Playback & media servers · software
Green Hippo Hippotizer troubleshooting
The Green Hippo Hippotizer problems live-event techs bring to Ask Roadie most (also called Hippo, Hippo Amba, Hippo Boreal, Hippo Karst). Pick your symptom, or describe your own in plain words, and get the likeliest fix first, with the manual page when there is one.
Common Hippotizer errors & problems
What techs run into most, and what's usually behind it. The step-by-step fix for your exact software is in Ask Roadie.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
How do I control Hippotizer from Companion / a REST integration?
Likely cause: The 4.9.3 module exposes Hippotizer's RestAPI to Companion, giving a supported button-control path without custom scripting.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
How do I update Hippotizer software/firmware and what is the current version?
Likely cause: Green Hippo ships software and controller firmware together in the installer; version-matching networked machines prevents pin/protocol mismatches.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Imported media gets transcoded unexpectedly (or you want fastest ingest)
Likely cause: Hippotizer auto-transcodes on ingest except for HAP and NotchLC, which are natively GPU-decodable, so choosing them avoids conversion time and quality loss.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Layers/thumbnails not showing on the lighting console (CITP/Avolites)
Likely cause: CITP thumbnail/layer exchange is initiated at component startup; the console must witness CITP start, so enabling it then restarting lets the desk enumerate layers.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
MX-series media drive won't hot-swap or fit an older Hippotizer
Likely cause: The MX chassis uses a different, higher-bandwidth u.3 backplane than legacy models, so legacy drives and hot-swap workflows do not apply.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Need a different output connector (HDMI/DP/SDI) on an MX server
Likely cause: Native swappable modules remove converter stages that add latency and failure points; picking the right module keeps the signal chain clean.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Pin values are wrong or jump on networked/multi-machine systems
Likely cause: Pins are addressed by layer index across the network; duplicate indices collide, and the later network optimisation reduces keyframe traffic that otherwise lags large rigs.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Playback stutters/jumps even with GPU codecs
Likely cause: HAP/NotchLC are GPU-decoded but lightly compressed, so real-time playback is disk-read-bound; insufficient sustained read throughput starves the decoder and causes frame jumps.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Zookeeper crashes on startup or the engine hangs on shutdown
Likely cause: These were confirmed engine bugs resolved in later firmware; staying current removes the crash paths, and avoiding the dual-audio-device mix change avoids a known trigger.
Not on the list? Describe it your way, or paste the error code off the display. Ask Roadie works the problem with you until it's fixed or you have a clear next move.
How Ask Roadie helps with the Hippotizer
- 1. Pick the Green Hippo Hippotizer. It's already in the list.
- 2. Describe what you're seeing. In your own words, or the error code off the screen.
- 3. Get the likeliest fix first. Steps in order, the manual page when there is one, and a note when other techs have confirmed it.
- 4. Still broken? Tap 👎 and it keeps going from where you left off.