Blackmagic Design UltraStudio 4K Extreme 3

Blackmagic Design UltraStudio 4K Extreme 3 is a top-end capture and playback device for SD, HD, Ultra HD and 4K video up to 60p over Thunderbolt 3 or PCI Express. It offers four SDI inputs and four SDI outputs (2 × 12G and 2 × 6G), HDMI 2.0, analog component and composite video, balanced analog and digital audio, timecode, reference and RS-422. It handles 12-bit RGB and HDR and has a hardware H.265 encoder. The front carries a 5" color LCD and 14 buttons.

Top-end I/O for 4K, HDR and H.265

UltraStudio 4K Extreme 3 gathers virtually every important professional interface into a 2U high-bandwidth device. It is made for mastering, grading, broadcast ingest and demanding monitoring.

12G-SDIHDMI 2.0Up to DCI 4Kp60Hardware H.265Thunderbolt 3 + PCIe

Digital and analog connectivity without compromise

Four SDI inputs and four SDI outputs are complemented by HDMI 2.0, component and composite video, AES/EBU, XLR audio, timecode, reference and RS-422. The two SDI outputs can be switched to fill and key, and the audio is multichannel for studio workflows.

12-bit RGB and HDR

The device works with 12-bit RGB 4:4:4 up to 2160p30 and with 8-bit and 10-bit YUV 4:2:2 in all standards. It supports HDR: static metadata and HLG and PQ transfer characteristics over SDI and HDMI.

Hardware H.265 encoder

The built-in multi-format encoder captures to H.265. It is designed to be upgradable, so new formats arrive via software updates.

Front panel controls

The front panel offers 14 input selection buttons, a 5" color display, an XLR microphone input with 48 V phantom power and a headphone output.

Thunderbolt 3 and PCIe

Two Thunderbolt 3 ports and PCI Express Gen 2 ×4. For a faster Gen 3 connection the Blackmagic PCI Express Cable Kit is available.

Built-in hardware H.265 encoder

UltraStudio 4K Extreme 3 has a built-in multi-format hardware encoder that lets you capture to H.265, the compression standard for distributing Ultra HD content online. You can also use H.265 for SD and HD video to get smaller files at higher quality than other formats. The encoder is designed to be upgradable, so new formats are added by software updates.

Connections without compromise

The rear panel offers four SDI inputs and four SDI outputs at up to 12G (two 12G and two 6G) including loop outputs, HDMI 2.0, analog component and composite video, balanced XLR audio, AES/EBU on BNC, timecode, reference and two RS-422 ports. Two optional SMPTE optical modules can be fitted for SDI over fiber.

Front panel with LCD and buttons

The front has 14 input selection buttons, a 5" color LCD for video and status preview, an XLR microphone input with 48 V phantom power and a headphone output with volume controls.

Connections

The front has the XLR microphone input, headphone output, volume controls, input selection buttons and the LCD. The rear has two power connectors, two Thunderbolt 3 ports, a PCIe slot, four SDI inputs and four SDI outputs with loop outputs, HDMI input and output, component and composite input and output, AES/EBU, balanced XLR audio, a stereo input, timecode, reference and two Remote RS-422 ports.

Dimensions and weight

The device has a 19" rack width and measures 483 × 242 × 88 mm (w × d × h) and weighs 3.90 kg.