Ulead MediaStudio 7 - opinions wanted
 

I like the look of Ulead's MSP 7... the rotoscoping, painting, MPEG2 editing & capture, etc. If anyone has used this software, I'd value your opinion, especially comparing it to Premiere Pro.

Hi Bill,

I was beginning to think I was the only one around here to even think of using Media Studio Pro. I just upgraded to V7 from V6 and added the HDV plug-in.

I have long been a supporter for this program. Some time back I remember seeing comparisons between this and Premiere. Everyone liked the MSP interface better than Premiere, yet it gets lost among the more professional users around here. I have some issues with the HDV plug-in which I'm trying to resolve with Ulead. Thankfully, the program runs pretty smoothly, and you won't need much (if any) help.

It's hard to imagine needing any more than this program has to offer, and it is soooo easy to use. It's a breeze next to Windows Movie Maker.

The best thing is to go their web site (ulead.com) and download a 30 day trial.

If you can get Videostudio 7 (or 8)SE you can upgrade for $199. You can buy a firewire card from ADS for $69 with Videostudio and a firewire cable - then upgrade. I recently bought an HDTV tuner card and IT came with Videostudio 7SE.

Good luck!

Sure. I use MSP 7. ([plug] Some free tutorials and plugins are here on my website. [/plug])
In terms of "comparing it to Premiere Pro".... in what context?

What formats will you be shooting in?
What to you plan to do? What do you hope to achieve?
Who will you be working with?

What experience do you have?

Assuming you'll be working on your own, in DV, and don't have extensive experience with either program, there are really only two key advantages that PPro would have over MSP (IMO):
1) A larger user base, therefore more people to answer your questions.
2) Tight integration with After Effects (which really only matters if you plan on also getting AE)

In terms of DV editing, MSP has you covered.
Even has tight integration with Photoshop files.
Compositing and effects tools in MSP are better than PPro (partly because PPro is light on these features since Adobe would like to see you buy AE too.)
MPEG capture and editing seems to work fine, but I have to admit that I almost never use it since none of my cameras shoot in MPEG2 (seems silly to me to start compressing data before you even begin to edit)
The roto tool is fantastic (MUCH better than the PPro/Photoshop "filmstrip" solution), it's VERY fast, and is quite easy to use.
MSP certainly comes in at a better price point.

For what it's worth, I think you would be doing yourself a disservice to not add Vegas into your evaluation list.
I've never used Vegas (I have used both Premiere and MSP), but I believe that the loyal following that Vegas has is testiment to the fact that it is a quality piece of software worth investigating.

Have fun.

I've been using MSP 6 since it came out 3 or 4 yrs ago and now v7
The only other editing software I've used is Premiere. I had to edit 26 half hour programmes for tv and used MSP and Premier on this job.

Pages have been written on which is best, but in my experience Ulead MSP comes out far on top.
Why? MSP is very creative with it's CCG graphics and Video Paint features.
MSP is far more stable than Premiere in fact it never crashes or hangs up.
MSP seems more user friendly than Premiere. It has a easy user feel about it. I found Premiere rather awkward in comparison.
MSP manual is far better laid out and easier and quicker to follow and has more illustrations than Premiere.
I'm quite familar with computer graphics as I operate a signmaking business as well as video and spend it seems all my life on computers.
The computer I use for video editing has 3gig cpu, 2gig ram and 250gig hard drive space. XP pro operating system.

Hope this is of some help.

MediaStudio Pro 7
 

I had a new PC built 10 months ago and I upgraded to MSP 7 from version 6.5 at that time. MSP 7 is a very stable program for *most* users, but MSP message boards are full of complaints. (See DMN Forums to see what I'm talking about.) Problems range from fuzzy images and compression problems to crashes. I have experienced great frustration with MSP 7 from time to time, but not badly enough for me to abandon it. For example, MSP crashes when I try to normalize audio clips using its included Normalize audio filter. When I relaunch MSP right away, I can apply the Normalize filter again with no problems; go figure. I'm annoyed that I have to change my workflow to accommodate this bug, and no one else seems to be experiencing this problem. Ulead Tech Support for this application is sorely lacking, in my opinion. If the problem is my hardware, they should be able to tell me that. Instead, they just ignore me.

Strengths:
* Realtime editing and previews on external TV/video monitor
* Easy to learn
* Price & value
* Stability
* Smart Package, Smart Trim, and Smart Relink project management tools
* Video Paint rotoscoping app is cool
* Easy batch capturing and logging with DV tape scanning feature
* No-nonsense interface

Weaknesses:
* Poor tech support
* Buggy behavior and poor patch/upgrade procedures
* Color correction tools are weak and not user-friendly
* Little to no acceptance among professional users.

Overall, it's worth buying when you outgrow programs like VideoStudio, Pinnacle Studio, or Windows Movie Maker, as long as you don't have to share projects with other editors. I hear there's a version 8 in the works. I really hope Ulead Systems takes their time and does it right this time. They came VERY close with version 7, which is hampered from being a credible NLE by bugginess, an old-school interface, and weak marketing. Until Ulead puts as much blood, sweat, and tears into MediaStudio Pro as they do into their many popular consumer apps like CD & DVD PictureShow, DVD Workshop will be their only professional-grade application.

We had ULead MSP installed on our church computer with some hardware. We use it to capture, but found it unuseable for editing. We use Sony Vegas and Adobe Premeire. I think you would be better served with Sony Movie Studio if you want a consumer level product like MSP, or get Vegas if you want to step up to a prosumer level product.

Patrick,

This was not my experience at all. I started with 6.0, so I've been using it for awhile. I think it's very easy to use. Ulead not very responsive though.

I have found over the years the best results come from any pc by dedicating it to a specific job. Now I know many will jump up and down and say computers multitask.

However. I get the best results by having my video editing computer dedicated to just video. No internet modem, no firewalls, no anti-virus, no networks. In many cases all these little programmes run away in the background and may cause unexpected and unexplained problems.

If your system is not working. Do a backup. Reformat your hard drive. Reload your operating system. Reload MSP along with any upgrades downloaded and virus scanned on another computer. Install your upgrades. Install nothing else, then use MSP for a while. It will probably work very well. If it does, install anything else you may need for video one piece of software at a time e.g. Photoshop. Then run a test on MSP. If it's working, try adding some more. One at a time with a test period in between. But I'd keep your computer OFF the internet. Especially if you're into downloading lots of stuff. You never know what else you're getting.

Also the manufactures of software usually state a minimum and recommended system requirements. The minimum is a disaster and the recommended is barely enough. Start by at least doubling the recommended system requirement.

A word to PatricK King. I as well have done and are still making video for a church. The church scene is a difficult one in that every Tom, Dick and Harry thinks they're God's gift to video and computers. In reality their collective input does nothing but than stuff things up. Insist to your church they have a dedicated computer for their video, and only selected trained people may use it.

Owen,

Good advice about using the computer you want to do video on to perform little else but video editing. In fact that is how the church's computer is set up. My editing computer also. I have this one for internet and the editing computer for editing. We have limited access to the church computer to 4 people, two directors of the live service who only capture to it (using ULead) and 2 editors (myself and one other). Put 2gigs of RAM and two 7200rpm SATA drives, speed isn't an issue; the computer is generally waiting on us and not vice versa.

When the computer was installed for the task, the other editor and I tried to work with MSP, and neither of us thought we could achieve satisfactory output in the time required. I'll have to admit I only gave it three weeks, but the other guy used it for five before he begged for a copy of Premeire. I would have preferred to put Vegas on it, but he had never worked it either, and I had some time with Premeire. The straw that broke the camels back was trying to get customer support; so we bought Premeire (I still work on my personal copy of Vegas, on which I'm more comfortable).

We may not have given MSP a fair shake, but as different as Vegas and Premeire interfaces are, the ULead interface looks and feels less feature-rich than the other two, more consumer oriented than prosumer (we aren't pros, but editing three projects a week, will quickly provide experience). Sorry if I raised hackles, thats just our experience with MSP.

Hi Patrick,

Thanks. Looks like you're onto and ontop of things. Good one.
Cheers from down under.

Owen,

I wish you would post some test footage from your 'neck of the woods'. Any camera will do, just shoot the scenery. And while others comment on the cine gamma, luminance and such, I'll just admire the amazing scenery from your 'neck of the woods'. Always wanted to visit NZ, I imagine it to be Shangri-La (don't burst my bubble, just say it's amazing).

Hi Patrick,

OK. You can e-mail me direct if you wish. I can send you some footage. Yep!!! NZ is amazing.