X3b Video Improvements?

Video Improvements were slated for X3c, but have been pushed back to X3d....

That is a fact. Video improvements are still in X3's future, they did not make X3c according to Noel's most recent post on the subject.

I have not!
Will install X3c now and see what was fixed/improved...
 
But I have read somewhere that X3 would come with video improvements...more video formats etc...or I have dreamed? 
 
cheers
joni

I do not recall any more details than what is included in this thread http://forum.cakewalk.com/FindPost/2896088

djoni
X3b still can't import normal .mp4 I get from clients. I have to rely on sony vegas to render them to .AVIs and then import in Sonar.
There MP4's open everywhere but Sonar: Windows Media Player, Quicktime, VLC etc.

Welcome to the club....Cakewalk never really cared about film composers for some reason (even though I still love Sonar!). I got fed up with the videos issue, so I have been using Cubase 7 and I can attest it is fantastic if you score to picture. If they pull through with stellar improvements in X3d, I'm in, but until then it's C7.
 
PS- you don't need Vegas, you can use a free converter like Wondershare.

Sonar will use whatever codecs you have installed on your system to import video files, so if you want to import MP4, etc., you just need to install a decent codec pack. I use K-Lite codec pack on Windows 8.1 x64, and Sonar can open pretty much anything.
 
http://codecguide.com/download_kl.htm if you want to check it out.

Nope, no problems like that here, and I have both Vegas and Premiere. Been using K-Lite for a pretty long time, and the codecs work great in Sonar. Uninstaller works fine as well (first thing I tested).

StepD, I used k-lite with Vegas years ago and it worked fine.  Unfortunately I have known others that were not so lucky.  I have done many risky things with my computer, but just because it worked for me, does not mean i would recommend someone else take the same risk.
 

dubdisciple
Although K-lite is among the safer codec packs to install  in terms of not containing known malware, it is an awful idea if you do any serious video editing.  Some of the codecs install conflict with existing codecs in several popular video editing/compositing software.  Many have found out the hard way that their render times go up and quality goes down because these codecs were assembled for mostly watching and copying stolen movies with little regard for professional creation of such things.  To make matters worse, some elements are difficult to remove if you discover there is a conflict.  If you mostly watch movies and do very light video editing, I'm sure it will be fine.

Exactly....avoid these types of downloads like the plague. Anyone who uses their DAW for serious work should never go down that road (been there, done that, got the t-shirt), let alone surf the net. There's no way you can use those codecs on a pro level. And regardless of the codecs on your system, Sonar does NOT like certain formats...Quicktime and MPEG's comes to mind

StepDad..I know people who don't consider smoking crack risky.  They use it all the time and thus far they seem to be leading normal, functional lives.  Does not mean i would recommend it.  Like I said, i am glad it works for you but there are known issues with some of those codecs( Lagarith codec provides good compression but is painfully slow).  When you think about it, installing an entire codec pack is a very inefficient way to go about things anyway. If you needed a compressor, I doubt you would install a compressor pack filled with 100 unknown compressors.  You would likely try and weed out the known junk first.  Getting away with something does not make it a good idea.  Avid is notorious for crashing if you use anything but the recommended codecs.  We had a guy at the station i worked for get fired because he ignored the warning from Avid not to update Quicktime  to the latest version because of an unresolved compatibility.  Totally fried the Avid install and caused delays in a big project.  Of course there are plenty of anecdotes both positive and negative, but that just underscores the point that it is a risk.  The vast majority of people who drink and drive arrive home safely, but i certainly don't recommend it.

Anything can be risky on a computer depending on skillset/computer awareness and familiarity. I don't particularly find a problem with codec-packs that are designed allow you to enable disable particular individual codecs within the pack, especially for one-off purposes. These systems are designed not to interfere with existing codecs - they do not override existing codec merit unless you want it to. Certainly, some people can abuse them, and some may be overconfident of their abilities.
 
A lot of folks coming to video from music and audio may have perceptions about how video should perform within an application. One thing to note is that you are not a video editor, and are not responsible for the video and its audio, only for providing a music soundtrack. Generally, you provide a synced music track, and the video editor adds that to his video project. You, the composer, only need video is as a reference for your score. This means you should be able to take the provided reference video and create a low resolution dub of it for yourself that is more suitable for use within an audio application. Using HD video within a DAW is simply wasting available CPU resources that will not be available to the DAW for audio use. It makes much more sense to create a low resolution dub for scoring duty.
 
Sometimes, clients may ask for you to create a video with the music track embedded. This should be considered as a minor duty and for the client's reference only. A low resolution copy similar to what was used for scoring should be appropriate. You aren't being paid as a audio mixer for video, it's not your responsibility, but there's no harm in giving your interpretation.
 
If the client is asking you for a high definition copy with the intention to use it for final distribution - you have moved beyond scoring and into audio (for video) production. This is beyond the scoring bailiwick - but it is an opportunity to make more money. However, it does mean that you should then transfer your rendered music track to a proper Video Editor system along with the client supplied video. The DAW is not the place to create finalized video. Learning more about video editing is useful skill set .
 
 

SuperG...I actually am a video editor and like you I have no desire to bring  HD video into Sonar.  total waste to me.  I don't score films, but I can understand the issues those that do have with Sonar video.  For high end work precision is required.  For my purposes a frame or two  off is not going to make much difference but some of Sonars issues could be a problem for others.

I understand.  My purpose was to let people like myself who use Sonar but also do video editing know that these codecs have been known to reek havoc with video editing systems.

jscomposer

dubdisciple
Although K-lite is among the safer codec packs to install  in terms of not containing known malware, it is an awful idea if you do any serious video editing.  Some of the codecs install conflict with existing codecs in several popular video editing/compositing software.  Many have found out the hard way that their render times go up and quality goes down because these codecs were assembled for mostly watching and copying stolen movies with little regard for professional creation of such things.  To make matters worse, some elements are difficult to remove if you discover there is a conflict.  If you mostly watch movies and do very light video editing, I'm sure it will be fine.

Exactly....avoid these types of downloads like the plague. Anyone who uses their DAW for serious work should never go down that road (been there, done that, got the t-shirt), let alone surf the net. There's no way you can use those codecs on a pro level. And regardless of the codecs on your system, Sonar does NOT like certain formats...Quicktime and MPEG's comes to mind

How did I manage to sound design and dub mix an entire horror feature within Sonar with K-Lite installed then thats got worldwide distribution and just won best feature at the British Horror Film Festival?
 
 

markyznoHow did I manage to sound design and dub mix an entire horror feature within Sonar with K-Lite installed then thats got worldwide distribution and just won best feature at the British Horror Film Festival?

 
and?  congrats.  Nobody claimed it was IMPOSSIBLE to get good results that way.  Just warned of the possible pitfalls.  The British zombie film Colin was shot on a camcorder that is probably not worth $25 today but gained worldwide distribution.  I doubt cinematographers were dropping their cameras to grab on old mini-dv  cam because of such things.  i will be the first to say that you can get amazing results using far less than Sonar.  A dedicated person with skill can take a smartphone and freeware and make a damn good film. To answer your question (one that only you would know the answer to), I'm guessing that you worked your butt off despite any obstacles and focused on doing the best you could with what you have to work with.  Most of my current work is shot on DSLR.  The codec in DSLRs is horrible , it has poor latitude, moire issues and a host of other major flaws....but my clients love my work and they only see end product.   Yes, i can do sound design and mix for film in Sonar...but I honestly find it much easier to do it within other programs.  Even the Video Editor Vegas is better for that imo.