by Jon Fauer, ASC - Kameraverleih Deutschland

SxS Pro+ Cards
Recording Formats for Internal SxS Cards
The F5 has 3 recording formats and the F55 has four recording
formats for internal SxS media. Here’s a list of format, color, bitdepth,
bit rate at 30 fps unless otherwise noted, and description:
MPEG-2 HD. 4:2:2. 8-bit. 50 Mbps.
Well-accepted standard for television production.
XAVC HD (2K expected as a future upgrade). 4:2:2. 10-bit. 100
Mbps.
This next generation of H.264/AVC Intra-frame coding proposes
a cost-efficient system for High Frame Rate HD and
4K/60p production.
SR Codec (future upgrade). 4:2:2, 4:4:4. 10-bit. 220 and 440 Mbps.
The SR Codec (MPEG4 SStP) is widely used in production and
post. Once the upgrade is ready, the F55 and F5 will record files
in the same codec used on SR tape.
64 GB SxS Pro+ Card
records 10 minutes of 4K XAVC Intra 422 @ 60P, 25 min @ 24P
60 minutes of HD XAVC Intra 422
120 minutes of HD MPEG2 422
XAVC 4K (QFHD with future upgrade) on F55, not F5. 4:2:2. 10-
bit. 240Mbps at 24P.
If your view of 4K is that it can be a data challenge with large
files and lots of storage, Sony proposes this version of H.264/
AVC Intra-frame encoding with reasonably compact files.
128 GB SxS Pro+ Card
records 20 minutes of 4K XAVC Intra 422 @ 60P, 50 min @ 24P
60 minutes of HD XAVC Intra 422 @ 60P, 150min. @ 24P
240 minutes of HD MPEG2 422 @ 30P, 300 min. @ 24P
High-speed SxS PRO+ Media Cards
SBAC-US20 SxS USB 3.0 Card Reader
USB 3.0. Maximum readout speed of 1.6 Gbps.
The F55 and F5 cameras are capable of high-data-rate onboard
recording. This requires next-generation SxS recording media—Sony’s
64 and 128 GB SxS PRO+ memory cards—and a
next-generation SxS USB card reader, the SBAC-US20.
SxS Pro Cards were introduced in 2007. They have a sustained
data rate of 400 Mbps, and a maximum readout speed of 1.2
Gbps.
SxS PRO+ Cards are being introduced in 2013. They have a
sustained data rate of a whopping 1.3 Gbps, and a top readout
speed of 1.6 Gbps.
One of the Sony designers half-jokingly said that a 128 GB
SxS Pro+ Card recording 4K XAVC Intra 422 24P (50 minutes)
was like having a 4500 foot magazine of 35mm film (24
fps, 4-perf, 90 feet per minute). Or 3,375 foot magazine using
3-perf camera.
The comparison of an SxS Pro+ Card recording HD MPEG2
is even crazier: equivalent to a 27,000 foot magazine of 35mm
film (24 fps, 4-perf).
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