Kona LH Card With HD XDCAM

[Rob Stiff]

Is anyone, with success, using a Kona card in FCP
for realtime output with HD XDCAM footage?

If yes, please share your overall opinion/experience. thanks.

[Greg Boston]

I'd have to ask Mike Curtis again, but we were using Kona capture stuff at the Texas HD Shootout. We had a live feed to separate monitors, but I can't remember the exact setup. I'll ask him to post a response here.

-gb-

[Mike Curtis]

So the goal is realtime output of XDCAM HD footage from FCP - mastering to tape or monitoring I take it?

We captured over HD-SDI at the Texas HD Shootout, but not XDCAM HD natively.

I'd hit up AJA tech support to make sure it is properly supported with presets.

Should work OK, 24p may be an issue if no presets.

[Nate Weaver]

It'll be fine. If my cheap Decklink works, a LH will work even better.

[Rob Stiff]

I just spoke to AJA tech support. They claim there is no
extra hardware acceleration with HD XDCAM. They say
they don't directly support XDCAM. They say if FCP supports
it, it will be fine. Sure HD-SDI is an option without problem.
But, it would be better for space, etc. to bring it in as MPEG.

Nate, are you happy with your decklink's realtime output?
Any multicam hang-ups?

Just spoke with blackmagic, they claim all clips have to be re-rendered before
realtime is an option? Any luck on this? Tell me they are wrong!

[Nate Weaver]

Yes, I'm happy with my Decklink as far as XDCAM goes. It works great. Gives full res, full quality output to component. I get some realtime effects in 1080p24, including the important ones like cross dissolve and 3-way color corrector.

My experience with AJA products has even been better though...Kona software offers more control as far as up/down/cross conversions.

The bottom line generally is that if FCP can play it, the Kona/Decklink will too...the card doesn't care about the codec because it's passed raw decoded frames from FCP. As long as it supports the frame resolution and rate, it will work.

The only possible hangup is with 1080p24; that the card is better off adding the pulldown on the fly so it can feed the monitor 1080i60...my Decklink will do that for me, by choosing p23.98 in the video out. If I choose 1080i60 in the video out, then it's FCP's job to add the pulldown in software...which it does equally well and without a problem.

I suppose there's a tiny chance that the Kona has hangups with 1080p24 and adding pulldown for monitoring, but my experience with the various cards of both brands in the post houses I've hired for work here in LA, is that Kona does everything Decklink does, but generally does it a bit better.

Get the card, man.

[Rob Stiff]

You are using firewire HD XDCAM captured footage and
getting realtime output from your decklink without
needing to re-render the footage?
Just double checking before I buy a decklink or kona card....

[Nate Weaver]

Originally Posted by Rob Stiff

You are using firewire HD XDCAM captured footage and
getting realtime output from your decklink without
needing to re-render the footage?
Just double checking before I buy a decklink or kona card....

Yes. Full frame rate, full quality.

[Alister Chapman]

Me too, real time output and downconversion to SD with a Decklink HD.

[Scot Olson]

I use a AJA KONA LHe. I also get realtime output (both HD and simultaneous down-converted SD) playing back on the timeline. BUT... this is NOT the case when I use EDIT TO TAPE. I believe this is where the confusion arises on what is realtime and what is not. Playback from the timeline is realtime Edit To Tape is not. I would love to be proved wrong on this and I also hope that a future version of Final Cut can eliminate this restriction.

I do lay projects to tape using Punch and Pray on occasion but if you need to Edit To Tape the you have to render.

[Rob Stiff]

Nate, Alister, Greg, Mike & Scot, thank you for all of your input.

I ordered the Kona LHe card today.

Scot, are there any special settings to get the best performace
for 35 Mb/sec 1080 24p footage in FCP with the Kona LHe?

[Steve Cahill]

I just got through reading the Kona specs for the various cards. It appears the best use of the card is with capture as well. So if you users are using the XDCam firewire capture method, do you still have the added benifits of the card? Downconversion being one of the benifits. We are currently using fire wire drives to edit with with XDCam 35mbs, wondering if this is causing a issue and will using a Kona card mean a upgrade to Sata drives for better performance?

[Alister Chapman]

If your thinking of using firewire for capture it will only be SD. The XDCAM camera's only stream SD from the firewire port. The decks can give an HDV stream with an add on card, but the whole point of XDCAM is to get away from clumsy capturing and to start thinking file based.

Not sure what codecs the Kona has but you may need a serious hard drive update if your going to capture HD via HD-SDi. 4 Drive sata raid being the minimum for uncompressed 8 bit HD.

[Steve Cahill]

I have the Sony XDCAM deck and use that deck via Firewire to capture via the Sony XDCAM Transfer software to FCP using HD @ 35mbs. I have no issues with capturing this method to firewire drives, editing as well no issues. The ability to use the Sony software and capture better than real time is a real time saver vers capturing via the deck using HDSDI in real time and haveing a separate card for capture and the need for faster drives than firewire. Savings in both time and money, as well as using the XDCAM disc as file based system than a tape based system. Not sure there is any quality difference between the two methods of capture?

What I do not understand is, what would a card do for our workflow if we capture via the deck using the Sony XDCAM Transfer software method we use?
Other than a down conversion via a Kona card. Does the Kona card provide realtime effects if it is NOT used for the capture?

[Rob Stiff]

Steve, you pose a good question.
The reason I wanted a Kona card was for
realtime HD output to view for in studio editing
with FCP.