July 22, 2009
By Michael Hanish
As all the major NLEs continue to develop and claw for market share, their feature sets and capabilities have increasingly become quite similar. The key differences between NLEs, aside from price and “IMHO,” are in the interface and workflow design.
I will admit to a long love affair with and preference for (within reason) working inside Media 100’s Macintosh-based environment. The extreme mood swings that have gone with the ups and downs of Media 100’s corporate parentage have been a bonus, which have lately been on the positive side of the equation. For the past few years, Media 100 has been owned and operated by Boris FX, makers of great plug-in filters and RED and BLUE compositing suites, and Boris has done an exemplary job of bringing the software along to feature and functionality parity with the rest of the market, and in some areas surpassing them. 
The Media 100 Suite v.14 GUI.
Media 100 version 14 consolidates into one version what were previously different versions of the software, differentiated by input/output options, and adds a number of new and useful features. For a more full description of what Media 100 is as a nonlinear editing system, pay a visit to their Web site.
Some highlights: Many people, including me, have long liked the Media 100 interface, which hasn’t changed substantially since the beginning, as easy to learn and navigate, un-cramped, and very responsive; the Media 100i and Media 100 HD codecs are very economical and processor-friendly, and the fact that the system and codecs are QuickTime-based makes file interchange, import, and export simple and smooth; core level integration with titler Graffiti and compositor RED greatly extends the high-quality functionality of the editing space; excellent quality filters provide built-in, render-free audio effects (EQ, compression, reverb) and color correction (RGB, levels, curves) on a per-clip basis.
Since the “great leap forward” under Boris FX ownership, actually a well-coordinated series of smaller steps, new features have been rolled out with regularity: Intel processor and Mac OS X compatibility, multiple video and audio tracks, hardware integration with AJA Kona, LH, and LS series I/O hardware, XML interchange, tapeless (P2 and SxS cards) workflow support, and a wonderful and incredibly useful bus-based audio routing system (which makes it easy to create multiple mixes (M&E, dialogue for dubbing, etc.) for either file -based or hardware-based output), to name a few.
Several important and useful new features have been introduced in the new suite, aside from the above-mentioned version consolidation. Multi-cam editing, at this point hardly a revolutionary feature addition, allows for real-time switching between up to nine synchronized (via in or out point, timecode or user mark) camera tracks, or just between their audio or video tracks. Additional tracks can be added to the multi-clip at any time, a feature which greatly simplifies its use. A new voiceover tool uses the same multiclip interface used in the multi-cam tool to record multiple VO narration takes which can be easily cut, edited, or selected into one take, all while watching the timeline context. The Suite now supports Matrox’s MXO2, a portable (under 3.5 lb.) I/O unit that also does broadcast-quality up-, down- and cross-format conversion. Also added are support for QuickTime timecode tracks, export of files with burned-in timecode, 24-bit audio import, and for 1080PsF video formats.
I’ve been using the Media 100 Suite v.14, for the past few weeks on several HD music video projects. One of the projects was shot on my Sony EX3 and came into Media 100 very smoothly, as XDCAM EX file import, via Sony’s software, is a well-established and fast route introduced several versions ago. Media 100 cannot natively edit the EX files (which are Long GOP), and so automatically transcodes them into the selected HD format. The files for the second project came to me from AVCHD cameras in Holland, Austria, and Italy, and brought with them not only the problems of transcoding for import, but frame rate and size as well. Frame size and aspect are no problem, and can be easily accomplished on import or through the capabilities of Boris RED, which functions as compositor and titler inside Media 100 and can host After Effects plug-ins as well as its native and excellent set of effects and filters.
Using the multi-cam edit tool was a snap. The basic procedure is simple and similar to that used on other NLE platforms: select clips, mark each with a sync point, and then play and cut from one to the other, with the cuts being recorded to an editable timeline. In these projects, I began by getting as close to a color and look match as I could between the base clips that needed to be cut together. Then, I found it easiest to set a sync mark in each clip at the frame where the singing began. Once in the multi-cam tool, you can play at any speed, start and stop, and review, and perform the edits using hot key combinations (user-assignable) to set whether each cut is video and audio, just video, or just audio. After the edit choices are made, the multiclip can be used just as any other clip in a timeline, or you can invoke the command to make individual clips from the multiclip into a timeline, with the clips staggered and ready for further adjustment. Once the clips are broken apart in a timeline, you can easily change cuts to dissolves or any other sort and length of transition, add other clips and/or graphics in the up to 99 additional video tracks, or perform any sort of filtering or effects or color correction.
Naturally, there are rough edges, but very few, and it does seem like the engineers are smoothing them as fast as they can. It would be lovely to be able to organize the project window via folders. It would greatly enhance the flexibility and efficiency of this system if it could accept more QuickTime codecs natively, or add them as part of the project setup. I have never found the audio scrub quality, needed to make fine cuts, much better or more useful than annoying. And better and deeper integration of filters in the timeline would greatly speed up editing, color correction and FX creation.
Media 100 is a full-featured, intuitive, and easy-on-the-eyes place to work. I’ve worked with the software over the past few years as the engineers have made intelligent feature additions and revisions that have avoided the feature bloat and workflow confusions that often plague multi-function and complex software. Media 100 has stayed as easy-to-learn, use, and teach as it was years ago when so many of us first got into it. And the price is extremely competitive. MEDIA 100 SUITE v.14 SCORE: 
PROS: Multi-format editing; integrated with AJA hardware, FireWire, XML I/O; multi-cam editing; integrated compositing; flexible audio routing.
CONS: Limited native codec support, poor audio scrub quality.
BOTTOM LINE: Compact, flexible, easy to use NLE with many I/O and workflow options.
MSRP: $1,295
CONTACT: www.media100.com
| COMMENTS (4) | | 12/15/2009 | | I have used (and was a dealer) for Avid, Media 100, and Final Cut Pro. Media 100 is the editor I have always chosen to use on my own projects whenever possible. I find the interface to be uncluttered and not needlessly complicated, the image quality excellent, and to have many more operations viewable without rendering, especially than Final Cut. It has been utterly reliable, much better than FCP for me. It could use better color correction, more codec support, and format conversion capability via the AJA hardware. But I have to say I was thrilled after I tried this Media Suite 100 version, and bought it on the spot. It is great to be using an editor I enjoy using again. (BTW, I currently sell nor am I affiliated with any of these products) |
| | 12/04/2009 | | Well I've been using Media 100 since 1993 (with a 5 year gap for FAST video machine, which is thankfully now dead) and I have to disagree. I now use Media 100 and FCP, Media 100s interface is fantastic and lets you focus on editing. FCP by comparison is horribly cluttered and fiddly. As for reliability I would say it's better than most and no worse than FCP or AVID. Since Boris took over Media 100 has improved greatly and is now good value for money. It's never let me down (even in the old days) and I would recommend it if you want a fast, intuitive environment to edit in. |
| | 10/07/2009 | | Nobody used media 100 any more. There is absolutely NO useful information on the internet for media 100 and their tech support is terrible, if you can even get anyone to answer the phone. While we are on an older version of media 100 where I work, there has been little to make us want to upgrade. About the only saving grace with media 100 is that you don't need to render all your layers to see them. Other than that, it's the most unstable and quirky program I've ever used. I would not recommend this software to anyone.
On a side note, unless Boris has made some major changes, their user interfaces are the WORST I've ever seen. |
| | 09/02/2009 | | Media 100 and BorisFX are the companies I've learned to stay away from. After years of experience and wasting thousands of dollars I've grown to truly loathe anything Media 100 or BorFX. The worst customer service, terrible pricing policies, quirky software, compatibility problems, and most prominently: when you ABSOLUTELY NEED RELIABILITY, Media 100 and Boris can be COUNTED ON TO SCREW-UP. |
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