"I'm a bit disappointed not to see mpeg smart render on the list."

But it is on the list...

"New! No-recompress rendering for Long GOP HDV"

"But is is on the list... "
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Well... bite my shorts!!!! Your'e right!!!
This makes me a happy camper! I'll be buying this thing the INSTANT it hits the shelves!

... what's a GOP ?

Group of pictures. It refers to the structure of interframe compression, such as m2t (HDV).

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_compression

Mark

Just to set the record straight what bought SoFo unstuck wasn't the product line at all. They invested very heavily in streaming content and the dot comm bust hit them very, very hard. When Sony bought them debt was over $60M.

Back then CDA, SF and Vegas were THE tools of choice in the audio world. When I mention them today to the guys at the pointy end they're just fond memories, the rest of the world caught up and moved on. How great were they, well CDA was taught by one of my Macolite co-workers at NIDA (National Institute of Dramatic Arts), it was the standard for Redbook authoring.
And it wasn't just the products either, the marketing I believe was top notch. SoFo managed to pull off some great stunt at IBC way back then that got everyones attention. Walk into the halls of IBC or NAB today and it's hard to even know they're there.

Bob.

me and vegas 8 will make lots of wonderful babies together

This may be actually be the first upgrade to Vegas that I sit out. Looking over the new features, I don't see much to interest a standard-definition, long-form documentary editor. That's O.K., I don't mind. The V7 upgrade was huge for me, especially the snapping bars and the fixed save trimmed files, so let's say that one was for us workflow editors. VP8 looks like its aimed more at you folks into heavy duty FX and fly-in titles. In my work, I have absolutely no idea how 32-bit processing, or 16 gazillion-bit processing, for that matter, would help me.

So, thanks, Sony, for saving me the $300 I would otherwise have spent on a (for me) unnecessary upgrade. ;-)

The one thing that caught my attention, though, and might still convince me to upgrade was "scripting extensions." If this means things like the project media window, the trimmer and Media Manager are now accessible to the scripting API, so smart folks like johnmeyer, Ed Troxel and the VASST crew can come up with things like a storyboard, then I'm in.

Guys - I wanted to let you know some pricing info.

1) We still do not have pricing on the upgrade. As you all know, there is the upgrade price, then there is the UPGRADE price. That's the one you get in your email inbox 3-10 times over the next few weeks from Sony ;-) We are working with Sony to allow for Videoguys to offer the electronic download upgrade. I'll keep you posted

2) Vegas 8 Pro is fgoing to have a higher price. The MSRP is $699. We think we will be introducing it at $599, but that is still not 100% decided.

3) Until Vegas 8 Pro ships, you'll be able to buy Vegas 7+DVD and get a free upgrade to 8. I do not think that Sony will allow this to go on after 1st dhipments are made. They are keeping inventory very tight in the channel.

This is a very cool upgrade. My only dissapointemtn is that while Vegas 8 Pro vcan burn to Blu-Ray fromt he timeline, the version 4.5 of DVD architect will only support standard DVDs (for now). We are hopeful that the blu-ray support comes soon, and that Sony makes it available as a very reasonably priced interim release upgrade.

Gary

The mere fact that Vegas 8 Pro is going to have a completely revamped internal engine says a lot to me. It takes a lot of effort to do something like that (I am a programmer by trade and know it very well) and does not let you to show much on a feature list. But it gives a solid foundation to build on. Here's where I see not so obvious advantages:
- extend scripting allowing to access deeper into Vegas engine
- make life simple for 3rd party plugin developers: I do think/hope that new engine allows for better integration of products like Boris Red (well, it's Blue now, right?)
- if it's built on DirectX or QuickTime, we'll automatically have more choices of import/export
- it's quite possible that new engine is more portable (Apple, beware)

So, wait till official announcement, grab the demo, and give it a spin to see what actual features it has.

"I think we can officially say that this will not happen and nor will OMF."

OMF was high on my list for getting post work from Vegas users (already a big time saver with FCP and Avid projects coming in for post). Much easier on the editor sending out for post, or if you just want to work on your own audio in another app. I see AAF is supported, but given the compatibility issues AAF seems to be having between apps/platforms, I'm not holding my breath that it will work coming into Nuendo or ProTools from Vegas, or vice versa, but maybe it will.

I'm no expert but I'm assuming the 32 bit processing will affect how the video looks. My initial thought was that it would have an effect in color grading a movie. That should interest everyone, include documentarians

The one thing a lot of folks seem to be overlooking here is that the information that's been released so far is pre-release information (i.e. a teaser).

Wait until IBC when Sony themselves tell us what's going to be in Vegas 8 Pro.

Only then can you start complaining about what got left out :-)

Mike

i guess i was right about it being a32bot rebuild, which is no bad thing.
Im sure a 64bit verson will follow.. prolly NAB next year..

Happy to hear about smartrendering for m2t..

not to concerned about the titler myself, but im hoping certain filter options have been ameneded, such as WB correction/matching within the CC toolset (consdiering its now officially provding multicam support)

I never bitched about SOny like some others here, but ive seen the progression of this application since its inception, so as a user with alot of history, i feel those of us with opinions have every right to air them
In addition, those of us who have been loyal shoudl be heard in regard to our needs. its nice to want something, its another thing to need it. And i dont think anyone has really been so shallow as to ask for things which were not necessary at one time or another.
Considering the evolution of this program, it in itself HAS changed the market.
if Vegas didnt exist, more than likely where the NLE market today WOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED.
Pinnacle would not have bought steinberg, Avid would not have bought pinnacle, Avid would not have dropped its prices, FCP would not have been updated the way it has been, Adobe would not have bought CoolEdit, or DVRack/Onlocation, Premiere would still be working with AB editing with flaky menu systems, Canopus/edius would not have been sold, and finally integrated AUDIO and VIDEO mastering would still not exist in turn wed still be cutting our sound on ProTools to get anything decent from our video.
In addition, vegas itself has saved me THOUSANDS of dollars in hardware Dolby Digital encoding tools. When it first offered DD surround in 5.1 in true ac3 format (ie the Softencode standalone app), i sold off all my hardware and made a mint.
I now save at least a weeks worth of Post time and delivery within hours and charge more for it.

This tool is my livelihood and has been for many MANY years, and those of you who do not understand or appreciate its value, well all i can say is to move on. If its not the tool for you, so be it.
There are plenty more choices out there

For me, editing is far more important than acquisition, which is why i held off on the HVX. Obviously HVX support wont be native in this round and prolly wotn ever be, but to me, that MAJOR busines decision to NOT stick with panasonic wasnt for teh camera, hell i love the camera, its for the fact that to me, the ediitng FROM that camera is far more important.
With the XDcam EX coming out, V8 is jsut that much more appealing to the formats im considering and the editign regime i will be putting into place.

Vegas is proven to work. has proven its worth over many years and i applaude madison for making this something which will again, change the way NLEs are considered in the industry.

As for my comment about Sony, i stand by that, as we have ben surprised many a time.
Lets hope Sony actually see Vegas as a commodity alongside its XDcamdisc/EX SiS camera systems as its these camera systems will either make or break Vegas when playing with teh big guns considering that no other NLE has this kind of comprehensive media management of XDCam format.

I look forward to the war.....

I'm no expert but I'm assuming the 32 bit processing will affect how the video looks. My initial thought was that it would have an effect in color grading a movie. That should interest everyone, include documentarians

Right. I'd think documentarians would be more interested in 32 bit processing than other filmmakers. After all, it gives you more freedom to color correct. And since with documentaries you don't generally have time to light well, this is very important.

And on a separate note DJPadre, the "32bit" mentioned here is image processing-- color depth. It <is> a 64bit application.

You may be right, buster. We can all get behind better-looking final output.

However, lately, I've been moving from the "fix it in post" mentality to the "shoot it right to begin with" mentality (perhaps as my skill level with a camera and lighting has risen). I now find that I am doing less and less color correction, simply because I am happier with the raw stuff straight off the tape.

I'm no expert either, but 32-bit processing sounds like quite the render hog.

Make no mistake, I'll certainly download the trial and give it a whirl. And if it's a brand new, robust engine with deeper scripting API and access to 3rd party plug-ins, I may yet take the plunge.

But, based on what I've seen so far, VP8 is the first upgrade since I hopped on the Vegas bandwagon (Vers. 4) that doesn't have me drooling. My salivary glands are willing to be convinced, though.

So officially color me (with 32-bit processing, if you like) "on the fence."

Here's a link to an article on a competitor's 32-bit float color processing, and why you might think it matters.

http://library.creativecow.net/articles/kurkoski_tim/PP2_Color_Support.php

Rob Mack

Hmmmm... interesting article. Thanks, rmack.

I must ponder this further.

In my work, I have absolutely no idea how 32-bit processing [...] would help me.

The quickest and easiest way to gain an understanding of this may be to read the relevant parts of the book, "The DV Rebel's Guide," by Stu Maschwitz, available from Amazon and in bookstores.

He uses After Effects as his tool, but since it is about using 32-bit RGB to get better looking footage, this should translate very well to Vegas Pro 8.

Perhaps somebody here will even rewrite the scripts on the CD-ROM in the back of the book for Vegas 8...?

The scripts are not needed, but they make it very very quick and easy to go through his methodology to get the most out of footage.

The other NLEs support 32-bit float since a long time, but in "YUV" instead of RGB.

("YUV" is an editor's shortcut for the "Y' etc." that is the correct designation for the most common type of component video.)

One thing it makes a little more possible is using RED or the SI camera.

Rob Mack

It doesn't have to be I don't have "fix it in post" because "I shot it right to begin with."

It could become "make it even better in post" or "perfect it post."

It's a normal progression, I think. I do a lot of stills processing and sometimes I'm fixing the worst crap possible, other times I'm making slight changes to good images. Or no changes at all if I'm lucky.

Fixing the crap motivates you to shoot better footage, but you can never count on everything being good.

Rob Mack

Want I'm interested in about vegas8 is the options with "render to new track" and nested vegs------- rendering to an new track, will it(video) be 10bit ---up to 32bit or just 8bit. Same with nested vegs, the video on the track, 32bits?----hoping.........

I do not expect vegas8 to burn a "movie" menu BR without all required BR hardware and software in place.

The key to understanding 32-bit processing is in the word 'processing'. Not to confuse this with the bit depth of the output media. This means that the internal calculations that are done due to filter effects are done with a high enough resolution that multiple operations performed on a clip won't result in the color banding that we can see now. It keeps the image cleaner and preserves the data resolution as it's run through the filters. The result at the end though is still limited by the bit depth of the output media. 32-bit processing means that you can do more to a clip without having to worry about the filters creating issues with the color.

John