Panasonic Shipping Dual-Mode DVCPRO Program Production Gear

SECAUCUS, NJ– Panasonic Broadcast & Television SystemsCompany announced the availability of its new high-performance,dual-mode DVCPRO products, including the AJ-SD955A and AJ-SD930 studioediting VTRs and the AJ-SDC915 2/3-inch IT 3-CCD camcorder.

Switchable between classic 25Mbps ENG mode and studio quality 50Mbps4:2:2 mode, these new DVCPRO products are ideally suited to a widevariety of video production applications. When operating in 50Mbpsmode, DVCPRO products offer a mild 3.3:1 DV-based compression, 4:2:2sampling and four 16-bit 48 kHz sampled channels of uncompresseddigital audio.

Incredibly affordable, the AJ-SD930 and AJ-SD955A studio editingVTRs significantly lower the cost of recording and editing at the 4:2:2resolution 50Mbps data rate increasingly demanded by broadcasters andvideo production facilities. These compact 4RU VTRs record 92 minutesin 50Mbps 4:2:2 DVCPRO50 mode or 184 minutes in classic 25Mbps 4:1:1DVCPRO digital component formats. A truly universal DTV recorder, theAJ-SD955A also offers PAL (625 line) recording and extensivefront-panel editing controls, including auto assemble, insert andmanual editing, as well as preview, review and trim capabilities.

The new VTRs feature an auto-format playback detection function forseamless playback of DVCPRO50, DVCPRO, DVCAM and DV format recordings(cassette adaptor required for mini-DV format cassette playback). Andfor easy integration of 50Mbps digital component video intocomputer-based nonlinear editing systems, an optional IEEE-1394 digitalinterface card is offered for both decks, marking the firstprofessional implementation of the popular PC interface at a nativevideo data rate above 25Mbps.

Using the same low-cost, standard 1/4" tape cassette as 25MbpsDVCPRO, these dual-mode decks offer an extremely fast and gentle tapehandling mechanism, with tape cassette load-in time of three secondsand servo lock time of less than 1/4 second. Audio functionalityincludes independent 4-channel audio control in 50Mbps mode, audiovolume control, audio jog for DV and DVCAM tapes, and audio cue fromDVCPRO tapes. The units offer variable slow motion playback (-0.43X to+0.43X in reverse and normal speed) for clean, noiseless images.

Offering a wide range of field production-oriented features, theAJ-SDC915 includes Super Gain to boost gain by a full +36dB forhigh-quality shooting in dim lighting, Super Iris to adjust the iris toprovide correct exposure of back-lit subjects, PCMCIA memory card forsaving camera setups, and an optional “Picture Link” tomake editing easy when using Panasonic newsBYTE50 nonlinear editor.

The AJ-SD930 and AJ-SD955A are available at suggested list prices of$14,995 and $19,995, respectively. The AJ-SDC915 is available asuggested list price of $18,900.

Panasonic Broadcast & Television Systems Co. is a leadingsupplier of broadcast, professional video and presentation products andsystems. Panasonic Broadcast is a unit company of Matsushita ElectricCorporation of America, the principal North America subsidiary ofMatsushita Electric Industrial Co. For more information, visit thewebsite at www.panasonic.com/broadcast.