Linear suite update

[Joseph W. bourke]

You owe it to yourself to look at the Matrox Axio card running the Adobe Video Suite (After Effects, Premiere Pro 2.0, Photoshop CS2, Illustrator, etc.) See review:

https://videosystems.com/mag/video_matrox_axio/

https://matrox.com/video/products/axio/home.cfm

We’ve recently replaced our aging Discreet Logic Edit boxes with AVID Adrenaline Newscutters to do daily Promotions editing. Now one would think that the alarm would go off in someone’s when looking at a product with “cutter” in the name, and asking it to do a multi-layer, quick turnaround, daily job that was taxing our Edit boxes, which were 2 layers of realtime video with a graphics overlay. But no.

The Newscutter will not do ANYTHING without a render, so our poor editor is relegated to using a 40 thousand dollar box to be a capture station, then sending build clips to After Effects to do the job, and finishing on the AVID. Why I’m giving you all this info is to warn you that price or name brand is not the most important part of upgrading a system. We’ve ended up with a system that is a huge step backwards, and it cost three times our initial investment with the Discreet systems, and has less realtime capability that our six year old NLE.

The Axio with Premiere Pro 2.0 will do at least 4 streams of video in realtime, with realtime FX, up to six layers of graphics, and you can get into an HD capable system for way under 35 thousand (including storage), an SD system for well under 20 thousand. While I do not have experience with Premiere Pro, the person who sold us the Discreet Logic systems is a professional editor, and he says that the Premiere Pro software will do 98% of what the Edit software did, and in many aspects is better than Edit was. It’s integration with Photoshop, Illustrator, etc., is exceptional (since they’re all Adobe products, and industry standards). Read the review, kick the tires at NAB, and don’t take anyone’s word for anything until you get a demo version in for a week that you can fly yourself. Good luck!

Joe Bourke
Art Director / WMUR-TV

[Mark Suszko]

Well if only Tektronics had a better sense of the right price to gain wide acceptance, I would have said throw in a Profile DDR into your rack to replace a deck, and instantly turn the existing tools you know into a full-blown nonlinear system.

That’s what we wanted to do to our 1-inch/umatic-fed room, but the prices were just ridiculous. These days that room is a DVCPro to beta or beta to beta ABC roll linear suite, with a loop from the switcher into a Video Toaster, which gives us paint, CG, DVE’s DDR’s, an NLE, and a DVD authoring station. Kind of the best of both world there, I feel, but maybe not as slick as dropping in the Profile into a slot where the one-inch used to be.

You might look to see if they brought the prices of those down into the regular atmosphere yet…

[Tom Meegan]

This probably goes in the “if possible to see” category.

I work on EVS XT systems for sports applications. They are like the Profiile in many ways, but EVS specializes in servers.

At the venue I worked for NBC in Italy, the editor was controlling one EVS output with RS422

[Randy Pfeiffer]

Thanks for the replies guys…

Some good points to ponder…

Joe,
The Matrox Axio will be something on my “must see” list…

Mark,
Have you looked at the Thompson/Grass Valley Infinity system? The recorder (deck) looks interesting. Would love to get a demo in to evaluate…

Again, thanks to the relies
Randy

[Randy Pfeiffer]

Thanks for the reply Tom…

definitely on my “if possible” list (possibly moving into the “want to see” list) 😉

Cheers,
Randy

[Charley King]

If you are currently using the Editware system, drop by and see Fastrack at Editware. Hybrid system, linear/nonlinear. If you feel you might want to stay somewhat linear. They will probably recommend the Grass Valley Profile system to go with it.

And while there tell Bob Lefcovitch, Jerry Lewis, Jay Coley, that Charlie King said hi.

Nah I’ll probably drop by and tell them hi myself.

Good Luck
Charlie

[Randy Pfeiffer]

Hi, Charlie…

The Editware booth is a “must see” – already was on the list (along with the “COW booth) 😉 …

Will say “Hi” for you (yup, just call me a “name dropper”)…

Thanks again,
Randy

[Charley King]

Hey, Randy
You can drop my name anytime, even if they don’t know me. I got to know all of those guys when they were with Grass Valley. Known them a long time.
OOOOOO and drop my name at the COW booth too tell em, Charlie says hi. Nahhhh I’ll see them myself. hahaha

Charlie

[Randy Pfeiffer]

Whow, 4 minute turn-around for a reply…

Impressive!…

(8>O-

Randy