VigorSwitch V1281 - HDMI Extenders

Blustream Video-over-IP 4K Extenders

The Blustream IP100UHD-TX Transmitters and Blustream IP100UHD-RX Receivers have been tested and work well with the VigorSwitch V1281.

Setting up the Blustream Video-over-IP devices for compatibility with the Video Switch requires normal initial setup of each Blustream Video-over-IP device, and one setting change on the VigorSwitch V1281.

When configured, the VigorSwitch V1281 controls which Source (IP100UHD-TX) is connected to each Output (IP100UHD-RX) using either the Preset Selection or Source Selection modes.

The sending of IR (infra red) remote control signals back to the senders is also supported by multiple units simultaneously. You need to use the Blustream AC/DC power supplies; the V1281 does not support PoE. If you do want to use PoE, you can add a PoE injector.

This guide consists of three Sections; the setting changes in Section 1 and Section 2 must be completed before proceeding with Section 3:

1. VigorSwitch V1281 Setup for Blustream Video-over-IP devices

2. Blustream Video-over-IP Setup for VigorSwitch V1281

3. Connecting Blustream Video-over-IP devices to the VigorSwitch V1281

VigorSwitch V1281 Setup for Blustream Video-over-IP devices

Sending 4K video across a Gigabit network efficiently requires Jumbo Frames to be enabled on the VigorSwitch V1281, this allows packets larger than 1500 bytes to be sent through the switch, typically up to 9600 bytes per packet. With the larger packet size, there is less overhead and less latency in sending video data from one Video-over-IP device to another.

To enable Jumbo Frames on the VigorSwitch V1281, access the Command Line Interface (CLI) of the VigorSwitch. This guide details how to access the VigorSwitch CLI, with both SSH (recommended) and Telnet supported on the switch.

When connecting to the CLI of the VigorSwitch V1281, enter the username of an account with Administrative privileges, the commands referenced will not be available to accounts with User level privileges.

In the CLI of the VigorSwitch enter these commands, pressing [Enter] after each command input:

Blustream Video-over-IP Setup for VigorSwitch V1281

Before the Blustream Video-over-IP devices are connected into the VigorSwitch V1281, they will need to be configured as follows:

IP Addressing

The default configuration of each Blustream IP100UHD-TX and IP100UHD-RX is a static IP address of 169.254.100.254. To configure each Video-over-IP device, plug them in one at a time to a normal LAN port and access them from a computer configured with an IP address in the 169.254.x.x IP range.

When used with the VigorSwitch V1281, the Blustream Video-over-IP devices need to be configured to auto-assign an IP address without a DHCP server - this is because the partitioning of Source and Output ports on the VigorSwitch V1281 will block normal LAN network connectivity for devices plugged into the Source/Output ports. The Auto-IP option allows the Blustream Video-over-IP devices to auto assign themselves an APIPA (Automatic Private IP Address) in the absence of a DHCP server to assign one. This is an address between 169.254.0.0 and 169.254.255.255, with a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0, allowing all devices that have assigned an APIPA address to communicate.

To change the IP address setting in the web interface of the IP100UHD-TX/IP100UHD-RX, go to [Network] and select Auto-IP, then click Apply to save that change. The web interface will then prompt to restart, which will apply the new IP address setting - before restarting the Video-over-IP device, check the Casting Mode configuration is set to Multicast (detailed in the Casting Mode section below).

To restart the IP100UHD-TX/IP100UHD-RX, go to [System], expand the Utilities menu and click Reboot. This will restart the Blustream Video-over-IP device with the new IP configuration.

Channel Setting

The Blustream Video-over-IP encoder and decoders each have a "Channel" indicator on the front of the unit - this specifies the multicast address/group used for sending and receiving video data packets. When used with the VigorSwitch V1281, these must each be set to same channel, for instance all units set to their default value of "01". The VigorSwitch V1281 would then control which Source connects with each Output.

Setting a different channel values on the Blustream Video-over-IP devices will result in no communication between devices on different channels.

Casting Mode

The Casting Mode setting determines how the Blustream Video-over-IP devices communicate with each other:

• Multicast mode (recommended) - The IP100UHD-TX transmitter will send out packets using Multicast, which is sent out to all Output ports that the Source port is grouped with on the VigorSwitch V1281. This option should be left as Multicast where possible. It allows the IP100UHD-TX to send video data in a one-to-many configuration.
• Unicast mode - The IP100UHD-TX transmitter will send video data from itself to one other IP address (a single IP100UHD-RX receiver). This creates a direct link between the sender and the first receiver that it detects. This means that video can only be transmitted to one screen at a time, which may be preferable for KVM (Keyboard Video Mouse) configurations.

Connecting Blustream Video-over-IP devices to the VigorSwitch V1281

Once the Blustream Video-over-IP devices are configured to auto assign an IP address and the VigorSwitch V1281 has Jumbo Frames configured, the VigorSwitch can be configured with its Source and Output ports, which is detailed in this guide.

The IP100UHD-TX transmitters can then be connected into the assigned Source ports on the VigorSwitch V1281 - which are shown connected to the Red network cables in the example setup.

The IP100UHD-RX receivers can be connected into the assigned Output ports on the VigorSwitch V1281 - which are shown connected to the Green network cables in the example setup.

The Source and Output combinations & presets of the Blustream Video-over-IP 4K Extenders can then be selected from the VigorSwitch V1281's web interface in the [Source Selection] & [Preset Selection] menus, or via the DrayTek AVS App, which is available for free on Apple iOS & Google Android platforms through the Apple App Store & Google Play Store.

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