Rental company Fletcher Chicago has unveiled the Fletcher Digital Management System (DMS), a portable production system that gives production professionals a convenient way to store and back up content while on set for HD commercial production and motion picture projects.
Although configured by Fletcher, Gary Adcock, a pioneer in advanced HD post-production workflows and founder of consulting firm Studio 37, designed the system. He has incorporated the Sonnet Fusion R400Q four-drive SATA storage system.
The 1 RU Sonnet system, equipped with four Enterprise/RAID drives, has been built into a flight case along with a multicard Panasonic P2 solid-state card reader, a CF reader for RED ONE and still image content, and an AJA Video Io HD unit for on-set capture and playback. The DMS Cart can be shipped anywhere, and once the unit is powered up users can capture content live and in real time from any SD or HD camera system via the Io HD to the Fusion system’s four SATA drives. The drives are configured as two RAID 1 volumes and mirrored for complete redundancy.
With a storage capacity of 4 TB, the Sonnet system maintains the original data and additional duplicates, thus providing the on-set backup required for high-end production. Data captured or transferred onto the Fusion R400Q is automatically copied to the unit's second volume, and this action triggers an FTP transfer to an attached Quantum SDLT 600A drive to provide an LTO data-tape backup.
The R400Q system is connected with a single locking eSATA cable to a 4-port Sonnet Tempo SATA host controller installed in a Mac or Windows computer. Additional performance can be gained by ganging additional R400Qs on the same card.
For added flexibility, users can connect the R400Q to any computer through a single FireWire or USB cable. The system's drive trays feature built-in levers that double as handles to make swapping drives easy, while the cable-less connections from drives to enclosure simplify setup and assure reliability over the long haul. With its built-in universal power supply and compact dimensions, the Fusion R400Q is ideal for any application requiring the storage of large amounts of data in a small package.
Comments (1) for "Portable HD Acquisition on Wheels"
1.
4TB capacity would need to be RAID 0, which would not provide "on-set backup required for high-end production". This is hardly what I would call "compact dimensions" or a "small package". I think Gary could do better... maybe something that could be carry-on luggage sized that can run on batteries.
Posted by Paul on Wednesday, September 17, 2008 @ 09:04 PM
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