Avid Media Composer three.Zero, Mac – First Look

First LookMany folks who’ve been putting on the Mac version of Avid’s Media Composer have felt a bit overlooked over the previous few years, and to a sure volume, rightfully so. We sat and watched as Avid got the wind knocked out of it with the aid of Apple’s introduction of Final Cut Pro. Apple’s lower expenses and integration with more recent versions of the Mac OS came as a superb leap forward within media’s democratization. Apple ran a complete court press on Avid’s dominance of the virtual enhancing tools market. Avid struggled to find their manner as the charge of modifying tools dropped, and the company that created and ruled cutting-edge digital editing observed themselves having to play seize-up.

Today I write about the first manifestation of Avid’s “New Thinking,” Media Composer 3.Zero. With a new team of pinnacle executives, decrease expenses, and an emphasis on patron pleasure, Avid isn’t always most effective speaking the speech; they’re taking walks the walk. Media Composer version 3.0 promises on the corporation’s promise to do commercial enterprise in a brand new manner, excluding a few minor hiccups (self-imposed as I speedy discovered) my transition from 2.Eight to a few. Zero become not only painless, and it was downright a laugh.
Ever the virtual modifying daredevil, I decided to upgrade right in the center of locking a feature movie. (Actual stunt editor. NOT recommended for sane users) The pictures, which were first captured to an Avid Unity on Adrenaline, were subsequently transferred to a 1TB G-RAID and had been knocking around town on several distinct structures for nearly 12 months. I backed up all my challenge facts within the event of a disaster. (I’m crazy, now not stupid) I set up the upgrade, restarted the computer, and…
Kernel Panic…Argh!
That’s proper, the gray screen of death. I’m thinking, what a drag. Why do I always do this to myself?

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I name Avid aid and explain my scenario. It’s here I have a threat to peer several of Avid’s “new thinking” in action. Now get this, the character on the other cease of the road actually empathizes with me! I’m stunned. I might have needed to pledge my firstborn or bought a totally steeply-priced yearly help agreement in the antique days. Avid now offers what I believe is an honest charge consistent with-incident aid but higher than that; in this name, they were kind sufficient to comp me a 24-hour assist price tag! I thanked them profusely and proceeded to contact TS. After a quick wait, I was given someone on the road. The voice had a thick accessory, but at least I ought to apprehend him. He appeared pretty stumped once I first describe the hassle, but after a brief dialogue, we parent out that it was… (seeking to look harmless) something I did. How surprising.

In the upgrade “Read Me” (which, BTW, I did study), there are installation notes for Mac users that say to put in most effective on an “easy” version of Leopard. This turned into a chunk a lot for my little head. Did it suggest smooth as in “wipe and reformat” smooth or clean as in “improve” easy? Michael Phillips, Solutions Manager, Content Production at Avid, clarified this for me, announcing Mac customers can uninstall Composer 2.8 from Tiger, improve to Leopard without a need to wipe and reformat the power and installation three. Zero. My difficulty stemmed from at once putting in 2.Eight on Leopard after I first offered it. Why, you ask? Because I didn’t read the “examine me” file. (Ugh!) Confirmation all over again that it pays to RTFM (study the terrific guide). After on foot me thru uninstalling and then deleting a few remnants of the preceding version, I re-mounted, rebooted, and voila, hassle solved.

This is in which it got a laugh. Media Composer three.0 booted fast and smooth. While doing so, it notified me that it had to replace my Mojo SDI firmware and proceeded to achieve this without a hitch. (I have been informed that some users have had problems upgrading their unique Mojo boxes, so check Avid’s knowledge base for the brand new facts). The software program loaded (cue angelic track from the beginning of “Simpson’s” episode), and straight away, I could inform something was unique. You would possibly say, how can you inform something like that? Well, allow me to let you know, after sixteen years of enhancing in this software program, while something is one of a kind, you CAN sense it. Adrenaline on Mac failed to experience strong to me.

In truth, it the felt form of frail, and my stories with it confirmed this. I crashed greater frequently than Meridian, and it changed into no longer responsive. After reducing HD’s characteristic on Final Cut Pro, it was a drag to need to go lower back to using Tiger.

I start putting three.0 through its paces, and on the hazard of sounding hyperbolic, it’s far ROCKING. No latency, no glitchiness, (my word, Colbert) picture quality is tremendously and extensively higher, and the playhead is cutting thru multi-layer, actual-time consequences, and name comps like “button.” I’ve been given reels with 20 audio tracks, 3-five video tracks, deleting, re-patching, copying, and pasting, I make lots of cuts and adjustments, and Media Composer would not cringe once. I begin getting heat and fuzzy feeling and assume that is a beautiful aspect.

These guys have, without a doubt, performed their homework.

Yes, Media Composer three. Zero is solid. Yes, it’s speedy. Yes, it really works on Leopard, which without a doubt gooses the (Mac) editor satisfaction meter (Mac’s heads rejoice!). Still, one function I right now determined really worth the improvement price is the brand new actual-time Timecode Generator impact. This function gives you the capacity to generate window burn with various options. No extra Horita boxes, no more rendering, this reputedly minor addition works perfectly and could store editors and assistants limitless hours and complications while making outputs for collaborators at the submit production crew. Three. Zero consists of many other new upgrades and capabilities; however, it’s past the scope of this “First Look,” and I will cowl them intensive in future video segments.

It has taken the organization some time; however, with it is govt makeover, lower charge structure, and now the release of Media Composer 3.0, Avid appears to be regaining its footing. Filmmakers of every stage will experience running with the application’s time, and battle examined enhancing interface. The truth that it runs flawlessly on Apple’s ultra-modern running machine and hardware is the ice cream on the pinnacle of the pie. From my first week of running with it, Media Composer three.0 is a winner.