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DV September 2004 • www.dv.com

REVIEWS
Final Cut Pro HD
Software NLE • Apple, $999 • By Terence Curren

SCORE: 4 out of 5
Pros: Opens the door for low-cost HD post. Great price: Free for 4.0 users.
Cons: Multicam support and solid media manager are still missing.
Bottom Line: When I saw HD playing in real time on a desktop computer without external hardware support, I was impressed-and I continue to be. As a free upgrade, Final Cut Pro HD can't be beat.

Apple: Final Cut Pro HD

Although I felt that Apple Motion was the most exciting announcement at NAB 2004, Final Cut Pro HD (www.apple.com/finalcutpro) was a good runner-up. This 4.5 release changed the moniker from just Final Cut Pro, and also added a few new features and performance enhancements. The real meat of this upgrade consists of support for Panasonic's DVCPRO 100 codec. But the best thing about this upgrade might be its price: It's free for owners of version 4.x!

When Final Cut Pro HD is used in combination with the new Panasonic AJ-HD1200A VTR ($21,000), no extra hardware is required to digitize and view high-definition projects. You can capture your footage over FireWire and use a second Apple Cinema display for HD viewing.

HD post pipeline

At first glance, this version appears to provide entry into HD editing for anyone who owns a Mac. The catch is that there are many flavors of HD, from 1080i down to HDV. Final Cut Pro HD currently only supports the Panasonic 100 Mbps codec. Apple has said it will support the HDV format in a future version, and the company currently supports higher-end HD through the use of third-party cards from manufacturers such as AJA, Aurora, Blackmagic, and Pinnacle Systems. Nonetheless, Apple has taken the lead in the industry by natively supporting HD over FireWire.

Current owners of the Panasonic AJ-HDC27 Varicam HD camera should be very pleased with this new development. This free upgrade and a deck rental now gives them a complete HD post pipeline.

Since the introduction of the Panasonic Varicam, there has been little support for the 60 fps footage in most editing applications. The big problem has been that most edit software was written for 30 fps, 25 fps, and 24 fps timecode.

Final Cut Pro HD's Media Manager gives you more control over exactly what you want to copy, but it still has a way to go to match the media management tools you'll find in an Avid.

In my testing, I was pleased to see that the 60-frame timecode support is enabled in Final Cut Pro HD, even though it isn't listed in Apple's specifications page.

I have to admit, it is a little unsettling to see the timecode roll past :30. And I'm not entirely sure how this is going to affect all of us-the ramifications of yet another frame rate have not been fully explored yet.

One of the nice things about the DVCPRO 100 codec is the small amount of bandwidth it takes up. Apple claims it only needs between 5.8 MBps and 14 MBps, depending on frame rate. This is less than uncompressed 8-bit SD, which requires a data rate of about 20 MBps. In contrast, Avid claims rates between 18.1 MBps and 27.5 MBps for its yet-to-be-released DNxHD codec. I was able to play 24p HD on a Power Mac dual-processor 500 MHz G4 with an internal ATA drive; but, as expected, the same configuration started dropping frames with 1080i footage. I wasn't able to test the FireWire capture because the Panasonic AJ-HD1200A deck wasn't available for this review.

Through the use of the Digital Cinema Desktop feature, you can view your HD video in full resolution on an Apple Cinema display, via the DVI connector. This eliminates the cost of buying an HD monitor for regular editing. I wouldn't use this option for critical work such as color-correction or judging motion artifacts.

Some of the improvements to workflow include directly importing a LiveType project as a composited clip with alpha channel. Just drop it on an upper track and you can actually see your work in Final Cut Pro before you render it. Also, any changes you make in LiveType are carried over to the Final Cut Pro timeline. I found this to be a real improvement to the old workflow, and it will lead me to use LiveType more. Apple says this same workflow will apply to Motion when it ships this year.

What FCP HD needs

I have to admit, I was disappointed that Final Cut Pro HD didn't have multicam editing support. Apple has achieved the processor performance to be able to stream multiple clips in real time, so it shouldn't be hard to implement. I'm hoping this feature will be in the next big release, whenever that arrives. The good news is that Apple shouldn't have to make it a different, highly compressed format like the Avid M resolutions.

Final Cut Pro 4.5 is also missing a robust media manager, which is sorely needed. One improvement Apple made is a check box that allows you to create a new project and create new master clips with only the media in a current selection. This is a step in the right direction, but until Final Cut Pro gets the solid media management of an Avid, it will be kept out of many workflows. I hope this will also come through in the next release.

Conclusion

If this was a full-price release, I would be disappointed because it only adds some fixes and an HD codec. But at the shocking price of a free download, I am very pleased.

Final Cut Pro HD Resources

Training Books

Apple Pro Training Series: Advanced Editing and Finishing Techniques in Final Cut Pro 4
By DigitalFilm Tree
(Peachpit Press, 2003)
www.peachpit.com

Final Cut Pro 4 Editing Essentials
By Tom Wolsky
(CMP Books, 2003)
www.cmpbooks.com

Final Cut Pro 4 On the Spot
By Richard Harrington and Abba Shapiro
(CMP Books, 2003)
www.cmpbooks.com

Final Cut Pro HD for Mac OS X: Visual QuickPro Guide
By Lisa Brenneis
(Peachpit Press, 2004)
www.peachpit.com

Logging

HD Log-X is a handy FireWire tape logging utility for $199. It allows users to log clips, add long test notes, grab frames, and easily sort clips via either FireWire control or RS-422. The logs can then be exported to several editing applications, including Avid and Final Cut Pro. www.imagineproducts.com

Final Cut Pro HD

System Requirements:
System Requirements Macintosh computer with 350 MHz PowerPC G4 or G5 processor and AGP graphics card; Mac OS X v10.3.2; 384 MB RAM; QuickTime 6.5; DVD drive for installation; 1 GB disk space for application installation, 5 GB for Soundtrack content, and 9 GB for LiveType content.
For Soundtrack: 500 MHz single processor or 450 MHz dual processors; 512 MB RAM recommended.
For RT Extreme: Single 500 MHz PowerPC G4 (550 MHz for PowerBook G4) or any dual-PowerPC G4; 512 MB RAM.
For DVCPRO HD: 1 GHz single or dual processors; 1 GB RAM.

Terence Curren is the principal owner of Alpha Dogs (www.alphadogs.com), a postproduction and design house in Burbank, CA. He is also an instructor of advanced editing techniques at Pasadena Community College.