Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Kevin Maxwell]

USB3 to HDMI adapter

I posted this question on the Show Cue Systems forum late yesterday and I haven’t gotten an answer yet and then I realized that maybe someone here might be able to help me.

I have a license for the standard version of SCS (Show Cue Systems) and have used it for a few events. One of them was last year at a youth concert in a school that we have done for a while. But last year we hung 2 screens and sent the same signal to both screens. We came out of the HDMI from the notebook computer into a HDMI splitter and up to the 2 projectors. For this year’s concert they want to at times have the same slides or video showing on both screens and at other times they want to have something different on each screen. I have played a little bit with last year’s show and I think I know how to do that in SCS. This concert is coming up soon. It is the first week of February.

My question relates to getting 2 outputs out of the windows 7pro 64bit notebook computer. It has 1 HDMI output a few USB2 outputs and 1-USB3 output. I was thinking of using a USB3 to HDMI adapter for one of the projectors and the computers HDMI output for the other projector. Or use a USB3 hub that I already have and used 2 USB3 to HDMI adapters out of the hub. I would hope to find a way that the playback is in sync on both projectors. Does anyone have any experience with doing what I am looking for and do you have any words of warning or suggestions. I am going to borrow a USB3 to HDMI adapter from a friend on Monday so I can test and see if that looks like it will work. Are there any of these adapters that anyone recommends?

Thank you for any help that you can be.   

[Steve Ferreira]

What if they want both screens to have different content from 2 different sources and not the 1 laptop? I would look into a switcher that has at least 2 or 3 outputs (Screen 1, screen 2 & downstage monitor/green room). Using a switcher with multiple outputs will allow you to save "screen states" and allow for much smoother transitions of the content. Switchers will also allow multiple input devices in various configurations to be connected.

Ex:
Screen 1 & 2 PPT
Screen 1 PPT Screen 2 IMAG
Screen 1 & 2 IMAG
Screen 1 PPT Screen 2 Webcast

[Taylor Hall]

You should be able to use a USB dongle alongside the onboard graphics, assuming your hardware is up to the task. I'm not sure USB3 would be able to handle two video streams, so you'd see huge frame drops (assuming it worked at all) if you ran both outputs from a hub. I would definitely test either option sooner than later to be sure which you seem to have handled.

I think Steve is on the right track in using a switcher/matrix. If SCS is being used as the slideshow source, it would be fairly easy to source another laptop/PC to act as a video playback source. The kicker there is being sure you have enough hands to operate everything. Barring that, using a switcher with the single laptop and adapter would indeed look much more professional on screen for the reasons Steve mentioned.

[Kevin Maxwell]

Thank you for your help and advice. We always strive for excellence in all of the work that we do but we are also aware of the budget and the type of event and customer. We have a simple video rack with a switcher but SCS is actually better for what we are doing FOR THIS EVENT. Not shouting just emphasizing.

Well I borrowed a USB3-HDMI adapter and ran some tests. And it works. SCS allows for smooth transitions for what I need and I can do all that I asked for. We then bought 2 USB3-HDMI adapters (different brand/chipset and different drivers then the first one I tested) and I then tested that setup using the USB3 hub. I had a slight problem with the way SCS was working when trying to do it as 2 different videos as sub cues. But I have been in touch with SCS and they have figured out what was wrong and I also came up with a workaround so it is all working for me. I did my tests with a 1080 TV/Monitor and my 4K home TV.

I will get a chance to test it on the Friday before the event when we do setup. There is a rehearsal on the following Monday and shows 2 on Tuesday and 1 on Thursday. I will also have a plan B available if we have any issues.

Thank you for your suggestions.

[ProSoundWeb Community]