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Final Cut Alternative

N

netslacker

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jan 21, 2008
303
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I usually use iMovie for video editing and in large part have been pleased with it. I'm not a pro and so this is for personal videos and an occasional wedding video for family. However, I recently starting shooting all my video in 4K and am now finding that iMovie is really laggy on my 2012 Mac Mini (16gb, 1TB SSD). So, I was looking for alternatives that allow proxy files and some additional edit features such as multiple tracks, better color adjustments and better/more transitions. Essentially, wanting to go beyond what iMovie offers while maintaining the ease of editing that I like.

I've tried several alternatives including: Premiere Pro (nice, but don't want the monthly payment), DeVinci Resolve free version (price is right, but hardware req's are not met by the Mac Mini so it's practically unusable), FCPX trial and a couple other open sources ones.

The clear winner here is FCPX. It works great on my Mac Mini editing 4K files. Hardly notice any slowdown at all. It has all the other features I'm also looking for. My only hangup is price. So, before I jump in with 300.00 I thought I'd ask if there was anything else out there that comes close to FCP but for less money. I'm guessing not, but doesn't hurt to ask.
 
Just shell out the money, you're not gonna find anything other then Davinci and Premiere.
It's gonna hurt the wallet only once. But it will result in a happy netslacker for days to come.
I had to do the same thing, iMovie just didn't cut it. (the pun was not intended)
Made the switch to FCPX and never looked back.
 
Don't look at the price and say I want something better for less, $300 is actually nothing when you compare it to say a year rental of adobe. It is about the time saved doing the thing you need done, the costs are not in the buying of the thing, but in the using of the thing, matters not what the thing is, a tool is used to speed up workflow, you could use a hand screwdriver or an electric motor driven one, what is best at that time you need it.

FCPX introduces new concepts that avid/adobe cannot, the use of the skimmer in the browser, the new idea of "pre-editing" and final editing in the timeline, look FCPX is not as steep as people sometimes make out it is, it is simple, but simple does not mean cheap and nasty.

it is what you assemble that is what you are creating, who cares if a car is assembled by hand or 100% by robots, is it safe to drive, fast, comfortable, that is what matters, sure Resolve is free, and might work, it is a tool, maybe too much right now for what you need, you need to move a yard of rubble, you buy a cheap wheelbarrow, not a 400 ton coal transporter, that would be too much, the same with FCPX, it has color correction built in, more than enough for 99% of projects, if you are editing the next Fart Wars, maybe a tool more than FCPX is required...Resolve/Avid.look at what you need and not the muppet in snottywood...
 
netslacker said:
I usually use iMovie for video editing and in large part have been pleased with it. I'm not a pro and so this is for personal videos and an occasional wedding video for family. However, I recently starting shooting all my video in 4K and am now finding that iMovie is really laggy on my 2012 Mac Mini (16gb, 1TB SSD). So, I was looking for alternatives that allow proxy files and some additional edit features such as multiple tracks, better color adjustments and better/more transitions. Essentially, wanting to go beyond what iMovie offers while maintaining the ease of editing that I like.

I've tried several alternatives including: Premiere Pro (nice, but don't want the monthly payment), DeVinci Resolve free version (price is right, but hardware req's are not met by the Mac Mini so it's practically unusable), FCPX trial and a couple other open sources ones.

The clear winner here is FCPX. It works great on my Mac Mini editing 4K files. Hardly notice any slowdown at all. It has all the other features I'm also looking for. My only hangup is price. So, before I jump in with 300.00 I thought I'd ask if there was anything else out there that comes close to FCP but for less money. I'm guessing not, but doesn't hurt to ask.
Click to expand...

Are you a student by any chance? You can get a deal on the 'pro suite'... You get all of the 'pro' apps (Final Cut Pro X, Logic Pro, Motion 5, Compressor 4 and Main Stage 3) and save $100 over the cost of just FCPx alone.

https://www.apple.com/us-hed/shop/product/BMGE2Z/A/pro-apps-bundle-for-education
 
dwfaust said:
Are you a student by any chance? You can get a deal on the 'pro suite'... You get all of the 'pro' apps (Final Cut Pro X, Logic Pro, Motion 5, Compressor 4 and Main Stage 3) and save $100 over the cost of just FCPx alone.

https://www.apple.com/us-hed/shop/product/BMGE2Z/A/pro-apps-bundle-for-education
Click to expand...

Is this for only college students? It appears to be on the Education page, but it lists home school teachers of all grades. My wife teaches 8th grade science at a junior high and am wondering if she would qualify for the educational discount.

Edit: Well I just chatted with an account rep and she does indeed qualify. I'm actually surprised that there doesn't seem to be any sort of verification. Wouldn't everyone disregard the honor system and just purchase the entire Pro bundle for $200?
 
Last edited:
bassjunky said:
Is this for only college students? It appears to be on the Education page, but it lists home school teachers of all grades. My wife teaches 8th grade science at a junior high and am wondering if she would qualify for the educational discount.
Click to expand...

Most likely, yes, she would qualify. In my experience, Apple has been pretty generous with their educational offerings... usually their discounts are quite modest, but they seem to be pretty reasonable with who qualifies... typically they can require a student/staff ID and/or a school email address... but many times do not question the status of the customer.

I have a legitimate, active student ID and .edu email address, but they didn't question my purchase at all.
 
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I went ahead and purchased FCPX. I did buy it through gift cards though. The GC's were on sale via costco.com for 165.00 for a 200 and 85 for a 100.00 GC. So, all told, I paid 250 for 300.00 worth of GC's which I then used to buy FCP.

In case anyone is interested in doing the same, you still must have a credit card on file for the purchase to go through.
 
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netslacker said:
I went ahead and purchased FCPX. I did buy it through gift cards though. The GC's were on sale via costco.com for 165.00 for a 200 and 85 for a 100.00 GC. So, all told, I paid 250 for 300.00 worth of GC's which I then used to buy FCP.

In case anyone is interested in doing the same, you still must have a credit card on file for the purchase to go through.
Click to expand...
Hahaha. That's how I did it years ago. iTunes cards went on discounted sale so I bought $400 worth of them. Highly recommend buying them on sale, because you can use them for iPhone apps, Mac apps, movies, music...
 
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