Decimator 2 3G/HD/SD-SDI to HDMI Converter with Down-Conversion

Decimator 2: The Pocket SDI-to-HDMI Workhorse

The Decimator 2 is a miniature 3G/HD/SD-SDI to HDMI converter with a built-in NTSC/PAL downscaler, processing every signal through a 10-bit data path. It has become a location and studio standard for turning professional SDI cameras into signals any HDMI monitor or legacy composite display can read. NTSC and PAL are the analog standard-definition color systems used historically in North America and much of the rest of the world, and a downscaler shrinks a modern HD picture down to fit them. The 10-bit path refers to how finely each color is sampled, and more steps per color means smoother gradients with less visible banding.

Auto-Detecting SDI Input

One SDI input accepts signals up to 3G-SDI and automatically detects the incoming standard across 26 supported formats, handling switching between synchronous sources without manual setup. Auto-detection means the unit reads the signal's resolution and frame rate itself instead of waiting for an operator to declare them. That lets a camera assistant swap cameras or change resolutions mid-session and the converter simply follows the feed, one fewer setting to get wrong under pressure.

Three Outputs From One Box

Conversion produces an HDMI output for the scaled signal, a composite output that automatically delivers NTSC or PAL from HD sources, and an SDI loop-through that carries the original feed onward. A loop-through is a copy of the untouched input passed straight back out, so the original signal continues downstream while the converter also does its job. A single unit can therefore drive an HDMI monitor, a legacy standard-definition display, and a downstream SDI device at the same time.

Down-Conversion With Aspect Ratio Control

Low-latency 3G/HD to SD down-conversion includes aspect ratio conversion, offering 16:9 to 16:9 anamorphic, 16:9 to 4:3 letterbox, and 16:9 to 4:3 center-cut modes. Aspect ratio is the width-to-height shape of the frame, and these modes decide how a wide 16:9 image is fitted into a squarer 4:3 one, whether squeezed, boxed with black bars, or cropped. Low latency means the conversion adds only a tiny delay, so reframing an HD widescreen program for a 4:3 monitor or archival standard-definition recorder happens close to real time.

De-Embedded Analog Audio

Embedded audio riding inside the SDI stream is de-embedded to analog outputs, so a sound operator can monitor levels or route audio to a mixer without a separate de-embedder. Embedded audio is sound carried digitally within the same SDI cable as the picture, and de-embedding pulls it back out as a signal a mixer or headphones can use. Keeping picture and sound together in one small unit simplifies both field and studio rigs.

Simple, Reliable Control

Setup is handled either by onboard DIP switches for fast standalone use or through USB software on Windows for detailed configuration. DIP switches are small physical toggles for setting options without a computer, ideal when the unit is buried in a rig, while the USB software opens finer control when a laptop is at hand. The 10-bit processing path keeps the converted image clean, minimizing the banding and softness that lesser converters introduce.

Who Reaches for a Decimator 2

Camera operators use it to feed director and client HDMI monitors from an SDI camera. Studios keep it on hand to bridge modern HD gear to legacy NTSC/PAL equipment. Editors and AV technicians rely on its loop-through and audio de-embedding to insert monitoring anywhere in a signal chain, solving the constant problem of incompatible connectors on set.