AJA Kona X 4-lane, PCIe 3.0 Video I/O Card

Designed from the ground up to support next-generation AI and AR workflows, KONA X is a 4-lane, PCIe 3.0 video I/O card with two full-size, bidirectional 12G-SDI BNC connections and two full-size HDMI 2.0 connections, one for input and one for output. KONA X lets users achieve as low as sub-frame latencies with Streaming DMA (Direct Memory Access), which enables powerful real time workflows with no perceptible delay on I/O and processing crucial for implementations such as live sports and virtual production*.

Supporting 4K/UltraHD, 2K/HD, SD, 10-bit 4:2:2, 4:4:4 and 12-bit color spaces for pristine image quality, KONA X offers the flexibility to ingest and output with 12G-SDI and full-size HDMI 2.0 ports. The bidirectional 12G-SDI ports provide immense flexibility for capture and simultaneous pass-through, and with the appropriate software, multi-channel capture and streaming.

KONA X is driven by AJA's Control Room and Control Panel software, with support for leading content creation applications, such as Adobe® Premiere® Pro, Apple® Final Cut Pro, Avid Media Composer®, FilmLight, OBS Studio, vMix, and much more. KONA X is also compatible with AJA's multi-platform Developer SDK.

For HDR* workflows, KONA X supports HDR10+, HLG, PQ, and Dolby Vision for rich color delivery over SDI and/or HDMI.

KONA X has the horsepower for your work today and into the future.

*Application dependent
Note: KONA X and KONA Xpand image text rotated for clarity

Ultra-low Latency / Streaming DMA

With Streaming DMA (Direct Memory Access), the DMA operation happens directly between the video I/O and the computer’s buffer in applications that support it, completely bypassing the on-card memory. Depending on the software application being used, this enables customers to achieve as low as sub-frame latencies and a much simpler method of dealing with dynamic video.

Virtual Production Workflow

The latest connectivity combined with up to sub-frame latency and Steaming DMA engine, makes KONA X ideal for modern virtual production environments.

This workflow diagram illustrates the KONA X, with its ultra-low latency, as a key part of a virtual production workflow.

NLE / VFX Software Support

The latest AJA Desktop Software advances 4K workflows with KONA X by providing native support for 4K video in Adobe Premiere Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro, and Avid Media Composer plus many other applications. KONA X offers broad video format support, providing a powerful I/O tool for Sports, eSports, Virtual Production, and other cutting-edge workflows.

For those who move between 2K/HD visual effects sequences and 4K live action footage, KONA X also supports fast bitfile switching. In under 10 seconds you can flip between a KONA X personality tuned for 4K operations to one dedicated to HD and below. No waiting for firmware to update, no reboots required, just powerful options to make your day go that bit faster and easier.

4K Closed Captioning Support

AJA Control Room software

• Supports CEA-608 or 608-in-708 via ANC extraction firmware.
• Supplied Avid & Adobe Plugins
• All SMPTE-291 (ANC) based captions supported.
• Adobe Premiere Pro supports native 708 if the raw data is available. For instance in the Adobe plug-ins we handle the case where Premiere hands us full 708 data, we just pass it through to the device.
• Avid Media Composer supports active video ANC (line 21) or ANC via ANC extractor/inserter (up to UltraHD/4K).

In-Firmware Microcontroller

AJA OEM Developers can run code directly on KONA X with it's In-Firmware Microcontroller for supervisory and safety purposes and achieve ultra-low latency or functionality that might need to exist before the system containing the card fully boots.

Apple Silicon Support

AJA Desktop Software is optimized for the latest Apple silicon with native support for AJA macOS drivers, application plug-ins, AJA Control Room, AJA Control Panel, and AJA System Test.

Apple Mac Pro Compatible

AJA offers full compatibility for the new Apple Mac Pro, including support for AJA Control Room with Metal compatibility and extensive support for various applications.

For productions handling high resolution workflows all the way up to 4K, KONA X is a perfect companion for high performance workflows.

KONA X Operating Systems Compatibility

macOS 13.x (Ventura), macOS 13.x (Monterey), macOS 11.x (Big Sur), macOS 10.15 (Catalina), macOS 10.14 (Mojave), and macOS 10.13 (High Sierra). Note that some functionality may not be available when using legacy macOS versions
Linux Ubuntu support for 20.04 LTS, 22.04

Linux Rocky 8.5 and Rocky 9.1

Windows 11, 10 and updates.

*Note that some features are not available with legacy release versions of macOS