Atomos Samurai User manual

Version 1.0 – Nov. 2011
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Atomos Samurai
User Manual
Website: www.atomos.com | Sales: [e-mail] | Support: [e-mail]

Warranty & Conditions .............................................................................1
Introduction ...............................................................................................2
1. What’s included ..................................................................................3
2. What you also need ...........................................................................4
What drives should you use ...............................................................4
Solid Sate Drives (SSDs) ....................................................................4
Mechanical Vibration ..........................................................................4
Backing up and archiving ...................................................................4
HD-SDI Cables ...................................................................................5
1/4” screw mount ...............................................................................5
3. Mounting disks in the Master Caddy ..............................................6
4. Connecting and powering up ...........................................................7
Batteries ..............................................................................................7
Power ON/Power OFF ........................................................................8
5. Samurai connections ........................................................................8
6. Other physical features .....................................................................9
Master Caddy / Screw Mounts / Modularity ......................................9
7. Timecode ..........................................................................................10
8. Pulldown ...........................................................................................11
9. Using the Samurai ...........................................................................12
The User Interface in detail ...............................................................12
Samurai’s Touchscreen .....................................................................12
The Home Screen .............................................................................12
Recording ..........................................................................................13
Choosing your recording format .......................................................13
Home Screen / Menu functions ........................................................14
Batteries Screen / Auto Switching/Manual Switching .....................16
Storage Capacity Indicator ...............................................................16
Timecode Record Trigger .................................................................16
Audio In .............................................................................................17
10. Monitoring and Recording ..............................................................18
Connect to Input ...............................................................................18
Before recording ...............................................................................17
Samurai as a field monitor / EVF / Monitoring assist ......................19
Anti-shock technology ......................................................................19
Organising material on disk ..............................................................20
11. Connecting and Editing ..................................................................21
Connect to Input ...............................................................................21
NLE Support ....................................................................................21
exFAT compatibility ...........................................................................21
Transferring files ................................................................................21
Importing / Import into Final Cut Pro ................................................22
12. Playback & Playout ..........................................................................22
exFAT / FAT 32 disks .........................................................................23
Play mode / Pause mode .................................................................22
13. External Power Supply ....................................................................24
14 . Using Connect Converters .............................................................25
15. Software Upgrades ..........................................................................26
Updating ATOM-OS (Firmware) ........................................................26
Problems when installing Firmware ..................................................26
16. Technical Specifications .................................................................27
To keep things simple but clear, we’ve only adopted two
conventions in this manual:
A helpful tip, suggestion or something to note because
it’s not obvious at first
Monospaced text indicates a menu or touch action
The Samurai is designed to a high standard but there are some
things you should be aware of to prolong the life of the unit and for
your own safety.
Batteries and power supplies
The batteries supplied with the Samurai are powerful, professional
devices, designed to retain enough energy to supply the Samurai for
hours. You should avoid short-circuiting the battery connections because
this can cause a high current to flow which can damage the cells and
even pose a fire hazard. For example, you should not carry batteries in a
bag or pocket where they may contact other metal objects such as coins.
The power supply and battery charger included are intended for use with
the Samurai and nothing else. Keep the power supply, plug and cable away
from water and unplug from the mains electricity socket when not in use.
Disconnect power supplies before cleaning the Samurai or its
components.
Using the Samurai safely
Although the Samurai is very lightweight compared to all the devices it
replaces, it is still a solid object that could cause injury if misused.
• Always make sure that the Samurai is mounted securely and is unable
to fall onto anyone nearby. This is especially important when there are
children present who might be tempted to pull on cables.
• Always ensure that cable runs to the Samurai are clearly visible and
do not present a trip hazard.
• Do not place on uneven or unstable surfaces.
• Do not insert anything but Samurai Master Disk caddies in the Master
Disk slot on the side of the Samurai.
• Do not touch the Samurai’s screen with sharp, metallic or abrasive
objects.
• The Samurai can become warm or hot with prolonged use. Do not
place it in contact with your lap or any part of your body where such
warming could cause discomfort or injury.
• Do not expose to strong electrical or magnetic fields.
• Do not expose to or use near liquids, rain or moisture.
• Do not dispose of the Samurai or its batteries in municipal waste and
do not incinerate it or its batteries, but follow local regulations for safe
disposal
Care of disk drives
Spinning disks and SSDs are very sensitive to damage from static
electricity. Please observe all the usual precautions when handling them.
Please see the section Mechanical shock and vibration later in this
manual for information about how to handle and care for your disk drives.
Small parts
The Samurai carry-case contains small parts that could be a choking
hazard for small children.
SDI Cables
Please remember that SDI cables use locking connectors and
will not simply pull out if they are jerked or tripped over. They
are therefore a significant trip hazard, and also a hazard to your
equipment, which may be damaged if the cables are misused.
Contents Safety Instructions
Menu
Contents
Conventions

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 1
Notice
Copyright © 2011 ATOMOS Global Pty Ltd (‘referred to as ATOMOS’).
All rights reserved. All information in this document 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 ATOMOS. A reference to ATOMOS includes its related
entities, subsidiaries and parent company.
Trademarks
SAMURAI ATOMOS are registered trademarks of ATOMOS, Apple,
the Apple logo, AppleShare, AppleTalk, FireWire, iPod, iPod Touch, Mac,
and Macintosh are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Final Cut Pro,
QuickTime and the QuickTime Logo are trademarks of Apple Inc. All other
trademarks are the property of their respective holders.
International Hardware Limited Warranty
ATOMOS warrants that:
• the main product, not including TFT/LCD, or any external accessories,
will be free from defects in materials and workmanship for a period of
1 years from the date of purchase, the user may upgrade to a 3 year
warranty upon registering their product at www.atomos.com
• the TFT/LCD, batteries, battery charger and HDD/SSD docking station
will be free from defects in materials and workmanship for a period of 1
year from the date of purchase.
This warranty is exclusively for the benefit of the original purchaser and is
not assignable or transferable.
If during the warranty period the product is shown to be defective
ATOMOS may at its option:
a) replace the goods or supply equivalent ones, b) repair the goods, c)
pay the cost of replacing the goods or of acquiring equivalent ones and d)
paying the cost of having the goods repaired;
The customer must notify ATOMOS of any defect in the goods in
writing prior to the expiry of the warranty periods set out above. The
customer will be solely responsible for returning the goods to ATOMOS
or its authorized distributor. Upon acceptance of a warranty claim by
ATOMOS, where ATOMOS repairs or replaces the goods, it will be
responsible for reasonable shipping costs incurred in sending the goods
to the Customer, provided that customer is located in a country in which
ATOMOS has an authorized distributor or repair centre or agent.
Warranty Exclusions
This warranty applies only to defects in workmanship and does not cover
defects caused by:
• A failure to comply with the then current operating instructions issued
by ATOMOS;
• Neglect;
• Improper or negligent acts or omissions;
• Unauthorised repairs or attempted repairs;
• Tampering with or modification of the goods;
• Connection to incompatible equipment or power sources;
• Exposure to water or weather;
• Exposure to magnetic fields or corrosive liquids or substances;
EXCEPT AS STATED IN THIS WARRANTY, ATOMOS, IT’S VENDORS,
AGENTS, RESELLERS AND DISTRIBUTORS DISCLAIM IN THEIR
ENTIRETY ALL OTHER WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING
WITHOUT LIMITATION ALL WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR
FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE REMEDIES OUTLINED IN
THIS WARRANTY ARE THE EXCLUSIVE REMEDY A CUSTOMER HAS
ARISING FROM DEFECTIVE GOODS WHICH ARE SUBJECT TO THE
WARRANTY.
ATOMOS DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE GOODS WILL OPERATE IN A
MANNER WHICH IS ERROR FREE, OR UNINTERRUPTED. THE GOODS
ARE NOT INTENDED TO BE THE PRIMARY OR ONLY DATA STORAGE
DEVICE FOR DATA – CUSTOMERS ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR
BACK UP AND PROTECTION OF DATA.
Software License Agreement
IMPORTANT, PLEASE READ CAREFULLY. THIS IS A LICENSE
AGREEMENT.
This ATOMOS software, related documentation, any included sample
images and other files (the “Software”), is protected by copyright laws
and international copyright treaties, as well as other intellectual property
laws and treaties. The Software is licensed, not sold.
This End User License Agreement (“EULA”) is a legal agreement between
you (either an individual or a single entity) and ATOMOS with regard to
the copyrighted Software provided with this EULA. Use of the Software
provided to you by ATOMOS in whatever form or media, will constitute
your acceptance of these terms, unless separate terms are provided
by the software supplier, in which case certain additional or different
terms may apply. If you do not agree with the terms of this EULA, do
not download, install copy or use the Software. By installing, copying or
otherwise using the Software, you agree to be bound to the terms of this
EULA. If you do not agree to the terms of this EULA, ATOMOS is unwilling
to license the Software to you.
1. Eligible licensees. This Software is available for license solely to
purchasers of the ATOMOS Samurai, who have purchased a unit
manufactured by ATOMOS Samurai and purchased through an
ATOMOS authorized reseller, with no right of duplication or further
distribution, licensing or sub-licensing.
2. License Grant. ATOMOS grants you a personal, non-transferable and
non-exclusive right to use the copy of the Software provided with this
EULA. You agree you will not copy the Software except as necessary
to use it with the ATOMOS Samurai. You agree that you may not copy
the written materials accompanying the Software. Modifying, reverse
engineering, translating, renting, copying, transferring or assigning
all or part of the Software or any rights granted hereunder, to any
other persons or reverse engineering the hardware on which the
Software runs, is strictly prohibited. The software is license, not sold.
You acknowledge that no title to intellectual property in the Software
is transferable to you. You further acknowledge that title and full
ownership rights to the Software will remain the exclusive property
of ATOMOS and/or its suppliers, and you will not acquire any rights
to the Software, except as expressly set forth above. All copies of
the software will contain the same proprietary notices as contained
in or on the Software. All title and copyrights in and to the Software
(including but not limited to any images, animations, video, audio, text
incorporated), the accompanying printed materials, and any copies of the
Software are owned by ATOMOS or its suppliers.
3. Reverse engineering. You agree that you will not attempt, and if you are
a corporation, you will use your best efforts to prevent your employees
and contractors from attempting to reverse compile, derive circuits,
modify, translate or disassemble the Software and/or the Atomos
Samurai in whole or in part. Any failure to comply with the above or any
other terms and conditions contained herein will result in the automatic
termination of this license and the reversion of the rights granted
hereunder by ATOMOS.
ATOMOS reserves the right to terminate this license without prejudice to
any additional recourse ATOMOS may have against you if you violate any
of its terms and conditions.
Registration + Warranty Upgrade
Register to upgrade your warranty FREE 1yr >3yr
www.atomos.com/samurai
Warranty & Conditions

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 2
Thank you for choosing the Atomos Samurai: your 10-bit HD-SDI
Recorder/Monitor/Deck. It’s the most compact portable recorder
available, with extremely long battery life, a high-resolution screen,
uncompressed-quality playout and real-time pulldown removal.
Samurai preserves the pristine uncompressed video quality from your
camera’s sensor by directly encoding it into Apple ProRes® or (optionally)
Avid DNxHD® as it records to HDD/SSD, making it instantly compatible
with your NLE timeline. The Samurai’s revolutionary ‘Sensor-to-NLE’
workflow is the fastest and best quality available today!
The reason that Samurai exists at all is because of the relentless march
of technology, and the way that this changes the economics of almost
everything. Most of all, though, it changes the way you use storage.
Built-in (or card-based) camera storage is a miracle of science; but
that doesn’t stop it being expensive when you use it with HD video.
Uncompressed HD video takes a prohibitive amount of storage and is
unmanagable – making compression necessary.
Even though MPEG compression like h.264 and MPEG-2 are very clever
technologies, they’re nowhere near perfect, and they certainly weren’t
designed for the rigours of editing.
Samurai solves this by using production quality codecs. Apple ProRes®
and (optionally) Avid DNxHD® are much kinder to your video; significantly
reducing the compression and increasing quality. By using much lower
compression ratios, and intra (instead of inter) frame encoding, these
codecs are superior for editing. Every frame is encoded in full, which
means that there’s no need to “reconstruct” missing frames from
adjacent frames. This eliminates the need for log-and-capture!
Because it doesn’t compress as much, Samurai needs more storage.
With the plummeting price of hard disk storage, the 2½” disks used by
the Samurai are very cheap; the cost of storage is no longer an issue.
Buying a disk for the Samurai is just like buying a tape – except that with
a disk you will have instant “non-linear” access to your video.
The Samurai’s one-touch TFT-LCD interface is intuitive and simple to use.
There are no complicated menus or difficult to find functions – everything
you need is instantly accessible from the home screen. Refer to ‘Using
your Samurai’ for more information.
Software updates for your Samurai will be issued regularly. Registering
your Samurai now will ensure you are kept abreast of any updates.
Software updates and information will also be available at:
www.atomos.com/Samurai.
We hope you enjoy your Samurai
Your Samurai comes with a standard 1 year warranty on all parts and
accessories. You can upgrade to a 3 year warranty on the main
Samurai Unit alone (excluding TFT/LCD) by registering your Samurai
online at http://www.atomos.com/registration.xml. This will enable
us to let you know about updates to the product and other important
information surrounding your purchase.
Introduction

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 3
Your Samurai arrives as a complete system: you don’t have to add
anything except 2.5” storage media (you can buy additional packs of
empty Master Disk Caddies from your Atomos Reseller) and some cables
to suit your set-up like SDI BNC cables and tripod screws. All other parts
necessary to use the Samurai (including Mini-BNC to BNC adaptor cables)
are included in the carry case.
Here’s the complete list
• Samurai body (the Samurai itself, with touchscreen,
inputs and slot for Samurai disk caddies)
• 2 x empty Master Disk Caddies + 8 Screws for fixing disks
• Master Caddy Docking Station with
a. USB 2 & 3 Cable (Under Samurai body)
b. Firewire Cable (Under dock)
c. USB 2.0 power cable for extra USB power when required (Under dock)
• Battery Charger with Power Supply Unit located underneath
• 2 x Atomos 7.4 V 2600mAh Batteries
• Samurai Carry Case
• Samurai Quick Start Guide (not pictured)
UPON REGISTRATION RECEIVE FREE*
• 2 x Samurai Mini SDI to BNC adaptor cables
• 1 x DTap dummy battery
Atomos does not sell storage and your package will not contain any
spinning disks or SSDs. You can buy these locally to keep running
costs as low as possible.
We recommend drives, please refer to Part 16 (Technical Specifications)
of this manual. For the most up-to-date information please visit:
http://www.atomos.com/ninja/techspecs.xml#hddssdsupport
1. What’s included
* Upon successful product registration your regional distributor/reseller will supply your free extra cables + Dtap Adaptor.

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 4
2 ½” Disk Drives
These are the raw storage medium for Samurai. You can use either
traditional “spinning” disks, or the new solid state ones. Choose spinning
drives if your Samurai is going to be attached to a tripod or if it is not
going to be subject to excessive vibration. For harsher conditions,
choose a solid state drive.
Which drives should you use?
There are so many drives available, and new models appear all the
time. We are not able to test all drives but here are some guidelines.
Speed and reliability are the main factors. Here are a few things to
bear in mind:
• Disk drive data rates tend to be given in megaBYTES per second, and
codec data rates are normally given in megaBITS per second. It’s very
easy to get confused. But there’s no need to be, because all you have
to do to convert megabits to megabytes is divide by 8. So if you’re
recording at 220 megaBITS per second, that’s going to result in 220/8
megaBYTES per second, which is 27.5 megaBYTES per second.
• To see what works for you, you may want to start working with
relatively fast drives 7200 RPM, and then try slower ones 5400 RPM.
This gives you a frame of reference for comparison. Just remember
that the higher the bitrate of the Apple ProRes® you’re using, the faster
the drive needs to be.
For recommended drives, please refer to Part 16 (Tech. Specifications) of
this manual. For the most up-to-date information please visit:
http://www.atomos.com/ninja/techspecs.xml#hddssdsupport
Solid State Drives (SSDs)
These are Flash memory devices that come in the same form-factor as
2 ½” disk drives, and they are fully supported by the Samurai. See the
section below about when you should consider using SSDs. We only
recommend Intel SSDs at this stage as we have had unreliable results
from all other drives.
Mechanical Shock and Vibration
Hard disks are precision mechanical devices that need to be handled
carefully. You will be using the same type of drives that are normally used
in notebook computers, and you can use this as a guide to whether you
need to use mechanical drives or Solid State ones for any proposed
projects. If you think a particular usage scenario would be suitable for a
notebook computer, then it will probably be OK for a mechanical drive
inside a Samurai. If you think the drive inside your notebook might suffer
damage, then don’t use a mechanical drive.
We can’t give rigid guidelines because there are so many different kinds
of drives, each with different mechanical properties. You may even find
variations between drives of the same type.
What we have found is that mechanical drives are suitable for most
purposes that don’t involve harsh vibration or mechanical shocks. They
will be perfect for tripod-mounting, and also for the majority of hand-held
work. We would advise against hard-mounting them on moving vehicles
(but they would probably be OK if cushioned against the body of the
camera operator) and we would not advise using mechanical disks if
there is a likelihood that they might be dropped onto a hard surface.
Here are some things that you should bear in mind when using
spinning disks:
• Even though spinning drives can withstand substantial shocks when
they are not in use, they are more vulnerable when running. Harsh
treatment that may not actually damage the drive may interrupt
recordings at a much lower level of severity. We recommend that you
experiment with your drives by testing them in the conditions that you
normally work in.
• Spinning drives have a gyroscopic effect that you will feel faintly if
you rotate the Samurai up or down or from side to side. They are
particularly sensitive to this type of motion. If you do this too quickly
while the drive is spinning, you may get a small gap in your recording.
• Be very gentle when changing batteries if you are recording. Practise
this manoeuvre so that you are able to do it smoothly. It is always
better to do this in-between takes.
• Do not bang or jolt the Samurai while recording. Gentle and cushioned
movement may be OK.
• You will find noticeable differences in the ability of drives to withstand
shock and to continue recording during vibration and movement. As
we receive reports of drive durability and reliability, we will post them
on www.atomos.com
• Your Samurai is able to detect when the drive is under stress and it will
recover from any break in a recording by waiting until the drive is ready
to continue, and then resuming from that point. If frames have been
dropped because of shock or vibration, a “Skippy” Kangaroo symbol
will appear on the home screen on the Samurai, just above the disk
capacity indicator. This means that you will not normally have to restart
the Samurai, even if a recording has been interrupted by mechanical
disruption to the disk drive. (see Recording and Monitoring: Atomos
Anti-shock Technology for more information)
Taking into account most usage scenarios, we think that mechanical
disks will be suitable in the majority of cases. Spinning disks are most
sensitive when they are rotating. It is obviously best to avoid dropping
them but many disks now have a “drop detector” that will lock the most
fragile mechanical parts in place and protect them from surprisingly hard
knocks. We recommend that if you want to experiment with this, you do
so with a drive that doesn’t contain the day’s shoot!
Backing up and archiving
Remember that no storage medium, including tape, optical disks,
spinning disks and flash memory, is completely immune from failure. You
should bear this in mind when deciding how to manage your recorded
content. At the very least, you should consider the consequences for you
and your business if your storage medium were to suffer from a sudden
failure, and you should back up your content accordingly. Hard drives
that you can use for archiving are becoming increasingly affordable.
You may find that it is completely feasible for your to keep your master
Samurai disks on a shelf (just like tapes!), and, as a backup, store copies
on large hard drives, RAID arrays or Network Attached Storage (NAS).
2. What you also need

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 5
2. What you also need cont.
SDI cables (not included)
SDI cables are robust physically and electrically: you should rarely have
problems with signal transmission unless your cables are either damaged
or too long. Please remember that SDI cables use locking connectors
and will not simply pull out if they are jerked or tripped over. They are
therefore a significant trip hazard, and also a hazard to your equipment,
which may be damaged if the cables are mishandled.
If the SDI cable is removed while recording the “Skippy”
image will also be displayed. To remove touch skippy and he
will disappear ready for his next notification.
Refer to Part 8: Atomos Anti-skip Technology for more
information about “Skippy”.
Note that Mini-BNC > BNC cable adaptors are provided.
Please note the Mini-BNC cables provided are for use with a normal
male>male connector, and a normal SDI cable female>female is required
for operation with the camera.
If you should lose them, they are available from your Atomos dealer. The
Atomos cable adaptors provided are extremely tough. They are also more
flexible than “traditional” SDI cables, which means that your camera and
Samurai are less likely to suffer stresses caused by stiff or inflexible cables.
Standard 1/4” Camcorder Mount
This must fit a standard 1/4” screw mount. Select the type
that best suits your application and conditions.

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 6
Mounting drives in the Master Caddy
This is simplicity itself. Just insert the disk into the caddy, and secure
with four screws. The caddy is light and the disk just needs to be held
securely. Don’t over-tighten the screws. There are no connections to
make because pushing the caddy into the Samurai or the Docking
station makes all the connections for you.
The Master Caddy can’t be inserted the wrong way round. Always make
sure that the disk connector faces the slot in the Samurai. You have to
be quite firm to push the Master Caddy into place, but don’t push too
hard, just in case something isn’t set up or aligned properly. There is very
little that can cause problems and the most likely thing is that the Master
Caddy isn’t properly flush with the drive inside. A quick visual check will
confirm this.
Spinning disks and SSDs are very sensitive to damage from static
electricity. Please observe all the usual precautions when handling them,
especially DO NOT EVER touch the exposed SATA connector as
static electricity may be harmful to your disk.
3. Mounting disks in the Master Caddy
1
2
Carefully assemble the
Master Caddy and disk
Ensure all 3 parts aligned
and insert 4 x screws (supplied)
Do not over-tighten screws or
alignment can not be guaranteed.
We suggest squeezing the corners
together near the screw you are
tightening for optimal fit.
Insert screw
Align all parts
Insert screw

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 7
Batteries
The Samurai is a battery powered device, and has a special feature to
ensure that you never have to interrupt a recording to change a battery.
We will come to this shortly.
Like all batteries, you will need to take care of them. Make sure that you
don’t short circuit the connections because this can result in very high
currents that can damage the cells and could pose a fire hazard.
Charge new batteries before using them. The supplied Samurai charger
can charge two batteries simultaneously. There are four red LED
indicators for each battery. This will show the approximate stage the
charging process has reached.
Batteries do not charge in a linear way. At first they charge very quickly,
and then the rate slows down to a trickle. While charging, one or more
red lights will blink. When 90% charge is reached, all the lights will flash.
It is perfectly OK to use the batteries at this point and we recommend
stopping at this stage for the longest battery life. If you leave the
batteries on charge after all four lights are flashing, the charger goes
into trickle charging mode for the final 10%. Eventually, when trickle
charging is complete, and the batteries are at 100% charge, all the
lights will go out.
Always use battery slot for the first battery. This is effectively your
primary battery and the Samurai will not start without it.
Battery slot No.2 is the secondary or back-up battery and is not marked.
Once the Samurai has been started from battery slot No. 1, it will operate
on battery slot No. 2 alone. No. 1 is only required for start up.
To insert the batteries, gently slide them down into the slot and lock
them into position. To remove a battery, push the latch to release it. Each
battery has its own latch, which is located to the right of batter No. 1 and
to the left of batter No. 2 as you look at the back of the Samurai. Pull the
latches towards the batteries to release them.
Samurai batteries and modular accessories (Connect Converters, etc)
are held in place very tightly because they are on the outside of the
device and there has to be no possibility whatsoever that they could
work loose, so you will have to be quite firm with the battery latches.
We suggest that you familiarise yourself with the force required to
remove the batteries and accessories so that you can do this quickly in
the field. Make sure that you hold the top and the bottom of the battery
or accessory module when sliding it off to avoid dropping it when it is
released from the main unit.
The Samurai introduces an Atomos technology called Battery Looping
for continuous power. When power is running low on one battery, the
Samurai will automatically switch to the second battery, you can remove
one of the batteries and replace it with a fully charged one. Samurai
will continue to operate as you do this. You can continue this process
indefinitely.
The Samurai may be powered from NiMH & Li Ion 14.4V battery
systems. Battery adaptor required.
Battery number 1
Gently slide down into
battery slot/s and lock
into position.
Push latch to
release battery
4. Connecting the Samurai and powering up

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 8
Turning ON power to the Samurai
The start button is located on the right hand side of the unit (as you
look at the screen). Momentarily press the circular button on the right
side of the Samurai as you look at the screen to power up the unit.
After a couple of seconds you will see the Atomos logo, and then the
Samurai Home Screen.
Turning OFF power to the Samurai
To turn the unit off, touch menu on the home screen, and then press
the red Power o icon for 4 seconds the icon will go white when
touched to indicate activation of the button. The unit will then power off.
You can also do a forced power down by depressing the on/off button
for four seconds.
Four seconds can seem like a long time! We’ve made it this way
to make absolutely certain that the Samurai can’t be turned off
accidentally.
HD SDI in: The video input to the Samurai is HD SDI. This is the signal
that is recorded to the Samurai’s storage media.
HD SDI out: This is for connection to an external monitor or other
device with an HD SDI input. It carries a delay-free loop-through of the
incoming signal in record and standby mode, and the playout signal
when the Samurai is in playout mode.
To make it possible to fit an HD SDI input and an output
without making the Samurai unnecessarily large, we have used
miniature SDI connectors (and supply you with Mini SDI to SDI
adaptor cables).
LANC Remote: In addition to direct control through HD SDI, you have
the option of controlling the Samurai remotely using the LANC remote
control protocol. The Samurai has a LANC input and a LANC loop-through
connector to allow you to chain LANC-controllable devices together.
Audio: The Samurai can record 12 channels of digital audio embedded
in the HD SDI signal. There is a 3.5mm Stereo Line-in socket for
recording audio in sync with incoming video. Depending on your set-up,
you may find that this gives you better results than the microphone on
the camera.
You can switch between Analogue Audio Line In and HD SDI as your
audio sources in the user interface, where you can also adjust the
analogue audio input level.
There is also a 3.5mm output that doubles as a Line Out or Headphone
Out, which has it’s own independent level control in the user interface.
4. Connecting the Samurai and powering up cont.
5. Samurai connections
ON
+ forced
power
down
Turning OFF power via touchscreen (preferred)
power o
menu
Master Caddy Slot
Simple, locking HDD/ SSD
system. Less than €5 per
HDD/SSD case, this is a safe
practical solution to video
media management
HD-SDI In
HD-SDI out
>Record loop through
>PLAYOUT
LANC in Optionally control the Samurai using LANC remote
control connected here (use 2.5mm TRS/ 3-pin plug)
LANC Loop out Share remote control with other devices
(loop thru) by connecting them to the second LANC connector.
Stereo line in
Stereo line out/Headphone

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 9
Master Caddy Slot
On the left hand side of the unit (as you face the screen) is a slot
for Samurai Master Disk Caddies. To insert a caddy, gently push until
it clicks into position.
Screw Mounts
The Samurai features standard tripod ¼” screw mounts on the top
and bottom of the unit, allowing you to configure your recording setup
various ways (¼” camcorder mount not included in Samurai kit).
Release and remove Master Caddy
To eject it, use the latch on the right hand side of the Samurai
(as pictured)
The Master Caddy is hot-swappable, so
you can do this at any time - even while
the unit is turned on. But don’t do it while
recording or you will get a corrupted file
that may be unplayable.
Samurai Master Disk Caddies are
held in place firmly. Push the latch
upwards and grip the protruding part
of the Samurai Master Disk Caddy at
the top and bottom, pulling strongly
but carefully. You may want to
practise this manoeuvre a few times
until you are completely familiar with
the process.
Samurai Modularity
The Samurai was designed to be a flexible and modular system. It doesn’t
need any drivers to connect to a computer, you have a choice of spinning
hard disk storage or solid state, and it will work with any battery system as
long as it connects to the Samurai’s NP-type slots, or via a DTap connector.
The Samurai’s battery slots are the key to it’s modularity. They provide
secure attachment and continuous power, through Atomos’ feed-through
power system.
The first of the modular add-ons to be announced by Atomos are the
Connect converters (pictured). More on this in Part 14.
6. Other physical features
¼” Screw mount top
¼” Screw mount base

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 10
7. Timecode
Using Timecode
The Samurai has comprehensive file-based timecode support, and can
be triggered from HD-SDI timecode.
Touching the timecode display on the Samurai’s home screen, just below
the four main coloured controls, will take you to the timecode setup
screen. (This is also accessible by touching Menu and then Timecode)
Occupying the lower-centre part of the screen is the timecode display
with controls to set the start-time of the timecode.
The four timecode modes supported are:
• HD-SDI
• Time of Day
• Record Run
• Auto Restart
Cycle through these modes by touching the timecode Source Selector.
HD-SDI
With this setting, the SDI input will set the timecode (as long as the
input device supports this). The controls to adjust the timecode value is
disabled in this setting because the input decides the value. If you want
to adjust this please refer to your input device’s manual.
Trigger from HD-SDI time code
If HD-SDI time code is selected and the camera is in Record run mode,
the user has the choice to start and stop recording remotely form the
HD-SDI time code start and stop. To enable this simply arm the TC to
Record button. When enabled the camera and the Samurai will start and
stop record similtaneously.
OFF DISABLED ENABLED
When using Free Run time code, depending on the camera trigger
record on both camera and Samurai may or may not be supported.
Currently Sony and Canon cameras are supported.
Time of Day
With this selected, each new clip that is created will contain embedded
timecode accurately showing the time of day that it was recorded,
according to the inbuilt. This can be set in Menu > Date & Time
If recording is stopped and then restarted while in this mode, there will be
a time gap between the last clip and the next one equal to the length of
time the Samurai has been out of record. The start time code of each clip
will be the exact time of day when it started to be recorded.
Time of Day timecode is useful as a reminder of the date and time
that clips were recorded. It can also help with syncing-up of multiple
cameras, but remember that the accuracy of the correlation of Time
of Day timecode between Samurais will depend on how closely their
internal clocks are synchronised.
In Time Of Day mode, the controls on the Timecode Setup Screen for
adjusting the start-point of the Samurai timecode are not available, as
the timecode is set by the Samurai’s internal clock.
Record Run
With this setting you set the start timecode of the first clip, the next clip
will start at the frame after the previous one ended, this will continue on
the for the clips that follow. Often this is referred to continuous timecode
Auto Restart
With this setting, the timecode will be reset to the timecode you define
here whenever you press record. All your clips will start at this timecode.
To adjust the timecode use the “+” and “-” above and below the
hour:minute:seconds sections

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 11
What is Pulldown?
Many professional and consumer cameras available today do not send
true 1080p24, 1080p23.98, 1080p25, 1080p29.97 or 1080p30 signals
down their SDI or HDMI outputs.
Instead they send 1080i59.94 in NTSC regions (eg USA, Japan), and
1080i50 in PAL regions (eg Europe)
In order to convert the signal from the internal recording format to
1080i5994 or 1080i50, they use a process called 3:2 or 2:2 pulldown.
Camera Setting Pulldown Samurai Receives
1080p23.98 3:2 1080i59.94
1080p24 3:2 1080i60
1080p25 2:2 1080i50
1080p29.97 2:2 1080i59.94
1080p30 2:2 1080i60
You will, of course, want the Samurai to record eg 1080p24, not 1080i60
to the disk. In many cases, it is not easy for the Samurai to detect the
pulldown operation in the video, so you will have to set the correct mode
in the Samurai as well as setting it on your camera.
With some cameras, the Samurai can detect and remove the pulldown,
in which case the mode you expect (eg 1080p23.98) will display on the
Samurai and you will not have to do anything further.
Atomos is adding auto-detection support for more cameras, please
check for firmware updates regularly at www.atomos.com
1080p23.98 or 1080p24
If you have set 1080p23.98 or 1080p24 in your camera and your samurai
displays 1080i59.94 or 1080i60, then you can easily remove the pulldown
by following these steps:
• Press the blue arrow next to the video format repeatedly
until you see 1080p23.98 (or 1080p24) displayed. You will see that the
Mon button is dimmed. Your samurai needs to analyse the video for
about 1 second, in order to detect the pulldown sequence and remove it.
• Wave your hand from side-to-side in front of the lens, or wave the
camera from side-to-side. The samurai will detect the pulldown in the
movement, the input video format will show 1080p24 and the
Mon button will highlight yellow.
3:2 pulldown detection is difficult, if not impossible to detect on
completely still video. This is why you should wave your hand in front
of the lens.
If you lose the input detection – for example you unplug the SDI cable
or go to Playback mode, you will need to wave your hand or the
camera again, when the signal is restored to the Samurai.
1080p25, 1080p29.97 or 1080p30
For these modes, simply press the blue arrow repeatedly until your
1080p desired format is displayed. There is no need to wave your hand
or the camera, as 2:2 pulldown removal does not require moving video.
Your samurai always remembers whether you wanted 3:2 or 2:2
pulldown removal. If you change the format on your camera eg from
1080p24 to 1080i60, you will need set to the samurai input to match
your camera setting again.
8. Pulldown

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 12
Using the Samurai
The Samurai is controlled via an intuitive touchscreen interface. There are
large, obvious controls for Record, Play, Monitor, and Menu, as well as
the following information:
• Current input format and status
• Apple ProRes® or Avid DNxHD® variant currently in use
• Remaining battery power
• Which of the two batteries is currently active
• Headphone/Line Out volume
• Audio Input Level meters
• Remaining Recording time on Disk
• Timecode
• Record Trigger
• Unit name
Watch out for any items on the screen that are marked by a
small blue arrow. If you touch these items you will be taken
to other options depending on context. If you touch them
repeatedly, you will cycle through related options
A large blue arrow in the top right of the screen will
take you out of lower-level menus back to the main
control screen
The User Interface in detail
Even though the Samurai is an extremely sophisticated and technically
advanced device, we have taken a minimalist approach to the interface.
We’ve only included controls that you really need. This is important in
a device that has to be ready for use at all times and must therefore be
simple to operate while in use.
Samurai’s Touchscreen
Samurai features a very high quality 800x480 pixel video touch screen.
Most of us are now familiar with the idea of touchscreens, but there is an
important difference between Samurai’s screen and those you might find
on a smartphone.
Samurai’s screen is pressure and touch sensitive. It takes more than a
glancing brush of a finger to trigger the screen. For some applications,
(like dragging and dropping) this would be a disadvantage, but for
the Samurai it is an important feature, because if the screen was too
sensitive, it would be easy to accidentally trigger Samurai operations,
potentially interrupting a recording, for example.
With the Samurai screen, you have to firmly push the screen for an
instruction to register. This gives a very positive feel to the device and
confidence that commands won’t be given in error.
Be definite and deliberate in your pressing on icons on the screen and
the Samurai will be very responsive. Remember this is not a capacitive
touch device like many Smart Phones; holding contact with the icon for a
millisecond will ensure accurate and rapid response.
The Home Screen
This is the screen you see whenever you are not in a function or sub-menu,
and it is the first screen that the Samurai boots into when you turn it
on. All functions are one touch away: simply touch the screen on any
function to be taken to that function’s screen.
There are four brightly coloured icons labelled Rec, Play, Mon
and Menu. In the lower centre of the screen is a timecode display with
Hours:Minutes:Seconds:Frames. Below this, on the lower
edge is the Unit Name: a customisable label that identifies media from
your when it is connected to a computer.
9. Using the Samurai
Video Input Format
and Pulldown Status
Recording Format
Apple ProRes/Avid DNxHD
Record
Trigger
Timecode
Audio Input Level Meters/
Headphone Line Out Volume
Time
Remaining
Unit Name
Continuous Power
Battery Indicator

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 13
Recording
Recording is the main function of the Samurai.
There are 5 ways to start and stop record.
1. Main Touch Screen
2. From the Monitor Page
MONITOR SCREEN RECORD BUTTON
For more information refer to Section 10. Monitoring and Recording.
3. HD-SDI Time Code Trigger record
OFF DISABLED ENABLED
If HD-SDI time code is selected and the camera is in Record run mode,
the user has the choice to start and stop recording remotely form the
HD-SDI time code start and stop. To enable this simply arm the TC icon
(see above). When enabled the camera and the Samurai will start and
stop record simultaneously.
When using Free Run time code, depending on the camera trigger
record on both camera and Samurai may or may not be supported.
Currently Sony and Canon cameras are supported
4. Via LANC for Sony and Canon Cameras
5. Via the LANC serial port
controlled by a third party computer or controller.
For system and OEM integration, contact [e-mail]
Choosing your recording format
You can select the recording format by touching the top right hand
corner of the touch screen where the format is indicated.
IMPORTANT: You need to match the format you are recording
internally on the camera with the format recorded on the Samurai.
If you are recording 24p internally on the camera you need to record 24p
on the Samurai so the recordings match. To adjust the recording format
simply touch the format icon repeatedly and the Samurai will cycle
through the options available. The basic rule is match the format of the
internal recording on the camera (not the external output of the camera).
For more explanation on choosing the correct format on the Samurai
and the relationship to camera internal format and output format refer to
Section 8. Pulldown.
9. Using the Samurai cont.

Rec (Record)
This is the icon you touch to begin a recording. Touch it again to stop a
recording. While recording the Rec icon changes to a Stop icon. Once
your recording has started you have the option to touch the Mon icon to
view the signal you are recording.
STANDBY
RECORDING
The Rec icon is dimmed and disabled if there
is no valid video input OR if the disk is full. The
buttons is dimmed because you cannot record.
NO INPUT
Play
Touch this icon to play previously recorded clips. When you press the
green Play button you will be taken to the navigation screen.
STANDBY
NAVIGATION
Samurai uses a unit name, scene, shot and take
convention to name the clips. Select the clip you want to play by touching
the file name and this will start to playback.
The Play button will be dimmed and disabled if
there is no disk or the disk is not formatted.
NO DISK
Mon (Monitor)
Pressing this icon connects the incoming video signal to the screen, so
that you can use the Samurai as a field monitor. More about monitoring in
the next section, Monitoring and Recording.
STANDBY
The Mon icon is dimmed and unselectable if there
is no valid video input.
NO INPUT
Menu
Pressing this takes you into a number of options which will
explained next.
STANDBY
MENU
9. Using the Samurai cont.
Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 14

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 15
9. Using the Samurai cont.
Scene & Shot
Allows you to select the scene and shot number that will be
recorded next. To select press scene or shot at the top
and the number you wish to use from the list below (up to 999).
The number you choose will then be shown underneath the
word Scene or Shot in a larger font and will be underlined.
The take number is automatically increased with each take.
Date & Time
Allows you to adjust the date and time shown by the clock
and calendar in the Samurai. Touching the Date & Time
takes you into the Date and Time Screen. At the top of the
screen is the date and the time of day. The month, day
and year are selectable by touching them, at which point
a scrollable list of dates, months or years will show below,
depending on which option has been selected.
To enter a date, for example, begin by touching the month
at the top of the screen, and then select the required month
from the list below. Then touch the day, and then the year,
selecting the required value from the list below.
Setting the time is done in exactly the same way.
Date formats (i.e. dd-mm-yyyy or mm-dd-yyyy) are
selectable on the right of the screen. Just keep touching
the date format icon until it shows the format you
want to use.
Display Options
Allows you to modify the brightness of the screen. You are
presented with a horizontal slider. Touch it anywhere on it’s
length to increase or decrease the brightness of the display
or you can slide up and down the blue bar.
Samurai Info
Shows the software (firmware) version and unique device
ID (DID) of your Samurai device. This will be useful if you
ever have to speak to Atomos technical support or a
support agent from your reseller.
Power O
Turns the Samurai off. You need to press Power Off for four
seconds. Alternatively, you can press the physical On/Off
button on the right side of the Samurai for four seconds
to force shutdown. Atomos recommends using the
touchscreen Power O function .
Time Code
Takes you to the dedicated timecode configuration page.
Refer to Part 7 of this manual for more information.
Remember that pressing a large blue arrowhead will
always take you back to the previous menu you were in.
Smaller controls and indicators around t he Home Screen
There are a number of smaller controls that double-up as indicators
around the Home Screen.
Input
At the top left of the screen is not actually a control but will change to
display information about the signal being input to the Samurai at the
time. If there is no input, it will say No Input. When a valid signal source is
connected, the display will change to (for example) 1080i50.
Video Compression Format
At the top middle of the screen shows which version of ProRes® you are
using. You can change between versions (LT, HQ and 422) by repeatedly
touching the indicator.’
Avid DNxHD Codec Upgrade – Available Q1 2012
There is an AVID DNxHD upgrade option for Samurai, which gives
recording to 3 flavours of AVID DNxHD This will give additional 10bit and
8bit options in the format list at 3 different bit rates. Please contact your
reseller for more information or check on the Atomos website.
Ensure you have registered your product to receive the latest news
regarding AtomOS updates and optional upgrades.

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 16
Battery Indicator
Shows whether you’ve got one or two batteries connected. If there is no
battery connected a number will not be displayed in the appropriate slot.
Touching the Battery Indicator takes you to the Batteries
screen where you can closely monitor the status of the Batteries.
When a battery is running low its icon will flash.
Batteries Screen
The Battery screen indicator is made up of two Battery icons, the active
battery is shown in orange and the level of each battery is shaded in 1/4
increments with a voltage level shown on top.
In the picture above we see Battery 1 is full and active and
Battery 2 is currently inactive and 1/4 depleted. If no battery
is present it will show an X in the picture and will be Black in
colour as pictured right.
Warning: If both of the batteries are fully depleted, the unit will
turn itself off. The Samurai will switch to the battery screen for the
last 5 seconds of available power before shutting down, alerting you
that shutdown is about to occur.
Auto Switching/Manual Switching
The Samurai will automatically switch to a new battery when the current
battery is depleted. You may also switch between batteries at any
time by pressing on that battery icon. The new active battery will then
turn orange. You may need to use this if you have for example 3 hours
recording but only 2.5 hours of battery in one battery, in which case you
would change to a freshly charged one.
Unit Name
The unit name serves two main purposes:
• HDD Naming: Naming the unit names the drive if the drive is
formatted after the unit name has been set
• File Naming: File name is the current unit name as the start of the
recorded clip name; SAMURAI_S001_S002_T003
To access the unit name screen simply touch the blue arrow to the
right of the unit name. Creating your own unit name is simple. Pressing OK
will allocate the new unit name and return you to the menu screen.
Storage Capacity Indicator
Located in the bottom right of the screen. When a disk is inserted, the
Storage Capacity Indicator will show the recording
capacity of the drive in hours minutes and seconds, based on the
currently selected video compression, which of course, will determine the
recording bitrate.
Touching on the Storage Capacity Indicator will take you
to the Media information and format screen. The Media Information
indicates the drive you have present, in this case a Hitachi 500GB
spinning disk.
Touching Format HDD/SSD will format the drive inside the Samurai.
A confirmation screen will give you the choice to continue or cancel the
process.
The Samurai file system is exFAT. We recommend that you format
each disk with the Samurai and not your computer.
Timecode Record Trigger
A new feature of Samurai is the ability to trigger record via rolling HD-SDI
timecode. To allow you to use this feature you need to set the Timecode
source to HD-SDI (for more information refer to Section 7. Timecode).
OFF DISABLED ENABLED
Once timecode is set, the ‘disabled’ icon will appear. This works as a
toggle on/off button, when it is blue it is disabled, when it is orange, it is
enabled. When you press REC/start on the camera the Samurai will also
start recording.
You can still use LANC to control start/stop of the Samurai as well.
For LANC to work you must have a LANC capable camera connected
to the Samurai. LANC does not work with a LANC controller only.
9. Using the Samurai cont.

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 17
9. Using the Samurai cont.
Audio In
Located in the bottom left corner of the main screen you can see the
Audio Monitoring Levels, with access to Audio in.
You can see 12 digital channels (via SDI input) and 2 analogue audio
channels (via the Stereo Line in). Each channel has a small rectangle
assigned to it, when there is active sound coming in you will see the level
indicator moving.
Any shown in orange are set to be recorded. To change the record
settings, adjust the gain of Analogue audio in or headphone output levels
and monitor selection access the menu
When you touch the Audio in access icon you are taken to the Audio
in Page, where you can choose to record from any or all of the digital
(SDI) and analogue inputs. Underneath each pair of audio channels you
can see the R record button, when this is shown in red it is set to record,
simply select all you want to record.
You will also see under each pair of channels a headphone icon. You can
choose the pair of audio channels you wish to hear on the headphones.
Please note you can only hear one pair at a time.
You can adjust the analogue audio gain by pressing the + and - buttons
next to the channel pair. There is also a slider to control the line out level.
Press any point along the line or slide your finger to the left or right to
adjust.
It is not possible to vary the gain if the signal input is from the SDI
connection because this is digital and is embedded in the signal.
You can usually adjust this from the camera, please see your camera
manual for operational details.
Playback mode
When you enter into Playback mode on the Samurai it will only output
channels 1/2 on the headphones, please bear this in mind when you
select the audio channels for recording.

Atomos Samurai. User Manual V1.01 18
Connect to input
As soon as you connect a supported input to the Samurai’s SDI input:
• Rec and Mon icons will go solid and colourful
• The input format will be shown in the top left corner
• Audio inputs will show levels in bottom left corner
READY-TO-RECORD
NO INPUT / NO DISK
NO INPUT / DISK PRESENT
INPUT PRESENT / NO DISK
Before recording
• Check there is a valid signal by looking at the main screen, ensuring it
looks like the ‘ready-to-record’ screen
• Check the input signal is set to what you would like:
- Progressive with 2:2 or 3:2 pulldown or
- Interlaced
• If you see No Input for any reason please check your camera
settings match a supported format for Samurai
www.atomos.com/Samurai/techspecs.xml
• Connect headphones and monitor the Audio channels to make sure
the sound
• Check you have your audio in record set as you require.
• Connect any additional Analogue audio inputs and adjust gain
accordingly.
• Enter monitor mode to ensure the video is coming in as expected.
• Check you have the correct Scene & Shot number selected.
(see Part 10. Monitoring and Recording – Organising Material on disk)
Now you can start recording, there are a few ways to start recording:
• Press Rec on the main screen
• Press Record icon in the bottom right of the Monitor page
• Use an additional controller (HD-SDI trigger or LANC camera)
Once you are recording you will see:
• The Rec button has now changed to Stop on the main screen
• Play button has been disabled
• The Record icon has changed to a stop icon on the monitor screen
• REC is in the top right corner of the monitor screen
10. Monitoring and Recording
The Samurai has a high-quality screen that adjusts to the scan
frequency of the incoming signal, for a smooth, accurate display.