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Matrox RT.X2

Online Catalogue | Editing programs - information on EDIUS, Premiere Pro, Avid and Vegas software | Matrox Video Capture Cards |  Matrox RT.X2

Extra effects with a Matrox RT.X2

The Matrox RT.X2 adds extra inputs and outputs to Premiere Pro.  However you can add the same kind of i/o with other cards - these include the new Matrox Mini, as well as Black Magic's range of cards.   So why pay more for the RT.X2 and Axio? The answer is they also accelerate Premiere and add a lot of different features and filters.

Extra filters and Features

The RT.X2 adds a lot of extra features to Premiere which will speed up your editing and give you a range of effects simply not available in Premiere Pro.  For full details of these extra features click here.

Matrox RT.X2The Matrox RT.X2

  • 3 versions of the RT.X2 are available - RT.X2SD, RT.X2LE and RT.X2.  All three are the same except:
  • RT.X2SD - standard definition ONLY.
  • RT.X2LE - standard definition and high definition through component connections.
  • RT.X2 - same as LE but with a DVI out socket as well.   The advantage of this output is that you will get a slightly better and sharper image using DVI than you would using component.  This disadvantage is that it works with only a very few screens - and even screens which should, theoretically work, do not.  This HD output is fixed @ 1920 X 1200 - so it will not work on standard 1920 x 1080 screens. Also be warned that a lot of PC screens with this resolution can only manage to display at 60Hz - fine for NTSC users but not so great in PAL land.  You can also output standard definition through this connection - this outputs at 800 x 600 resolution so your SD picture will not fill your output monitor.   HDMI is the new digital standard and it would be better if the RT.X2 had this instead of DVI, however, at the time of its creation (only a year or so ago) HDMI was not popular!  if you want HDMI out then you should consider the Matrox Mini instead.   For most people the component is good enough and sharp enough and will work with most HD screens for both SD and HD easily.
  • Component, composite and SVIDEO in and out.
  • Real time standard definition MPEG capture.
  • Uses the computers’ graphic card for the GPU effects so better card means more effects.
  • In standard def we can get 6-7 layers on a good system .
  • For HDV does better editing of native HDV files than Premiere Pro, with full quality effects and component output at full quality.
  • Edits at HDV resolution - 1440 X 1080.
  • All 3 are PCI Express 1 cards.  The RT.X2 is afull length card so may not fit in your case, please check before buying.  The RT.X2LE and RT.X2SD are standard size cards.
  • For best results use Premiere CS3 or CS4.   CS4 is recommended and all future development will be with CS4.
  • Works with Windows Vista 64,Vista 32 or Windows XP Pro. Vista 64 is the recommended operating system.  Although the cards work on XP we do have some issues between graphic card & Matrox drivers together with Blu-ray playback software.
  • WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) output plug-in for Adobe After Effects, Adobe Photoshop & Adobe Encore as well as. See your work at full quality on a video monitor.
  • Supports Adobe Dynamic Link - work in After Effects, Photoshop, and Premiere Pro simultaneously, and when you switch programs the video output immediately shows the active application.

HDV & HD Editing

  • When editing HDV on any system you DO NOT GET OUTPUT down the FireWire, like you do with DV while you edit, making it hard to properly judge colour correction and even see if a shot is focused correctly in HD. The RT.X2 adds full component output to Premiere Pro so you see everything in brilliant HD quality as you edit.
  • You can capture into Matrox I-frame MPEG format through component, so you can edit other HD formats with the RT.X2. However, this is not at full HD size of 1920 x 1080 - if you want to edit full HD then the Axio LE, is the card to buy as it supports more formats.
  • Support of editing native HDV MPEG files - the best we have seen for native editing with almost DV like performance. On the right system you can do two layers plus a title flying around in realtime.
  • Definitely the best device to use with Premiere Pro for editing HDV footage. Without the RT.X2 the only way to get an component output from Premiere is to use the second head of your graphic card which gives a larger but jerky output.

AVCHD Editing

The RT.X2 only edits footage at up to 1440 x 1080 resolution.  So if filming at this resolution with AVCHD then it is fine.  If you film at 1920 x 1080 then it will not process the footage at full quality - rather it will process everything at 1440 x 1080.  So the quality will drop slightly when editing full resolution AVCHD footage with the RT.X2.  The difference is not great and you would need to view the results on a high quality 1920 x 1080 screen to see any noticable effects, but there will be a slight difference.  if you want to edit at the full 1920 x 1080 resolution you need to buy either the more expensive Matrox Axio, or the Matrox MX02 mini. 

Why is the RT.X2 restricted to 1440 x 1080?

When it was designed HDV cameras were the mainstay of lower cost HD production and 1920 x 1080 was limited to much more expensive High-end HD cameras.  So Matrox invented the RT.X2 and the Axio to suite the two different types of user.  With the advent of cheaper 1920 formats like AVCHD the boundary has become blurred.  Matrox have no plans at present to make a 1920 RT.X2.  Their new Matrox MX02 Mini will edit at 1920 and is actually cheaper.

Why buy the RT.X2 and not the Mini?

The Mini is designed as a cheap i/o device.  If all you need is to add HDMI and component i/o to Premiere Pro then you need the mini.   But it does not soup up Premiere's performance like an RT.X2.  The RT.X2 improves a lot of Premiere's filters and adds in new features.  Only by adding a Matrox card can you get a realtime performance with Premiere equal to that of Grass Valley EDIUS.  If you want to take advantage of the better performance and you are filming at 1920 x 1080 resolution then you either have to sacrifice a small amount of quality and use the RT.X2 or buy the Matrox Axio.

For full details of the extras added by a Matrox RT.X2 and Axio click here.

Other HD Formats

Matrox will also accelerate playback of XDCam-HD and XDCam-EX formats (with the latter at 1920 x 1080 you have the same considerations as with AVCHD above) plus DVCProHD 720P footage.  It does not play back DVCProHD 1080i footage in realtime (although native Premiere, or Premiere using Axio or MX02 Mini would!)

Accelerated export

When making Matrox AVI files you can use the hardware to do the work, meaning you get a lot faster exports than using the Adobe Media Encoder.   It is actually quicker to make a High Def Matrox AVI file from the timeline using accelerated export, and then use this file in Encore to burn a Blu-ray disc or put it back on the timeline to export to HDV tape, than it is to use the regular procedure!

Matrox RT.X2

Matrox RT.X2


Price: £895.00 (£1,051.63 Including VAT at 17.5%)

Quantity:

This card is what many Premiere users have been waiting for - with HD component in/out, and real-time effects whilst editing HDV material. Although it would appear to be a direct replacement for the RT.X100, it is modelled on the high-end Matrox Axio series of editing cards, and has far better integration with Premiere's effects controls window and key-framing.


Matrox RT.X2 LE

Matrox RT.X2 LE


Price: £760.00 (£893.00 Including VAT at 17.5%)

Quantity:

A new version of the popular RT.X2, redesigned as a ¾-length PCIe card. This means it will fit into standard PC cases where as the full RT.X2 needs a slightly larger than avaerage case.

The RT.X2 LE has all of the powerful editing features of the original, at a considerably lower price (the only difference is the LE does not include a DVI output for HD display, only component). The DVI only works properly with a very small range of monitors so in reality is not useful unless you have one of these monitors.

For most people the RT.X2 LE is the perfect option.


Matrox RT.X2 LE with Premiere Pro CS4

Matrox RT.X2 LE with Premiere Pro CS4


Price: £1,099.00 (£1,291.33 Including VAT at 17.5%)

Quantity:

The RT.X2 LE hardware bundled with Premiere Pro, Encore and OnLocation. If you do not already own Premiere Pro, this is the best way to buy it (if you do, you'd likely do better to buy one of the hardware-only options and an upgrade for your software).


Matrox RT.X2 with Premiere Pro CS4

Matrox RT.X2 with Premiere Pro CS4


Price: £1,249.00 (£1,467.58 Including VAT at 17.5%)

Quantity:

The full version of the RT.X2 hardware with Premiere Pro, Encore and OnLocation. This version of the card includes the DVI HD output.


Matrox RT.X2 SD

Matrox RT.X2 SD


Price: £619.00 (£727.33 Including VAT at 17.5%)

Quantity:

The RT.X2 SD is a standard definition version only of the RT.X2. You can still edit HD with Premiere if you buy the RT.X2SD but only if you use the standard Premiere modes. So for HD editing you will not have any Matrox effects or Matrox acceleration. For only £100 more the RT.X2LE will do exactly the same as the SD AND edit HD footage as well.


Online Catalogue | Editing programs - information on EDIUS, Premiere Pro, Avid and Vegas software | Matrox Video Capture Cards |  Matrox RT.X2

 


© David Vincent Clarke Ltd 2009

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