The Sony PDW-1500 decks will allow KNME-TV to transfer video at faster than real time and move it around more easily in and out of ingest servers.
KNME-TV, a public broadcasting station on the campus of the University of New Mexico, has purchased Sony’s PDW-1500 XDCAM Professional Disc System decks for its on-air operations.
The purchase, which will be used to upgrade the station’s infrastructure, was made with the help of a multi-year U.S. Department of Commerce grant ($8.2 million matched by a general obligation bond from the State of New Mexico).
The Sony PDW-1500 decks will be installed this month. When the installation is complete, Jim Gale, director of engineering and operations, envisions the XDCAM system allowing KNME to transfer video at faster than real time and move it around more easily in and out of ingest servers.
Gale said the station was attracted by the deck’s small footprint - able to fit two in the rackspace of one conventional VTR. Another factor for KNME was the “extreme robustness” of the Sony Professional Disc media used in the system, and its archival lifespan. A single 23.3GB disc can potentially have a shelf life of up to 50 years according to Sony testing.
The use of optical disc versus tape also offers split-second random access.
For more information, visit www.sony.com.
