The 30-bit (10-bit per channel) HP DreamColor monitor is quite attractive for the price, yet quite demanding regarding the type of input signals it accepts, as I explained on page 2 of my article How to connect your HD evaluation monitor to your editing system properly: Let me count the ways!. In order to have the color engine active (which is necessary to monitor in ITU-R BT.701 color space), the DreamColor demands that its input signal over HDMI be both RGB (not component) and progressive (not interlaced or even PsF). If your system doesn’t currently output RGB over HDMI… or if it does that, but doesn’t put out true progressive at the progressive framerate you are editing, then the US$690 Hi5-3G from AJA can help, since it can convert a component signal over HD-SDI (or even 3G-SDI) and deliver a real time RGB signal over HDMI. Specifically, the Hi5-3G can help if it receives a signal which is either true progressive or PsF, since it can easily convert PsF into true progressive… but it cannot do the same from a true interlaced signal. For that, you need a EXT-HDSDI-2-HDMIS from Gefen, which costs US$1299. For more details, see page 2 of the article called How to connect your HD evaluation monitor to your editing system properly: Let me count the ways!
In the coming weeks, I’ll be doing a full review of the HP DreamColor 30-bit monitor (10-bit per channel) and the Hi5-3G. Stay tuned.