Due to problems I continue to have with my Sony HC7 I may purchase a new AVCHD video camera. Since I presently only use HDV on MiniDV I never paid any attention to editing AVCHD with Vegas.

I'm running Vegas 10d on a custom PC with an Intel I7 quad core 2.8GHZ with 6GB RAM. Is this sufficient to smoothly edit AVCHD native with Vegas? Do people generally edit AVCHD native with Vegas or do you use an intermediary?

Is there anything I should look for in a new AVCHD video camera that will make the workflow with Vegas go more smoothly?

As for a new video camera, I would like to stay in the $500-600 price range and I'm considering Canon or Sony. I use my HC7 for personal use such as family events, sports, etc. Any suggestions on video cameras?

Thanks for your comments.
Dave

I think you should be able to edit it straight from the camera with no problems, specially with any Vegas 10 which had a big improvement in performance with AVCHD files.

Also for a camcorder i'd recommend you to look at the Canon Vixia line, some great little cameras there.

You might notice some hangups if it's a big project, or if you have numerous layers.

Also, I've found some problems with audio sync on playback. There isn't anything wrong with the files; it's just a timeline playback issue.

So yes, performance is way better, but not problem-free.