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recommendations to build an edit bay from scratch
HELP! I hired a consultant to help transition us to HD, but that flopped. So, now I’m left holding the bag and $50k to get it done. If there is a more appropriate forum to place this, please let me know. I didn’t see anything in the list more appropriate.
Here’s the situation: I am overhauling our video production operations and upgrading to HD. What I hope to get from you is your opinions on how you would recommend equipping our post-production bay, in essence, starting from scratch.
What computer system and specs do you recommend at the minimum? I currently have three editing stations: two MacPros and one MacBook Pro. I hope to setup a system where each machine has its own local RAID that is connected to a central server where files can be temporarily dumped or shared between machines.
[b]Computer[/b]: MacPro dual core Intel Xeon 2.66 GHz processor, 4 Gb RAM,
[b]OS[/b]: Mac OSX 10.4.11
[b]Software[/b]: FCP HD, After Effects, Compressor
[b]Graphics card[/b]: NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT. This is not HDCP enabled, so it will have to be replaced.So, what computer and specs do you recommend? What graphics card?
What Blu-ray burner and software? What raid storage solution?What else am I not thinking about?
Jay Buckner
Public Relations Manager, Berea College
859.985.3023 -
3 Replies
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I can answer your questions (I am a consultant and video contractor in Florida), but this is a better answer.
GO TO A QUALIFIED DEALER that can help you. Go to the websites for AJA or Blackmagic (the people that make the hardware for FCP systems), and find out who the AUTHORIZED DEALERS are for these products in your area. These are the companies that can help you with this – not the schools “AV Contractor” that sells the school TOA and Bogen PA amplifiers, and Sanyo projectors. Anyone that even carries these product lines is not in the professional video business.
I can answer your questions with specific brand names of companies for drives, shared storage systems, etc., but you need a QUALIFIED COMPANY or CONTRACTOR to come in and help you install this. If your school sends this out to bid, and the bid goes to a company that has never put together an edit system, you will fail, and you will have an expensive pile of junk. QUALIFIED LABOR is the #1 thing that you need to have for the installation of this equipment, and for me to say “buy a MAC Pro with an AJA I/O HD and Cal Digit HD Pro drive array” will mean NOTHING if it comes from a “box house” that has never done this before, and you sit there with a pile of boxes that do not work together.
You want a central server. This is the #1 “can of worms” in all of your questions. Let me start off by telling you one thing – your school IT computer department knows NOTHING about shared storage for video editing systems, and if you get them involved, you will FAIL. You need a dealer or contractor that can help you, and if you won’t do this, get Apple Enterprise Group to assist you with a shared storage solution (they have a special educational division). I am not recommending Apple shared storage, but unless you can find someone that can help you setup a Facilis Terablock, EditShare, Apace VStor, MetaSAN, or similar shared storage solution, and teach you how to use these, you will FAIL.
Bob Zelin
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[Jay Buckner] “What else am I not thinking about? “
An HD monitor for viewing and color correcting. PVM-14L5 or PVM-20L5 are popular crt monitors around here but they are discontinued so you have to find used ones. The lcd types are getting affordable so a search on these threads will give you lots of insight.
Bob mentioned AJA and Black Magic input cards/devices which you also need to look at.
Archiving completed projects is another thing. DLT drives are affordable solutions but depending on your acquisition equipment an HD deck may make sense also.
“everything is broken” ……Bob Dylan
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Bob,
It is great that you popped up and told it straight. If this is the Berea College in Ohio. I hope Jay listens.
In Ohio, all and I am saying all our Pro-video contractors are AVID centric. Sure they will sell you FCP, only after they try real hard to sell you Avid. Why, me thinks the commissions are better in Avid land. And then they only know what is in the Apple catalogue.
That might sound a little rough, but I have yet to find an old school Pro Video shop (with college trained video engineers) who specialize in Final Cut Pro.
And that is why, I struggle to put together solid FCP edit stations and will build my HD version this summer all by myself in the Star City. And thanks to the COW and hours of reading this FCP forum it has been 5+ years of FCP and still making money..
Bob, Berea is just outside Cleveland. Call Jay and give him a price to fly in for a couple days and at least talk sense to the man (like is 50k enough). Believe me, I have not heard of anybody with your FCP qualifications in this state.
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