It looks like CS3 is more stable/better than CS4 but how does it edit AVCHD/H.264? at DVinfo.net

Ronald Lee · August 10th, 2009, 12:41 AM

I'm going to upgrade to CS3 or CS4.

I do have 2GB of ram with my winXP, BUT, I only have a 1600 MHZ processor, not 2 GHZ as in the system requirements, so I may not be able to run CS4 anyway.

It looks, from the feedback, that CS3 is more stable and lighter on the system resources requirements, but it looks like CS4 is the first version of Premiere to do AVCHD/H.264 editing (according to their website anyway).

Is this true? How do you guys with CS3 edit the footage from the new AVCHD consumer cameras?

And is the editing smooth and problem free? Or dropped frames and artifacting problems?

Harm Millaard · August 10th, 2009, 01:53 AM

If you want to edit AVCHD material, get a beast of a machine and CS4. Even people with dual Xeon quad cores and 16 GB of RAM, have problems with AVCHD.

Ronald Lee · August 10th, 2009, 02:06 AM

I think I found a solution.

Adobe Elements 7 looks good for me. Does AVCHD and looks easy to use. Anyone here use it?

Jun Galinato · August 10th, 2009, 06:09 PM

Cineform neoscene is the solution to a slow system.

Videoguys.com - CineForm Neo Scene PC

Jun

Tripp Woelfel · August 10th, 2009, 06:11 PM

Harm's a wise man and his point is well made. It's not the software, it's the hardware. You'll want a real rock crusher of a machine to handle the high overhead of AVCHD. Depending upon how long your piece is, you might want to use an intermediate codec. I have an HF100 that I mix with at least three other HDV cameras in CS3 and I transcode to QT/DNxHD and it works well.

I've heard tell of a Cineform intermediate for AVCHD. You might want to check that out. Many like Cineform products but I'm not a big fan.

Brian Barkley · August 11th, 2009, 06:40 AM

I've had CS4 for two weeks. There are MANY improvements over CS3, and it is lightning fast in all ways.

It has been rock solid. All bugs have been eliminated.

Harm Millaard · August 11th, 2009, 07:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brian Barkley

I've had CS4 for two weeks. There are MANY improvements over CS3, and it is lightning fast in all ways.

It has been rock solid. All bugs have been eliminated.

That is slightly overdone. There are still a number of bugs and Adobe is aware of them but has not yet been able to solve them. Maybe in CS6.

Example: Connect an external monitor over firewire, set audio to desktop audio, play the timeline and the program monitor freezes. Set audio to external device, play the timeline and the program monitor does NOT freeze.

Graham Hickling · August 11th, 2009, 11:00 AM

> How do you guys with CS3 edit the footage from the new AVCHD consumer cameras?

Convert to Cineform intermediate and edit that. Works great, even on my puny laptop (2GHz, 2GB RAM).

Eric Addison · August 11th, 2009, 03:57 PM

I've got a dual quad core workstation (2GHz) with 8GB of RAM, and AVCHD from a Panasonic HMC-150 plays back MUCH smoother for me now after the 4.1 update. 720p footage even plays back pretty smooth on my Core 2 Duo laptop.

I agree that if you want to edit native AVCHD, you need to have a pretty strong computer.

David Merrill · August 12th, 2009, 06:32 PM

I use a Dual Core E6550 with 3 gigs ram, Production Premium, Neoscene. Works great! With effects and multiple tracks it won't edit real time but no other problems.

David Beisner · August 20th, 2009, 12:24 PM

I realize this is slightly unorthodox, but the best way I've found to edit AVCHD in CS3 without purchasing an expensive third-party plugin is to convert it to WMV (maintain your HD settings) and then import the WMV files to CS3 to edit. Unorthodox, but can be done for free and it works.

Harm Millaard · August 20th, 2009, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by David Beisner

I realize this is slightly unorthodox, but the best way I've found to edit AVCHD in CS3 without purchasing an expensive third-party plugin is to convert it to WMV (maintain your HD settings) and then import the WMV files to CS3 to edit. Unorthodox, but can be done for free and it works.

As long as you realize that every conversion entails quality loss.

August 10th, 2009, 12:41 AM	#1
Ronald Lee Major Player Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 435	It looks like CS3 is more stable/better than CS4 but how does it edit AVCHD/H.264? I'm going to upgrade to CS3 or CS4. I do have 2GB of ram with my winXP, BUT, I only have a 1600 MHZ processor, not 2 GHZ as in the system requirements, so I may not be able to run CS4 anyway. It looks, from the feedback, that CS3 is more stable and lighter on the system resources requirements, but it looks like CS4 is the first version of Premiere to do AVCHD/H.264 editing (according to their website anyway). Is this true? How do you guys with CS3 edit the footage from the new AVCHD consumer cameras? And is the editing smooth and problem free? Or dropped frames and artifacting problems?

August 10th, 2009, 06:09 PM	#4
Jun Galinato Major Player Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Auburn, Washington Posts: 231	Cineform neoscene is the solution to a slow system. Videoguys.com - CineForm Neo Scene PC Jun __________________ Sony Z7U, Canon 5D Mark II, Canon 24-105 F4L, Canon 70-200 F2.8L, Canon 580 EXII, Zoom H2.

August 20th, 2009, 12:24 PM	#11
David Beisner Major Player Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Dayton, TN (USA) Posts: 219	I realize this is slightly unorthodox, but the best way I've found to edit AVCHD in CS3 without purchasing an expensive third-party plugin is to convert it to WMV (maintain your HD settings) and then import the WMV files to CS3 to edit. Unorthodox, but can be done for free and it works. __________________ David Beisner Media Specialist, Bryan College, Dayton, TN -- www.bryan.edu

August 10th, 2009, 01:53 AM	#2
Harm Millaard Trustee Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Rotterdam, Netherlands Posts: 1,832	If you want to edit AVCHD material, get a beast of a machine and CS4. Even people with dual Xeon quad cores and 16 GB of RAM, have problems with AVCHD.

August 10th, 2009, 02:06 AM	#3
Ronald Lee Major Player Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 435	I think I found a solution. Adobe Elements 7 looks good for me. Does AVCHD and looks easy to use. Anyone here use it?

August 10th, 2009, 06:11 PM	#5
Tripp Woelfel Trustee Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: North Conway, NH Posts: 1,745	Harm's a wise man and his point is well made. It's not the software, it's the hardware. You'll want a real rock crusher of a machine to handle the high overhead of AVCHD. Depending upon how long your piece is, you might want to use an intermediate codec. I have an HF100 that I mix with at least three other HDV cameras in CS3 and I transcode to QT/DNxHD and it works well. I've heard tell of a Cineform intermediate for AVCHD. You might want to check that out. Many like Cineform products but I'm not a big fan.

August 11th, 2009, 06:40 AM	#6
Brian Barkley Major Player Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Overland Park, KS Posts: 233	I've had CS4 for two weeks. There are MANY improvements over CS3, and it is lightning fast in all ways. It has been rock solid. All bugs have been eliminated.

August 11th, 2009, 11:00 AM	#8
Graham Hickling Trustee Join Date: May 2004 Location: Knoxville, Tennessee Posts: 1,669	> How do you guys with CS3 edit the footage from the new AVCHD consumer cameras? Convert to Cineform intermediate and edit that. Works great, even on my puny laptop (2GHz, 2GB RAM).

August 11th, 2009, 03:57 PM	#9
Eric Addison Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: San Diego, California Posts: 74	I've got a dual quad core workstation (2GHz) with 8GB of RAM, and AVCHD from a Panasonic HMC-150 plays back MUCH smoother for me now after the 4.1 update. 720p footage even plays back pretty smooth on my Core 2 Duo laptop. I agree that if you want to edit native AVCHD, you need to have a pretty strong computer.

August 12th, 2009, 06:32 PM	#10
David Merrill Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Los Angeles, Ca. Posts: 91	I use a Dual Core E6550 with 3 gigs ram, Production Premium, Neoscene. Works great! With effects and multiple tracks it won't edit real time but no other problems.