[Tom Brooks]

Why can’t you do the down convert through the Matrox as you normally would?

Example: You’re in the 720p timeline. You want to “zoom in” on a person’s face. So, scale up the shot to crop as needed. I guess the maximum scale would be 178%–the ratio of 1280 to 720.

This frame size chart shows you how much of a 720p frame is covered by an SD frame:

When you down convert, most of your shots will be scaled down so that 1280 pixels have been crunched down to 720. In the case of the “zoomed in” shot, you’ll be putting 720 pixels into 720. The result is the same as if you did it the other way around as you are suggesting. But the Matrox hardware down convert should be better than what you’ll get rendering in an SD timeline.

Check my logic on that. I have not tested this premise.

[Tom Brooks]

I was skeptical about this at first, but Flash has broad compatibility with H.264 and AAC audio. This FAQ fills in the details some.
https://labs.adobe.com/wiki/index.php/Flash_Player:9:Update:H.264#H.264.2FHE-AAC_support_in_Flash_Player_9

[Tom Brooks]

I’ve heard of this being done with After Effects, but it has a robust scripting component. It sure would be useful.

[Tom Brooks]

You can worry about that on export. For DVD, just use the presets in Compressor for DVD, particularly DVD 90 Min Best. For web, you’ll need to export to the appropriate square pixel dimension. For example, DV NTSC is 720×480 non-square pixels. The correct sq pixel size is 640×480. Note that it’s a 4:3 aspect ratio in square pixels.

[Tom Brooks]

I’d try the noise reduction in Soundtrack Pro as a start. You find the bad sound in a gap between words. Highlight some of that and use Process/Noise Reduction/Set Noise Print. Then use Process/Noise Reduction/Reduce Noise and play with the settings. If it’s a narrow spectrum sound, it can work OK. You can also play with the spectrum display option to visualize the noise and attempt to edit it out. View/File Editor Display/Show Spectrum.

[Tom Brooks]

For youtube start with Compressor’s H.264 LAN setting in the Web/QT 7 Compatible folder. Make a copy and change Data Rate Restrict to 3000 – 8000 Kbps. That setting should get you good HD quality in YT. YouTube

Final Cut Pro 6.0.5, Mac OS-X 10.5.6, Quicktime 7.6, Adobe Prod Prem CS4, G5 Quad 2.5, Kona-LHe V6, 8.5GB RAM, Nvidia GeForce 7800-GT 256MB, G-RAID 2x1TB FW800, 6TB RAID-5 (Enhance E8-ML, Highpoint 2322), Panasonic HVX-200P P2. Also MBP 17″ Core 2 Duo 2.5, 4GB, GeForce 8600M GT 512MB.

[Tom Brooks]

You shouldn’t use Deinterlace for 720p footage because it’s not interlaced–it’s already progressive.

[Tom Brooks]

Your posts are unclear on this point: Have you done log and transfer or have you only copied P2 folders to the external drive? You must have special plugins to allow FCP to edit MXF files natively. Without those plugins, you must do Log and Transfer at some point to convert P2 data to Quicktime files.

Final Cut Pro 6.0.5, Mac OS-X 10.5.6, Quicktime 7.6, Adobe Prod Prem CS4, G5 Quad 2.5, Kona-LHe V6, 8.5GB RAM, Nvidia GeForce 7800-GT 256MB, G-RAID 2x1TB FW800, 6TB RAID-5 (Enhance E8-ML, Highpoint 2322), Panasonic HVX-200P P2. Also MBP 17″ Core 2 Duo 2.5, 4GB, GeForce 8600M GT 512MB.

[Tom Brooks]

Hey John,
I wish that blog had been there when I built mine. I had to fret and study and call people to get confident enough to buy and build the RAID. That blog would have made it all much clearer and easier. Mine’s almost identical to the setup in the article. Also, CalDigit’s card came out just about a month or two AFTER I needed this RAID up and running. I also got a note from Jon pointing out the fact that the RocketRAID card is a software card. My enclosure was from Enhance Technologies, I believe, but I think it’s the same box. Very nice quality and very quiet. It’s black and doesn’t have the big ProAVIO graphic on the side. I guess if the ProAVIO folks do not recommend the CalDigit card, I’d go with the ATTO or Areca. I’ve heard of heat problems with the ATTO, so probably the Areca.
– tom

Final Cut Pro 6.0.5, Mac OS-X 10.5.6, Quicktime 7.6, Adobe Prod Prem CS4, G5 Quad 2.5, Kona-LHe V6, 8.5GB RAM, Nvidia GeForce 7800-GT 256MB, G-RAID 2x1TB FW800, 6TB RAID-5 (Enhance E8-ML, Highpoint 2322), Panasonic HVX-200P P2. Also MBP 17″ Core 2 Duo 2.5, 4GB, GeForce 8600M GT 512MB.

[Tom Brooks]

That’s funny because I’ve been using a Highpoint card with good success. You have to do it right however. I started with the enclosure. The company had good info and even a good guy to talk to in person. They had a list of approved controller cards and approved drives, down to the exact model and firmware. I followed the list to the letter and have had no problems. Completely self-assembled and I’m a dummy in terms of nitty gritty computer hardware stuff. It was easy and apparently pretty foolproof.

The only problem I have experienced is directory corruption that happened once when I shut down the RAID before the system had shut down. I was able to fix it easily with Disk Warrior. I’m not sure if the RocketRAID is more prone to that problem than Areca or anyone else. I’ve gone through several software updates, including the jump from Tiger to Leopard with no compatibility troubles with the RAID.

My card is the 2322, which is not “true hardware” RAID. In other words, the card does not handle all of the allocation of data to the RAID by itself. It does increase load on the computer CPU somewhat, but it does not seem significant to me. I get speeds around 500MB/Sec with RAID 5.

I saved maybe five hundred dollars on this card vs. the Areca.

So, in my opinion, it’s tough to rate the RocketRAID as total crap. But there are some major negatives.
1. There’s very little support available from Highpoint. When I had the directory problem I got no response from them. I was pointed to Disk Warrior through a search on Creative Cow (as usual, and thanks very much).

2. The 2000 series RocketRAID cards do not handle all RAID function in their own hardware. But, as I stated, the extra CPU load is not a killer. The newer 3000 series RocketRAID cards are fully hardware controlled.

After all that defense, I still have to honestly say that I would not recommend the RocketRAID cards unless you yourself are an expert in their use. It’s just too risky to be on your own with stuff you know nothing about. I doubt that Adaptec (no it’s ATTO) or Areca are much better with direct support to consumers however. A good reseller might be able to support you with those cards. I would take a real hard look at the CalDigit RAID card. I believe it’s limited to SATA only, not SAS drives. But I like the support vibe I get from that company. My RAID is listed in my sig.

Final Cut Pro 6.0.5, Mac OS-X 10.5.6, Quicktime 7.6, Adobe Prod Prem CS4, G5 Quad 2.5, Kona-LHe V6, 8.5GB RAM, Nvidia GeForce 7800-GT 256MB, G-RAID 2x1TB FW800, 6TB RAID-5 (Enhance E8-ML, Highpoint 2322), Panasonic HVX-200P P2. Also MBP 17″ Core 2 Duo 2.5, 4GB, GeForce 8600M GT 512MB.