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The Insane Hardware Driving the World's Biggest LED Billboard
Posted by Benny Goldman at 12:30 PM on November 22, 2008
In a dusty supply closet at 1 Times Square, a computer terminal hooked up to hordes of ethernet servers, RAID arrays and monitors humbly runs the largest LED sign in the world. The sign, a 3-sided, 17,000-square-foot Goliath, debuted last night at the opening of a Walgreens in New York City. Today, I got to see what makes it tick.
Each side of the sign, designed by D3 LED, requires a 48-drive RAID pumping data at a rate of 3.2GB/second to a custom-built PC. From there, the data is fed through graphics cards to multiple DVI pipes, which lead to six DVI pixel splitters (known as a Spyders). The splitters take video data of a specific resolution and upscale it to the size needed for the display. Once the data is crunched and formatted for the sign, it's sent out via 4Gbps ethernet to one of more than 12,000 display modules that make up the ginormous billboard.
Each module is a mini-computer, complete with MAC address, redundant 4-gigabit ethernet ports, power supply and a fan. Each panel can report all kinds of vital statistics, including its temperature. If there's a problem, the panel reports itself to the main computer for easy troubleshooting. (Like a good communist, it can report problems with its neighbours, too.) The majority of the electronics are accessible from inside, so dangerous repair jobs on scaffolding suspended over Times Square are a thing of the past.
The sign's modules are split into three sections, low-, medium- and high-resolution grids based on their distance from the street. (Why waste pixels for objects way high up?) The top, as you probably guessed, has the largest pixels, at 24mm, while the middle has 12mm and the bottom has 10mm.
The animators are faced with a tough challenge when creating content for the signs, as they must keep the different display sizes in mind so the animation appears cohesive throughout the sections. To help out the animators, sign creator D3 LED made a virtual copy of it that is 10,000 pixels high by 4,000 pixels wide, the equivalent of 43 megapixels. (It's 20 times the resolution of HD, too.) They use an Adobe After Effects template to help coordinate placement of the animations on the slash-shaped sign.
As previously reported, a single 30-second spot on the billboard requires a staggering 150GB of data transferred through the system. But before you accuse D3 and Walgreens of hogging all of the power in New York, they attest that they are not. With the Con Ed bill in mind, their design reduced unnecessary copper wiring by over 300,000 feet and increased the voltage for more efficient power. They also set up an auto-dimmer (like you might have on your laptop) that adjusts the luminosity of the LEDs based on the ambient light outside. All of this makes it not necessarily cheap but at least cheaper than you'd think to operate.
The Walgreens sign is a complex, fascinating testament to the sheer power of LED displays. While most people living in New York avoid Times Square exactly because of things like this, tourists will undoubtedly flock to the centre to observe the sign up close, even though it can be seen from as far away as Bryant Park and the Port Authority. For now, it's something that even this semi-jaded NYC resident can appreciate.
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
Avizzv92
Posted 1:53 PM 22/11/08
@SouthendXGF: It would be cool just to play Solitaire on it...
Avizzv92
jkr's bold comment
Posted 1:53 PM 22/11/08
movie screen of the future?
jkr's bold comment
Hiphopopotamus
Posted 1:47 PM 22/11/08
The Giant Walgreens Billboard: If you're far enough away to read it, you're not close enough to shop here.
Hiphopopotamus
pettiblay
Posted 1:46 PM 22/11/08
Darn... never thought it would take so much hardware to power it... I was thinking of getting one panel and splitting it up into 4 walls for my room... that could make a normal person turn epileptic in 4-5 seconds
pettiblay
b0bcat
Posted 1:42 PM 22/11/08
It's gonna bluescreen, and Gizmodo will be there to cover it!
b0bcat
Metkis
Posted 1:41 PM 22/11/08
@SouthendXGF: I bet you're a candidate for disemvoweling.
Metkis
jlawson
Posted 1:39 PM 22/11/08
@SouthendXGF: Groan. How burned out can a meme get? I think it's about time we look for something else to overuse to the point of disgust.
jlawson
SouthendXGF
Posted 1:33 PM 22/11/08
i'll bet it won't run crysis.
SouthendXGF
Yetibelle
Posted 2:16 PM 22/11/08
...And soon there will be an iPhone app to program int right from the street...
..what no SSD in that RAID?...
Yetibelle
scarbrtj
Posted 2:13 PM 22/11/08
Their WOW! factor: pretty undeniable.
Their cabling job: pretty lackluster.
scarbrtj
tech-tard
Posted 2:06 PM 22/11/08
@Avizzv92:
HAHA that's how we'd benchmark Win 3.1 machines back in the day - how fast did the cards fly around when you beat solitaire!
tech-tard
mrtallbones
Posted 2:03 PM 22/11/08
@jkr's bold comment: 10mm pixels? How far do you plan on sitting from the screen?
mrtallbones
subsider34
Posted 2:38 PM 22/11/08
@b0bcat: It would be interesting to see the effects of a BSOD on a screen with three different resolutions.
subsider34
pdditty
Posted 2:38 PM 22/11/08
"(Like a good communist, it can report problems with its neighbors, too.)" - hahaha
pdditty
Sora57
Posted 2:27 PM 22/11/08
yeah, a dusty supply closet is where I want to locate the equipment that runs a multmillion-dollar sign.
Sora57
p3713
Posted 2:22 PM 22/11/08
@jlawson: Fine, i but i bet "-RELOADING!" it MIGHT NOT "-RELOADING!" play all "-RELOADING!" Source games -RELOADING!" at once!
p3713
videoCWK
Posted 2:44 PM 22/11/08
Does anyone else see an opportunity for a mass scale Rickroll/BSOD?
videoCWK
thefutureisnow
Posted 3:33 PM 22/11/08
@videoCWK: You took the words right out of my mouth.
thefutureisnow
thefutureisnow
Posted 3:32 PM 22/11/08
@subsider34: I've seen bsod's on billboards, but nothing of that size.
thefutureisnow
paul
Posted 3:50 PM 22/11/08
@thefutureisnow: It must of been while you were kissing me.
paul
xc_kyle
Posted 4:09 PM 22/11/08
Sorry to burst everyone's bubble but from my experience in the large electronic scoreboard and billboard industry, with work on the Coke sign in times square and by the pictures, you cant BSOD the sign unless it was as a picture. Windows runs the program for the display which is output through Ethernet to a controller that outputs to the sign. If the computer BSOD it would cause the section of the sign to just repeat or to shut off.
xc_kyle
bestpersonintheunivers
Posted 4:03 PM 22/11/08
@jlawson: I'll take that as a challenge.
bestpersonintheunivers
infmom
Posted 4:43 PM 22/11/08
VIDEO SPAM!!!
infmom
vista64guy
Posted 5:19 PM 22/11/08
I never thought of Walgreens as hip or trendy but after seeing that server rack, they are cool in my book.
vista64guy
Hershey
Posted 5:06 PM 22/11/08
Yay they can advertise condoms at a 500x the normal size now!
Hershey
phreakincool
Posted 5:30 PM 22/11/08
@vista64guy:
I work in IT at Walgreens. That server rack has nothing on our Data Center. In terms of server tech, we are state of the art.
Just imagine the infrastructure needed to support 26,000 sites, including 7,000+ stores.
phreakincool
aquaosx
Posted 6:00 PM 22/11/08
I wonder if all of those servers are some sort of knock-off Walgreens brand.
aquaosx
bpapa9013
Posted 7:40 PM 22/11/08
@aquaosx: If anyone has tried to hawk low end server blades on infomercials you can be sure that Walgreens will have them in stock...
bpapa9013
Boba.Fett
Posted 7:57 PM 22/11/08
No matter how much I wanted to bash this for being a Walgreens sign, I cannot deny how kickass it would be to have something like this.
Boba.Fett
kevanio
Posted 8:18 PM 22/11/08
@paul: I swear it's true, I was just about to say....
kevanio
heroineworshipper
Posted 8:28 PM 22/11/08
Corny that they can't afford a full sign like the Arabs, but the story still makes U miss the tales of the NY dot commers in the good old days.
heroineworshipper
onewiththewurlitzer
Posted 8:47 PM 22/11/08
@phreakincool: A pope, some bishops, and a grip of priests?
onewiththewurlitzer
dinsey
Posted 11:20 PM 22/11/08
@Hershey:
500x maybe for YOU!
dinsey
mavkato
Posted 12:05 AM 23/11/08
@xc_kyle: Daktronics FTW!
mavkato
Bos'un's Mate
Posted 1:26 AM 23/11/08
In essence, 1080²P.
Bos'un's Mate
11hawkinst
Posted 2:31 AM 23/11/08
@Hiphopopotamus: lol! that's got to be tacked up there somewhere!
11hawkinst
Nintenboy01
Posted 3:17 AM 23/11/08
I bet this could run Crysis at 88FPS and travel through time and space.
Nintenboy01
techgod
Posted 4:05 AM 23/11/08
not the best rack design in the world but it will do. sucky cabling though.
techgod
thefutureisnow
Posted 4:40 AM 23/11/08
@aquaosx: I would not doubt it.
thefutureisnow
thefutureisnow
Posted 6:40 AM 23/11/08
@SouthendXGF: I think it could, but the problem is where would you find a device to control it?
thefutureisnow
Mister Cow Pnoy
Posted 7:49 AM 23/11/08
They should do like http:\\milliondollarhomepage.com and sell pixels for some event. but maybe because the resolution is so high, sell maybe 9 pixels per dollar or maybe even like...100 pixels.
Mister Cow Pnoy
Azdak
Posted 8:21 AM 23/11/08
Wow...I think I'll actually go take a look at that tonight.
Azdak
zach
Posted 9:10 AM 23/11/08
What is an "ethernet server" ?
zach
citizen024
Posted 9:33 AM 23/11/08
@SouthendXGF: disemvowelment in 3, 2, 1...?
citizen024
johnthevulcan
Posted 11:23 AM 23/11/08
@SouthendXGF: lol, im glad you got first comment
johnthevulcan
Sidnicious
Posted 4:16 PM 23/11/08
I can't believe they let someone photograph and document that setup. It's kinda beautiful. I'd love to spend some time with the maintainers/designers seeing how everything works together (making the media, outputting video from the driving computer, even the panel management web interface).
No, really. I've always wondered what installations like this are behind the scenes.
Sidnicious
MrBlahBlah
Posted 10:52 PM 23/11/08
wow....that is out of control! gotta love technology
MrBlahBlah
BlendaMorris
Posted 8:36 PM 22/11/08
@jlawson: Hows about.. "But will it blend?"
BlendaMorris
MeoX9X
Posted 3:27 AM 24/11/08
@MrBlahBlah: Indeed, that's crazy.
MeoX9X
he who still uses a sony clie, and once called himself rimplestu
Posted 7:53 AM 24/11/08
as long as i get a CVS employee discount, i'm not going anywhere near walgreen's just to see this.
however, the sign probably looks better from 100 feet away than it does from 10, so i'm in luck.
he who still uses a sony clie, and once called himself rimplestultskin
cincifresh
Posted 11:55 AM 24/11/08
That's right, Windows RUNS THE WORLD!!! Don't forget it fanboys!
cincifresh
djangopool9
Posted 4:21 PM 24/11/08
@onewiththewurlitzer:
haha, nice one!
djangopool9
Sora57
Posted 1:56 AM 25/11/08
@xc_kyle: Agreed. The Dak software/hardware could only show a BSOD if you actually create a video or file of a BSOD and schedule it to play-- as a joke, I guess. Panasonic, on the other hand, they could show a BSOD when their software crashes...
Sora57