Magewell Eco Capture Quad SDI M.2

About this product

Four cameras usually mean a tower PC with a full-size capture card. The Eco Capture Quad SDI M.2 lets you build the same four-camera system around a mini PC. It is a four-channel M.2 capture card, built on the small card format normally used for solid-state drives, and it brings four SDI sources into a computer that has no room for a full-size PCIe capture card, such as a mini PC or an embedded system. SDI is the locking coaxial video connection used on broadcast cameras and professional equipment.

What goes in

• Four SDI inputs. Each accepts SD, HD, 3G or 2K SDI, with input resolutions up to 2048×1080 pixels. That is a full multi-camera shoot through one slot.
• Standards. SD, HD, 3Ga, 3Gb, 3Gb-DL and 3Gb-DS, in RGB 4:4:4, YCbCr 4:4:4 or YCbCr 4:2:2 at 10 or 12 bits.
• Audio. Up to eight mono channels of embedded audio at 48 kHz, carried on the video cable.
• Long cable runs. A built-in cable equaliser supports up to 330 m for SD-SDI, 190 m for HD-SDI and 150 m for 3G-SDI, so you can spread cameras around a venue and keep the computer in one place.
• Working in 4K? This card handles SDI up to 3G. For 6G or 12G-SDI see the Eco Capture 12G SDI 4K Plus M.2.

What comes out

• Four capture channels. Each input appears to the computer as its own channel, so software can use the four cameras separately. That lets you switch between them live or record each one.
• Uncompressed video to your software. The card delivers every channel uncompressed. Your software then handles encoding, recording or streaming.
• Processing on the card. Scaling, de-interlacing and colour format conversion are done in the card’s own video pipelines (about 180 megapixels per second), which keeps the load off the computer’s processor. With four channels running, that helps a small machine.
• Formats. 8-bit capture formats in 4:2:0, 4:2:2 and 4:4:4, at capture resolutions up to 2048×1080.

Standard BNC sockets on your case

An M.2 card is too small to carry BNC sockets, the usual SDI connector. The card has four miniature MMCX coaxial sockets instead, and it comes with four MMCX to BNC cables, each 32 cm long, one for every input. You fix the BNC ends to the case and connect normal SDI cables to them. Plan where those four BNC sockets will go in your case before you order.

Fitting and setting up

• The slot. The card fits an M.2 2280 Type M slot with PCIe (Gen2 x4). It is the standard 2280 size, 22 mm wide and 80 mm long. Choose an M.2 slot that provides PCIe; slots that only take SATA drives are for storage. Check the host computer’s manual before ordering, or ask us.
• Drivers. Magewell supplies a Windows and Linux driver and an SDK, so install the driver as part of setup. Recommended systems are Windows 10/11 and Windows Server 2016/2019/2022/2025 (x86 and x64), and Linux on x86, x64 and ARM with kernel 2.6.35 or later.
• Software you already use. The card works through DirectShow on Windows and V4L2 on Linux, with VLC, VirtualDub, OBS, XSplit, vMix, VidBlaster and Wirecast. It is also compatible with Magewell’s own Capture Express, Bridge for NDI and Plugin for Premiere.
• Room to grow. Several cards can share one computer, which lets you go beyond four inputs. A 16-position switch on the card sets its number.
• Power and heat. Maximum power consumption is about 7.16 W. The operating temperature range is 0 to 40°C, worth checking for a small sealed case. The card is built to work continuously, 24 hours a day.

Where it sits in the range

Choose the Quad for four cameras through one M.2 slot. If two inputs are enough, the Eco Capture Dual SDI M.2 uses less power (about 3.38 W) and is specified for PCIe Gen2 x2. The whole family is on the Eco Capture range page. If the computer has a free PCIe slot, the Pro Capture cards are the full-size alternative.