AJA FS2: video format and reference, audio routing and timecode testing

Before relying on the FS2, check its input, format and output

The FS2 Installation and Operation Guide v3.0r1 (published December 2, 2022) identifies CONFIG > 13 Software Version as the place to check the installed version. Record it with the initial settings. The PDF edition does not establish which version is installed. For a unit running different firmware, check the applicable documentation before using a control that differs.

Under VIDEO 1 or VIDEO 2, pp. 59–60, 1 Video Input selects the source, 2 Output Format sets the processor format, and 3 Video Output Mode distinguishes Normal from Test Pattern. The OUTPUT menu, p. 56 selects which processor feeds each SDI output. Check the actual connector: using SDI 1 does not by itself establish that you are receiving Processor1.

On p. 9, the manual limits conversions to frame-rate families and lists exceptions. SYSTEM > 9 Frame Rates and Output Format also interact: changing the family recalls a saved format. For a receiver that requires 1080i59.94, verify the complete final setting. Follow INPUT follows the input; it does not force that destination format.

Prepare the test off air. Save the configuration, select the processor and input in use, check the required format, and verify routing to the BNC connected to the switcher. At the receiver, check the actual source, its format and motion. If it fails, record whether the input is missing, the format is incompatible or a different processor is reaching the output before changing another variable.

Video is present, but the reference shows No Input or Incompat

SYSTEM > 8 Genlock Source, p. 52 distinguishes Reference from Free run, which uses the unit's own timebase. If you select Reference, check the signal at Ref Loop. Pages 20–21 document BB or tri-level and 75-ohm termination at the unused connector or the last device in the chain.

The v2.1 Quick Start Guide, p. 3 shows the received reference and video input as separate status readings. The v3.0r1 manual, p. 19 distinguishes a missing reference from one that is incompatible with the input or output. Read STATUS and record IN, GEN and OUT. A reference alarm does not establish that the computer's content is missing.

Compare the reference format with the frame-rate family and the output required by the setup. If GEN shows No Input, check the generator, cable, connector and termination along that path. If it shows Incompat, compare the detected formats with the manual. Do not select Free run simply to hide the problem. If you test that mode, check stability and switching at the switcher afterward.

On p. 52, the manual also excludes an HDMI signal originating from a computer's DVI output in a VESA format as a reference. Receiving a picture through that port does not establish that it can be used for genlock. On that page, the Vid2 Input description repeats Vid1. Check the applicable documentation before using that row to select Video 2 as the reference; the repeated description does not establish the correct setting.

Route audio from two SDI inputs to FS2 analog channels

The following map is a proposed test. Verify each channel in the actual setup before using it during the event.

In the v3.0r1 manual, pp. 76–77, AUDIO 1 > 1.0 Audio Input offers Channel Map, and 1.1–1.16 Audio Map selects each channel's source. OUTPUT > 8 Analog Audio Out, p. 57 selects a group of eight channels from one processor. To combine sources from two SDI inputs, prepare the map within that processor before selecting its output group.

The table proposes a test using Audio Processor1: map SDI 1 Ch1/2 to its channels 1/2 and SDI 2 Ch1/2 to channels 3/4, then select Audio1 Ch1-8 in Analog Audio Out. This map takes audio from SDI inputs; it does not tap audio from any arbitrary processed SDI output. Identify where each signal enters and how its timing needs to relate to its video.

Test one source at a time with channel identification and controlled monitoring. Record which analog output receives each signal, whether channels are crossed, and what happens when the video source changes. Check the DB25 cable against the exact pinout before connecting it. Also check the receiver's accepted level and SYSTEM > 3 Analog Audio Std (manual, p. 50). Levels and synchronization between the two sources still need to be measured in your setup.

Before enabling AUDIO > 3 Audio Follow Video, p. 78, save the current map, levels, delay and phase. On recalls input-associated settings and can replace them; returning to Off does not restore the previous state. AFV is not an automatic fix for missing audio.

The destination needs timecode: test it separately from picture and sound

The FS2 v3.0r1 manual, pp. 72–73 documents specific handling of AFD and closed captions. Those sections do not guarantee the timecode transport required by an EVS destination. Verify the requirement for that system and version. A failed test with unknown settings does not establish that every FS2 removes all ancillary data.

Record how the destination identifies the required timecode, the input and output formats, and each device's firmware. Compare the presence and reading of the data before and after the converter using the same content. Record continuity and its relationship to video against the destination's requirements. Keep picture and audio checks in a separate column; they do not replace this test.

Before accepting an EVS signal path, identify the timecode type and transport, the EVS versions and the FS2 configuration. Use the worksheet to prepare and record that test; it contains no completed results.

Record what each destination received

Complete the FS2 test worksheet, which is blank. Keep video, reference, audio and timecode separate. Record one change per test, a sample before and after, and the settings needed to restore the initial state.

For receiver synchronization, see the AV-HS410 guide. For source and scaler selection in a small converter, see MD-HX and MD-LX. At a conference, the screen, recording and stream each need to be checked and accepted separately. Include those paths when planning video processing.