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Just mailed my FCP4HD disc back to Apple...
- Thread starter xPismo
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weird
I received a second package from apple yesterday. I guess it was the reship one i faxed for...weird. I'm trying to send it back without paying, put return to sender on it like the customer rep asked, and it came back to me today...i guess they want me to keep it? haha, i'll send it back but what a weird experience.
I received a second package from apple yesterday. I guess it was the reship one i faxed for...weird. I'm trying to send it back without paying, put return to sender on it like the customer rep asked, and it came back to me today...i guess they want me to keep it? haha, i'll send it back but what a weird experience.
Dare I suggest eBay? 
(I'm not really suggesting it).
2 sets of discs are better than one.
Out of curiosity, do they have the exact same serial number?
(I'm not really suggesting it). 2 sets of discs are better than one.
Out of curiosity, do they have the exact same serial number?
Crossgrade Program Mail-In Went Fine
Just thought I'd post about my experience with the crossgrade (FCS Non-UB -> FCS UB) program so that anybody who's still on the fence about whether or not to do it will have a good idea about exactly what to expect.
I'm probably in a minority of crossgrade customers because I don't own an Intel Mac just yet and don't really plan on buying one any time soon. I originally wasn't going to bother with the crossgrade, but changed my mind after I saw some of the benchmarks by final-cut-pro.de et. al. showing that FCP 5.1 is around 25-30% faster at rendering than 5.0.4 even on "old-fashioned" PowerPC Macs, and also has some (admittedly minor) bugfixes and feature enhancements.
Anyway, on to the crossgrade program itself:
For the crossgrade, you have to mail in four install discs (Final Cut Studio, DVD Studio Pro 4, Motion 2, and Soundtrack Pro). Before I sent away the original discs, I burned backups of them in case I needed them while my order was being processed. I would also recommend keeping backups of the original discs because the original FCS apps will run on Panther (10.3.9), while the new UB versions require Tiger (10.4.4). Of course you might never need/want to run FCS on a non-Tiger machine in the future... but then again it doesn't hurt to have the option just in case. Making the backup discs was actually the trickiest part of the whole process... even with the latest firmware updates for my DVR-109 and latest update for Toast 7, burning a DL disc is a bit... erm... touchy.
After the disc backups were made, I made a photocopy of the original discs' faces (as Apple suggests), and packed them up with the completed order form and a personal check for $49+Tax. I mailed them to Apple last Tuesday (5/9) via Priority Mail with delivery confirmation, and the envelope was delivered last Thursday (5/11). I got a shipping confirmation e-mail yesterday (5/15) advising me that my order had been processed and should arrive in 3-7 business days... and was quite pleasantly surprised when my new discs arrived this morning (5/16) ! As others have said, the discs arrive in a non-descript brown padded envelope with an exposed packing list. My particular package was delivered via UPS Ground.
Inside the envelope is... not very much. There are four new install discs (marked 'Crossgrade' in fine print), a sheet explaining that they "are designed to be used with your original Final Cut Studio materials" (i.e. no new printed manuals, although there are PDFs of the new manuals on the first install disc), and a new license agreement booklet. Crossgrade customers don't get a new serial number either; you simply use your old FCS serial number when installing from the new discs.
That's about all I have to report... I haven't had time to install the new software and try it out just yet. Bottom line though is that the mail-in process went very smoothly and very quickly... I was without original install discs for only one week. So to anyone who is concerned about mailing their original discs away (as I was, hence taking so many precautions of backups, delivery confirmation, etc.)... there's probably not a whole lot to worry about (although you might still consider making backups of your discs for the reason I described above).
Hope this helps anybody who's still deciding whether or not to crossgrade!
-Frank
Just thought I'd post about my experience with the crossgrade (FCS Non-UB -> FCS UB) program so that anybody who's still on the fence about whether or not to do it will have a good idea about exactly what to expect.
I'm probably in a minority of crossgrade customers because I don't own an Intel Mac just yet and don't really plan on buying one any time soon. I originally wasn't going to bother with the crossgrade, but changed my mind after I saw some of the benchmarks by final-cut-pro.de et. al. showing that FCP 5.1 is around 25-30% faster at rendering than 5.0.4 even on "old-fashioned" PowerPC Macs, and also has some (admittedly minor) bugfixes and feature enhancements.
Anyway, on to the crossgrade program itself:
For the crossgrade, you have to mail in four install discs (Final Cut Studio, DVD Studio Pro 4, Motion 2, and Soundtrack Pro). Before I sent away the original discs, I burned backups of them in case I needed them while my order was being processed. I would also recommend keeping backups of the original discs because the original FCS apps will run on Panther (10.3.9), while the new UB versions require Tiger (10.4.4). Of course you might never need/want to run FCS on a non-Tiger machine in the future... but then again it doesn't hurt to have the option just in case. Making the backup discs was actually the trickiest part of the whole process... even with the latest firmware updates for my DVR-109 and latest update for Toast 7, burning a DL disc is a bit... erm... touchy
.After the disc backups were made, I made a photocopy of the original discs' faces (as Apple suggests), and packed them up with the completed order form and a personal check for $49+Tax. I mailed them to Apple last Tuesday (5/9) via Priority Mail with delivery confirmation, and the envelope was delivered last Thursday (5/11). I got a shipping confirmation e-mail yesterday (5/15) advising me that my order had been processed and should arrive in 3-7 business days... and was quite pleasantly surprised when my new discs arrived this morning (5/16)
! As others have said, the discs arrive in a non-descript brown padded envelope with an exposed packing list. My particular package was delivered via UPS Ground.Inside the envelope is... not very much. There are four new install discs (marked 'Crossgrade' in fine print), a sheet explaining that they "are designed to be used with your original Final Cut Studio materials" (i.e. no new printed manuals, although there are PDFs of the new manuals on the first install disc), and a new license agreement booklet. Crossgrade customers don't get a new serial number either; you simply use your old FCS serial number when installing from the new discs.
That's about all I have to report... I haven't had time to install the new software and try it out just yet. Bottom line though is that the mail-in process went very smoothly and very quickly... I was without original install discs for only one week. So to anyone who is concerned about mailing their original discs away (as I was, hence taking so many precautions of backups, delivery confirmation, etc.)... there's probably not a whole lot to worry about (although you might still consider making backups of your discs for the reason I described above).
Hope this helps anybody who's still deciding whether or not to crossgrade!
-Frank
Frank Palermo said:
Heh. I'm still working my G4 hard too. No intel for me for at least 4 to 6 months. Soon... mmmm. Intel Power. Only FCS5 users seem to keep their own SN's. I got a new (non academic) SN with my crossgrade (FCP 4.5 -> 5 UB).
Motion and the new Soundtrack Pro are wicked fun. Once this semester is over (and I'm finished on the apartment) I can't wait to dig into them more.
i'm getting ready to ship in my dvds here soon. i'm hoping by then i will be the proud new owner of a Macbook Pro.
Frank Palermo said:
Do you really need to send them ALL four install discs? I've only been asked to send in the actual FCP HD disc. And I checked for the American crossgrade, there too only the FCP HD disc is required.
-dP
digitalprimate said:
Woah, flashback!
No you dont have to send them all in. Just the FCP HD disc is required. I don't know who started that rumor and why it still hangs around (guy at school asked the same thing) but only FCP installer disc is required.
Different requirements for different trade-in options...
It's not a rumor... it's just that there are different requirements for different trade-in programs. For the $49 "Crossgrade" (i.e. you already own Final Cut Studio and just want the Universal update for it), yes... *all four discs* are required. The appropriate form on Apple's site detailing that requirement is here: http://images.apple.com/universal/crossgrade/pdf/Crossgrade.pdf.
On the other hand, if you're buying one of the $99/$199 "Upgrades" (i.e. you own only one of the FCS apps and are now moving to the entire suite), then only one disc is required (see, for example, the form for upgrades from DVD Studio Pro 4 here: http://images.apple.com/universal/crossgrade/pdf/DVD_SP4.pdf).
Nope, no rumors here! (Strange for this site, I know). Just a little confusion over Apple's terminology for "upgrade" vs. "crossgrade."
-Frank
xPismo said:
It's not a rumor... it's just that there are different requirements for different trade-in programs. For the $49 "Crossgrade" (i.e. you already own Final Cut Studio and just want the Universal update for it), yes... *all four discs* are required. The appropriate form on Apple's site detailing that requirement is here: http://images.apple.com/universal/crossgrade/pdf/Crossgrade.pdf.
On the other hand, if you're buying one of the $99/$199 "Upgrades" (i.e. you own only one of the FCS apps and are now moving to the entire suite), then only one disc is required (see, for example, the form for upgrades from DVD Studio Pro 4 here: http://images.apple.com/universal/crossgrade/pdf/DVD_SP4.pdf).
Nope, no rumors here! (Strange for this site, I know
). Just a little confusion over Apple's terminology for "upgrade" vs. "crossgrade."-Frank
It was a good deal for academic pricing folks...
I bought DVDSP4 a year ago for $99.00 edu pricing (normally it is $149 but Duke had it marked as 99). Took advantage of the crossgrade and for another $149 I have the entire Final Cut suite *and* it is not labled as academic which means it is elgible for upgrades.
I sent mine and got the discs within 10 days.
Great deal!
--Half Glass
I bought DVDSP4 a year ago for $99.00 edu pricing (normally it is $149 but Duke had it marked as 99). Took advantage of the crossgrade and for another $149 I have the entire Final Cut suite *and* it is not labled as academic which means it is elgible for upgrades.
I sent mine and got the discs within 10 days.
Great deal!
--Half Glass
Frank Palermo said:
You are right! Sorry for the misleading info, its been a while and I was shooting from the hip. I went from FCP-HD only to the Suite and sent in just the FCP insaller disc. Opps.
I guess I should have read my own post at the top of the thread first.
i dont like the way they are doing it, they are just going to destroy the discs, might as well, just find a new way to secure it, so it cannot be stolen
andreas
andreas
For the people that have received their crossgrade in the mail, it is all original install discs, right? I'm sending my FCP 4.5 disc in, but am also buying a new MB next week, so it will not have FCP installed on it. I just want to make sure that the crossgrade does not require detection of the previous version on your harddrive for install.
