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Workflow/Codec/Pro Questions

slekyr

slekyr

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Hello,

I have been out of the editing game for a little while now but I am starting to get back into it. I recently made the switch from Mac to PC and therefore had to find a new NLE.

I was fairly familiar with FCPX and I liked my workflow I had created. I downloaded the trial version of Sony Movie Studio Platinum 13 and I appreciate it quite a bit. With the exception of a few key things, I actually prefer Movie Studio more than FCPX; zooming in with the scroll wheel is amazing :).

That leads me to my first question:

1a) Movie Studio comes in several varieties Movie Studio, MS Platinum, and MS Suite. I've been leaning towards Platinum but I was wondering if the other programs that come in the "Suite" package is worth the extra money. They include:

  • DVD Architect Studio
  • NewBlueFX 3D Titling and Video Effects

  • BorisFX Units*
  • FXHOME HitFilm Effects
  • Jump Start Tutorials


  • Sound Forge Audio Studio
  • ACID Music Studio
  • 50 Production Music Track

I don't really know how beneficial these programs would be for the purpose of fanediting.

1b) Using the trial version, I seemed to be able to do just about everything I wanted to do when testing out the program; the $60 price tag for the MS Platinum is also a huge bonus. Sony Vegas Pro 13 is 10 times that amount at $600. I was wondering if anyone would recommend me saving up and upgrading in the future or if MS Platinum should suffice.

2) ProRes was the codec of choice for FCPX and it seems that there isn't a single codec that people agree upon when using PC. It seems that people here seem to prefer Lagarith, which is a lossless codec. When it comes to editing in Vegas how do people feel about somewhat lossy codecs similar to ProRes, like DV and DNxHD?


3a) I have been doing some intense Google searches as well as searching this forum to try and establish a workflow that somewhat resembles my workflow I had created for FCPX. I looked at both Boon's and Throw's guides and wondered how those compared to something like the one presented on the Doom9 forum I found.
http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=163649

3b) Part of my Mac workflow was using PavTube BD Magic to rip the Bluray/DVD directly to ProRes. They have a windows equivalent which works the same way. There is also another program that looks like it has more output options. Both of these cost money but I was wondering if anyone has successfully used any type of program like this with Sony Vegas and/or fanediting on a PC.

I apologize if any of these question have been answered in other threads. I would gladly navigate there if links could be provided. Thank you to all those who take the time to reply, it is greatly appreciated.

Thanks
 
KobaKommander said:
When it comes to editing in Vegas how do people feel about somewhat lossy codecs similar to ProRes, like DV and DNxHD?
Click to expand...

The latter is notoriously temperamental. Stick with lossless codecs. I use UT Video when I have to use Vegas, which isn't very often; some people use Lagarith. Whichever you choose, make sure that you decode and convert your video to RGB properly before rendering a lossless AVI to import it into Vegas; that will minimize your chances of having problems.

The benefits to going from Studio to Pro are not huge. The former is not as far behind its big brother as it used to be, but I would carefully check the features that come with version of Studio that you purchase, as the more-recent versions are considerably better. I seem to remember that the presence of scopes and support for 24-bit audio in Pro are among the significant differences.

Quite a few editors use Studio successfully. Moreover, I seem to remember that Sony gives one the option to upgrade for a reduced price later on, so I would continue as you have done and see how far Studio takes you. From what you've said, it seems to be meeting your requirements.
 
Captain Khajiit said:
The latter is notoriously temperamental. Stick with lossless codecs. I use UT Video when I have to use Vegas, which isn't very often; some people use Lagarith.

The benefits to going from Studio to Pro are not huge. The former is not as far behind its big brother as it used to be, but I would carefully check the features that come with version of Studio that you purchase, as the more-recent versions are considerably better. I seem to remember that the presence of scopes and support for 24-bit audio in Pro are among the significant differences.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply. I will stick with lossless codecs, I will have to experiment with UT and Lagarith. I noticed your guides in your signature and thought they were very informative. I'm going to give your method a try along with the others listed in my question and see which process I prefer.

Thanks again.
 
KobaKommander said:
1a) Movie Studio comes in several varieties Movie Studio, MS Platinum, and MS Suite. I've been leaning towards Platinum but I was wondering if the other programs that come in the "Suite" package is worth the extra money. They include:

  • DVD Architect Studio
  • NewBlueFX 3D Titling and Video Effects

  • BorisFX Units*
  • FXHOME HitFilm Effects
  • Jump Start Tutorials


  • Sound Forge Audio Studio
  • ACID Music Studio
  • 50 Production Music Track

I don't really know how beneficial these programs would be for the purpose of fanediting.
Click to expand...

I don't know about most of those but I use the NewBlueFX a ton. There are some pretty sweet plugins included.

1b)Using the trial version, I seemed to be able to do just about everything I wanted to do when testing out the program; the $60 price tag for the MS Platinum is also a huge bonus. Sony Vegas Pro 13 is 10 times that amount at $600. I was wondering if anyone would recommend me saving up and upgrading in the future or if MS Platinum should suffice.
Click to expand...

I use Platinum and love it. There are workarounds for most things that you miss by not having Pro. Which isn't to say you won't run into an occasional problem, but it's an amazing value. In fact, I talked it up on a podcast just this weekend.

3b) Part of my Mac workflow was using PavTube BD Magic to rip the Bluray/DVD directly to ProRes. They have a windows equivalent which works the same way. There is also another program that looks like it has more output options. Both of these cost money but I was wondering if anyone has successfully used any type of program like this with Sony Vegas and/or fanediting on a PC.
Click to expand...

DVDFab used to be able to rip Bluray to PC for free, but it seems they stripped that out of the most recent free version. Luckily I still have the older version on my PC, but at some point I will need to find a replacement too.
 
TV's Frink said:
I don't know about most of those but I use the NewBlueFX a ton. There are some pretty sweet plugins included.
Click to expand...

I watch a few online tutorials using NewBlue FX Titler and it looked like something I would use quite often. This is the main reason I'm even considering the Suite version which is about $40 more than just Platinum version.

TV's Frink said:
I use Platinum and love it. There are workarounds for most things that you miss by not having Pro. Which isn't to say you won't run into an occasional problem, but it's an amazing value. In fact, I talked it up on a podcast just this weekend.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I haven't run into anything yet that I can't do in Platinum, although I've just been testing a few things here and there. From what I can tell, it seems very capable and probably not worth upgrading, especially because of the cost. As for the podcast, if you have a link I would be interested in listening.

Thanks for your responses, they have helped make some of my decisions much easier.
 
FWIW I also use Platinum and love it. I got it bundled with DVD architect which I use to create my blu-rays and DVDs without issue. NewBlueFX looks great and I'm on the fence for it at the price point. If I could get it as an upgrade for a hundred bucks, I'd jump. I'm holding out for something like that (Sony offers deals regularly via email but so far I've only seen it as a $100 upgrade of an existing version. I might end up getting it at full price, especially with Frink's endorsement that it seems to be as good as it looks.
 
thecuddlyninja said:
FWIW I also use Platinum and love it. I got it bundled with DVD architect which I use to create my blu-rays and DVDs without issue. NewBlueFX looks great and I'm on the fence for it at the price point. If I could get it as an upgrade for a hundred bucks, I'd jump. I'm holding out for something like that (Sony offers deals regularly via email but so far I've only seen it as a $100 upgrade of an existing version. I might end up getting it at full price, especially with Frink's endorsement that it seems to be as good as it looks.
Click to expand...

Between you and Frink I think I'm going to get the Suite version. I really want the NewBlueFX and the DVD architect sounds like it could be useful, although I don't burn too many discs these days it would still be a nice thing to have if I do ever decide to burn an edit.

Thanks
 
Captain Khajiit said:
The latter is notoriously temperamental. Stick with lossless codecs. I use UT Video when I have to use Vegas, which isn't very often; some people use Lagarith. Whichever you choose, make sure that you decode and convert your video to RGB properly before rendering a lossless AVI to import it into Vegas; that will minimize your chances of having problems.
.
Click to expand...

I was doing some searching and found a codec similar to Lagarith and UT that people are discussing, MagicYUV. Have you heard about or used this at all?
 
I have heard about it but never used it. But you should be editing in (computer) RGB to avoid levels problems anyway, so I'd advise sticking to UT Video or Lagarith.
 
Honestly I had never heard of UT...thought most everyone on a PC here used lagarith.
 
Yeah, I realized that after I posted it. I'm going to start a new podcast thread in the General FE Discussion forum.
 
I realize that most people probably already have an editing program already, but I was able to purchase Movie Studio 13 Suite for $59.95. It's usually like $140 so it's a pretty good deal right now.

I'm glad I went with the Suite cause NewBlue FX Titler is very handy. I haven't messed with ACID Music Studio 10 or Sound Forge Audio Studio 10 yet, but they also seem like they could be very useful.
 
KobaKommander said:
It's usually like $140 so it's a pretty good deal right now.
Click to expand...

Not sure where you are seeing that price, but that sounds like full MSRP, which you should never pay.
 
TV's Frink said:
Not sure where you are seeing that price, but that sounds like full MSRP, which you should never pay.
Click to expand...

Yes its the full MSRP, and I didn't pay that much :)
 
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