Cisco TelePresence MCU 5320 CTI-5320-MCU-K9 – Higher-Capacity Multipoint Control Unit

Product Overview

Cisco CTI-5320-MCU-K9 is the Cisco TelePresence MCU 5320, the higher-capacity model in the MCU 5300 Series. Cisco's own published capacity figure for this unit is 10 x 1080p participants, and Cisco's clustering example is explicit: connecting two MCU 5320s that each support 10 x 1080p participants gives a cluster supporting 20 x 1080p participants. That is the difference between this model and the 5310, and it is the reason a site running a large internal bridging load specifies the 5320. Cisco has retired the MCU 5300 Series and lists it on its Conferencing Retired Products page.

Product Description

Because Cisco deliberately removes documentation for retired products, the MCU 5300 Series data sheet and end-of-life bulletin are both gone from cisco.com. No announcement, end-of-sale, end of software maintenance, end of routine failure analysis, end of service contract renewal or last date of support date can be read from a live Cisco page, so none are quoted here. Nor are native port counts per capacity mode, concurrent conference limits, codec lists, encryption specifications, dimensions, weight, rack units, power in watts or approvals - Cisco no longer publishes them.

What is documented is the conferencing model. The unit bridges SIP and H.323 endpoints in the same conference, runs video up to 1080p at 30 frames per second with up to 4 Mbps per site, and presents continuous-presence layouts in high definition. Media ports are governed by the port capacity mode rather than a fixed count, licensed under the 5300-PL media port licence type with a separate MCU 5320 activation feature key. Note that transmission of SIP content from the MCU using BFCP is not supported on encrypted calls.

Installation is a standard rack build: the unit ships with a rack mounting kit, a blue console cable and a power cable, with a stacking cable for clustering ordered separately. Two Ethernet interfaces are provided, Port A to the network and Port B only where a second subnet is required. Electrical planning is 100 to 240 V at 50/60 Hz, nominal 115 V to 230 V, 6 A maximum with 20 A maximum branch circuit protection, and the operating range is 0 C to 35 C at 10% to 95% non-condensing humidity, with Cisco's stated optimum at 21 C to 23 C and 45% to 50%. The same hardware can be reloaded with Cisco TelePresence Server software, which gives 10 screen licences and 20 HD (720p30) on the 5320. See network hardware, video conference systems and Cisco for related equipment.

Key Features

• Ten 1080p participants per unit — Cisco publishes the MCU 5320 as supporting 10 x 1080p participants, which is the capacity figure that separates it from the 5310.
• Clustering doubles capacity — Cisco's own example states that two MCU 5320s each supporting 10 x 1080p participants give a cluster supporting 20 x 1080p participants, so capacity is added without changing dial plans.
• Mixed-model clusters supported — Cisco states any combination of 5310 and 5320 units is supported in a cluster, so an existing 5310 can stay in service alongside a new 5320.
• Mixed SIP and H.323 conferences — One conference can include newer SIP systems and legacy H.323 systems from different vendors, which keeps a mixed-vendor estate usable.
• Continuous presence at 1080p30 — Up to 1080p at 30 frames per second and 4 Mbps per site lets boardroom-class endpoints join at full HD in a continuous-presence layout.
• Licensed port capacity model — Media ports are governed by the port capacity mode and the 5300-PL licence type rather than a fixed hardware count, so capacity can be adjusted by licence.
• Dual Ethernet interfaces — Port A connects to the network and Port B serves a DMZ or separate management subnet where required.
• Reloadable with TelePresence Server software — Cisco publishes a procedure for running Cisco TelePresence Server software on the same hardware, giving 10 screen licences and 20 HD (720p30) on the 5320.

Typical Applications

• Commercial meeting space — Organisations bridging a large internal conferencing load on their own hardware need the higher-capacity model.
• Government space — Sites that cannot route conference media through a cloud bridge keep multipoint capacity in the rack.
• All-hands room — Continuous-presence layouts across many sites suit distributed leadership sessions.
• Boardroom — Full-HD participation for boardroom endpoints is what the 1080p30 capacity figure is sized for.

Technical Specifications