Canopus Edius vs FCP with XEON

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Level 2

275 points

Canopus Edius vs FCP with XEON

I heard that with canopus you can preview in real time without rendering, i really dont want to go back to PC so was wondering if the new mac pro's combined with FCP are fast enough to preview footage in realtime? Yeah sure i can preview by playing frame by frame but that just doesnt cut it

My specs are listed & am looking to uprgade, i hate to be blunt but rendering ***** big time, obviously a xeon will be much faster than what i have but if i can get zero render during the EDITING process i may have to think about a pc

15 Powerbook G4, 1.67Ghz, 1GB RAM, 128VRAM, Tried Tiger but switched back to Mac OS X (10.3.9) SSL User

15 Powerbook G4, 1.67Ghz, 1GB RAM, 128VRAM, Tried Tiger but switched back to, Mac OS X (10.3.9), SSL User

Posted on Aug 31, 2006 3:29 AM

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Answer 1

Aug 31, 2006 4:00 AM in response to Joe U

from what I have seen on the Canopus page what they are talking about with "preview in realtime without rendering" is outputing to a monitor (not playing it on a computer screen) (you still need to get their hardware as well)

there are only 28 effects and transitions (inluding scaling, postioning and opacity) that are realtime preview (on your computer screen)

you still need to render with edius
(haivng a notebook will drastically increase your render time's with any editing program)

I rarely have to render with my system (didn't have to much before with my G4 either)
when I do it takes a second (I really only need to render if I am applying more then 5 filters while doing an opcaity ramp and scaling the window at the same time)

getting a MP will decrease the time it takes to render
getting a video card will also help a litttle as it takes care of the scaling
getting a zippy HDD will increase video playback performance and speed up render times

what are you needing to render right now durning the "editing" process
DAVe

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Answer 2

Joe U Author

Level 2

275 points

Aug 31, 2006 4:43 AM in response to David Slater

Hi Dave

When editing i preview with a monitor anyway because 1) thats what i was told in FCE forum & 2) It gives me a better representation of what my actual complted project looks like

I dont use much transitions, mostly cuts some cross disolves so the limited effects is not a problem

I could be wrong but the only rendering i was told that was needed with edius was during the encoding process

The filter i use the most that requires rendering is color correction

what do you mean by video card & scaling? With my powerbook i connect my monitor to camcorder would it not be the same with a MP?

Whats a zippy HDD?

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Answer 3

Aug 31, 2006 7:11 AM in response to Joe U

When editing i preview with a monitor anyway because 1) thats what i was told in FCE forum & 2) It gives me a better representation of what my actual complted project looks like< </div>

Only if your monitor is calibrated properly.

I dont use much transitions, mostly cuts some cross disolves so the limited effects is not a problem < </div>

Color Correction is a huge processor drain. There are only a few systems that can do it in real time and most of those use a proprietary codec. FCP is not one of them.

I could be wrong but the only rendering i was told that was needed with edius was during the encoding process< </div>

Lies you can get from any video editing system's marketing department. The only way you will know is to demo the system.

The filter i use the most that requires rendering is color correction < </div>

See above.

what do you mean by video card & scaling? < </div>

You can't put a major PCI-X video processing or proprietary system card in your Powerbook or in a MacBookPro so the question doesn't really matter.

With my powerbook i connect my monitor to camcorder would it not be the same with a MP? < </div>

I dunno, never used a PB or MBP to edit. Can't imagine not having two displays and all of my other tabletop toys.

Whats a zippy HDD? < </div>

You looking for a brand recommendation or a definition? Do not buy LaCie. Anything 7200 rpm and above.

bogiesan

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Answer 4

Aug 31, 2006 9:18 AM in response to Joe U

When editing i preview with a monitor anyway because 1) thats what i was told in FCE forum & 2) It gives me a better representation of what my actual complted project looks like

FCP does that with DV footage anyway without any extra hardware (aside from a conversion box (deck or camera))

I dont use much transitions, mostly cuts some cross disolves so the limited effects is not a problem

then you shouldn't need to render much as it is

I could be wrong but the only rendering i was told that was needed with edius was during the encoding process

yes if you use there hardware and don't use any effect that isn't realtime (and don't use a lot of them as it is) however it is mostlikly marketing hype

The filter i use the most that requires rendering is color correction

all the Color Correction I do is dark green bar (no render needed for proper playback) I use the 3way or the basic CC

what do you mean by video card & scaling?

I use the Kona LHe video capture card and FCP offloads any scaling work to it to free it self up for more realtime (like cross disovles or color corrrection)

With my powerbook i connect my monitor to camcorder would it not be the same with a MP?

you can

Whats a zippy HDD?

fast, speedy, powerful Hard drive (basically the faster and larger the drive the more video it can push though)

DAVE
(BTW Boggie - I am up to 16 lacies at the moment best drives ever)

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Answer 5

Joe U Author

Level 2

275 points

Sep 1, 2006 2:59 AM in response to David Bogie Chq-1

i was told about zero render with color correction from another videographer, i have no reason to doubt him

Im planning on doing a complete upgrade system & software so the video card question does matter

zippy hdd do i feel stupid i thought it was a specific type of drive didnt think he meant fast

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Answer 6

Joe U Author

Level 2

275 points

Sep 1, 2006 3:07 AM in response to David Slater

like previous reply, it wasnt from someone trying to sell me canopus it was from someone who just likes it over FCP, Personally i love mac i like the fact that i dont need for it to be a dedicated system which that person did say his was

I see by your specs you have a quad & all you get with color correction is green bars, it would be nice if someone with the new xeon would chime in & say how fast there system is

so when you mention the kona video card is that something different than the graphics cards that are offered? would i need both a graphics card and a video card to improve speed?

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Answer 7

Sep 1, 2006 9:03 AM in response to Joe U

the new MP is faster then the quad

all you get with color correction is green bars

well I get other effects as the dark green bar as well (dark greens it will play out full quality unrendered)

the http://www.aja.com Kona card is a video I/O card that lets me input and output SD and HD via SDI and/or component

so if I wanted to I could color correct my show and output it to D-Beta (or HDCAM) without rendering

DAVE

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