SamanthaD

If you're using commercial grade rather than domestic you should be fine, as these products are spec'd to be used in the public domain. If you're using domestic then as said, it would likely void any warranty and not be as durable as a commercial grade device.

You're comparing apples with pears here. VGA was analogue, HDMI digital. When analogue signals get weak the signal is still there, just reduced and can be reamplified easily. When digital gets weak the signal that defines the ones become zeroes, and nothing can be saved once that happens. Bear in mind HDMI was never meant to be anything more than a consumer grade standard, used for short interconnects between DVD players and TV's. The main push was from movie labels because of HDCP (which VGA doesn't transmit) rather than the multi-channel audio and all the other stuff you're sold on - they just wanted to prevent piracy. It evolved though, and honestly HDMI is the wrong standard for the job. I think best we have right now is SDI as it has a locking connector and good over long distance, or maybe HDBaseT.

Please see this from the government HSE site https://www.hse.gov.uk/safetybulletins/risk-from-height-adjustable-display-screen-education.htm I think most of us have seen the results of incorrectly mounted height adjustable systems, so please read and digest. Thanks.

Iiyama has been our standard for around 6/7 years, recently we've been having weird issues which has mostly been attributed to the OS rather than the hardware. If only they made a display with touch capabilities, no OS, no buttons, one HDMI and an RS232 they'd fly off the shelves!

If your staff have a known laptop (ie Windows, Mac, Chromebook) then I might be tempted to go wireless casting. Find a device that has Miracast, Airplay or Chromecast support depending on your standard device and deploy. It's going to be much easier (and cheaper) than trying to find reliable cables that work at that distance. I'm not sure where you might have seen that a faceplate adds 10m though. I usually work on 1m per break in the chain, so a faceplate with the faceplate connector, a small pigtail cable then another connector I usually allow around 2.5m of "length". If you were to replace the faceplate with a brushplate then a 15m cable would work? Although there are cheaper available I'd be looking at https://www.vdctrading.com/products/vdc-active-high-speed-with-ethernet-hdmi-20-lead-15m

I'd go for a standard 3.5mm to 2 x RCA. Just the way this is done is one channel bypasses the first plug and goes to the second, easier way of "splitting" the ground wire.What has been shown above should do you fine.

We use GVAV for all our AV equipment - though it is unlikely they'll stock re-conditioned. Worth reaching out to, likely to be an office that covers your area as they are nationwide.

I was a "no photo" student. I did GCSE Drama, I wsa given an exemption and allowed to be assessed live rather than filmed. There is always an alternative and school staff should not be preventing a student's education because it might be inconvienient to try and work around a restriction. My days as a student were pre-safeguarding as we know it know, but during my time in school my photo was never taken and nver filmed. But those saying consent isn't necessary in certain situations really ought to think about why these students are "no photo" identified, maybe your safeguarding training needs updating?

That's the one. Remember you'll also need a 3 pin to 5 pin DMX adapter as well.

For Chamsys you need the Chamsys dongle. For £15 you're getting the same functionality of a console costing thousands, albeit a single universe and limited to 4 hours. Plenty for testing though! Also - where are you? Someone here might be local to you and be able to pop over and help?

5 pin DMX should be 5 core. Pins 2 and 3 carry data for Universe 1, pins 4 and 5 carry data for Universe 2. However a lot of cheap knock off cables are not "to spec". 3 pin has become more popular as it's cheaper. And don't get me started on using mic cable for DMX......!

Dimmers can be just very inocuous boxes on the wall if they're hardwired, which this install appears to be, for a school I'd have a guess at Zero 88 Chili dimmers. The photos you've posted above are not dimmers, they are hard power (non dimmed) for intelligent lighting, along with the DMX outlets to go with it. The thick cable going into the grey boxes on the bar are where the power for the dimmed channels for your lights are connected to the internal wiring for the bar - hence why they're called IWB's (Internally wired bars). If you want a cheap and easy way of proving the system, grab yourself a Chamsys basic DMX dongle for £15. You'll also need a 3 pin to 5 pin converter which doesn't cost much. Chamsys is a lighting control manufacturer who have a PC software version available for free download, and offers a simple "simple generic console" option so you don't really need to learn the whole program to test the rig, you just need the dongle to connect to your lights. Edit to add - if they are hardwired dimmers then it is unlikely there will be a 5 pin connection to connect to locally, however I suspect there will be a DMX distribution unit or 2 because of the amount of outlets around the space. However that's likely to have phoenix connectors, not XLR's, if it's install grade, so again not possible to connect to locally.

Macbooks have done it this way for years - their digital outputs have always been encrypted regardless of the content, been a PITA when trying to record PowerPoints shown on them! Workarounds have been to use VGA (doesn't have the HDCP signal on an analgoue cable!) or to find a way to remove the signal (which may or may not be possible, I couldn't comment 😉)

In which case I would guess the EDID handshake is reporting the screen as a recording device, hence why HDCP is activated on protected content?

That would be expected behaviour if the handshake was with a recording device. Does the screen have any screen capture functionality?

One option not mentioned yet is HDBaseT. HDMI, USB, ethernet... all over one cable. The connections are quite forgiving (unlike bespoke HDMI over CatX solutions) so cheap ethernet cable should be fine if it's in spec. If you look at the HDBaseT website there's a list of certified products, I quickly found this which might suit your needs? Have a ganders. Otherwise for cables you usually can't go wrong with Lindy for USB (happily install 10m cables from them all the time) and Van Damme for active HDMI cable (their 15m acive cable never fails for us).

Only problem I can see is then the footage is being controlled by the wearer. What if the bodycam wearer does something towards someone else - they complain and ask for the footage to be checked, except there is no footage because the wearer didn't press a button that would incriminate them? Does this then stop being true CCTV, instead becoming a censored, private device of unknown reliability? Also the 2 minute buffer could be misused (lets face it, we've all seen edited footage of incidents where the context of a video is distorted due to the full footage not being available.

Back in the day gyro mice were a thing - a quick google shows they still kind of exist.... Might be worth looking at?

No information on the protocol used, frequencies etc. Few reviews saying difficult to get it to pair - good luck! Network based stuff is ok if you turn on PIN codes - so to join the screen you need the PIN code displayed on the screen. You can usually set this up to refresh every hour, giving a good level of security.

Sorry - the transmitter you referenced is capable of broadcasting to a radius of 100m+, so felt the comparison was a bit unfair. Also - only ten users that are using the listening system. The original post gives us no indication of the size of the room, or the application, or the amount of students present. It could be a small room just for 10 students, or it could be a hall where 10 students out of 200 need headphones to hear something clearly during an exam due to Equality Act requirements. We have no context so are mostly guessing. My comment about Auracast was more about the fact bluetooth technology is evolving to include multicast, so a previous comment about Bluetooth being a 1:1 transfer protocol is no longer correct. It wasn't intended to be a solution to the OP's problem, just raising awareness of a new standard that could potentially help someone else out.

Not really comparing apples with apples. That loop amp is only to cover a 35 square meter room, not something I would install assitive listening into. I was looking at the Ampertronic CN14-2 loop amp, which is what we use in lecture theatres and I would suggest is a more reasonable comparison. Receivers - if it's true Auracast then you should be able to connect using a mobile device, this is the whole point of the standard!

Cheaper than a hearing loop amplifier!

I've just had a quick Google and found this https://cpc.farnell.com/monacor/wap-5/waistband-amplifier/dp/LS05027 Monacor are at least a brand I've heard of before! Option to use dry batteries as well as rechargeables, or run it off a PSU. Might be worth a look?

Looking at your photos I think there's enough there to do something interesting. I like your idea of adding lights on stage and using tank traps (though have a look at truss uprights or the "H" style brackets) but I would stay using the tungsten front lights - maybe upgrade the dimming. If budget is a concern then make best use of what you have and embellish it rather than replace? My suggestion for an upgrade would be for some colour options on stage - LED Par style or cheap LED wash moving heads. We've been using the Shehds 19x15W RGBW moving head wash (not a typo!) in an install and they're pretty good for the price. Don't forget control either - a new desk is going to cost a fair chunk!

Have a look at Auracast - bluetooth technology that allows multiple audio connections. Mostly being used in assistive listening applications and is likely to overtake traditional hearing loops at some point.