Vegas DVD VS. Sonic's DVDit!

frawley wrote on 7/8/2003, 11:46 AM
We currently have DVDit! and have had numerous problems with its stability. It does everything we need with the exception of all its little quirks.
I downloaded the DVD architect demo and it seemed ok, similar on features no compelling reason to buy it though.

We do use Vegas 4 in our editing process. How have your experiances with DVD architect compared with those of you who have used DVDit!? Is it stable, did i miss any must have features in the demo?

thank you

Comments

bcbarnes wrote on 7/8/2003, 12:04 PM
I've used both DVDIt! and DVDA, as well as DVD Complete. My biggest problems with DVDIt! was the lack of AC-3 audio at all, and paying extra for chapter points that many said were very hard to use. I was also never really comfortable with the interface.

DVD Complete is quite good, but also lacks AC-3 support. I like their interface much better. They used to have very little choice in moving buttons and things around, but the newest version is supposed to fix that. Their scripting language for menus is very flexible, but difficult for the non-programmer.

DVDA has all the basic features and is very stable, but lacks some of the more interesting things, like end actions and custom highlight masks. It has a great UI, and is much better at allowing customization of the graphics and stuff used on the menus. Contrary to advertising, however, I think that claiming that DVDA has "tight integration" with V4 is a little misleading. The only integration is that if you save markers in your V4 rendered file, DVDA can pick them up and make chapter marks out of them.

My recommendation, at this point, since you already have V4, would be to look at DVD Complete and DVDA, and see which one fits your needs the best.
jetdv wrote on 7/8/2003, 12:09 PM
DVDit DOES do AC-3 - IF you get the PE version. DVDit PE not only can use AC-3 audio but can also encode it.

There are many differences. DVDit can't do motion menus or backgrounds. DVDA can't do end actions. DVDit is crash-prone - DVDA appears stable. DVDit can accept elementary streams, DVDA can't. On my computer DVDA previews much better than DVDit. Also, setting chapter points is much easier in DVDA.
vitalforce2 wrote on 7/8/2003, 12:51 PM
There is another point of integration between Vegas 4 and DVD-A: Vegas 4 can encode an MPEG-2 file which is 24p progressive frame (the 'film look'), and DVD-A has a template for 24p which will maintain the 24p output straight through to burning the DVD, while automatically picking up the AC-3 audio you rendered in V4 and combining it on the DVD disc. I use this often because I shoot with a Panasonic DVX100 camcorder set at the 24p setting, which Vegas 4c is specialized to use.
kameronj wrote on 7/31/2003, 3:19 PM
With some of the functions not available (yet???) in DVDA - like end actions, being able to accept lower rendered files, more than basic menu navigation - I'm pretty much sold on DVDA.

That is for the price range and functional level I'm at and the DVDs I'm authoring.

I'm sure I will eventually tip into the high high I'm so high I can touch the sky level soon enough and get software that runs $5,000 or more. But I'm just not that important yet!!

Reading up on DVDit and having monkied around with other apps such as DVD Complete and some other off the shelf didn't cost too much so I picked it up not realizing it was really a very basic program program.....I'm pretty much sold on DVDA (but I think I said that already!!)

Yup...just scrolled to the top and verified that I did already say it.

So....perhaps with later releases of DVDA some features (LIKE END ACTIONS!!!!) will get added....but I'm fine with where I stand now.