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DVD authoring - Buyers Guide

Optibase Enhances MPEG Composer

Optibase's MPEG Composer 200 is the latest member of its MPEG Composer Family. MPEG Composer is an encoding management application that allows the user to prepare digital video content for storage and later viewing on video servers, kiosks, network streaming applications, or for distribution via DVD, SVCD, and VCD. MPEG Composer 200 will support a variety of platforms and comes with an upgrade utility. Composer 200 includes MPEG Organizer, a batch encoding and device control tool, as well as an improved diagnostic utility to track hardware performance.

(Optibase Ltd., 91 Medinat Hayehudim, Herzliyya 46766, Israel; +972 9 9559 200; Fax +972 9 9586 099; http://www.optibase.com)

Ligos Upgrades LSX-MPEG Encoder

Ligos Technology has introduced Version 3.0 of its LSX-MPEG encoder. The new version adds single-pass variable bit-rate encoding and DVD-ready features as well as the LSX-MPEG Player for MPEG-2 playback using Microsoft's Windows Media Player. Version 3.0 allows the user to specify GOP and sequence header options for increased compatibility with MPEG editing tools and DVD authoring, and has improved de-interlace routines for MPEG-2 output from interlaced source material. LSX-MPEG Encoder 3.0 lists for $299.95; it can be purchased via Ligos' Web site, where the user will also find a free demo for download.

(Ligos Technology, 1475 Folsom Street, Suite 200, San Francisco, CA 94103; 415/437-6137; Fax 415/437-6139; http://www.ligos.com)

Sonic Adopts Advanced Authoring Format

Sonic Solutions has announced that it will join the likes of Adobe, Avid, Matrox, Microsoft, and Pinnacle to support the Advanced Authoring Format (AAF). The decision was made to speed the interchange of digital data between content creation tools such as Avid Media Composer and Sonic's line of DVD production systems. AAF is a professional file interchange format designed to meet the needs of rich media content creation and authoring. AAF is an open format with a publicly available specification that is not owned by any single company. Sonic believes that by streamlining the movement of data between digital content creation and authoring systems, the AAF format will allow video production professionals and DVD authors to generate interactive content more efficiently.

(Sonic Solutions, Inc., 101 Rowland Way, Suite 110, Novato, CA 94945; 415/893-8000; Fax 415/893-8008; http://www.sonic.com.)

HEURIS MPEG Encoders Are Adobe-Compatible

HUERIS has announced that Adobe After Effects 4.1 is now compatible with all products in its MPEG encoding software lien. HFURIS's software encoders are able to read Adobe After Effects files via the shared QuickTime export component and directly convert them into MPEG files. According to HEURIS, this direct conversion saves time and prevents the potential quality loss associated with rendering video to a different file format prior to encoding.

(HEURIS, 2675 Scott Avenue, Suite G, St. Louis, MO 63103; 314/534-1514; Fax 314/534-4351; http://www.heuris.com)

Daikin and Matrox Partner to Offer DVD Authoring Solution

Daikin U.S. Comtec Laboratories and Matrox Video Products Group have announced a partnership to offer a professional DVD authoring solution called DVDwiz. DVDwiz is based on Daikin's Scenarist technology and comes bundled with Adobe Premiere RT and Matrox's DigiSuite real-time editing platform, which offers native DV, DV50, and MPEG-2 multiformat editing under Windows NT.

(Daikin U.S. Comtec Laboratories, 999 Grant Avenue, Novato, CA 94945; 415/893-7800; Fax 415/893-7807; http://www.scenarist.com. Matrox Video Products Group, 1055 Saint-Regis Boulevard, Dorval, QU, H9P 2T4, Canada, 800/361-1408, 514/969-6300; Fax 514/969-6294; http://www.matrox.com)

Media 100 Announces Upgrades, Lower Prices, New Product

Media 100 has announced new pricing and configurations for its Mac-based Media 100 systems. The company is adding Internet-streaming video functionality across the product line, and has also added 3D DVE and enhanced 2D DVE capabilities with the addition of Boris FX. Media 100 will also make RealTimeFX available as an option to all Media 100 users, and has incorporated Media Cleaner EZ into the product line. The new Media 100 le DV is now available for $3,495 and includes standard support for real-time DV I/O. The new price is 61 percent lower than the previous Media 100 le configuration with optional DV. Pricing on other Media 100 models has also been reduced.

Media 100 has introduced Finish V20 DV, a new digital content creation and streaming solution. Finish V20 DV's features include support for DV, composite, S-Video I/O, balanced and unbalanced audio, 150KB/frame picture quality, realtime audio cross-fades, and support for the ITU-R BT.601 standard. Finish allows users to mix analog and digital signals in the same program and then master the program out to a DV or analog deck via IEEE-1394, composite, or S-Video I/O ports. The Finish system ships with Terran's Media Cleaner EZ and includes Inscriber's TitleMotion. Finish V20 DV is priced at $2,995 and is available on Windows NT.

(Media 100 Inc., 290 Donald Lynch Boulevard, Marlboro, MA 01752; 508/460-1600; Fax 508/481-8627; http://www.media100.com)

Blossom Introduces DaViD Suite

Blossom Technologies Corporation has introduced the DaViD Suite, a real-time DVD Authoring Solution. DaViD Suite is designed for existing owners of Avid, Blossom, Discreet, DPS, Matrox, Media 100, Pinnacle, and Truevision editing systems as well as Microsoft Windows multimedia workstations. The DaViD Suite can be installed on any Windows workstation and includes a PCI-based MPEG2 encoder. DaViD's authoring tools include Blossom's EZ-DVD-PRO, which offers infrastructure and interactive navigational programming, data capture, multiple audio and subpicture channels, 98 VOB tracks, and 99 chapters per track. DaViD Suite has a manufacturer's suggested list price of $6,995, and is also available as a fully configured DVD authoring system at prices starting at $9,995.

(Blossom Technologies Corp., 555 West Flagler Street, Miami FL, 33134; 800/378-3057, 305/266-2800; Fax 305/261-2544; http://www.blossomvideo.com)

Avid Ships Avid Xpress Version 3

Avid Technology, Inc. has begun shipping its Avid Xpress Version 3 system for the Windows NT platform, the latest version of Avid's video editing system designed for video and multimedia professionals. New features of version 3 include eight video tracks with unlimited non-destructive layering and nesting, audio punch-in, slip and slide editing, soft-edge drop shadows on titles, 2:1 compression standard on all configurations, QuickTime 4.0 support, eight-channel audio scrub, drag-and-drop import/export, and a VTR Play Emulation option for DVD mastering. Avid Xpress Version 3 is available in three configurations: Plus, Deluxe, and Elite. Deluxe includes a set; of built-in effects, and Elite offers realtime 3D effects in addition to an expanded selection of 2D effects. The manufacturer's suggested retail price for Plus is $12,999; Deluxe is $19,999; and Elite is $29,999. Users who purchased Avid Xpress for Windows NT after April 18, 1999 will receive a free upgrade to Version 3 with the same bundle level.

(Avid Technology, Inc., Metropolitan Technology Park, One Park West, Tewksbury, MA 01876; 800/949-2843, 978/640-6789; Fax 978/640-7366; http://www.avid.com)

Cirrus Introduces DAC Audio Chips

Cirrus Logic, Inc. has announced its latest Crystal mixed-signal chip, the SuperDAC (CS4397). The new multistandard digital-to-analog converter delivers on a single chip that, in current high-end DVD players, requires three separate components. SuperDAC provides 120dB dynamic range performance and supports DVD-Audio, Super Audio CD (SACD), and HDCD formats. Cirrus has also announced another member of its DAC family, the CS4396, which is designed to provide the same performance as the CS4397, but without support for DSD or HDCD. The CS4397 and CS4396 audio DACs come in 28-pin SOIC packages and are priced at $5.70 and $4.75, respectively, in 10,000 lots. Production quantities will be available in December.

(Cirrus Logic, Inc., 3100 West Warren Avenue, Fremont, CA 94538-6423; 510/623-8300; http://www.cirrus.com)