Which NLE do you prefer?

Please select your choice and post why you chose that NLE over the others.

Have fun.

Well, the whole Avid vs. Final Cut Pro debate is kinda weird. I mean, Final Cut Pro has more video effects and acts in a lot of ways like After Effects and Avid combined. However, once you get used to it, it is much quicker to edit on Avid. That is a big thing in the lower level production courses here at USC. I know people that would rather edit on Final Cut Pro for their movies because they have more choices in effecting the video itself. I've used both, and I own Final Cut Pro 3, and it's hard for me to decide. Personally, I'd like to see a hybrid where they had the ease of an Avid with the effects of Final Cut Pro -- also, if there was a combination of layouts -- that editing system would be perfect.

I voted Avid on this one.

There are so many professional features on an Avid, that as of now Final Cut doesn't live up to.

I like knowing that on Avid when I digitize a clip I can rest assured that it is all there. That the frames are the right length and it hasn't skipped any. With Final Cut you cannot always be sure. (There is no set frame length in QuickTime...it is possible to digitize an incorrect frame...this is impossible on Avid) It is also really frustrating for me on Final Cut that I cannot just set an inpoint and have it capture a clip from that point on and go until I tell it to stop. The digitize interface on Avid is much more robust than Final Cut. (As well as Avid's Media Tool)

I can edit a lot quicker on the Avid. The trim interface on Avid blows Final Cut away, especially the fact that you can trim in many places at once and in 2 directions at once.

But, I will say that the Composting interface on Final Cut is pretty nice. The new After Effects style keyframe model on Avid Xpress and Media Composer is a great new addition but it is a little hidden in the interface.

Perhaps that is the big difference between Final Cut and Avid. Final Cut is sort of just all there in front of you. With Avid there is a lot to learn and a lot of features are hidden but once you master them I think it blows away Final Cut.

I have used both systems in a professional environment and I would choose Avid over Final Cut if I could every time. I can count on it working. You never worry if a clip was captured correct or if your digital cut to tape at 3am in the morning will go off without a hitch. (Avid Xpress DV 3.5 Mac had some problems crashing but Xpress 3.5.3 fixes all of those problems)

As for the Xpress DV vs Final Cut debate...I still prefer Avid. Mainly because it is exactly the same as the real Avids and there is no learning curve. (of course I would love for them to include grouping, ganging, and true 24fps editing) Also being able to do 4+ real time preview effects without rendering is pretty amazing.

I admit that I am a little biased since I am a professional Avid Certified Instructor. I do like some parts of the Final Cut interface but they will need to fix a lot of their Media I/O problems before I will use it more often.

Well that's my 2 cents. I'm not saying that Final Cut is a bad editing system. I actually like it. Both systems will get the job done (and really it is the editor and not the tool) but I prefer Avid.

-Chris
Studentfilms.com

I have FCP3 at home on my computer, and I think it's a great editing system. I like how it works and the fact that I can easily find everything is a plus.

However, in terms of power, Avid is my preferred method of editing. The only reason I don't have Avid Xpress on my computer is because I don't have a G4 yet. Hopefully, I'll have that rectified after the new year.

But the main thing is, and forgive for repeating what Chris said, it's the editor and not the machine that creates good work. There are those out there that create fantastic work on a flatbed, which I know I don't have the patience for.

-Gabe Sanchez

As a practical matter, I have found Premiere is easier for the students to pick up than AVID. From there I've had students move into AVID, FCP, and Media 100.

It is also a cost consideration for most schools...Premiere has always been cheaper to create more seats...but that is changing.

I think for film-style editing, an competent editor will choose AVID, but if their interests are more in compositing and postproduction, then After Effects will be the path they choose no matter the video edit platform.

Avid

Its the industry standard, even though Final Slut is catching up. I enjoy Avid better, and if you learn say Avid DVXpress, its fairly easy to adapt to to say Avid Symphony, which is what most films are edited on. It just seeme more valuable in the long run.
R. M. McWhorter

And you shall know us by the trail of dead.

First off...Chris Wright. I'm not sure that you used a fast enough apple when editing with Final Cut, you seem to have a lot of problems based off of the speed, just a thought.
Avid is great and Final Cut has a lot to offer, as does Avid, so which do I think is better to learn? I think Avid is more important as of now because as others have mentioned, with Avid you can step up to bigger and better versions to get "real" jobs in the movie industry.
Final Cut is much much faster to edit on though(my opinion). With Final Cut 3 especially you have much more to work with and color abilities that blow Avid out of the water.
Also, many independent directors and editors are going with Final Cut and I think in the future that Final Cut will possibly start making higher end software to cut the "Big Time" films.
AND MY BIGGEST PROBLEM WITH AVID IS THE COMPLETELY RIDICULES PROCESS YOU MUST GO THROUGH JUST TO DELETE A CLIP FROM THE DAMN TIME LINE..."""GREAT""" PROGRAMING THERE! Just thoughts thoughts and thoughts though. LATE~

~Don't Let BUSH Exploit 911~

Hmm Getcha, I think you had a poor teacher when it came to Avid. Im not saying anything bad about Final Cut, this is just in response to your last paragraph. Deleting a clip from the timeline is as simple as mark in, mark out, and hitting the "lift" key. Gone, and all your other tracks fall right into place.
R. M. McWhorter

And you shall know us by the trail of dead.

Another way to remove a clip from the timeline on an Avid is to use the red arrow in the bottom left of the screen to select the clip and hit delete on the keyboard. (the big delete on a Mac...Backspace on a PC) You will have to do this twice if there is an effect on the clip. (This is also a neat way to quickly remove an effect from a clip) You can shift-select multiple clips although they need to be next to eachother.

The Final Cut system I was using was pretty fast...

My point was that in Avid the clips that you capture are always correct. There are NEVER any dropped frames and there are NEVER any frames that are too long. In Final Cut this is possible. (the latter is possible even on the fastest G4 since QuickTime does not define the length of a frame). I'm not saying an Avid will never give errors, an improperly configured Avid will, but it will never let you capture a clip that has dropped frames.

I agree that it may be quicker to edit on Final Cut when you are learning NLE editing. It is easy to drag and drop. However, when you get comfortable on an Avid (and are taught correctly) I think you can BLOW away FCP in editing speed. If a producer asks me to make a trim for example, (an accurate trim - none of this mouse dragging) on a dialogue scene with many tracks of music and overlapping dialogue you can do it in one simple step on the Avid and trim in multiple directions at once. Make the music start earlier and extend the characters "moment" before the cut by making one trim. In FCP this would be a multiple step process.

Yes trimming may be a little more "scary" on an Avid for some people because it doesn't automatically hold your hand so you don't loose sync (you can turn this option on though). But this is good because it forces you to understand why you loose sync when you are making a video only trim verses trimming on all tracks.

FCP has better color? Have you used Xpress DV's color correction? It is the Avid Symphony's (Avid's $90k on-line system) Color Correction tool minus some minor options. I have spoken to many professional colorists and they prefer Avid Symphony's much more than FCPs. Also Avid's color corrector has a neat color match for skin tones.

Anyways...whew. I like FCP. But I love Avid.

If you ever have any Avid questions on workflow send me a post or e-mail. I'll let you know the best way to do it.

Take care and Happy New Year.

Best Regards,
Chris Wright
Studentfilms.com

Michael, that's the process I'm talking about. With Final Cut all you do is left click delete. I just was kinda joking about that anyhow, little thing that pissed me off about the program is all, might be easier for some than others I'm guessing, its cool though. And no no, my teacher is pretty great, she works for NBC and ESPN in high definition and programing so she gots a smart head on her shoulders. Anyone used Final Cut 3? Let me know! Thanks guys!..and girls if any?

~Don't Let BUSH Exploit 911~

Yeah I know Xpress DV has some nice options for color but I was talking about Final Cut 3. Plus Symphony's color correction tool might be similar to Xpress DV but Symphony really has much more than just a few more little tools. I really can’t even put FCP and Xpress together though, lol, I’m down with apples though so yeah.

~Don't Let BUSH Exploit 911~