The Pixel Farm Ltd. has selected PCI-e SATA RAID controllers from Applied Micro Circuits Corporation’s 3ware storage division for its high-performance PF Clean Digital Image Restoration Film and Video Systems.

The Pixel Farm develops innovative, collaborative solutions for digital imaging (DI), film restoration and visual effects (VFX) for broadcast and film markets. Its products are used by a wide variety of well-known digital content brands such as the BBC, Technicolor and Deluxe as well as many specialist film studios. The company works closely with its customers to provide tailored bespoke systems to match the extensive needs of the post production environment.

Michael Lancaster, product director at The Pixel Farm, explains why the company chose 3ware, “Our turnkey solutions are designed with performance as the key focus from the ground up to allow users in the DI, film restoration and content re-mastering markets to deliver projects reliably, on time and with the best possible results. With performance at a premium, it’s essential that we integrate best-of-breed technologies into this environment. AMCC’s technology expertise combined with its excellent customer service has been integral to our decision to use their 3ware RAID controllers. They have provided us with round-the-clock support and on one occasion even flew an engineer over from Germany.”

The Pixel Farm is integrating 3ware 9650SE PCI-e SATA II RAID controllers into its PF Clean Digital Image Restoration Systems with the eight-port controller for its Video System and the 16-port controller for its Film System. This allows users to safely and reliably store the huge number of digital film frames needed to restore and re-master their digital data, a vital process in the post-production arena.

Ron Macleod, sales director EMEA at AMCC claims that the 3ware controllers have helped Pixel Farm drastically improve the performance of its restoration solutions. He said, “With the new 3ware controllers, Pixel Farm’s eight-port video system runs as fast as its previous generation 16 disk chassis when connected directly to the server. Using fewer drives doesn’t just save money. It also means that users gain a huge saving on rack space while benefiting from a corresponding reduction in overall power consumption. This makes it a big win for all involved, including the environment.”