Last month, Extron launched their newest product in the form of the VN-Matrix 200 Series and VN-Matrix 300 Series  – their first encoders and decoders for real-time transmission of high resolution AV content across standard IP networks. Unveiled under the Extron banner for the first time since the acquisition of the Products Division of Electrosonic, the VN-Matrix Series is meant for live viewing, collaboration, storage, and playback of high quality A/V signals. With the scalable VN-Matrix system, you can start small and add additional encoders and decoders later to turn your IP network into a virtual routing matrix switcher that is practically limitless in size. The VN-Matrix 200 Series enables streaming of DVI and RGB video, while the VN-Matrix 300 Series supports SDI, HD-SDI, and 3G-SDI video. Both VN-Matrix Series can be used on uncorrected networks and provide visually lossless picture quality for large projected images and high-resolution graphics.

VN-Matrix Systems encode video or graphics sources at resolutions up to HD or WUXGA, along with bidirectional audio and data signals, and decode the content back to the original source resolution utilizing Extron’s PURE3 Codec, a unique wavelet-based compression technology. The PURE3 Codec is specifically designed for network transmission and provides an unmatched combination of bit rate efficiency, low latency, and high image quality. PURE3 exceeds many of the performance characteristics of existing compression formats and provides exceptionally robust protection against network errors, making it ideal for quality-critical applications.

For complete specs, go to:  http://www.extron.com/product/es6100vnmatrix.aspx

Keep in mind I don’t do product evaluations folks; rather, I pass along my general observations here for your consideration. That said (and FWIW), I’m increasingly convinced, as an industry, we can’t get to a fully “IP” (for loss of a better term) AV transmission and routing topology fast enough.
–GB