Apple demos Final Cut Pro 5, Motion 2, Soundtrack Pro and Tiger

Post, May, 2005 by Marc Loftus

CUPERTINO, CA -- As expected, Apple (www.apple.com) was at NAB with news of new products, including updates to Final Cut Pro that bring multicam editing to the tool; a new version of its Motion graphics software; and a new audio editing and effects application called Soundtrack Pro.

Apple began its NAB event with a tour of its new Tiger operating system. The OS adds 200 new features, including support for 64-bit applications, and incorporates the new QuickTime 7, which lays the ground work for HD and new media applications. QuickTime 7 supports H.264, a next-generation MPEG open standard that scales video from cell phone quality all the way up to HD. "Smart Folders" make sense of all the varied media. The "dashboard" keeps you up to date and informed on just about anything you can think of. And the video conferencing features create possibilities for rough-cut viewing with clients.

Final Cut Pro 5 is now capable of handling numerous formats, including DV, uncompressed SD, IMX, native HDV, DVCPro HD, and uncompressed HD. The new version offers hundreds of realtime effects and transitions. Its Dynamic RT Extreme allows the best quality available to display on your desktop--as the timeline gets more congested, the quality automatically ramps down and instantly snaps back to full rez. when resources are freed up.

Version 5 offers offers multichannel audio at 24-bit/96kHz and the ability to capture 24 channels of audio in a single pass. Its multicam editing features allow users to edit on the fly, group up to 128 sources, and playback/preview 16 sources simultaneously. Realtime effects can be scrubbed both forwards and backwards.

Motion 2 offers motion graphics ranging from 8- to 32-bit. The Replicator tool allows for pattern-based design and over 150 Replicator presets are included. Basic 3D rotation has been added to Motion, as has MIDI behaviors, which allows effects/animation changes to be triggered from an external MIDI device. Motion comps can now be opened directly in After Effects, and vice-versa.

For audio, Soundtrack Pro features a nondestructive, sample accurate waveform editor, along with features such as Find-And-Fix. Fifty pro DSP plug-ins from Logic Pro 7 are included, along with 5000 sound effects and Apple Loops.