IMAGE CAPTURE

DV25

DV25 is an AV industry standard codec used to compress video to ease the editing process.  DV25 compresses the video at a ratio of 5:1 requiring 3.6 MBps sustained throughput and .25GBs of storage per minute of video.  

DV 50

The DVCPRO 50 codec has a fixed data rate of 7MegaBytes/sec, and is used to capture video digitally from FireWire-enabled DVCPRO50 compatible camcorders and decks. Like the DV codecs, DVCPRO 50 is imported as YUV encoded video, and delivers considerably higher quality video since it uses less compression. The DVCPRO 50 codec is used to capture video digitally from FireWire-enabled DVCPRO 50 compatible camcorders and decks. Although it's similar to the DV codec in that DVCPRO 50 is imported as YUV encoded video, DVCPRO 50 – which uses a 3.3:1 compression ratio, versus DV's ratio of 5:1 - produces considerably higher quality video since it uses less compression. DVCPRO 50 also uses 4:2:2 color sampling for high color fidelity, as opposed to DV's 4:1:1 color sample rate.

DV HD

The DVCPRO HD codec is a high-definition codec suitable for broadcast finishing applications. With data-rates ranging from 5.8MegaBytes/sec -14MegaBytes/sec, 4:2:2 color sampling and superior image-quality, the days of expensive HD solutions requiring massive storage and proprietary video processing hardware are over.   Capture DVCPRO HD over FireWire, edit in camera-original format and output over FireWire without generational quality loss. Since the image is never converted or recompressed during the process, maximum image quality is maintained.

BETA SP

Developed by Sony, Beta SP is the most popular capture format used today. Betacam SP produces superior image quality to other DV formats, primarily because of Betacam's separate recording tracks for luminance and chroma rather than the modulation method of other formats.

DIGIBETA

The next generation of Betacam, was introduced by Sony in 1993.  Digibeta is the first component digital ENG format and has become the industry standard for broadcast quality video production.

HD

HD video generally refers to any video at 720 or above.  The highest level of HD, 1080 60i  requires over 170 MB/sec per stream and 4.3 GBs of storage for every minute of video.

DIGITIZE

DV

DV is an all digital format that allows editors to retain superior image quality to analogue during the editing process and gives highest video and audio quality when outputting as well.

COMPOSITE

A composite video signal combines luminance and chrominance.  Composite provides better signal quality than that of RF but inferior to that of of S-Video, component etc.

COMPONENT

Component video is represented by three separate signals; luminance, which represents brightness, and separate red and blue signals.  Component video signals allow for superior image quality as a result of improved color, and a reduction in noise and artifacts.

SDI

The SDI format utilizes a differential signaling technique allowing for a single bit stream to be sent over one coax cable.  This eliminates clock and data synchronization issues seen in component environments.  With SDI the video is never re-compressed ensuring the highest quality possible.

DV

DV25 is an AV industry standard codec used to compress video to ease the editing process.  DV25 compresses the video at a ratio of 5:1 requiring 3.6 MBps sustained throughput and .25GBs of storage per minute of video.  

STANDARD DEFINITION

Standard Definition is a broad industry term for any video that is not high  definition.  Compression ratios vary widely.  2:1 Standard Definition video requires 12+ MB/sec sustained throughput and .5GB of storage per minute.

UNCOMPRESSED

Uncompressed video refers to ingesting video into your workstation without the use of a CODEC.  Uncompressed video requires a sustained transfer rate of 23MB/sec and requires over 1GB of storage for every minute of video.

HIGH DEFINITION

HD video generally refers to any video at 720 or above.  The highest level of HD, 1080 60i  requires over 170 MB/sec per stream and 4.3 GBs of storage for every minute of video.

EFFECTS & TITLING

Broadcast-quality features for titling, effects compositing and 3D directly inside your nonlinear editing system.

EFFECTS

Integrated effects creation. Add unlimited layers of media and preview effects with audio in real-time. Access video directly from the NLE timeline. Self- animating natural effects are easily created and can interact with imported media or video from the NLE timeline.

TITLING

Format titles with word processing features such as kerning, tabs and word wrap. Easily create sophisticated title animation including type on text and text on a path. Create 3D text and composite in three dimensions.

MOTION GRAPHICS

Create dynamic titles, composites, effects and vector graphic inside your editing system and take advantage of cutting edge support for OpenGL hardware acceleration, the perfect combination of efficiency and raw speed.

COMPOSITING

The ultimate in quality, real-time performance, automatic conform, creative versatility and interoperability. Deep creative editing and finishing software.

FINISHING

A complete set of real-time creative and corrective finishing tools, multi-format mastering and versioning for professional video and film post production.

JPEG

Similar to M-JPEG - except that JPEG's compression artifacts can be less severe at similar data rates - JPEG movies can play back in real time on your system, depending on your system's speed and the data rate of the movie.

M-JPEG

Two Apple M-JPEG codecs, M-JPEG A and M-JPEG B, are variable data rate codecs similar to the ones used by video capture cards. These codecs are the ones to use if you need to deliver more heavily compressed material to keep files small.

MPEG 

Designed for up to 1.5Mbit/sec, MPEG is the standard for compressing video and audio.  Used primarily for CD-ROM and internet applications.

MPEG-2

Designed for between 1.5 and 15 Mbit/sec, MPEG-2 is the standard for compressing video and audio for digital television and DVDs as it efficiently compress interlaced video and scales well to HDTV resolutions.

MPEG-4

MPEG-4 is quickly becoming the standard for multimedia and Web compression.   MPEG-4 is highly scalable; from low bit rates to very high and therefore is very popular in interactive multimedia applications.

INTERNAL PARALLEL ATA

An inexpensive and reliable legacy disk technology most widely used in desktop computers.  PATA technology, (IDE) is being phased out in lieu of SATA.

INTERNAL SERIAL ATA

The latest and fastest ATA interface available.  Quickly becoming the industry standard for disk technology.  Boasts faster bus speeds, increased cabling flexibility and performance over PATA master/slave configurations.

INTERNAL SCSI

A Higher-speed alternative to ATA, SCSI is more robust and more expensive than ATA technology.  SCSI drives have increased seek times and can spin at up to 15,000RPM.

DIRECT ATTACHED FIREWIRE 400

FireWire (IEEE 1394) is a high-performance bus and interface used for connecting devices such as digital video cameras, hard drives, and other  high-speed devices to a computer.

DIRECT ATTACHED FIREWIRE 800

The second generation of FireWire, 800 offers double the bandwith of Firewire 400 with better connectivity than its predecessor.  All the new Mac G5s now come standard with FireWire 800 on the motherboard.

DIRECT ATTACHED ULTRA320-ATA

A bridged technology designed to take advantages of the performance of the SCSI interface while utilizing inexpensive backend ATA disk mechanisms make this an ideal technology for video and audio editing.

DIRECT ATTACHED FIBRE CHANNEL-ATA

A bridged technology combining the connectivity and performance of a Fibre Channel interface while utilizing inexpensive backend ATA disk mechanisms. Can also be used as the backbone of a low bandwith SAN.

DIRECT ATTACHED ULTRA320 SCSI

The latest version of SCSI boasts theoretical transfer rates of 320 MB/sec per channel.  Widely used in high-definition editing environments where performance is critical.  U320 is the fastest interface available and one of the most expensive.

WORKGROUP NAS

Network Attached Storage is ideal for low bandwith applications such as DV editing.  Popular for its ease of use and availability, NAS devices can be shared using OS sharing protocols and can reside on a network without being attached to a server.

WORKGROUP iSCSI

The latest storage networking technology available, iSCSI has only recently been adopted as an industry standard protocol.  Combining the benefits of low cost Gig-E connectivity with the performance of Fibre Channel, iSCSI is quickly becoming the ideal choice for AV shared storage.

WORKGROUP SAN

Storage Area Networks are the ideal storage of choice for AV editing applications. SANs allows for multiple high-performance workstations to share pools of storage over a Fibre Channel backbone.  Fibre Channel SANs benefit workflow collaboration tremendously and desirable for virtually all multimedia applications.

DVD AUTHORING

DVDs have taken over as the industry standard media for recording audio and video.  Encode, author and deliver. Complete tape-to-disc hardware-based solutions with the ultimate in DVD authoring power and DVD player compatibility.

TAPE

When outputting to videotape, the capture hardware converts the digital video and audio to analog for easy playback on an NTSC or PAL monitor. Until the advent of DVD and Web Streaming, tape was the industry standard for delivering video. 

WEB

The demand for video delivery live on the Web is growing rapidly.  Software allows for files to be encoded to MPEG or Quicktime formats for web streaming with little signal degradation.