PESA has expanded its line of midsized routers with the updated Cougar-3. Officially introduced at NAB2009, Cougar-3 is now positioned at a more competitive price point and includes several new features, making it a much more attractive package for small to midsized video switching environments.
PESA’s Cougar-3 32 x 32 matrix switcher routes all SMPTE and ITU standard serial digital video signals; plus, it supports embedded audio and other ancillary data required for HD-SDI and DVI/ASI broadcast sources. For digital cinema HD video distribution requirements, the Cougar-3 can be configured to switch SMPTE 372M dual-link HD-SDI in configurations up to 16 x 16. Cougar-3 is designed for SD-SDI, HD-SDI and 3G-SDI switching applications.
Occupying only 1RU of rack space, Cougar-3 supports standard data rates from 50Mb/s up to 3Gb/s and video transports up to 1080p/60. All inputs are auto-equalized; and with standard SMPTE formatted outputs, each signal is auto-sensed and reclocked to the appropriate transport stream. Signals can be reclocked up to 80m for 1080p/60. For nonstandard formats, reclocking circuitry can be set to bypass mode. Two independent reference inputs allow easy selection of genlock from a black burst or trilevel synch source. The compact frame design features front-load/hot-swappable card sets and includes space for an optional redundant power supply and controller module. Cougar-3 provides control ports that allow configuration of the frame for a variety of control interfaces including Ethernet control, RS-232/422, PESA’s P2K or 3500PRO and PESA’s new QuView GUI. Plus, it can be used with PESA’s full range of control panels.
PESA’s QuView is an intuitive, easy-to-use GUI control system that supports the Cougar-3 as well as the full line of PESA router frames. It is installed on a host PC running the Windows OS and communicates via an Ethernet port located on each router. For large, high-speed digital interface switching systems, the QuView full-feature control and management software application supports comprehensive configuration, diagnostics and monitoring.
Because of the compact size of the Cougar-3, it fits perfectly in small to midsized venues where rack space for switching a large number of HD signals is limited. It also offers a wide range of control features normally found in larger router systems, making it perfect for editing and post-production applications.
