Final Cut X is out, as is new version of Motion

Editing featured

Prepare for a very schizophrenic post here! This has been written in a linear time frame from downloading it to my thoughts as I use it. I contradict myself from things I said earlier later in the post. The reason I have left the post like this as it will read like you have done what I have just done so when you do download it (if you do then this is your comfort blanket in that you were not alone!) So enjoy the ride!

I am currently downloading FCP X… £179.99 in the UK app store ($299.99) for FCP X, £29.99 for Motion 5 and same for Compressor (i don’t know what is new in this version of Compressor)

Let me know how you get on with them in comments below.

As I am currently learning CS5.5 I guess I will be learning two new editing systems concurrently. CS5.5 just required me to adjust my thinking to a slightly different way. FCP X is something totally different. Only time will tell if it is good or bad!

CS5.5 is mind blowingly good! The link with After Effects is terrific. FCP X is a different beast at a different price point but is replacing Final Cut 7 which has been my editing platform of choice for 5 years.

You can have both X and Pro 7 installed on the same computer, just not open at the same time. This is great which does make the whole jumping to FCP X not the jumping without a parachute which it could be. Don’t like it? Does not do what you want then run FCP 7 until it does.

You cannot open old FCP projects in it, although you can import imovie projects! Eek! None of my plugs work too…

Personally I would hold off for a little bit until myself and others have given it the once over. It’s always best to let others try things first, especially version 1 of anything and certainly from first impressions it has a lot missing that is needed! So don’t rush to buy it just yet!! Read my short blog post and check out some other reviews…

If you cannot wait (like me!) and want to take the plunge then you can support my site by clicking on the itunes affiliate links below to download them. It doesn’t cost you anymore but I get a teeny weeny percentage. I will be sharing my journey with the software with you on this blog post…

It looks revolutionary (as in unrecognisable!)…a totally different interface and a lot of things to make your life easier like background rendering. Let’s see how well it does these things in practice!

FINAL CUT X

Final Cut Pro - Apple®


MOTION 5

Motion - Apple®

COMPRESSOR

Compressor - Apple®

First Impressions:

It’s installed. Opening it up. First thing to greet me was this….

Now I am trying to work out where my scratch disk is. Honestly I think if you know how to edit on iMovie, and am not saying this for effect, you will instantly know how to run this whereas for me I am scratching my head still as to where all the settings are…I am sure I will work it out soon!

I like a lot of the things I have seen like match colour, magnetic timeline, organisation and the speed. The preview window is interesting, thumbnails not so good but clip on list view and it’s better. It really does feel like learning something from scratch rather than adjusting to a new system like I have with CS5.5.

DSLR editing is a lot easier as it can cope just fine with H264. Probably best in the long run to still transcode out of it for certain projects but the ability to edit DSLR footage natively is a big plus.

It has some awful imovie style built in effects but then again FCP also had some hideous transitions we ignored, these are just more in your face! It seems they have added a huge number of things from the consumer editing program into this. I don’t need fake night vision binoculars. Well I don’t think I do!

I don’t want to be a complainer as I actually do like a lot that it does, it’s just that it is not there yet.

After playing with it for a while, I like the interface, it’s bold and new. Although a steep learning curve from other NLEs. The problem is it is just lacking in so many things that I need. I completely understand that this is version 1 but I need it to do simple things FCP 7 did. Currently it does not and for me that makes it not an option for editing paid jobs with right now. I am certainly not writing it off just yet. CS5.5, which I have just started learning, seems the smart choice or stick with FCP 7 for the time being!  I love AVID MC too but the flexibility of CS5.5 with it’s other apps is nigh on impossible to beat right now. FCPX is not ready for prime time just yet, in my opinion. Until we get support for multi cam, third party plug ins, third party codecs (EDIT: a pro apps update has just fixed this), no output from my Aja Kona, no EDL, no XML, no ability to use tape, no copy and paste attributes, no multiple timelines per project and SO much more then this is not a professional tool right now. Let’s see how the next few months work out.

To sum up, FCP X is an ingenious fast piece of software that is going to upset just about every editor out there used to final cut pro!  BUT is probably going to appeal massively to new editors without previous NLE experience, they will love it I am sure. It has incredible organisational features and lots of other things that will take a lot of the pain of editing away, with a bit more time with it I am sure I am going to love what it offers. It reminds me of when OS X came out, although not as extreme. It was a massive evolutionary step forward from OS 9. It was not until 10.1 came out that the potential of OS X was realised.

I am a HUGE advocate of tapeless workflow and FCP X is built to be tapeless with limited support for tape but the broadcast industry is not as pro tapeless as you think! The majority still use tape and just about everything is mastered to HDCAM SR tape!

Sometimes we have to throw out what is there to make things better. But, let’s hope the stuff that has been thrown out is temporary. If not, Apple no longer has a broadcast (note the key word here, broadcast) tool and all the people and companies I know who use FCP 7 as their broadcast standard will have to look to the future as to just how long will FCP 7  be supported before they are forced to upgrade, at which point they could just simply jump ship.  I for one am having faith in Apple in giving us the essential Pro features with an update. EDIT: But this blog post from FCP Guru Larry Jordan gives me doubts.

It has a lot going for it and the fact that FCP 7 remains intact on your hard drive is a massive plus. This alone makes the transition, or even just trying it out a possibility. Before that upgrading was a terrifying prospect.

For a detailed look at the software check out Kenstone.net and Steve’s Martin’s article. There is also a great run through of many questions you want answered on Philip Hodgett’s website. Very useful,

Really?!?
Some of the colour effects.
mmmmmm....

 

212 comments

1 2

    3. If this is a professional failure Apple is of little risk…
      This is confrimed by the preservation of version 7….
      Apple has learnt from Microsofts experience with “Vista”, if users don´t like what you make they will just stick to the old version until the failure is acknowledged. Then Apple can just continune building FCP 7 in the “regular” line. Prestige lost, but not market… which is their big thing… there have been several greater potential distaters from Apple earlier on…. just think of the G5 machines…. puuuhhh… don´t mention crash and heating

      If Apple has success in the switch to FCP X, the firm has achieved something big/bigger; they have rebuilt/revolutionized the way pro software is sold and distributed and…..finally gotten rid of the software wholesaler.

    1. First reaction to FCPX: I hate it. Infantile and less controllable than the previous versions of FCP and Adobe Premiere Pro. This analysis might change over time, hopefully.

  7. Ok, started up my new FCP X, first thing to greet me is ‘Import iMovie Events’. Not encouraging… as is the apparently complete lack of System Settings / User Preferences. Think I’ll have to dig a lot deeper….

    2. Yes but from what I see you can’t have them running at the same time. Final Cut Pro X gives you an error saying an older version is running and gives you the option to quit. It’s not very intuitive because if you just close Final Cut Pro 7 then the dialog will go away.

  9. I’m still downloading, which seems to be going very slow. I can’t imagine that Apple is seeing much network congestion from this. Sure, it’s big, but FCP users are probably just a sliver of traffic compared to music and apps the world over.

    Still, I’d be curious to know if anyone else is experiencing slow download speed. May be my network… Looking forward to your future posts about FCPX, Philip. Cheers!

  10. Hi Philip,

    One thing I realised early is that there seems to be only the notion of a drive – I have the system drive and a RAID.

    Anyway, I hated the scratch drive stuff and was always a bit unsure of it, and now I think this is a bit simpler.

    Interestingly, I played with a new “Event” for a wee while, wanted to ditch it, and then just dragged it from my “Movies” folder to the Trash, restarted FCPX, and the Event had gone. No residual files, nothing offline, etc etc. I like that!

    J

  11. Mine just got done downloading. Motion and Compressor still have a bit of time left, but i am also confused with the new UI. Ehhh, this is going to take some getting used to. Are we too professional for this consumer grade UI ? haha.
    Sure does look pretty though, the old FCP was sure in need of a facelift. Nicely done Apple. Now where’s soundtrack pro?

  13. The scratch disk appears when its connected to the Mac. Im using a MacBookPro, connected LaCIe rugged external shows up under the “Project Library”…

  14. I’d love to see a video from you of your thoughts of CS5.5 vs. FCPX. They both seem very powerful. And some of the new features seem really cool. I don’t think there is a workflow that you can move your project between the two. To take advantage of the strengths of each.

  15. I’m not sure if I like the new interface. It looks like it would be a neat idea for Final Cut Express, but not for Pro. I agree, it looks like a pimped out version of iMovie. It seems Apple is over simplifying everything. Of Course I need to learn the beast begin to stab at it.

    Here’s Hoping for the Best.

  16. Are you saying Final Cut X UI is like iMovie.. cuz I hate iMovie with a passion.. I can’t figure that thing out. Maybe you can change your UI to classic FCP ?!

    Have fun, and looking forward to your review/comments on this new version!

  18. honestly…. this has been coming for a long time.. Apple is slowly moving away from us pros and going straight to consumers. It’s very sad, but it’s happening, and you get what you pay for. Motion for $50? are you kidding? I mean Motion had a lot of issues, but it could have been something very good if they worked on it, but no they dumb it down even further, and make it the same price as a good keyboard. Same thing with Final Cut. I’ve used FCP since it came out in 99!!

    This is a very sad day and I hope we can let our aspirations for FCP rest in peace ;(

    Avid anyone?

    2. Apple’s got more than 60 billion dollars in cash on hand. If anyone can afford to subsidize the development of an expensive program, it’s them.

      People complaining that it has to suck because the price is accessible to non-pros need to realize the size of the development company we’re talking about.

      If it sucks, it’s because it sucks, not because the price point is accessible to non-pros.

      The ratio of people who use Adobe Photoshop on a daily basis compared the people who legitimately own it are astounding. This is Apple trying to force everyone who uses their pro software to actually buy it.

      2. If Apple can afford to subsidize the development of an expensive program, then why didn’t they? Why did Apple short change its pro users. Yeah, you could say that a year from now Apple will add important features back into the application, but why didn’t they do that from the beginning. Apple typically doesn’t release something this lame, even as a 1.0 release. So they made it cheaper, big deal. If a pro user has to wait a year for “pro” features to get added back in, how did that help them in the long run? If the app is unusable in serious production now, then it is a waste of money, at least until they solidify the feature base. At that point, go with Avid or Adobe, which have solid offerings and listen to their pro customer base.

        You’re making excuses for Apple with every sentence. Why does everyone feel they need to defend Apple regardless of their screw ups? That’s just blindly following an idol. Just flat out admit that Apple released a product prematurely without giving a firm roadmap of when “new” PRO features would be added. Point blank.. they screwed up in the collective eyes of the professional community by omitting features in an effort to consolidate FCP and FCX and attrack more novice and consumer users with a better price point. Admit the truth. It will set you free.

        Photoshop? We’re not talking about Photoshop. We’re talking about FCPX. Compare it to Premiere if you must. How is Apple forcing people to actually buy the software? You do realize that by tomorrow FCPX will be on torrent sites, just as fast as Photoshop is when each version is released. Software can be $10 and people will still try to find a place to download it for free. The cost of software has absolutely NO VALUE with regards to determining who and how many people will download it from nefarious sites for free. FACT.

      3. As a young filmmaker who has pirated all the editing tools i’ve used for years [to LEARN :p] i have to back up your point about the price.

        this is the first tool i’ve ever seriously considered paying for, and i think it’s a smart move by apple.

        Frankly, i think they’ll make way more money by getting more people in at a lower price, rather than making it so damn expensive that only people who use it professionally can afford to purchase.

        1. Isn’t it clear what Apple is doing? They are really stiffing the pro community of editors for a pro-sumer version. It’s like the Canon 500D versus the 5D. They will make more money out of it – their price makes it accessible to any film enthusiast. At the same time I feel that they’re hoping that the pro community will continue to use and support it – I’m really not sure, but I have a feeling that I’ll be making the switch to a software platform that continues to recognize the difference between the pro-sumer market at the professional market. I can’t stand Avid now after having been on FCP for over 5 years, but Premiere is starting to look quite appealing!

    3. I made the jump to Avid MC last year. Better trimming, audio plug ins on the whole track. Rendering more intelligent when switching video layers for viewing.
      Export to Pro Tools 9 with plug in settings. No fiddling with keyframes.
      Better fx’s. When you give it a try you become faster every month.

    5. NOOO!!! I’m a 99′ user as well. I have one more season of a tv show on FCP7. I hope they figure the pro side of things out for this otherwise maybe we can split the cost of some great Avid for dummies books. I was quietly afraid of this…

    6. Just because an app has been made more intuitive and more powerful doesn’t mean that it’s not meant for pros. Pros should want to spend more time creating and less time fussing with processes. If you want to make the assumption that the complexity of an app is a direct correlation to it’s professional potential, then none of us should have ever moved past the first versions of any software.

      Consumers & first time users may be better able to grasp the initial logistics of the app easier than FCP 7, but this thing is designed for pros from the ground up. What about the magnetic timeline, the clip connections, compound clips, precision editor, and auditions features screams “consumer?” This thing is a documentary filmmaker’s dream now. There is a multitude of absolute timesavers here that make editing far, far more intuitive.

      And Motion is “dumbed down?” Have you looked at it? It does everything the old version did and so much more. Did you realize that most of the filters and transitions in FCPX were built in Motion 5 projects and that you can literally turn your Motion 5 project elements into customized FCPX transitions, filters and fx? This is a huge game-changer!

      If this is “dumbed-down,” then call me a raving idiot because I love it!

    7. Agreed. Apple makes so much money selling iphones & iPads that the pro software department is treated like the stepchild. I’m sure they make enough money as a whole to dedicate enormous resources to the FCP department but they just don’t do it. FCPX didn’t even make the front page of their site. I haven’t written them off just yet though. However I HAVE switched from Logic Pro to Pro Tools 9 about 3 month ago as Logic just hasn’t made any major advancements lately. I’ve also left Soundtrack Pro for Pro Tools. I’m hanging on but I hear premiere calling me.

  19. I’m hoping that it’s not how it looks… Because it looks like anyone who wants to do something really professional might have a very difficult time..arrg
    Apple whhhhhhY? Really hoping that my fears are proven wrong. Prove me wrong please…

    1. I don’t understand people. Why are you guys so vain? Who cares how it looks. I’d choose to learn something that will make me a more efficient editor rather than be stuck with an old slow version of FCP. Quit the whining. Give it time…or better yet go in with a willingness to learn for the sake of becoming a more efficient editor. These are the tools that when mastered will give you the chance to work at the speed of thought. Who cares what it looks like…take the time to look and learn what’s under the hood of X before you make another vain and childish judgement. Or just park your bum and stay stuck with your version of fcp whatever while the fcp x train leaves the station. It’ll be funny to see how many people will say coulda, shoulda, woulda…or migrate over to premier pro.

  20. Well, it looks and feels all polished and such, like iMovie. It doesn’t seem to feel “PRO” though…

    I would love to change the window layouts, as I have multiple monitors, and would like to use my TV monitor without dragging the whole dang project window back and forth, and I don’t see an option in the “Window(s)” menue! I’m not sure where my aspect ratios are, for different EX-3 settings?!

    What happened to Batching!!

    It seems strange that it is telling me that a .VOB file is not a video file, FCP7 never did that, nor 6, or 5.

    I don’t want to jump the gun, but it doesn’t feel like FCP. All past versions of it all looked somewhat the same, at least in the UI.

  21. I’m definitely going to hold off on making final conclusions for a bit, but my first reaction is that Apple has officially lost it’s professional following. Though there seems to be a few cool features, ones that I wish were part of a professional package (like match color, and the amount of audio control is a dream), FCPX looks to be prosumer at best. The concerns seemed to have been correct, this is iMovie Pro. I know that there are already a ton of folks touting the shortcomings, but the one that I feel is most overlooked is no “Color”. Although the interface is super awkward, Color is a powerful app, especially the use of curves. I know that the new FCPX has some of that stuff in it already, secondaries and what not, but without curves it’s just not up to snuff. Looks like I may be getting CS5.5. I guess it’ll be nice only having to get 1 suite from now on. But like I said, I’ll wait a tad bit longer before making final conclusions.

  23. Have they removed ‘Save’ like in iMovie?

    Personally I have had some fun with iMovie (quick holiday snaps DVD anyone?) but I have always felt reassured by the complexity of FCP.

    I doubt my 3 year old MacBook Pro will cope with it anyway!

  24. Look you people apple has been ripping you off for years !
    when it came to upgrade my 5 year G5 I looked at all the options.
    Upgrade to mac pro was around £4000 but the same spec pc was £800.
    Thats running solid state drives and 8Gb ram + 8 core cpu cuda enabled gpu etc etc
    I was amazed and now i’m fully into CS5 master suite having always loved after effects and now premier pro second nature. It was hard to go from apple and my beloved FCP but now FCP doesn’t exsist so you really have no reason to be on mac (unless you like wasting money).

  27. One thing to keep in mind when comparing with iMovie: I’m sure the resources that Apple spent on making the iMovie interface easy to use were significant. In fact, I would say that Apple spent more resources on iMovie’s interface than any editing application ever to built, because they needed to make it easy and quick for any home user.

    As long as Apple has NOT taken away any editing functionality or capabilities from previous Final Cut versions, then we win in one major item: SPEED. This is my hope for the new FCP X, and it certainly seems to be the focus Apple has on the new version.

    Personally, I’m glad Apple choose to combine the basics of color and soundtrack into FCP. It was always a hassle to use color and soundtrack for repetitive tasks, and I hope to pick up speed here as well. Though, I’m sad color and soundtrack have been completely cut.

    I agree with Devin on Motion. It had great potential and if they have dumbed it down, that is sad. But, that may be that I used Motion in place of After Effects, whereas other editors may not need more power.

    There are several things that Apple has done to make me concerned about future releases and the direction FCP will go. But if I can accomplish everything I did in Final Cut Pro 7 and do it faster, than I’m going to love this program. Making quicker edits will result in me making more money and having a lot more fun as well.

  29. I can’t put it on a disc… What happens if I am 100 Miles from an internet connection, then it crashes and needs a re-install; which is common! This is problematic!

  32. Dear FCPX,
    I need to tell you something. I haven’t been settled for a while. I know you thought our future had motion but I never felt like I could shake these feelings that we were headed in the wrong direction.
    I ran into and old flame at lunch time and it felt good, almost as if we had some spontaneous combustion. I was really keen and she was just as avid.
    I think I’m going to get my things together and move out, it’s time to start over. I hope this doesn’t leave you with too many after effects. I’m sure in time you’ll meet the right person and have your own relationship premiere. And in our own way, we’ll both feel like pro’s again.
    All my love.

  34. I’m pretty new at FCP in general, but it seemed like they had the full gamut of cheesy transitions and effects in 7… it’s all in how you modify/blend them, right?

    So maybe the flashy UI makes the cheese stand out more, but it doesn’t worry me until I try it, since the same amount of cheese already existed.

    Some of the new ‘easiness’ supposedly introduced sounds pretty handy, but I’ll let Phillip suss that out before I spend any cash. I’m kinda glad I only started using FCP last year… maybe less transitory pains? Good luck all.

  35. No XML? No Multi-cam? If they don’t implement some sort of upgrade soon, I’m going to have to switch from FCP to Premier or Avid. Probably Premier… I love the dynamic link to AE.

  36. I’m so glad you’re doing this. I just built a custom Windows machine to take advantage of the GPU rendering in CS5 and gave my iMac to the wife. So far loving CS5 and being mainly an Avid and Adobe person I didn’t find previous versions of Final Cut much of a reason to stick with Mac. I saw this announcement a couple of months ago and was starting to think I made a bad decision. Will definitely be interested to hear what you have to say about Final Cut X vs CS 5.5

  37. It seems to have more in common with Aperture than iMovie. Same Events and Project and emphasis on metadata and Libraries and lack of Save. Trying to figure them both out – Aperture and FCPX – feels very much the same.

    Having played with the colour settings in FCPX, I really have to doubt it is any kind of replacement for Color.app. It simply improves on the old Color Corrector 3 way. Color needs to be it’s own app. It just needs to be integrated better with media management. But it needs an entire screen of controls.

    As a matter of fact, this project was shot with Technicolor CineStyle, it’s highly unlikely FCPX’s colour tools are good enough – we’ll see . There’s no Send to Color command at the moment, so they will need to be good enough.

  38. I am wondering if it is possible in FCP X to import a .xml project file? One time I was working on a project in FCP 7 and it needed to go to another editor who only had FCP 6 and he was able to open the .xml project file and work with it.

  41. What a mess!

    Where’s the round-tripping between FC and Motion.

    I had high hopes for this release, but it really is just iMovie with a few extra features.

    If anyone reading this is even tempted buy the impulse-buy price. Please do yourself a favor and save the money.

    Not only will I now be switching to CS5, I’m even considering ditching the Mac platform altogether after this insult.

    No wonder we haven’t seen a Mac Pro update for a while. The ‘Pro’ suffix would be a laughable claim

  42. I have been using Autodesk Smoke 2012 for a while and I love it. If I hadn’t been using this for the last few months then I would have been depressed as hell. I downloaded FCPX and I think it’s been the biggest impulse buy mistake of my life. I wonder how much profit they’ll make from it. Apple is being seriously bigheaded in calling this Pro and not allowing any interconnectivity with other software. No edl or xml export. Smoke has a really nice xml drag-n-drop xml import that works really nicely in conforms from FCP7. What colorist is going to use FCPX? Goodbye color; goodbye soundtrack, goodbye any connection with any other software besides its junior. You can share with vimeo and youtube but you cannot share with other software.

    What pro would want to stay on the island of FCPX looking through those green binoclors?

    My advice is to download yourselves a trial copy of Smoke and then seriously think of buying it. Its a jack-of-all-trades but also a master of them all. You can even hook up the Euphonix MC panel and use it as a colorstation. Then check out its ‘Action’ environment. It practically bottomless and although not as deep as After Effects its pretty realtime (you can even import 3d models into its true3d space). You can also soft-import canon files without transcoding. Check out Grant Kay’s tutorials on youtube. Serious wow-factor…

    Switching between FCPX and Smoke is like two different worlds. You either have the ability to share your skillset between Apple FCPX and iMovie or between Autodesk Smoke and Flame.

    I will be shocked if I take to FCPX unless they do a considerable volte-face and open it up and have the ability to get rid of those patronising icons. It ain’t gonna happen because Apple is playing 1984 they know best…

    Cheers
    Tony

  43. I was never a fan of the old Final Cut, the interface was like something from the stone age, so I welcome the changes.

    Having said that, the slightly more consumer orientated leanings of the new FC are a little worrying, I love some features to make life easier, but need the high end oomph as well.

    Ultimately think I’ll wait and see where the dust settles here, CS5 is a strong package nowadays, hard to say where FCX will ultimately land.

  45. Gary Adcock has an early review worth reading.
    http://library.creativecow.net/adcock_gary/FCPX/2

    It jibes with my experience so far. I’m so overwhelmed by the background processing of everything. I’m going to leave FCPX open while I eat with faint hope it might actually sync my audio.

    It reminds me of the eureka moment with Motion when I realised it wasn’t like other apps. (It is meant to be looping all the time, rendering on the fly in the background while it plays. It starts out badly, but improves on every pass. If you use it like a normal adjust/render/view app, it seems like a terrible app. If you know how it works, you stop working against the grain of the way the app is designed: to let you animate motion while in motion.

    But I *really* want to log something and put it in a bin!

  47. I see no sign of a new version of colour has it been dropped you think? or has it been integrated in to fcpx? along with its wonderful custom power mattes/vignette? good luck with learning the program Philip, thank you for the post.

    1. Not good at all. I’m guessing they will add this stuff back in at some point? 10.1?

      I hope so because the features it does have make me want to use it for my day to day work and I can get away with out the above for now.

  50. Everyone who think imovie is crap hasnt tried the skimming feature. Onces you worked with it you’ll never will use something else. Offcourse imovie is not professional but I really hoped they would integrate the skimming feature and they did so I am very enthousiastic and can’t wait to start working with it.

  52. Can anyone confirm or deny that you can no longer send files to apple color…..surely this will be a tragedy as most of us tend to grade our own footage?

  53. I’m very new to video editing, real noob. My thing until now was only music and I’m a big fan of Logic. For several months I’ve been waiting for FCP X to be released, thinkin it would be the holy grail of editing. Now it seems it’s got some very good features but lack some others.

    I’m gonna wait a few weeks and gather some feedback and reviews. From what I understand, general opinion is that FCP X isn’t a pro app despite some very interesting features you can’t find anywhere else (rendering speed, oh my!)

    Philip, do you think you could do a more detailed comparison with Adobe Premiere 5.5? Thanks for these first impressions by the way.

  56. @Marco Edwardo – “Nicely done Apple. Now where’s soundtrack pro?”

    I have a sneaky feeling that we may be about to see a new version of Logic Pro X on the Mac app store which incorporates the option of a similar workflow to Soundtrack Pro.

  57. I think I’m switching to Premier. I am not happy with this update at all. It’s missing essential pro tools. At least I can now use the dynamic link to AE 😀

  58. Yes, its unusual, yes it lacks XML, EDL and OMF i/o, yes its kind of iMovie esque, but OMG this is by FAR the fastest NLE i’ve ever used.

    I use and own AVID and CS5.5 (which i’ve started liking a lot), but FCP X is so fast and responsive, video plays at a fantastically smooth rate, background rendering is incredible and you can always ignore the built in colour looks and grade yourself, in a very powerful but simple way.

    XML, EDLs etc are coming, multi cam is coming, i’d say not long to wait either due to the direct update method through the mac app store.

    To everyone i say, get it, play with it, you’ve always got your other NLEs installed for paid gigs, but over time (not much time) this thing is going to be the defacto cos its a huge leap forward in performance.

  59. Meh……I think someone on another forum said it best. “FCP X seems like it is not meant for professionals that need to deliver professional work to their clients!”. Back to Avid I go!

  62. Philip,

    I’m curious to know what all of these “things” that you need for your projects are that this new version of Final Cut does not include. I’m not sure if you’re interested in diving into the missing elements, but it’s hard to find this review useful unless there are concrete examples of what exactly a professional editor will discover to be missing from this program upon opening it up and working on a project. Thanks!

  63. I hate to agree with everyone but I tried to edit a music video and it is a pain in the neck just to make things work. Trimming is not precise, where is the damn fit to fill option ? And it crashes on my freaking Mac Tower who’s 6 six months old ! I won’t start with this event classification ( and I am not talking about the french translation that I even don’t understand ) ! WTF ! can’t they just have regular file import like the rest of the softwares ?
    I do not know what happened. I am supposed to be a early user, but I feel early abused !

  65. where can i get the ProRes 422 (HQ) quality for transcoding? is it possible within Final Cut?

    Have you tried the overall video quality? is it better to work natively with the H.264 or transcoding to ProRes422 (HQ) with 5DtoRGB?

  66. What a huge, epic FAIL. No multicam editing?? No dual monitor support? No legacy import? No EDLs? Apple just betrayed their core customer with this sad excuse for a “pro” package. I will be switching to Premiere or Avid. What a sad, delirious joke.

  68. I think in a few months all will be fine with the app. And all of you will be singing its praises as the indispensable tool out there.

    Back when 3D Studio was the de-facto PC 3D app and they changed to 3D Studio Max on windows everyone felt betrayed and hated it at first. Then they buckled and saw that it was actually a more powerful and robust system for the future.

    This kind of stuff happens all the time in software, its a beta disguised as a release, with the feedback it will become a great v1.0 .

    Hey Philip: Did you notice the “Bloom” transition, coincidence?

  69. I can’t really comment, not having used X, but from what I’m seeing and hearing, this is really like a semi-pro version of iMovie. All this will achieve (in it’s current incarnation) is to make the YouTube kids think that editing is about slotting footage into pre-defined templates.

    To a certain degree, I do agree with the creative argument, and the iMovie way of editing is certainly quick and easy, but I don’t understand why this has to be at the cost of all the previous features. In fact, why not even keep the classic timeline, and have the iMovie interface option.

    Seeing as Avid 5.5 (albeit expensive) is better than FCP7 (especially for filmmakers) I can only imagine (and hope) that they regain some of their lost customers. Oh, and can we collectively put some pressure on Red Giant to make MBL work in MC5.5? lol

  70. whyyyyyyyyyy????
    what a sad day, I was looking forward to this for months…

    who is importing imovie projects into final cut..? are you serious apple?
    How about importing final cut projects into final cut…

  71. Any idea how to output thru AJA Kona 3…..don’t tell me it cant will……hopes dying….. no EDL, XML, Send to Color how is this thing called a PRO X…….confused anyone there to help??

  72. I didn’t expect it to be ready from day 1 at all with the amount of overhaul they’ve done. Give it 3-6 months and I think most of the issues will be sorted.
    In the mean time I’m sticking to my PC before I finally fork out for a Mac.

  73. By all means i’m no professional video editor. I Did follow all the things about FCPx the past few weeks and especially today. There’s no consensus about it. Some professionals love it, some hate it, some aren’t used to the interface yet.

    To me it looks like a big leap into professional video editing in a simplistic way. Just like the iPhone did with smartphones. Loads of functionality, it all works very well and very simplistic compared to other phones. The first iOS’es missed basic features like copy-paste. Look where they’re right now.

    FCPx might lack some features right now, but i’m pretty confident it will be used among pro’s in no time. Patience is the key, as an amateur i’m sure i’ll be very pleased with FCPx as it is now. Loads of exploring to do 🙂

    1. FCP without export and import to XML/EDL/OMF/Tape is like an iPhone without phone functionality.

      p.s. don’t try to tell me that tape-based workflows are “SOOO 20th century”, it looks like you are willing to express that our Sony CineAlta F23 + HDCAM SR 4444 rig is a crap.

  75. Have a look at Larry Jordan’s blog on FCPX. He has had the software for months and is already using it to it’s full potential. He thinks it is great and definitely worth having and suggests that everyone will be using this soon.

  76. I believe Apple just pushed out an ProApps QuickTime Codecs update giving support for XDCAM EX and other codecs such as:
    – Apple Intermediate Codec
    – Apple ProRes
    – AVC-Intra
    – DVCPRO HD
    – HDV
    – XDCAM HD / EX / HD422
    – MPEG IMX
    – Uncompressed 4:2:2

  77. Why does pro software need to be complicated to be professional? There is a whole load of stuff in fcp7 I have no idea what it does. I welcome the simplicity.

    Like Philip said there are some major things missing. I do use multicam a fair bit. But Its totally new, features will come in time. For now fcp7 still exists, it hasn’t deleted it’s self off my machines and still does everything I want. Im certiainly not going to be trying to find ££££ to jump to another platform anytime soon. For now a vision of a future where less time is spent fiddling with settings I don’t care about and more time being creative is a compelling one indeed.

  78. Final Cut Pro X also doesn’t have OMF export capabilities. This means that when you want to send your sound to a professional sound editing program like ProTools or Logic, you won’t be able to do so. This reminds me of the “New Coke” episode. Apple made a bold move here to gain more low end marketshare at the expense of alienating all of the professionals. I guess it’s down to Avid or Premiere now.

  79. Probably a no-brainer, but I haven’t seen mention of this anywhere. If you go under the Final Cut Pro menu and select Download Additional Content. You’ll see Final Cut Pro X Supplemental Content 1.0 (637.2 MB) and ProApps QuickTime Codecs 1.0 (988 KB)

    Final Cut Pro X Supplemental Content 1.0:
    This update adds the following content for use in Final Cut Pro X:
    Sound Effects: Over 1300 rights-free sound effects installed into the Audio Browser of Final Cut Pro X.
    Audio Effect Presets: Additional preset effects for the Space Designer plug-in.
    This update is recommended for all users of Final Cut Pro X.

    ProApps QuickTime Codecs 1.0
    This update adds the following video codecs for use by QuickTime-based applications:
    Apple Intermediate Codec
    Apple ProRes
    AVC-Intra
    DVCPRO HD
    HDV
    XDCAM HD / EX / HD422
    MPEG IMX
    Uncompressed 4:2:2
    This update is recommended for all users of Final Cut Pro X, Motion 5, or Compressor 4.
    ****

    The app will take some getting used to, but so far I don’t mind it.

  80. I personally think it’s a shame and I think they are relying on their grand standing to get people to buy this.

    I myself was getting ready to make the switch from Premiere to FCP right around the time I bought my first DSLR and when I saw I had to transcode, I was getting flashbacks to when HDV was not supported and I had to transcode to Cineform. No thanks. Then when I heard about FCP X, I said I was willing to cough up $300 just to see if something was better. Thank you Mr. Bloom for the reviews, it may have saved me $300… so far.

    Come to the rescue CS5. 64 bit utilizes all 24GB on my Mac. Native support for DSLR and Red. The biggest thing of them all is I can have After Effects, Photoshop and Illustrator files right on the timeline and able to edit those projects in their programs and get live updates in Premiere. This is a HUGE time saver. Plus Adobe Media Encoder is a much nicer and easier interface than Compressor and I can export in anything, even Apple ProRes 422.

    As far as I am concerned Adobe has surpassed Apple by monumental strides. In my opinion Premiere and a Mac make the best marriage.

    1. and that was initially…

      and then
      http://www.larryjordan.biz/app_bin/wordpress/archives/1498
      and
      http://www.larryjordan.biz/app_bin/wordpress/archives/1505

      And for a great discussion on both sides of the fore and against.
      Nice perspective from a big workflow user where FCPX lacks and from those
      for whom it works well.
      http://forums.appleinsider.com/showthread.php?t=126865&page=2

      The future is exciting for some editors for whom FCPX works right now
      but some uncertainly for those in a bigger multi-user production environment
      who needs may or may not be meet.

      To call FCPX a variant on iMovie simply from a perceived similarity of work interface environment trap themselves into the same argument that once having a mouse to use a computer was merely a toy. I have also cursed at new software version – only to find the new was the better way. Each to ones own.
      Apple have misstepped by not continued to sell FCP7 until FCPX is full feature ready and also there lack of forthcoming comments on a road map are also to be deplored. This the Apple so loved yet so painfully secret.

      M

  82. So far I like the new UI. Still an amateur, I think I can trade multicam and such for the new streamlined organization, rendering and analyzation. The lack of legacy support has me on the fence though… what if I want to go back and tweak an old FCP7 project? Id like to stay in the same program. FCP7 is clunky, I want something “shiny” and sleeker. I havnt dabbled in avid or premiere.. yet

  84. I’m trying my hardest to find even one feature that’s been “left out” and I’m just not seeing what you people are complaining about. I imported a half dozen of my old projects, and they look cooler than ever, so what’s not to like? X is definitely the best iMovie upgrade I’ve seen yet, and I’ve been making my own movies for three years now!

  85. I’m sure a lot of this stuff will be ironed out with updates… but how long have they been working on this? Why did they release it with so much pro functionality missing? seems like a suicidal approach.

    I used it yesterday for a while and felt completely lost. It feels like a step backwards to me and certainly not simple. The UI is very “Fisher Price” and not instinctive in any way. The timeline is shuffling all over the place like an idiot, it’s like Apple are whispering over my shoulder “Don’t worry, we’ll take care of this.. we’re cleverer than you..”

    I feel like it’s in control of me. I guess in time I’ll get used to it, but sadly I’m not impressed so far.

  86. ‎FCPX 1st day impressions: Buy it, Learn it, Love it!

    Edit on your NLE of choice if you must have the missing “pro” features but be ready when FCPX gets all those features implemented!

    FCPX is a serious NLE when you really dissect what’s going on! Sure there will be Growing Pains but OMG!!

    Oh and FCPX never crashed on me on an I7 iMac running off a USB 2.0 external. I threw everything I had at it.

    1. All day I’ve just been messing around off and on (while waiting on renders on my FCP6 box lol)

      It’s been a roller coaster, up and down, love it hate it.
      However at the end of the day I seriously think the building blocks are in place to have something really special and to write of FCPX completely with less than 24hrs of use I’d say is jumping the gun just a little.

      IMHO

  87. It seems that some classic stuff like XML and EDL stuff that isn’t supported right now (no idea on IF Apple is going to make it available) is already supported by thrid parties. There’s a plugin to make it available here : http://www.automaticduck.com/products/pefcp/

    $495 !!! That makes FCP X nearly the price of Premiere alone… Well, I also tink Apple has failed with this release and I probably will keep on using FCP7 for a while.

  88. [quote}As far as I am concerned Adobe has surpassed Apple by monumental strides. In my opinion Premiere and a Mac make the best marriage.[/quote]

    Agree – well CS5.5 and a PC in this case. FCP v PP & After Effects – Like day and night. The beauty of PP is the integration with other products and the Mercury engine. If you’re used to Photoshop, PP et al is a breeze. Never going back to FCP….probably.

  89. If this revamp turns out to be a professional failure Apple is actually of little risk…

    I think this claim is confrimed by the preservation of version 7 in your machine Philip.

    Apple has learnt from Microsofts experience/experiment with “Vista”, if users don´t like what you make they will just stick to the old version until the failure is acknowledged. Then Apple can just continune building FCP 7 in the “regular” line. Prestige lost, but not market… which is their big thing… there have been several greater potential distaters from Apple earlier on…. just think of the G5 machines…. puuuhhh… don´t mention crash and heating

    If Apple has success in the switch to FCP X, the firm has achieved something big/bigger; they have rebuilt/revolutionized the way pro software is sold and distributed and…..finally gotten rid of the software wholesaler.

  90. I dont really like moaning about things but this is not what I expected and hoped…dig the fx previews and share to vimeo but it seems like a slightly better iMovie …

    I will try and use it and hopefully 3rd party plugins will become available soon…maybe apple thought the new fx features would be as good as redgiant, coloristaII, looks etc, but lets face it….Redgiantsoftware are awesome at what they do

    the color tool seems weird but only cuz im used to 3 way color corrector

    rendering simple things like a text overlay in FCPX is so much faster then FCP7 so i’d imagine a big session will do better, so thats good 🙂

    as far as people moaning about price points, (i paid £1,000 for my FCP, now people get this for £179 etc) thats life unfortunately, just like how you can get a cinematic look out of a £2,000 DSLR compared to people who had to rent gear and save like a mutha trucka for their cameras

    (at least we didnt pay a £1,000 for the FCPX update, then we’d all be like ”what da f..k, haha)

    for now I think I’m gonna stick with my good old grey fcp7 for awhile, at least for business related projects as im very fast with it… while I learn more more about FCPX

  91. I have played with FCPX a bit today and I do like the fluidity of it and lack of rendering. One major downside I have immediately noticed is that you can’t save a grade of a shot including it’s masks. This means for instance if you had a secondary correction that took all the color out of a shot save for say red, you can’t apply this to another clip without also having to pull the key again. In Color you can save a look to a function key and call it back when needed. I’d love to be proved wrong but it just isn’t there.

  92. I do think that the new interface is a step in the right direction. Just maybe a bit too cartoony than a pro app should be. My first thought upon opening it was that it looked just like Garageband. That said I actually like Garageband.

    I work at a broadcast facility and the lack of serious tape support is a big deal-breaker but we’ll see what comes out in the future. I do think that once 3rd party, thunderbolt enabled devices/plug-ins are made for FCPX the situation will be much better.

    I’ve been playing with Premiere on and off for a few months now and was waiting to see what FCPX was before deciding to commit to using either in the near future. Premiere just makes more sense right now and as you said, it’s integration with other CS5.5 apps is fantastic. I use After Effects for color-grading with FCP 7 and the lack of XML support in FCPX makes that pretty much impossible.

    I thought the same thing with regard to the transition being similar to that of OSX. It seems to me that FCPX is probably a sign of things to come. It’s simultaneously frustrating and exciting. To quote a nerdy sci-fi franchise: If there is to be a brave new world our generation is going to have the hardest time living in it. 🙂

  93. So it looks like this app is far from perfect and there’s loads of important stuff missing, but that’s been the case with way too many Apple products lately, and it hasn’t stopped people from buying them like if there’s no tomorrow. The first iPhone’s feature list was incredibly bad when compared to just about any phone in the market at the time (it had a nice touch interface, but no apps, no MMS, no 3G, many issues in phone mode…), but it eventually got there. The iPad is a great product but it still has a long way to go, but since those worked and sold quite well, why would they wait until Final Cut is finished to release it? Blame the millions who bought their unfinished products in the first place, if you really need to blame anyone.

    Anyway, what I’m really interested in finding out is how good are the features that it actually comes with. For most DSLR filmmakers, the obvious limitations don’t seem to me like they’re deal breakers. So how good is the image stabilization? How good is the rolling shutter fix? What about colour control? It would be great if people could focus and review what’s actually there, instead of what isn’t.

  94. At this point we have just the interface and intro to what’s to become and even gurus are scratching their head how to use it. Only imagine if Apple has loaded the application with all the latest and the greatest. Many would have complained about the learning curve. What we know and use in FCP 7 comes from years of getting use to and learning. The same thing will happen to FCPX.
    I get paid to make videos, it doesn’t matter what set or flavour of apps i use to do so.
    Once upon a time you had to out source your ” compression ” to get a high quality DVD done. We have been quietly mastering Pro quality DVDs with a few clicks in Apple Compressor and nobody complained about the interface or price we had to pay for it.
    This is a new world. The ” Pro editor ” has a completely different description. He uses un-pre-determined hardware and software to do his job and pay the rent. And Yes – his title and job could be endangered by a high school kid loaded with ingenuity, a bit of skills and an iMac sporting iMovie or even FCPX.
    New brave world for new brave citizens.

  95. “keep using FCP 7 on a “wait and see” basis while watching how the market reacts to it over time. On the other extreme, they might, based on their initial experiences with this product, decide to abandon it altogether because it’s just too foreign to them and it lacks the aforementioned “pro” features.

    Finally, only a company as big and successful as Apple would have resources and temerity to try to reinvent the wheel. From my perspective, FCP X is not so much revolutionary, but rather, evolutionary – because at the end of the day, your reasons for using Final Cut Pro have not changed – you’re still using it to make movies. A re-invented wheel is still a wheel.”

  96. I think I said this before, but This really should not Be Final Cut Pro. It should be Final Cut Express. After all, It is priced the same and it is a good step between iMovie and FCP. I hope that Apple renames FCPX Final Cut Express X and brings back the Final Cut Pro we all know as Final Cut Pro 8 (or 9, I forget where we’re at). That way we all can have our cake and eat it too.

    Cheers!

  98. The masses now have the proverbal keys to the edit kingdom. Now everybodies videos will look alike a la Vimeo!

    Me thinks I better treat my writer friends with a little more respect. 😉

  100. I know there has been a lot of negativity about fcpx on this post but I’m finding it a lot quicker to do tasks then I’ve ever had on fcp.
    Yes there are issues but I’ve spent the best part of two days trying it out and have even cut a paying job on it and the results are a lot easier to achieve than with fcp.
    I can see why hardened professionals are going to really dislike fcpx but for some projects this program is really going to help some people put out a good video/film in half the time it took them using fcp.

  101. I hate to say it but the moment I saw that the 3 colour wheels were gone, I lost interest… Some of my corrections could not have been done without it!
    I haven’t edited on anything but FCP for 6 years now, but I am dipping my toes into CS5.5 we”ll see what I find most comfortable…

  102. With the manual color correction tools, can you get any where near the results you can get in color? It looks like the primary out room is done away with and how customizable are the “looks”? Can I make my flat profile footage look as beautiful as it should be?

  103. I used to sell Macs to the public, and when the Macbook Air went on sale a girl balked at it and shrunk away like it had the plague. “Pick it up” I said to her. She glared at me and said “No thanks, I would never buy that why would I buy that I don’t like it it doesn’t have an optical drive and only one USB port an….” I cut her off and said ” Sorry m’am I’m not asking you to consider buying it, I simply reckon you should hold in your hand the form of the future of all computing and it’s natural genesis”. She walked away, but dare I say dumber for her stubbornness.

  104. Thanks for an excellent “first impressions” review. Lots of stuff to cause concern.

    Perhaps we’re missing the bigger picture, which I guess for Apple is to integrate FCP into their other devices, iOS and iCloud. They probably envisage us sitting on the beach doing a rough cut on iPad, then collaborating with a mate in a cafe who has an iPhone before finally heading to the office to buff and polish the film on an iMac. We may or may not like this vision – but that may well be their aim.

    To get here, Apple need to turn FCP into a more of a consumer-based proposition. It’s why we think they’ve simply created iMovie Pro.

    Personally, I think they’ve got it spectacularly wrong in the short term for the influential pro market, both in terms of workflow transition and PR. But we do need to remember that longer term collaborative aim and Apple’s fast-growing proprietary eco-system.

  105. I like it so far – native AVCHD (Re-Wrapped), 64 Bit, easy to drag and trim, easy to reduce sound track volume for each clip – on the timeline.
    A lot of positive things that people are not talking about.
    My 10cents
    Cheers
    Paul

  106. Remind that the dot zero release was never Apples greatest one! Hopefully we’ll all be satisfied with the 1.6.9 release (or whatever). For now, I would pay, without a doubt, $299 for all the new cool features if only they were extra plugins and updates for FCP7! The match color feature alone will save me an easy 300 bucks in time.

    What we need for now is an answer to the question: What is the best and most effective workflow for professionals using both FCP7 and X. thus where can we benefit from FCP X as secondairy app to FCP 7.

  107. Mike Kanfer from Adobe claims that CS5 has special algorithms for decoding Canon H264 files that push the color space beyond what you would get transcoding to an intermediate codec. This really is the deciding factor for me when it comes to choosing CS5 over any other NLE. I’ve tested this myself and although the gain is very slight, it does exist.

    I’m curious for those using Canon cameras why after knowing this about CS5 you would choose any other NLE? Here’s the blog where Kanfer explains the methods used by CS5 to decode Canon H264 files … search for Kanfer in the blog: http://www.hurlbutvisuals.com/blog/2010/12/02/in-praise-of-dissent-adobe-cs5-paves-the-way

    1. That sounds like what 5DtoRGB does when transcoding to Prores. Something you could even do once you’ve edited the entire project. Ideally we’d get it as a Final Cut plugin though.

    2. “I’m curious for those using Canon cameras why after knowing this about CS5 you would choose any other NLE?”

      I choose to use another NLE because there are more important things to me in the edit suite than eeking out the last ounce of color from a DSLR. If I was that worried, I’d shoot on a RED.

      Adobe’s CS suite has a lot going for it, and I am looking very hard at going that direction, but honestly, the ability with Canon DSLRs is hardly influencing my decision. (And yes, I do own and shoot one. Along with my EX1, D7000, and DVX.)

    4. Yeah, Premiere Pro CS5 up-samples all your footage to 4:4:4 on-the-fly, so any colour grading or effects being applied to your footage are being processed with the maximum bit-depth already without transcoding.

  108. Hello, my name is Anthony and I am a bad video editor.

    I used to think I was a good editor until Final Cut Pro X.

    My first thoughts were: “Wow Final Cut Pro X ROCKS!”

    Having used FCP for ever and having purchased plugins etc… and having no formal training on FCP…. I have discovered through others rants about how bad FCPX is….how really bad at FCP7 I must be.

    Folks are talking about features in FCP7 (Now Missing in FCPX) that I never used…These features would have made my life easier and better…and perhaps saved me money on some plugins I purchased.

    So… now having learned that I am a turd…I am at a crossroad. Do I go back and learn the things I have not used in FCP7? Or do I forget that they existed and concentrate on truly learning FCPX?

  109. SO there we have it .Right now it is basically an accessory program for FCP 7 for pros with severe limitations , and a useful fun tool for a lot of tapeless web based amateurs.Only time will tell if the pro concerns will be addressed .I would have been happy with a tiered system which adds features as required. like a tiered camera system with a brain sensor size you choose and in which you add capabilities as required…. aaah it was a thought!

    later

  110. Ok so for now anyway, we loose all our plugins, funky stuff like the cineform 3D I bought a while ago if we want to do a FCPX project. Shame really because it is those plugins that need the speed.

    Played with it for a day or so and really like it the speed, to be honest…. I did buy AVID Media composer 5.5 the day after I tried FCPX for the first time.

    Spirit of the moment buy if there ever was one… oh no wait the 5D II with 24-70 was even more spontaneous. (and probable the most useful thing I bought in years)

    Did not try CS5.5 yet, didn’t like CS5 (part of master thingy pack) still enjoy FCP7 but it is so crashy if you have any other app open it is just too annoying. 32GB ram and “out of memory error” just because you added a titel in a cartoon bubble.

    Ok back to FCPX: the cheesy effects are presets you can tweak, change whatever in motion, build your own library a bit like MBL. Tap the i button and re-discover some old friends. and for some reason F9, F10 and F11 are now Q, W and E.. sorta.

    Pretty sure we get some added pro goodies within 3 months, perhaps even XML or importing old FCP7 projects. As for now, well obviously i’m going to edit all my home movies (7D with 18-200 … the perfect travel kit…) with FCPX because the speed makes me laugh, even on my old MacPro 1,1 it is flashy fun. Also love the thumbnail view where you can scroll any effect and play the clip with the chosen effect live.

    It must have been tricky to make it this smooth, why they moved shotcuts around, got rid of the scratch disk settings and well all the other comforting stuff, I dunno. To be honest I moved from AVID to FCP completely 10 years ago because I liked the idea of knowing where my original media was and being able to play it in the finder. I mean, you had a mental picture of where everything is, with FCPX I feel it is left to the software to decide what to do and with a 256SSD boot disc… I wanna be sure I can tell FCPX to use the 3TB media drive of the Fibre with 24TB raid.. or.. you know, whatever. Like to keep everything related to a project in one folder.

    so when you copy it and take it to whatever client, there are no missing whatever.

    Anyway, nice toy for home movies, looks like it will be a powerhouse in the future.

    “Personally I would hold off for a little bit until myself and others have given it the once over.”

    eeeh……….. really?!? Awww…. now i want my mommy…..I have been bad and tried FCPX without waiting for others and … gasp.. Philip Bloom 🙂

    /leg pulled

    1. This is a rational and well stated comment – actually backed with a few hours on the product too. I have spent some time with it myself and just don’t think most of the “so-called” pros have even spent more than 10 minutes with the software or knew what was coming (via knowledge of the NAB introduction).

      We’re certainly in a transitional state. I liken it to the OS9 / OSX transition, but in my mind, this software will revolutionize editing in one way or another.

  111. Philip,

    For someone who has the CineStyle Picture Style on his camera but is hardly an expert in color correcting, can you recommend a rough color correcting setting for that Picture Style that one could at least start with in Final Cut Pro X? I’m assuming the DSLRLog2Video FCP plugin doesn’t work with Final Cut Pro X.

    Thanks a lot.

  112. i dont mind NEW things, except for the totally different part… i downloaded it as soon as i knew it was out…..

    i was suprised by the lack of similarities between the FCP7 and FCP X, keyboard shortcuts are totally diff, good bye old keyboard 😉

    am i right to understand that i can use 5D footage without converting to pro ress? i use EX1-R footage too, of which i used to convert it all….

    how are we meant to learn this stuff??? trial and error?

    FCP7 will be getting used until a more stable era awakens….

    BTW i just scored a PB dolly…. just had to tell someone………!!!!!

    1. The pluraleyes function in FCPX. Select the video and audio clips you want to synchronise and ctrl click – choose ‘synchronise clips’ and watch the circle in the middle of the screen spin around to 100%. On completion a new synchonised file is created, like a compound clip which you should then pop on the timeline. You can then break apart the clip by ctrl clicking it to see all the clips stacked up.

  114. I’m quite liking it. Very quick, love the layouts, tetris style editing, quite like the colour correction (its all there if you look) and especially the quick colour matching – based on what you decide!

  115. I use Final cut pro everyday and i plan on buying this for small quick edits, can’t ignore the speed, built in sync and colour match.

    I see to many people complaining about this, it’s a product, it’s not taking anything away from anyone, try it out.

  116. As a test I tried to re edit a 30 second commercial from a few weeks ago and very quickly got stuck. Feels like I can’t control anything.

    Can’t apply a LUT to LOG footage
    No keyframing for retiming.
    Not tracker in colour correction or curves
    You can’t feather from the crop tool that now an effect.

    But there are some good points… its faster and maybe it can do some of these things but I haven’t found them yet.

    Also with companies like Baselight bringing out grading plugins maybe things will get better.

  121. FCPX. After import my files, they get renamed as, let’s say, “MVI_001 (id).mov” in Finder. Why is “(id)” added?
    My files are imported using Canon plugin in FCP7 before, Apple ProRes 422 (Standard one). 5D Mark II.
    FCPX didn’t transcode, just imported but copied and renamed! Is this happening to any of you? What does “(id)” mean?!?

  122. I think one of the things i’m missing in this comments is that there will be ‘lion’. This will also have an impact on everything, also on FCX.

    Also FCX is not finalcutpro, it is a new program. And like most software nowadays it will nog be released ‘not’ completely done. This is a programming method, which in the end will result in a better program. They have first focussed on getting this basic new workflow right. From here they will begin to add stuff to make the Pro’s happy.

    Pricewise, as with all apple software they are setting the bar for their competitors, like with Logic Pro vs the rest… Their goal is to sell apple computers, and because they deliver software on a nice price it becomes more attractive.

  125. All I have to say is that: it is what everybody expected it would be. Nothing more nor less. I just hope a free update with everything they missed. I agree with Philip when he says “I don’t want to be a complainer as I actually do like a lot that it does, it’s just that it is not there yet.” And his right, it’s not. Maybe later, in a galaxy far far away.

    Still Motion and Compressor for $49 bucks each, IT’S A STEAL. And they’re great solid straight-forward apps.

    Cheers

  126. I cant wait to hear more of your thoughts on it Phillip !
    Also, wondering if I should make a switch to CS5.5 Premiere or another program or if FCP X will still be used by professionals and continue to move forward and be used in the industry.

    I did a blog post with my thoughts on the new FCP.
    http://www.harrisonhoude.com/?p=446
    I think it has some great potential.. and I think over time, once I get the hang of it and master the program, it will be just as good, if not better then FCP 7.
    They have added some really amateurish stuff in though which bugs me, but anyu amateurs that come in to use the software wont know how to work it to its full potential and will love it along side prosumers (pros? maybe?) because of the simplicity to do some simple edits for their birthdays, party’s, picnics, etc.

  127. Philip, thanks for the link to Steve Martin’s article @ kenstone. To me it’s one of the first reviewers who actually looks at positive aspects, not the lack of missing pro-features and dismissing the whole package. I hope Apple’s FCPX-engineers will read it too, because they get a lot of good feedback there, from someone who’s really wanting to bring this software to a higher level.

    I was destined to buy FCPX, but after the first responses, I was tempted to upgrade to CS5.5 (already owning CS5 but using FCE every now and then), but now I think I keep CS5, buy FCPX until CS6 comes along and then decide. I believe many editors run multiple suites; The Social Network was mainly edited on FCP, but many effects where done in Premiere and After Effects…

  128. As a Windows user, I want to share the following:
    Last week, Sony Vegas Studio 11 Production suite came out. This is the Vegas consumer suite and costs about $100. Compared with version 10, it seems to handle the canon’s mov files (h264) much better: version 11 no longer crashes when rendering more complex projects, and gets decent frames per second in the preview window.
    Vegas Studio 11 finally profits from technology that has been around for almost a year in Vegas Pro 10.
    None of this will be relevant for Mac users, of course, and Vegas surely is the ‘little’ brother in the Windows NLE software. For me, it has always been my favourite software because of its snappy, responsive gui (it is lightning fast compared to all the competition).

    1. Yep – So frustrating reading through all of these comments, listening to people trying mightily to justify this iMovie Pro as a professional application, listing the wonderful benefits that the revolutionary new Final Cut has, that Sony Vegas Pro has had for years. Yes, years.
      64-bit? Check.
      Native AVC-HD (not re-wrapped) – check.
      Immediate preview of effects, with no rendering – Check.
      Incredibly responsive timeline – Check.
      Format agnostic timeline, with drag-and-drop ease? Check.
      I could go on and on, and list the things that Vegas has that FCPX has wiped out with this release (EDL, OMF, multi-cam) but this article says it best:

      http://www.mikejones.tv/journal/2011/4/13/new-fcp-x-is-really-not-so-new.html

      1. You can import P2 footage from a HD. You use Capture from Camera > Open Archive. You can set ins and outs on the clip and that is it. It renames all the clip to its date scheme. It is there but like a lot of things it is a huge step backwards.

        One thing it that Apple has thrown out a good but of the editing worlds vocab. Not only do we need to learn where things are placed, we have to figure out what Apple calls them.

        1. As you can tell, I’m not very good at English and unfortunately it is my only language.

          The 2nd paragraph should be:

          Another thing that Apple did was to thrown out a good bit of the editing world’s vocabulary. So, not only do we need to figure out how to do some of our routine task, we have to figure out what Apple is calling them now.

          While there are some cool features I think it came at a great price. I think a well trained editor can edit faster on 7 then a well trained editor on X. (Transcoding and rendering aside).

  131. I’m enjoying FCPX. Native editing of AVCHD and Canon DSLR on my minimum spec MBP seems good. I’ve tinkered with FCPX for one working day, I’ve used all the basic functionality and I feel pretty well orientated.

    I think the low price may have made some new FCP users believe the app would feature everything in FCP7 and more. To be honest, with what we know of most version 1 Apple products – even Pro users should have waited a day or so after release before shelling out for their copy – it was just naive to expect every feature from the get go.

  132. It’s been a while since I’ve seen such venom directed at a new software release. My initial reaction was similarly indignant until after using the software for a while, I thought, hey, this is actually better suited to the way I work.To complete a job quickly, FCPX is going to work better for me. I finished my most recent project way faster than I would have in FCP. When it comes to fine tuning on more critical jobs, I don’t know. Maybe the right tools are hidden somewhere else.
    For those using the audio program Logic Pro, be prepared for the next release to be Garageband Pro. Then you’re gonna hear some real fire and brimstone.

  133. Been playing with the new software these past couple of days. In all seriousness I get a sense this is the first time in my life where man and computer merge in ease of program use.

    Intuitive as all get out to be more precise. his thing is smokin fast and gives me creative options without being so time consuming.

    The image acquisition landscape has exponentially changed in the last 2 years as has the software to enhance and manipulate that imagery.

    Remember when DV and FC-1 was looked upon as not being of professional caliber? That so called consumer format and edit program took me around the world on somebody else’s dime many a time and paid me well!

    I never looked back. Embrace it, use it and get paid to do so.

    But heck, what the h-ll do I know. I used to shoot with a Canon L1 and secretly dumped it unbeknownst to my clients to Beta sp tape and force fed it to a dinosaur of an Avid.LoL

    What exactly IS considered “Professional” anyway?

  135. After two days: This version of FCP is horrendous. I have spent 100000s of thousands on setting up a professional environment/post house (3 rooms) based on FCP7 only to find apple has pissed all over it with FCPX. I hate it, my editors hate it. “PRO” hahahahahah!

    Yesterday I downloaded Sony Vegas Pro 10 trial on my wife’s “supermarket”, but fast, i7 quad core Win7/64 PC, and found it a thousands times better than FCPX and just as good as FCP7(and because this is anonymous, maybe even better, surprised me too)!!! Sure, it doesn’t look as sleek as FCPX, but a PDF file with the keyboard short cuts and i was off and running.

    After one day using VEGAS, it IS powerful damn it! And quick too. Everybody “pro” has been lying to me saying FCP and AVID are the only choices. In Vegas, the way you manipulate clips with a few different keys. i can edit without thinking about the software.

    I’m really pissed. i think I’ve been drinking the FCP/Avid kool aid…

    I’m downloading Adobe Premiere pro CS5 now as well. See how that fares!

  136. I earn a living editing with Sony Vegas for over 10 years doing corporate and broadcast work.
    Vegas has been my best investment in that field. I have worked with Premiere and FCP at different stages to see how they evolved, but always sticked to Sony Vegas.
    Vegas is fast, reliable and has an organic feel which FCPX is getting at… but still, building a machine is much cheaper in the PC world and can be easily modified as technology evolves.
    We now have BorisFx BCC7 and Boris Red 5 which are truly great additions. We have sripting abilities as well to automate some tasks and enhance your workflow.
    Vegas also handles DSLR footage beautifully without transcoding or background rendering. You just slide it on the timeline and voilà. No need for Mercury engine like in PP or set your project to x settings. It works A1.
    And as much as I was considering looking into getting FCPX, well that did it, I just don’t like Apple’s way of doing business and will stay away from them and feel deeply sorry for all FCP users that invested their time and money and got left out by Apple.

  137. The best NLE of choice is the industries best kept secret…

    EDIUS! simply the fastest NLE for native all footage editing – nothing comes close not even PP5.5 or vegas

  138. Having had a few days to play with FCPX, I’m pretty happy with it as a version 1 piece of software, although I will still be editing in FCP7 for paying jobs. Even though it is 64 bit, I am finding playback, even of 720P Prores LT clips choppier than in FCP7 when a filter or two are applied. I am finding the magnetic timeline really quick and like the offline, online capability – just need to test it out a few times though before I rely on it too heavily!! I’m having fun with it, although I have the piece of mind that I can use FCP7, if I need it.

  139. Hi Philip,

    I just wonder, if it’s possible to save a frame edit it in Photoshop (color corection, grading etc.) reimport and then use matching colors as a work around for a more precise color correction.

  143. I made the jump from PC to Mac about two or three months ago (pretty much right before FCPX was announced) for the sole purpose of being able to cut on FCP7 (which I had been using in school).

    Needless to say I felt as though I made a poor decision when I heard all the negative comments regarding FCPX. If I end up using Premiere then I just wasted about $1000 to cut on a mac for no reason…

    But then I realized this: at least now I have the option to use whichever platform I want.

    But anyways, I’m getting off topic. I think everyone here is dying to see a Premiere CS5.5 vs. FCPX comparison, and I also think that over time, a lot of skeptics are going to end up liking FCPX (probably because Apple will throw in some much-needed updates).

  144. Stop all the crying folks, in 18 months Final cut pro X(10.2) will be lauded as the fastest, best NLE on the planet. And everyone will be congratulating Apple on having the balls to do something bold with a product that had an 11 year old archaic interface.

  145. Philip’s endorsement of Adobe’s software is key here. It would take a massive investment from Apple to beat the level of integration built into the Creative Suite product line and since CS5 there has been no clear reason to stick with Apple other than the need for continuity with legacy projects. The speed and ease of use of Premiere, After Effects and Soundbooth is a revelation after FCP etc.

    Apple seem to have recognised their loss of primacy and run up the white flag for the pro’s. It was either consumerise for the broader market or dump it.

    The other possibility is that FCP X is going to be modular, something that may be indicated by its price point and the way other Apple software is being broken down into modules for the benefit of the App Store (although by suite, not by application in their case)

    It’s worth noting that the guts of both FC and Premiere were engineered by the same man, just with years apart and the benefit of development hindsight for Premiere.

  146. This version is total crap! I have just played with FCP X today and as a pro edit system it is rubbish.

    Apple has not been listening to professional editors.

    I have been an editor for more than 20 years and have been using FCP for about 8. This release has so many things wrong with it, not bugs but standard features. It goes against how editors produce and has a simplistic and imprecise way of doing things. It is no longer a professional system, it is an upgrade from iMovie but not FCP version 7. It is pretty and has some very good points but wrong as a professional system it claims to be.

    Apple, listen to professional editors not your marketing department. FCP X is rubbish and should be immediately renamed iMovie X. I will not recommend this to professional editors.

    I hope Apple wake up to this stupid release and continue to support FCP with a release of version 8.

  147. Philip, did you move to Windows for Premiere or have you stayed with your Mac Laptop to run it? Makes me pretty leery of buying a new Mac Pro. You have the latest and greatest MacBook if I remember right, so you have more than 4 GBs RAM and you are running CS5.5 in 64 bit mode on your machine?

    I’ve been running Vegas 10 Pro on W7 as well as FCP for some time now. I agree with Ivan in that it’s often quite faster to work with than many others, but it suffers from a lack of a real graphics engine (like Mercury or the Mac tuned graphics world), stuttering badly sometimes in playback, which I’ve never experienced in FCP. It crashes more than FCP has for me, (FCP has been very stable), but the tradeoff has been in faster production on smaller jobs, so more money in my pocket for less work, no transcoding, for example. I consider Vegas Pro to be a solid mid range player, worth considering for simple projects (meaning not a lot of FX, etc.)

    However, I think it’s time to invest in another professional platform. I’ve frozen my mac purchases until further notice. If they would abandon FCP then they would abandon anything with a professional feature set. So I think I’ll join you on Premiere….

  148. How do you mix audio tracks?
    I’ve got the audio from my Canon 7d
    I’ve got the audio from my H4n
    It synced … but how do I mix the separate tracks.
    This is frustrating

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