I would like to let the DV filmmaking community know about the trials and tribulations I went through with Digital Origin's (formerly Radius) MotoDV Studio 2.0. This package includes the MotoDV capture card, and the full version of Premiere 5.1. I purchased it from Videoguys. Installing the package was the first headache. It was not compatible with my video card, so I ended up having to go out and buy a new one ($89.00 extra dollars) just to get the thing up and running. Then, I tried editing... The beginning of a nightmare! The software, and I am not sure whether it is the MotoDV or Adobe Premiere software that is to blame, was losing frames and giving me crackling audio, even when I used a Western Digital super-fast SCSI Ultra Wide drive optimized for A/V, 128 MB of SDRAM and a 400 mhz Celeron Processor! Finally, when I tried to render, the result was a mishmash of terrible sound, pictures from one cut interposed into another incorrect cut directly in conflict with my carefully designed timeline, flickering video, etc. I called, seemingly endlessly, to both Videoguys and to Digital Origin tech support, to get the thing to operate properly. None of their suggestions worked. Digital Origin didn't bother answering my emails for over a week, and, then, gave me bad advice! It is amazing that a company that can put out the much heralded EditDV for the Mac, can put out such crap for Windows.

I ended up sending the entire package back to Videoguys, within their 30 day return period, and ordered a Canopus DVRaptor, with Media Studio Pro 5.2, instead. However, I have wasted a large number of days in both failed editing, and technical support calls. Hopefully, DVRaptor will turn out better.

In short, I found that the MotoDV Studio 2.0 package is terrible (I suspect that Premiere 5.1 is part of the reason), and should be avoided like the plague!

-- Avery Goodman (ABGoodman@cwix.com), April 16, 1999

Answers

While I have had similar experiences, my conclusions or sentiments aren't quite the same as yours. Our system: Dual Processor (Pentium II 400 MHz), NT 4.0, 256 MB RAM, MotoDV Studio w/ Premiere 5.1(a), 34 GB SCSI disk array.

We have experienced the same kinds of problems editing with Premiere, and have now begun evaluating other editing packages, currently testing EditDV for Windows (beta), which appears (thus far) to be a much more stable product than Premiere.

Even when we had problems editing in Premiere (drifting audio syncs, "phantom" frames inserted between cuts, high rendering times for transition effects, etc. -- likely due in part to our unfamiliarity with the program), we had no problems capturing. The MotoDV card sends the signal to the Medea SCSIRaid system which gobbles it up without burping. No dropped frames ever.

We've had to involuntarily reformat our capture drive... twice... which was likely due to our own ignorance of the 2GB file size limitation that most systems of this type work under. It's frustrating, but also part of the risk we take for trying to save money, cut costs and do things on our own (as opposed to buying more expensive "package" systems like Avid, Media 100, etc.).

There are so many different components involved, each of which have to be "set" just a certain way in order to make the system work, it is difficult to single out one and make it the villain. I've heard good things about Canopus, but even they are dropping Ulead as their editing system, and going with Premiere. I hope that your experience with it is better.

-- Adam Abraham (digital@earthlink.net), June 20, 1999.

I am not sure what the system was you are running but, I have had much similar (bad) experiences with the Moto DV card. But, only with my cheaper systems. I have tried with both my AMD K6-2 300 & with AMD K6-3 400 and 7400rpm drives, 128 PC100ram, 1mg cashe and neither had been able to handle the card correctly. But, yet I put it in my Pentium II 350 Dell with 8gig drive 5400rpm (not even dedicated)and it captures & plays back flawlessly. I am beginning to believe it must have something to do with the MMX tech vs. 3d now. Render times in Premiere are faster with the AMD K6-3 than the Pent.II. I too bought my card from the Video Guys and they have tried to help but, much of their suggestions had not solved anything. As far as Digital Origin tech support goes I will never use them agian. Getting them on the phone is next to impossible and they CHARGE you for it. Email is slow at best and much of the time giving you textbook type answers you could have found in the FAQ on their site.

-- Don Farrish (keyframe99@aol.com), June 29, 1999.

I purchased their MotoDV program for $400 from a local mac dealer and loaded on my G3. It immediately crashed everything. Rebuild my operating system, added more memory and hired a shaman, but it does not work! They (MotoDV and Digital Origin) know it doesn't work and have discontinued the product but refuse to refund my money. It is a piece of junk. Their attitude is too bad sucker! Take my word for it:

MotoDV is a worthless product

Digital Origin is a worthless company

Media 100 is a worthless company

-- Michael Fuller (mfuller@artsci.wustl.edu), April 28, 2001.