XDCAM vs DigiBeta

[shadow]

Ok, no replies yet. Well, maybe too soon.

What I discovered myself is that the whole XDCAM vs DigiBeta thing is a big flamewarstarter on other forums, so I don't want to go there.

XDCAM camera's have more features to make the picture better so you don't have to do that in post. I don't care about those features because we have to colormatch it to the animation anyway. The quality appears to look the same, but XDCAM uses IMX (MPEG) compression.

So, my question is mainly about the MPEG compression, since we are going to have some chromakey shots in it. Now is that wise? Because my gut tells me that it isn't.

[curious_69_george]

The biggest difference between the two is that XDCAM is Disc based acquisition and Digi-beta is Tape.

Personally. I would shy away from the IMX Mpeg Compression, just because it is a lot more compressed then Digibeta. I have worked with both formats, and there isn't that much of difference. But, the more compression you have on the footage, the harder it is to work with in post.

The nature of XDCAM is meant more for News gathering and broadcast. Sounds to me like your camera operator wants to try out the new tapeless world. More importantly, you should ask yourself whether you are willing to try the new work flow.

Also check with local dubbing houses, to make sure there is someone who can transfer your footage. Unless you have an XDCAM deck available to transfer footage to your NLE.

If you can avoid tape all together than I guess, then it is simply what you are comfortable doing. If you have to go to tape at some point anyway, then I would suggest just going with Digi-Beta. As going to tape at any stage defeats the purpose of recording to disc in the camera.

Just my 2 cents

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