@d8bit said:

Also, in Windows, the Windows driver is not working for me with the UltraStudio, I'm getting and error.

 Only in Isadora 3, or in Isadora 4 as well?

@woland In terms of drivers, the delay with Apple is a little bit higher (around 30-40ms extra), and the % of load indicated is also higher. That's why I was thinking that maybe the Blackmagic driver inside Isadora somehow sacrifices a little bit of image quality in order to improve performance. Also, in Windows, the Windows driver is not working for me with the UltraStudio, I'm getting and error.

Could you tell me, in that production with so many UltraStudio, what configuration were you using? Target frame rate, Display Refresh (only in Mac), General Service, Video Image Processing Default Resolution, option in "when combining videos", OpenGL options, etc?

@joshuawg said:

@woland thanks for the response! I think you may be right about hardware limitation. I did get it to work though! I am doing the live delay that I posted about previously, which is why I ended up shifting to a three computer setup. Now the macbook pro does nothing but process the live video delay and send out a single 4k NDI stage (I had previously be sending out several different stages to the Mac Studio) with all 9 stages to the other two computers. Working pretty well actually! 

 Awesome to hear! Yeah, distributing the work based on which computer(s) are the beefiest is one of the best ways to optimize performance when running video between multiple computers.

@woland thanks for the response! I think you may be right about hardware limitation. I did get it to work though! I am indeed doing the live delay that I posted about previously, which is why I ended up shifting to a three computer setup. Now the macbook pro does nothing but process the live video delay and send out a single 4k NDI stage including all 9 stages (I had previously been sending out several different NDI stages to the Mac Studio) to the other two computers, which then uses the chopper tool to output to the video wall. Working pretty well actually! 

@d8bit said:

I'm attaching two images, just capturing my own computer running Isadora. In the first image, I'm using Blackmagic drivers, getting this distortion. On the second, I'm using Apple drivers [...] 

Wait, looking back at this, it seems you have a somewhat viable workaround in that just using the Apple drivers instead looks fine, no? (Even if the performance and video delay are not as optimal, it is at least functional.)

@d8bit said:

I would like to use Blackmagic drivers for the UltraStudio of course, as I get better performance and lower video delay.

Can you describe the difference in terms of performance and video delay in detail?

This is also quite strange as I worked on a production a few months ago where we used Isadora 3 and six or more BlackMagic UltraStudio Mini Recorder 3Gs without issue.

@d8bit

The problem is that when we updated the show from Isadora 3.x to 4.02 we also updated a lot of the components, including cables and the projector for this particular stage (which has a different resolution to the projector we built the show for), so with so many variables it's hard to pinpoint the exact issue, sorry.

@video-architect

Hi,

I don’t recall any posts from Griffith, but I have done a few Isadora projects with staff from Griffith University Queensland Conservatorium. I don’t know of anyone there who uses Isadora.

Best wishes,

Russell

@woland Hi Woland! I've just tried the new 4.0.9 Isadora version, with the latest Blackmagic drivers, in the Windows 11 computer, and unfortunately I have the same problem! I have also tried in the Macbook Pro with M1 Pro chip with the latest OBS, and in that software, everything works fine with both drivers, Blackmagic or Apple.

So, at least for me, I can verify that something isn't working properly with Isadora + Blackmagic driver + Ultrastudio video card capture (any version of it).

Maybe there is a really specific Isadora configuration that is creating this?

@mark_m , I understand that, in your case, the BM UltraStudio Recorder 3G was working fine in Isadora 3 then? Do you remember changing some configuration in Isadora 4 menus? It would be great to pinpoint the issue.

Thanks!

@woland

Popping in here to say that in Isadora 4.02 I was noticing pixellation in projected images captured via a BM Ultrastudio Recorder 3G that I'd never seen using the same setup in earlier versions of Isadora. The reverse of the issue that the OP was having.

I started trying to troubleshoot: I wasn't sure where in the chain from live camera via cable to BM Ultrastudio Recorder to Isadora via cable to projector to screen this issue was happening, but it was definitely there.  I'll redouble my efforts and report back.

Cheers

Mark

@konrad said:

@Woland

Thank you! That's also a good solution to the problem :)