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USB vs Firewire
I have always used a Firewire drive to work from. Now that USB drives are so inexpensive I am wondering if Final Cut Pro can digitize and edit from a USB drive?
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19 Replies
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USB is not recommended for video editing.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Biscardi Creative Media
HD and SD Production for Broadcast and Independent Productions.STOP STARING AND START GRADING WITH APPLE COLOR Apple Color Training DVD available now!
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Kenny,
No USB do not have the consistent sustained throughput required for video editing. Furthermore, show me a hard drive that isn’t inexpensive these days…
Just stop buying those premanufactured drives from manufacturers like Lacie, they’re ridiculously expensive compared to what you could do yourself. 1Tb SATA drives are available all over for $109 to $130. Just get the bare drives and put them in an inexpensive firewire enclosure yourself.
David Roth Weiss
Director/Editor
David Weiss Productions, Inc.
Los AngelesPOST-PRODUCTION WITHOUT THE USUAL INSANITY ™
A forum host of Creative COW’s Apple Final Cut Pro, Business & Marketing, and Indie Film & Documentary forums.
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[David Roth Weiss] “Just stop buying those premanufactured drives from manufacturers like Lacie, they’re ridiculously expensive compared to what you could do yourself. 1Tb SATA drives are available all over for $109 to $130. Just get the bare drives and put them in an inexpensive firewire enclosure yourself.
“Personally I never recommend this. I always go with pre-configured drive from manufacturers except for the archive units. I prefer to have one manufacturer to call in the event that something goes wrong.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Biscardi Creative Media
HD and SD Production for Broadcast and Independent Productions.STOP STARING AND START GRADING WITH APPLE COLOR Apple Color Training DVD available now!
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I saw specs yesterday on USB 3.0. 600 MB/s
Performance comparison: Transfer of 25GB HD movie:
USB 1.1: 9.3 hours
USB 2.0: 13.9 minutes
USB 3.0: 70 seconds
WOW is all I can say.
the article is here
https://thefutureofthings.com/news/5739/25gb-in-70-seconds-with-usb-3-0.html -
Hopefully USB 3 will provide the SUSTAINED throughput that video needs. USB does that packet burst thing that doesn’t work and can cause dropped frames. While USB works for some people, it doesn’t work for all…and we like to recommend solutions that work all the time…or at least 95% of the time.
I too say that it is best to stick with pre-configured all in one drives. That way you can point the blame at one company…and they SHOULD fix it. Unless you are a die-hard do-it-yourselfer. I tend to be that way myself.
Shane
GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def -
[Shane Ross] “I too say that it is best to stick with pre-configured all in one drives. That way you can point the blame at one company…and they SHOULD fix it. Unless you are a die-hard do-it-yourselfer. I tend to be that way myself.”
Shane, Of course, I hate to disagree with you, but the fallacies of that argument, with respect to firewire drives, is that there is no value added, in fact it can be easily argued that pre-configured drives offer value subtracted. Here’s why:
1) The guts of a firewire enclosure are so simple that there’s very little to break.
2) The pre-configured firewire drives, such as Lacie, take a basic hard drive that you or I could buy anywhere with a three or even a five year warranty, they stick it in their enclosure, and then they stick you with a one year warranty.
So, for more than twice the price you only get a tiny fraction of the proper warranty, and meanwhile, you’re saying the main benefit is the warranty protection. There’s a serious disconnect there.
David Roth Weiss
Director/Editor
David Weiss Productions, Inc.
Los AngelesPOST-PRODUCTION WITHOUT THE USUAL INSANITY ™
A forum host of Creative COW’s Apple Final Cut Pro, Business & Marketing, and Indie Film & Documentary forums.
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Hey all,
I’ve had 3 LaCie and 1 Maxtor drive die on me. I lost many hours of labor and captured media. To recover those drives would have cost thousands. Do you think for a second, even during a valid warranty period either of those companies would have compensated me for my losses? If you do, I have a bridge you can buy.
Sorry folks, I have to agree with DRW on this one. Beyond his valid reasoning about the 5 year vs. 1 year warranties, his idea makes sense.
Have a wonderful day.
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Disagree all you want. Good to have multiple voices and points of view. Some people do it one way, some others. If we give them viable options…all that work…then they can choose what they want.
So there…thphthphthphthphthph!
Shane
GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def -
[David Roth Weiss] “So, for more than twice the price you only get a tiny fraction of the proper warranty, and meanwhile, you’re saying the main benefit is the warranty protection. There’s a serious disconnect there. “
If price is your only concern, then build your own. If a working relationship with your array manufacturer is also a consideration, then purchase a pre-built array that’s guaranteed to work or you return it.
I prefer the relationships that I’ve built with the Medéa teams, Huge/Ciprico, LaCie and now MaxxDigital as they’re always there to answer questions or stand behind their equipment. The companies might disappear, but the same people are always around in the industry. Just building my own stuff doesn’t give me the piece of mind knowing there’s an entire tech support system that helps me whenever needed.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Biscardi Creative Media
HD and SD Production for Broadcast and Independent Productions.STOP STARING AND START GRADING WITH APPLE COLOR Apple Color Training DVD available now!
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[walter biscardi] “I prefer the relationships that I’ve built with the Medéa teams, Huge/Ciprico, LaCie and now MaxxDigital as they’re always there to answer questions or stand behind their equipment.”
You’ve extropolated well beyond the realm of firewire drives Walter. Hard drives arrays, especially Raid-5 and 6 configurations are another matter completely. But a drive in a firewire enclosure is hardly rocket science.
David Roth Weiss
Director/Editor
David Weiss Productions, Inc.
Los AngelesPOST-PRODUCTION WITHOUT THE USUAL INSANITY ™
A forum host of Creative COW’s Apple Final Cut Pro, Business & Marketing, and Indie Film & Documentary forums.
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