DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor Review: The Wheel of (Saving) Time Leave a comment

A devoted video enhancing keyboard may appear to be overkill for many informal customers, however don’t write it off till you’ve tried Blackmagic’s DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor. This little gadget packs a lot effectivity, together with the model’s Studio software program, in a single small package deal that it would simply be definitely worth the cash. 

Blackmagic’s DaVinci Resolve is definitely the very best free video editor you could find. Seasoned editors may discover the migration a bit of powerful because the program has some workflow quirks which can be simply totally different sufficient to journey up muscle reminiscence, however in my expertise, changing my workflow was nicely definitely worth the transition.

The Speed Editor, one of Blackmagic’s proprietary editing boards, is a devoted system designed to combine easily with Resolve. It has six units of buttons mapped to capabilities contained in the editor, plus an enormous wheel to clean by way of clips. If you’ve ever hung out in an enhancing bay, it’s going to look acquainted (if very small). For of us all in favour of shooting indie movies and beyond, a instrument like this will help.

The $395 sticker value may appear stunning, however the firm additionally throws in a duplicate of DaVinci Resolve Studio, which often prices $295 by itself. While the free model is already greater than sufficient for most individuals, Studio provides a large library of visible results instruments, help for 10-bit video, and the DaVinci Neural Engine to make a quantity of results instruments quicker. 

A Portable Editing Bay

The most hanging side of the Speed Editor other than the attention-grabbing dial—extra on that beneath—is how compact it’s. It’s barely smaller than an iPad (although clearly a lot thicker) however options six units of keys that cowl a stunning quantity of the necessities that the majority video editors want, like primary cuts and multicamera controls.

On the rear, it has a single USB-C port for each connecting to an enhancing rig and charging. Yes, this enhancing board is wi-fi, however there’s neither an influence change nor any technique of Bluetooth pairing with out connecting it to your pc through USB-C first. This is especially annoying should you edit on a number of units. I take advantage of a Windows desktop and a MacBook Air, each of which have DaVinci Resolve put in. Technically, the board is appropriate with each, however swapping them is sufficient of a ache that I’d advise towards making an attempt. The solely method to take action appears to be to unpair the board fully, however even that’s flaky. It would have been good to have a board that helps a number of programs the way in which most wi-fi keyboards do.

While this quirk is disappointing, the Speed Editor is a incredible instrument for moveable enhancing in any other case. It is mild sufficient to throw in a bag and sits comfortably subsequent to a laptop computer on small espresso store tables, and I used to be even ready to make use of it whereas enhancing on an airplane. The flexibility to take studio enhancing bay-level instruments with me anyplace is difficult to understate.

The Dial 

Portability apart, the dial is the star of the present right here, and I can’t categorical how significantly better enhancing video is once you use it. The machined metallic knob within the center of the system rotates easily however nonetheless permits for very exact controls. You can flick it to ship it spinning (not that you might want to) and cease it on a dime. A single dimple allows you to transfer the dial with as little as a single finger, and a rubberized rim makes certain you by no means lose your grip on it. 

The dial has three modes: Shuttle, Jog, and Scroll, every enabled by buttons simply above the wheel. Each of them has a pink LED to point which mode you’re presently in. These may be acquainted to veteran video editors with skilled expertise, however for everybody else, right here’s how they work: 

Shuttle: In this mode, the dial controls playback pace. This can vary anyplace from 0.25x to 32x, relying on how removed from the preliminary level you flip the dial. This works in each instructions, so you may scrub by way of the timeline in reverse at as much as 32x.