Short, plain-language definitions of the terms used across LED display control — the hardware chain, the file formats, and the image-quality vocabulary that shows up on datasheets.
Display hardware
LED module
The smallest building block of an LED display: a PCB carrying the LEDs, their driver ICs and a connector. Modules mount into cabinets.
Cabinet
The mechanical unit an LED wall is assembled from. A cabinet holds several modules, a receiving card, a hub board and a power supply.
Pixel pitch
The distance in millimeters between the centers of two neighboring pixels. Smaller pitch means higher resolution per square meter and a closer usable viewing distance.
Driver IC
The chip on a module that sets each pixel’s grayscale by controlling current through the LEDs. The driver IC model and its parameters are stored in the receiving-card configuration.
Scan design
How many rows of LEDs share one set of driver channels, written as 1/8, 1/16, 1/32 and so on. Higher scan ratios use fewer driver ICs but make refresh and brightness harder to achieve.
Hub board
The adapter board between a receiving card and the module cables. Hub boards differ by connector type and pinout, which is why a replacement receiving card must match the hub, not just the cabinet.
HUB75
A common 16-pin module connector standard carrying RGB data and row-address lines for scan-type LED modules.
Data group
One chain of module data driven from the receiving card. A card’s data-group count and arrangement decide how many modules it can feed and in what layout.
Flash IC
Memory on a module or cabinet that stores calibration coefficients locally, so calibration survives module swaps and card replacement.
Control chain
Sending card / controller
The device that takes a video input and distributes it to receiving cards over Ethernet. NovaStar’s MCTRL boxes and MX/VX controllers are sending devices.
Receiving card
The card inside each cabinet that receives its slice of the video signal and drives the modules through the hub board. Configured by an RCFGX or NCP file.
Port loading capacity
How many pixels one Ethernet output port can feed. On a gigabit port this is about 650,000 pixels at 8-bit 60 Hz, and it falls as bit depth or frame rate rises.
Video processor
A controller that also scales, crops and switches video sources ahead of the LED wall. NovaStar’s VX series combines processing and sending in one box.
Fiber converter
Converts the Ethernet signal to optical fiber for long cable runs between controller and wall, then back again at the far end.
Redundancy
A backup path that takes over if the primary fails: a loop back to a second port, a second controller, or dual power and data in the cabinet. Redundant designs halve a port’s usable pixel load.
Genlock
Locking a display system’s timing to an external reference signal so the LED wall, cameras and other equipment run frame-synchronized. Essential for on-camera walls.
Latency
The delay from video input to light on the wall. Control-system latency matters for live events and virtual production; some NovaStar hardware offers a low-latency mode.
Synchronous vs asynchronous
Synchronous systems mirror a live video input through a sending device. Asynchronous players such as the Taurus series store content onboard and play it without a connected source.
EDID
The display-identification data a controller presents to a video source, telling it which resolutions and timings to output.
Files and software
NovaLCT
NovaStar’s free configuration software for synchronous control systems: screen configuration, brightness, calibration and firmware. Download NovaLCT.
SmartLCT
NovaStar’s layout-oriented configuration tool for building complex and creative screen arrangements. Download SmartLCT.
VMP
Vision Management Platform — the software that manages COEX-generation controllers, including NCP cabinet packages and image-quality settings. Download VMP.
ViPlex
NovaStar’s content-management software for asynchronous players: ViPlex Express for Windows and ViPlex Handy for mobile. Download ViPlex Express.
VNNOX
NovaStar’s cloud platform for publishing content to and monitoring asynchronous players remotely. VNNOX resources.
RCFGX file
The receiving-card configuration file: module info, data groups, driver-IC parameters, refresh rate and GCLK for one cabinet type. RCFGX file guide.
SCR file
The screen-connection file: cabinet positions, port mapping and wiring order for a whole screen. SCR file guide.
NCP file
The NovaStar cabinet package bundling firmware, configuration and factory calibration for one cabinet type. NCP file guide.
Firmware
The program running on a controller or receiving card. NovaStar pairs specific firmware versions with configuration files; on NCP-managed systems the firmware ships inside the cabinet package.
Image quality and calibration
Grayscale
The number of brightness steps a display can reproduce per color. Higher grayscale keeps dark content smooth instead of banded.
Bit depth
The precision of the video signal per color channel: 8-bit, 10-bit or 12-bit. Higher bit depth multiplies the data rate, which reduces how many pixels each port and card can carry.
Refresh rate
How many times per second the LED panel redraws, in Hz. High refresh (3840 Hz and up) avoids visible flicker and camera scan lines.
GCLK
The grayscale clock of the driver ICs. Its frequency is part of the receiving-card configuration and constrains achievable refresh and grayscale.
Calibration
Per-pixel brightness and chroma correction that evens out differences between LEDs, modules and batches. Coefficients are stored on the cabinet or managed in software.
Image Booster
NovaStar’s image-quality engine on supported cards: 22bit+ grayscale enhancement, precise grayscale and color management against standard gamuts.
22bit+
A grayscale enhancement that adds detail in low-brightness content, addressing the grayscale loss that standard processing shows in dark scenes.
Color gamut
The range of colors a display can reproduce, referenced to standards such as Rec.709, DCI-P3 and Rec.2020. Supported cards can map output to a chosen gamut.
HDR
High dynamic range video (HDR10, HLG). On LED walls it requires 10-bit-capable control hardware end to end.
Thermal compensation
Correction for the color shift that appears as parts of a screen heat up over runtime. On supported COEX cards it ships as calibration data inside the NCP package.
Frame rate adaptive
A COEX-generation function that follows input frame rates from 23 to 240 Hz from one configuration while holding brightness consistent.
Moiré
The interference pattern a camera can see when filming an LED wall, influenced by pixel layout, scan design and camera settings.
COEX generation
COEX series
NovaStar’s current flagship control system: MX-series controllers managed by VMP, with cabinet management through NCP packages.
Cabinet Library
VMP’s store of NCP cabinet packages, synchronized between controllers and computers so cabinet files are not lost when hardware changes.
Multi-mode
Several parameter sets for the same cabinet packed into one NCP — for example separate indoor and outdoor brightness modes — switchable in VMP.
5G receiving cards
The CA50E and XA50 Pro use a 5 Gbps data path and DDR3 cabinet interface. They are not drop-in replacements for 1G Armor or MRV cards; the cabinet must be designed for them.
xR / virtual production
Filming against an LED wall showing a virtual environment. Drives requirements for genlock, high refresh, low latency and precise color — the scenario much COEX tuning targets.
Specifying a wall and want the control chain checked against it? Send the wall size and pixel pitch and we’ll spec the parts in writing.
Related resources
Common questions
Quick answers that come up alongside these terms.
What is the difference between a sending card and a receiving card?
The sending card (or controller) distributes the video signal over Ethernet; a receiving card sits in each cabinet, takes its slice of the image and drives the LED modules. Every wall needs both.
How many pixels can one Ethernet port drive?
About 650,000 pixels at 8-bit 60 Hz on a gigabit port. Raising the bit depth or frame rate lowers the number, which is why 10-bit and high-refresh walls need more ports for the same resolution.