Final Cut HD System Suggestions

I will be upgrading to HD very soon, but need a lot of help in deciding what I need and what to get. Right now I have a new Mac Pro Quad 3.2 w/10GB RAM. I need suggestions on putting together a complete system, from cameras to other products and hardware that I will absolutely need and/or should have. Is there someone or somewhere that I can call who will be able to talk me through some of this? I know there are probably 1001 ways to configure, but I need a start. I'm looking at the Panasonic HVX200.

TIA for any help you can give!

This is why we need VARs ...value added resellers. So people can go to then and get everything handled. Sorry to see Promax go.

I heard that Keycode Media on Ventura in Studio City builds systems. I'd look them up.


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If you are looking at the HVX200 camera, you are making a good choice of 4:2:2 color space in DVCPRO-50 and DVCPRO100 whereas the other cameras are MPEG-2 at 4:2:0.

The HVX is a different animal as you need to archive the P2 data to reuse the cards. Lots of us use a MacBook Pro to do this in the field.

With an HVX200 you do not need massive RAID systems to capture clip data as the data rate for even 1080i is only a little over DV and can be ingested via Firewire. The other solution for field is the Firestore on camera disk capture.

Lots of thing to learn coming from other cameras but the picture is really clean for a $5500 camera. Main problems with the HVX shooting is focus in 720 and 1080 modes. The on camera LCD screen tries but is not close enough for complete focus.

The new HVX200 A is supposed to have a better light sensitive sensor in it.

Load up the MacPro with better than 4 GB or RAM and get a couple of 1TB drives and you should be set to edit.

If you need information on Color, that is another subject.

Terminology: Try not to call it "FCP HD". FCP HD is FCP 4.5. We're on version 6 now. Just FCP is fine, we all know it does HD.

When Apple started calling 4.5 that, it was for marketing purposes. All it did was confuse people to think that there is a regular and a "HD" version of FCP, but there is not.

Just a "FYI" thing.

if youre working with dvcproHD - the system that you have now is MORE than sufficient. im editing dvcproHD on an old g5 quad with 4.5 gigs of ram and its works beautifully!

what you will need is an external firewire800 or esata raid. some way to monitor your hd output would be nice as well, and there are a number of ways to handle that depending on budget.

if youre looking at buying an hvx200. be sure you get the 200A as its way better at low light than the 200.