Avid Unleashes Mac HD and Avid Mojo SDI for Avid Xpress Pro

Avid Technology, Inc. announced version 5.5 of Avid Xpress® Pro software and unveiled Avid Mojo® SDI, the newest member in Avid’s line of Digital Nonlinear Accelerator™ products. Avid Xpress Pro v.5.5 software now delivers HD capabilities for both Mac and Windows-based systems. The new Avid Mojo SDI works seamlessly with Avid Xpress Pro, providing high-quality, advanced analog and digital SDI (Serial Digital Interface) I/O connections for professional video and audio projects.

"The Avid Xpress Pro family is all about empowering digital content creators with tools that meet their needs for creating professional-quality film and video productions on a modest budget," said Tim Wilson, senior product marketing manager for Avid. "Mac customers have been waiting for a product with robust multi-format HD editing and media management features. Both Mac and PC customers have been requesting new I/O that offers the highest-quality audio and video connections. We’re delivering on both of those requests at NAB, and as a result, we know that we’ll continue to see many high-profile projects created on Avid Xpress Pro."

Avid Xpress Pro v 5.5
Avid Xpress Pro v 5.5 software combines professional video, audio, film, effects, encoding tools, and custom music creation software – for both Mac and PC platforms in a single box. The software supports native HDV and DVCPRO HD for acquisition, editing, and output; real-time effects and 2:3 pulldown insertion over FireWire; and Avid DNxHD™ encoding to create effects, transitions, and titles with uncompromised image quality. Avid’s unique Open Timeline enables users to mix HDV, DVCPRO HD, and Avid DNxHD formats with SD and DV media in the same timeline in real-time, reducing the time it takes to complete projects that incorporate media from multiple sources. Other enhancements in version 5.5 include:

HD and improved format support for Mac OS X systems – supports new 10-bit uncompressed SD and native DV50 formats as well as HDV, DVCPRO HD, and Avid DNxHD;
Real-time multicam support for Mac OS X systems – allows simultaneous playback of any DV, SD, or HD multicam views, for on-the-fly editing in real-time;
Tapeless workflow for Mac OS X systems – includes streamlined support for Panasonic P2 and Sony XDCAM, so users can efficiently transfer tapeless media without digitizing, transcoding, or shuttling through tapes to find a shot;
Direct ingest of XDCAM HD over FireWire – allows Avid Xpress Pro editors to capitalize on the opportunities of HD file-based production with the new Sony XDCAM HD format;
New film and pulldown support for Mac OS X systems – enables editors to capture 24p footage to disk transparently over FireWire, via normal and advanced pulldown, without the need for third-party applications or transcoding. It also includes mixed film gauges and 3-perf tracking for expanded film support;
AVX™2 plug-in support for deep colorspace and advanced keyframing for Mac OS X systems – offers full control over custom parameter curves and 16-bit rendering for preserving the full color space of effects for both native Avid and third-party effects. The animation control saves time and offers the highest-quality processing;
Full-screen SD and HD monitoring using the host graphics card for both Mac and PC – enables users to monitor SD and HD projects without the need for expensive I/O and broadcast monitors by using the on-board Mac or PC graphics card and LCD or Plasma displays.
Users can either monitor over the UI on a single-monitor solution such as a laptop, or use a two-head display for dedicated output;
Enhanced performance with HDV splicing for Mac and PC systems – delivers ability for long GOP material to only be re-rendered at edit points, providing much faster preparation for output than creating an entirely new stream;
Varicam support for both Mac and PC systems – Allows for the capture of material from Panasonic’s popular Varicam cameras.
In addition, Avid plans to offer Universal Binary support in future versions of Avid Xpress Pro, for forthcoming Intel-based Macs.

Avid Mojo SDI
Avid Mojo SDI is a portable, advanced analog and digital SDI I/O device with high-quality professional video and audio connections supporting most professional decks and cameras. Connecting to Macs and PCs via FireWire, the Avid Mojo SDI Digital Nonlinear Accelerator offers the same analog connectivity of Avid Mojo, but adds SDI I/O and AES/EBU digital audio I/O to expand Avid Xpress Pro solutions to work with mastering-quality SD cameras and decks. Available for both the Avid Xpress Pro family and the new Avid Media Composer family of products, the Avid Mojo SDI Digital Nonlinear Accelerator offers:

SDI video I/O – supplies improved quality and flexibility via uncompressed SD digital video I/O in addition to component, S-video, and composite I/O, and FireWire. This provides the highest-quality monitoring as well as full capture and digital cut support to mastering-quality SD decks;
Flexible digital and analog audio – delivers up to eight channels of embedded audio over SDI, four channels over AES/EBU, four channels over line RCA, and two channels over optical S/PDIF – enabling full compatibility with professional audio devices;
Simultaneous output of video and effects to client monitor and tape – offers the ability to see video in its proper color space on output with support for both waveform/vectorscope and split-screen in color-correction mode; and
Audio punch-in – enables users to punch-in up to four channels of audio for applications such as recording voice-overs, enabled by Avid Mojo SDI’s bi-directional signal flow that allows monitoring during capture.

Pricing and Availability
Pricing for the Avid Xpress Pro software and Avid Mojo SDI is as follows:

Avid Xpress Pro software is priced at $1,695 USMSRP.
Avid Mojo SDI is priced at $2,495 USMSRP.

Avid Xpress Pro v 5.5 and Avid Mojo SDI are expected to begin shipping in June 2006. Upgrades are expected to be available for existing Avid Xpress Pro and Avid Xpress Pro HD customers.

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