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5DtoRGB for GH2 - advantages vs disadvantages?
  • qwerty123qwerty123
    I've heard some about 5DtoRGB, did a bit of reading online in some forums and on the website for 5DtoRGB.... but I'm still left wondering: what are the advantages vs the disadvantages of using something like this with gh2 footage? Suppose you also have sound recorded. (Preferably like to hear from people who've actually used it.) Thoughts?
  • 376 Replies sorted by
  • ButtButt
    Nothing - if they use sony vegas pro 10 or 11:
    you can native Verarbeitung
  • qwerty123qwerty123
    Ok. That wasn't too helpful (especially for non-vegas users). Others?
  • stefanosstefanos
    well, first off, the option to use it is simply awesome so big ups to rarevision.
    For me it comes down to the platform and workflow you use.
    For instance, one argument is that converting to higher quality Prores or DNXHD 10bit files will give you more headroom in color correction. This I'm quite sure holds true when using mediocre color correction programs. But I have found that Color Finesse 3 is so accurate and it's 32 bit floating point works so well , that there's absolutely no difference whatsoever. Also, less compressed files are quicker to work with and render in programs like after effects when composting etc. If you're on premiere cs5 or 5.5 and you have a good cpu and gpu then I think there's no reason to transcode. If, you're editing on final cut pro 7 and you're on mac, then I think 5dtorgb is essential if you want best results. 5DtoRGB was mainly created because of the issues of editing canon DSLR files with final cut pro since any other method like log+transfer or compressor cannot upsample to 4:2:2 as losslesly as 5dtorgb. Also it fixes stupid gamma issues inherent in macs and fcp. But for GH2 users editing on premiere CS5 and grading in Color finesse 3, then it's very unnecessary for me, especially considering the time it takes to transcode and the space requirments
  • OedipaxOedipax
    I would use 5DtoRGB for GH2 files except that, as best as I can tell, the batch script only recognizes .MOV files at the moment. Transcoding an entire day's worth of shooting one clip at a time sucks.
  • chipchip
    5DtoRGB is supposed to have the best YCbCr to RGB conversion.
  • UlisseUlisse
    I use clipwrap for mac very fast.
  • qwerty123qwerty123
    @stefanos and @oedipax
    Both helpful responses. I use FCP as my NLE, and I've been grading in Apple Color (also 32bit floating). I wonder, though, whether there's any advantage at the point of ingest vs. the Log&Transfer options of FCP.

    @stefanos
    Are you editing MTS natively in CS5?
  • stefanosstefanos
    Yes I edit MTS natively on CS5, but I think that for your workflow using FCP, 5dtoRGB has loads of advantages. It ensures you 'll get the best quality chroma upsampling and RGB conversion whereas Log&Transfer and every other software are simply not up to par since they sacrifice quality for speed. Take your pick.
  • stoneystoney
    +1. Whatever works for you. I use PP cs5. NLE & GH2vk high bitrate work nicely. My pure speculation: high bitrate makes lower avchd compression ratio?
  • qwerty123qwerty123
    @stefanos Again, helpful.

    A question about editing natively on C5(.5): when you color correct in Color Finesse do you transcode before doing so or... do you only transcode at the point of output?

    (I'm thinking seriously about swtching to cs5.5 on a Mac and using Davinci Resolve. I imagine for that, I'll .to transcode at some point.)
  • chauncychauncy
    I couldn't get 5dtorgb to work correctly in windows. It was all green or all white. It also made a 200mb into a 7gb file.
  • testerREDtesterRED
    I'm also having trouble with 5DtoRGB. The "conversion" simply renders a black file (with a lower file size than the original MTS file). Am I doing something wrong?
  • qwerty123qwerty123
    Another thing I'm wondering about is the alleged ability to get a flatter picture from 5DtoRGB than transcode. Is it true that you can get a flatter image even if you edit natively?!?
  • Mark_the_HarpMark_the_Harp
    @Butt I use Vegas too so I assume there is no advantage to using 5DtoRGB rather than working directly with camera files. I did a quick comparison of both and saw no difference in ability to work with curves etc. It just slows down the workflow and adds to file sizes so as far as I'm concerned your reply was 100% correct.

    I think @querty123 was a bit unhelpful himself by not saying what packages he was using / proposing to use.

    Willing to be proved wrong if there's any advantage for Vegas.
  • v10tdiv10tdi
    5DtoRGB worked very well for me. The only issue I had with it was that it would not bring over the audio track for MTS files.
  • ElenionElenion
    @Mark_the_Harp @Butt
    Are you really able to manage mts files with the same speed of 5dtorgb ones? I find the whole workflow to be 3-4 times slower.
    About image quality i can't see much difference but i could be wrong because i've not done much grading yet.
  • Mark_the_HarpMark_the_Harp
    @Elenion Good question. I didn't try a lengthy edit with effects and transitions so could do a quick experiment to compare (in Vegas).
  • stefanosstefanos
    @qwerty123
    I don't transcode at all:) The beauty of CS5+CS5.5 premiere pro native avchd combined with the beauty of dynamic link between after effects and PPro combined with the beauty of Color Finesse 3 and it's stellar accuracy engine , give you the ability to preserve the best quality, in the least time+space, with convenience. This would simply not be possible on FCP, which is where 5dtorgb comes in, but with a handful of time+space disadvantages. I think where Adobe has hit the spot is with it's communication between it's software mainly After Effects and PPro, so for anybody who has to use After Effects on his projects, it's madness not to experience the friendship between AE and PP.
  • wangcwangc
    I have problem for 5DtoRGB Windows version, it alwasys stop at half when transcoding,for example,if the MTS file has 200 frames, it will stop at 100/200, i tried uncompress , AVIDxHD,etc..
  • Brian202020Brian202020
    In case anyone needs a definition on what is going on with this program, it converts your YCbCr files to RGB files. Newer more up to date NLE's like FCPX do this automatically while importing or transcoding. So find out if your NLE is editing in a RGB environment. If so, you don't need this program.
  • Donnie88Donnie88
    So for a Final Cut Pro 7 user, would 5DtoRGB be the recommended transcoder then? Or Log & Transfer?
  • stefanosstefanos
    @Donnie88, for the nth time, YES:) it would be much higher quality than anything else with the drawback of time and space.
  • Donnie88Donnie88
    @stefanos Gracias sir!
  • ButtButt
    @Mark_the-Harp
    > I use Vegas too so I assume there is no advantage to using 5DtoRGB rather than working directly with camera files<<br />
    I also think
  • BuellerBueller
    @stefanos What settings are you using in 5DtoRGB for GH2 footage? Thanks
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