Ericsson Baseband 5212 — Multi-standard Baseband for RBS 6000 (CPRI)

1) Product overview

The Baseband 5212 is a digital baseband unit for Ericsson RBS 6000 systems. It provides switching, IP traffic management, timing, uplink/downlink baseband processing, and radio interconnect for macro sites. Software support begins from L16A/W16A/G16B (LTE/WCDMA/GSM) on the RBS platform.

2) Capacity indicators (per Ericsson datasheet)

• Connected users: 4,000

• Antenna bandwidth (LTE): 480 MHz (depends on radio config)

• VoIP users: up to 1,200 (FDD) or 500 (TDD)

• Throughput (reference): 600 Mbps DL / 300 Mbps UL (depends on software & radio config)

• WCDMA channel elements: 576 DL / 576 UL, 960 EUL

• GSM capacity: 24 TRX

• Supported CPRI line rates: 2.5, 4.9, 9.8, 10.1 Gbps (software-dependent)
  All figures above are taken directly from Ericsson’s “Baseband 5212/5216” technical data table. 

Detailed WCDMA mixed-mode examples (CE/users, carriers) are also shown in Ericsson WCDMA baseband material for 5212; use them for high-level planning only, as license and baseline affect results. 

3) Interfaces (front/back panel markings)

Per Ericsson’s interface tables, Baseband 5212 exposes the following ports and indicators: 

−48 V (ET20 A): DC power input.

• SYNC (RJ-45): external or network-derived synchronization input.

• EC (RJ-45): Enclosure Control Bus (ECB).

• LMT (RJ-45): console/Local Maintenance Terminal (LMT A/B via splitter); supports sync test.

• TN A (RJ-45): 100 Mb/1 Gb Ethernet transmission (electrical).

• TN B (SFP+): 1/10 GbE transmission (electrical/optical).

• TN C (SFP+): 1 GbE transmission (electrical/optical).

• IDL A / IDL B (Xcede): IDLe inter-digital link, baseband-to-baseband; also supports CPRI over the same connector family.

• Radio interfaces A–F (SFP+ ×6): Baseband↔Radio Unit (RU) internal electrical interface or external optical interface to Remote Radio Unit (RRU).

• LEDs/indicators: Fault (red), Operation (green), Maintenance (blue), Status (yellow).

Notes from Ericsson’s footnotes:
Multiple TN ports and 10 GbE require hardware activation; SFP+ is required for >2.5 Gbps; the IDLe Xcede link also supports CPRI. 

4) System role & deployment

• Designed for RBS 6000 cabinets; integrates with Ericsson Radio (RRU) portfolio via CPRI.

• Supports LTE/WCDMA/GSM concurrently subject to software and licensing; use RBS Configurations docs for permitted mixes at your SW baseline.

5) Power & environmental

Ericsson’s baseband description defers exact power draw to the RBS 6000 Power Consumption Guideline; values vary with software load and radio configuration. Plan feeds per site engineering rules and verify on live load.

6) Identification & ordering (field-confirmed)

• Model: Baseband 5212

• Common part numbers (verify against nameplate): KDU 137 925/41, KDU 137 925/31 (varies by market/revision). 

7) Acceptance checklist (recommended)

1. Nameplate & revision – confirm PN, hardware rev, and RBS software baseline matches your design. 

2. Optical/Ethernet – loopback and BERT on TN B/C and Radio A–F with correct SFP/SFP+ types for required CPRI line rates. 

3. Synchronization – validate SYNC input (GPS or network) and timing status. 

4. Inter-BB links – if pooling/baseband chaining is used, test IDL A/B (Xcede/IDLe). 

5. Licenses – check LTE/WCDMA/GSM feature keys match the required cells, carriers, and throughput targets. 

Sources (open & verifiable)

• Ericsson Baseband Description — Baseband 5212/5216 (2016-04-04): official functions, capacity table for 5212, interface tables and footnotes.  

• Ericsson WCDMA baseband capacity slide (2016-12-27): mixed-mode reference figures for 5212. 

• Reseller/parts listings confirming KDU 137 925/41//31 as Baseband 5212 PNs.