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MillimeterEdit Review: Adobe Premiere Pro CS4
Dec 1, 2008 12:00 PM, Reviewer: Jan Ozer
Workflow enhancements and support for new formats add up to a must-have upgrade.
These performance issues aside, however, AME has blossomed into quite a useful streaming-encoding tool. For example, those producing VP6 will appreciate the addition of the higher-quality two-pass encoding, and support for VP6-E and VP6-S. H.264 quality — which uses the MainConcept codec — was generally very high. Windows Media quality was very good in the Windows version of Premiere Pro, but you still can't produce Windows Media files in the Mac version.
To be fair, encoding speed for Windows Media and H.264 output was quite good compared to other sub-$1,000 encoding tools. Basically, unless you're a multifile VP6 producer in a hurry or a Mac producer who needs WMV output, AME should be more than sufficient.
On the export front, note that the Export to Movie, Frame, and Audio options that existed in CS3, in addition to the Export to Adobe Media Encoder option, are no longer available in CS4. For example, in CS3, I created all .mov and .avi intermediate files for encoding in other programs via the Export to Movie function. I exported frame grabs via the Export to Frame function, which was faster and simpler than working through Media Encoder. Not a huge deal, but working through AME in CS4 adds a couple of steps and is more complicated; I'll miss these simple output options.
Adobe Encore
In previous versions of Premiere Pro, you had to render your video sequences before importing to Encore. You also had to re-encode your video completely if you discovered errors while authoring. In CS4, Adobe extended Dynamic Link to allow you to send sequences from Premiere to Encore without rendering. You can then easily edit the sequence in Premiere Pro by clicking Edit Original. If the enhancements to AME and the Premiere Pro-to-AME workflow didn't convince you to upgrade, this feature should do the trick.
Adobe also corrected two important feature deficits in CS3 by adding support for dual-layer Blu-ray Discs and Blu-ray subtitles. The killer Blu-ray-related feature for Encore CS4, however, is the ability to add pop-up menus to your Blu-ray titles. These appear above the video while it's playing, saving the viewer a trip back to a regular menu to click over to a different scene or video. Encore is the only sub-$40,000 authoring tool to support this feature.
Finally, as before, in addition to producing Blu-ray Discs, Encore can render your productions to a Flash .swf file for posting to a website. In CS4, Adobe enhanced this function with several new web-page templates and additional encoding presets, including a number of widescreen templates that weren't available in CS3.
Version tests
I ran several tests to compare the performance of CS3 and CS4. In one test, I rendered a 3.5-minute DV test project to DVD-compatible MPEG-2 format. The test project included chroma key, speed changes, color and brightness corrections, and titles and other overlays. On the HP xw6600, CS3 took 3:03, while CS4 was slightly slower at 3:52. On the Mac, CS4 produced the file in 2:57.
Interestingly, in a 1-minute HD multicam production in Windows, CS3 rendered to Blu-ray-compatible MPEG-2 format in 10:59, while CS4 burned through the job in 1:54. Mac performance was even faster: Rendering was complete in 1:14. Overall, it appears that CS4 should be about as fast as CS3 for normal productions, with some significant upside in multicamera jobs.
With Premiere Pro CS4, Adobe nailed the big workflow issues, making the editing program much more efficient for almost all users. The company also sprinkled in enough goodies — metadata, audio to text, and pop-up Blu-ray menus — that help users further monetize their content and distinguish their productions from projects produced with other tools. Over all, it's hard to imagine any CS3 user who shouldn't consider this a must-have upgrade.
bottomline
Company: Adobe
www.adobe.com
Product: Premiere Pro CS4
Assets: Create sequences with different configurations within the same project; save time by applying one effect to multiple clips in a sequence; new metadata panel makes asset management easier; Encore adds Blu-ray Discs pop-up menu feature.
Caveats: AME often wastes cycles on multiprocessor systems.
Demographic: Any editor looking for a more efficient workflow.
PRICE: $799 (FULL); $299 (UPGRADE)
Continue the discussion on “Crosstalk” the Millimeter Forum.