Hdx thunderbolt

[ilulilu888]

So... Do you think that in the near future we are going to see a thunderbolt box for the HDX pci cards? And i am not talking about the magma chasis or similar stuff ... I am talking about a dedicated box such as the new hd native box...it seems as if apple is dropping the mac pro line....and all together the pci slots is becoming old news.....

[nst7]

Apple is not dropping the Mac Pro line. They have specifically stated they are coming out with a redesigned Mac Pro in 2013.

But I'm sure Avid will probably come out with a Thunderbolt solution for HDX regardless, because it will just open up more options for how people can use it, and lower the overall cost of getting an HDX setup (by being able to use it with less expensive computers), and thus increasing potential sales.

But with all the DSP involved with the HDX cards, it will be more complex to get it into a Thunderbolt interface, and will probably take a lot more time to develop.

[O.G. Killa]

I heard rumors they've been working on this for a while. Who knows. It would make sense. Thunderbolt is as fast as PCIe, so there is no reason why they can't make a box with the DSP in it instead of a card.

The tough thing becomes stacking them and managing multiple boxes. having one DSP box connected is no problem, but with thunderbolt you could potentially have 10 or 15 or more... how to manage and control all that DSP over thunderbolt could be what is holding them back? Who knows for sure.

If you look back through some of my old posts you'll see I mentioned this very thing a year or two ago.

Ultimately I think Avid will try to merge Media Composer and Pro Tools into something I dubbed "Media Tools". One software that can do all the video editing, video effects and video finishing as well as do all the audio recording, editing and mixing.

All the peripherals will be external boxes (I originally thought gigabit ethernet, but thunderbolt will work even better). So you buy the software and can use just the software for entry level video and audio production. Then you can "accelerate" it by buying various add on thunderbolt boxes. If you want to do hi res video you can by a video accelerator add on box. Want to do low latency audio recording, you can get a low latency add on box (HDnative Thunderbolt). You want more DSP power when mixing, you add on a DSP box (they could even use the same DSP box for audio DSP and Video Effects DSP?). You want more IO, you add on an IO box. You want a mixing console you add on a control surface, And so on. It is similar to what they do now with both product lines, but instead it would be one product that would handle both areas of production/post production. If you don't want extensive video function and only want to do music, then you don't buy any of the video add on peripherals. If you want to do video only and not audio, then you buy the video add ons peripherals and not the audio ones. But post houses could have and use both and it would make moving the project throughout post facilities so much more streamlined.

In this day and age of Youtube, Video married to audio is becoming the new standard for audio. Even just a "lyrics" video can be hugely popular on youtube. Bands could tracks songs in Media Tools and after they are done, shoot a music video, load it back into Media Tools and then cut the video to the music and output a finished music video all within the same software, all within the same project file for that song.

In my opinion, if Avid did this right, it would totally save the company and put them back on top again.

I mean right now we have to use OMF and AAF files to go back and forth between media composer and protools. When video editors make changes to the picture it's a PITA to conform the audio edit. Imagine if while the pic editor was changing the pic edit, they were simultaneously conforming all the audio (that would be possible in a Media Tools type program).

Doing live video concerts could now be video captured and audio captured in the same software. There are so many applications that would benefit from merging the two programs into one. But with that is the potential for a lot of headaches and problems. If they were to do it they would really, really, really need to think it through.

Anyway, we'll see what they do in the future. But if I worked there, that's what I'd be pushing for.

[Craig F]

why do it when the Magma box is seemingly working so well
it's R&D money Avid dosen't have to spend

[CME]

I think O.G. may be on to something. Think about this. A Venue system feeding a HD|Native thunderbolt box, with cameras feeding a "Media" box (not a video guy so don't know what they have), plugged into a Laptop all being recorded into one software. Talk about a compact but powerful live recording rig. With video. Take said laptop back to the studio and edit it all through a HDx thunderbolt box. If I had the cash it would cost I'd be interested.

[O.G. Killa]

Yeah, I agree. It probably will (and rightly should) cost a fortune to get all the accelerated stuff.

But for basic things you can just do it with the software. Similar to how PT and media composer software both are stand alone... but you can then accelerate them with added hardware.

With Media Composer you can get a Mojo DX or a Nitris DX as well as Artist Color (Euponix Artist control surface).

With Protools you can get an LE interface, an HD Native or an HDX with several control surface options. With Avid announcing they are going to refocus on the top teir markets, I would assume the LE interfaces are not going to be developed as much and the focus will be on trying to convince everyone to switch over to HD Native.

Once they do that, then they merge Media Composer and PTHD (and News Cutter) into one software.

When they consolidated Digi and M-Audio into Avid and laid everyone off, they moved all the development to Global Logic, an offshore 3rd party software development firm who was already writing Media Composer for them.

With internet viral sensations like PSY's "Gangnam Style", the marriage of music and picture that started with MTV is finally morphing into it's own new type of separate media. That song is so popular BECAUSE of the Video and Music combined. For a long time you couldn't even buy it on iTunes or hear it on the radio outside of Korea. The music was solely married to the picture for most of the world.

Look at that video, the video production is great. Great lighting, blocking, sets, great video editing and visual effects. Even though it is completely in Korean, people all over the world can relate to it and somewhat understand it because of the visuals associated with it.

My "prediction" is that eventually songs will not exist except attached to video. Releasing a song "music only" without a visual will become as outdated as the 45rpm record.

And with smart phones taking over the phone and media industries, people will download or stream their videos to their phones while they are on the go.

The marriage of video to audio is the future. It started with MTV and it is ballooning with Youtube.

[Brandonx1]

Originally Posted by StewartFang

I think you basically have to picture an Avid I/O with an HDX Card slot...connecting via thunderbolt....call it say the "Avid Thunderbolt HDX I/O"

For every two Avid I/O's you fill one of the card slots with an HDX card...simple.

And significantly more manageable than a Chassis and an Avid I/O...although the chassis seems great

I think if avid does an HDX thunderbolt, I'd like to see an HDX 2 in there and support for at least 16 i/o. That'd be something.

[O.G. Killa]

thuderbolt is daisy-chain-able. So it doesn't make sense for them to make the box with an HDX2 in it when they can make an HDX1 box and then sell you two that you chain together to make an HDX2. Making the box itself HDX2 would really increase the cost and put it out of reach for some consumers who need/want an HDX thunderbolt.

[Craig F]

the HDX cards still have a "TDM Bridge" type of cable for 2+ card system
Thunderbolt is the PCIe on the bottom of the card, they still need this top card connector

[O.G. Killa]

Originally Posted by Craig F

the HDX cards still have a "TDM Bridge" type of cable for 2+ card system
Thunderbolt is the PCIe on the bottom of the card, they still need this top card connector

That's easy to do with some sort of external serial cable from one box to the next.