Intergraph StudioZ Workstation

Open a movie studio on your desktop

Well, I suppose it depends on how much money youhave to spare. You can contract with Industrial Light and Magic (ILM) for yourvideo project, or you can buy a standalone desktop computer system and do ityourself. Although having the letters ILM roll by in the credits looks reallygreat, that alternative is not entirely cost effective.

More computer systems vendors are jumping into the video production marketall the time. Manufacturers, such as Avid, Diva, Digital Processing Systems(DPS), and in:sync, primarily target the video editing market with software-onlyproducts (e.g., in:sync's Speed Razor Mach III and Avid's Real Impact) andhardware add-ons (e.g., the DPS Perception Video Recorder). Turnkey systems(starting as low as $12,000) are available from independent distributors but areon third-party platforms such as Dell Computer. The latest entry comes fromIntergraph, the well-established NT-graphics giant. Since 1993, Intergraph hasshipped NT-specific systems for the CAD and graphics production markets. Now,StudioZ combines Intergraph's outstanding graphics technology with video editingcapabilities that rival traditional online editing systems.

In one Windows NT box, StudioZ mixes all this with one of the fastest(500,000 Gouraud-shaded triangles per second) OpenGL-accelerated 3D animationand rendering subsystems available (an upcoming review of Intergraph's TDZ-400will provide details--so far, results are impressive).

This one system lets you go from concept through final production andoutput, without the delays and hassles of moving your project across multipleplatforms for different operations. Even post-production work, such assequencing and merging animation clips, is no problem with this system's fullbroadcast-quality component serial-digital (D1/SDI) inputs and outputs.

The Big Picture
For one machine, $39,000 is a lot. However, compared to the $50,000 to$200,000 alternatives in the UNIX market (notably, those from SGI), which don'toffer the same out-of-the-box power, StudioZ is a "reel" bargain.

All Intergraph high-end systems (TD-400 and TDZ-400) and the StudioZ haveone basic architecture. It includes all you expect in a studio-grade solution,such as completely integrated graphics and video subsystems. You can have auni-, a dual-, or quad-processor configuration with 200-MHz Pentium Pro CPUs andup to 512MB of ECC RAM (either 2- or 4-way interleaved, depending on performancerequirements and the size of your bankroll for additional SIMMs). Each CPU hasan internal 256KB Level 2 cache. The CPU-to-memory bus has a data transferbandwidth greater than 500MB per second (MBps), which comfortably accommodatesthe 270Mbit-per-second (Mbps) bandwidth of the serial-digital video inputs andoutputs.

StudioZ's GLZ OpenGL-accelerated graphics subsystem rivals that of midrangeSGIs, so you can simultaneously process animation, texture, and video data.Extras include 24-bit double buffering (to eliminate tearing), 10-bit gammacorrection (for full control of brightness, contrast, hue, and saturation forvideo capture and playback), 1 or 2 megapixel resolution (depending on themodel), and extended texture memory (8MB or 32MB).

When configuring your dream system, you can build anything from a powerfulentry-level graphics processing system to the biggest, meanest, baddest boy onthe block. In addition to choosing a one-, two-, or four-CPU configuration (theonly quad-processor workstation on the market), you have three PCI graphicsaccelerator options: the GLZ1T (12MB of VRAM, 24-bit Z buffer, 92 image planes,1152x864 pixel resolution, 8MB texture memory, 110-bit memory data bus), theGLZ2 (24MB of VRAM, 92 image planes, 8MB of texture memory, 1600x1280 pixelresolution, 220-bit memory bus), and the GLZ6 (34MB of VRAM, 32-bit Z buffer,8-bit alpha channel, 8-bit double-buffered overlay, 126 image planes, 1600x1280pixel resolution, geometry acceleration, 32MB of texture memory, 284-bit memorybus). The available options depend on the model (StudioZ Solo, Duo, or Quattro).

StudioZ's serial-digital PCI video subsystem is equally formidable. It cancapture and play back CCIR 601 and square pixel sampled data (525 or 625 lines),4:2:2 Component Video (ANSI/SMPTE 259M and CCIR 656 standards), andBetacam-quality Motion-JPEG video compression. The hardware provides full270Mbps serial-digital input and output, with analog composite and S-Videooutputs and Finite Impulse Response hardware filtering for offline editing.

A loopback video cable connects the standard SVGA output on the motherboardto the GLZ graphics accelerator card; the monitor plugs directly into the card.If you loose the cable, you can run the system by plugging the monitor into thesystem connector, booting the system, and then moving the monitor connection tothe accelerator card.

An integrated Creative Labs Vibra-16 sound device provides audio. Speakersare built into the Altec-Lansing keyboard that ships with the system. Thespeakers are surprisingly loud for their 4" size. You also get stereoline-level input and output and a microphone input.

The Plot
So what else do you get for $39,000? Among other things, you get onboard PCIEthernet (10 Base T and AUI connectors), PCI Fast SCSI-2 disk controllers, andexternal connector. Depending on the model, you get one controller, dualcontrollers (one for internal and one for external devices), or a RAIDcontroller with three Fast and Wide SCSI-2 channels. The StudioZ has a fullcomplement of I/O ports: two 9-pin serial, one enhanced parallel, and aPS/2-style keyboard and mouse.

Besides a standard combination 3.5" floppy drive/PC Card (formerlyPCMCIA) bay (two Type I/II or one Type III) and a quad-speed CD-ROM, storageoptions include a 2GB or 4GB 3.5" internal system disk, a 2GB or 4GBinternal audio/visual (A/V) drive, or a 9GB external drive. The A/V drives letyou stream video data (in realtime) directly from disk to video tape.

You have a choice of chassis: either a standard desktop or a tower. Thecost differential is about $2000, so base your purchase on what expansionfeatures you'll need. The desktop model has only two half-length ISA slots, withtwo 3.5" and one 5.25" drive bays; the tower has five full-length PCIand four full-length ISA slots, with one 3.5" and six 5.25" drivebays. Power supplies match the system's needs: 300W on the desktop and 539W onthe tower. Last, you can choose a 17" multisync, 21" 82-Hz, 21"107-Hz display, or a 27" display.

The Final Credits
This one desktop machine can do it all. You can capture broadcast-qualityvideo and audio in industry-standard formats (NTSC and PAL video, CD- orDAT-quality audio), edit it, add your own 2D and 3D animation sequences(rendered on this system), add audio and video sound and special effects,composite everything, and dump it to your BetacamSP video recorder in realtimefor delivery.

And, of course, NT! NT! NT! The only way StudioZ ships is with NTWorkstation installed, so multithreaded applications such as Kinetix's 3D StudioMax, in:sync's Speed Razor Mach III, North Coast Software's PhotoMorph 2.0, andAdobe Photoshop 3.0.5 can take advantage of any number of CPUs.

Besides the thousands of Intel-compiled 32-bit applications available forthis system (from standard office automation to 3D animation and rendering),StudioZ ships with Intergraph's StudioZ Console for video capture, assembly, andplayback; Adobe Premiere LE for video editing; Photoshop 3.0 LE for imageprocessing; MacroMedia Sound Forge for audio editing; and Intergraph PC-NFSWindows NT/
UNIX for interoperability.

This is a beastly machine, designed from the ground up to be as good at 3Danimation and rendering as at video editing. Professional video producers andcorporate MIS managers need to look at the StudioZ line, because one extremelyfast and capable system that can handle all aspects of multimedia production ischeaper and easier than multiple systems or outsourcing the same work.