The casino owners in the prestigious Hotel Panama decided to upgrade and invest in a modern audio-visual system. It consists of 32 video sources: 12 direct TV channels (mostly sports), 2 Cable TV decoders, 3 ADTEC video servers, and 2 combo DVDs. These sources are routed into 32 outputs: 26 plasmas, 2 high power projectors – one outside, mounted in a special glass dome; and one internal, projecting on a huge 7 x 6.5 meters screen – and 4 small racks mount LCD control monitors.
The heart of the system, routing the video signals from sources to monitors, is a Sierra 32 x 32 Composite Video matrix switcher controlled by special software running on a PC. “When we came to design this system, we were looking for new, advanced Technological options because people expect that,” says Angel Sueiro, the Spanish architect who designed this impressive system. Sueiro is a part of the “International Thunderbird Gaming Corporation,” which has designed casinos also in Costa Rica, Spain, and more. “We selected the E-Trade company,” he continues, “because of their experience with the video servers they installed in the Panama Canal Museum and their knowledge of Kramer interface equipment.”
The 3232V Sierra Matrix Switcher gives the operator – located on a dedicated high terrace facing the casino – the ability to route a video source to each plasma according to the need or the will of the people watching it. “The project was a challenge, and the perfect solution was to install the Sierra Matrix, the video servers, and the control software,” says Albeiro Garcia Camelo, General Manager of E-Trade, the Panamanian AV company who installed the system within a short period.
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