How SDVoE’s Unique Transceiver Design Makes AV Systems More Flexible

Keith Kennedy
Managing Director at ProITAV

Flexibility is one of the most valuable traits in modern audiovisual system design. Across various virtual markets, including enterprise collaboration spaces, higher education, healthcare, and mission-critical control rooms, today’s audiovisual infrastructures should adapt fluidly to evolving needs without costly redesigns or disruptions.

Traditionally, audiovisual architectures were often rigid. Transmitters and receivers were locked into their roles, meaning that system growth or reconfiguration required additional hardware, rewiring and labor. For example, scaling up from a simple two-room system to a campus-wide deployment may require replacing much of the existing infrastructure.

By contrast, Software Defined Video over Ethernet (SDVoE) technology has flexibility built in at every level, from chip design to network topology. A key element behind the flexibility is SDVoE’s unique transceiver architecture, which allows each endpoint to function dynamically as either a transmitter, a receiver or both simultaneously. By implementing a true bi-directional capability, SDVoE technology eliminates typical constraints in AV-over-IP systems and delivers significant savings in time, cost, and complexity.

At the heart of SDVoE technology lies an ecosystem of purpose-built application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) that balance performance and adaptability. The SDVoE ASIC comes in three versions: the AVP1000, AVP2000, and AVP2000T. All three share identical image quality, latency and reliability.

The consistency of SDVoE technology enables manufacturers and system designers to value-engineer their products and installations. For applications that only require straightforward video distribution, the AVP1000 offers exceptional 4K performance over standard 10-gigabit Ethernet. When a project calls for broadcast-quality scaling, such as video walls, multiview or advanced display management, the AVP2000 provides the necessary power. If full transceiver capability is required, the AVP2000T delivers true bi-directional AV communication between endpoints.

The chip-level flexibility empowers both manufacturers and integrators to deploy the right performance tier where it’s needed, without compromising quality or compatibility. Every SDVoE device, regardless of which chip it uses, delivers the same low-latency, lossless image fidelity that defines the SDVoE standard.

In most traditional AV-over-IP systems, ports must be predefined as either transmit or receive. While some systems allow port duality at runtime, they still require manual configuration and cannot operate as both simultaneously. SDVoE’s transceiver architecture completely breaks this limitation.

An SDVoE transceiver can send and receive video, audio and control signals concurrently. The bi-directional capability creates an unprecedented level of design freedom. In a typical installation, the same device can capture a signal from one source, process or composite it, and then output it to multiple displays, all without the need for additional hardware.

For integrators, this means fewer device types to specify, fewer spare parts to stock and simpler system design. Instead of planning fixed transmitter and receiver zones, designers can treat each endpoint as a dynamic node in a flexible network. The flexibility in design is especially valuable in environments where room functions change frequently, such as universities, conference centers, or multipurpose venues, because any node can be reconfigured instantly through software.

The advantages of SDVoE’s transceiver design extend beyond flexibility. They also simplify large-scale deployments. Since each device can both send and receive, integrators can create symmetrical network topologies that are easier to scale and maintain. Adding a new room, display or input source doesn’t require re-wiring or adding specialized equipment; it’s simply a matter of connecting another SDVoE node and updating the configuration.

Additionally, SDVoE’s architecture supports point-to-point, one-to-many, and fully networked installations out of the box. Every chipset supports both copper and fiber connections, providing integrators with the freedom to adapt to varying distances, infrastructure, or bandwidth requirements without requiring a system redesign.

Broadcast-quality scaling and integrated image compositing mean that tasks such as video walls or multi-view displays no longer need external processors. Each endpoint has the intelligence to scale, crop and composite video locally, greatly reducing the number of devices and points of failure. The result is a cleaner, leaner installation that’s easier to manage and expand.

In an industry where technology cycles move faster than ever, future-proofing is a top concern for both integrators and end users. Traditional matrix switchers and fixed I/O devices often become bottlenecks when systems expand or new formats are introduced. SDVoE’s software-defined architecture, paired with its transceiver-based design, eliminates these constraints.

Since any SDVoE endpoint can assume any role in the system, upgrades typically require no hardware replacement, only software configuration. Adding a new input or output becomes a matter of network topology and bandwidth management, not physical port count.

As a result, organizations can start small and scale up over time, protecting their investments while ensuring compatibility with future formats, resolutions and signal types. The same infrastructure that supports today’s 4K60 uncompressed video is ready for tomorrow’s higher-bandwidth workflows, all without needing to rip and replace equipment.

At ProITAV, we view SDVoE as the most flexible AV technology available today. From a manufacturer’s perspective, SDVoE’s transceiver technology represents the highest level of design versatility available in AV-over-IP. From an integrator’s standpoint, it provides the freedom to build systems that can evolve gracefully with customer needs.

combining purpose-built ASICs, a true bi-directional transceiver architecture, integrated scaling and compositing, and comprehensive KVM and control capabilities, SDVoE delivers a platform that is both powerful and practical. In addition to integrated KVM for peripherals, SDVoE ASICs can be paired with external USB 2.0 chipsets to enable full-speed data transmission, enabling seamless integration of high-bandwidth USB devices, such as cameras, audio interfaces and storage, within the same AV-over-IP network. Audiovisual systems built on SDVoE can grow, adapt and transform without the typical costs, downtime or limitations of traditional AV systems.

For more information on the SDVoE Alliance, please visit www.sdvoe.org. Keep up with the latest news from the SDVoE Alliance on LinkedIn,Twitter and YouTube.

About the SDVoE Alliance

SDVoE is an initialism for “Software Defined Video over Ethernet”. The SDVoE Alliance is a nonprofit consortium of technology providers collaborating to standardize the adoption of Ethernet to transport AV signals in professional AV environments and to create an ecosystem around SDVoE technology allowing software to define AV applications.

The SDVoE Alliance operates the free SDVoE Academy training platform, participates in tradeshows and conferences, publishes white papers and case studies, and promotes SDVoE technology, and solutions based on the technology, to system integrators, designers, consultants, and end users.

SDVoE Alliance founding members bring different perspectives to the SDVoE initiative spanning the entire ecosystem with expertise in chipsets (Semtech and Aquantia), switches and storage (NETGEAR), and AV end points (Christie Digital, Sony and ZeeVee). For more information, visit sdvoe.org. Connect with SDVoE on X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, and the SDVoE blog.

About ProITAV

A global enterprise that provides comprehensive go-to-market services for professional AV/UC products, including roadmap strategy, product design, manufacturing, logistics, and support. Teams of expert engineers, product managers, and technicians in both the U.S. and China leverage decades of experience and proven agile processes to bring products to life quickly and reliably. Offering a variety of plans and manufacturing options, ProITAV enables you to capture market opportunities, fill-in product gaps, and take control with branded products; differentiate your products with value-added features and functionality or develop cost-saving designs; innovate technology to create first-to-market products. ProITAV is your virtual GTM team.