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looking for help specifying a video editing system


Jeff Wexler

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Is there anyone amongst our members here who would be able to help me in putting together a high end video editing system for son. I jave put together many systems in the past but I am not totally up on some of the latest products. I am very clear on the host computer which will be a Mac Pro (as full blown as we can afford and will be using Final Cut Pro Studio 2) but not so clear on some of the other necessary components.

Important items in the class of things like the recently mentioned MOTU video interface (not shipping yet) which compares favorably to the Aja io/HD (also not shipping yet). Contact me directly if you really know this stuff. Source material, at this point, is standard def DV and also increasingly a lot of material shot in the HDV format. My son is a very experienced Final Cut editor and he has been given the opportunity on one of the projects he is working on to build up a new system.

Regards,  Jeff Wexler

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Jeff, all the guys I know using FCP for major projects are using all AJA gear. It costs more than some of their competitors (like the DeckLink Black Magic cards), but my gut feeling is that's the best thing to go with.

Note that Apple just came out with a new HD codec supported by a few cards that allegedly provides real-time HD, with file sizes roughly the same as SD files (I think that's about 6:1 compression). FCP Studio 2 has some substantial changes, all of which are better -- from what I've been told. I still think the audio is tinkertoys, but that's just me. :-)

The major expense for a big HD editing system isn't the i/o cards -- it's the drives. Apple's own fiber-channel drives are pretty good, but you need a stack of them to edit a lot of HD material. The other hidden expense is the need to buy/rent an HD deck, assuming you have to eventually deliver a broadcast-quality HD tape. But more and more post houses and networks are accepting drives these days.

The other major "hidden" expense is getting an HD monitor that tells you the truth. The normal displays provided for computers are not good enough to use for evaluating pictures. You can make a good comparison between speakers and pictures: $100 computer speakers are not going to tell the editor if the dialog is usable or not for a picture, nor will a $1000 LCD monitor tell you the truth about the pictures. Good HD monitors are not cheap; broadcast-quality HD monitors cost as much as a mid-priced luxury car.

You might want to talk to the big local LA dealers like Melrose Mac, the DR Group, Moviola, and so on. I think when you're spending this kind of money, getting good support (and assistance & troubleshooting on the install) is key. The LA Final Cut Pro User Group (www.lafcpug.org) is also very helpful, and there's tons of good advice up there, all for free. I've asked questions there at 4:00AM on a Saturday night, and gotten help just a few hours later.

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Update: another terrific local firm I would recommend highly are the people over at ProMax. I believe they have a branch in Hollywood on Cole Avenue, but their main place is out in Irvine (800-977-6629).

The hot FCP interface right now is the AJA IoHD (about $3500). Me personally, unless you really need to use this new HD standard, I'd go with one of the cheaper cards at half the price, and spend the leftover money on drives. If your son is just doing HDV and DV, the regular Kona cards work fine.

Lotsa talk on the LA FCP group about the new AJA & Black Magic interface boxes.

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