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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Editing on a laptop

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Freya

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Obviously laptops tend to have less power than proper tower type computers and are usually more restricted in options too.
However, I would like to be able to edit red footage on a laptop when I am out and about.
I only really need to be able to make simple cuts to start with.

I'm wondering what the options for doing this are.

Obviously with the right hardware I could edit .r3d's in Premiere CS6 or Sony Vegas 11/12 or something.
I wonder what hardware I would need. I assume the big factor would be having an NVIDIA graphics card but I seem to remember reading somewhere that the mobile versions of NVIDIA cards are not supported for the Mercury playback engine (no idea about Vegas in that context)

The other thing I wondered was whether I could create SD proxies, perhaps as a DV codec for editing in some ancient software and then do a conform back to the real deal. I'm guessing the debayer/decompress for such a process would take a very, very long time tho?

Any suggestions for how to go about things. There must be a few options because people were editing RED footage years and years ago now, and computers have obviously become a lot faster in the mean time.

I'm looking to edit Red footage that is 4KHD or 4.5K from a Red One MX.

All idea are welcome! :)

Freya
 
Chris McKechnie said:
Lots of forums on this already.
Click to expand...

I assume you mean threads! ;)

I actually did a search and didn't find much that was useful tho it might be that is because there is so much out there on this topic.
I did find this one thread:

http://www.reduser.net/forum/archive/index.php/t-28145.html

which suggests I could use Red Rushes for the job, but I've not been able to locate a download for it.

Obviously it's geared more to media composer and I was thinking more of using an older version of Vegas, but I'm guessing it works out about the same.

Freya
 
Bob Gundu said:
All I know is that using my Macbook Retina works pretty great with 5K footage using native R3D files.
Click to expand...

Thanks Bob!

Yes most of the threads on editing on a laptop I have seen suggest a Macbook variant, I suspect with good reason, as they are a known quantity.

I'm a bit loathed to have something that is such a theft target however, as I recently had my house broken into and my recording studio stripped out which is making me rethink my life in various ways. I'm keen to minimise my losses if I do end up in such a situation too, so I'd probably like to stay PC based, or at worst Hackintosh.

If I can generate SD proxies tho, it seems that it's problem solved!

Freya
 
The 15" MBPR works well for editing, also light enough and enough battery life to take it with you for the day, just keep it with you if you're worried about it getting stolen. If you get the 512/750 GB version, you can install windows as well.
 
Thanks Shiblon!

Yes, this was one of the advantages in the favour of a macbook is that a lot of them are very nice and light and sincerely portable, so it wouldn't be such a hastle to constantly lug it around.

It would seem that nobody here seems very keen on a PC based laptop for editing .r3d's natively.

Still might try and generate SD proxies and see how that goes on my existing laptop tho.

Freya
 
Hi Freya

Sorry to hear about the break in at your house/studio.

We use MacBook pros with LaCie thunderbolt SSD raids for onsite editing. For quick turnaround we are using FCPX.

I don't really know anything about PC's but I imagine any new model laptop is a target for theft.

I think it's probably best to get the best tools you can afford and then worry about security.

Good luck

Adrian
 
another vote for the mbp retina from me...the combination of size, weight, battery power, speed, functionality are hard to beat for any price....i am very happy with mine and prices have come down quite a bit since i bought mine....and for the price now it is actually a very good deal now IMO....
and you should also check out the latest threads on fcpx....since i get premier with my adobe cloud i had a chance to compare....and as someone who started out on premier more then 15 years ago....this is no comparison....

about the theft: really sorry to hear....definitely always on my mind as well...but i am not sure why a mbp would somehow raise your chances of getting your house broken into....as for location: at that point it always seems to be a much bigger headache to loose what is on it....so i never leave it out of my sight or make sure someone does that for me...
 
paul schefz said:
about the theft: really sorry to hear....definitely always on my mind as well...but i am not sure why a mbp would somehow raise your chances of getting your house broken into....as for location: at that point it always seems to be a much bigger headache to loose what is on it....so i never leave it out of my sight or make sure someone does that for me...
Click to expand...

Well they turned up their noses at this laptop, and I'm sure they wouldn't hesitate over a mac book pro.
I was very thankful for this as I wasn't completely cut off when I got home.
This laptop is also quite handy in that it is easy to just pull out the hard disks and carry them around (Just as well as the laptop itself weighs way too much!)

I agree about data tho, they stole a dell dual core which had a lot of data on it and a cheap digital camera which had photos on the card.

In a lot of ways tho I was quite lucky and I am very thankful for that. I think a big part of that tho was that a lot of my data was sitting in ancient worthless PC's!

Freya
 
I'm hearing a lot of good things from RED users about FCP-X I note!
I'm quite familiar with 6/7 but not X yet.

Doesn't the MBP retina have issues with Premiere CS6 or am I reading too many way out of date threads on this subject?

Obviously any kind of Mac is going to rule out Vegas.

Freya
 
Adrian Weinbrecht said:
Hi Freya

Sorry to hear about the break in at your house/studio.

We use MacBook pros with LaCie thunderbolt SSD raids for onsite editing. For quick turnaround we are using FCPX.

I don't really know anything about PC's but I imagine any new model laptop is a target for theft.

I think it's probably best to get the best tools you can afford and then worry about security.

Good luck

Adrian
Click to expand...

Thanks Adrian!
Yup that's why I'm thinking of using an ancient one. Plus the fact that if something happens to it, it is less of a financial loss.

Freya
 
According to several sources, such as steam/valve, the majority of high end laptops running windows are MacBook pros, this only includes laptops with discreet graphics cards.
 
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Break ins been there done that lost thousands $$$$$$ . Not sure if it should influence future business tech choices though. However if you want to watch dollars buy a 2nd hand Mac book & it doesn't need to be the latest & greatest either.

Recently my Mac Pro died mid job.....so I was forced to continue the cut for 2 international toy TVC's on my Mac Book lappy ( now 2 + bit years old & not a retina ) using CS6 & 4k R3Ds , no transcoding, no problems including rendering out AE sequences for output to HD/SD TV. I believe this workflow would work for "longform' with due diligence on dataloads & external HD arrays.

My only issue was using the 1 screen for everything as opposed to my normal 2 screen layout. My take on it all works fine if you like going crossed eyed but failing that hook up an aux. screen for sanity.
 
Olivier Madar said:
Forget Apple. Just bought the new Clevo (32 G RAM, 3 T SSD, GTX780, bluray burner for only 4 kg. Very funny !!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oe52s3CqZS4

Sorry for the french speaking ;-)

Olivier
Click to expand...
i always get excited when i see these things...and then i go to their website and price it out....and read some reviews...yes they are crazy fast, desktop replacement....but the weight, size, price and non existent battery life just brings me back to earth....i would rather pack up an imac to take on location....
the great thing is that there are so many options available now....the idea that we can work with 5K raw files anywhere is pretty amazing!
 
You have created something of an odd dilemma for yourself. You want a high quality machine that will perform well editing R3Ds but it can't be good enough for someone to want to steal it? Not sure that's the way to think about the tradeoff. How about investing in better security? You could aways get a $300 Dell but then I am not sure about the performance. :-)

How about getting a new MBP and then putting it into one of those ugly plastic shell cases and put ugly stickers all over it? LOL
 
I'm currently cutting a feature documentary on-the-go on a MBP retina.

Here's a few points to consider.

Although it seems there is some kind of resurgence regarding editing R3D's natively in FCPX, this is NOT possible on the latest MBP retina model. the only option is to transcode to half rez via redcine-x (or other) and later re-link media.

However, editing on Premiere CS6 I'm able to work on a 1080 timeline with mixed frames sizes and speeds (all expect the damned 5KHD) without a hiccup.

The biggest down side with MBP is their 'what you buy is what you're stuck with' policy sucks big time.
 
Ethan Knight said:
I'm currently cutting a feature documentary on-the-go on a MBP retina.

Here's a few points to consider.

Although it seems there is some kind of resurgence regarding editing R3D's natively in FCPX, this is NOT possible on the latest MBP retina model. the only option is to transcode to half rez via redcine-x (or other) and later re-link media.

However, editing on Premiere CS6 I'm able to work on a 1080 timeline with mixed frames sizes and speeds (all expect the damned 5KHD) without a hiccup.

The biggest down side with MBP is their 'what you buy is what you're stuck with' policy sucks big time.
Click to expand...
i agree with the "upgradability" of the mbps...you really have to get the maxed out top of the line.....but i am working just fine with 5k raw files in fcpx with last years top of the line retina mbp...no transcoding...
 
if you want PC, buy a PC. there are plenty of powerful models out there. just getting something high end..but its going to cost the same as a mac anyway for a high end one. personally i like the dual boot option. you can get clients for both platforms then. when i upgrade my 3+ year old mac some day im going to get a mac laptop with a giant ssd to dual boot...

as for transcoding and working in proxies...its a great theory...but the transcodes take too long to be practical without doing it overnight or with a rocket if you have a lot of material. but if either of those is an option you can work on any laptop then in dnxhd36 or something easy to work with...

another great way is use a pix240 or competitor to make proxies for you in real time while you shoot...then you can work with the proxies quite easily and reconform later...

so there are plenty of options, and don't feel you have to go mac just cuz a lot of people like them. i use pcs at work all the time, love my home workstation thats mac based but avids the same for me once im inside the app...
 
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