The fan-cooled KONA X is AJA's 4-lane PCIe 3.0 video I/O card for low-latency capture, playback and live graphics. It has two full-size, bidirectional 12G-SDI BNC connections and two full-size HDMI 2.0 connections, one for input and one for output, and works in 4K/UltraHD, 2K, HD and SD up to 60p.

Low latency for live work

In applications that support GPUDirect RDMA, video moves directly between the card and the computer's buffer, bypassing the on-card memory. AJA designed KONA X for virtual production, augmented reality and live sports, where the delay between input, processing and output has to be as short as possible. A built-in hardware downstream keyer overlays graphics up to 4K/UltraHD, with an alpha channel, on incoming video in real time.

Formats, colour and HDR

It handles 4K and UltraHD in YCbCr 4:2:2 10-bit up to 2160p60 and RGB 4:4:4 12-bit up to 2160p30, and can capture or play back two channels of 4K at 60p. SDI carries up to 16 channels of embedded audio and HDMI up to eight. Depending on the application, it supports HDR10, HLG, PQ and Dolby Vision, with VPID signalling over SDI and HDR metadata capture in AJA Control Room.

Software and platforms

KONA X runs with AJA Control Room and Control Panel on macOS, Windows and Linux, including Apple silicon Macs, and works with Adobe Premiere Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro and Avid Media Composer. Developers can build on it with the AJA Developer SDK, and an in-firmware microcontroller allows limited customisation of the card's firmware.

Cooling, power and expansion

This version carries an on-board fan rated at 33.1 dBA. The card measures 247.7 x 15.9 x 98.6 mm with a 127 mm bracket, weighs 290.3 g and draws 20W typical, from the PCIe slot or a 6-pin auxiliary power connector. The optional KONA Xpand board adds video reference, LTC timecode, RS-422 control and AES/EBU and analogue audio. AJA covers it with a three-year warranty.