Posted by Mr. Tapeguy on 10/07/06 16:58

leekazimir@gmail.com wrote:
> Original poster here. I want to thank everyone who has so far posted
> in these threads, it's already given me a lot to research and think
> about. I see the debate's getting a little heated at times, but that's
> cool with me since I'm learning from all sides.
>
> I should have mentioned in the original post that I already own a
> decent PC (3.0 ghz Pentium 3, 1GB RAM, 250GB hard drive) that I could,
> should I decide to stick with PC, spend the money upgrading. I'd add 2
> or 3 gigs or RAM, a few hard drives, maybe a new video card and
> definitely a new HD display. Then I could go with the software you
> guys have mentioned, such as Vegas 7, Ulead, Premiere Pro, maybe a
> combination of the three.

I don't think it's worth your while to upgrade because you'll have to
change too many things, especially if you want to edit HDV, which will
eat up far more processor power than DV. Depending on how much you can
expand it is possible but by the time you've switched out your
motherboard, processor, hard drives etc. it might be a better option to
get another machine, depending also on how much expansion room you
have.

> I guess I showed a bias in my original post because I expected everyone
> one to push me toward Mac, which many have done. Over the years it's
> been drilled in my head that Final Cut is so much better than all PC
> editing programs. (One guy went so far as to say "Final Cut pisses all
> over" the competition.) However this seems to be changing, or at least
> to have its detractors, so I am confused.

Final Cut is not "so much better" than all PC programs. It is an
excellent VALUE and the platform overall is very STABLE and has fewer
overall problems than Windows-based systems. That is not too say that
Vegas and Avid aren't excellent choices - just with Vegas you're stuck
with Windows and Avid is much more expensive. Two versions ago I would
definitely have said there are better options that FCP - now the
landscape has changed in its favor, not the other way around.
>
> (1) So, on a basic level, my question to those who recommend Final Cut
> Studio is, can you tell me what I will be able to do with that software
> that I won't be able to do with Vegas/Premiere/Ulead, etc?

I do not do enough editing with different programs to give you a
feature-by-feature breakdown. Vegas has an almost cult following and I
have never heard anything bad about it; it just simply doesn't have
widespread use in midrange to high-end users.
>
> (2) Second question would be, what do you mean by "edit HDV natively"?
> I guess I have the option of using an "intermediate codec" but I don't
> really know what that means or what I'd be trading off. Is it true
> that "native HDV" needs 40 gigs per hour? I've heard conflicting
> reports on this. I don't want to trade off any quality in my doc, so
> I'd rather get the extra storage space to be able to do the job right.

The irony of this statement is that while some editors have the ability
to edit HDV natively that feature is not commonly used, because to do
so is very difficult and not the most efficient way to edit so nobody
actually chooses that path.
>
> (3) What's good/not good about Canopus Edius?

I have heard good things about Edius and if they are still going to be
in business it's worth looking at but again, not widely used.
>
> I have a lot to think about, especially as I'm hearing bad things from
> some of you about FC's rendering times, which really surprises me. I
> have never owned a Mac system, so on some level it might slow me down
> to change platforms. I am familiar and comfortable with Windows and
> have liked programs such as Adobe Premiere, After Effects, and Audition
> for video/audio editing. I haven't encountered much I wanted to do
> with them that I couldn't, but then I've never attempted to edit
> anyhing on the scale of what I'm about to do.

I would encourage you to talk with higher end FCS users - I'm checking
myself - to see if there are still any objections to rendering time.
These are the guys who do lots of HD and SD, sometimes uncompressed and
also use Avid and sometimes dabble in Adobe. If there is a rendering
speed issue with software, they won't be shy about it.


Craig

http://www.pro-tape.com

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