I have heard the question over and over about upgrading to V7. I have to admit that the upgrade price was a no-brainer for me, but I look at software differently than some I guess.
The performance improvements with HDV have been well covered and I can tell you that they are considerable. I hear that group in the back saying, "I don't use or care about HDV." Well, I can finally quantify the performance improvement for non-HD users.
My primary and best station is an old 2.8ghtz P4 with a gig of RAM and an 800Mhtz FSB. I have always calculated the render/encode times for DVD by taking a sample render section and extending the time to the rest of the render. Then if it is going to MPEG2, I add three times the running length of the piece for the MPEG2 encode. That has been acurate to within 10% of the actual time required to crunch it out.
With Vegas 7 last night, I set up to render three hours worth of content with the encode to MPEG2. The source was a group of Quicktimes with a different size and a different PAR. I set the quality to BEST to get the best scaling processing. I used the normal MPEG2 settings and bitrates that I always use. The render/encode was complete in 1:1 actual time +- 5%. This was NOT HD content but SD.
If anything my machine has been getting more sluggish with age. All of the sudden, Vegas 7 has cut the encode time by an incredible amount. From 3:1 or more to 1:1.
Now add that to the smart color snapping bars the better handling of grouped events for delets and the extentions of DVDA and it isn't just a no-brainer, it is a must have and a money saver.
Tax and title extra, your mileage may vary.
Keith Kolbo
The performance improvements with HDV have been well covered and I can tell you that they are considerable. I hear that group in the back saying, "I don't use or care about HDV." Well, I can finally quantify the performance improvement for non-HD users.
My primary and best station is an old 2.8ghtz P4 with a gig of RAM and an 800Mhtz FSB. I have always calculated the render/encode times for DVD by taking a sample render section and extending the time to the rest of the render. Then if it is going to MPEG2, I add three times the running length of the piece for the MPEG2 encode. That has been acurate to within 10% of the actual time required to crunch it out.
With Vegas 7 last night, I set up to render three hours worth of content with the encode to MPEG2. The source was a group of Quicktimes with a different size and a different PAR. I set the quality to BEST to get the best scaling processing. I used the normal MPEG2 settings and bitrates that I always use. The render/encode was complete in 1:1 actual time +- 5%. This was NOT HD content but SD.
If anything my machine has been getting more sluggish with age. All of the sudden, Vegas 7 has cut the encode time by an incredible amount. From 3:1 or more to 1:1.
Now add that to the smart color snapping bars the better handling of grouped events for delets and the extentions of DVDA and it isn't just a no-brainer, it is a must have and a money saver.
Tax and title extra, your mileage may vary.
Keith Kolbo