Final Cut Studio-Academic and a recording deck.

H

hobox77

Hey peoples,
It turns out I can get a great deal getting the Final Cut Studio-Academic version since I qualify for the student discount. I tried to contact Apple support for this, but to no avail. I was wondering if any of you know if the Academic version is the same as the consumer version. If there are differences, what are they? And do you think it'll be worth it or should I just dish out the extra 500+ bucks for the consumer version?

Another question I have is about recording decks. What do they do, besides being able to view DV's/analog/whatever and capture footage? I've heard somewhere some decks can actually improve the picture quality. Is it worth the investment? Is it better to use than just capturing from the camera?

I tried to do a search on this forum, but didn't find the answers I was looking for.
I apologize in advance if I didn't search hard enough.
Thanks.
Lee
 
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The software is identical, just discounted for students.

I can't answer your second question, although it's always been explained to me that you have decks in editing studios because you don't want to subject the recording heads on your camera to the amount of work load that a deck gets in the process of digitising stuff in. This makes lots of sense if you're using incredibly expensive braodcast quality cameras, but whether it makes as much sense if you're shooting of a cheap mini-dv I don't know.

Personally I'd be tempted to buy a deck if I had a good HDV camera, but probaly not for my mini-dv camcorder. I currently don't edit often enough to warrent the expense. And, if I was working on anyhting better than HDV I'd hire decks for the job rather than buying.
 
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Oh ok, thanks for clarifying that up for me. There is a HUGE price difference between the academic and the consumer, so I thought maybe they were different.

I'm getting my iMac G5 today, and Final Cut Studio-Academic in the near future. So the Academic version is not an upgrade but the full version right?

And I should be fine just capturing footage from my DVX100a right?

Sorry for all the questions, just really really careful when spending lots of money.

Thanks in advance.
 
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I'd be unsure about making a purchase just from information I'd got from someone on the internet, so why don't you just e-mail FCP technical support. I've always found them very useful.
 
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The only thing different about Final Cut Studio-Academic is that you can’t upgrade it.

1. Upgrade Requirements
o We offer two ways to upgrade to Final Cut Studio:
- Production Suite upgrade: Open to licensed owners of either Production Suite or all of the following: Final Cut Pro HD/4, DVD Studio Pro 3 and Motion.
- Final Cut Pro upgrade: Open to licensed owners of Final Cut Pro (any version).
o You will need a valid serial number to complete the upgrade.
o Academic and Not-For-Resale versions are not eligible for this upgrade.
 
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Oh ok, thanks for the info. Since it can't be upgraded, I'm guessing it's the full version(s). Either way I'll contact Apple support before I make a purchase.
Just got my iMac G5 today and I'm pumped!
Thanks again.
 
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if you've got a dvx100a just be sure you know what you're doing to capture the 24p mode. Cinema tools (which comes with final cut) allows you to turn 24p footage into real 23.98 fps footage. But you have to capture it a specific way, the timecode must start with a 5 or 0 on the tape when importing to the computer. if you're just doing 29.97 editing then yeah you're good to go!
 
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