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  • HMC 150 file transfer to Final Cut

    Posted by Jay High on December 9, 2009 at 3:25 pm

    I am looking into buying the Panasonic HMC 150 for use with Final Cut on a quad processor Mac Pro. My only hesitation is that I will not be able to drag and drop the video files directly into Final Cut. My understanding is that the file conversion is a bit time consuming, not as long as tape capture, but much slower than drag and drop.

    My second choice is a JVC GY-HM100U. They advertise that you can drag and drop directly into Final Cut. It’s chips are smaller (1/3″ instead of 1/2″), and the overall reviews on the ergonomics and picture quality are not as strong as Panasonic HMC 150.

    Can any HMC users advise me how big of an issue the file conversion is?

    How long is a typical transfer for a highest res, 30-sec, 60-sec, and 2-minute clip?

    Any word on if Final Cut will be adding the drag and drop feature for the HMC 150 any time soon?

    Thanks,
    Jay

    Jay High
    Baton Rouge, LA
    Geaux Tigers!

    Isaac Brillant replied 16 years, 4 months ago 4 Members · 5 Replies
  • 5 Replies
  • Noah Kadner

    December 9, 2009 at 7:55 pm

    Entirely depends on your system- but it’s much faster than batch capturing tape and in my experience as fast or faster than most file based workflows like P2, XDCAM EX, etc. You’re always waiting a little for something. Even the JVC still has to copy…

    Noah

    Check out my book: RED: The Ultimate Guide to Using the Revolutionary Camera! Unlock the secrets of 24p, HD and Final Cut Studio.
    Call Box Training now featuring the Sony EX1 Guidebook, Panasonic HVX200, Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon 7D, and Panasonic DVX100.

  • Jay High

    December 9, 2009 at 10:45 pm

    I’m leaning heavily toward the HMC 150. I’m hoping that with my Mac’s quad processors and 18G RAM and performance video card that it won’t be a major factor. Where is your book available?
    Regards,

    Jay High
    Baton Rouge, LA
    Geaux Tigers!

  • Daniel Schultz

    December 9, 2009 at 11:32 pm

    As an HMC150 owner, my feeling is the transcoding time is not a big deal. It’s easy to view, select and transcode the clips you want. I love my camera, my only issue is the file size of the transcoded files. But I don’t know if it’s any worse than the JVC model you’re considering.

    Dan S.

  • Noah Kadner

    December 10, 2009 at 8:10 pm

    You’re asking my RED book? You can pretty much find that anywhere.

    Noah

    Check out my book: RED: The Ultimate Guide to Using the Revolutionary Camera! Unlock the secrets of 24p, HD and Final Cut Studio.
    Call Box Training now featuring the Sony EX1 Guidebook, Panasonic HVX200, Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon 7D, and Panasonic DVX100.

  • Isaac Brillant

    December 29, 2009 at 12:46 am

    Isn’t the HMC150 also 1/3″ CCD, and not 1/2″?

    Question about transcoding: I’ve read that the bit rate decreases from 24 mbps to 7 mbps when you transcode from AVCHD to ProRes. Is this true? And if it is true, does this result in loss of quality or are the numbers apples and oranges?

    Another question – Lets say I transcode to Prores or to Cineform– and after completing the project I archive and backup the original small AVCHD and trash the larger unused Prores files…

    If at a later point I want to reconnect to some of the offline (now trashed) prores clips, can I re-transcode the AVCHD clips to Prores, and will it have the same timecode and name as it had the first time around?

    Thanks!

    Isaac

    P.S. I’m trying to decide between the HMC150 and the HPX170. Since there’s a $500 rebate on the HPX170 ending on Dec 31st, it ends up that the HPX170 +h 240 minutes-worth of P2 cards, will only be $2,170 more than the HMC150 with 240-minutes worth of SD cards.

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