The Zixi Broadcaster is now able to estimate the Peak Signal-to-Noise Ratio (PSNR) of a Source video without the need for the reference video. Estimated PSNR (ePSNR) is calculated for each frame of the video and is displayed in ZEN Master as a continuous graph and as a heat map of histograms. To view the ePSNR graph, select the History tab when viewing a Source and expand the Content Analysis graph. The scale for ePSNR is on the right axis. If there are multiple video PIDs available in the Source content, the desired PID to be viewed can be selected. The resolution of the graph depends on the zoom level and is as low as 1 datapoint per minute.
To view the ePSNR heat map, select the History tab when viewing a Source and expand the Encoding Quality graph. Each vertical column in this graph represents a histogram of the ePSNR values of all video frames over a 10 minute window. The scale for ePSNR is 11 to 60 with higher values being higher quality. A higher encoding quality video source will produce a heat map with red color at the higher end of the scale. If there are multiple video PIDs available in the Source content, this graph only shows data for the first video PID found in the Source content.
ePSNR in the Zixi Broadcaster may be a separately priced and licensed feature. ePSNR analysis does not support MPEG2 or HEVC/H.265 content, but does support most types of H.264 content.