AJA Io Express Operating instructions

Io Express
Capture, Display, Convert
Version 14.0
Published February 28, 2018
Installation and Operation Guide

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Notices
Trademarks
AJA® and Because it matters.® are registered trademarks of AJA Video Systems, Inc.
for use with most AJA products. AJA™ is a trademark of AJA Video Systems, Inc. for
use with recorder, router, software and camera products. Because it matters.™ is a
trademark of AJA Video Systems, Inc. for use with camera products.
CION®, Corvid Ultra®, lo®, Ki Pro®, KONA®, KUMO®, ROI® and T-Tap® are registered
trademarks of AJA Video Systems, Inc.
AJA Control Room™, KiStor™, Science of the Beautiful™, TruScale™, TruZoom™,
V2Analog™ and V2Digital™ are trademarks of AJA Video Systems, Inc.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Copyright
Copyright © 2018 AJA Video Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. All information in
this manual is subject to change without notice. No part of the document may be
reproduced or transmitted in any form, or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying or recording, without the express written permission of AJA
Video Systems, Inc.
Contacting AJA Support
When calling for support, have all information at hand prior to calling. To contact AJA
for sales or support, use any of the following methods:
Telephone [phone]
FAX [phone]
Web https://www.aja.com
Support Email suppor[email protected]
Sales Email [email protected]

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Contents
Notices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
Trademarks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Copyright . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Contacting AJA Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Chapter 1 – Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Io Express Audio Monitoring. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
AJA Software & Utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
System Requirements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Cable Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
HD/SD SDI Input and Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
HDMI Input and Output. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
Analog 2-Channel Unbalanced Audio Output. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
RS422 Machine Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Component Video Output (with Composite and Y/C) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
Reference Video and LTC Input . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
In This Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Chapter 2 – Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
What’s In The Box?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Connecting To Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Cabling the System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Chapter 3 – Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
AJA Control Panel Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
AJA Control Panel User Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Controlling Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Presets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Default Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Function Screens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
AJA Control Panel Function Screens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Control Screen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Format Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Input Select Screen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
SDI Out Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
HDMI Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Analog Out Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Video Setup Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Audio Setup Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Timecode Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Presets Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Firmware Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Info Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Appendix A – Specications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Io Express Tech Specs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Appendix B – Safety and Compliance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
Warranty and Liability Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42
Limited Warranty on Hardware. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Limitation of Liability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Governing Law and Language; Your Rights. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44

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Chapter 1 – Introduction
Overview
Io Express is the perfect cross-platform, Mac or PC, interface for anyone who
needs an inexpensive monitoring and mastering solution when working with
Apple ProRes Formats, XDCAM HD, DVCPRO HD, and more. Portable and simple
to use, Io Express is ideal for file based workflows.
Features
The Io Express package includes the following features:
• HD/SD-SDI input and output
• HDMI 1.3a input and output
• Component Video output for monitoring
• 2-channel RCA audio output
• LTC I/O (selectable LTC input or Reference Video Input)
• RS-422
• PCIe card computer interface
• For Mac OSX and 64-bit Windows operating systems
• Small portable case design ts in 1RU rackmount option
• 1-meter PCIe tether cable
• 12V DC power supply
Playback formats supported by Io Express include:
• Apple ProRes 422 HD/SD (Mac OSX only)
• DVCPRO HD
• DV25/DV50
• HDV
• SD Uncompressed
• XDCAM
• XDCAM EX
• XDCAM HD
NOTE: Encoding of Apple ProRes is available only on Apple computers. Apple ProRes can
be played back on a PC with the appropriate QuickTime Windows decoder.

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Io Express Audio Monitoring
For analog audio output monitoring, Io Express provides two-channel
unbalanced audio (RCA jacks).
A 1/8 inch TRS headphone jack, with volume control, is also available on the front
panel.
AJA Software & Utilities
Io Express operates with AJA's Desktop software package, developed for
powerful integrated video/audio capture, editing, and production with a
variety of 3rd-party software. AJA software is distributed as a unified package
which includes all the software, firmware, plugins, and utility programs for the
Io Express, as well as AJA’s Io, KONA, and T-TAP products.
Three retail packages are available, one for Mac, one for Windows, and one for
Linux.
NOTE: Support for the Linux OS retail drivers is based on the Linux application used and
comes from the application’s vendor.
Mac, Windows and Linux Packages
These packages include:
Drivers
AJA device drivers for tightly integrated hardware/software operation.
AJA Control Panel
The Control Panel provides:
• Source selection and control of your AJA hardware.
• A block diagram to show visually what routing and processing is being
performed.
AJA Control Room
Control Room is a cross-platform software application for ingest, playback and
output with AJA products.
AJA System Test
System Test provides accurate and detailed evaluations of drive and PCIe
performance statistics, allowing you to measure the capabilities of your system
for recording and playing back various resolutions and codecs.
Additional with Mac and Windows Packages
3rd-Party Plugins
Plugins for popular 3rd-party Professional Video Applications from Adobe, Avid,
Apple, Telestream, and others.

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System Requirements
AJA Video recommends that your system meet minimum hardware and software
requirements to achieve a satisfactory level of performance. Updates to system
requirements are subject to change.
NOTE: See Software Vendor system requirements for GPU recommendations and
additional hardware requirements and recommendations.
AJA recommends:
• MacOS 10.12 Sierra or later
• Win 10 or later with all updates
• Linux Redhat/CentOS 7
• Linux Ubuntu 14.04 LTS and Ubuntu 16.04 LTS
• 2.5 GHz quad core i7 minimum, for HD
• 16GB RAM minimum, for HD
• A reasonably fast and powerful graphics card, with plenty of on-board
memory. Examples (may be specic to application version and/or host CPU)
include:
• NvidiaK5200
• Nvidia K4200
• Nvidia M6000
• Nvidia M5000
• Nvidia M4000
• AMD W7100
• AMD W8100
• Media storage with adequate bandwidth to sustain the capture and playback
of the material you expect to be working with.
NOTE: For large scale installations with shared storage, or for very high performance
requirements, AJA recommends consultation with an experienced a system
integrator. A consultant will be able to assist with many important variables.
Cable Connections
Figure 1. Io Express Rear Connectors
RS422
Machine Control
LTC/
Reference
Output
Analog
Audio
Output
Composite/
Component
Video Output
SDI
Input
SDI
Output
HDMI v1.3a
Output
LTC/
Reference
Input
HDMI v1.3a
Input
Power Supply
Connector
Io Express connections are made directly to the unit’s rear connector plate.

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HD/SD SDI Input and Output
BNC connectors are provided on Io Express for one HD/SD-SDI input and one
HD/SD-SDI output. The input and output support video and embedded 24-bit
digital audio. Use SDI wherever possible for the best quality 10-bit uncompressed
video input, capture and output. If peripheral equipment has a variety of inputs/
outputs, look to see if it has SDI I/O, and use it where possible. Most high-end
professional broadcast equipment supports SDI (VTRs, cameras, media storage
servers, etc.).
HDMI Input and Output
Two HDMI connectors on the Io Express provide input and output of HDMI
compatible video and multi-channel embedded audio (8 channels). HDMI v1.3a
capability at 30 bits per pixel allows full support of the latest 10-bit monitors.
HDCP is not supported on either input or output. Io Express HDMI output does
not have HDCP, and input sources having HDCP are not supported. The HDMI
input is designed to support long cable runs—up to 100 ft. when using 22 or
24AWG HDMI cable, or up to 50 ft. using 28 or 30AWG HDMI cable. The HDMI
output supports standard HDMI cables only. The AJA Control Panel allows
selection and adjustment of some HDMI parameters.
Analog 2-Channel Unbalanced Audio Output
Io Express provides two analog output connectors, one for each channel. These
connectors are RCA-style phono jacks.
A 1/8 inch TRS headphone jack, with volume control, is also available on the front
panel.
RS422 Machine Control
A female DE-9 connector on Io Express provides connection for VTRs, camcorders,
disk media servers, and other devices using RS422 SMPTE (Sony) protocol.
(Connector pinout is listed in "Appendix A Specifications" .)
Component Video Output (with Composite and Y/C)
Io Express features a group of 3 BNC connectors for output of component,
composite and Y/C functions. The signals are labeled on the BNC connectors on
the rear panel of Io Express.
Component Video, or YPbPr, has been given several names over time. YUV, Y/R-
Y/B-Y, and YCbCr, are just some examples. Although these various formats have
some differences in levels, they are all basically the same. Io Express uses the
modern YPbPr terminology exclusively. Io Express supports three different types
of YPbPr: SMPTE/EBU N10, Betacam (NTSC), and Betacam (NTSC Japan). These
three formats differ in level only and are configured in the Mac System via the Io
Express Control Panel.
Reference Video and LTC Input
Two BNC connectors on Io Express provide reference Input and Output. The
Reference Video input can also be used for LTC input. The selection of Reference
(sync) or LTC is set using the Io Express Control Panel.
In Video Pass-through mode, these connectors are effectively loop-through.
Supplying reference signal to the Reference input allows you to synchronize Io
Express outputs to your house analog reference video signal (or black burst).
If you have a sync generator or central piece of video equipment to use for

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synchronizing other video equipment in your studio, then connect its analog
composite output here. When Io Express outputs video, it uses this reference
signal for locking. When connecting a reference video source, the locking signal
should be the same format as the Primary format selected in the Io Express
Control Panel. It is possible in some circumstances to use an alternate format
video signal as long as the basic frame rate is compatible.
In This Manual
Chapter 1 gives general Io Express information and lists product features and
system requirements.
Chapter 2 provides instructions for installing and configuring Io Express.
Chapter 3 discusses the operation of Io Express when used with AJA Control Panel
and third-party applications.
Appendix A presents a list of Io Express technical specifications.
Appendix B contains important safety and compliance information for Io Express.

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Chapter 2 – Installation
What’s In The Box?
As you unpack the shipping box(es), carefully examine the contents. Ensure you
received everything and that nothing was damaged during shipment. If you find
any damage, immediately notify the shipping service and supply them with a
complete description of the damage. AJA will repair or replace damaged items.
If you find shipping damage, contact your AJA dealer or distributor for details on
how to have your Io Express repaired or replaced. Save packing materials and the
shipping box. If you ever require service or move your system use the packaging
materials and box for safe shipment.
When you unpack your AJA Io Express, you’ll find the following components:
• Io Express
• PCIe Card
• PCIe Tether Cable
Installation
Overview
The installation and set up of Io Express is very simple. The steps of installation
and configuration are discussed here and summarized as follows:
1. Unpack the shipping box.
2. If not previously installed on your Mac Pro or Windows workstation, ensure
that appropriate application software, such as Apple’s Final Cut Pro or
Adobe Premiere Pro, is installed as detailed in its user documentation.
Editing software must be installed and have been run at least once prior to
installing Io Express software.
3. Download and install the latest Io Express software from:
http://www.aja.com/en/support/io/mac/io-express/
4. Install the Io Express PCIe card in your Mac or PC (see "Connecting To Your
Computer" below).
5. Cable the system audio and video sources, VTR, audio monitor, and video
monitor (see "Cabling the System" on page 10).
Connecting To Your Computer
CAUTION: Always have power off when connecting any device to the PCIe bus.
1. With your computer o, install the PCIe card into the computer or external
PCIe chassis.
NOTE: Refer to your PC manufacturer’s documentation for installing a PCIe card.
2. Connect the PCIe tether cable between the Io Express PCIe port and the
PCIe card.
3. Assemble the Power Adapter and cable and connect to the Io Express 12V
power connector.

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4. Connect the Power Supply to AC power and turn on Io Express using the
front power switch.
NOTE: For correct performance, always power up Io Express before starting your
computer and power down your computer before powering down Io Express.
Cabling the System
The following figure shows a typical interconnection for a system with digital A/V
sources. Your system may differ depending on VTRs, audio monitoring, and video
monitoring.
1. If desired, connect your house reference sync to the Io Express Ref/LTC
connector (BNC). The second Io Express Ref Loop connector (if used in Pass
through mode) can be connected to the VTR or terminated with a 75-ohm
terminator. If instead you are using LTC timecode input, connect to the Ref/
LTC input.
2. Connect an HDMI Video Monitor to the Io Express HDMI Out connector. Or
instead, use the Component Analog Video Out BNC connectors to go to an
analog monitor.
3. Connect a 9-pin DE-9 machine control cable between your VTR’s RS422
control port and the Io Express RS-422 machine control connector.
4. Connect two SDI cables between Io Express and your digital VTR (Digital
Betacam etc.): one from Io Express SDI In to the VTR SDI Out, and one from
Io Express SDI Out to the VTR SDI In. The Io Express SDI connections have
embedded audio so the VTR must be congured accordingly.
5. Use the two RCA-style unbalanced stereo output jacks for audio monitoring
output.