Andreas Hilmer from Lawo presents the Lawo Edge, a unified audio and video interface introduced at NAB 2026. The device integrates signal processing and JPEG XS compression directly within the unit. It offers a wide range of connectivity, including analog audio boards (8-in or 4-in/4-out), a commentary module, bidirectional SDI, HDMI inputs and outputs, USB-C for use as an audio interface, and both optical and copper network interfaces supporting up to 25 Gbps for 4K video. Power can be supplied via an external redundant power supply or through PoE++, allowing for potentially quadruple redundancy.
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HDMI® Technology is the foundation for the worldwide ecosystem of HDMI-connected devices; integrated with displays, set-top boxes, laptops, audio video receivers and other product types. Because of this global usage, manufacturers, resellers, integrators and consumers must be assured that their HDMI® products work seamlessly together and deliver the best possible performance by sourcing products from licensed HDMI Adopters or authorized resellers. For HDMI Cables, consumers can look for the official HDMI® Cable Certification Labels on packaging. Innovation continues with the latest HDMI 2.2 Specification that supports higher 96Gbps bandwidth and next-gen HDMI Fixed Rate Link technology to provide optimal audio and video for a wide range of device applications. Higher resolutions and refresh rates are supported, including up to 12K@120 and 16K@60. Additionally, more high-quality options are supported, including uncompressed full chroma formats such as 8K@60/4:4:4 and 4K@240/4:4:4 at 10-bit and 12-bit color.
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The Lawo Edge is designed for a variety of applications, functioning as a video-only, audio-only, or combined audio/video stage box. It can be deployed as a commentary unit for up to three commentators, controlled via a browser-based HTML5 graphical user interface, with the option to add a tactile screen for physical controls like a cough button. Other use cases include deployment in theaters, television studios, outside broadcast trucks for stadium signal acquisition, post-production, and as a complete remote production unit.
Internally, the Edge features a comprehensive DSP engine, which includes a full mc² audio mixer. This allows for on-site, low-latency monitoring and IFB mixing directly within the device, making it a self-contained solution for complex production environments. The user interface for the internal DSP is also web-based, ensuring accessibility from any device. The system also supports GPIO and sync/word clock in and out for integration into larger broadcast systems.
Lawo also showcases its Dynamic Media Facility concept, which moves processing from bespoke hardware to standard server compute infrastructure. This software-defined approach runs on standard CPUs, such as those from AMD in Supermicro servers, without requiring GPU acceleration. The system is hardware-independent and utilizes containers to run applications like multiviewers, color correction, up/down/cross conversion, and downstream keyers. This architecture provides a highly scalable and adaptable infrastructure for various production needs.
To complement the Dynamic Media Facility, Lawo has developed a dynamic, function-agnostic licensing model. This system allows licenses to be allocated and freed up on demand, preventing unused perpetual licenses from sitting idle. At the booth, Lawo demonstrates how the entire facility can be torn down and reconfigured for different scenarios, such as a master control room or an audio control room, by dynamically spinning up the necessary applications. This process shows the real-time changes in CPU core utilization and power consumption, highlighting the efficiency and flexibility of the platform.
