Norman Willis
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COW Coins
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DaVinci Coins
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VEGAS Pro Coins
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That sounds way cool. Could you please send it to me? Thanks!
Norman Willis
http://www.nazareneisrael.org -
That would really be cool. I’ve been wondering how to use the Mask tool.
Norman Willis
http://www.nazareneisrael.org -
While Vegas is a great editing program, it does not support P2 natively because they are in competition with Panasonic, and don’t seem to realize that the way to gain market share is not to limit your product’s functionality, but to provide more functionality.
https://dvfilm.com/raylight/ultra/index.htm is a plug-in you can buy to support P2. I have no idea if it works with Studio.
I hope that helps.
Norman Willis
http://www.nazareneisrael.org -
Im not real sure, but if you just want a title overlaid on your video, why not use the Media Generator Text engine?
Norman Willis
http://www.nazareneisrael.org -
Hi John.
I understand and completely agree that time is money, and that for some people it makes better economics to get a stronger horse. That’s just the way it is. If editing was my main thing (rather than just a part of what I do) then I am sure I would want/need a stronger machine. Maybe that will happen for me as I expand into 3D (later).
I am perplexed as to why the EventDV review would find such huge performance improvement with the Z800, while the Videomaker review found no benefit to the second processor whatsoever. I tend to trust the EventDV review more, and it also makes sense that HP would not let a workstation out the door that tarnished (rather than enhanced) their reputation. Nonetheless, here is a letter I received a few days ago, on a thread I started on Videomaker about four months ago, asking about the Z800:
>>I noticed your post about the Z800. There’s something wrong with the intel dual xeon architecture. A single xeon quad core actually benches better than putting 2 of them together. The regular consumer quad core at the same ghz is actually twice as fast as the xeon. Soooo… if you’re going to build yourself a computer stick to the regular i7 processor and spend your money on a nice graphics card, that’s what really helps performance for video editing.
I cannot vouch for the accuracy of the writer’s statements. I also understand he does not use Vegas, since Vegas is all CPU-based. But the main thing is that we have conflicting testimonies here. Again I tend to trust EventDV’s review more: I just thought I should mention it, in case anyone thinking about dropping that kind of dough on a workstation might be interested.
I’m not really clear why they don’t make a twin processor motherboard for the Core i7, like they do for the CoreDuo Quad. That would seem to be the best bang for the buck. Does anyone know why they don’t do that?
Norman Willis
http://www.nazareneisrael.org -
IMO, fluorescents are way, way, way better. They run cool, so you don’t sweat when sitting in front of them. And they use far less electricity. The bulbs last forever (approximately 7000 hours). So unless you are on a set where you really need something high powered (like a 10K Fresnel), fluorescents are much more practical.
They are a major step forward, IMO.
I can recommend Steve Kaeser Lighting. He carries some good stuff. The only brand I absolutely do not recommend is Britek. It is junk. But the PBL MX-FLO 6 is great. I only wish they made more soft boxes for them. I converted a Savage softbox for the MX-FLO 6 (had to gusset it a little), but I don’t understand why there are no standard soft boxes to fit it yet (or at least, the last time I looked).
Norman Willis
http://www.nazareneisrael.org -
Hi Justin.
Whatever you want to do is up to you, but I guess maybe I am missing something. What is the point behind trying to make video look like film?
What would that do for you? (I.e., “What would you get out of that?”)
Sorry if this seems impertinent, but I am confused.
Norman Willis
http://www.nazareneisrael.org -
Mary,
If you are really on a budget and have a few hours, you can build a unit called a ‘nano-light’ pioneered by a guy named Victor Milt. He explains how to build it on a DVD called ‘Light It Right’, available through VASST. He might also have the designs on his website.
I bought fluorescent bulbs on discount through Steve Kaeser, and also built a kind of a nano light with a PBL MX-FLO 6 head. I am sure your requirements may be different, but that and a daylight reflector and a simple eye-light seem to do the job for me.
Best of success.
Norman Willis
http://www.nazareneisrael.org -
Videomaker did a review of the Z800, in which they said that the second CPU made no difference at all in their renders on Premiere. They said they could turn the second CPU on or off in the BIOS, or even remove it: the render time was the same.
https://www.videomaker.com/article/14391/
They recommended the Polywell system as being faster:
https://www.videomaker.com/article/14387/
That made me really curious, so I started asking questions. Why would a dual core Xeon not be faster than a single core?
I called HP, and finally got connected to a tech rep named ‘Jesus’ (“Hay-soos”). He said the only people who really need Z800’s are people who do full-on 3D (like Dreamworks). He said that the reason there was no performance difference with CS4 (whether the second processor was on or off) was probably just that the machine did not get taxed hard enough.
He said that the way HP set their architecture up is that the primary processor does not send anything to the second processor unless it starts to reach a certain load point. Since regular video rendering does not work the processor hard enough (!), the primary processor never ‘calls for backup.’
Jesus recommended that unless I was going to do some serious full-on 3D work (like ‘Monsters vs. Aliens’ or ‘Prince of Egypt’ type stuff), or maybe some oil-and-gas exploration (which I’m not planning on), that I would be just as well off with a fast single-processor model, like a 3.2 GHz Z400, and a graphics card with 1GB to 1.5GB RAM.
I got a good laugh at myself out of this whole thing, because I don’t do that kind of work, and don’t have that kind of money anyway. Right now my Core-Duo Quad at 3.0GHz seems to be doing the job, even though I have to run the Preview Window on ‘fuzzy’ (even with Cineform). But I am already looking forward to the day when prices come down on the as-yet-to-be-released Core i9, which is supposed to have six CPU cores. Or maybe someone will again release a ‘skulltrail edition’ motherboard, so we can put multiple cores on the same motherboard?
Anyhow, the Z800 is not supposed to be optimized for ‘regular’ video editing, even if it is rock stable, even when it is half asleep.
I sure hope that helps someone.
Norman Willis
http://www.nazareneisrael.org -
OK, first I’ll try to check the videos, and then I’ll try to check the podcasts (I usually do better with an organized video).
It may be some weeks before I get there, though, because some more website issues just cropped up. (But hopefully not too long….)
Thanks!