How stable is FCP 5 in comparison to Avid Xpress Pro?

I've been using Avid Xpress Pro on a brand new PC, and it hasn't been going well (problems with the preroll, etc.). I've been using a Sony DV camera as a deck to import the footage. Does FCP have any of these problems? It seems the Avid forum is rife with preroll problems.
Thanks.

Attempting to cure a preroll issue by changing computing platforms is not recommended. You may or may not like FCP at all. You might not like Macintosh at all.
Stability is relative. Are you saying Avid crashes on prerolls? That's absurd for a video editing application to do that and, no, FCP doesn't do that. But we have tons of recent reports of FCP crashing for other reasons. A quick search of the forum for CRASH or QUIT and AVID will disclose tons of interesting issues.
bogiesan

Similar Messages

Avid Xpress Pro HD

I was wondering if Avid Xpress Pro HD is compadable for my mac. I know on the avid website, it says I need to have a powerbook, and that I need 1 GB of ram and 128 MB of video memory, but i was wondering if i could still install it and just have it run slowly.
My system is:
iBook G4
1.42 GHz
512 MB physical memory
32 MB video memory
OS X 10.4.6
internal and external hard drive
need answer soon becuase if it doesnt work i have to return it within 19 days
Thanks for the help
Mac OS X (10.4.6)

Even if you were able to install the software and bypass the 128MB video memory specification, I would guess the performance will be very poor. Is there a specific feature of Avid Xpress Pro HD that is not included in a program that is supported like Final Cut Express?
-Doug

Avid Xpress Pro on PB 12"

Anyone know if Avid Xpress Pro 5.8 runs on a Powerbook 1.5GHz Tiger?
Many thanks in advance.

Version 5.7.5 is the latest version listed on:
http://www.avid.com/products/xpresspro/specs.asp
As you can see from that link, what are the minimum requirements:
Macintosh
Operating System: Mac OS X 10.4.10
your 10.4.11 meets this
Earlier versions of Mac OS X are not supported (Mac OSX Leopard support is planned for a future release)
System Memory (same requirements for software-only, with Avid Mojo or with Avid Mojo SDI)
1GB system minimum
2GB recommended for HD and high-stream count SD projects
assuming your lower RAM slot is good you can get this high. There is a Exchange Repair Program for some Powerbooks G4 of your speed, for others, I recommend double checking the RAM you have installed takes account for the bus slewing known to happen for your model when you buy RAM.
3GB maximum – more than 3GB will not be recognized by the system [not possible on the Powerbook G4.
Possible on some iMac G5s, PowerMac G5s and the last two MacBook Pro, and last MacBook release]
A graphics adapter supported by Apple – 128MB (or higher) memory on graphics card
Alas the 12" Powerbook fails in this regard, the maximum GPU you have for the 12" Powerbook is 64 MB, the latest MacBook, all MacBook Pros fit this and the hard drive requirement below. Some iMac G5s and PowerMac G5s also fit this requirement
Apple native FireWire, included with all qualified systems
40GB or larger internal SATA boot drive
The Powerbook G4 fails in this regard, only MacBooks and MacBook Pro and iMac G5 and PowerMac G5, and Mac Pros have SATA
CD or DVD-ROM drive or DVD+RW drive
QuickTime 7.2
I've outlined where the Powerbook fails in these regards. Unfortunately no Powerbook will run Avid, but some MacBook and MacBook Pros will.
Message was edited by: a brody
Message was edited by: a brody

HDV material captured using FCP - need to import it into Avid Xpress Pro

Any way to do that and stay HDV??

Well, only Xpress Pro on Windows does HDV. I've been editing Avid SD footage in FCP by exporting QT Ref Movies from Avid (quick) so maybe it'll work the other way . . . if you have a PC.

Coming From Avid Xpress Pro 6.0

So I'm coming from SD world and an old Avid system that I've had for close to nine years. While I've dabbled in FCP in the past I'm getting closer to make the leap but on a budget.
My question is this if I get FCP for a laptop what is the recommended setup? Use the internal hard drive or external drive for storage? If external what drive? What to use for a B/O box? I was looking at the AJA Io HD box primarily because I still have decks that I will be using and it future proofs me. Will be shooting with either the JVC GY-HM700 or the Sony EX3.

Never use the internal drive for media storage.
The standard MacBook should not even be considered. It only has USB ports, that won't cut it for video editing.
The 13 and 15 inch MacBook Pro only have a FireWire and USB ports.
The 17 inch has an Express Card slot as well as FireWire and USB.

Why do stills look so much better in Avid Xpress Pro?

I imported some stills into FCP (dimensions 2500x2000) and while they look fine in the viewer, they look terrible in the timeline. I tried importing the same still into AXP and it looks much better.
Any ideas why?
Thanks.

Just to back John up:
Shane's Stock Answer #2: Blurry playback
ONLY JUDGE THE QUALITY OF YOUR MATERIAL ON AN EXTERNAL NTSC MONITOR, OR AT LEAST A TV.
1. Disable overlays on the canvas
2. Make sure you've rendered everything (no green bars at the top of the timeline
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=24787
Video playback requires large amounts of data and many computations. In order to maintain frame rate and be viewable at a normal size, only about one-fourth of the DV data is used in displaying the movie to the screen. However, the DV footage is still at full quality, and is best viewed thru a TV or NTSC monitor routed thru your camera or deck.
Shane

Exporting FCP capture files to Avid??

I just transfered over my raw FCP 6 HDV capture files form my mac to another editor's hard drive who is using Avid Xpress Pro (also on a Mac). Will he be able to import those directly into Avid? If not what conversion process is necessary??
I am concerned because these files, which play back fine on my Mac via Quicktime, do not play back on his Quicktime! I was able to play the files back via a program called VLC. Why is this--when I installed my Final Cut Studio were there special codecs/ Pro Application Support files that he does not have because he is using Avid?
Thanks for the insights!! (And suggesting to him that he should use FCP isn't going to work!)
--Robert

when you export then what is the extension, like .MOV, .MP4, M4V.? if there is not one just get info and in the name and extension line just add it. you will want to add .MOV to the end of the name. when you do this is will ask if your sure that you want to do that, say yes. also if he is using a mac make sure his QT is up to date. another thing to check is when you copy files over check the size of the files, you can do that by getting info by control clicking and selecting info. you will know if they seem too small then you are not copying everything over.

Migrating from old Avid Xpress Meridien to FCP

Sorry if this question has been answered elsewhere, but unfortunately I don't have the time to dig for it.
Our agency is cuyrrently looking at upgrading our aging Avid Xpress (5.08, not Pro, not DV, but Meridien on OS9) to a FCP system (per my request). We have a G5 with FCP Studio already installed, but it's really only used for assembling DVDs and (motion) graphics.
What I'd like to do is move everything over to the FCP system and purchase an outboard video card and possibly more storage.
First of all, is Automatic Duck the best way to go for migrating projects? We have lots of old commercial and show projects that need to stay in-tact.
Secondly, what will be my best option for outboard video? We are looking to migrate to HD in the near future (more than likely DVCPro100, NOT hdv) and am looking at the different options for FCP.
Lastly, will the RAIDs I have from the old Avid work well with FCP, or should I try to push for a different setup?
Any help or insight is greatly appreciated. Even if it's simply links to past discussions.
Thank you in advance!

Automatic duck is a great way of migrating projects, but only if they don't have any Avid filters or effects like Matte Keys or Animattes. Those will not transfer. Straight cuts, dissolves, wipes...they should transfer.
DVCPRO HD requires no special capture card. It transfers via firewire (thus the reason FCP 4.5 is called FCP HD). But for uncompressed HD, good cards to look into are the Kona LH, Kona 2 (Kona LHe and Kona 3 for the QUADS) or the Decklink HD series from Blackmagic. Aurora has yet to release an HD card, which is a darn shame...
For DVCPRO HD you will need either firewire 800 drives (recommend the G-Raids) or a SATA or fibrechannel Raid. For uncompressed HD, only the SATA or fibrechannel raids will cut it.
I am glad to hear that you are considering DVCPRO HD over HDV. Smart move. For more info on my experiences with the DVCPRO HD workflow, click on UNDERDOG.
Shane

How to transfer Avid XPress project on PC to Premiere CS4 on laptop?

Hi,
I have the following problem: I have an Avid Xpress sytem on a PC and Premiere Pro CS4 on a laptop. I have a project on the PC that I would like to edit while travelling with the laptop - and I'm trying to work out how to transfer the project from one to the other (via an external hard drive).
I noticed that Premiere in the latest update supports AAF files, but when I export the Avid project as AAF, Premiere can read the info in the AAF file but somehow it does not recognise the associated OMF (media) files (i.e. it imports the AAF and then asks where a given OMF file is, but when you tell it, it says that the file format is not supported).
I read somewhere that an alternative would be via quicktime reference files - but the problem I see there is that if I want to transfer the media files to another drive, the quicktime reference file has no means of knowing where they are (or rather will think that they are still at the old place, because it does not ask for any location)?
Another thing may be that the original Avid OMF files might not be quite the right format for Premiere - there is also an option to export to OMF 1.0, but I'm not sure if that would help.
Any suggestions and help regarding transferring the project from one system to the other would be appreciated! Many thanks!

Um ... by basically re-doing the project ... as there's SO much added to CC since the CS6 version, the tools have changed, the available effects have changed, the underlying code has changed ... there's just so much that CC can do that can't be done in the old CS6 version.
You can try exporting an XML and importing that into CS6 ... sometimes that works better than others, it hath been stated. This is sort of like trying to put a modern engine with all the computer controlled gizmos & pollution controls & fuel injection and designed to work with a 5-speed auto transmission into a 1965 Chevelle. With the older 3-speed manual tranny. How do you do it? Rebuild everything ... both the engine & the car. Lot of work.
Neil

How stable is iPhoto 6?

I have approx. 9500 photos in my collection. I was having problems emptying my trash, crashing and receiving constant requests to rebuild my library, so I bought iPhoto Library Manager and it's Great. I've split my collection into separate, smaller libraries and am in the process of cleaning and streamlining them.
However, my rebuilt library of 6000 photos, cannot trash more than 20 items at a time without crashing and being rebuilt. So I'm attempting to somehow to reimport & rebuild it even smaller, BUT how stable is iPhoto 6? is this a common problem? I like the program but am I wasting my time and should I explore other photo archive applications? Will iLife 09 be more stable, or is it too early to tell. The only apps I would use are iPhoto and iDVD.
It's having issues at only 7000 photos when it's supposed capacity is 25,000
Is this normal?
Thank you for any opinions, advice or knowledge anyone can offer.

My HD has a 150 capacity with 80GB free space.
Two of my sets I created with iPhoto Manager are on an External Drive of 500 GB, 450GB free.
I did some more testing and the 2 libraries that are crashing are on the Hard Drive. They are also the biggest, one is the buggy default library, the other is the rebuild of the default library. In the rebuild library I can trash only 20 photos at a time etc. (see above post) the other cannot trash anything. I was hoping to use the Rebuilt library as my main library(once I've cleaned out the old photos), saving to the others as needed, but since that is unstable I may start a new clean one.
Will it harm the photos/movies/files to copy them, yet again, into a new clean library (I'm using Library Mgr)? I have had a few problems/errors copying photos due to "unrecognized file type or the files may not contain valid data" these photos did not transfer.
I've also rebuilt these libraries numerous times with the option+command options.
If my system is the problem, what would you recommend as a next step?
Thank you also for the capacity/stability confirmation, I like the app. and would like to continue using it, once I get rid of my bugs.

FCP project to an Avid Express

I captured over 600 clips downcoverted to DV anamorphic from an HD source. I sent a harddrive containing all these clips to London for an editor to cut a show.
Now, he informs me that he would like to cut this show on an Avid Xpress and not FCP. He tried to import a clip from the drive into his Avid and the media is there, but no Reel or TC information.
I have used AD Pro Import, but does anyone know if AD Pro Export from my end will create a OMF file that will link the media to the drive he already has or do I have to re-export the clips from FCP to a new hard drive and resend?
Thanks!

I don't think Auto Duck will do what you are asking but maybe Wes the creator of AD will chime in as he lurks around the forums.
My advice would be to allow the Avid to recapture in the method they choose. I know you've captured a lot of clips but the issue at hand is that Avid uses its own proprietary file format for editing and it will never be able to read your media with reimporting and conversion to OMF. If you plan to online then you HAVE to have reel and tc and as we see that's a problem. If you aren't onlining then you have an extra conversion step that could introduce quality issues. Let the Avid recapture... that's the absolute best way. Good luck.

How to uninstall FCP Studio?

Hello, can anybody provide a link or instructions on how to uninstall FCP Studio? I need to reinstall it to a lower version (5.1.4 to 5.1.2) due to older project files and compatibility with other systems. Thanks!

If you just want to get back to FCP 5.1.2 you will need the 5.1.2 updater which Apple doesn't make available for download.
To reinstall 5.1 Apple read this Apple Doc:
Remove receipts and reinstall Final Cut Pro
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=302337
Skip step 11 (updating with Software Update)
Update with the 5.1.2 update.
This worked for me.

How to uninstall FCP Studio 2

Anyone out there knows how to uninstall FCP Studio 2?
Thanks,
Rogelio

The following is the method that worked for previous versions, and I assume it would work for FCS2:
Warning - This is a long post.
How to uninstall Final Cut Pro & the other ProApps -
There are two ways to do this. The first requires that you insert the install discs for each app and go through the following procedure to identify the installed files.
1) Insert the disc and double click the install icon.
2) Click to let the installer check your system
3) After the installer opens, click File > Show Files (Command-T)
4) Click the disclosure triangle next the the app's name to show all the files installed, then select all of them
5) Choose Edit > Copy (Command-C)
6) Open a text editor & paste the list
7) If you have a printer connected, print
8) Make sure you delete the file/folder in the exact location indicated in the list
9) Insert the next app's install disc and repeat
The other way involves the Terminal.
Using Terminal:
1) In Finder, choose Go > Go to Folder (Shift-Command-G)
2) Enter the location /Library/Receipts/FinalCurPro.pkg/Contents
3) Click Go to open the Contents folder
4) Launch Terminal (/Applications/Utilities/Terminal)
5) Enter the command lsbom -s (a lower case L, not an upper case i)
lsbom lists each of the files inside the bill of materials. To list only the folders, the command would be lsbom -d.
6) Type a space, then drag the Archive.bom file from the Finder window to the Terminal window.
7) Press Return to view the list
8) Drag to select the list in the Terminal window and choose File > Copy (Command-C)
9) Open a text editor and paste the list into it. Print if you have a printer attached.
10) Guided by the list, delete all the files and folders, being extremely careful to delete from the exact locations shown in the list.
NOTE: The above comes from the Peachpit book Optimizing Your Final Cut Pro System.

How to get FCP to recognize an animation sequence, not individual clips ?

Hello All;
Could someone tell me how to get FCP to recognize a .png animation sequence (Exported from After-Effects) ? When I place the directory or files onto the timeline, I get a project 27 minutes long, rather than 10 seconds like it should be. I know this must be easy and I'm just missing something.
Tim

You exported a .png image sequence from After Effects?
Three choices:
1) In Final Cut Pro, click anywhere in the 27 minute long timeline and type Command + A to select all the clips. Once they are all selected Control Click on any one of the selected clips, and from the drop down menu choose Duration. Set the duration each clip is supposed to be ( 1 frame? 3 frames?) and click OK.
2) In Final Cut Pro, go to the menu Final Cut Pro > User Preferences. When The User Preferences open, click on the Editing Tab. Set the Still/Freeze duration to the duration you want for each of the stills in your image sequence and click OK. You will then need to re-import the stills, and they will now each be the new duration. This does not work on the stills you have already imported- you need to import the stills again.
3) Open Quicktime Pro (Quicktime Player 7) and go to the menu File > Open Image Sequence. . .
Navigate to the first frame of your image sequence and click Open. You will be asked to pick your frame rate. Set that and click OK.
When it opens, go to the menu File > Export and the Save Exported File As . . . window will open. Choose the codec you want for your animation (Pro Res, most likely) and, determine a location for the file and click Save. The image sequence will be exported as a Movie in the frame rate and codec you chose. Import that movie into FCP to edit or composite.
MtD

FCP Weirdness connected to Avid Unity

I'm trying to use FCP with Avid Unity storage set as the scratch disk. One weird thing I've noticed is if I try to view a Bars and Tone clip in the Viewer, it shows up as a white frame instead of bars.
Then when I switch to a local drive as the scratch disk, I can see the bars in the viewer.
Is this an issue of incompatibility between FCP and Avid Unity storage drives?
My system specs:
Mac OS X 10.5.8
QT Pro 7.6.4
Avid Media Composer 4.0.5.3
FCP 6.0.6
Avid Project: 1080, 23.976 fps, WAVE(OMF), 24-bit, 48 kHz, DNxHD 36
Unity Client 5.1.3
Unity Server 5.1.3

As long as you have the proper Highpoint card in the machine, and the software to mount and manage the UNITY drives, then yes, they can be used like any hard drive you mount on your system.
Shane

How stable is FCP 5 in comparison to Avid Xpress Pro?

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