[Oakmozart]

Pretty much the rule of thumb for Intel (which is what I use, I have no idea regarding AMD) is that if you have a single-processor motherboard, you have a single-bus motherboard. If you have a dual-processor motherboard, there’s a good chance that you have dual-busses. Dual-Xeon boards are almost guaranteed to have dual busses…UNLESS you’re using the Intel 875p chipset, which is a dual-Xeon board with only 1 bus (no good).

I’ve been told by some who are more in the know than I on the newer chipsets that if you have a board with a PCI-e (Express) graphics card-supporting motherboard, you actually have 2 PCI bus segments. I cannot confirm this, as I do not have a board that supports PCI-e graphics cards at this time, nor am I as current on the new technologies as I should be or would like to be.

If you’re serious about Mojo, I recommend finding the best deal on a certified system and buying one, rather than trying to “do-it-yourself,” of which I just did. It’s more trouble than it’s worth and in the end you might spend just as much (or more) building your own system as you would on buying certified. If you buy the wrong parts, you’ll end up having to buy more appropriate ones and therefore your costs just keep climbing.

My suggestion is to contact your motherboard manufacturer’s tech support. Give them the model number of your mobo and ask them if it has dual-bus segments or not. They’ll be able to tell you for sure and if they can’t, you need to switch brands. I’ve had nothing but good luck with Asus (though they don’t build any dual-bus Xeon boards at this time). I also like Tyan, Intel, and Abit.

[Oakmozart]

When you connect Mojo to your system, you will immediately notice that Xpress Pro will “leap to life.” Right now, when you work in software-only DV mode, you’ll probably notice that little “lag” (hesitation) between when you hit play in the software and when you notice your footage start playing. With Mojo, that’s gone. You hit play and BAM!!…you’re instantly playing. If you’re working with an external broadcast monitor or TV, you’ll also notice that your footage is synced between what’s playing in your XPro software as well as on your monitor. Without Mojo, the footage on your monitor lags a few frames behind your computer, as does your audio if using the speakers on your external monitor. With Mojo, that lag is gone and your footage will play in perfect sync no matter what you’re using it on. You’ll also notice far more RT capabilities on your system with Mojo, since Mojo helps alleviate much of the video effects processing (among other things) that the processor must do alone without Mojo. When you connect Mojo, it reduces the processor workload, so the processor can focus on other things (like video playback and simply running the software). You’ll also be able to create and work with uncompressed graphics/titles, which will look better than nasty, compressed, jagged DV25 titles.

These are a few of the things you’ll notice when you add Mojo.

Regarding your second question, this is where you will run into problems. Mojo is a PIG when it comes to system resources. When you plug it in, it completely takes over the bus it’s plugged into. If you plug anything else into the same bus that Mojo is sharing, Mojo quits working correctly. This is why all Avid certified desktop systems are dual-bus (or greater). The problem you will face is that to my knowledge, at this time there are no dual-bus notebooks available. (I’m sure they’re coming, but right now I don’t know of any.) Therefore, when you plug Mojo into your Powerbook’s firewire port, you’re all done. There’s no way you can use Mojo and external storage on the same bus. You’ll be forced to use media on your internal (built-in) drives and you won’t be able to use any uncompressed video resolutions. This is why a Mojo solution on laptops is a joke to me. My recommendation to you would be to pick up a certified desktop system and run with that configuration, and not with the Powerbook.

I admit that it’s quite possible that a solution has come up to remedy this problem and if one has been developed, I’d love to know about it.

[Oakmozart]

100% in agreement.

Ever wonder why the owners are selling this Composer you’re interested in? Probably ‘cuz it’s so OLD it’s darn near worthless! I say that lightly, however, because it all depends upon your needs and it’s not the NLE that makes the product great, it’s the editor.

Let’s put it in perspective for you. You’ve got to worry about the hardware. Think about it: the hardware is no longer manufactured by Avid (that I’m aware of), nor is it supported for replacement (again, that I’m aware of). If you buy this thing and one of your cards goes bad, you’ve either got to hope that 1) by a sheer miracle Avid still has it in stock, and if they do you’ll pay dearly for it, or 2) someone’s selling it on Ebay for a decent price. If you buy it on Ebay, now you’re likely buying another used component and that runs the risk of being bad (or going bad soon after purchasing it) all over again. Where’s the advantage here?

Now think about the computer. For starters, it’s so old it won’t run any current software. Come to think about it, it probably wouldn’t even check today’s email very well… Regardless, if you wanted to install After Effects on it, you’d probably be stuck using AE 3.1, since nothing else would run properly on it. Plus, you’ve got to wonder when was that computer made? I’ll bet you around ’97. That’s EXTREMELY old for a computer! When they get that old, hardware failures are pretty much a certainty. What are you going to do if the motherboard fails or the processor dies? It’s not like you can just grab a newer Mac, snap in your boards and be off and running…you’ll need to find a replacement Mac for your hardware (if not identical, then at least DAMN close). Where are you going to find an old Mac like that? It’s not impossible, but it’s not going to be easy either.

Get XPro HD and a Mojo, with a mixer for good measure. (Consider Digi 002, since it’s compatible with XPro.) Even better, consider getting Xpress Studio HD Complete, which has XPro, Mojo, Digi 002, plus some other software applications.

If you MUST go with a used Composer, I’d look for a decent deal on an older Meridien-based product. You’ll pay more for it, but there should still be decent parts availability for at least another 2-3 years. Hopefully.

For the money you’d spend on this old system–what, $3-$10K?–, you could have a new computer, Xpress Studio HD Complete and a mixer and be off and running. Or you’d have over 1/3 the cost of a new Media Composer Adrenaline, which is probably 1000 times more powerful than that old Avid. In its day, it was one HECK of a machine. In today’s day and age, I say let it die. Buy new and buy wisely. Find your local Avid reseller. Arrange a demo of XPro/Mojo, Xpress Studio HD and Adrenaline. Decide which is best and go that route.

Oh and I’m not just talking out of my butt here. What I’ve told you is based on experience I’ve learned from Avid users I know.

[Oakmozart]

Yeah, I know. While it’s now free (as opposed to $50 when sold by Profound Effects), I can’t stand the site that offers it, nor do I feel that they will continue the development that Profound Effects would have had they kept it. The new owners did, however, update it to the new AVX2 format. I guess that’s saying something.

I just couldn’t think of a way to tell him where to go get it, without saying the name of the site…so I referred him to PE, who originally made the plug.

[Oakmozart]

There’s a great plugin from Profound Effects, called “Transfer AVX.” They used to sell it for $50. Then it was free. Dig around on their site. If you don’t see it (as it’s been up and down from time-to-time), email them and ask them for a mirror site where you can get it. It’s a decent plugin, but unfortunately it’s a patch for a real wound in Avid’s NLE interface. There should be BUILT-IN TRANSFER MODES in the Avid NLE interface, accessible DIRECTLY FROM THE TIMELINE WITHOUT HAVING TO USE A PLUGIN!!!

Can you tell I’m passionate about this subject? 🙂

[Oakmozart]

No. Only Avid hardware works with Avid software. That’s the way Avid works. In fact, Avid is actually a HARDWARE company that happens to make software.

Decklink support in Avid would be wonderful, but it’ll never happen.

[Oakmozart]

I’m not following when you talk about “Adobe effects.” Are you referring to Adobe After Effects? If so, then no, you cannot integrate it into Avid as you could, say, Boris FX/Red. If using After Effects, you must import your footage from Avid into AE, do your magic in AE and then export it to Avid.

NLE Integration is one of the best features of Boris Graffiti/FX/Red.

Good luck.

[Oakmozart]

I second Judy. DS Nitris is where it’s at in the Avid world. However, if you don’t have the moola for DS, but can swing upwards of $90K, look at the new Symphony Nitris system coming out this year. Adrenaline interface, Nitris-powered, with Symphony’s toolset. Should work wonders for this project of yours.

BTW, are you running Mojo on your Xpress Pro system? If you aren’t you should be…especially for the intense work you’re doing. I’m not saying Mojo will fix your problem, as you’re running an astronomical amount of layers for an NLE to handle, but Mojo will definitely help. If you’re not, guess you’ll either have to wait for the render times, upgrade to a higher-end Avid, or switch to a compositing program (like I think I’d do).

[Oakmozart]

I’ll second that as far as the basic Avid Keyers go. However, if you’re on an Adrenaline HD 2.0, or will be using the new Symphony Nitris, you’ll have access to Avid’s new SpectraMatte HD 16-bit keyer. That thing is sick. In fact, I’d take SpectraMatte over Ultimatte any day! It’s a remarkable new feature from Avid and one that they did a good job on.

With that said, if you’re using an older Avid system or XPro, I’d suggest either Ultimatte AdvantEdge AVX if you can afford it (around $1600 or so), or look at some of the other keyers available as AVX plugins inside of Avid.

Boris Continuum Complete has a few good ones. $795. https://www.borisfx.com
Primatte Keyer AVX is good. $495 https://www.redgiantsoftware.com
Zmatte is great…around $400, I think. https://www.digitalfilmtools.com

Those are a few AVX-type plug ins to get you started. Boris Red and FX have keyers built-in and can be installed as plugins in XPro as well. Have a look at them too. Also consider either Adobe After Effects 6.5 Professional (which includes Keylight, one of the great keyers in the industry), or discreet combustion 4, which includes its new Diamond Keyer, which is not only a sick (good) tool, but was passed down from the higher-end Flame and Inferno suites. Using AE or C4 (both $995), you’ll have to export and reimport clips from Avid to the other app and back, but those are solid ways to work too.

[Oakmozart]

What kind of moola do you have? If you’ve got the dough, dual-Xeon’s are the way to go… However, if you’re looking to save money and plan on never adding Mojo, Studio, etc., then a single P4 will suffice very nicely.