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Video Editing with DVStorm SE From Canopus” –>
Analog and Digital In One
In the last test, we took a close look at the Canopus DVRaptor-RT. Now we’ve moved on to its big brother, the DVStorm SE. The fundamental distinguishing features of the DVStorm are, in addition to its digital 1394/Firewire port (i.LINK), its analog inputs and outputs for video and audio. For those of us with only an analog camera, or even for anyone who just wants to have a digital version of analog VHS cassettes, this is a valuable add-on.
The first release of the DVStorm got off to a rocky start. The card didn’t always work stably with Adobe Premiere 5.1, which was included with it. In response, Canopus wiped the slate clean for its Second Edition (SE), dumping Adobe Premiere 5.1 and developing its own editing software, Stormedit. It might not have been as comprehensive as Adobe, but it still offered almost exactly the same realtime effects. Just recently, though, the plot took yet another twist – the DVStorm SE Plus costs an extra $200 and is being bundled with Adobe Premiere 6.0. Now that the drivers and the Premiere plug-ins have matured some more, you can expect the system to operate more stably. Listen closely, and you’ll hears users heave a collective sigh of relief.
The StormSE Up Close & Personal
A glimpse of the slot bracket reveals which devices can be connected to the DVStorm SE.
digital:
- 1 x IEEE1394/Firewire (i.Link)
analog:
- 1 x composite video-in (RCA) with adapter
- 1 x composite video-out (RCA) with adapter
- 1 x S-video in (mini DIN 4pin)
- 1 x S-video out (mini DIN 4pin)
- 1 x stereo audio-in (mini jack)
- 1 x stereo audio-out (mini jack)
Package Contents
The package contains an IEEE1394/Firewire connector cable for digital camcorders. For analog devices, you can use the two mini jack-to-cinch adapters for your audio signals. Analog video is a similar story. If you don’t want to use S-video you can also feed in a composite signal (yellow cinch port) via an adapter.
The standard variant of the DVStorm SE comes with six CDs that contain drivers, Sonic DVDit 2.3 SE, XPlode Basics Effects, Sonic Foundry Acid Style and Siren Xpress 2.0 as well as Boris Graffity/Factory.
And for those of use for whom price is no object, the Plus package is available with the popular Adobe Premiere 6.0 software.
Installation
In comparison to many other video-editing systems, installing this Canopus solution is a snap. If you follow all the steps properly, you can have it up and running in 30 minutes. If you’ve opted for the Plus package, make sure to install Adobe Premiere 6.0 first so that the plug-ins on the application and driver CD will install the first time through. Owners of the less expensive standard package can go right to the application and driver CD. You should only move on to the other bundles (such as Xplode Basics or Acid) after everything has been installed from this CD.
Before starting, though, you should check the properties of your DVStorm card.
You can select S-video or composite (cinch) as the input source under the “Input 1” tab. You can set picture properties such as brightness, contrast, etc. here as well.
If the digital DV camera is software-controlled, there are also options for setting offset times and for the recording position on the DV tape.
Installation, Continued
When you come to the video format options, select NTSC in America, or PAL in Europe.
For YUV-to-RGB conversions, you can also increase the range to 150% if you are so inclined.
Editing With Native DV
DV is the default format used by the card for video editing. The table below shows the DV options. The DVStorm can process the DV format generated by a digital camera directly. After editing the video, you can write it back to tape. This cuts out the need to convert data into proprietary processing formats. The system can handle RBG and YUV image formats.
Video and audio formats for DV
- PAL 720×576 @ 25 frames/sec
- NTSC 720×480 @ 30 frames/sec (CCIR 601), 5:1 DV compression, 3.6MB/s
- 2 channel 48 kHz 16-bit audio
- 2 channel 44.1 kHz 16-bit audio
- 2 channel 32 kHz 16-bit audio
In this article, we will only be discussing the video-editing software Stormedit. As we mentioned in the introduction, Adobe Premiere 6.0 is also available with the card for a premium. Information on using Premiere and the features it offers can be found in the article Digital Video Editing: The Canopus DVRaptor-RT.
Video and Audio Capturing
Two add-on capturing tools for video and audio have been added to the standard video-editing software Stormedit. Stormvideo is ideal for piping video material, including analog signals, from the camera to the card.
Stormvideo allows you to directly control the DV camera.
Stormaudio has been developed for audio dubbing, making it easy to add additional audio tracks to video footage. For example, you might incorporate background music or a running commentary that has been recorded on a microphone.
Editing with Stormedit
Stormedit. Click for a larger picture.
The square in the upper right-hand corner is the editing monitor. To the right are the individual clips, which you then place in order on the timeline and modify with effects or transitions. The lower section contains the timeline with its video and audio tracks.
Timeline.
Users who have worked with Adobe Premiere will need some time to adjust to this timeline. We’ve put together three clips on the Main AV track, as you can see. The narrow bars on the bottom denote how long the selected effects will last.
Effects: Transitions and Filters
Once the clips have been arranged on the timeline, you select an effect for them. If you’re running this on a modern PC system, say a Pentium 4 1.6 GHz or higher, you’ll be able to process the effects in close to realtime. At this point, though, we’d like to point out that the minimum CPU requirements on the Canopus website generally only refer to a single effect. In other words, their marketing information with its mere “700 MHz” won’t get you too far if you plan to superimpose several effects or filters. On the bright side, though, the software does support dual-processor systems.
This screenshot shows a selection of effects.
The settings window is shown in the screenshot above for the Alpha Wipe effect. You can customize your settings in this window.
Transitions and Filters, Continued
The effects provided on the XplodeBasics CD are a bit more interesting for beginners. Nonetheless, users have to decide for themselves whether or not to use these toys seriously. Don’t forget that a video groaning under the weight of all these great effects can quickly distract viewers from its content and intended goal. That said, there’s something for everyone here. Even professionals will be satisfied with the selection of effects.
Settings for a preset.
Realtime Effects
The following lists provide an overview of the effects offered.
- Picture-In-Picture
- Chroma Key
- Luminance Key
- Variable Speed Control (only with Adobe Premiere)
Realtime Filters
- Noise
- Blur
- High Quality Blur
- Color Correction
- Emboss
- Pencil Sketch
- Monochromatic
- Mosaic
- Motion Blur
- Sharp
- Soft Focus
- Old Movie
- Blend Effects
- Combine Effects
- Matrix
- Chrominance
- Slow Motion 50% (only with StormEdit)
Xplode Basics
Realtime 3D (5 Groups, 80 Transitions)
- Page Peel
- Single Door
- Double Door
- Fly Away
- Sphere
Xplode Basics Effects (10 Groups, 166 Transitions)
- 3D Object Wipes
- Alpha Wipes
- Ball Bounce
- Cube Tube
- Ripple
- Wave
- Zoom
Xplode Real Time Transition Effects: (15 Customizable, 80 Transitions)
- Alpha (73 Presets)
- Blind Push
- Blind Slide
- Blind Wipe
- Block
- Clock
- Circle
- Dissolve
- Stripe
- Stretch
- Slide
Titles: Lettering, Titles and Credits
Every video needs some sort of titling, such as introductory titles, end titles, credits and captions. The title tool, which also works in realtime, allows you to insert static text and sliding text. Stormedit’s title features are fine for simple tasks, but you’ll find yourself struggling with the controls if you want to create a classic title sequence. The benefits of better, more professional tools are reserved for Adobe Premiere owners.
Once the title has been created, you can modify additional attributes like embossing and shadows.
Here you can set the colors.
To create moving text, select the appropriate options under the “Motion” tab.
Exporting to AVI, MPEG or Quicktime
Next to Adobe Premiere, Stormedit’s export features look rather meager. Nonetheless, you can convert files into Apple Quicktime, MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 formats. Also, you can write the material back to tape on the DV camera, as we mentioned above.
Exporting DV material to Quicktime or MPEG is a time-consuming process. For instance, a Pentium 4 1.6 GHz will run a quarter as long as for MPEG-2 (full PAL or NTSC resolution). So for ten minutes of footage, you’ll need 12.5 minutes to encode the data. So, the faster the CPU, the faster the encoding.
The MPEG tab presents you with a series of different output formats.
The resolution and bit rate can be adjusted in the Video option. The software bundle also includes DVDit!, which enables you to create your own DVDs. For more information on how it works, see our article Digital Video Editing: The Canopus DVRaptor-RT.
Conclusion
The DVStorm SE costs $1088 (MSRP) with Canopus’ proprietary editing software Stormedit and some $1299 with the user-friendly program Adobe Premiere 6.0. The card has digital and analog AV ports. In comparison, the DVRaptor-RT (only digital input) is available for $599.
The DVStorm SE was pleasantly stable during our test. However, Canopus did need a good while until its drivers and plug-ins ran stably. The competition – Matrox, Dazzle and Pinnacle – don’t exactly have clean records in terms of reliability either, though. It appears that video-editing solutions require more time to mature than classical PC components.
The bundled editing software Stormedit is sufficient to handle most day-to-day tasks. If you’re more detail-oriented, though, you would do well to invest in the Adobe Premiere Upgrade.
