Hi, David!

Wow, I must really hand it to you - I had mucked around with the trial version of Cineform a few months back and it seemed a big sluggish on my very sluggish editing PC - now with Vegas 6, for my HDV stuff, it is a GODSEND... my editing system is still sub-par but Connect HD etc. seems now to work a lot better, etc. etc. So first of all, a big thank you!

I am wondering with updates happening to Cineform happening frequently - what is the upgrade path for users who only have Vegas 6? Can we visit the Cineform downloads and get the updates to "upgrade" the version that is with the current build of Vegas 6 as necessary? Or do we have to wait till the "latest" version of Cineform is bundled with a newer build of Vegas?

Hope the question is clear? Basically, I'm asking in a roundabout way if Vegas 6 owners can remain totally up-to-date on the Cineform side of things without having to, er, buy Cineform as a "separate" item...

Thanks!

Unfortuately we don't yet have a codec only upgrade, as that it all Vegas 6 includes. I believe Sony is shipping a trial version of Connect HD with Vegas 6, that component is available for purchase. Connect HD as a separate product is less needed now that Vegas 6 includes the codec, yet it is still handly for PC capable of real-time capture with automatic conversion (only Connect HD's HDLink offers that.)

Thankyou for noticing the significant speed improvements of the CineForm codec under Vegas 6. Sony and CineForm worked together to make it work well even on much lower-end PCs than we support on other NLEs.

Sorry David, but your response was a bit confusing. I thought all of the Connect HD components were included in Vegas 6. Are you saying there are other features you can purchase. If so, where can you buy it and what does it add?

Vegas 6 doesn include the tool to automatically convert M2T data to CineForm Intermediate file during capture. Vegas 6 is a two step process, you capture to M2T, then convert to CineForm AVI if you want the editing to go faster. Although Sony may one day release the automatic conversion feature, today that is only present within the HDLink application that is purchased as part of Connect HD (from www.cineform.com.) In addition, the full license offers more quality controls and soon the ability to automatically convert the Cineframe 24 and 25 Sony cameras modes to 24p on the fly.

Understood, thanks. So just buy version 1.6 on your website that states it for Vegas 5?

That version will work fine.

ok, thanks for your time

[QUOTE=David Newman] Connect HD as a separate product is less needed now that Vegas 6 includes the codec, yet it is still handly for PC capable of real-time capture with automatic conversion (only Connect HD's HDLink offers that.)

I'm a new owner of Vegas which I got for its HDV capability (I still have and use VT[4] for SD only work.)

What system specs would allow for real-time capture and auto conversion to the CF intermediate? I have a dual Xeon 2.8 GHz (each) and SCSI Raid 0. Should I expect no dropped frames in RT capture/conversion? And would this apply also to the highest quality setting for the intermediate?

Thanks

You should never get dropped frames in the auto conversion, it just takes longer on slower PC. Most modern dual processor systems are real-time (1 to 1) or very near. This means capture and conversion to CineForm Intermediate takes about the same time to capture the tape without conversion. i.e. it is seamiless. You can download the trial to test for yourself. The capture/conversion time may vary up to 10% for the highest quality mode (so very little performance impact.)

David, thanks for the prompt reply.

I'd love to try out Connect HD this way before buying. However, I was previously using the CFHD demo with a demo version Vegas 5. So when I tried installing HD Connect 1.6 from the Vegas 6 install CD I just purchased, I got a message saying the demo had expired. I don't think downloading the 1.6 demo would overcome this for another 15 days, would it?

You are correct, downloading 1.6 again will not give you another 15-day trial peroid. However, we will have Connect HD 1.7 out within a couple of weeks, that will likely offer a new trial peroid (give you another 15-days.)

David, what if we bought Connect HD through Sony? Currently I can only find 1.5 on their site. Do I have to wait for them to post updates, or can I install the ones from the Cineform site?

Aloha,

Gabe

I'll have to discuss this tomorrow when everyone is back at the office. There are small differences between the Sony and CineForm releases of Connect HD.

Gabe, we will see about getting Sony updated, in the meantime please try the CineForm site for upgrades (I believe it should work fine.)

Thanks for the reply. I have gone back to using Connect HD, and I have to say, it is much more pleasent to use on my under powered (2.8 P$) machine than Vegas 6 was. I look forward to playing w/ 1.7 when I return home.

Aloha,

Gabe

1) Did the version of ConnectHD that Sony used to sell for V5 include the auto-convert feature?

2) If it did, assuming Sony still sells it on their site, will it work with V6?

It seems the auto-convert feature is absolutely necessary and if it isn't available from Sony for V6 -- but was for V5 using the $150 Connect plug-in -- Sony really needs to highlight this change and recommend what a V6 user should do.

Sony only includes the CineForm codec with Vegas 6, not the autoconversion tool. Sony no longer sells Connect HD for Vegas 5. However the latest Connect HD 1.7 is full compatible with Vegas 5 & 6 and offers a range of automatic capture and conversion features. This is available from cineform.com directly or through you favorite reseller for $199.

David Newman
CTO, CineForm