Edit Controller Buyer's Guide

Joe McCleskey
September 1999

Let's face it: the video editing market is migrating almost entirely to nonlinear systems -- those devices that record video onto a hard drive for easy editing via sophisticated software. As for the old-fashioned way of doing things with multiple VCRs, an edit controller, an SEG and a stand-alone titler--well, they seem to be going the way of the covered wagon, slowly but surely.

Why? The primary reasons are cost and functionality. For the same price you'd expect to pay for a complete, frame-accurate A/B-roll linear video editing system, you can buy a turnkey nonlinear editing system, that's more intuitive to use and far more powerful.

But, for beginning video editors who want a low-cost solution, a simple edit controller that connects two VCRs or a camcorder and a VCR is just the ticket. Furthermore, both JVC's and Pansonic's professional video divisions still make linear edit controllers to go with their high-end decks. Why? Because even with all of the advantages that nonlinear editing offers, traditional linear editing still has a few things going for it, especially in the realm of long-format videos.

In this article, we'll take a look at the slowly dwindling category of linear edit controllers, in an attempt to help you make a purchase decision you'll be able to live with a few years down the line.

Just because an editing system is linear doesn't necessarily mean that a computer isn't involved in some way. In fact, many of the best low-budget edit controllers use a computer to manage editing tasks, such as creating Edit Decision Lists (EDLs), special effects, titling and dubbing CD-based music.

Before you purchase an edit controller, you need to make sure you have the right equipment to make it work properly. In order for an editor to take control of your VCRs, for example, your VCRs have to be able to support the same types of editing protocols that the editor supports. If you want to control a titler or special effects generator (SEG) from the editor, you'll have to make sure your titler or SEG has a general purpose interface (GPI) trigger for external control. It's common to use a camcorder as the source deck and a VCR as the record deck. This works only if your camcorder has a Control-L or Panasonic 5-pin (Control-M) edit control jack. This configuration puts a little extra wear on your camcorder, but it's not likely to significantly tax your camcorder.

One of the easiest and least expensive ways to get into video editing is to purchase a simple computer-based edit controller. Videonics' Video ToolKit 3.0 for Windows 95/98/NT ($279) is a software/hardware product that can control up to seven devices, including VCRs, SEGs and titlers. If you already own a Videonics MX-1 or MXPro Digital Video Mixer, the Video ToolKit will give you the option of controlling all functions of the device directly from the computer screen. The Video ToolKit also controls batch digitizing for nonlinear systems.

Pinnacle's Studio 400 for Windows 95/98 ($229) takes control of a camcorder and home VCR via a home computer's parallel port; with the included Studio Mixer box, it's possible to capture still images, overlay titles and graphics, incorporate special effects, create real-time previews of editing decisions and automatically log the contents of a videotape.

For a true stand-alone editor that doesn't require a computer, check out the Videonics AB-1 Edit Suite ($450) or AB-PRO Edit Suite Pro ($500) digital video mixer. Both units provide A/B-roll editing, GPI-out for SEG and titler control and support for Control-L, Panasonic 5-pin, infrared, Control-S and RS-422 or RS-232 edit protocols.

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