Editing dilemma at DVinfo.net

Tim Eykll · May 6th, 2006, 06:14 PM

Hello all, new here and newly independent.

I worked in acquisitions and development for various production companies in LA and decided about a year ago that I would prefer to hoe my own line. I quickly found a project and wrapped a week ago last Sunday. It is a documentary that I shot in Europe about a fascinating artifact that has a Stonehenge sort of mystique.

This past week I have been stressed because I cannot decide on how to edit it. I want to create and utilize graphics aside from and within the footage. I suppose primarily I would like to know what is the best I can do with my computer/processor? Ultimately, I fear I have been building up an inferior computer.

Here are the specs:

HDV Footage shot on fx1 (one interview has flashing, is this fixable in post? this would be a selling point for me. Otherwise I need to utilize animations, or go back and reshoot which I may do anyway.)

Pentium 4 2.7 GHz
Nvidia GeForce 6600 GT video card.
Enough hard disk space for about 20hrs of footage.

I was considering Vegas, then Avid then Premiere (if there are others I should consider please le me know). Does Vegas and Avid have After Effects type programs in them?

Regardless, I fear I will not be able to use any of them. Will this processor totally frustrate me or even work? Should I get another Motherboard? Occasionally my computer freezes up because the video card gets gunked up, this is an easy fix. But maybe I need to consider a whole new system?

For simple animations and editing what platform should I strongly pursue and can I get away with using this computer?

Your opinions are greatly appreciated.

Happy to be part of the DVi,

Sincerely,
Tim

David Andrews · May 9th, 2006, 12:58 PM

HDV is more demanding than miniDV for editing because of the compression format used. For this reason it is better to use a more powerful pc than the one you have - the new dual core pcs will offer much better (ie faster) performance. Your spec looks marginal for HDV.

You should also consider Edius. It is a newer nle than the others, but it handles HDV as well as any. More information can be found here:
http://www.canopus.com/home.php
The forums are also a helpful source of information for what you want to do - including working with After Effects and other software.

Dan Euritt · May 9th, 2006, 03:58 PM

your video card has purevideo acceleration, which i believe works with premiere 2.0 and ae 7(???)... so i would investigate that, see what's involved, before spending a dime on any other hardware or software:

http://www.nvidia.com/page/purevideo_support.html
http://www.adobe.com/products/premie...tures.html#nf9

May 6th, 2006, 06:14 PM	#1
Tim Eykll New Boot Join Date: May 2006 Location: Los Angeles, USA Posts: 12	Editing dilemma Hello all, new here and newly independent. I worked in acquisitions and development for various production companies in LA and decided about a year ago that I would prefer to hoe my own line. I quickly found a project and wrapped a week ago last Sunday. It is a documentary that I shot in Europe about a fascinating artifact that has a Stonehenge sort of mystique. This past week I have been stressed because I cannot decide on how to edit it. I want to create and utilize graphics aside from and within the footage. I suppose primarily I would like to know what is the best I can do with my computer/processor? Ultimately, I fear I have been building up an inferior computer. Here are the specs: HDV Footage shot on fx1 (one interview has flashing, is this fixable in post? this would be a selling point for me. Otherwise I need to utilize animations, or go back and reshoot which I may do anyway.) Pentium 4 2.7 GHz Nvidia GeForce 6600 GT video card. Enough hard disk space for about 20hrs of footage. I was considering Vegas, then Avid then Premiere (if there are others I should consider please le me know). Does Vegas and Avid have After Effects type programs in them? Regardless, I fear I will not be able to use any of them. Will this processor totally frustrate me or even work? Should I get another Motherboard? Occasionally my computer freezes up because the video card gets gunked up, this is an easy fix. But maybe I need to consider a whole new system? For simple animations and editing what platform should I strongly pursue and can I get away with using this computer? Your opinions are greatly appreciated. Happy to be part of the DVi, Sincerely, Tim

May 9th, 2006, 12:58 PM	#2
David Andrews Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 131	HDV is more demanding than miniDV for editing because of the compression format used. For this reason it is better to use a more powerful pc than the one you have - the new dual core pcs will offer much better (ie faster) performance. Your spec looks marginal for HDV. You should also consider Edius. It is a newer nle than the others, but it handles HDV as well as any. More information can be found here: http://www.canopus.com/home.php The forums are also a helpful source of information for what you want to do - including working with After Effects and other software.

May 9th, 2006, 03:58 PM	#3
Dan Euritt Trustee Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Carlsbad CA Posts: 1,132	your video card has purevideo acceleration, which i believe works with premiere 2.0 and ae 7(???)... so i would investigate that, see what's involved, before spending a dime on any other hardware or software: http://www.nvidia.com/page/purevideo_support.html http://www.adobe.com/products/premie...tures.html#nf9