 Bit PCI Bus
(Secondary Bus)
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
2. Getting Started
2.0 System Requirements
Please make sure your system meets the following requirements before using the Merlin 2003 board.
- Pentium 600MHz CPU or a CPU with higher performance.
- Windows XP, Windows 2000, Windows NT 4.0, Windows 98, or Windows Me Operating System.
- One available Bus Mastering PCI slot (two slots if you are installing a two board configuration).
- At least 128 Megabytes of system DRAM.
- A high performance Disk Drive or Disk Array for storing Audio/Video files.
- At least 10 Megabytes of available Disk space for the Merlin Application Software.
- Approximately 10 to 100 Megabytes of Disk space for each minute of video you plan to store.
- An output monitor or overlay graphics card (such as the ATI All in Wonder) to view video output.
2.1 Package Contents
Please make sure your package includes the following items.
- One Merlin 2003 board.
- One 14 pin cable for Analog Input/Output Connections (Composite, S-VHS, Component, Audio).
- One 9 pin cable for Digital Input/Output Connections (D1 Serial Video, AES Audio).
- Installation Software.
- Documentation.
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
2.2 Preparing Your System
Before you install your Merlin 2003 Board there are a few guidelines that will help you achieve optimum video
performance. It is important to make sure that there are no other programs running while recording and playing
back video. You should check your system and make sure there are no screen savers, anti-virus programs or
fax/modem utilities that can use up CPU and memory resources. It is also important to make sure your disk drives
will run efficiently. The best way to do this is to defragment your disk drives frequently. If you do not own any
deframentation software, we recommend that you purchase Norton Utilities for Windows from Symantec. This
software package includes a defragmentation program for the most Windows Operating System. Another way to
optimize your disk performance is to have a dedicated partition for Audio and Video files. Here is a list of
recommendations on how to optimize the performance of the Audio/Video (A/V) partition that you use:
- Try not to store anything other that Audio/Video files on your A/V partitions.
- Defragment your A/V partitions frequently.
- Try to use NTFS (WindowsNT, Windows 2000/XP File System) partitions for A/V files.
- Try to use dedicated drives to store your A/V files.
- If possible use a high performance storage system for your A/V files.
A high performance storage system can mean a variety of things. It can be as simple as using a single high quality
IDE, SCSI or Fibre Channel disk drive to using a high performance Disk Array tunes for optimum video
performance. There are lots of storage system options available and lots of companies to choose from. With
MPEG-2 very high quality video can be achieved with a less than 15 megabit per second video stream. This is
easily sustained on even the cheapest IDE drives available today. However, if it is desirable to play multiple video
streams at fast forward play speeds that were recorded at 50 megabit per second record rate, you may want to
consider looking into a higher performance storage system.
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
3. Installing the Hardware
3.0 Computer Installation
To install the Merlin 2003 Board in you computer follow the directions below:
1. Discharge any electrostatic charge that you may have accumulated by touching the metal case of your
computer.
2. Switch off the computer and disconnect any cables attached to your computer, including the power
cord.
3. Loosen any screws required to remove the computer cover and remove the cover.
4. Position the computer so that the PCI expansion slots are visible. It should look something like this:
5. Select a Slot to install the Merlin board. It is best to space boards 2 apart at first and then fill the
spaces as you use up the slots. This distributes the heat in your computer better.
6. Remove the Slot Cover corresponding to the slot you wish to use.
Slot
Covers
Power
Supply
Drive
Bays
PCI
Slots
Inside of Computer
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
7. Remove the Merlin 2003 board from its protective wrapper and orient the board as shown:
8. Holding the board by the top two corners, carefully slide the board into the desired slot and press on
the top edge of the board until it is firmly seated. If the board does not seat correctly, d o not apply
excessive force. If necessary pull the board out and try installing it again.
9. Tighten the screw over the slot cover to hold the Merlin board in place.
10. Replace the cover and tighten any screws needed to hold the cover in place.
11. Reconnect cables.
12. Connect the 15 pin and 9 pin cable that came in the box with the Merlin board.
13. Connect an Output monitor to one of the video output cable.
14. Connect an input video source to one of the video input cables.
15. Connect input and output audio to the Red and White audio cables.
Merlin 2003 Board
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
4. Installing the Software
4.0 Driver Installation
The first time Windows loads after installing a Merlin board a New Hardware Found dialog box should appear.
When asked for the location of the driver, browse to the location of the Merlin.inf file on the Merlin 2003 CD or on
your hard drive if you downloaded the dr iver from the web. During the installation you will see a message saying
the driver is unsigned by Microsoft. This is expected and you should continue the installation anyway. If for some
reason the New Hardware Found dialog box does not appear you can run the hardware configuration wizard
(Control Panel – Add/Remove Hardware). When running the wizard choose Multimedia device if you are given a
choice. It will usually have a yellow icon next to it indicating it is hardware without a driver loaded. Be sure the
CD is in the CD-ROM drive or the files are on your hard disk. The wizard usually searches the CD-ROM drive for
drivers so if the CD is in the drive it will usually find it automatically.
4.1 Application Installation
To install the Merlin Board Application software follow the directions below:
1. Copy the file Mer2KXP.exe to a convenient location on your hard drive from the Skymicro Web Page
or from the CD that came with your hardware. The software on the Skymicro Web Page will either be
the same revision or newer than the version on the CD. If the version on the Web Page has a higher
revision number than the one on your CD, it is better to use the one from the Web Page.
2. Execute the Mer2KXP.exe program. This will run an installation program that will present you with
the dialog boxes shown below.
3. After reading the information in this dialog box and closing any other programs click on the “Next”
button. This will bring up the next dialog box.
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
4. If you are installing a single board in your system you can click the next button now, or if you are
installing two boards you should click the “Install Two Boards” radio button and then click the “Next”
button. This will bring up the next dialog box.
5. If you want to change the location where the software is installed click the “Browse” button and select
a suitable location. If the default is acceptable click the “Next” button. This will bring up the next
dialog box.
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
6. If you want to change the location where the program icons are installed select a different folder or if
the default is acceptable click the “Next” button. This will bring up the next dialog box.
7. At this point the installation is co mplete. However so me registry settings are o nly checked when the
computer is restarted so it is best to restart the computer before you use the application. If you would
like to restart click the “OK” button now.
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
5. Quick Start
5.0 Running the Application Software
To Run the Application software follow the directions below:
1. Find the Merlin1 shortcut icon in your start menu and double click on the icon. This should bring up
one of the two application windows shown below. One application window is used for playing audio
and video files and the other is for recording audio and video files. Which ever was last active is the
one that will start first. Since this is the first time you are starting the application either one may start.
You can switch to the play application window by clicking on the “PLAY” button, and you can switch
to the record application window by clicking on the “MPEG-2 (4:2:0)” or “MPEG-2 (4:2:2)” buttons
depending on the quality level you wish to record with. “REC 4:2:0 ” mode lets you record up to 15
Mbs and “REC 4:2:2” mode lets you record up to 50 Mbs. “REC 4:2:2” mode is used for higher
quality recording, but does not let you record using B frames which are useful for obtaining better
quality recordings at lower bitrates.
2. Switch to the “REC 4:2:0” mode now if it is not already active. You should see the application
window shown below.
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Merlin 2003 DV and MPEG-2 Recorder and Dual Stream Decoder
5.1 Recording to files
1. Select a Video Source in the “Video Reference” group box. If “Video Control” has the “Ref.” box
checked you should see the input video on your output video monitor.
2. Click on the “FILE…” button in the “Video” group box. Browse to a location where you would like
to store your video files and then type a file name for a file that you would like to record to.
3. Click on the “FILE…” button in the “Audio” group box. Browse to a location where you would like
to store your audio files and then type a file name for a file that you would like to record to.
4. Make sure the “Link to Video” check box is checked in the “Audio” group box.
5. Map and audio source to the 1st encoder input by selecting an audio source in the “Encoder Inputs”
group box.
6. Select the same audio source in the “Audio Output” group box to monitor the audio source.
7. Click on the “RECORD” button in the “Video” group box. You should now see the “Field Cnt” start
incrementing in the “Video” and “Audio” group boxes. After about a minute click on the “STOP”
button in the video group box.
8. Record a new video clip to a d ifferen t file n ame by repeating th e procedures starting at step 2. We will
need two files to try some of the play features that will be covered next. When you are finished
recording switch to the play mode by clicking on the “PLAY” button. . You should see the application
window shown on the following page.
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