Right, VMS still has the "limitation" of 4 video tracks. And so what? I have made over 50 longer videos and never missed an extra track.
Actually - because I find Vegas so good to work with and so extreemely stable - I have both all the VMSP versions AND the Full Vegas Pro Versions - but my editing is 99% done on the VMSP because it has all the features needed.

Please also note, that VMS(P) costs around 100 US and the Full Vegas costs around 540 US - so one would expect VMS(P) to have a fewer features than the Full version?

Well - to be honest - if you bought a Ford Focus would you write on the internet how hugely disappointed you were because it only had 4 cylinders - and not more like the bigger Ford cars??

1: I missed that memo. What was Kelly's trick?

2: Since VMS supports 5.1 stereo, wouldn't it be nice to have 5 audio tracks? Or is there a workaround for this?

Gerry

@ritsmer: "Well - to be honest - if you bought a Ford Focus would you write on the internet how hugely disappointed you were because it only had 4 cylinders - and not more like the bigger Ford cars??"

I think Ivan has a very valid point. VMS has only 4 audio and 4 video tracks, while VMS competitors in the same price range often allow up to 99 tracks. Premiere Elements, Magix Movie Edit, and Final Cut Express all allow 99 tracks. (these are "home" versions, not pro versions)

While I agree that many videos don't need more than 4 tracks, the 4-track limit often stifles creativity and requires awkward work-arounds. I find myself frequently using more than 4 tracks (in Vegas Pro), often just to overlay a few titles, or maybe with a still photo on a gradient background, with a few lines of titles overlayed or a "lower third", etc.

Even if VMS just jumped to 8 or 10 tracks each of audio and video it would help. But competing packages already support 99 tracks.

Tim L

Tim, I agree with you 100%. Very well put.

If you would like to see changes in VMS, I would fill out Sony's product suggestion form. Some of the things I suggested in the past have made it into the product. It might just be coincidence, but you never know...

http://www.sonycreativesoftware.com/support/productsuggestion.asp

Ditto

Most of us purchase the Studio version because we can't afford the Pro and I'm not sure I would if I could. It's kinda like MS office - the pro version has too many features that I would never use anyway. And 'usually' , the consumer versions are easier to use.

I've gone through about 10 different editors trying to find one that fits all my needs, but one just doesn't exist yet. Vegas Studio is on the list that I don't use much because of the track limitation. However DVD Architect 4.5 Studio is becoming my favorite disc authoring tool.

If there was a DVDA 5 Studio version, I would have upgraded my VMS 8 Platinum just for that even though I didn't particularly need or want the editor.

I agree.

It's interesting. During a call to Tech Support a few weeks ago, the staffer told me that someone had requested that the Team address the ".m-jpeg" codec issue and fix it (some photo cameras that also take video clips don't open correctly, either audio or video doesn't come across). Apparently, the tech people heard it enough that they fixed the problem in VMS 9.0. The issue I called about was similar - the problem of not being able to properly open MPEG-4 files from my Samsung camcorder (audio came over, but not video). So, the staffer encouraged me to send in a suggestion to have the Team fix the problem in future builds. That's exactly what I did. So, hopefully that, too, will be fixed later.

I'd love to have at least 8 video and audio tracks each. There are times when I try to do some tricky things and 4 video tracks may not be enough (I'm just now upgrading from 3.0b where I only have 3 tracks each) so you have to do some pre-rendering of parts of it and then using the rendering in one of the tracks later on.

So, if the Team hears about a problem enough, they'll be inclined to address it. Especially if enough customers (us) bring up the fact that the competitors are doing it thereby putting us in a position where we have to weigh the pros and cons to possibly jump ship.

Actually the limitation of 4 video tracks is unacceptable, its a stupid excuse made only from the lack of pro content, ot would not require any effort to include unlimited tracks in platinium, its strictly a marketing trick.

I got the Pro version because i hate such limitations, but absolute basic funcionality in any editing app should include unlimited number of tracks, and support for custom codecs such as xvid.

Yes, of course it is a marketing issue, but it isn't a trick at all. You get what you pay for. If you want unlimited tracks you pay a lot more money. You also get dozens of other advanced professional features. If you want to spend only a small amount of money you get a small number of tracks. Sounds extremely reasonable to me.

It's been a while since i've used the Studio version, version 3 in fact. However, even back then i had no problem using DivX and XVid. Install those codecs and Vegas uses them just fine.

Yes, we understand the "you get what you pay for issue", however, other editors in the same price range as VMS offer 99 tracks so it would appear that SCS is "behind the times". From a marketing perspective, that is.

I've known for a long time that the engineering or software development departments of lots of companies create great products until marketing gets involved to cripple them. Case in point here.

How exactly is making a product available at a price you can afford crippling the product

Don't want the limitations of Movie Studio? You can upgrade to Pro for $450. That's too much for a video editor for you? Well luckily, Sony has a lower priced version, it's called Movie Studio.

Why do you think the other companies went to 99 tracks? Because they need to compete with Vegas. Because they know that most new editors are going to find Sony's way of working easier to do and these new editors are not going to want to give that up.

You want more tracks for less than $450? Go find an older versions of the full Vegas or buy a Sony 7 license off someone who has upgraded to 8. Sony let's users sell their licenses that way. However the older license can be used for a new upgrade.

quote: "Why do you think the other companies went to 99 tracks? Because they need to compete with Vegas. Because they know that most new editors are going to find Sony's way of working easier to do and these new editors are not going to want to give that up."

I don't know about where you live, but here in Europe, Premiere Elements and Pinnacle have the biggest share in the market. Vegas Movie Studio is the little brother. (Also, Vegas doesn't come in many languages, while the competition does).
So by offering only 4 tracks, Vegas will never catch up with the big guys.

VMS is technically superior, but on the level of "consumer candy" (with that I mean effects, themes, transition etc) it lags far behind...

Up to now, nobody has picked up on my point that adding Platinum Pro to the library is an insult to the consumer: most people will go for Platinum Pro, of course, which will make Platinum redundant. For me, from the point of view of marketing, it's very hard to understand why they add a totally redundant, yet expensive piece of software (Sound Forge), but they won't crank up the number of tracks. Vegas in itsefl has enough sound plugins to keep us going, but at least some of us really want more tracks.

Add to this that the product description is at least messy, if not unprofessional. Platinum Pro includes "Cinescore themes pack", but what can you do with that if you don't own Cinescore? The implication of course is that they have included Cinescore Studio, which is new, but nowhere explained.

If you think Sound Forge is a redundant piece of software, once you own Vegas, you should look into what Sound Forge does. They complement each other very, very well. Sound Forge was developed first and Vegas came afterwards as an audio only tool. Yet, Vegas never replaced Sound Forge.

In addition to VMS, I have ACID Music Studio 6. For the $$$, it's a pretty good music creation package and it compliments VMS, too. With it, you can load a movie you've made and the video tracks comes right along as in Sound Forge. You can add audio, etc., and then render to the same choices you have in VMS. I plan to purchase the upgrade to VMS 9 Platinum Pro Pack so I can get the the extra things which include Sound Forge Studio so I can start working with it.

I agree with the debut of Pro Pack, Platinum will be redundant and it won't surprise me if it's gone when VMS 10 comes around.

We (all of the VMS users) need to start contacting Sony and clamoring for "lots more tracks". One avenue is the "Suggestion Form". I think they do listen, but we need to hit them hard from all sides!

busterkeaton wrote:"Don't want the limitations of Movie Studio? You can upgrade to Pro for $450. "

Or we can purchase the competition. Serif Movie Plus which LOOKS and works almost identical to Vegas Movie Studio has UNLIMITED tracks. It may not have all the bells and whistles the VMS has, but for the price, it's actually a better deal.

Quit comparing VMS to Vegas Pro and start looking at YOUR COMPETITION. I think that I have already made myself clear that I WILL NOT BE UPGRADING mainly because SCS decided to not release a DVD A 5 Studio in this version.

How many customers not upgrading or switching does it take before Sony listens?

of Serif Movie Plus? I have to say that's a new one on me.

Also, why is it my competition? I don't work for SCS.

He probably saw your "SCVE" tag and figured you worked for Vegas or had a particular stake in the company.

I must say I am a bit jealous of the tag myself, would love to be an "official" editor myself. :) But if you've seen my home videos you know why I stay amature!

Sorry, wasn't meant or aimed at you personally. Perhaps I should have worded it as SCS's competition?

Ok, I'll bite. What does that SCVE tag mean? I have wondered about that for years, but didn't want to ask a dumb question. Probably still a dumb question, the only difference is now I don't mind asking! ;) Cin

Sony Certification Programs

Thank you MSmart for the link. I actually did, and passed the SCVU program about a year ago, just never paid the hundered bucks to become official. I didn't know about the emblem/logo part of it. :) Cin

Only by curiosity: how could you pass the SCVU program without accessing the exam-program that is payable?

I mean: getting the tag is the very smallest part of it - the tag just comes automatically after you have passed the on-line exam - within the -say- very short time limit, that is... :-))