The AJA HELO Plus is a compact and advanced stand-alone H.264 streaming and recording device. The HELO Plus offers SDI and HDMI I/O, with the ability to stream up to 1080p60 to a content distribution network and record simultaneously. Two independent streaming destinations can be configured, and recordings can be made to a combination of SD cards, USB storage and NFS or CIFS network storage. The HELO Plus also offers PiP and hardware graphics functions for easy and attractive presentations.
The HELO Plus offers high quality streaming, with ultra-reliable performance, for any critical streaming service need, including e-sports, news, sports, education, creators, live events, etc.
Hardware
The HELO Plus is compact and takes up very little desktop space. It offers stand-alone capabilities with transmit and record buttons on the front of the unit, as well as LED indicators. Audio level meters provide valuable information about the incoming audio. The HELO Plus is fanless and quiet, allowing it to be used almost anywhere without fear of introducing noise. The SD card and USB ports are also located on the front of the unit for easy access.
Remote or local control
The HELO Plus can be easily configured remotely from a standard web browser, via the Ethernet connection, and using a desktop or laptop computer. All HELO Plus functions are accessible through the WebUI, and multiple HELO Plus devices can be easily controlled through a tabbed browser window. Once configured to your needs, HELO Plus can also be controlled via the transmit and record buttons on the front of the device, with LED audio level meters providing monitoring information, or the system can be controlled directly from the included web-based user interface. There is also the option of remote control via the system's built-in REST API.
Video and audio support
Video formats
(HD) 1080p 23.98, 24, 25, 29.97, 30, 50, 59.94, 60
(HD) 1080i 50, 59.94, 60
(HD) 720p 50, 59.94, 60
(SD) 525i, 625i
Video codec support
H.264/MPEG-4 encoder
Audio encoding parameters
32 kbps to 256 kbps
48 kHz 2-channel stereo
MPEG-4 AAC-LC
SRT support
SRT is an open source video transport protocol and technology stack, developed and promoted by Haivision, that optimises streaming performance over unpredictable networks with secure streams and easy firewall traversal, providing the best quality live video over the worst networks. The SRT open source project, supported by the SRT Alliance, is a collaborative community of industry leaders and developers striving for lower latency Internet video transport through continuous improvement of open source SRT.
HELO Plus includes SRT (plus encryption) to ensure that it is well positioned to deliver streaming video content securely, with low latency and secure reliability.
Operational flexibility
The HELO Plus' small size and quiet operation allow it to fit into any workstation, and the operator can use the easy-to-access front panel start and stop buttons. But just as simply, HELO Plus can be operated remotely from a desktop or laptop computer via Ethernet, which is particularly useful for HELO Plus multiple use cases. HELO Plus is designed to give you the flexibility to configure and deploy HELO Plus according to your needs in the field, at home or in the studio. HELO Plus adapts to any streaming need imaginable, from sports, news, creators, education, eSports, remote workflows and many more. REST API capabilities provide control of all HELO Plus functions, regardless of the scenario, enabling user-developed integration and automation.
Simultaneous streaming and recording
HELO Plus has the ability to stream and record up to 1080p60 simultaneously in the following combinations:
Simultaneous streaming to two destinations and simultaneous recording to SD local storage
Streaming to two destinations and recording to USB local storage simultaneously
Simultaneous streaming to two destinations and recording to NFS/CIFS network storage simultaneously
Having a recorded backup of the video stream provides a high quality H.264 version for editing applications, selecting the most appropriate storage. Network storage may make more sense for sharing the edit, while an SD card or USB recording provides easy extraction for clients or editors.
Calendar integration
HELO Plus opens up a world of new streaming workflows for AV, live events, places of worship, webcasting, corporate communications, production and post-production. HELO Plus offers a scheduler that triggers the start and stop of pre-planned media recording and streaming, simplifying projects that require definitive scheduling. The schedule can be scheduled locally via the HELO Plus web user interface, by importing .ics files or by linking to external calendar providers such as Google Calendar.
Layouts - Powerful multi-input video processing
HELO Plus incorporates the interesting feature of layouts, which allows combining multiple entries on a single screen with an overlay of graphical elements. A layout allows the user to combine the SDI input and HDMI input into a single output stream and then add a graphic (video + key) into that composition. The layout can have up to 3 layers, and its priority can be arbitrarily adjusted to suit the customer's needs. In addition to the overlay engine, both SDI and HDMI layers can be arbitrarily scaled down and positioned anywhere in the frame. In effect, each live video source can be used in the picture-in-picture (PiP) element.
The system also has an internal colour generator, which can be used as a background. In this way, the graphic can be keyed on the dual PiP images, which are "on" a flat matte background. The system can move accurately from one layout to another frame, allowing the user to "cut" between layouts during a streaming session. Layouts are stored in one of 20 presets, allowing users to recall all the parameters needed for a specific purpose. There are 10 layouts stored in each preset, so the user remembers the programme preset and can then switch between those 10 layouts at will.
The graphics system is equally impressive: the system stores more than 90 images in its internal non-volatile memory.
Dual streaming output
HELO Plus features a dual encoder for streaming outputs, giving you the flexibility to create different output configurations from a single input source. The two encoders can have different packaging configurations and different output frame sizes, meaning that a single stream of content can be presented in two ways to reach a wider audience. It can also be duplicated on both encoders to increase reliability. Either encoder output can also serve as a source for the HELO Plus recording system.
Features of the AJA HELO Plus Encoder and Streaming Recorder
- Portable, stand-alone device with 3G-SDI and HDMI I/O
- Encodes up to 1080p60 in H.264/MPEG-4
- Simultaneous transmission to two different destinations
- Create picture-in-picture streaming/recording output from multiple input sources
- 2-channel stereo audio
- Analogue stereo audio output
- Front panel LED audio meters
- Data rates from 100 kbps to 20 Mbps in MPEG-4
- Recording to SD, SDHC or SDXC cards, USB storage, NFS, CIFS or SMB network volumes
- USB slot and SD card slot for local external storage
- 3G-SDI and HDMI video input and output
- RTP/UDP, RTSP, RTMP, RTMPS, HLS and Unicast support
- SRT support
- AV Mute with user graphics upload support for pre-live streams
- Web-based graphical user interface preview window
- Group control for multiple HELO Plus and Ki Pro devices
- Three-year warranty
