Details
In Final Cut Pro, the V4HD supports full-raster 1920x1080 HD capture and playback using Apple's ProRes 422 codec in both standard and HQ modes. The V4HD is the ideal all-in-one video capture solution for any ProRes workflow.
In both Final Cut Pro and Premiere Pro, the V4HD provides hardware-accelerated capture and playback of DVCProHD, DVCPro50 and DVCPro25 video streams, plus 8- and 10-bit uncompressed SD — all with convenient plug-and-play FireWire connectivity and CPU-efficient intra-frame editing.
The V4HD is ideal for a DVCProHD/P2 workflow because you can immediately play back P2 clips (either imported or ingested) with no transcoding necessary. Conversely, you can connect any SD or HD video source such as an HDV camera, legacy video deck or DVD player and then capture it directly as a DVCProHD clip in Final Cut or Premiere. Many cameras now feed their uncompressed SDI or component output directly from the camera's optics and imager, before compression, for the best-possible picture quality during capture with the V4HD. Need to bring SD material into your HD project? The V4HD even provides hardware-accelerated SD-to-HD up conversion for capturing SD sources in DVCProHD format.
As you edit, monitor your timeline on multiple HD and SD displays simultaneously with the V4HD's hardware-accelerated up-conversion, down-conversion and pull-down insertion or removal. Watch a variety of display formats side by side, from the pixel-for-pixel accuracy of a large plasma screen, to the color-corrected balance of an LCD reference monitor, to the real-world look of a consumer display. Use 32 channels of audio I/O to capture, monitor, mix and master multichannel surround sound for your productions at sample rates up to 192 kHz. Employ Sony 9-pin machine control for advanced Batch Capture and Edit to Tape operations. Keep everything frame-accurate using time code, video reference and audio word clock.
The V4HD delivers all this with one simple FireWire 400 or 800 connection — even to a laptop computer. With the V4HD handling video I/O via FireWire, your laptop's expansion slot can be used for high-performance video storage solutions.
From start to finish, the V4HD streamlines your video production workflow, with unified control over all your video gear from your computer desktop.
Laptop Operation
Are you thinking about doing field capture with a laptop - or editing on the go with a laptop-based system? Thanks to FireWire, the V4HD opens the door to a world of possibilities for laptop systems.
All current and late-generation Apple MacBook and MacBook Pro computers are equipped with both FireWire 400 and 800. Most PC laptops are equipped with built-in 4-pin FireWire 400. In both cases, the V4HD gives you plug-and-play broadcast-quality capture and monitoring. With the enormous performance gains seen in laptop technology, these compact computers are now powerful enough to easily capture and play back both HD and uncompressed SD video. You can essentially build a complete capture/edit system that fits in a backpack.
There's another major benefit for using FireWire connectivity to a laptop. Using FireWire for Video I/O frees up the PC card slot on your laptop for professional-grade video storage solutions. Expresscard-based storage solutions offer enough storage space and access speed to support the most demanding HD and uncompressed SD workflows.
Alternately, depending on your workflow, you can daisy-chain a FireWire 800 hard drive on the same bus as the V4HD connected to the computer via FireWire 800. This option offers compact, portable yet large-scale storage.
Stand-alone Operation
Conversion and distribution
When you unplug FireWire, the V4HD turns into a complete stand-alone video conversion and distribution device. Use the convenient front panel LCD to choose one of the video inputs on its rear panel as the current video source. This signal is then distributed to all video outputs, both HD and SD, thanks to the V4HD's hardware-accelerated SD-to-HD up-conversion and HD-to-SD down-conversion. If the incoming signal is a film rate (23.976), the V4HD applies pull-down insertion to convert to NTSC.
Front panel control
The V4HD front panel LCD is easy to navigate, so you can get to the settings you need quickly and easily.
There are four main menus: Setup, Video, Audio and CueMix. Press the MENU button repeatedly to cycle through them. Then just use the PAGE buttons to access each setting in the chosen menu. Simple! You can even program the on-board audio mixer from the LCD.
Stand-alone audio mixing
As a state-of-the-art video interface, the V4HD offers an unprecedented level of audio features, including a complete on-board 32x32 digital mixer. You can program the mix settings from the on-screen CueMix software and then disconnect the computer and operate the V4HD as a stand-alone mixer. All mix settings are maintained. Need to tweak a mix setting? No problem. You can quickly access the setting in the CueMix LCD menu.
Workflow
Regardless of whether you work with ProRes, DVCProHD, P2, XDCAM or maybe even just SD, the V4HD can enhance your workflow with unprecedented breadth and depth of features. In fact, the V4HD gives you the flexibility to handle a variety of workflow situations that circumstances — or your clients — may dictate.
- ProRes
With Final Cut Pro, the V4HD now provides full-raster 1920 x 1080 (or 1280 x 720) HD capture and playback using Apple's ProRes 422 codec in both standard and HQ modes. You can ingest an uncompressed SDI or component HD source and then capture and edit in ProRes while monitoring your ProRes timeline in HD and SD simultaneously via the V4HD's hardware-accelerated up- and down-conversion. The V4HD is the ideal all-in-one video capture solution for your Apple ProRes workflow.
- DVCProHD/P2
The V4HD is perfect for your P2HD workflow because it provides hardware accelerated DVCProHD capture and playback with up- and down-conversion. You can import P2 clips and then monitor in HD and SD immediately, without the need to transcode first. Ingest other sources (such as HDV cameras) directly into your timeline as DVCProHD.
- HDV
HDV presents challenges when it comes to native editing. Overcome them by capturing your HDV footage with the V4HD via SDI or component as ProRes or DVCProHD. Then edit with intra-frame speed and stunning 10-bit 4:2:2 quality that holds up during compositing. Deliver in any broadcast quality format you wish.
- Full raster 1080 HD
The V4HD supports full raster 1920 x 1080 (or 1280 x 720) capture and playback with Final Cut Pro. Leading camera manufacturers are now producing HD cameras with full-raster 1080 image sensors that capture stunning image quality. In some cases, the 1920 x 1080 HD signal is output directly from the sensor, before any compression occurs for recording purposes.
The V4HD lets you take full advantage of the quality of this uncompressed output signal by allowing you to capture it with full-raster pixel for pixel precision. The V4HD feeds the full raster signal to Final Cut, where you can log and capture it using any full-raster video format supported by Final Cut Pro, such as ProRes or any other similar format with 8-bit or 10-bit 4:2:2 color and a compression ratio similar to ProRes (approximately 6:1 or greater).
- SD
Are you working mainly in SD? The V4HD lets you capture and play 8- or 10-bit uncompressed SD (NTSC or PAL) in all formats (SDI, component, composite and S-Video). The V4HD serves as a complete I/O solution for any SD workflow.
When you are ready to make the jump to HD, the V4HD allows you to begin work immediately, with no hassles. No swapping PCI cards, no purchasing extra hard drives, no switching to a faster computer. You can begin your HD work right away. In fact, the V4HD allows you to work in both SD and HD simultaneously. For example, you can work with an SD timeline in Final Cut or Premiere, but monitor and deliver your project in HD using the V4HD's hardware-acclerated up-conversion.
Conversely, you can capture and edit in HD, but easily monitor in SD during editing and then deliver in HD when the project is finished. Just connect your HD monitor and HD deck, and you are ready to go.
- Red One
If you are shooting with a Red One camera and editing in Final Cut Pro, you may also have chosen to use ProRes as your digital intermediate format. If so, the V4HD provides and economical solution for multi-format monitoring via ProRes. Just choose the V4HD as your output device and go. You can monitor on any connected HD and SD monitors simultaeously.
- XD Cam EX
The Sony PMW-EX1 XDCAM EX camera captures stunning full-raster 1080 HD footage. Ingest via the V4HD's HD-SDI input to capture, monitor and edit your full-raster EX1 material as ProRes clips with stunning quality in Final Cut Pro. Or import EX1 clips directly into Final Cut Pro for full-raster monitoring.