SKAARHOJ Blue Pill Server multi-purpose control engine

SKAARHOJ Blue Pill Server

The Blue Pill Server is a multi-purpose control engine that addresses the challenges of unified and integrated control systems in live production, broadcast and AV. It supports hundreds of universal and vendor-specific protocols, so it can control a wide range of equipment, and it serves as a central hub for controlling and configuring SKAARHOJ panels. It can be used as a bridge between cameras, vision mixers, audio mixers, routers and other devices and third-party panels or software.

It translates between different control protocols so that devices from different ecosystems work together as if they came from the same manufacturer, with features such as tally forwarding, virtual triggers and macros. Through its USB-A port it turns USB devices such as Stream Deck or X-keys into independent IP controllers without a PC; it can also turn a Riedel Smart Panel into a universal controller or add touch control (paid licenses for third-party panels). All typical SKAARHOJ integrations are free of charge.

Key features

• Extensive list of supported devices, universal control of multiple third-party devices
• Protocol translation between broadcast and AV systems (e.g. TCP to vendor-specific protocols)
• Central hub for configuring and controlling SKAARHOJ panels on the local network
• Enables integration of legacy UniSketch controllers with the Blue Pill platform
• USB-A for Stream Deck, X-keys, additional network adapters and frame grabbers
• Can run browser-based touch interfaces and other applications
• Can run remote device cores for system design flexibility and load balancing
• Large colour OLED display, HDMI port
• User customization with the Reactor web UI
• 1G Ethernet with PoE; powered by PoE or Micro USB
• Designed and made in Denmark

Compatibility

• SKAARHOJ panels and controllers (Blue Pill and UniSketch)
• Stream Deck, X-keys, Riedel Smart Panel and touch screens (with the relevant SKAARHOJ license)
• Cameras, vision mixers, audio mixers, routers and other devices supported by SKAARHOJ device cores

Notes

• Full Reactor and Device Core licenses included. Licenses for third-party panels (Stream Deck, X-keys, Riedel, touch, generic USB) and DC Link are sold separately.

In the box

• Blue Pill Server
• Getting Started Guide

Specifications

• Display: 7 colour OLED tiles (2 x 128x72, 4 x 128x36, 1 x 128x16 pixels), 1 LED
• Network: 1G Ethernet with Power over Ethernet (PoE IEEE 802.3af/at)
• Power: PoE or 5 V via Micro USB
• Service port: Micro USB for manual IP setting
• Peripherals: USB-A 2.0 (500 mA), HDMI
• Platform: Blue Pill (Reactor, device cores, skaarOS Linux)
• Dimensions: 81 x 51 x 27 mm
• Weight: 124 g
• Recommended (not included): Cat 6 S/FTP Ethernet cable or better