Windows Desktop Video Capture and Playback Card Adds Support for HDMI and 3G SDI, Bridging the Gap Between Analog and the latest HD Formats



April 20, 2009 - Las Vegas, NV, NAB Conference, Booth SL2513 —AJA Video Systems, a leading manufacturer of professional video interface and conversion solutions, announced the XENA LHi video capture and playback card, along with support for Adobe® Creative Suite® 4 Production Premium software across the entire XENA line. XENA LHi is AJA’s newest uncompressed video capture and playback card designed for the Windows platform, and makes its debut April 20-23 during the NAB exhibition at the Las Vegas Convention Center at the AJA booth SL2513.



The XENA LHi is well suited for many diverse broadcast and post production workflows and offers AJA’s 10-bit hardware up, down and cross-conversion to or from HD and SD, which can be applied to any or all inputs or outputs simultaneously. Connect to analog and digital devices including the latest 3G SDI and HDMI v1.3a enabled products for deep color space support. XENA LHi allows users to digitize HD into space-efficient SD for offline work, monitor HD files on an SD monitor and make analog or digital SD tape masters from an HD project.



The entire AJA XENA family of products (2K, LHi, LHe, and LSe) also now support Adobe Premiere® Pro CS4, After Effects® CS4 and Photoshop® CS4 Extended, all of which are part of Adobe Creative Suite® 4 Production Premium. Powerful support for Creative Suite 4 allows for video playback, in addition to capture and output to a deck with deck control from within each of these applications. The AJA Windows plug-ins for Adobe Creative Suite 4 offer unparalleled integration and support for a wide range of video formats, including native QuickTime, DPX, CIN, TIFF and TGA file support within Adobe Premiere Pro CS4, After Effects CS4 and Photoshop CS4 Extended and native real time 10-bit RGB editing in Adobe Premiere Pro CS4.



“AJA continues to offer ground-breaking solutions to video professionals and the LHi is no exception, giving Adobe customers streamlined access to digital and analog video formats,” said Ginna Baldassarre, senior product manager for Production Premium at Adobe Systems Incorporated. “The XENA LHi brings our users extended capabilities and display options for broadcast and post production work.”



Available for Windows and Intel based Mac OS systems, Adobe Creative Suite 4 Production Premium pairs world-class video, audio, and design tools with integration features that help save valuable production time at every step. Benchmarking results from an independent research study conducted by Pfeiffer Consulting and commissioned by Adobe shows that features in Adobe Creative Suite 4 software can dramatically increase productivity, efficiency and return on investment. The report includes several ways Creative Suite 4 Production Premium saves time and money.



“The XENA LHi delivers an incredible range of functionality to our Windows customers,” said Nick Rashby, President, AJA Video. “And the launch of our plug-ins for Adobe Creative Suite 4 creates really beneficial workflow efficiencies with the ability to playback, capture and output video from directly within the latest After Effects, AdobePremiere Pro and Photoshop Extended interfaces.”



XENA LHi Features:

•        10-bit uncompressed SD/HD capture card

•        3G/HD/SD SDI I/O

•        HDMI v1.3a input/output w/Deep Color at 30/36 bits per pixel

•        2 independent 3G, HD-SDI, or SD-SDI outputs

•        12-bit SD/HD analog component or SD composite/YC I/O

•        10-bit Hardware-based realtime up/down/cross-conversions

•        Native support for DPX, Cineon, TGA, TIFF, BMP, YUV, AVI and QuickTime files

•        DVCProHD Quicktime capture and playback for compressed workflows

•        2-channel balanced XLR AES and 2-channel balanced XLR analog audio I/O

•        8-channel SDI embedded audio I/O

•        HD/SD Genlock and RS-422 machine control

•        LTC input (on Reference Input)

•        Plug-in support for Adobe Premiere Pro CS4, After Effects CS4, and Photoshop CS4 Extended, Autodesk Combustion and Eyeon Fusion

•        AJA Machina software

•        Breakout cables standard, affordable KLHi-Box breakout box optional

•        3-year international warranty



For a complete set of features and technical specifications, please visit http://www.aja.com">www.aja.com. The XENA LHi will be available soon for an MSRP of $1495 via AJA’s worldwide network of channel partners. The optional KLHi-Box is available for $349 MSRP.



For a limited time, the massively popular XENA LHe uncompressed video capture and playback card will be available at the special price of $1295, a savings of almost $500.



About AJA Video Systems, Inc.

Since 1993, AJA Video has been a leading manufacturer of high-quality and cost-effective digital video interface, conversion and Desktop solutions supporting the professional broadcast and post- production markets. With headquarters in Grass Valley, California, AJA maintains an extensive sales channel of dealers and systems integrators around the world. For further information, please see our website http://www.aja.com">www.aja.com.