Chris Paul
Forum Replies Created
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One thing to be careful of with Blackmagic is whether or not it has hardware based conversion. The Multibridge Extreme does, the newer Pro and Eclipse do not. I like being able to see both HD and SD output at the same time and the Extreme is the only Blackmagic product that will do that. I have also found that software based conversion can sometimes be soft compared to hardware conversion. Unfortunately, the Extreme has been discontinued.
If I had to buy something right now I’d get a Kona 3 and some analog to digital converters.
Chris Paul
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[Gary Hazen] “I think it’s safe to assume that Chris means Nitris DX because he said “purchased a Media Composer Nitris”. Media Composer was never meant to work with the Nitris BOB used with DS and Symphony.
Yes, it is a Nitris system
Regarding the work flow I agree with Job ter Burg, run the signal down a HD-SDI pipe and capture using the DNxHD codec. HDV is a poor choice for editing”
We were using a HDMI to SDI converter originally. We changed to native HDV because timecode in that configuration was erratic. We tried both the converter’s firewire to 422 deck control conversion as well as firewire deck control in both HDV and HDV to DV down convert modes with no success. The deck would often overrun it’s in point, even when the deck search speed was set to shuttlemax instead of FF/RW.
We were planning on editing in uncompressed timelines, just using HDV as a capture source. We are also bringing in SD footage into the same timellines.
We could buy an HDV deck with SDI and RS-422 but that is an extra $6,000. It has taken years to convince the system owner to upgrade to the Nitris- selling the extra expense to him would be tough, especially after the difficulties with a system that was supposed to be at least as reliable as his old Meridian.Chris Paul
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I primarily wanted to use Qmaster to get full performance on all of my computer’s processors.
Chris Paul
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Since going to QT 7.3 and now 7.3.1 my Multibridge Extreme and Multibridge Pro have become unstable with capture and export to tape. They play video from FCP to my NTSC and HD monitors but when I go to one of those modes the multibridge turns off it’s inputs and outputs.
Chris Paul
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One huge difference for me is the split down conversion. The MBE will output HD and SD simultaneously. I do spots in both HD and SD- it’s really helpful to see how both version will look as you go.
Chris Paul
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This feature definitely feels like a kludge at the moment. Come on… no log & capture, not even any preview? Ugh. It feels like this was rushed out the door. Hopefully it will work better in a future update. In the mean time there are some very affordable HDMI solutions out there that do a much better job.
Chris Paul
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Wirecast will do what you want. It will switch & mix between firewire sources, do still & motion graphics, even real-time chroma keys. About $500. Only caveats are that you need a second firewire bus (there are several available for the ExpressCard slot) and lots of VRAM (macbooks will not work, only macbook pro’s)
Chris Paul
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I installed the new driver from ATTO right after installing Leopard. Ciprico says that the issue is with Leopard but I will re-install their drive firmware just to be sure. This is a real pain as updating the drive firmware requires using a modem program and a usb to serial port converter. My Rorke fiberchannel array updates the some way. I wish drive array manufacturers would come up with a better way, such as the USB update that Blackmagic uses on their Multibridge products.
Chris Paul
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[walter biscardi] “Does Ciprico offer you some sort of a trade in allowance or can you change out the controller card on your unit for a Fibre controller?”
Good ideas, Walter- I will check.
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One thing to be aware of is that Color does not currently support Firewire devices. That includes V3HD, Io and IoHD.