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Which AJA Box to go with?
We’re putting together new systems based on FCP Studio 2 and we’re really excited about AJA’s new IO HD. Now, someone has said that’s a bad idea because it won’t do uncompressed HD–You’ll need the Kona 3.
We have an HD Smoke/Flint that is uncompressed but the common thread between all of the suites would be HDSDI. I’ve always felt that if all the suites had I/O for HDSDI then they could talk to each other regardless of their native internal formats. Isn’t HD SDI a SMPTE standard? Or, are there multiple resolutions and other differing parameters that would not let the IO HD’s HDSDI output talk to the Smokes HDSDI input?
We won’t be doing any feature films nor providing didital intermediaries any time in our forseeable future. I’m really just concerned with the FCP guys needing to send a piece of HD material over to the Smoke for some enhancement and then getting it back to the FCP suite in useable form. I’ve just thought that everyone talking HDSDI would be sufficient for that to happen.
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7 Replies
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If you get the IO HD you’ll be finishing with Pro Res 422. It can send it out HDSDI to another system that can digitize it.
I’d prefer a file transfer from system to system instead. If you file is in Pro Res 422 then I would transcode it to a file format that would be compatible with the software that you want to use. You could even send image sequences if it’s easier than QuickTime videos.
Does the Smoke or Flint accept a QuickTime uncompressed format (Apple/AJA/Decklink)?
-Russ
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Yes, they could work together.
So you play the Flint timeline and record into FCP. But with the Io HD,
the highest resolution you could record the material at, would be Apple’s
ProRez. We don’t really know what it looks like yet, but it may be
just fine for what you are doing.You can’t buy the Io HD until July or August anyway so there is time
for people to see what ProRes looks like in the mean time.The advantage of the Io HD is it’s portable, connected only with the
firewire cable. If you don’t need portability, why not go with KONA 3?
That way you could record uncompressed if need be or the new
ProRez as well.Dan
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If you’re all HD, then the Kona 3 might make more sense, it depends on the work you’re doing… however the Io HD will ingest natively too, just no higher a data rate than 10 bit uncompressed HD, and it’s then you’re best input from it is Pro Res… however it puts out uncompressed for recording and monitoring purposes…. so you could deliver any flavor of HD with it.
You could use a LH card in one bay and the Kona 3 in the other too… they would be compatible… tough to know how to help you not knowing what you’re delivery and work will be entailing.
Might do one of each actually… that way you’d have the best of both worlds. The portability of the Io gives it a dimension that the Kona wouldn’t have…
I’ve seen 10th generation Pro Res, and gotta say, that it holds up extremely well and will cost a MAJOR TON less to store and play back. It’s also extremly friendly with RT Extreme… The Kona 3 will capture it, and so will the LHe card… so it may well be the only way we all work with HD… I’ve not seen it exploded up on a 75 foot screen though.
I’ll bet if your delivery is for TV or consumption on plasmas etc, and not intended for the big screen, the Io HD will be more than satisfactory. Pro Res is very impressive… it’s 10 bit too, so the graphics look great with it. no banding etc..
Jerry
Apple Certified Trainer
Author: “Jerry Hofmann on Final Cut Pro 4” Click here
Dual 2 gig G5, AJA Kona SD, AJA Kona 2, Huge Systems Array UL3D
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What if you’re working with the ioHD, using Apple ProRes 422 and you want to pass QTs to & from After Effects on another computer?
My current config includes a Blackmagic card, and its codecs can be installed on another computer so After Effects reads & writes in that format, meaning that in FCP, the imported files don’t need rendering.
What would be the equivalent workflow where FCP is running the ioHD, using Apple ProRes 422, going to/from other workstations?
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Neil Ryan
Post Production
The Pod Multimedia
http://www.the-pod.com.au
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… and I notice that in Compressor 3, Apple’s ProRes 422 codec appears as an INPUT but not OUTPUT option.
Would the same be true for QuickTime itself?In other words, is ProRes 422 a ‘hidden’ or inaccessible codec?
Thanks,
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Neil Ryan
Post Production
The Pod Multimedia
http://www.the-pod.com.au
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Nah… it’s there man… look in the “Advanced Format Conversions”… I don’t have it on this machine, but I’m sure it’s there.
Jerry
Apple Certified Trainer
Author: “Jerry Hofmann on Final Cut Pro 4” Click here
Dual 2 gig G5, AJA Kona SD, AJA Kona 2, Huge Systems Array UL3D
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Have a look here:
https://www.apple.com/finalcutstudio/compressor/specs.htmlLists ProRes 422 as an input but not output option.
I’m not arguing with you Jerry; I’m just curious to find out as much info as I can, and the accuracy of this information – the viable use of such a codec – has a great bearing on various workflow scenarios.
Would love to clarify this one. (I don’t Compressor 3, yet)
Thanks all,
Neil.– – – – – – – – –
Neil Ryan
Post Production
The Pod Multimedia
http://www.the-pod.com.au
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