Are they really that good?

Re: Are they really that good?

You can edit on a PB and a number of people do. I've done it on both.
One of the problems with the powerbook are small display (consider getting a larger monitor your powerbook can drive so you have a little more elbow room with timeline and other displays). Another problem is the smaller, slower internal drive compared to a desktop machine. You can use an external firewire drive (plan on getting a firewire PC card to allow you to capture easily) but it's hard to beat fast internal drives, especially if you're dealing with hundreds of gigabytes of material.
 
Re: Are they really that good?

i'm a MAC man but believe whatever you can afford to get the job done is good enough. One point to ponder that would resolve the spyware/virus problem is that IF POSSIBLE don't connect to the internet on your editing computer of choice.

Again, sometimes not possible if you have one computer but it really helps. I use my dual G4 1.25 for editing(only) and my 12 inch g4 powerbook exclusively for internet. It's wonderful to have access to MAC or PC as the bottom line is that we're all editing and creating product that we are proud of and always learning and bettering ourselves. Vashi out.
 
Re: Are they really that good?

Maybe you know this, Scott: does the FW PC card actually give you a second FW bus? Somebody here was planning to get one, but I know you gotta have separate buses.

There's been a rumor that a G5 PB could be coming out soon, although lots of people say it would have to be about 4 inches thick to handle the heat and power.
 
Re: Are they really that good?

i love my mac, hate the mac hype. Mine has crashed here and there, but it is very stable overall. The biggest thing is that it does not get bogged down with spyware etc off the net. That makes a huge difference. You can buy a new pc now and if you are not careful it is grinding after 2 months because so many little programs install themselves. My mac is 4 years old and runs great. The downside is they are PRICEY. I do IT for PC's all day and work with premiere. When i was a pc only user i was really annoyed that mac folks weren't bothered by the lack of real time fcp options compared to pc's at that time. FCP has come a long ways since then and i have a hard time working in premiere now.
 
Re: Are they really that good?

I use PC for 3D content creation using Maya. And games. You have to admit, PC games are cheaper than Mac games, and there is a much more variety.

But as for editing... you get all the Mac hardware and it "works".
Whereas.. people try to piece together the ultimate PC from different parts of differenet manufacturers... and they run into problems.

I rarely have problems with my Mac in terms of editing. Yah, it's pricey, but it's definitely paid for itself by me not having to force quit software, or reboot the computer.
 
Re: Are they really that good?

Yes, a FW PC card give you an extra port and a separate data path. Even with multiple ports on desktop machines internally they're all tied to the same electronic port which means it slows to the slowest device.
 
Re: Are they really that good?

so if i get maybe a 15inch pb with 1.67ghz with gig of ram, and i already have a 300 gb external hd...you think it will be able to manage a large amount of video?? thanks guys..this will probably be my last question.
 
Re: Are they really that good?

You should be able to handle it with a large external hard drive although technically FCP doesn't officially support external firewire drives. It usually owrks if you have a fast enough machine.
If there's a computer store (or Apple store) near you it might be worth taking a look at both systems with FCP installed so you can get a feel for it.
 
Re: Are they really that good?

[quote author=Mr.Lint link=board=FCP;num=1108184923;start=0#11 date=02/12/05 at 23:10:12]I'd take a bullet for my mac (and DVX of course ;)[/quote]

;D HILARIOUS !!!!!

I think I might too .....
;) CAVEMAN
 
Re: Are they really that good?

Hello Nick,
I am running a similar situation with a 1.5 PB and a gig of ram, an external HD and a second monitor. The system works well; it is not the powerhouse the G5 tower is but it does just fine.

I recently edited a 5 camera shoot with 6 hours of material and the system worked great to complete the hour show.

Having the portablility has been an asset.
 
Re: Are they really that good?

This next year should be interesting for the Macs (typing on a PB right now). FCP 5 and updated Motion and Shake should be previewed at NAB, and released ... sometime, along with OSX 10.4 (tiger). Also, most rumors have a Powermac update slated for this year, but no one knows when or what. I used to be PC only, then bought a 15" PB. The Dell box is now sitting in the corner (no doubt chock full of various spyware and viruses). Viruses for the Mac do exist, but the ratio is about 1000:1 for PC vs. Mac.

If you decide on a Power Mac, don't feel compelled to buy the pricey "Cinema" displays. While they look great, you can get comparable quality wide-screen displays for much less. You can put the money saved towards FCP 5 Production Suite!
 
Re: Are they really that good?

Mac owners consider themselves "enthusiasts" not "users" - that says a lot. I have a dual processor G4 tower that I do all my editing on. I've also had a 15" powerbook with an external drive that I edited a doc on in Ecuador. I was thrilled to get back home to my tower and finish it up. So much so, that I sold the PB to get a 12" version that I'm typing on now - it's great for so much, but I'd always rather be editing on my tower.

I also have a 23" cinema display which I love. I did a lot of research before I bought, and couldn't find a monitor with better resolution and a more crisp image. Yes they are pricey. A neighbor of mine has an LCD (I forget the brand, but it's a major manufacturer) that is constantly dragging its refresh rate behind his video. Very frustrating.

My display is the last body style with the ADC connector... there may be a few out there still - priced to sell!

Cheers
 
Re: Are they really that good?

I've never used PC's at home, I use them everyday at work. Can't wait till I get home to use my Macs. I do music and video on my G5 and iBook. I like the fact the the same manufacturer makes the software and hardware. Macs aren't perfect, but they're perfect for me........
 
Kennedy,

There are Mac viruses, but NONE of them work in OS X. About 50 work with older OS's, which is where your 1000:1 ratio comes in. Almost all Mac users I know operate their machines with no virus protection software whatsoever. Try that with a PC and see where you are after an hour or two of surfing the web!

I am typing on a brand-new PBook (1.5ghz G4, 15.2-inch, 1.5GB RAM, 80GB, AE, BT) which I absolutely love. As it looks like multi-processor node computing is a new coming reality for Apple (the latest version of Logic 7 has this, and it is expected that FCPHD 5 probably will as well), I'll be in good shape to connect this baby to my DP 1.25ghz G4 and put even more rendering muscle on my projects.

No viruses + Perfect OS/hardware integration + elegant design + rock-solid stability = a HUGE value for the money (looking @ TCO, not purchase price).
 
Here's the damn truth. Mac and Wintel systems are both superior... in the hands of a superior editor. A good Mac editor will run circles around a bad-windows based editor, and a good windows-based editor will run circles around a bad Mac editor.

Hardware specs, floating points, graphics engines don't mean a thing unless they're under the control of a capable artist. If you as an artist feel comfortable with windows and the windows-based editing aps...go with a PC-clone. If you feel comfortable with OSX and Mac based editing aps, go with a Mac.

It's much more simple then we all make it out to be.
 
Ahh...but what about a *Good Mac Editor* VS. a *Good Windows-based Editor*? I give the edge to the Mac simply based on their superiour G5 processing power. ~reservoir~
 
reservoir said:
Ahh...but what about a *Good Mac Editor* VS. a *Good Windows-based Editor*? I give the edge to the Mac simply based on their superiour G5 processing power. ~reservoir~
Click to expand...

Ahh...but you are proving exactly my point. It's all subjective and totally dependent upon the way the tool is used. It's far more about who's using the tool then it is about who made the tool.

Two equally talented editors would finish at almost exactly the same time. The individual UI quirks would be negated by experience and any difference in horsepower would result in a minute disparity in cycle times.

Does it really matter if a PC editor finishes eight seconds behind a dual G5? Does it matter if a network rendering Vegas client finishes ahead of a dual G5 editor by a minute or two?

It’s important to keep these hardware differences in perspective and remember that it’s the editor utilizing efficiency that increases speed, not necessarily the hardware he’s working with. (and I’m saying this as a dual PC/Vegas and Mac/FCP editor)
 
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