AJA KONA IP Opens Video & Audio I/O for IP-Based Workflows

AJA’s new KONA IP is a PCIe capture card for IP-based workflows, designed as a flexible platform that supports third-party content creation applications, and SMPTE 2022-6 IP-encapsulated uncompressed 3G-SDI, HD-SDI and SD-SDI video, audio and ancillary data. Via future firmware updates and codec packages, it will also support compressed codecs such as J2K and IP protocols including VSF TR-04, VSF TR-03 and others. KONA IP has so far been adopted by a number software and video processing companies.

KONA IP is AJA’s first desktop video and audio I/O product, and is the next series of their KONA line of PCIe capture cards. It works with AJA’s Control Room and Control Panel configuration, ingest and conversion software, and their SDK tools for development partners including the NTV2 SDK.

KONA IP has HDMI output for local monitoring, and multi-channel input and/or output to read or send multiple IP-based encapsulated 3G-SDI, HD-SDI and SD-SDI video streams to and from software applications. It includes two 10GigE SFP cages for routing of video over IP and 10GigE networks.

KONA IP supports some of the major third-party NLE, compositing and streaming applications including the most recent Adobe tools, Avid Media Composer and Pro Tools and Grass Valley’s EDIUS.

“IP is a very exciting development for all of our customers, with many options for simplifying workflows,” said David Colantuoni, Sr. Director of Product Management at Avid. “AJA’s KONA capture cards have been a reliable system for video and audio I/O for many years for Avid Media Composer and Pro Tools, and we look forward to continued support of KONA IP as those customers migrate to IP-based workflows.”

Mike Cronk, Senior VP of Strategic Marketing, Grass Valley said, “IP-based workflows promise some very interesting developments for the editing world, and we’re pleased to support AJA in their move into this space.”

AJA has joined Sony’s IP Live Alliance. Nextera Video, a company dedicated to enabling video over IP and hardware virtualization as part of software-defined data centres for broadcast, demonstrated their FPGA IP core at the Sony stand during NAB, showing playout of an UltraHD 59.94p Networked Media Interface stream of Sony IP Live Production System over KONA IP.  

“Our customers are increasingly looking to IP as an efficient way to achieve consistent, pristine video streams throughout the entire live production chain,” said Ryosuke Hayashi, Deputy Senior General Manager, Sony. “As the migration from SDI to IP continues to gain momentum, we welcome AJA into our IP Live Alliance and will work with them to make KONA IP support Sony IP Live.”

Ventuz demonstrated their real-time graphics, authoring and playout control software at the AJA booth during NAB. “Real-time 3D content for broadcast demands the highest bandwidth infrastructure available, and for that reason, many of our customers working in HD are looking towards migrating to IP-based ways of working,” said Erik Beaumont, CEO, Ventuz Technology. “We’re pleased to support KONA IP capture cards for clients who want to go the IP route, and need reliable hardware to help get them there.”

AJA is supporting other industry standards in the transition from SDI to IP-based workflows, and are a founding member of the AIMS Alliance and an Aspen Community member.  www.aja.com