Visitors to Magewell’s booth at the InfoComm 2023 exhibit were treated to a sneak preview of the company’s second-generation centralized device management software. The successor to the established Magewell Cloud platform, the new Control Hub will feature an enhanced device management interface and expanded stream conversion capabilities.
Flexibly deployable on-premises or in the cloud, Control Hub will provide centralized configuration and control of multiple Magewell streaming and IP conversion solutions. Administrators, IT staff and systems integrators can easily manage multiple encoders and decoders across disparate locations through an intuitive, browser-based interface. An HTTP-based API is also available for third-party integration.
The Control Hub software will support Magewell hardware products, including Ultra Stream and Ultra Encode live media encoders; Pro Convert NDI encoders and decoders; the Pro Convert Audio DX IP audio converter; and the USB Fusion capture and mixing device. Users can remotely configure device parameters, monitor device status, trigger operational functions – such as starting or stopping encoding – and perform batch firmware upgrades across multiple units of the same model.
Control Hub features a revamped user interface that makes managing multiple encoders and decoders even simpler and more efficient. Its redesigned dashboard provides expanded information in a more intuitive layout, making it easier for users to see the status of their devices and deployments at a glance. Video from remote Ultra Stream, Ultra Encode and USB Fusion units can be previewed directly in the Control Hub interface without needing to open the individual device’s interface panel.
Control Hub expands on the stream conversion capabilities of the earlier Magewell Cloud software with support for more protocols and a more flexible stream routing architecture. Users can define presets for stream input sources and output targets, then create ‘channels’ that map each input to one or more output protocols and destinations. Control Hub converts between RTMP, SRT (in caller or listener mode), RTSP and transport streams (delivered over UDP or RTP).
SRT Relay – previously a separate function in Magewell Cloud – is now just a specific Control Hub channel mapping configuration that routes SRT inputs to SRT outputs. This simplifies SRT streaming workflows by letting SRT encoders and decoders connect via Control Hub rather than directly to each other, minimizing firewall headaches and eliminating the need for public, static IP addresses at every endpoint.
The Control Hub software will be delivered as a Docker container and can be deployed on public cloud infrastructure or the customers’ own server. Linux is the recommended operating system for Control Hub installations, but the software is also compatible with Windows and MacOS. Turnkey, Linux-based Control Hub servers will also be offered in select regions.
Multiple tiers of the Control Hub software will be available based on the number of devices and streaming channels to be managed. Existing customers who purchased Magewell Cloud MC 50 or Magewell Cloud MC 150 licenses can redeem a code for a free upgrade to the appropriate Control Hub version when it is released.
“As the market adoption and scale of remote production and IP-based AV distribution workflows continue to grow rapidly, efficient management of these deployments becomes more important than ever,” said James Liu, VP of Engineering at Magewell. “Control Hub incorporates feedback from our customers to further streamline remote management and control of our hardware devices and the resulting streams.”
