Sony unveils new 4K HDR reference monitor and launches TRIMASTER HX brand

At IBC 2018, Sony announced a new 31-inch Grade 1 reference monitor, the BVM-HX310, which offers accurate colour reproduction and high-contrast performance to provide professional content creators the assurance in critical picture decisions. The launch of the new reference monitor also marks the introduction of Sony’s new technology brand TRIMASTER HX.

The BVM-HX310 has been created in response to the industry’s desire to overcome the challenge of accurate picture evaluation especially in the black reproducibility. It is able to accurately reproduce images down to individual pixels thanks to a combination of the Sony specified and dedicated panel and its newly developed display processing technology. It is also fully capable of reproducing 4K and High Dynamic Range (HDR) content, supports industry standard brightness of up to 1,000 nits in full-screen and a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio for HDR productions.

“Drawing on decades of post-production and live production expertise, the BVM-HX310 has been designed to provide professionals with images they can trust, helping them to work more efficiently and achieve better creative focus, whether on location or in a studio,” explained Hany Bartella, Head of Media sales for Middle East at Sony Professional Solutions MEA. “At Sony, we continuously work with our customers to offer solutions that help them overcome the challenges they face daily. The result of this process is that, together, we create innovative solutions like our new reference monitor.”

Sony also introduced its new technology brand, TRIMASTER HX. HX represents the combination of both HDR (‘H’) and Liquid Crystal (Xtal) Display (‘X’) technologies. Any monitors of this range offer the accuracy, consistency and quality of colour reproduction.

“When content professionals choose a reference monitor from Sony, they expect our solutions to offer trustful image quality,” adds Hany. “TRIMASTER HX is the new umbrella brand that incorporate the Sony specified million contrast LCD panel and its unique panel controlling technology to deliver consistent picture quality, accurate colour reproduction with the deepest blacks, and provide high-contrast performance consistent with our current reference monitor, the BVM-X300.”

The BVM-HX310 hosts all major HDR EOTF and, for the first time in Sony professional monitors, 12G-SDI is supported, enabling simple 4K transmission with a single SDI cable. It handles ITU-R BT.2020 colour space and HDR images with Hybrid Log Gamma, SMPTE ST2084 and 2.4 (HDR) gamma alongside S-Log2, S-Log3 and S-Log3 Live HDR for SR Live Workflow.

Additionally, the BVM-HX310’s User LUT function will allow user to load pre-defined Look Up Tables based on their viewing requirements Onset or in Post Production. The existence of multiple EOTF in 4K/UHD, in addition to multiple colour spaces and RGB ranges, gives rise to potential complexities in source identification.

The BVM-HX310 incorporates Video Payload ID (VPID) which identifies signal information embedded in the SDI interface to help switch to appropriate display settings automatically – minimising the potential for a human error.

It also offers a Quad View mode, allowing professionals to view up to four customised individual display settings across the monitor in HD (including EOTF, colour space, transfer matrix and colour temperature), previously introduced on the PVM-X550. This quad view mode newly supports User LUT from the BVM-HX310.

Sony will be exhibiting at IBC 2018 on stand 13.A10 in the Elicium Hall, RAI Amsterdam.