NAB 2017

Live From NAB 2017: AJA Rolls Out Tech Treasure Trove

Focus of the exhibit is on HDR, IP, and more features for HD offerings

AJA (Booth SL2505) is offering its usual bevy of products for content creators, and this year’s focus is on HDR, IP, and more feature-rich HD offerings. Topping the list of intriguing products is FS-HDR, a 1RU, rack-mount, universal converter/frame synchronizer designed specifically to meet HDR/WCG needs where real-time, low-latency processing, color fidelity, and metadata handling are of paramount importance.

FS-HDR’s HDR/WCG capabilities leverage video– and color-space–processing algorithms within Colorfront Engine. Powered by Colorfront Engine, the HDR and WCG processing support enables the real-time processing of 4K UHD and 2K HD, including HDR conversions, and 4K UHD HDR downconversion to HD HDR. FS-HDR also enables the conversion of popular camera formats from multiple vendors into the HDR space, plus conversion to and from BT.2020/BT.709 as needed, critical for the widespread acceptance of HDR alongside SDR in broadcast and OTT workflows.

“And it’s a frame sync as well,” says AJA President Nick Rashby. “If there is a gig that is not HDR, they get all the frame-sync and conversion capabilities people have come to rely on with our FS products.”

AJA’s Ki Pro Ultra Plus records up to four channels of HD in multichannel mode, 4K UHD recording/playback in single-channel mode.

The new Ki Pro Ultra Plus is suited for recording multicam shoots in HD multichannel mode, supporting up to four channels of HD recording and 4K UHD recording and playback in single-channel mode. Ki Pro Ultra Plus, housed in a standalone 2RU half-rack, offers broad I/O flexibility and connectivity options, including 3G-SDI, HDMI 2.0, and fiber connections. Ki Pro Ultra Plus captures pristine 4K UHD and HD video to widely accepted production codecs, including Apple ProRes and Avid DNxHD MXF.

“For flypacks and trucks where rack space is critical and density is important,” adds Rashby, “this is a powerful solution.” A side-by-side rack mount allows eight channels of recording to fit into 1RU-high spaces.

Four channels of HD can be recorded simultaneously as Apple ProRes files, each with different compression profiles as desired, to robust AJA Pak 1000 SSD media. All four channels can be displayed on Ki Pro Ultra Plus’s LCD screen as a quad-split during capture for confidence monitoring, as well as the ability to output the quad-split over HDMI, SDI, and even on the integrated browser-based web UI during capture.

And anyone on the hunt for 12-Gbps solutions has two new choices: 12GDA, a miniature 1×6 12G-SDI re-clocking distribution amplifier, and 12GM, a compact SDI transport converter that enables 12G-SDI to Quad 3G-SDI and Quad 3G-SDI to 12G-SDI conversion.

The 12GDA has support for 12G-SDI for 4K UHD single-link workflows and features six separately buffered SDI outputs identical to the recovered input. It also offers automatic input detection, re-clocking and cable equalization, and an LED signal-detection indicator, in a very compact design. And the 12GM muxer/demuxer supports 4K and UHD workflows and conversions from multi-link SDI signals to single-link SDI signals, and vice versa at 1.5G, 3G, 6G, and 12G bitrates.

AJA is also looking to address upcoming IP needs with a few new offerings. At NAB 2017, a new KONA IP firmware for SMPTE 2110 is on display, supporting SMPTE 2110 for HD rasters. KONA IP will introduce new flexibility for live-production professionals by enabling networking with separate essence flows. Broadcasters will be able to synchronize production of audio, video, and ancillary data elements, eliminating the need for embedding/de-embedding to/from SDI while also reducing latency. Visitors to AJA’s NAB booth will be able to preview current and forthcoming release features.

Also the new KONA IP firmware license enables compression and decompression of HD video in real time to/from JPEG 2K encoded within an MPEG-2 transport stream. Featuring support for TR-01, the update ensures interoperability with other JPEG 2K systems and devices across the network. It supports three configurations: up to two simultaneous JPEG 2K outputs, up to two simultaneous JPEG 2K inputs, or a simultaneous JPEG 2K input and output to a system running KONA IP. A single KONA IP configuration with the latest Desktop Software v13 installed offers out-of-the-box functionality for a range of creative apps, including Adobe Premiere Pro, Apple FCP X, Avid Media Composer, and AJA Control Room; dual KONA IP configurations are also supported for more-demanding JPEG 2K workflows for SDK developers.

Ki Pro Ultra Plus provides simultaneous HD recording up to 1080 50/60p and full HDMI 2.0 (up to 12-bit capture and output) for 4K UHD workflows. Input support includes SDR BT.709 100 Nits; PQ BT.2020 1000 Nits; PQ P3D65 1000 Nits; Hybrid Log-Gamma BT.2100; Sony S-Gamut3/SLog-3; ARRI Log C wide gamut; Panasonic V-Log; RED Log3G10 wide gamut; and Canon Log 2. Outputs include SDR BT.709 100 Nits; PQ BT.2020 1000 Nits; and hybrid log-gamma BT.2100.

Lastly, AJA’s Desktop Software v13 for its KONA, Io, and T-TAP families of video- and audio-input/output devices expands HDR and IP pipelines with support for Hybrid Log-Gamma (HLG) and JPEG 2000 workflows. In addition to HDR-10, HLG playout is now also possible from Adobe Premiere Pro with AJA KONA 4, Io 4K, and KONA IP.

“Our customers are looking for new ways to simplify their 4K and IP workflows, and this software update enhances the functionality of our most popular Desktop products,” says Rashby. “Desktop Software v13 is packed with new features that customers have requested, including the addition of HLG support for HDR workflows, and the option to upgrade your KONA IP with new JPEG 2000 support.”

Desktop Software v13 will be available soon as a free download, along with KONA IP’s JPEG 2000 license option, from AJA’s website.

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