Marketing Sales Release Confidential – for Centellax direct sales and authorized distributors only 28 October 2011 Steve Sekel 32 Gb/s Stressed Serial BERT I am pleased to announce that we are now quoting and accepting orders on The world’s most affordable 32 Gb/s stressed serial BERT. Two versions are available: • SSB32 3 - 32 Gb/s Stressed Serial BERT • SS32J 3 – 32 Gb/s Stressed Serial BERT with Multi-Tone Jitter A Centellax exclusive feature of the system is its modular form factor . First introduced in the PCB12500, the pattern generator and error detector are contained within small heads which can be mounted physically close to the Device Under Test (DUT). This allows the user to connect with very short signal cables, minimizing the cable loss, which is especially important at these higher data rates . For users with applications which do not require an error detector, the components can be ordered individually: • SSB16000 or SSB16000J Stressed Serial BERT Controller • PG32 3 – 32 Gb/s Pattern Generator Remote Head • ED32 3 – 32 Gb/s Error Detector Remote Head The BERT Controllers are derivatives of the SCS16000 and SCS16000J Stressed Clock Synthesizers and have similar specifications. Retaining the front panel outputs of the SCS, they can also be used as clock sources; however, changes in BERT settings will over ride the individual clock output timing settings.
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Marketing Sales Release
Confidential – for Centellax direct sales and authorized distributors only
28 October 2011 Steve Sekel
32 Gb/s Stressed Serial BERT
I am pleased to announce that we are now quoting and accepting orders on The world’s most affordable 32 Gb/s stressed serial BERT. Two versions are available:
• SSB32 3 - 32 Gb/s Stressed Serial BERT
• SS32J 3 – 32 Gb/s Stressed Serial BERT with Multi-Tone Jitter
A Centellax exclusive feature of the system is its modular form factor. First introduced in the PCB12500, the pattern generator and error detector are contained within small heads which can be mounted physically close to the Device Under Test (DUT). This allows the user to connect with very short signal cables, minimizing the cable loss, which is especially important at these higher data rates.
For users with applications which do not require an error detector, the components can be ordered individually:
• SSB16000 or SSB16000J Stressed Serial BERT Controller
• PG32 3 – 32 Gb/s Pattern Generator Remote Head
• ED32 3 – 32 Gb/s Error Detector Remote Head
The BERT Controllers are derivatives of the SCS16000 and SCS16000J Stressed Clock Synthesizers and have similar specifications. Retaining the front panel outputs of the SCS, they can also be used as clock sources; however, changes in BERT settings will over ride the individual clock output timing settings.
In addition to a greatly extended choice of hardware generated PRBS patterns, both the pattern generator and error detector directly support user generated patterns up to 8 Mb in length. A new version of Signal Integrity Studio software (V2.1) will be released shortly. The upgraded version contains a robust pattern editor tool and utilities to upload and download patterns from the PG and ED.
The primary market for this product will be customers working with 100Gigabit Ethernet (100GbE). These systems use 4 lanes of data at a 25.78 Gb/s rate. There is no requirement for edge or pattern alignment between lanes. Another important application is 100G configured as 4 x 28G. These applications follow one of a variety of CEI or OTN standards, which have various data rates ranging from 28.0 to over 30 Gb/s, based on the amount of FEC applied. It is important to note that some of these standards intended for long haul applications drive a single or dual polarity quadrature modulated optical transceiver (DP-QPSK). Characterizing the transceiver requires four channels with precision lane alignment within a few ps. The current SSB32 does not support this, however we have a follow-on derivative product which will. It will announce at OFC in March 2012. There will be an upgrade path available for customers who can use the current system, but will need the edge alignment in the future. Note the customers developing the line cards, switches etc, which will be used with DP-QPSK transceivers can and will use only a single channel of BERT, testing a single lane at a time. Typically, only the transceiver characterization will require 4 lanes.
A 32 Gb/s BERT will find use at all points in the “food chain” of these systems, including vendors of:
• Full systems (e.g. Cisco, Juniper, HuaWei, Alcatel-Lucent)
• Line cards, sub-systems, routers and switches (e.g. Brocade, Extreme Networks, HP)
The timing for the introduction is perfect, as we are at the point on the adoption curve following the advanced development moving into the steep ramp of early adaptors. There is still a lot of research work done on these and derivative follow-on standards at universities specializing in high speed serial data communications throughout the world. Don’t rule these important clients out!
Product Differentiators:
Price. In almost all applications, the SSB32 solution list price is 1/2 or less than any of the competitive configurations! As these BERTs which address the 25 and 28G markets are at the high end of capital expenditures in the lab anyway, the affordability of the SSB32 is substantial. This is especially true in applications which require 4 systems to drive all four lanes of a 4 x 25G system.
Full Data Rate. Some competitive systems multiplex two lower data rate PGs and demux the measured data into 2 streams feeding two EDs. This requires complicated phase adjustment which is prone to drift with temperature. Misadjusted multiplex or de-multiplex phase results in BER measurements higher than the actual performance of the DUT, making it look worse. The PG32 output and ED32 input operate at the full data rate, without the need for external multiplexing.
Remote Mountable Pattern Generator and Error Detector. Similar to the PG and ED heads for the PCB12500, the small heads allow the user to locate them close to the device under test fixturing. This minimizes the length of cable required, minimizing the loss characteristics. At the higher data rates, this capability is even more important.
Compact Size. Competitive solutions range in size for full rack width instruments to systems requiring multiple mainframes and several plug in cards. The SSB16000 /SCS16000J Stressed BERT Controllers are only 1/2 standard rack width, and much shorter than competitive instruments. The total bench space of a 4 x 25/28G system implemented with the SSB32 is less than that required for a single lane of the J-BERT or BERTScope.
Eye Quality. The PG32 output eye is adequate at all data rates up through the full 32 Gb/s. Many of the competitive BERTs are bandwidth limited, resulting in eyes that don’t even touch the rails.
Competitive Situation:
There are a few competitors you will run across that can address these applications:
Agilent N4903B opt D14 (J-BERT) + N4876A. The option extends the pattern generator (only) data rate to 14.2 Gb/s. With optional second data output channel and the external N4876A multiplexer, Agilent can generate clean eyes up to 28.4 Gb/s. However, they do not have a demultiplexer, so the error detector only monitors every other bit at data rates above 14.2 Gb/s, requiring two test configurations to catch any pattern dependent bit errors. This more than doubles the test times, and might not catch all errors if the DUT operation is not consistent. The solution is much more expensive than the SSB32.
Tektronix BSA260C (BERTScope). This is an internally multiplexed system, based on “selected” components to extend the PG and ED from 12.5 to 13.0 Gb/s. PG eye quality is inferior to the SSB32 because they use the same output amplifier as in the 12.5G model. The error detector has 26 GHz analog BW, which is inadequate to take advantage of the delay resolution. A big limitation of this system is the 26.0 Gb/s operation, restricting it to only 100G Ethernet applications (4 x 25G). List price is nearly twice the price of the SSB32. Current BERTScope design has demonstrated poor reliability in the field, requiring frequent returns for repair.
Anritsu MP1800. Large card modular system. Requires cards for multiplexing two PGs and demultiplexing into two EDs to support 28G data rate. Complicated set up and calibration process. Practical installation requires cables nearly 1 m in length to connect PG and ED to DUT. List price is well over twice the price of SSB32. MP1800 is the only competitor with eye quality better than the PG32. Don’t confuse it with the lower cost MP2100 which only operates to 11.3 Gb/s
SHF has a cost effective partial solution for 4 x 25/28G applications. The 12103A is a 4 channel 28G PG, and the 12102A is a 4 channel 28G ED. The combined pricing is about the same as four SSB32 systems; however, the base system has no clock and requires an external synthesizer. If the user intends to run jitter tolerance testing, they will need a second low frequency synthesizer to generate the sinusoidal jitter, and the primary synthesizer is required to have external modulation capability. The results are uncalibrated, so repeatable JTOL measurements requires the user to spend hours establishing a baseline stress calibration.
PSPL breaking news – they finally have announced their error detector (model 13020) to go with their pattern generator. Although they specify the ED to operate down to 3 GHz, the specified delay range will not support detector alignment at data rates below 10 Gb/s. Their stress is limited to single tone SJ and users tell us it is extremely uncalibrated and not adequate to perform jitter tolerance measurements. It supports user generated patterns only by sending the pattern to the factory applications team, who create a custom version of firmware with the requested pattern in it. Obviously the turn around time is days, not minutes. The PG data sheet states outstanding specifications for rise and fall time. However customers who have demoed the PSPL in a side by side with our PG32 say our eye is much better.
De-emphasis: Some of the system / line card applications require de-emphasis. At this point in time, only Anritsu is shipping a programmable de-emphasis processor. We plan to introduce a variant of the PG32 with de-emphasis at DesignCon on 31-Jan 2012. We will offer an upgrade path for users who can use the standard PG32 today, and will need de-emphasis later. We cannot provide additional information or quote this future product at this time.
Configuration: The SSB32 / SSB32J consist of three components – Stressed BERT controller, Pattern Generator, and Error Detector. When ordered as an SSB32 or SSB32J, they will be individually packaged. The PG32 and ED32 are supplied with the cable which connects them to the BERT controller. The SSB16000 and SSB16000J Stressed BERT controllers are supplied with a power cable, printed quick start guide, and CD ROM containing the full user’s guide.
Compatibility: Signal Integrity Studio version 2.1 or higher is required to support the SSB32. It also includes a pattern editor tool. The support is included in the standard version, which can be downloaded free of charge. Demo versions have been loaded on the demo note book computers.
Warranty: All Products are covered under the standard Centellax 1 year instrument warranty. Extended warranty options are available.
Lead Time: Initial shipments will start at the end of November. New quotes will be issued with an 8 week delivery time.
Demos: The existing SSB32 Demos are based on early engineering prototypes, and have some noted deviations from the product customers will receive. New demos, built with early production circuit boards, will begin being deployed on 21 Nov. A deployment schedule will be available from Will Sitch, Director of Sales, in about 2 weeks. The product software is “function complete” and calibrated, however the quality assurance testing is still ongoing. Software bugs may occur. Release notes will be supplied when the demos are issued, and with each firmware update.
Marcom and Marketing support: The product will appear on our website on Monday, 31 Oct, the day of public announcement. Preliminary data sheets will be available for download at that time. Sell sheets, which describe application oriented configurations and features, will also be available on the website. Print ads in leading trade magazines will start running in November. Direct E-mail campaigns and other lead activities will occur over the next 2 months. Look for updates in the Centellax Infoblast.
We are continuing to gather more detailed information on the competitive products. A comprehensive sales guide, including this information and more support for identifying potential customers and closing sales, will be completed and distributed when the demos begin to ship. We have covered the SSB32 and SSB32J with preliminary information during sales training sessions held over the last year. A refresher training presentation which includes the latest information on the released product and the competition will be presented over the web during November. The scheduling will be coordinated through sales management.
Feedback: With its high Average Selling Price, the SSB32 systems represent a significant portion of sales revenue for the Test and Measurement product line, as well as a huge opportunity for the individual sales team members. As such, the entire Centellax Sales and Marketing teams are dedicated to making this product a great success. If you encounter any opportunities for additional marketing or marcom support, as well as general feedback from competitive situations, please feed it back to me directly. My direct e-mail is: [email protected].
Ordering Information
Product Number Description International List Price
SSB32 3 – 32 Gb/s Stressed Serial BERT $161,670
-OPT300 + 1 Year Warranty Extended to 3 Years total $6,470
-OPT301 + 1 Year Warranty Extended to 5 Years total $12,930
-OPT320 + Centellax Calibration, per incident $3,230
-OPT321 + Annual Calibration for 3 years $8,080
-OPT322 + Annual Calibration for 5 years $16,170
See next page for power cable and rack mounting options
SSB32J 3 – 32 Gb/s Stressed Serial BERT with Multi-ton Jitter $185,680
-OPT300 + 1 Year Warranty Extended to 3 Years total $7,430
-OPT301 + 1 Year Warranty Extended to 5 Years total $14,860
-OPT320 + Centellax Calibration, per incident $3,710
-OPT321 + Annual Calibration for 3 years $9,290
-OPT322 + Annual Calibration for 5 years $18,570
SSB16000 Stressed Serial BERT Controller $33,680
-OPT300 + 1 Year Warranty Extended to 3 Years total $1,350
-OPT301 + 1 Year Warranty Extended to 5 Years total $2,690
-OPT320 + Centellax Calibration, per incident $670
-OPT321 + Annual Calibration for 3 years $1,680
-OPT322 + Annual Calibration for 5 years $3,070
See next page for power cable and rack mounting options
SSB16000J Stressed Serial BERT Controller with Multi-tone Jitter $57,690
-OPT300 + 1 Year Warranty Extended to 3 Years total $2,310
-OPT301 + 1 Year Warranty Extended to 5 Years total $4,620
-OPT320 + Centellax Calibration, per incident $1,150
-OPT321 + Annual Calibration for 3 years $2,880
-OPT322 + Annual Calibration for 5 years $5,770
Power cable and rack mount options for BERT systems and BERT controllers. Specify one power cable option with each SSB32, SSB32J, SSB16000, or SSB16000J
-OPT101 + European Power Cord $0
-OPT102 + UK Power Cord $0
-OPT103 + Domestic Power Cord $0
-OPT109 + China Power Cord $0
-OPTRCK + Single Rack Mount Kit $500
-OPTRCKD + Double Rack Mount Kit $800
PG32 3 – 32 Gb/s Pattern Generator Remote Head $62,180
ED32 3 – 32 Gb/s Error Detector Remote Head $65,800
Warranty and Calibration options for PG32 or ED32:
-OPT300 + 1 Year Warranty Extended to 3 Years total $2,030
-OPT301 + 1 Year Warranty Extended to 5 Years total $4,050
-OPT320 + Centellax Calibration, per incident $1,010
