How do the experts like to work? User preferences in workflow and design...

Question

I have 3 main overall questions that I could really use expert advice on (all based on the info below):
1. Which path should I take?
2. What display configuration is best?
3. Do I really need a 3rd party video accelerator of some sort?
I currently have a MacBook Pro 17” (first gen) with 2GB RAM and FCS2.
Footage I need to edit is HDVCPROHD 1080pA (offline files, about 2TB worth. Later it will be conformed to uncompressed 1080p at 4:4:4, which will be about 2TB after final cut I’m guessing.) It’s a feature film with an estimated running time of 90-100 minutes.
Looking for suggestions on going about this in the best way.
*Option 1:*
1) get some eSATA storage, connect through a PC Express card (or is FW800 enough?) and edit from that
--a) Or is FW800 fast enough?
--b) If this is a good plan, any suggestions on storage?
2) get a nice secondary display to connect through the DVI so I can view the 1080p footage as large and nice as possible. (Then I’d use my MacBook Pro display as primary.)
--a) Looking at Apple 23” & 30” displays, Dell 24” & 30” displays, or a Samsung HDTV – any suggestions?
----i) I’m being told conflicting reports that I can view the 1080p footage just fine without anything, or that I do in fact need a Matrox MXO2 or something similar. What’s the truth?
In general how would Option 1 fare in your opinion?
*Option 2:*
1) get a bare-bones MacPro, and upgrade it with 3rd party RAM (8GB) and 4x4TB internal SATA drives, and RAID 3 of them, using one as the boot drive. nVidia 8800, too.
2) Get two new displays; one for preview.
--a) Looking at Apple, Dell, various sizes, etc. 2x24” Dells, or a 30” and a Samsung 1080p HDTV?
----i) Does anyone have a screen shot of FCP running on a 30” compared to a 23”? It’s twice as much but it seems that much better!
----ii) Do I really need an AJA or Blackmagic card to view the 1080p signal? Shouldn’t it just work? If there is a performance increase, how much better is it?
My immediate goal is to edit the offline files to a final cut in the quickest most efficient way possible.
My secondary goal, if I went with Option 2, would be to have a way of scaling my system up if I needed to work on the online uncompressed 4:4:4 files. Then I’d need to purchase the Kona3 for sure and then purchase the CalDigit HDPro…the best from what I’ve researched.
Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated!

Answer 1

Shane Ross wrote:
DVCPRO HD...no such thing as HDVCPRO. HDV...DVCPRO...different formats.
Can I blame the typo on the assistant editor? Probably not… He digitized at the lab and emailed me that, but I should have known better… (See previous apology.)
Later it will be conformed to uncompressed 1080p at 4:4:4
You need a MacPro with about 6GB to 8GB of RAM.
You will need a Kona 3 card, or Decklink Multibridge Pro or Eclipse.
You will need far better storage than three internal striped drives. Uncompressed HD 4:4;4 takes muscle. HD Pro (www.caldigit.com) Sonnet 800P (www.sonnettech.com) ProDQ (www.dulcesystems.com) EVO HD (www.maxxdigital.com). Something capable of 400MB/s sustained read/write.
Forget the laptop option. As soon as you mention Uncompressed 4:4:4...it is off the table.
Since I’m editing the offline right now, I should be fine with the internal striped RAID for now? (Would Option 1 be back on the table if I was only working with the offline? Not that I wouldn’t love a new MacPro and huge screens, etc., I just want to know where my ‘needs’ end and my ‘wants’ start.)
--a) Looking at Apple, Dell, various sizes, etc. 2x24” Dells, or a 30” and a Samsung 1080p HDTV?
Two monitors...Dell 2408 are great. Better picture and CHEAPER than the Apple dislays.
Okay, this is a big deal to me. Your preference for Dell over Apple sways me a lot back toward Dell, even though I have read that color on the Apple is better, and the response times on the new Dells are not the greatest in the latest benchmarks. Regardless, I bet I wouldn’t notice a difference once they were all calibrated, etc. (Besides the gorgeous aesthetic of the Apples!)
Ignoring the brand though: So do you prefer working with two 24” monitors, using both for your workspace and an additional preview monitor? Or do you use one for your workspace and the other for preview? If both are used for workspace, does the split down the center (between each screen) bother you? And would that be solved by a single 30” for workspace?
ii) Do I really need an AJA or Blackmagic card to view the 1080p signal?
Yes, you do.
Shouldn’t it just work?
Just work how? Via firewire? Nope. DV...yes (camera/deck required). DVCPRO HD...yes (if you have a deck to route thru). HDV...no. Uncompressed HD...HECK no...not without a capture card. UC 4:4:4? Kona 3...Decklink Multibridge or Eclipse.
So let’s say I have either a new 24” Dell or a Samsung 1080p HDTV I’m using for my preview monitor. I can’t connect with my secondary DVI on the nVidia 8800 and expect to see a 1920x1080p signal? (Playing my offline files, not the UC 4:4:4.) I was hoping to delay the purchase of a Kona3 card until I really knew I needed to work with my online.
So here’s my dilemma: if I really do need to purchase ‘something’ to view the offline now, it would potentially be a waste if I later needed to purchase a Kona3, unless I bit the bullet and just purchased the Kona3, which is overkill for my offline for now. Arrgh.
Anyway, I can see the footage on my MacBook Pro in a tiny window now, and I’m going to experiment with playing it on my old 21” CRT with a DVI-VGA adapter as a second monitor, just for fun. Any predictions?
I’m being told conflicting reports that I can view the 1080p footage just fine without anything, or that I do in fact need a Matrox MXO2 or something similar. What’s the truth?
MXO 2 can allow you to view HDV, DVCPRO HD, XDCAM, uncompressed 4:2:2 HD. 4:4:4 is KONA/Decklink territory.
So the MXO is just going to get me through the offline, but at $1500 it’s more than half way to the price of a Kona3. If I was going to do that to myself, wouldn’t a Blackmagic Intensity card do the same? Then I’d only be out $250. But still, if the Kona3 hedges all my bets right off the bat, then I get some performance benefits as well during my offline, it starts to weigh my decision. What would you do if you were me?
If there is a performance increase, how much better is it?
No performance increase. They allow for more RT effects with HDV and DVCPRO HD, but they do not speed up renders or add more RT to uncompressed HD.
This is where I need to learn what effects it speeds up. Basic things like transitions, etc.? Anything I’d notice that I’d otherwise get impatient waiting to render?
Or is FW800 fast enough?
not by a long shot.
Is it fast enough to handle the offline?
My immediate goal is to edit the offline files to a final cut in the quickest most efficient way possible.
Capture DVCPRO HD native...via firewire. Edit on your internal drives...no striping needed...they are plenty fast.
Since it was already captured for me, and I’m sort of locked in right now to what I have, it’s about 2TB. If I max out to 4x1TB drives in a new MacPro, is it wise to stripe 3 of them and work from that? Is it still better to keep them all as individuals?
I’d need to purchase the Kona3 for sure and then purchase the CalDigit HDPro…the best from what I’ve researched.
YOu researched well...
Thanks! Nice review of the HDPro!!!