FCP vs Avid Express

[Shane Ross]

What do you work with? DV? Beta? Digibeta? What is your workflow? Transferring to a higher end Avid anytime in the future for Online?

Avid Express Pro out of the box and FCP out of the box both work with DV….but FCP is $700 cheaper.

Avid Express pro can work with COMPOSITE footage with the addition af a Mojo Box…for another $1700. And while it says it does component too, it doesn’t. With the purchase of a $70 cable it CONVERTS the RGB signal into an s-video signal that is fed into the Mojo.

With the addition of any number of cards: Deckink Pro, Decklink SP, AJA LD, AJA I/O…ranging from $600 to $2100 you can work with SDI and component video…TRUE SDI and COMPONENT video. And, with an addition of an HD card, similar price range, and a set of high speed drives, FCP can work with HD. Avid Express Pro cannot.

FCP is designed to be an all in one do it all system. Avid Express Pro is designed for low-end Avid editing and offline cutting. and even with the addition of expensive hardware cannot do what FCP can do with comparable hardware.

BUT…

If you are editing a show that will ONLINE on an Avid…best to get the Avid Express. Avid to Avid is flawless…FCP to Avid is pretty darn messy.

[Sean Lander]

Today there really is no comparison. If you want to stay with your PC software go with Avid. But in terms
of momentum, it’s all with FCP right now.
Also look at what you get if you go for Studio. FCP, Motion, Live Type, Sound Track Pro, DVD Studio Pro and Compressor.
More and more I see expensive Avid suites becoming offline or logging stations for FCP suites.
If you learn FCP then you are ready to take on any kind of project, whether it be DV, HD or Film.

(This from a 10 year Avid evangelist)

[David Roth weiss]

Atkiva,

I recently completed a post-production industry marketing survey with about fifty questions regarding the major NLE software companies. When asked which companies were truly innovative, there was only one that I could honestly call innovative, and it was Apple. Three days later I bought my first MAC G5 and FCP Studio. Now, just one month later, I’m quite comfortable with FCP, Sound Track Pro, and LiveType, and getting to know Motion. And I’m already very comfortable operating in front of clients. Needless to say, I’m very pleased with my purchase, and I feel confident that I have an excellent suite of integrated tools that will take me well into the future.

Yes, it does seem daunting, but there are many of us making this move every day. The good news is, unlike those other “A” guys, the Apple world is filled with tutorials, training guides, and friendly people willing to share their knowledge. In fact, the community spirit among Apple users is perhaps the best reason for making the big switch. The Apple world is a pretty happy world, and there’s a lot to be said for that…

DRW

[Oliver Peters]

Atkiva,

Have you looked at Maxtrox Axio running under Premiere Pro? This might be a better upgrade path for you coming from Digisuite. There has also been a trade-up discount for Digisuite owners.

Sincerely,
Oliver

Oliver Peters
Post-Production & Interactive Media
Orlando, FL
http://www.oliverpeters.com

[Uwe Klimmeck]

I’d wait another year ’cause when you purchase a G5 right know you’ll need to buy an Intel Mac in 2006.

Greetings
Uwe

[Dave Jenkins]

[Uwe Klimmeck] “‘d wait another year ’cause when you purchase a G5 right know you’ll need to buy an Intel Mac in 2006.”

That is poor advise. I have three G5 2 Gig machines and will probably upgrade one more time to the fastest G5 before the Intel Macs arrive. I will not upgrade our main suites to the first generation Intel Macs. Go for what you need now not what might be in a year.

Dajen Productions
Santa Barbara, CA
G5 Dual 2 Gig – AJA IO & LA
Huge 1.2 Raid
FCP 5-OS X 10.4.1-QT 7

[Oliver Peters]

I also wouldn’t expect to see “Mactel” machines comparable to current G5s until 2007. Look for Intel PowerBooks first.

Sincerely,
Oliver

Oliver Peters
Post-Production & Interactive Media
Orlando, FL
http://www.oliverpeters.com

[Annaël Beauchemin]

[Dave] “That is poor advise. I have three G5 2 Gig machines and will probably upgrade one more time to the fastest G5 before the Intel Macs arrive. I will not upgrade our main suites to the first generation Intel Macs. Go for what you need now not what might be in a year.”

I would add that it’s not just a question of hardware either : what tells us that a *fully optimised* version of FCP for x86 will come out at the same time as Mactels ? Especialy since FCP is not (as far as I know) written in cocoa

[Samuel A. martin]

All MAC software out there now is compatable for both IBM and intel processors. The switch from one processor to another has not been decided oevrnight and it has been many years in the making. Once the first intel MACs come out any program you are using now will be able to work on that platform as it has been written having this situation in mind.