In-Sync  Speed Razor & Blade

NEWS - or no news???  (from 2005)

Towards the end of 2004 we observed a progressive reduction in activity at In-Sync.
First the user forums went offline, then the licence server, phone lines appeared disconnected and finally all parts of the "My In-Sync" part of the site, including the downloads, have become unreachable. During this time we have had no direct information as to what is happening, but clearly it doesn't look good. We will publish more news if and when we get it, but for now it appears that In-Sync may have gone out of business (and nothing's changed that view in the course of 2005).

SR Loki  SD-SDI hardware/software bundle

The Loki bundle is a Real Time uncompressed SD-SDI board and software solution. The Loki Bundle includes:-

Speed Razor v5.6

AJA Loki Uncompressed SD-SDI hardware

AES/EBU digital audio break out cables

Loki can capture and playback 10 bit YUV, 8 bit YUV and RGBA files. You can mix any of these differing files in real time on the same timeline. Not only can you mix uncompressed formats, but you can also mix compressed files with uncompressed files. For example, you can capture DV from 1394 and output to SDI with your uncompressed footage. This means you can mix uncompressed graphics with DV footage and output to SDI in real time without DV artifacts. Loki can also playback sequences of 32 bit and 24 bit RGB graphic files in realtime. Loki supports NTSC and PAL video standards and you can easily switch between NTSC and PAL projects using a software toggle.

The Loki bundle provides an improved editing experience unmatched in the history of in-sync.There is zero latency when editing with the Loki Bundle. A new diagnostic tool measures system performance in real time so you can be assured that your system is always at peak performance. The installer, optimized for Windows XP, includes plug ins and drivers so all you have to do is hit the 'next' key and you are done.

If you deal with image sequences, you will love using Loki because they play back in real time. In fact, after editing any frame of an image sequence it plays back on the timeline right away. Plug ins like Inscriber CG, TitleMotion and Vixen PRO play back in real time.

Loki uses a PCI-X hardware I/O card. It can play back files from older professional capture cards in real time, yet run on the latest PCs. This means that you can take advantage of hyperthreading CPUs and the latest dual Xeon designs. Loki supports playback of files created on Digisuite/LE/LX/DTV (MJPEG & DV25), TARGA 3000, TARGA 1000/2000, Pinnacle Reeltime, Reeltime Nitro and more. In addition, Loki is compatible with Thor, InSync's HD solution, and files can be easily moved from one to the other.

Note: Speed Razor 5.6 is currently only available as a special build to support Loki.

Speed Razor 5.5 runs under Windows NT, 2000 or XP, and is designed to work with a variety of single and dual stream video boards. The timeline allows multilayer video compositing with up to 99 video layers combined in a single rendered pass. Effects can be stacked so that a video clip can be, say, colour tinted, then blurred, with another video layer cropped and scaled over the top of it. Up to 99 stereo audio tracks can mixed in software, with a typical system being able to mix 8-12 stereo tracks in real time.
Blade has been developed from Speed Razor, and is intended as a "software-only"  DV editor with Firewire I/O over any OHCI 1394 card.

Features and Benefits of Speed Razor 5.5

Bounding Window – Our new bounding window means quick keys can be used regardless of which section of Speed Razor you are working within, it also prevents accidentally activating secondary applications.
Intuitive Interface – The new interface is still as intuitive as before but more modern in it’s look. More icon buttons means you can fit more functions of Speed Razor onto the toolbar, and of course it still retains the unlimited video and audio layers for compositing.
Realtime Software Playback – Speed Razor’s revolutionary software playback allows the user to view multiple layers of their composition. This is especially useful when you are building multi-layered composite images which go beyond the simple transition or video effect/overlay which realtime boards provide.
Speed – Speed Razor is fully multi-threaded so you can take full advantage of your capture hardware and processors. This also means the screen response is faster, more responsive and functions are executed quicker. Navigating the timeline is a quick one-step process allowing you to view all or any of your project immediately.
Speed Razor fully supports 32 bit files allowing for high quality graphics with realtime transparent background on supporting hardware. With the TARGA 3000, 32 bit video files can also be used.
Networkability – Speed Razor 2000 can also be used in software-only mode. By sharing the files over a network a project can be completed in Speed Razor 2000 (software only) and then sent back over the network to be run to tape through a workstation with hardware installed.
Realtime Audio Mixing – Speed Razor lets you edit up to 20 tracks in realtime, and gives you unlimited audio tracks for layering.

Multiple Bins: Locate clips quickly and easily with our new multiple bin facility – ideal for long form editing. Bins can be created within bins, clips can be dragged and dropped between bins, and all of the filtering features of our previous Library are still available.
Programmable Keys: Map any of the functions of Speed Razor to any key or set of keys. Editors can work exactly how they want to work, whether they’re new to Speed Razor and want the familiarity of their old editor or whether they’re a long-term user who feels too mouse-bound. This feature also allows for third party key systems to be used both for capture and within the timeline.
Quicktime Export: Quicktime movies can be simply exported by choosing File>Export to a File.

Blade 2

Blade is a software-realtime editor and compositor that incorporates a new technology developed by in-sync.

Blade is optimized for capturing, editing and outputting DV, but can also import and edit dozens of file types in realtime, including film 2K, animation sequences, and HD. Unlike other software editors, Blade does not force media to one quarter resolution or down-convert it to DV in order to perform effects. Projects can also be started in a variety of frame-rates, including 24p. This has great significance, not only to the video editor, but to the animator and feature film creator as well. When your project is done, Blade prints to DV or exports to dozens of file formats, including uncompressed AVI,  MPEG 1 and MPEG 2 for DVD. Use with an external converter for analogue I/O.

of Speed Razor 5.5
and Blade 2.2

Check for latest versions & downloads

Speed Razor v5.5
Supported Hardware

OHCI 1394

Pinnacle Reeltime
Pinnacle Reeltime Nitro

Pinnacle TARGA 1000
and TARGA 1000 PRO

Pinnacle TARGA 2000
and TARGA 2000 PRO

Pinnacles TARGA 3000

Matrox Digisuite
Matrox Digisuite LE
Matrox Digisuite DTV
Matrox Digisuite LX

DPS Perception

FAST DV Master Pro

Newtek Video Toaster

299.00

110.00

What we're about . . .      ZEN is not a traditional Audio-Visual dealer who started selling computers, nor is it a computer shop that also sells video editing systems. You won't get any salesmen giving you the "hard-sell" when you call, just straightforward advice and information - which for some callers is the knowledge that they don't need to buy whatever it is they thought they needed! Above all you'll be dealing with someone with a wide range of experience and knowledge of both PCs and video production. We're not the biggest, nor necessarily the cheapest, but we are one of the longest established computer/video specialists in the UK.

Company history . . .      ZEN was started in the 1980s by Martin Kay, then working for ITV at Granada's Manchester studios, who built his first 6502-based computer in 1979 from an Ohio Scientific kit, bought in the USA whilst working as a Sound Recordist on a film shoot for World In Action. With the advent of the Amiga, which could be gen-locked to a video source, Martin started writing a variety of video-related software. This included subtitling & tele-prompting, ident clocks, scoring software for sports & gameshows, and specialist software to mimic other computer displays for use in TV film dramas like Cracker, Prime Suspect and A Touch of Frost. Martin left Granada in 1993 to concentrate on his computer-video activities with ZEN, following a natural path into non-linear editing systems, now the main focus of the business, although he still maintains an active interest in video production.