Life is very good with Canopus and Nx....and more to come.

This weekend my brother and I loaded Edius Pro 3 onto his new Pentium 4 computer running at 3.0 GHz with a two-drive IDE RAID. We were able to use the Canopus MPEGCapture utility to record from the Sony FX1 to the Canopus HQ codec at "standard" quality setting in real time, and then easily play one layer of video with a color correction filter in real time without rendering. Two layers with a chromakey filter could play in fast-forward or reverse without rendering but not at standard play speed (go figure). Two layers with a 3D picture-in-picture filter would not play without rendering.

My conclusion is that a good single-processor PC is barely adequate for basic HDV capture and editing with Edius, which is actually more than I'd hoped for. This makes sense when you consider that a single layer of HDV contains as many pixels of information as 4.5 layers of DV, plus requires the computer to scale this information from 1440x1080 to 1920x1080 to display properly. There shouldn't be any question that a fast dual-processor computer is recommended for effective HDV editing, and even then you won't be stacking layers in real time like we can these days for DV.

I don't see much discussion on the internet from people using Pinnacle Liquid Edition to edit HDV. This doesn't surprise me, given that working with the "native" HDV format is even more processor-intensive than using intermediate editing codecs. By comparison, Canopus has a functional solution which can work in real time as described above without any special hardware support, and offers full-quality HD output in real time with the NX and SP hardware cards on properly configured computers. As I understand it, Premiere Pro with Cineform only offers a handful of filters in real time for HDV work, whereas Edius has a complete set of filters, transitions and keyers which will work in real time if you put enough horsepower behind them. By some accounts the new Apple HDV codec has obvious artifacts with even simple edits, and they haven't even incorporated this into their flagship editing program yet. That leaves Canopus in pretty good shape compared to all other shipping HDV solutions, provided you're willing to work with the Edius software which is still missing a few high-end editing features.

a few points here

1) For HDV 1080i you're going to need a ton of computer performance. This Dual Xeon or Opeteron with 2Gb of RAM. Anything less may work, but the workflow will be slow.

2) Pinnacle just releaased LE6.1 - dramatic improvement here with Sony HDV cams.

3) Avid just purchased Pinnacle. Short term impact very little. long term - who knows. I think the technology in LE6 and Xpress pro compliment eachother and a future 'merged' prodcut would be a killer app. Time will tell.

Gary
Videoguys.com

Gary,

Preimier Pro 1.5.1 with Aspect HD 3.0 works just fine on a P4 3.4. Pushing almost 4 layers of 1080i with transitions and color correction. You sell it.

<<<-- Originally posted by Ed Szarleta :

Preimier Pro 1.5.1 with Aspect HD 3.0 works just fine on a P4 3.4. Pushing almost 4 layers of 1080i with transitions and color correction. -->>>

Actually, you are not editing HDV, you are editing a proxy file. You are also not able to view the HDV signal on a broadcast monitor in Real Time.

Gary was suggesting you needed the big horsepower to edit actual HDV streams in RT, and see them on an external monitor, not the computer screen in RT.

Cineform is a great application, but for pro edit suites you need to see the output in RT on an HDTV screen - preferably a broadcast monitor.

Hope this helps

DBK

I am aware I am not editing in Long GOP format. Personally, I don't want to. And I output via component on my 6600GT to my HD 52in CRT just fine.

Ed: can you provide more information about what filters and transitions work in real time with Cineform in Premiere Pro? I've been told it's a very short list for real time purposes, and that all other effects need to be rendered to be played. Comments?

No disrespect to the board moderators but,

Funny how i started this thread but my last post got deleted. i guess we can't state opinions around here or maybe i can't say that cineform falls very short of a practical choice for editing HDV when you have to re-encode before you can edit. and i guess i can't say to buy canopus edius 3.x for only 200.00 USD more than cineform and get a great NLE with RT editing on a p4 3.2 ghz machine.

This will probably be deleted as well but at least i tried.

Joel

It is a fairly short list, but I do mostly narrative work and for me a few dissolves and color correction are the extent of my workflow. So, it is possible that AspectHD might not be for the transition heavy user. It suites my needs however. Trying to get a blog online with my experiences with Aspect. I will post when it is online.

Joel: if you don't understand why your posts are getting deleted for using the phrase "g-y a-s plugin," you need to take some sensitivity training or something. If you'd just refrain from such unnecessary language and stick to more level-headed comments about why you prefer one solution over another, that would be better for all concerned (including you).

That’s fine but that phrase just about sums up cineforms HDV solution, its just a plain rip off and doesn't make sense. Sorry if I offended anyone not trying to do that just trying to have people who responded to my post understand what i am feeling inside. that’s all.


Joel

Why don't you tell us why it's a ripoff Joel. I am sure everyone would love to hear your reasons and it might add valitdity to you claim. (although I doubt it). :)

<<<-- Originally posted by Joel Corral : ..... its just a plain rip off and doesn't make sense. ......Joel -->>>

It's not a rip off Joel. The product does everything the product advertises. I'm not sure what you expected.

It's also been updated over the past 12 months, and the price has beend dropped. Adobe liked it so much they bought part of the technology behind it, so frankly, your statements are unfounded.

Now, if you want to do what others have suggested and outline your actual complaints rather than generic phrases, perhaps you are using it wrong, or have some hardware-software issues the board can help with.

Hope this helps

DBK

Well Ed for one thing,

At 499.00 you are getting a fastidious plug-in not a actual NLE. You can purchase Canopus Edius 3.x which has NATIVE HDV REAL TIME EDITING for 200.00 USD more. You can also monitor your HDV capture and once again there is no intermediate codec to transcode to first before you can edit. (MUCH BETTER WORK FLOW) That alone is currently a PRICELESS feature. There are only 2 NLE's under $1,000.00 that offer REAL TIME NATIVE HDV EDITING SOLUTIONS; EDIUS AND LIQUID EDITION. That is why I started this thread, to discuss who is using what and who is getting the best results.

thanks,

joel

<<<-- Originally posted by Joel Corral : Well Ed for one thing,

At 499.00 you are getting a fastidious plug-in not a actual NLE. joel -->>>

OK, so you don't like buying plugins.

If you really like using Premiere Pro, the plugin gives you some significant abilities not otherwise available to you.

Also, many people don't want to edit in native MPEG2 due to the technical limitations the GOP frames offer.

Even Canopus in the hardware version of their product recommend using their HD codec instead of the native HDV codec, which they do support natively.

I'm using that system, and I like it because of the additional Real time I get, and the external monitoring.

Does this help?

DBK

<<<-- Originally posted by Darren Kelly : <<<-- Originally posted by Joel Corral : ..... its just a plain rip off and doesn't make sense. ......Joel -->>>

It's not a rip off Joel. The product does everything the product advertises. I'm not sure what you expected.

It's also been updated over the past 12 months, and the price has beend dropped. Adobe liked it so much they bought part of the technology behind it, so frankly, your statements are unfounded.

Now, if you want to do what others have suggested and outline your actual complaints rather than generic phrases, perhaps you are using it wrong, or have some hardware-software issues the board can help with.

Hope this helps

DBK -->>>

Daren,

Yes it does most of what it advertises most of the time. I have been using adobe premiere since version 5.0 but their decision to make Cineform there HDV solution is a temporally quick fix. I can expect that Adobe; in there v2.x will have a much better solution, whether it is with Cineform or there own developed software technology. Because of their 1.5.1 update was less than what I expected, I now use Eduis for all HDV editing and continue to use PPRO 1.5 for SD projects. Cineform will eventually be a practical solution for HDV, so maybe in time my views will be different on this software but for now my moneys on Canopus. Does not anyone here agree that cineform's plugin is far more inferior to Liquid Edition or Edius 3.x?


joel

Joel Corral:

<< This will probably be deleted as well but at least i tried. >>

I will not tolerate vulgarity on my message boards. Keep your vocabulary clean or I'll clean it up for you. Patently offensive and crass remarks have no place here whatsoever, no matter what the perceived justification for them may be. Please try to get into the spirit of the proceedings here. I don't think you would use that sort of language in a business presentation, so don't use it online. I want this community to reflect some degree of professional standards. Thanks,

Sorry Chris, I won't say it again. but for the record I guess it depends on who you are dealing with and your surrounding environment, I am from California and have worked in the action sports industry for about 10 years that and phrases like that are the norm.

I understand that you are excited about your new workflow Joel, but for people who already own Premiere Pro 1.5, the additional cost is only $499 as you said. So lets address the real costs involved besides the additional $200.

The learning curve for a new NLE is steep. And while if your claims are correct, Edius does not make you wait for a conversion - which is a bit annoying but not terrible - it is missing some of the other features found in Premiere Pro. And probably more important, it does not integrate with the rest of the Adobe products as well as Premiere Pro.

From what I have read, the Cineform solution is better for people with less powerful PCs. My own editing PC is only a single 3.06GHz CPU - not powerful by today's standards. Yet I get great results from the Cineform solution.

By the way, if you prefer editing M2T, Premiere Pro 1.5.1 can do the job using the MainConcept plugin for less money than Cineform. And, in fact, Premiere Pro 1.5.1 - a free upgrade, can edit HDV just fine. Slow, but it does the job. For free.

So, I am happy you are pleased with your solution. I have purchased Canopus products in the past. I own a DVStorm2 I really need to get rid of on EBay since it is useless to me now.

But namecalling is unwarranted. Everyone has different needs.

The learning curve for a new NLE is steep. And while if your claims are correct, Edius does not make you wait for a conversion - which is a bit annoying but not terrible - it is missing some of the other features found in Premiere Pro. And probably more important, it does not integrate with the rest of the Adobe products as well as Premiere Pro.

From what I have read, the Cineform solution is better for people with less powerful PCs. My own editing PC is only a single 3.06GHz CPU - not powerful by today's standards. Yet I get great results from the Cineform solution.

By the way, if you prefer editing M2T, Premiere Pro 1.5.1 can do the job using the MainConcept plugin for less money than Cineform. And, in fact, Premiere Pro 1.5.1 - a free upgrade, can edit HDV just fine. Slow, but it does the job. For free.

So, I am happy you are pleased with your solution. I have purchased Canopus products in the past. I own a DVStorm2 I really need to get rid of on EBay since it is useless to me now.

But namecalling is unwarranted. Everyone has different needs. -->>>

You know Steven,

I thought I would have a hard time learning Edius but its very simple and has a classic UI (user interface) and surprisingly it works great with adobe products.

<<<-- Originally posted by Steven Gotz : I own a DVStorm2 I really need to get rid of on EBay since it is useless to me now.



Actually, I believe Canopus has a $400 rebate for owners of DVStorm on the purchase of the Edius NX system. Visit thier web site, but the last time I checked that's how it worked.

DBK

wow an even better reason to love it. to bad i didn't own DVstorm. Great Value, I am tell you guys.

I appreciate that, Joel,

<< I am from California and have worked in the action sports industry for about 10 years that and phrases like that are the norm. >>

I find that easy to believe! It's a very broad, diverse audience here, and since this is a text-based discussion it's also very difficult to accurately convey any number of emotions without offending somebody somewhere. I've found that it's really best just to stick with the technical side of things. This way the threads are streamlined and easier to read. That's why we take serious efforts to avoid politics, religion, vulgarity, anything that would detract from a purely technical exchange. Thanks for understanding,

By the way, you can cross-grade to Edius for only $499 - which actually makes Joel's argument a bit stronger. Plus you get some other cool stuff - like a keyboard.

I believe that the trade-in period is over. Besides, my PC isn't powerful enough to handle the new hardware. It only matches the minimum speed. I won't be upgrading until at least this summer. The trip to Greece this June is taking all my serious cash.

I was not aware Edius edited in Long GOP. I own LE and a dual Xeon 3Ghz box and Long GOP editing is painfull compared to AspectHD. I can't imagine Edius being better than LE 6.1 in native HDV, but I never used it. Conversion to CFHD is a minor inconvience compared the the enhanced editing speed imo. Others might disagree.

For what it's worth, the upgrade to NX uses an intermediate codec, so I would assume Canopus themselves is siding with Cineform on recommended workflow. What do you guys think?

I think that an intermediate codec is the appropriate solution. As long as you have a video card that can help you view the output on an external monitor.

There are ways to edit the long GOP, and they work OK, but I prefer to stick with the Aspect HD solution. The additional effects and transitions that all work in realtime with my underpowered PC just solves too many problems.

<<<-- Originally posted by Steven Gotz : By the way, you can cross-grade to Edius for only $499 - which actually makes Joel's argument a bit stronger. Plus you get some other cool stuff - like a keyboard.

I believe that the trade-in period is over. Besides, my PC isn't powerful enough to handle the new hardware. It only matches the minimum speed. I won't be upgrading until at least this summer. The trip to Greece this June is taking all my serious cash. -->>>

steven why don't you download the demo from there site? give it a shot you'll be suprized at how well your machine will do.

I have AMD XP2500 and on this machine the conversion time for Canopus HQ and the Cineform intermediate file is about the same ( about 2 times realtime ) Once in this intermediate form both Premiere Pro 1.5.1 and Edius Pro3 will playback the files. My machine is not powerful enough to playback the mt2 files without picture breakup and eventually stopping. Also my machine is not able to use the capture utilities of either Edius PRo3 or Premiere 1.5.1 since they either display a preview screen or convert on capture both of which end in the program stopping!!! CapDVHS and Cineform capture will however capture from my FX1 with no problems and I can then convert in non realtime to the intermediate files. I see little difference between the programs as far as compute power is concerned ( they both think my machine is inadequate!!!!) I thought of upgrading to a more powerful processor but will wait until I can afford a dual now.

Ron Evans

yes dual is the way to go. and 2 gigs of ram won't hurt either.

A few clarifications regarding the Canopus HDV offerings:

Both the software-only and hardware-supported Edius products can edit using either the native HDV format or the Canopus HQ codec. But I don't know anyone who's using native HDV in Edius because it would make no sense to do so: that reduces performance to unworkable levels with no benefit in terms of workflow. Based on all the comments I've seen around the internet, there is no one finding any meaningful benefit to doing native HDV editing, and all the popular solutions are using some sort of intermediate codec (e.g. Cineform, Canopus HQ, Apple AIC).

As things stand today Canopus appears to easily have the most advanced HDV solutions, with a reasonable workflow and greatest variety of real-time HDV editing features. The catch is that their approach requires a little more horsepower compared to others for both the capture and editing phases, but a high-end single-processor PC is adequate for basic HDV work in Edius. If you really want to do significant HDV editing you need to plan to buy a dual-processor computer no matter what solution you're using, because it's just too much data to work well otherwise. You'll find some Mac users claiming they're doing HDV work on a single-processor G4 system, but if you press them they'll probably admit they have to render almost all of their changes to play them back. Editing HDV on one processor is like trying to haul a load of scrap iron on a bicycle: you can do it, but it's going to be slow going!

" If you really want to do significant HDV editing you need to plan to buy a dual-processor computer no matter what solution you're using"

That is simply not true. The Cineform AspectHD solution offers ample performance from a single 800+ bus P4. The latest release v3 has just doubled the number of RT streams in the PPro timeline. 3-4 in 1080i or around 6 in my prefered 720p. At $800 including PPro, audition, and Encore, it can hardly be considered overpriced for what you get.

"The Cineform AspectHD solution offers ample performance from a single 800+ bus P4. The latest release v3 has just doubled the number of RT streams in the PPro timeline. 3-4 in 1080i or around 6 in my prefered 720p. At $800 including PPro, audition, and Encore, it can hardly be considered overpriced for what you get."

Ken: that's a fair statement, except Cineform reportedly only supports a handful of editing features in real time and hasn't (at least until now) been able to offer full-quality HD preview output, plus rendering times for finished projects are reportedly quite slow even with dual processors. (As is true for other HDV editing options.) So although $800 for the Cineform/Premiere bundle isn't a bad deal, it's not necessarily a better deal than spending a few hundred for Edius Pro 3 and then building or buying a hot-shot computer to back it up. It all depends how far you want to push your HDV editing and how much you can afford to spend to do so. Even with Cineform, the benefits in terms of reduced rendering time from dual processors would be worth the extra investment in base hardware.

OK, let's put all the speculation aside and get to the facts.

I own a 3.2 Dual Xeon and have ran LE 6.1 with Long GOP on it with my FX1 footage. I get about 3 layers in RT on this setup. No more. That's with transitions and color correction only.

I own a 3.2 P4 box with AspectHD (which will soon be going on my Xeon Box) and I get a solid 4 layers with the same transitions and color correction.

There is no way Edius SW only solution can outperform LE 6.1 Pro in Long GOP.

A few people claim there Edius SW only solution is performing well for what they are doing, which might be true, but let's compare apples to apples.

AspectHD easily outperforms the Edius SW only solution. There is no comparison. Noticed I said software solution. I am sure the NX series trumps the AspectHD solution, but everyone here seems to be using the sofware only in Long GOP and AspectHD beats it easily.

Ed: the problem here is that you're not specifying what editing features you can support in real time on those setups. I've seen screen shots from people who have the Premiere Pro/Cineform software showing that the total number of filters and effects available in real time can be counted on your fingers, whereas with Edius it's pretty much the entire feature set of the application. I don't have any comparable information for Liquid Edition, but what little feedback I've seen for that is that most people can't get it to work reliably with HDV footage.

Ultimately I don't see a conflict in what we're saying here. Cineform is a good value for basic HDV work on single-processor computers if you don't need full-quality HD monitoring or a wide range of real-time editing features. Liquid Edition may be pretty good at editing native HDV if you can get it to work, and again if you don't need true HD monitoring. Edius will do HDV on high-end single processor systems but not older ones, and offers the most advanced HDV solution available if you can afford a fast computer and a Canopus HDV hardware card. On this last point there isn't any competition, because Canopus is the only company shipping an HDV solution with full-quality HD monitoring as an out-of-the-box option.

I posted above about what RT capabilities I have. I do mostly narrative work and dissolves and color correction are all I use. If you are doing PIP and Page curls, I would guess it would tax the best machines out there. I don't have time to test things I don't use, so I apologize for not delving deeper into the RT capabilities of all products. As far as RT Monitoring in AspectHD...I have it. My 6600GT with component out to my Mitsu HD monitor works just fine and dandy.

"As far as RT Monitoring in AspectHD...I have it. My 6600GT with component out to my Mitsu HD monitor works just fine and dandy."

Ed: you're right, it is now possible to generate draft-quality HD ouptut from Premiere Pro/Cineform using a high-end video card costing around $200-250, which brings the total price of this solution to over $1000. That's still a lot less than the complete Edius NX bundle costs, but as you said we shouldn't compare apples to oranges. Cineform is an excellent compromise if you don't need anything beyond the supported feature set, and if you're not picky about whether your monitoring output is full quality 1080i video. And then there's the empty slot on the NX hardware card for a future real-time HD DVD encoder, but that's a subject for next year.

Cineform is apparently more hardware-efficient than Edius, but that doesn't make it more advanced. Gotta look at the overall picture...

You guys keep posting large numbers like we didn't already own Premiere Pro. Many of us do. If, perhaps, you didn't have anything, it might be a good idea to try Edius. But since I already own Premiere Pro, I chose a solution that was right for me.

Aspect HD.

Excellent point Steven. Aspect HD is a great way for Premiere Pro editors to migrate to HDV. The workflow is actually very smooth, and as was mentioned, you aren't going to have to buy a new computer to run it.

Working with a digital intermediary technology (what a mouthful) takes getting used to. But I think the results are worth it. Premiere editors save a TON of time and money.

- You don't have to learn a new NLE. Premiere Pro is a very powerful editor, with a great feature set.

- You don't have to go and buy a dual processor computer. This is a very important point that should not be overlooked. P Pro w/ Aspect HD will run great in a P4 2.2 Ghz machine with a GB of RAM. Even a laptop!

- You still keep the Adobe workflow and integration with their other apps - After Effects, PhotoShop, Encore & Audition. This will only get stronger and better with future releases.

- With new Dual head graphic cardcs like the PNY540V you can get real-time HD previews out to an HD TV.


Gary

<<<-- Originally posted by Gary Bettan :
- This will only get stronger and better with future releases.
Gary -->>>

yes, i do agree "in time" Premiere will be stronger and better, but there solution just isn't there yet.

Joel,

I am really interested in what you think is wrong with Premiere Pro and Cineform Aspect HD 3.0

Which technical issues, or workflow issues are you unhappy with?

I know that the solution is not perfect, but it works great for me. It could be faster. But the effects are sufficient for my needs, as are the transitions. And the realtime editing is great.

I would like to buy a new video card that can handle monitoring the HDV editing like I have when editing DV. But that will come.

Steven,

There is nothing wrong with Ppro, I love it and as I mentioned in a earlier posts I have been using Premiere since v5.0. It’s Cineform that I do with out. I still don't see the point in using an intermediate codec for editing. m2t>avi>m2t- then i am finished? NO WAY! I can tell you this, the performance I am getting off my single processor 3.2gHz 533 FSB PC with a gig a ram is very good in the Software only version of Canopus Edius. I get (I would say) 98% RT WITH color effects and a slow motion effect. Not bad and thats in native m2t. (Not the HQ codec some people have referred to.) Listen, I tested out AspectHD 2.5 & 3.0 and it just doesn’t come close to the quality and performance (Native m2t editing) as Eduis. Another issue I have is when I captured using the HDlink and from Ppro I get "broken up" frames and green screens. (I don't with Edius). Another, sometimes when I would add an effect the picture would turn upside down and get very pinkish redish. These alone are enough to look the other way. Not to mention that you got to wait before you can edit. Edius is very easy to use and is rock solid 1080i HDV Editing and I also get great results when I do 1080i to 720p Down conversion using Procoder Express that comes with it all for near the same price a AspectHD “PLUGIN”.


Joel

<<<-- Originally posted by Steven Gotz : Joel,

I know that the solution is not perfect, but it works great for me. It could be faster. But the effects are sufficient for my needs, as are the transitions. And the realtime editing is great.>>>


The Edius solution is so far PERFECT! :)

j

Perfect? Wow, that's great. That means you can copy from an After Effects timeline to a Edius timeline?

I don't know why you were getting broken frames. I don't. And I don't know why you got green screens and upside down video. I don't.

But your claims that Edius is perfect are simply nonsense. I am glad you are happy. I am happy with Aspect HD. But neither are perfect.

Steven,

Its not nonsense. How are you biasing your level of perfection? Does a application have to integrate well with Adobe products to be perfect? When I say perfect I am stating that thus far there is nothing I can complain about the Edius software. everything works well with absolutely no flaws and never crashed. i get great high quality professional HDV results. If I have a project to do in after effects, no problem just render it out and import it into Edius. Easy as 1-2-3.


joel :)

Joel
"I still don't see the point in using an intermediate codec for editing."

Speed, colour correction, any FX work. Native Mt2 is not ideal for any of these.

"Listen, I tested out AspectHD 2.5 & 3.0 and it just doesn’t come close to the quality and performance "

Are you kidding? You really can't do much with a mt2 file befor it falls apart. And performance is frickin light years over native mt2 editing. Unless maybe you have an ill configured system with no RAID to handle the larger intermediate file size of the Cineform .avi. Were you trying to run it with your 533 bus P4 system? Cineform needs (excels with) dual channel ram and 800fsb+. A 2.8 P4 with 800fsb would run laps around your system.

"Another issue I have is when I captured using the HDlink and from Ppro I get "broken up" frames and green screens. (I don't with Edius). Another, sometimes when I would add an effect the picture would turn upside down and get very pinkish redish."

Well you probably know very well this is not the norm. Cineform tech support would resolve these issues I'm sure. Did you ever contact them?

"Not to mention that you got to wait before you can edit."

My capture conversion time is very close to real-time. HT has been enabled in the latest releases and has sped this up greatly.

As far as NLE preferance goes, to each their own. I don't care what anyone uses. But don't give a half-assed shot at some software on a sub-minimum recommended system and then announce it is crap. Editing native mt2 is crap. That is why all but the entry level NLE's have made an intermediate codec part of their high end package.

thanks ken,

now why don't you chill a little, i never insulted anyone why are you insulting me? my whole point is with my pc configuration i get great results with Edius. if you read others who posted the whole point for Aspecthd that you are able to get good results with a "not so beefed up system" , not the case with me. i get better results with edius. and eduis is not a entry level application. it may lack some features but it's not entry level have you tried it for your self? if not you have no say in whats more efficient than another.


J

Telling you your system is subpar for running AspectHD is NOT a insult Joel. We are talking NLE's here, nothing personal.
I am making no comments as to how well Edius works. If it is good for you all the better. It was you who were painting AspectHD with a negative brush. Apparently with a corrupt software install and a sub recommended sytem spec to boot. Many of us here use AspectHD and think it is an amazing product, even for the $. We are in a little disagrement with your opinion of native mt2 editing as being better.

ken,

try it and see the light they have a 30 day demo on there site.

Will have a fully functional copy of Edius 3.22 this weekend. I will run tests with it's Long GOP vs Liquid's Long GOP vs Aspect HD on my P4 3.2 and dual Xeon box.

Although Joel swears his performance on the Edius SW is better than the AspectHD, I just don't see it.

Sorry for my scepticism Joel, but I just can't see Edius with 1080i footage in Long GOP even playing back two layers on your machine. Liquid give mes about 1 layer with some effects without breaking up on my P4 3.2 800FSB and V7100 FireGL. Even if Edius is on par with LE 6.1 (which I doubt), your machine is radically underspeced for Long GOP editing. How many fps are you getting on your timeline in just playback with some minor cc?

I am not trying to start a fight, simply expressing my opinion based on compareable product. If Edius can edit LongGOP as well as you claim, I have found a new editor. But unfortunately, I think your claims are a bit exaggerated.

We will soon find out, either way. Report back on Sunday night with results. Just had twins, so it's going to be a busy first Easter for them. :)

Ed: if it's not too much trouble, please comment on what editing features are supported in real time on your system with each of the respective applications. Also, a quick test of WMV and MPEG2 encoding times would be informative. Thanks!