The SX40's smaller sibling: eight 1G outputs, the full Tessera feature set, for projects that do not need a large pixel capacity.
Brompton · mid-range LED processor
Brompton Tessera S8 LED wall processor
The Tessera S8 offers a mid-range alternative alongside the SX40 for high-prestige projects that do not need a large output capacity but do want Brompton's full software feature set. The processor has 8 1 Gigabit outputs with a nominal capacity of 525,000 pixels per line at 8-bit colour depth and 60 Hz, giving the whole system a maximum capacity of 4.5 million pixels.
On the input side there is one HDMI 2.0b and one 12G-SDI port, with the same broadcast standards (HD-SDI, 3G-SDI, 6G-SDI, 12G-SDI) as on the SX40. The S8 also supports HDR (HLG/PQ), Dynamic Calibration, Extended Bit Depth and HFR+ up to 250 fps, along with closed loop redundancy on all eight output ports.
The machine is recommended primarily to rental companies looking for a more cost-effective solution for their most expensive, event-specific projects without giving up the advantages of the Tessera ecosystem (HDR, calibration, redundancy).
Where the Tessera S8 sits in an LED wall system
The S8 sits in the same chain as the SX40 — media server or camera over SDI, genlock from the studio reference, the Tessera protocol on the output — but over eight 1G ports rather than a 10G trunk. The nominal budget is 525,000 pixels per port: with a P2.84 panel of 176×176, that is 16 cabinets per port, or 4 m². HDR and Dynamic Calibration here too call for a panel with a Tessera R2/R2+ receiving card; the "Brompton-ready" marking from a manufacturer means the hub board's DDR2 SO-DIMM socket takes an R2+, with the module calibration data stored on the card.
WHEN IT IS THE RIGHT CHOICE
Medium-sized, high-prestige events and rental companies that do not need the SX40's pixel capacity but do want the full Tessera feature set (HDR, calibration, redundancy).
WHAT TO WATCH OUT FOR
It has only 1G (not 10G) outputs, so a larger wall needs considerably more output cables and ports than with the SX40; HDR and Dynamic Calibration are tied to R2-based panels here as well.
The Tessera S8 in practice
At commissioning, loading the fixture file in the Tessera Management Software is the first step — without it the wall works, but calibration and Dark Magic do not. In front of a camera, ShutterSync has to be set to the shutter angle and the genlock to the studio's tri-level reference; if the refresh rates of the source and the wall do not match, tearing appears. Closed loop redundancy is available on all eight ports, but only protects if both ends of the loop really are wired back into the processor — during a build this is the step most often left out. The 2-frame latency drops to 1 in ULL mode, at the cost of losing some processing functions.
Alternatives to the Tessera S8
If 4.5 million pixels is too few, the SX40 (9 million px, 10G outputs, 4K input) is the next step up, and the SQ200 for 8K and AVoIP. Downwards there is the T1 with a single port, for small creative installations. If broadcast is not the aim — a fixed advertising board, a shopfront, a conference room — this level will not pay for itself: a NovaStar VX600 or MCTRL660 Pro belongs there, at a fraction of the price.
Tessera S8 manual and datasheet
The documents live on the manufacturer's own site and open in a new window — so you always get the latest version. We do not copy or translate their contents.
Related broadcast processors
LED wall processor — but what does it go into?
On its own the Brompton Tessera S8 is a component. With us it works inside these displays — design, manufacturing and installation included.
