Vegas 7 Sneak Peak

randy-stewart wrote on 8/27/2006, 7:31 PM

Spot gave me a quick look at Vegas 7 today and I started going for my credit card right then. It's sweet! Right off the bat, editing raw HDV footage just like it was SDV with play back frame rates in the high 20's...even with color correction and other effects on the clips (this was playing on a Sony Viao laptop). No need for proxy files. Performance has been enhanced significantly. There's support for lots of output formats that weren't there before (I remember XDCAM but can't recall others). Cinescore is embedded as an option on the insert menu (insert music composition). Man, that makes it way easier to use. Just highlight the area you want to compose (or just go for the whole timeline) and you're off and running. Another little thing that got my attention...red eye correction. Yes, pictures on the timeline or in the media pool can be corrected right on the spot (no pun intended). That's a time saver for me. Also, there's something new having to do with assignable envelopes. You don't have to do the whole timeline or clip, just select and draw where you want them I think. Can't remember everything I saw but there is a long list of enhancements in the help index. Ooops almost forgot media manager...that's improved too (Grazie will like that). Overall, I think this version is focused on performance enhancements with some significant adds for HDV and hardware output. If it's this fast with HDV, can't wait to see how it handles SDV. Looking forward to upgrading. Thanks much Spot!
Randy

Comments

Jonathan Neal wrote on 8/27/2006, 7:36 PM

Cool, about to try it out too, Stewart, any day now. I'm jealous. :(

DJPadre wrote on 8/27/2006, 11:15 PM

can someone try and get as much info as possible??
those on NDA's we understand cant say much but those not on one, theres nothign stopping ur form blabbing..

also i was curious if theyre using GFX cards or specific VGA display devices?? such as Nvidia (as seen in PremPro2 etc?? can someone ask?? IM botu to upgrade my display card, but i was going to wait until V7 was launched..

any further hints and tidbits would be appreciated

Jonathan Neal wrote on 8/28/2006, 12:33 AM

If you say too much your post gets del**ed. I'm suprised this one stayed. Then again, it came third-way from the legendary DSE :)

p@mast3rs wrote on 8/28/2006, 7:56 AM

Heck, at least a release date would be nice rather than just a month.

Hoping to hear more about what sounds like an awesome program.

rextilleon wrote on 8/28/2006, 7:59 AM

The HDV feature sounds nice---for those who shoot in HDV---The red eye repair seems ridiculous since it appears that most people prepare images in Photoshop (et al) before bringing them into their NLE. Again, XDCAM HD support is nice for the few who shoot with it.

Sounds like the key to this release is performance improvement----If they manage that, then it should do well. If not, I don't see why anyone other then HDV shooters and XDCAM shooters and Cinescore users would be interested.

DavidMcKnight wrote on 8/28/2006, 8:27 AM

also i was curious if theyre using GFX cards or specific VGA display devices?? such as Nvidia (as seen in PremPro2 etc?? can someone ask?? IM botu to upgrade my display card, but i was going to wait until V7 was launched..

I posted in another thread about what I was able to see at WEVA - rendering times are improved without the need for a GPU. Hard to tell at this point to what degree but with what I saw I would say the improvement is substantial.

FrigidNDEditing wrote on 8/28/2006, 8:30 AM

they did a sneak peak at WEVA, my guess is that's where he saw this stuff and since it was sanctioned by sony (unlike the turkey who posted those spoilers with what looked like all the dealer info and then had them deleted) these probably won't get the Delete action. I'm glad that nothing is being allowed out - it always makes for an entertaining release.

As for the Graphics card acceleration - when I was at NAB I talked with one of the project managers for a while and I brought up graphics card acceleration. The impression I got is that it's not out of the realm of possibilities, but that IF they did it, they were gonna do it right and either way it probably wouldn't be in this upcoming release. So I wouldn't fret too much, if I were you, about buying any specific graphics cards.

As far as the HDV speed and power, it makes me have hope. I don't shoot HDV currently, but having to completely upgrade my rig just to do so was making me have to wait even longer. Now at this point, I could sell my current cam and pick up a new HDV cam for a couple K more and then Roll with it and not have to drop a another 1-2 K still on a new machine to handle it. That being said, I do edit HDV for some clients here and there already, and so I am VERY happy to hear that things have been spead up with regards to how it sounds vegas is going to handle my HDV files now. Let's here it for optimization!!! HIP HIP!

Dave

Jayster wrote on 8/28/2006, 9:37 AM

As far as improved native HDV editing being a big advantage, I guess it kind of depends on what your workflow is. There could be many workflows that would love it (e.g. doing basic cuts and edits with perhaps some FXs for color correction, etc.)

There could also be many workflows that don't benefit from it. If, for example, you are doing a complex project and want to do some "render to new track" steps you probably would still need to use an intermediate (like CFDI). Otherwise you'd have MPG's generation loss issue affecting your quality. And it seems like projects where frame-accuracy is critical would still prefer to use an intermediate.

But still, the flexibility of being able to do native HDV editing would certainly be great. So much for PPRO2's great claim to fame. (Not that they don't have other features, but this one was touted quite strongly.)

vitalforce wrote on 8/28/2006, 12:07 PM

If the performance improvement is substantial, even with a single-proc system like my P4, then Sony benefits from sales to people who won't have to buy new systems.

Maestro wrote on 8/28/2006, 12:48 PM

Yes, but are the improvements to performance entirely limited to HD, or is the SD performance increased as well?

I don't plan on doing HD for another two years most likely, so if this release is all about HD then I'll pass. The only other thing that interests me is the "improved workflow tools", which could be anything.

plasmavideo wrote on 8/28/2006, 12:53 PM

"If the performance improvement is substantial, even with a single-proc system like my P4, then Sony benefits from sales to people who won't have to buy new systems."

My thoughts exactly. That would be huge for me. I'm about a year away from investing in new hardware. Anything that would get my single P4 poking along faster would be a blessing.

chrisconleyradio wrote on 8/28/2006, 1:43 PM

Can you please please please expound on this part:

"Performance has been enhanced significantly"

Will it take advantage of dual processors? Will it work with Vista?

thanks

douglas_clark wrote on 8/28/2006, 2:40 PM

Time to get the benchmarks ready to see how much we gain. Whatever happened to Spot's benchmark veg?

And johnmeyer's plugin benchmark. Will you rerun it on V7, John? It will be helpful to know if performance improves for any plugins.

Jayster wrote on 8/28/2006, 3:02 PM

Will it take advantage of dual processors? Will it work with Vista?

Vegas 6 already takes advantage of dual processors. It works great in 64-bit XP. Hopefully that means it'll work in 64-bit Vista, too. What might (who knows?) be an issue is if underlying codecs or FXs (especially 3rd party ones) have issues in Vista.

My guess is that Madison has either tested with Vista beta or they will release a patch when appropriate (like after Vista gets released). Or maybe Vegas 8 will come out sometime soon after Microsoft finally manages to release Vista.

Yoyodyne wrote on 8/28/2006, 3:52 PM

This is very exciting news, I work with a lot of 24p HDV and the Cineform codec and can't wait to try out Vegas 7.

farss wrote on 8/28/2006, 5:16 PM

I think what you're really asking for is when can us PAL users start beta testing :)

GlennChan wrote on 8/28/2006, 5:19 PM

I prefer that the developers don't provide a release date. This way, they don't release the product until it's ready. No BS where you have to buy the .5 upgrade to get the bug fixes like Premiere Pro (or the versions of Premiere before that).

drmathprog wrote on 8/28/2006, 5:30 PM

I much prefer the "Release when ready" approach also. Sonar drives me crazy with its "A new version every September, ready or not" policy.

rs170a wrote on 8/28/2006, 5:52 PM

Take a hint Sony, GIVE US A FREAKIN DATE.

From the IBC Exhibitor Details:

New Vegas 7 for HD video editing and production
See the newest version of Vegas® software! Vegas 7 includes key enhancements that provide better editing solutions for HD, increased playback performance for both audio and video, a robust XDCAM workflow and advanced editing functionality for increased productivity. Also on show is DVD Architect™ 4, which is included in the Vegas+DVD Production Suite. Vegas 7 is available in late September, with French, German, and Japanese versions available in the following weeks.

BTW, exhibitions at IBC are Sept. 8-12 Close enough for you?

Mike

Spot|DSE wrote on 8/28/2006, 6:38 PM

I could understand that if we were a couple months away from it. But when you start touting it on the website sayings its coming in a specific month thats only days away then it makes no sense not to release a date. If there are major bugs still to be worked out then Sony shouldnt have released a tentative month this close to release.

Sony didn't release any date. It was inadvertently leaked by IBC's website. If that hadn't happened, then you'd know next to nothing.

Sony's PR team frankly sucks majorily. From the root kit fiasco to advertising their products. They just always seem to drop the ball. If it werent for the guys at Madison still developing, Sony would have screwed up Vegas just the same as they have many other products.

Completely, utterly, totally absurd for you to utter, Patrick. The Sony PR team that works with Vegas is as related to Sony Music, Sony Electronics, Sony Broadcast, Sony Pictures, Sony Television, Sony Products/Medical as I am to the Queen of England.

DavidMcKnight wrote on 8/28/2006, 7:13 PM

Some members of this forum assumed there would be a new Vegas announcement at NAB. They assumed this because there has been a new product announced the last couple of years. Why get pissy because Sony didn't live up to your manufactured assumptions?

Late Fall = Mid to Late September = September 30. How's that for a date?

Why is it such a big deal? Is not having V 7 really keeping you from doing any work?

I'm sure if someone finds bugs in the 7.0 release there'll be complaints about that.

Chill, people. I think it's been said before, "it's only software"

Harold Brown wrote on 8/28/2006, 7:17 PM

Worth repeating. I love Vegas. The best investment I have ever made. I think Sony could promote the product more but they appear to be looking to the future. As an investor that is what I want! But man some of you guys are brutal. The second you start feeling nervous you get negative! I know that when you use it to make a living every little thing is important but relax it will be alright.

Speculation is ok, just don't live there, it isn't real!

dibbkd wrote on 8/28/2006, 7:43 PM

I don't know if I'll be upgrading to 7 right away or not, but it is still exciting to see what new features will be available.

BUT - the ONE thing that brought me to Vegas in the first place was it's stability. Stability.

If it takes Sony until 2007 to have Vegas 7 ready, it will be worth the wait. How many hours would it cost you if you get 7 "early", but it's full of bug and needs a lot of fixes?

FrigidNDEditing wrote on 8/28/2006, 8:41 PM

My guess is based on the that IBC Leak a while back that it will probably become available at the show. That's what They've done in the past at least. They released it at NAB previously (as we all know) but I'll bet that IBC is when it becomes available, either way Sept. is next month and it won't affect things too much if it's the 8th, or the 12th, or the 15th or the 30th. It won't be released till it's released anyway - so all this speculation over the date is needless :) By Oct. 1 it seems that we will have the opportunity to upgrade.

Dave