External Monitor Question

C

crot0019

Well-known member
Hey guys I'm buying a macbook pro soon and I am thinking about hooking up an external monitor for my FCP editing at home. Just wondering about any suggestions anyone has. I'll be using HDV HVRZ1U 1080i footage only. I have heard that interlaced footage can be a pain though...
 
I've been looking at them I think But i don't really get how their stuff works? Unless I'm looking at the wrong thing???
 
if you can get an older MBP that has an expresscard slot (or a new 17") then you could use a Matrox MXO2 or MXO2 mini.
 
So what are these things. YOu connect them up to the computer and then to a monitor??? Is there no monitor that displays interlaced footage directly via the DVI port?
 
it is not just a matter of interlacing, but also of color... video coming off the DVI port is not color accurate (without something like the Matrox MXO).
 
An older MXO (the first geneation) will work directly off a DVI connection on the laptop with a second display (the Apple 23" is ideal for this). Works great for me, although I've only used them on desktops.
 
So what are these things. YOu connect them up to the computer and then to a monitor???
Click to expand...
Basics: A DVI connection on a monitor(or a laptop) is used to connect other monitors to your system. You can use the 2nd monitor in extended(making 1 bigger monitor) or in mirrored mode(duplication of the same screen)
A video card(Blackmagic, AJA, Matrox) on the other hand is placed in one of your PCI expansion slots, enables you to attach decks &cameras to capture footage, do up/down conversions. They come with cables(one end is attached onto the card, other end goes to the monitor & decks) with tens of options. Their 2nd function is to provide output for broadcast monitors. Price and quality depends on type of connections(or Input/Outputs), what bandwidth, color space, HD/SD formats etc your card provides. Compare these 2 for example:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...c_Design_BINTSPRO_Intensity_Pro_HDMI_and.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/417388-REG/AJA_KONA_3_Kona_3_12_10_Bit_HD_SD.html

There are also mobile capture devics designed mostly for laptops. They do not require a PCI slot, but you'll need a Expresscard/34 expansion slot to attach them:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/618347-REG/Matrox_MXO2_MINI_L_MXO2_Mini_for_Laptops.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...IoHD_FireWire_800_Analog_Digital_Capture.html

And that is the difference; if you are using a video card while editing on FCP you actually ONLY see the video ( video you see in your FCP canvas) on the tv or broadcast monitor you are outputting. And the colors will be accurate. Whereas with a DVI monitor you will see the entire canvas like on your computer screen, or other components depending on how you arranged your screens, you can forget about seeing proper colors. (There are exceptions as Ted mentioned, or matrox mini will allow you to color calibrate any monitor, but then new matrox solutions will not work with DVI)
Note: Difficulty editing HDV footage has nothing to do with its being interlaced. It is pain because HDV tape, you may want to consider capture or convert it to Apple prores codec instead.
 
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You can also just change your sequence settings to render in ProRes which basically gives you the best of both worlds (small file size of HDV, ProRes quality when you need to render). Working w/native HDV isn't the nightmare that so many people make it out to be.
 
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