Sonnet Fusion RX1600Fibre for Video Editing

Sonnet Technologies, Inc. announces the Fusion RX1600Fibre, a high-performance, expandable 16-drive RAID shared Fibre Channel storage system optimized for video editing.

Featuring a 4-port 8Gb Fibre Channel interface, the Fusion RX1600Fibre supports multi-stream, multi-user collaborative workflows and provides direct connection for up to four users without the addition of a Fibre Channel switch or dedicated server. The Fusion RX1600Fibre delivers video performance up to 100 percent faster than general-purpose shared storage systems.

"The Fusion RX1600Fibre storage system was designed to be the stellar performer for video editing workgroups," said Robert Farnsworth, CEO of Sonnet Technologies. "A Sonnet Fibre system can deliver 30 streams of ProRes 422 HQ, twice as many as general-purpose fibre storage. The Fusion RX1600Fibre also maintains aggregate stream capacity for multiple simultaneous clients — another area in which general purpose fibre storage falls behind."

The Sonnet RX1600Fibre storage system is capable of providing direct, high-speed access to stored assets for up to four users without the associated cost, complexity, cabling, rack space requirements, and power consumption of an added Fibre Channel switch. While superior for small workgroups, this Fusion system is equally suited for use in larger storage area networks (SAN) with switches and many video editing users. Because it employs a 4-port 8Gb Fibre Channel interface rather than a common 2-port 4Gb interface, the Fusion RX1600Fibre offers speed and flexibility not found in general-purpose shared storage systems. For example, two of the Sonnet system’s ports may be connected to a Fibre Channel switch to yield improved performance and redundancy for the general storage pool, while the remaining two ports may be reserved for users requiring the ultimate bandwidth. The high-speed 8Gb interfaces also deliver higher aggregate bandwidth, providing more users with more streams.

The Fusion RX1600Fibre provides SAN administrators great flexibility in configuring the storage pool. Support for RAID group partitioning increases storage efficiency by providing more logical unit numbers (LUNs) without the need to use lower-capacity RAID groups, and support for port mapping provides an easy way to map partitions to a specific port and control access to volumes. The system drops into an Xserve RAID domain, supports Final Cut Pro Server environments, and also provides for Avid® volume locking. The Fusion RX1600Fibre storage system’s built-in SAS expanders make future growth simple, fast, and economical. Incorporating more storage capacity is nearly as simple as installing additional Fusion RX1600 Expansion systems into the rack and connecting a few cables.

Sonnet’s Fusion RX1600Fibre is built around the ATTO Technology FastStream SC 8500E storage controller. Featuring ATTO’s exclusive Advanced Data Streaming (ADS) Technology, this RAID controller provides controlled transfer acceleration for steady data streaming, especially important when working with video. ADS compensates for data transfer rate peaks and drops, maintaining a consistent data flow to allow more streams for the bandwidth available. The FastStream controller provides tunable rebuild priority, enabling the Sonnet system to deliver users full performance during a RAID group rebuild, unlike general-purpose shared storage systems which typically experience a severe drop in performance during a rebuild.

The Fusion RX1600Fibre supports multipath I/O, a technique that enhances performance and fault tolerance, combining data paths from two or more Fibre Channel ports to increase performance and provide redundancy in case of a port or cable malfunction, the leading causes of storage failure. Multipathing additionally provides load balancing to distribute I/O across multiple paths for improved system and application performance. With sixteen 1TB drives formatted as a RAID 5 set, the Fusion RX1600Fibre delivers multiple client aggregate bandwidth of over 1000 MB/sec.

The Sonnet Fusion RX1600Fibre shared Fibre Channel storage system is compatible with Mac OS X and OS X Server Versions 10.4.8+ (including Snow Leopard); Windows Server 2008, Vista, Server 2003, 7, and XP Pro; and with many Linux operating systems. It is compatible with file-sharing SAN management software packages including, but not limited to, Apple Xsan 2, Tiger Technology metaSAN 3, and CommandSoft FibreJet. Fusion RX1600Fibre supports 8Gb, 4Gb, 2Gb, and 1Gb Fibre Channel host adapters.

The Fusion RX1600Fibre is SES 2.0 compliant. Operators may choose to use SATA drive S.M.A.R.T. monitoring parameters to configure the system to issue on-screen or audible alerts, or fault LEDs. The system also features a simple Web browser-based GUI with easy-to-use integrated system setup, management, and diagnostic tools that can be accessed either locally or remotely.

Complete Fusion RX1600Fibre storage systems include an enclosure with internal RAID controller, 4-port 8Gb FC interface, and two mini-SAS expansion ports; two rackmount rail assemblies and mounting hardware; sixteen 3.5" drive modules; two power cords; one 2-meter RJ-45 CAT 5 Ethernet cable; one 2-meter RJ-11 to DB9 RS-232 cable; and a software CD and documentation. Fusion RX1600 Expansion systems include an enclosure with internal SAS expanders and four mini-SAS ports; two rackmount rail assemblies and mounting hardware; sixteen 3.5" drive modules; two 2-meter mini-SAS cables; two power cords; and documentation.

Sonnet Fusion RX1600Fibre systems are available now with the following suggested retail prices:

• Fusion RX1600Fibre 16TB: $19,995
• Fusion RX1600 Expansion 16TB: $9,795.