LED 101 / Hardware
Receiving cards
The receive card takes the processor Ethernet stream and turns it into the signals the modules understand.
A receiving card (receive card) lives in the cabinet. The LED processor or sending card sends it video and control data over Ethernet. The receive card unpacks that stream, applies mapping and calibration settings, and drives the modules, often over Hub75-style outputs or a product-specific link.
Typical jobs: decode frames, hold a buffer so the picture does not tear, run brightness and gamma settings, report faults, and keep neighbouring cabinets in sync. Brands such as NovaStar are common in the field; the card model has to match the modules and the processor.
Large walls use many receive cards. Each one owns a patch of pixels. Get the mapping wrong in software and the picture tiles in the wrong order even when every cable is seated.