Premiere XDCAM HD plug-in from Main Concept
 

Just came across this new plug-in from main concept
http://www.mainconcept.com/site/index.php?id=7850

It allows Premiere Pro users to import HD XDCAM MXF clips into premiere pro in thier natve format. Although when you start a project you only get presets for 25mb, once you have opened a project you can change the bit rate via a whole bunch of XDCAM presets to 35Mb. I even get full resolution preview on my second monitor which is very cool. This now means that I can import HDCAM using my Balckmagic card and HD XDCAM into the same edit package for editing and at 35mb, althout the caveat is that it will only export XDCAM MXF's at 25Mb.

What's so difficult to implement with the 35Mb codec???????

Don't make the mistake I did at first.. you should copy the MXF files you want to use from the XDCAM disk to your local drive before impoting into prmiere. This is where the Sony PDZ1 comes in handy as you can use that to select the clips you want, then transfer them to the hard drive ready for import into Premiere.

The more I paly with this plug in the more I like it. If you plug in a dv deck it will downconvert and give you an SD DV output in real time. Perfect for feeding a CRT monitor for grading.

Nice. I've been wondering when Adobe would join the rest of the world.

Have you been able to get FAM partial file copy to work in the software with 35mb clips? Everytime I tried to do that, it choked on the first file in the story line saying it couldn't read the file. Of course it reads just fine if I tell it to copy the entire clip.

-gb-

No I have not tried partial file copy.

I have found that although there are only export presets for 25Mb, you can actually export at any supported HD XDCAM bit rate, so this appears to be the only full 35Mb end to end workflow at the moment.

It would be interesting to see if you can perform a partial file transfer using 35mbps footage. PDZ-1 crapped out on me each time I tried this.

35mb w/ Avid.
 

Avid Composer (we have the software only version) is working seamlessly w/ the 35mb files. Drag and drop from camera into an Avid bin.

Dutch, can you export a 35Mb HD XDCAM MXF back to the camera with Media Composer? Xpress Pro can't export a 25Mb MXF to the camera while it can import fine.

That's exactly what I was referring to in my post, Simon. I told a Sony rep about it at the Apply/Sony seminar. Don't know how much good it will do but I have some other contacts higher up the chain. I will let them know also that it's not just my issue.

Have you told Clive about it on the XDCAM.AU forums?

-gb-

I haven't mentioned it on the XDCAM forums, although I have mentioned it to my contacts over here.

Alister,

I've been directing the files to external Seagates, so my need to use the Blue-Ray on the camera as a drive to go to and from diff editing stations hasn't really come up. I'm going to hdcam, mpeg2, beta or dvcam for broadcast.

I don't think the camera would want to re/de-code the mxf file. But, I'll try it and see what happens.

Would appreciate a test to see if it can be done. I'm sure many will only have XDCAM so being able to write a 35Mb file back to the camera or deck is important. However as you say most producing for broadcast will have write to HDCAM or a SD.

I so wish Avid hadn't crippled Xpress pro by leaving out 35Mb support. Another nail in the Avid coffin as I am sure 35Mb will come for FCP pretty soon.

At least with premiere i can mix and match just about any type of file/format I want in the same project.

That is one of the functions available now from FCP is that your finished sequence can be laid back to disk for archival purposes. Unfortunately, that means only 25mbs files at the moment cause that's all Sony XDCAM Transfer will process.

So that's part of the reason for wondering if Avid will do the same, but with the 35mb files as well.

-gb-

Plug in eats memory
 

Further testing/use of the plug-in has revealed that it eats huge amounts of RAM. I have 2Gb of ram on my edit PC and a 4min sequence with around 25 clips used up all the RAM to the point where premiere crashed. If this is the case the plug-in isn't going to be much use for most of us.

Here's waht mainconcept tech support have to say....

"in our latest version of the plugin we have some problems with HD files and the memory managment.

We are working on a new version of the plugin which will solve this problem.

I would recommend to wait for the new version.
Unfortunately we don't have any release date for it but i think that we will release it soon."

So basicaly thier Mpeg Pro HD plug-in won't work with HD! Can't believe they are still advertising this as such and selling it, knowing that it dosn't work! More than 10 clips or 2 mins and it falls over.