What is the NovaStar TB8?
The NovaStar TB8 is the largest player of the first Taurus generation: a mains-powered box that stores and plays your content, takes a live HDMI source, and drives up to 2,300,000 pixels of LED screen across four Gigabit outputs.
Its place today is your installed base. Screens built around it a few years ago are still working, and this is where you come for a repair, a matched spare or a second unit that behaves exactly like the first one.
One thing about it is worth knowing before anything else, because it shapes how these screens are run in practice: it drives a very large screen from a very small amount of content storage.
NovaStar TB8 key features
Four working outputs as standard
All four Gigabit sockets carry picture by default, which is how one player reaches its full screen size. You can also reassign two of yours as spares, when protecting the cable run matters more than reaching the ceiling.
Its smaller relative comes the other way round, with two working and two in reserve, so do not assume your fleet is wired the same way throughout.
It decodes 4K on an eight-core processor
An eight-core processor at 1.5 GHz with 2 GB of memory handles 4K in H.265 as well as 1080p, which for a first-generation box is more than you would guess from the specification sheet.
That is why your screen can still look current years after it was installed.
A brightness sensor plugs directly into the board
The sensor connector takes a light sensor with no extra card in the cabinet, so your screen follows the daylight on a schedule instead of running at one level all day.
On a large outdoor screen it also cuts what your site costs to run overnight.
NovaStar TB8 specifications
Two rows sit oddly together here, and you should read them as a pair: the pixel figure is the largest in its generation and the content space is the smallest.
| Pixel capacity | 2,300,000 pixels; maximum 4096 wide and 1920 high |
|---|---|
| Screen outputs | 4x Gigabit RJ45, all working by default, or two working and two spare |
| Live picture input | 1x HDMI 1.3, fitted to the screen automatically |
| Loop-through output | 1x HDMI 1.3 |
| Processor and memory | Eight-core at 1.5 GHz, 2 GB RAM; decodes 4K in H.265 and 1080p |
| Internal storage | 8 GB fitted, 4 GB available for content |
| Storage sockets | 2x USB 2.0, for playing content from a drive |
| Sound | 1x stereo output |
| Sensor connector | On board, for a brightness sensor |
| Wireless and mobile | Permanent hotspot plus a router connection, both at once by bridging; mobile module bought separately |
| Power in | AC 100–240 V; 20 W maximum draw |
| Size and weight | 278.5 mm × 139.5 mm × 45.0 mm; 1,352.3 g |
| Operating range | −20°C to +60°C, non-condensing; IP20 |
| In the carton | 2 wireless antennas, mains lead, quick start guide |
Figures come from NovaStar’s Taurus Series Multimedia Player TB8 Specifications V1.6.4.
A big screen on four gigabytes of content
Your TB8 drives 2,300,000 pixels and gives you 4 GB to fill them from. That gap is the defining fact about running one: the screen is large, so the files made for it are large too.
Do the arithmetic on your own rotation. Content authored for a screen this size at a decent bit rate can run to a couple of hundred megabytes a minute, so twenty minutes of material already fills it.
Two USB sockets are how most owners live with it. A drive plays content that never has to be copied onto the player, which turns the storage figure from a hard limit into a staging area.
If you are planning a genuinely long rotation, the storage figure alone is the argument for renewal. The TB60 carries the same 2,300,000 pixels with 32 GB behind them.
Setting the four outputs, and what each setting costs
All four sockets carry picture as supplied, which is what lets one player reach 2,300,000 pixels. Reassign two as spares and the working capacity halves, so the choice is between size and protection.
Take the protection when your run to the cabinets is buried, long, or somewhere you need a lift to reach. A damaged cable then becomes a fault you schedule rather than a dark screen you explain.
Take the capacity when your screen genuinely needs it and the cabling is accessible. Four working ports also shorten each chain, which makes a fault easier for you to find.
Fix this before the cable is pulled. Moving between the two arrangements later means re-mapping cabinets and re-running cable rather than changing a setting.
TB8 or TB60 — the same screen size, a generation apart
Both players carry the same pixel count across four outputs, so that figure will not choose between them for you. Storage, screen shape and platform will.
| Model | TB8 · TB60 |
|---|---|
| Pixel capacity | 2,300,000 · 2,300,000 |
| Maximum height | 1920 · 4096 |
| Usable storage | 4 GB · 32 GB |
| Sensor sockets | 1 · 2 |
| Long thin screens | not published · up to 23,040 pixels wide |
| Video at once | not published · 1x 4K, 2x 1080p, 5x 720p |
| Price | quoted per project · $528 |
Order the TB8 when you are repairing or matching screens that already run it, and when the content on those screens is short enough to live in 4 GB.
Order the TB60 for anything new, and for any screen whose rotation has outgrown the storage. It takes a screen more than twice as tall, publishes limits for long thin displays and belongs to the current platform, which matters if your screens have to play in step.
TB8 datasheet and software
ViPlex Express on Windows and the ViPlex Handy app both still support this player, and either holds your screen layout, playlists and brightness schedule.
Keep the configuration from commissioning alongside your spares. This player carries the cabinet map itself, and on a 2,300,000-pixel screen rebuilding that map from nothing is a long day rather than a quick swap.
NovaStar TB8 FAQ
How much content will a TB8 hold?
4 GB, out of 8 GB fitted. On a 2,300,000-pixel screen that is a short rotation, which is why most owners run these from a USB drive in one of the two front sockets.
Do all four outputs carry picture?
Yes, as supplied. You can also set two as working and two as spares, which halves what the player will drive but protects the cable run.
How tall a screen will it drive?
1920 pixels, with a maximum width of 4096. The current TB60 carries the same pixel count and takes a screen up to 4096 tall.
Can it take a live HDMI source?
Yes. A connected source is fitted to the screen automatically and takes over from the stored schedule, and a second HDMI socket loops that picture onward to a monitor.
Can a TB8 stay in step with a newer player?
No. NovaStar groups its players into platforms for synchronized playback and states that different platforms must not be mixed. This one shares its platform with the TB3 and TB6.
Can I connect a light sensor?
Yes, to the sensor connector on the board, so the screen follows the daylight instead of running at one brightness around the clock.
What should I order for a new screen instead?
The TB60. It matches the pixel count, gives you eight times the content space, takes a much taller screen and sits on the current platform.
What do I need before swapping a failed unit?
The screen configuration and the content from commissioning. The player holds the cabinet map itself, and rebuilding it on a screen this size is a long job.
What warranty covers a TB8?
Three years of serial-tracked manufacturer coverage, because these players come through our authorized US NovaStar channel.
Can I get volume pricing or Net 30 terms?
Yes. Send the model and the quantity and we will quote. Purchase orders and Net 30 terms may be available for approved schools, government buyers, venues and established integrators.
How do I order a TB8?
This player is quoted rather than listed at a fixed price. Tell us the quantity and whether it is a repair or a batch, and we will confirm availability. We ship from Florida.
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