Questions for school program

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Questions for school program
by Craig Alan on Jan 21, 2012 at 6:10:13 pm

Putting together a budget for school production program.

4 questions:

question 1:
Debating getting two copies of resolve ($750 each academic price) vs using the free lite version for now. From a learning pov the lite seems more than adequate. The only feature I see missing from the lite that our current workflow might miss is the noise reduction. We are not shooting in 2k or 4k or 3d. We will be using lower end control surface. How significant is the difference?

Question 2:
We have 2 Mac Pros (4,1 2.66; 4,1 2.26) which we are outfitting for MC 6/Resolve/FCP X work stations.

OS: Lion OS but would consider partitioning system drive if any one these programs runs better on snow leopard.

Which OS?

Question 3:
UPGRADE package – anything amiss?
Internal software raid with 2 or 3 2 TB drives).
4 gig x 6 slots=24 gig ram
Blackmagic Design DeckLink HD Extreme 3D
PNY Technologies nVIDIA Quadro 4000 for Mac Display Card
Euphonix MC Color - Color Grading Control Surface
Flanders LM-2140W monitors

QUESTION 4:
Debating tangent instead due to what I have read is an easier learning curve?

OSX 10.5.8; MacBookPro4,1 Intel Core 2 Duo 2.5 GHz MacPro4,1 2.66GHz 8 core 12gigs of ram. GPU: Nvidia Geoforce GT120 with Vram 512. OS X 10.6.x; Camcorders: Sony Z7U, Canon HV30/40, Sony vx2000/PD170; FCP 6 certified; write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.

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Re: Questions for school program
by Joseph Owens on Jan 25, 2012 at 11:25:31 pm

Depending on the level of your school program, I see speed requirements (read: expectations) and abuse as two of the external factors that may affect your choices. If you really don't need Noise Reduction, or more than one GPU as image processor, then the free Lite version won't be carrying the additional complication of a license dongle that will have to be secured somehow.

Can't speak to Lion as an Operating System as I get apoplectic about it.

The PNY Q4000 is fine, its licensed and approved and everything, but its the slowest CUDA card you can buy. See other threads in this forum for opinions on alternatives and how to procure them. BTW, it would NOT be used as a display card if you expect any performance... you really should have two GPUs -- the Slot One card is the GUI, and you do not attach any monitors to the Slot2 card. Your actual "display" card is the Blackmagic Decklink feeding the SDI inputs of the Flanders monitor. You might also want a second graphics monitor to slide supplementary data windows, like the "scopes", off the main GUI.

Menus available on the Tangent Wave have expanded quite a bit since the first Mac Resolve offering. I think its something like 13 pages deep, now. There is a pdf in the Blackmagic Support partition.
How portable (vulnerable to disappearance) and resistant to damage, spilled soft drinks, lattes, corn chips in the joyballs.... I don't know. Those things aren't allowed here.

jPo

You mean "Old Ben"? Ben Kenobi?

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