Editing systems.

[Recce]

I realize this whole conversation has been over for like a week, but I would just like to say that Adobe Premiere is a great program. Its fairly simple, solid, a bit tricky with mp3's though. Plus, its compatible with all the other Adobe programs, such as Photoshop, After effects, etc. So if you have a fast PC that can handle editing and an army of Adobe softwares to back it up, there's no reason why you can't be as productive as someone with a G4 mac and Final Cut Pro.

[ReelHotGames]

To help the original poster out, if you go PC use Premiere if you go Mac use Final Cut Pro

They both stack up about the same when all is said and done, it's just a different layout and learning curve.

But if you go MAC these are the things to consider - buy a machine that you won;t have to add onto, because it's more expensive than building your own PC, but most new MACS will do what you need out of the box.

And if you go PC then think about what type of capturing hardware you'll use, because it makes a difference, I have had great luck running with the Pinnacle DV500 plus, but that's an extra 500 on your cost, and if you go with a basic $40 firewire card compatability WILL be an issue.

The plus on PC side is the ease of upgrade, and how inexpensive it is.

[KingBlackDeath]

Is there something bad about Vegas Video that I'm missing?
Sonic Foundry makes it and they make Acid, so where's the rub?
I never see it mentioned in RES or anywhere, but my friend has it and I've been using it and I like it plenty.
We currently only do little mess around stuff.
If I want to make an actual real DV Film when I get my new computer is Vegas no good for REAL things? I DO want as much color correction possibilities as possible, though.
Does anyone know anything about the AVID DV Xpress 3.5 program?
It seems like that would be great.

I'm going to have a lot of questions in the upcoming months (as I'm buying a DV camera, a new computer, and probably shooting my first "picture" soon) so everybody get ready for the shitstorm!

[Recce]

Well, I haven't personally used Avid, but I hear its a pretty solid program. However, I'd have to say Premiere is better for PC's and Final Cut Pro for Macs (from what I've heard, but this isn't terribly reliable info), as was said earlier in this post. I'm also not sure what your Vegas program thing is, but judging by the name, I'm guessing it's one of those click and drag type of programs that doesn;t give you much control over sound. Both FCP 3 and Premiere 6.5 allow for good control of sound. It takes a tiny bit of getting used to at first if you've never used them before, but trust me, it'll be well worth the fiddling around afterwards.

As for your capture card, I know some will recommend that you get a Pinnacle card or something else, but if your straped for cash(which I'm guessing you will be after buying a new camera and computer), a low-end 'pyro' card or something like it will do fine. I bought a card for 100$(Canadien, so probly like 12$ American) and it worked fine. The rest of my computer was the problem, though, so I bought a Mac. If you have the cash to buy a Mac, though, go for it. Once you get past the troubles caused by your PC orientation, their great and solid and they come with capture cards, so less fiddling.

As for your camera questions on another thread, here's my 2 cents. I'm not an expert on cameras, so I don't know how you could get certain looks, but I got myself a Digital 8 camera. Not as chrystal clear as a mini DV camera, but for compatibility reasons, they're great. With a digital 8, you can capture from digital 8 tapes, hi-8 tapes, and video 8 tapes. Plus, you can use it to capture analog footage from your TV, VCR and even DVD player by hooking up the camera to the DVD player and the firewire to the computer. I'm not sure if you could do all this with a Mini DV, I'm guessing so, but the three different tapes you could play in it were a seller for me and they've helped me out so far. Plus, I think they're a little less expensive then mini DV.

[Xixax]

Is there something bad about Vegas Video that I'm missing?

Vegas Video is more of a consumer level production tool. It's fine if it gets the job done for you, but you won't find any pro editing houses using Vegas like you might find them using Avid, Media 100, Final Cut or (to a lesser extent) Premiere.

You only need as much software power as you need, and if Vegas Video does it for you, then I say rock on with it. When you outgrow it you will start to feel it and then you can move up to Premiere.

[aclockworkjj]

Fucking apple nuts.

I stand united with Cecil...I will admit it, I used to use a PC....and made the switch.  It's like an addiction comparable to drinkin' Jack and Cokes all mornin'.  It has taken over my life, I dream off Mac optical pro mice, the G4 design, oh, and those super drives.....that's when the dream gets good.  Not to mention the quirkly little noises it makes when it's statrting a program.  Mac's.....the apple of my eye!

Really not that big of a nut...just having some fun. 8)

[TripMcKneely]

don't get an apple...trust...if you really want final cut pro that bad, it will soon be available for pc's...if you get an apple you are their slave, you cant build or upgrade them as easy as a pc, you are truly at their mercy.  besides, XP is the shit right now as far as opperating systems go.

[Cecil]

final cut pro that bad, it will soon be available for pc's

not true.


anyway the guy says he allready got his computer so.

[Xixax]

It's a never-ending debate. And I don't think there's a right answer. It's all personal preference.

While I am a Windows guy, I can also say that I wouldn't lose sleep if I had to switch to Mac.

The thing about a macintosh is that if you buy a good system from the start, you won't *need* to upgrade for a long time. Mac software works pretty great on older machines, it's just slower. Not like Windows apps that require faster video cards or processors.

It's all preference. No matter what you get, you won't go wrong.

[UglyApe]

I use Pinnacle Studios 7.   Seems to work pretty well for me.   It's a preety decent PC program.

[sphinx]

I use Pinnacle Studios 7.   Seems to work pretty well for me.   It's a preety decent PC program.

except for capturing and exporting.

[UglyApe]

If you have enough ram, capturing isn't a problem.   I've never had any problem exporting.

[Recce]

I used a PC for editing for 2 years. Although it wasn;t top of the line, I think it was a lot of trouble for nothing. Now that I got a mac, i realize all the crap I had to go through for no particular reason. Not only do PC's crash a lot more then macs, but compatibility issues for capture cards, etc. don't matter. They come built in. I got my mac out fo the box, hooked up a firewire and installed final cut pro and I was ready to edit. With my pc, iut took me a week to get it configured properly and learn all the quirks. The only complaint I have is the one I got didn't have enoguh ram, it came with 256mb of ram. so I had to buy an extra 512 mb. As for the whole you cant upgrade thing, i don't think itss a viable excuse. If you get a tower, you can add stuff like dvd-rw etc and ram. as for the eMacs or iMacs, you can add ram on them too. and what else could you possibly want to upgrade to? Its true that adding a Hard Drive is kind of annoying as you have to get an external one, but hey, if your computer doesn't crash in the middle of editing, i  think its worth it.

[The Silver Bullet]

I own a PC. I've only ever used iMovie while on a Mac, and it sucked [hard]. I can't comment on Final Cut Pro. I've never used it.

Anyway. Having had some pretty bad experiences with Adobe Premiere and Pinnacle Studio 7 not being able to do what I wanted to [anymore], I went for Sonic Foundry Vegas Video. It is a wonderul program, and I would reccomend it to anyone and everyone looking for an alternative to the norm [which is Premiere]. Check it out. It's quite the program.

[Xixax]

I own a PC. I've only ever used iMovie while on a Mac, and it sucked [hard]. I can't comment on Final Cut Pro. I've never used it.

Anyway. Having had some pretty bad experiences with Adobe Premiere and Pinnacle Studio 7 not being able to do what I wanted to [anymore], I went for Sonic Foundry Vegas Video. It is a wonderul program, and I would reccomend it to anyone and everyone looking for an alternative to the norm [which is Premiere]. Check it out. It's quite the program.

I have a hard time believing that Vegas is more powerful than Premiere.

I was a Pinnacle user for several years, and I had MAJOR problems with their drivers, and how they worked with Premiere. The system crashes were unbelievable. If there was a fault with the setup, I'd bet money that Pinnacle's sucky drivers were to blame - not Premiere.