FCS vs Smoke

[G_smoke]

Hi all,

I was wondering if any of you had a look at the Final cut Studio package from apple and if it would be able to compare with the Smoke tool set.

Would be great if someone had any experience on using FCS2 and some comparisons would be cool

Cheers

[zolo]

Final Cut Studio is nothing like Smoke. Smoke is an integrated editing and finishing system - all tools are available within a single application, and the interface is designed for fast workflow using a tablet. Final Cut Studio is a bundle of separate applications that have varying degrees of interoperability, but nothing like Smoke. To even begin to approach Smoke's toolset, you would need to add Shake to FCS, and even then it would not be the same. Smoke is designed to give the artist all of the tools required to finish a job quickly, and with a high degree of interactivity. Smoke is ideal for client-attended sessions where the client can sit behind the editor and view changes at interactive speeds. Smoke systems are an order of magnitude more expensive than FCS, and Smoke sesisons are billed accordingly. FCS is a great set of tools, but designed and priced for a completely different market segment and nowhere near Smoke in terms of speed and interactivity.

[mpixls]

I use both and they are like apples and oranges. Final Cut Studio is a great set of apps, but other than basic editorial, I wouldn't want the clients I work with attending an FCS session that involved much more than the basics. IE I would not comp, do beauty work, sky replace, etc. in FCP with hourly clients.
My opinion, of course.

[tomas roca]

Hi. I had a Smoke HD for 4 years. When I had to buy another system i began checking cheaper solutions. My point is that the difference in performance is real, but it does not justify at all the huge difference in price. FCP2 is a bundle that makes everything you need. The only reason i would buy another Smoke is if my clients ask me to and pay for it. If you are making work without the client sitting at your side, then you can have two or even three FCP2 working together, sharing data and cpu resources for the same price.

bye

tomas