Is Vegas Pro 8.1 the only 64 bit editor?

[benkl1]

Hello, I just purchased a new PC and went with Vista Home Premium 64 bit edition. Is Vegas Pro 8.1 the only NLE that supports 64 bit architecture? If so can anyone that has used it comment on whether it makes a big difference? Also, if there are other 64 bit options out there which would you recommend for a computer enthusiast who is just now getting into video editing and will be working with AVCHD clips from a Canon HF100 for home movies and wants to playback in HD?

Thanks for the advice!

[Paul LS]

Welcome to Muvipix benkl1.

Yes I use Vegas 8.1 on a 64 bit Vista machine. It is currently the only 64 bit non-linear video editor. I also use the 8.c 32 bit version under XP. The 64 bit version is certainly better than the 32 bit version in that it handles AVCHD editing/playback much better. When playing back AVCHD from the timeline the frame rate is much higher for the same display resolution (you can set the preview resolution in Vegas)... for example with 8.1 I get full 25fps (PAL) playback whereas with 8.c it might be as low as 13 fps.

Additionally the 8.1 version can handle bigger projects and projects with many more effects added. Some folks report much faster rendering speeds but I have not looked in to this.

For me the biggest drawback is that you can not use any 32 bit plug-ins in 8.1, for example NEAT video noise reduction, Magic Bullet Movie Looks, Mercalli anti-shaker, etc, etc, none will work with 8.1 only the inbuilt effects. This will remain the same until vendors make 64 bit versions of the plug-ins.

[benkl1]

Thanks Paul! That is exactly what I needed to know. I guess if I get Vegas Pro 8.0 then I can download 8.1 and have both available if there are 32 bit add-ins that I want to try out. This is a great site. I look forward to using it a lot once I get started.

[Chuck Engels]

benkl1 Welcome To Muvipix