Review on Blackmagic Design Smart Videohub BMD VHUBSMART6G4040 by John Arsov

This is so close to perfect that it's a shame it doesn't quite live up to that level. He absolutely does what he has to do. That is, route video from any input to any combination of outputs. And the front panel controls make it very easy. And the ability to monitor video on the built-in LCD is great too. It's missing some of the features that would make it absolutely perfect. Firstly, the video surveillance function only allows you to control the output data. You cannot select any input to display without assigning it to one of the device's outputs. I'm sure BMD will add this with a software update, but I'm not sure they ever will. Second, sometimes when I turn it on, the LCD just turns off. strange. It's like some bits of the signal are reversed. What might normally be a smooth transition from black to white goes from black to light gray to darker gray and then light gray to white so it's not continuous. Or it can do that weird brightness reversal a few times in the brightness range. That is very strange. Usually this goes away on disconnect and reconnect, but it would be nice if this never happened. Third, it would be nice if the device could convert between 3G-SDI Level A and Level B. BMD likes to use Level B in most of its products, but many other manufacturers use Level A. It would be extremely useful to be able to convert between levels (it actually transmits and displays both levels). Fourth, I would like presets. I mainly use this in mobile video production and I tend to do the same gigs over and over again. Being able to call up one preset for a concert hall and then another for a basketball game would have saved me a lot of time. A few other comments. Except when the LCD does its weird inversion, this is a very good LCD panel. It appears to be very similar, if not identical, to the LCD in their Video Assist product. This is much better than the LCD panels used in BMD's 1U products. Better colors, better contrast, better resolution. I now use it as a second monitor in my main backpack when I'm doing shows. It's even way better (in every way) than Smartview monitors. BMD must sell a standalone rackmount three monitor product that uses this LCD. I know some will complain about how much heat and noise it makes, but it really isn't bad, especially considering how much data this thing moves. It's not loud enough to bother me, but you shouldn't use it near microphones while recording. It gets quite warm if it doesn't have good ventilation, so I'd recommend making sure you have a fan in the same rack to keep it cool.