Today you have many low cost beginner video editing options available to use. Most of the very low cost video editing software titles are functional, but are very limited in their features and performance. A couple of these low cost video editing titles are better than the others. While Pinnacle Studio 9, Adobe Premiere Elements and Sony Vegas Movie Studio are very good choices for getting started, you can quickly out grow them.

Most home videographers start with one of these very low cost applications, but often grow frustrated as they realize they just don’t deliver the quality, workflow, features or capabilities they desire. Or perhaps they are running into audio sync issues, jittery playback or worse still constant crashes and other problems. If you are one of these editors, then you need to step up to an intermediate video editing solution. 

Intermediate Video Editing Solutions

What is an intermediate video editing solution you ask?
Simple, it’s a more robust and feature rich editing software bundled together with some type of hardware that provides both analog and digital inputs and outputs. This last part is very important. All of the software featured in this article can be purchased alone and used with a standard FireWire/OHCI port. So why do you need extra hardware? First even if you only shoot in DV today, you have years and years of analog footage, which you’ll eventually want to edit to include in your productions or archive to DVD.  Next, you’ll want to have analog video output so that you can preview your editing on a television set. (Note #1: You can use your DV camcorder for this, but I prefer to save the wear and tear on mine, plus it can be a pain to constantly have to unhook and re-hook it up when you need to use your camcorder for it’s intended purpose – shooting video ;-) This is a very important capability, which will result in your videos looking better. When you only preview on a small window on your computer screen, you are not seeing what the actual video will look like. As a result you may find your colors are off, a transition that looked good on the computer screen just doesn’t cut it on the bigger TV, your titles aren’t centered properly or they are difficult to read, or your graphics just aren’t as sharp as you thought. By previewing your work on an actual television screen while you edit, you can avoid any and all of these issues. Finally, we realize that most of your video productions will be going to DVD, but sometimes you're just going to want to put them out to tape. With analog output you can record your videos directly to your VCR straight from the timeline to make tapes for your friends and family.

 What features are most important?
This is a great question and it is what separates the the video editing software titles included in these intermediate bundles featured from the low cost consumer editing tools you may be familiar with. Here are the features I think you’ll find the most valuable.

1. Color Correction.
   Lets face it, you’re not a professional videographer. I know I’m not. I’m constantly running into improper lighting and color shifts in my videos. Unfortunately I can’t go back and re-shoot my baby's first steps, my son hitting a homerun or my daughter's dance recital. Same thing goes for my vacation videos and event videos. I had one chance to catch them and all too often, I didn’t do a great job. Today, just like the Hollywood studios, you can “Fix it in post.” This means I can use my video editing software to color correct the shots and take what was once bad footage and make it look OK. Actually sometimes you can even make it look great!
2. Long format productions.
   The NLEs featured in this article will all deliver perfect audio sync and playback, even for video productions that are several hours long. One of the biggest complaints we hear from low cost beginner video editing software is that after 15 or 30 minutes, the audio starts to become out of sync or the playback jitters or both, or the video just freezes up. This is not the case with the products featured in this article. They will all deliver perfect playback, regardless of the length of your production. (Note #2 - If you are running into any playback issues with these products it is probably caused by data throughput bottlenecks in your computer. We have several articles on our website which can help you tweak and optimize your computer for NLE.)
3. Superior encoding.
   The next biggest complaint we here about low cost NLEs is that the video looked good when you played it back, but the DVDs you created are skipping or have audio sync problems or are not playing back at all. The products reviewed here all have a high quality MPEG2 encoder with many different settings and levels of encoding quality that you can tweak to get the very best possible video on your DVDs.
4. Multiple layers of audio and video.
   What are multiple layers of video? I’ll give you an example. Picture-In-Picture effects are when you take one video image and have it appear over a background video. On your local news this is when the picture of the ballgame appears in a box over the shoulder of the sportscaster. With the products reviewed here you’ll be able to have multiple PIPs flying on and off the screen. Other examples of multiple video layers are the weather man effect when you use a green or blue screen to superimpose one video over another, 3D transitions when you’ll have 2 or more video tracks bending and blending into each other, and complex title sequences that mix video, graphics and text together.  On the audio side you’ll  be able to mix your original soundtrack with narration and background music. You’ll even be able to add sound effects.
5. Real-Time performance.
   All of the software featured here will take advantage of the power and speed of your computer to offer you real-time editing. You’ll be able to just hit play and preview your editing, transitions and effects directly from the timeline. This can save you hours on each production! Time that can be used to learn more about video editing and using the software.  It also means that you can experiment more and test your creativity, which, in the long run will result in better videos. The more powerful your computer, the more real-time performance you’ll get. (Note #3 – All of the real-time performance of these intermediate solutions comes from the software and your computer. The included hardware is only for I/O.)
6. Stability and reliability.
   The editing solutions in this article are all extremely stable and reliable. If you take the time to optimize your computer for editing, you will find that you can edit for hours and hours without any crashes or performance issues. Once you step-up to any of these great bundles you will no longer have to worry about wasting hours editing and working on a project only to have it all wiped out because your computer locked up. The editing software included in these bundles is professional level, and in fact used by event videographers, independent film makers, small post production shops and corporate video departments. You’ll be able to edit with complete confidence.
7. Workflow.
   What exactly is workflow? It’s the steps and processes you must go through to create your video. From capture, to organizing and selecting your clips, to trimming & editing them, then adding your titles, transitions and effects and finally outputting your finished timeline. Low cost  NLEs are designed to be simple and easy to use, often limiting what you can do, or forcing you do things the way they want you to. This limits your creativity and ultimately results in videos that simply are not as good as those you can produce with the products reviewed here. The mid-range editors are far more powerful and feature rich. They are also more flexible and allow you to be more creative. (Note #4 - You’ll have to spend a little time learning how to use these NLEs, but we have excellent training DVDs available and, in the end, you will find it was well worth it.)
8. It’s all about the bundle.
   Not only do these solutions include hardware for analog & DV I/O, they include additional software that makes them even more valuable. Things like advanced DVD authoring software, 3D and/or special effect plug-ins, 3D titling software and powerful encoding tools are just a few of the extra ‘goodies’ you’ll find included in these bundles, making them an even better deal for you!

Avid XDV4 AV Videoguys' Bundle featuring Avid Xpress DV & AVLink Why Spend Hours Editing Videos that Don't Meet Your Expectations When You Can Edit AV & DV with Avid for Less than $500? This complete package lets you capture & edit all your videos — even that old VHS/8mm footage from years ago — and share them with your family & friends on tape, DVD or via the web - the choice is yours!! $499.95 Bundle

NEW! ADS PYRO A/V Link Studio (API757) Includes the A/V Link Analog/Digital Video (DV) converter bundled with the Sony Vegas®+DVD Production Suite of video and audio software tools SPECIAL! $599.95 After $50 Mail-In Rebate $649.95 at checkout Click here for rebate coupon

Pinnacle Liquid Edition 6 & MovieBox Deluxe Another Videoguys' Bundle featuring Pinnacle's LE6 software and the MovieBox Deluxe USB2 Breakout Box Get the professional editing capabilities of the Pinnacle Liquid Edition 6 software with analog & DV in/out without for under $500 - no trade-in or upgrade required. LIMITED TIME PROMOTION - HURRY! $479.95 Bundle

Canopus Edius Pro 3 with ACEDVio Hardware Card Featuring Canopus’s latest editing software package EDIUS Pro 3 and the ACEDVio hardware board, the ACEDVio / EDIUS Bundle provides realtime, full-resolution video output to any DV, S-Video or composite device throughout every step of the editing process.!. $599.95 Bundle

Videoguys Fab 4 – Fabulous Intermediate NLE Solutions for under $600!!

1. XDV4AV - Avid Xpress DV w/ ADS Pyro AV Link
2. API-757 - Sony Vegas 6+DVD Production Suite w/ ADS Pyro AV Link API-757
3. Pinnacle Liquid Edition 6 w/ Pinnacle MovieBox Deluxe
4. Canopus Edius Pro 3 w/ Canopus ACEDVio

Avid XDV4AV $499.95

• NLE software: Avid Xpress DV
• DVD Authoring: Sonic DVDit! SE
• Hardware: ADS Pyro AV Link
• Other: Sorenson Squeeze le, Boris Graffiti ltd, Upgradeable to Avid XPress pro HD
• Special: Works on both PC & Macs! Software for both platforms included!!

Avid Xpress DV is based on the same interface and editing toolset used by 85% of Hollywood movies, network television shows and cable TV programming. Avid is the industry standard because it provides a workflow that is extremely productive, especially for long format work. One of the reasons for this is the exceptional media management tools. Media Management is a fancy term that simply refers to how you organize all your footage. With Xpress DV you organize your clips into bins, which can be broken down into sub-bins. You can make notes on every clip and even color code them so that finding them is easier. If you rename a clip, Xpress DV will update itself and use the new name for the clip in all bins and projects. You can also work on multiple timelines at the same time within a project.

 One of the knocks you hear about Avid is that it is too expensive or too difficult to use. Well, at under $500 this is one of the least expensive bundles in this article. I don’t agree that Avid is hard to use, it's just a matter of what you get used to. I believe the bulk of the complaints came from editors who were used to the old Adobe Premiere 5.x or 6.x. In reality, all of the leading video editing software are taking a more “Avid” approach to editing. Plus, we’ve got a bunch of affordable training DVDs for Avid that will help you start editing in a few hours. Once you become an Avid editor, you’ll be able to use these same skills with more expensive Avid solutions including their top of the line broadcast gear. Even cooler, you can move all your projects and clips to any other Avid system and edit away!

 The Avid bundle is also loaded with additional 3^rd party software that adds even more value. Sorenson Squeeze will allow you to encode your videos for DVD authoring and web streaming; Boris Grafitti Ltd is a nice 3D animated titling program that will allow you to create 3D titles that can dance and spin and fly on screen; Sonic DVDit! SE lets you author DVDs complete with multiple menus, chapter points and other navigation tools.

 HD support – Avid Xpress DV does not support HD editing. For that you will need to upgrade to Avid Xpress ProHD. Today that upgrade is $999.95. With Xpress Pro HD you get a bunch of new features and capabilities that go beyond just adding support for HD. When you do upgrade to Xpress Pro HD all of you projects and media will migrate with you – so you won’t even skip a beat.

• NLE software: Sony Vegas6
• DVD Authoring: Sony DVD Architect 3
• Hardware: ADS Pyro AV Link
• Other: Sony Dolby Digital AC3 Encoder, Boris FX ltd, Boris Graffiti ltd , Magic Bullet Movie Looks

I keep saying it over and over - Sony Vegas video editing software is one of the best-kept secrets in the industry. Actually the secret is getting out and Vegas is starting to have quite a following – and for good reason. It is an excellent program. Vegas was the first software based NLE solution to provide realtime previews via the FireWire output of your computer. The preview quality will scale with your computers power. The faster your CPU, the better the quality of your previews will be. The final output quality of your video will be perfect – but you will need to render before outputting to tape.

Two of the features I’ve always loved about Vegas are it’s ability to handle complex photomontages and velocity envelopes.  When it comes to creating killer photomontages Vegas is my favorite NLE. You can easily add 3D transitions and motion to your photos as they fly on and off the screen. You can also do the “Ken Burns” effect – that’s when you zoom in and pan & scan over a still image to give it the appearance of moving video.

Velocity envelopes allow you to change the speed and direction (ie. forward/reverse) of a clip while it is playing. This is very cool because you can have the action gradually slow down for a portion of the clip, then gradually go back to full speed or faster. This will give any sports, action or wild life video you produce an awesome, professional look.

 Vegas also has by far and away the most elaborate and powerful set of audio editing tools of any NLE on the market. That’s because it was originally designed as an audio application. This helps explain why the Vegas interface is so unique. If you are at all familiar with audio editing software, you’ll feel right at home with Vegas. If you aren’t an audio guy don’t fret, you’ll find that the Vegas editing methodology is pretty straight forward and easy to get the hang of. We also have some great Vegas training DVDs available.

 This bundle also includes the full version of Sony DVD Architect, a professional strength DVD authoring application. Not only will this allow you to create DVDs with motion menus and buttons, but also complex navigation. You can set your chapter points in the Vegas timeline and they will be automatically exported to DVD architect. This bundle will also allow you to create DVDs with full 5.1 surround sound.  Rounding out the bundle is Boris Grafitti Ltd 3D animated titling program and Magic Bullet FX that you can add to give your productions different film looks.

 HD support – Vegas6 has full support for the new HDV format. So when the time comes for you to upgrade your camcorder and migrate to HiDef, you’ll be able to keep using Vegas6 without any upgrade required. You may need to add some more RAM or upgrade to a faster CPU, but you won’t have to for editing HDV with Vegas.

Pinnacle LE6MBOXDLX $479.95

• NLE software: Liquid Edition 6
• DVD Authoring: Integrated in Edition
• Hardware: Pinnacle Moviebox Deluxe USB
• Other: Hollywood FX & TitleDeko integrated

Pinnacle Liquid Edition is one of the most innovative and powerful video editing tools on the market. Not only will it take advantage of your computer CPU speed, it taps directly into your graphic cards GPU power to deliver complex 3D transitions and effects in real-time! It has two amazing features that set it apart form all other NLEs - Background Rednering & Instant Save. Background rendering means that you never have to stop working and wait for your timeline to render. Liquid Edition is constantly rendering your clips in the background, while you go on working. The faster your computer, the faster it renders. On some systems you’ll find that Liquid Edition  is almost as fast as you are. So by the time your done with your changes, you can play them back from the timeline in full resolution! Instant Save constantly saves your work automatically for you.

The other feature I really love is the integrated DVD authoring. That’s right, you create and author your DVD straight from the timeline as part of the editing process. You can use your video clips for motion menu backgrounds and you can also grab individual frames from your clips for your buttons & backgrounds. While the DVD navigation you can create is not as complex as what you can do with a high end DVD authoring program, I find it perfect for my home & travel videos.

The Liquid Edition software is actually much more than just an NLE, it is a bundle of integrated plug-ins that provide all the tools you could ever want for creating your videos. I already talked about the integrated DVD authoring. Hollywood FX allows you to add all kinds of animated 3D transitions to your videos. Some of these are kind of goofy, while others are quite professional looking. I have a few of my favorite Hollywood FX transitions (paper airplane, rubix cube, scroll roll up, breakaway sphere)  that I put in almost all of the videos I edit with Liquid Edition! TitleDeko allows you to create very professional looking 2D titles and graphics.

The Moviebox Deluxe hardware is a USB2 device. That means that you do not need a FireWire port on your computer to use it, just a USB2 port. Caution - this unit is not backwards compatible with USB1. MovieBox Deluxe will allow you to import and export both analog & DV footage into your computer.

HD support – Liquid Edition 6.1  has full support for the new HDV format. So when the time comes for you to upgrade your camcorder and migrate to HiDef, you’ll be able to keep using Liquid Edition.  For HDV editing Liquid Edition does require a 3D graphics card with 256 megs of RAM.

Canopus ACEDVIOEDIUS $599.95

• NLE software: Canopus Edius pro 3
• DVD Authoring: none
• Hardware: Canopus ACEDVio PCI card
• Other: Inscriber TitelMotion, ProCoder Express, Xplode for Edius, Edius FX

Canopus Edius is the newest of the video editing software reviewed here. From the beginning Canopus was offering video editing software with their real-time hardware solutions. Many DV Rex and DV Storm owners found that they preferred using the included Canopus software because it leveraged the hardware better. While not as full featured as Adobe Premiere, it gave them the features they needed most, with a level of stability that set the standard in the industry.

 With Edius Pro 3 , Canopus takes this even further. Not only does Edius Pro leverage their Edius NX & SP hardware sets, it is also a very powerful and full featured NLE solution on it’s own. Edius Pro 3 is loaded with real-time features and performance.

The ACEDVio hardware is a PCI card that installs inside your computer and provides both analog & DV input and output.

 HD Support – With Edius Pro can create timelines with mixed formats including DV, MPEG-2, HD, HDV and uncompressed video. With the  Edius NX hardware and you’ll be able to edit HD & HDV with real-time previews, add the HDV output daughter card and you’ll get  real-time HD output to your HDTV monitor!

Conclusion

The video editing marketplace has changed dramatically since our last $500 NLE shootout article back in 2002. Back in the early days of DV editing this was one of the most popular articles on our website. It started as an under $1,000 video capture card shootout, but as prices came down and features went up, it evolved into a $500 shootout. Back then cards like the Canopus DV Raptor, Pinnacle DV500, ADS Pyro Platinum and Dazzle/Fast DvnowAV were all the rage. One thing all of these cards had in common was that they were Premiere 6.x solutions. We were really comparing capture cards, each with it’s own I/O (inputs & outputs) and features. Premiere 6.x was really the only game in town. While other video editing software was available (Ulead Media Studio Pro, Radius EditDV) the industry standard for affordable video editing was Adobe Premiere 6.x bundled with a video capture card. While these solutions were cutting edge and powerful, they also tended to be tricky to install and we were constantly helping our customers with hardware conflicts and other technical support issues.

We recommend a minimum of a P4 2.4 Ghz or Athlon equivalent. You'll want at least full GB of RAM, and 2 hard drives in your computer. The first for your operating system (WinXP) and the second for all your video files and other media. You'll want a decent 128MB graphics card based on either the ATI or nVidia chipsets. For those of you looking for a new computer you can pick up a fully loaded Dell or HP workstation for under $1,500 including flat screen monitor! If you are a Do-It-Yourselfer, we've taken our DIY2 machine - Big Blue - and reconfigured it for these bundles for under $1,000!!

Videoguys' Instant Product Locator Master Product Index ADS Pyro / Instant DVD 2 / AV Link / Dual Link Drive Kit Adobe Premiere Pro / After Effects / Production Studio Avid Liquid 7 / Liquid Pro Avid Xpress Xpress Pro / Mojo / Xpress Studio Azden shotgun & wireless mics for video Bella EZ Keyboards for Premiere / Vegas / Edition / Xpress / FCP BorisFX / Graffiti / Red / Blue /Continuum CineForm ConnectHD / AspectHD Class On Demand Training Contour Design Shuttle Pro / Space Shuttle DataVideo DAC-10 / DAC-100 / SE-800/ TBCs & Editing gear Digital Hotcakes Animated Backgrounds Discreet Cleaner XL, Cleaner 6, Combustion Focus FireStore / MX Pro DV / Scan Converters G-Technologies G-Raid / G-Sata JVC HRDVS-3 / JXS555 / DV tape/ Matrox RT.X2 / Axio LE / MXO / RT.X100 NewTek TriCaster / Lightwave Pinnacle Studio 10.5 Pioneer BDR-101A Blu-Ray Burner PNY NVIDIA Quadro FX PopDrops Professional DVD Menu Templates Serious Magic Ultra2 / DV Rack / Visual Communicator Sima GoDVD! / SCC2 / SRW62 / Copy This / SFX-9 Smart Sound SonicFire Pro 4 Sonic DVDit Pro HD Sony Vegas Pro 8 / SoundForge 9 / Acid Pro 6 Sorenson Squeeze 5 Total Training for Adobe VASST Training Video Capture Card Matrix
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