Edius Brews Up a Storm
I want to acknowledge first the tremendous support given by Australia’s TGV Mark Lampard. His personal contribution and links back to Japan provided timely fixes for operator issues that inevitably popped up when installing this brand new product.
Because of its complexity this review will be covered over two issues. Firstly, in this edition, I’ll look at the installation of the hardware, HDStorm Plus, and the software Edius version 5 and associated plug-ins including ProDads Vitascene and Mercalli, the NewBlueFX including Art Effects, Film Effects and Motion Effects, Ulead DVD MovieWriter and a set of iZotope Audio VST plug-ins.
In a subsequent issue I’ll review the editing process, distribution, making DVD’s and creating files for transport to other mediums such as websites.
Many of you will be aware of the TGV Edius software. Edius was created many years ago by Canopus and in recent times acquired by Thomson Grass Valley who are a substantial manufacturer of video hardware. As part of the acquisition TGV inherited the technology of earlier capture cards such as the DV Raptor RT and DV Storm RT both of which dominated the capture card market at a time when personal computers needed a good deal of hardware support. Computers today have grown quite powerful and when dealing with basic DV projects rarely need this support. The introduction of HDV changed this equation radically and again the cycle returned to a point where capture cards, video raids and smart graphic cards are all essential to produce a reasonable workflow.
Whenever we speak of processing HDV the computer specifications become all important and manufacturers are keen to publicise that information fairly precisely. For our bench test we built a special machine in the sense that it wasn’t designed specifically for everyday use (it is now) and we wanted to make sure the playing field was level and other software didn’t interfere with the review process.
We chose an Asus P5Q Deluxe motherboard with 4Gb of RAM and a nVidia 9800GT graphics card with 1Gb of DDR3 RAM onboard. Although Edius is now Vista aware, 64bit drivers will not be available until the first quarter of 2009 so we settled with Windows XP Pro 32bit operating system and service pack 2. We also constructed a Promise PCIe Raid0 with four 500Gb Western Digital 7200 hard drives giving us 2Tb of video drive on top of our “C” drive and independent 1Tb “D” drive for other data.
Hardware Installation
The HD Storm Plus consists of 1x PCIe card, a breakout box that fits neatly underneath your CD Rom drive, a special cable that connects the two and an audio cable that runs from the PCIe card to the motherboard and provides synchronised audio output. The breakout box delivers all your analogue connections, component in and out, Y/C and composite plus HDMI connectors in and out. The HD Storm card only supports HDMI (with audio) so if you need the analogue connections you must purchase the breakout box.
HD Storm has the famous Canopus HQ codec on board which assists with ingest (capturing footage) and final rendering. The codec gives these two processes a noticeable boost but otherwise plays no role in the normal workflow.
Installing HD Storm and the bay is a fairly easy process but some care is needed in placing these two units as close as possible to each other as the joining cable is only 50cm long and is proprietary. Choosing an appropriate PCIe 1x slot is also important. Our first attempt on a Asus P5K-E board led to disaster with all three PCIe cards competing with each other. Whatever we did the nVidia GT9800, our then high end 3Ware PCIe Raid card and the HD Storm just wouldn’t get along. When we replaced this motherboard with the Asus P5Q Deluxe the issue disappeared. We’ll let the technicians in Japan sort that one out.
Now that we’ve got the hardware installed it’s probably an appropriate time to describe its purpose. HD Storm Plus allows you to connect a whole range of analogue gear, in fact anything that can output component, Y/C or composite signals. This could be a DVD player, a VHS machine or an older style analogue camera. Providing the component signal doesn’t include HDCP (High Definition Copyright Protection) ingest will work fine. Signals from these inputs are captured to the HQ Codec and on to your hard drive as HQ AVI files in their native resolution. The files also retain their 16:9 and/or 4:3 perspective.
The same breakout box includes a pair of HDMI connectors, in and out, with eight channels of digital audio. These connectors parallel the HDMI input/output on the HD Storm PCIe card itself. So you can connect to both inputs and outputs concurrently but only use one input or output at a time. The capture menu within Edius determines the active connector.
HDMI capture may be a little different for those who have experienced only DV ingest via firewire. There is no camera control through the process so after you select the HDMI input you need to manually roll the camera or deck. No in points or outpoints are available. Broadcast machines would normally overcome this by having RS232 control (Serial) separately on the equipment. Perhaps camera control may be added later but for those who have been in the industry some time the issue is not critical.
I’ve spoken of input (ingest) however HD Storm is providing a relatively unique service in that it allows a video editor to view his or her work in full high definition from the Edius timeline directly to an external video monitor. The attached video monitor can be of full broadcast specification or a simple consumer LCD with HDMI input. For this review we chose the Dell 16:9 S2409W 1920 x 1080 resolution monitor with HDMI and DVI input and were suitably impressed. This monitor is available for just under $400.
The HD Storm Plus also outputs to composite, Y/C or component, when you have the break out box installed. For those in the professional field this type of output can be beneficial for connection to other video equipment.
Software Installation
After the hardware is setup, and the instructions are quite clear on how you do this, Edius v5 and the HD Storm driver need to be installed. In the end this process is easy but by way of experimentation and during the process of writing this review we decided to uninstall the HD Storm card and reinstall it a short time later. Take care with this process.
Once we uninstalled the HD Storm card we found that any number of attempts to reinstall were fruitless, the driver would simply not reload. Our work around was to reinstall Windows which is both time consuming and a pain in the neck. It is assumed that this problem may be related to registry entries or the driver file but again the information has been sent to Japan for analysis. As long as you load the software as described in the manual and leave it alone you will have no problems.
Thomson Grass Valley have dropped some of their older plug-in software like effects Explode Pro. This software was starting to age and the manufacturer was keen to rewrite Edius 5 for the Windows Vista operating system. In fact, both goals were achieved. Edius runs fine on Vista 32bit and Vista 64bit but at this point of time the HD Storm card has no 64bit drivers and as a consequence won’t work on this platform. We understand that this will be remedied in the first quarter of 2009.
My personal preference (using HD Storm card) is to setup on Windows XP Pro and dual boot into Vista Ultimate (64bit) ready for when the drivers arrive. I’ve found in the past that a dual boot video system has a good number of benefits the greatest of which is the ability to recover data should some itinerant software crash one of the operating systems.
Back to the new plug-ins. Explode Pro may have gone but TGV have provided a comprehensive range of effects that now utilise the GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). The GPU is found on your graphics card and is now the target of many software developers as a source of processing power. In simple terms the GPU can relieve the CPU (Central Processing Unit) of a good deal of work and speed things up considerably. What it does mean though is part of the upgrade process is to make sure you have a fairly recent graphics card with plenty of RAM (512Mb is nice). With this version of Edius if your GPU RAM is inadequate or the card is out of date you won’t have access to the GPU effects. You will find that just over $100 will solve your problem and be beneficial across a host of new software programs.
In addition to the effects and transitions provided in the Edius package is a range of third part effects and transitions including the ProDad software, Vitascene and Mercalli which will be reviewed separately. ProDad’s Heroglyph, my favourite titling package, is not included but still works fine under Edius 5.
The other package that I really love is NewBlueFX. This is Included with Edius 5 and is part of a magic range of effects and transitions, art effects, motion effects and film effects. Once you start playing with these, and they’re not real-time but who cares, you no doubt will be off to NewBlueFX to buy more from their comprehensive range. For those of you that have the NewBlueFX now as an Edius v4 plug-in you simply reinstall into Edius 5 and they will work fine.
Edius has never been strong in the audio field, and for that matter either have I, but with version 5 the iZotope Audio VST plug-in has been included. Now, I can use these so I guess that goes a long way toward saying that Edius audio is on the improve.
Finally, from a software perspective Thomson Grass Valley have included with the release of Edius 5 ULead’s DVD Movie Writer. Well, there’s better DVD authoring software out there in the market place and it would appear that Movie Writer was provided as an attempt to appease those who need to produce Blu-ray discs from Edius. It will work but I think there are better alternatives. This program is stand alone and does not create DVD’s from the timeline. So, your choices are still open and those who do produce Blu-ray will continue with their favourite program anyway.
Installing any of the plug-ins is a simple matter of inserting a single disc that contains the complete suite and making your choices. Most users will install the lot and I found no performance problems with any application.
For those who already use TGV Edius products you will be aware that it is necessary to insert a USB dongle before working with the application. Nothing has changed with the new version; you simply get a new dongle provided. The dongle cannot be replaced so exercise care with your new software or it may be up for replacement.
Next issue we’ll talk about Edius 5, the application, and what’s changed and look at the convenience of multi format editing and a very effective workflow. We’ll also examine the Edius output capabilities and see if it can produce the product we need as video editors.
Inside Television
It often starts at primary school and for many the intensity grows as we get older. By the time we’re seventeen or eighteen our ambition is strong. Of course, you all know what I’m talking about – the desire to become involved in film or television.
This month I thought a good treat for budding videographers would be an opportunity to show you how the buying part of the television industry works. Some mistakenly think that purchasing a camera is the key to turning professional or making money. It really doesn’t matter what gear you own or how good you may be with a camera, unless you have an audience the whole expensive exercise could be wasted.
I’ve had the good fortune of meeting scores of wonderful people in the film industry, people who genuinely have an interest in seeing you succeed. Twenty years ago I met David Franken, long term undergraduate, war protester and television programme director extraordinaire. David allowed me into his lair, he’s known as the Gaatekeeper, for a brief look at where knowledge ends and imagination begins.
A long history
John: Thanks for opening the gate David. Up until recently you had one of the most unusual jobs in the country. What sparked your interest in television?
David: In 1974 I was elected editor of the University Of Queensland student newspaper, Semper Floreat. The experience had me delighting in, and considering, media - any and all forms - as a place of employment where I would be creatively fulfilled. Through a sequence of synchronicities, I was invited into part time employment with the Seven Network's Brisbane station.
John: Okay David, so the University newspaper was the trigger. Where did that lead?
David: I spent eight and half years at University - getting an education, not a degree. I was prepared. There were very few University educated individuals in television at that time, except for the technical areas. My first job was as a publicity assistant. I recall, with great precision, looking down a long corridor at Channel Seven in Brisbane, and feeling a tangible 'tug' emanating from the Program Manager', John McFerran's, office at the other end. I was drawn to programming in a manner not unlike that of a sense of vocation, a calling. My goal was always to find my creative self-expression as a programmer, nothing else.
John: That’s a long time to be a programme manager for one television network, what qualifications did you need to fulfil this role effectively?
David: Few would believe how untrained programmers are in this country. It's a self learning business for which many don’t have the talent. There isn't anywhere to learn the skills of this complex craft. Most programmers despise their opposition. I didn't. I liked my opposition, honoured them, as perhaps distant teachers. I looked everywhere for mentors. There are only a handful of decent programming jobs in Australia. If you feel the calling, follow it.
An unusual vocation
John: So what exactly does a programme manager or director do?
David: To be a Program Director, I will speak from my own perspective, is to program a format. A programmer is not a manager, though they inevitable believe they are, orchestrating departments like publicity, promotions and marketing. This is a craft, a calling a summons - not a job. I got into considerable trouble believing and practicing that view. It wasn't a popular definition. A programmer interacts with, and changes the scheduling, the format of a television network.
John: It’s almost twenty years since you purchased from me one of my early documentaries. I was a local, budding filmmaker. What happens with emerging filmmakers now? Is there a market for their product?
David: There's no money now. There's less freedom too, to energise local programming. Some local programmers have no interest in localism - it takes effort. They're happier to follow the network format rather than fight for their local communities' betterment. There are exceptions, but they tend to be historical inheritances.
John: As a programme director, if approached by an aspiring filmmaker for advice on programme development, what would you say?
David: That's precisely what I do now after my work at Seven. I consult on program development as well as my own writing and creation of formats. I would say, “come, let's have the debate about the structure and the storytelling of your project, and see how it can conform to a greater audience, a mass audience'. I remain what I have always been, a programmer. I didn't think that would be the case. I falsely believed that a programmer's work concluded when one left the network. It's not true.
Everyone talks about the quality of television programs
John: Content broadcast by free-to-air networks has always been dynamic. In your opinion have changes to programming over the past decade been beneficial?
David: The culture of television will always evolve, hybridise, as the culture and attitudes of the public always change. Change always brings challenge and failure. There are wonderful insights coming from the wave of what is falsely called 'reality' television. There are also cruel and exploitative elements and formats. The latter, on the whole, don't survive. If television doesn't reflect and engage the people, it fails. Shows get cancelled.
John: As a person with a long and distinguished background in film and television what are your predictions for the future of the industry?
David: It's about the screens, when the day is done. Screens may be on the PC, a laptop, a mobile phone - or sitting in the corner of the living room. Screens require content, content that is engaging, delighting, sobering, and immersive. The location and stylistics may change, but content, as they say, is king. The stories will be told in a growing forest of screens. And it will grow.
John: What is David Franken doing now and how does that fit with his universal goals?
David: I'm about my father's business, John, trying to make a difference, to be generous and to contribute to Australia's screen culture, large and small. There is a feature film and television drama series I have created, and am currently working with formidable creative individuals, collaborators and mentors, to bring those to a mass audience.
John: Looking back on your career what were the highlights?
David: So many, they’re innumerable. I had the delight of working with many wonderful staff members over the years, their passion and commitment and joy in what was then a wonderfully creative industry. I believed in self-management. A special highlight was my strong influence in the programming of what was to become Australia's highest rated television program, Blue Heelers. I argued for it to move from its original 7.30 timeslot to 8.30 where it was free to find its audience and soar to legendary status in Australian television history. I persuaded the network to do something that is anathema in global television programming, namely, to change the timeslot of the #1 show on television, Blue Heelers. As a consequence All Saints found a future on the Seven Network, and it continues to this day.
David Franken is a larger than life character who left the Seven network and now and enjoys the fruits of his dedication and hard work. David is the filmmakers’ friend and continues to mentor emerging talent in the industry he loves.