Sony Creative Software Vegas Pro Premium (with full Vegas Pro 12 collection)

A Top Tier NLE, but not for beginners.I teach video production professionally, and I use a variety of NLEs. I teach both FCPX and iMovie. We also have Adobe CS, however we use that primarily for print and digital publications, and rarely for video production. I have used Premiere, but not extensively. For personal use, I've used AVID (Pinnacle) and Sony Vegas. Out of all of these, I prefer Vegas for a variety of reasons, which I'll summarize here. Mostly, I'll be comparing Vegas to FCPX, as I have less experience with Adobe and Pinnacle is simply garbage (sorry AVID).Despite the claims of proponents of each product, they all have failings. Even Mac's beloved FCPX will crash from time to time. I've used so many different machines - from out of the box Macs to Top end PC's built exclusively for rendering video. The bottom line is, no platform is perfect. Overcoming foibles is part of the job. I run Vegas pro on a top end PC constructed for video editing. I suspect that Vegas will demand a high end hardware configuration, but I really don't know how if fares on an out of the box machine. I do find it crashes occasionally (more so when I use velocity envelopes on high frame rate clips). I also have a terrible time with the NewBlue titler. I had similar problems with the titler using Vegas Movie Studio - and despite the multitude of fixes avaiiable, I've learned to render NewBlue independently of the project I use it in. In any case, I've done a couple of big projects with Vegas Pro, and have not lost any content. From time to time I'll have to re-start the program, but it auto-saves nicely.Vegas accepts a wide variety of formats smoothly, which is key for my productions. I use several cameras, each with very different codecs. From a Hero3 recording 2.7k at 24fps or 960p at 120fps to a DSLR recording .mov at 24fps, Sony Vegas manages them just fine. I prefer Canon cameras, but also use Sony and some other randoms. I recently completed a project that used a multitude of cameras, including these cheesy "game trap" motion sensing cameras used to film animals in wilderness settings. No problems stitching them all together. (FCPX did also handle the same footage, but my MacBook Pro had difficulty recognizing several of the cameras making importing a nightmare). I do wish the file management system in Vegas was better. Those of us who use FCPX or iMovie do enjoy the scrubbing of thumbnails. Certainly not a deal breaker, but I do wish Sony would adopt that feature or come up with a quick way to scrub clips.The actual editing is where Vegas wins. I'll summarize by saying this: Vegas affords greater creative freedom at the expense of being more mathematically and technically cumbersome. In other words, if you don't have a calculator and pencil & pad sitting next to your computer right now, you might not be Vegas type. I find that I frequently have to calculate aspect ratios, frame rates, etc. I'll confess that I am a nerdy math type, so this is not a barrier for me. I also enjoy figuring out things like frame interpolation and drop downs. If this sort of thing does not interest you, consider buying a Mac and go the FCPX route, where these sorts of things are done automatically - albeit in a way that you might not like. Vegas uses timelines in a very linear manner, and you have to get comfortable linking clips from different timelines using groups or the ctrl-L feature (I forget the name now). In other words, Vegas will let you manage the content in your timelines in a Non-Linear way - it's just hard to figure out and get good at. Again, FCPX is better at this at first, but in the end you'll have more control with Vegas.Vegas also gives you great control at animating your corrections/video effects/pans etc. It takes a while to get good at this - especially when you move sequences around your timeline - but it can be done, and the possibilities are pretty cool. Again, this is easier in some ways with FCPX, but Final Cut is way more limiting (I should say: I have not found a way to make FCPX do the things I want).While Vegas does not have features like auto multi-cam editing (FCPX wins here), it does offer features like smooth velocity envelopes and more powerful color correcting (again, it's hard to learn, but very powerful). I've yet to exhaust the timelines (at least 20). It makes BluRays easily, and gives you lots of control without having to resort to secondary products (like compressor - or the jigsaw world of Adobe). Example: When I film a concert or play using several cameras and a digital recorder, I use FCPX to do the edit. FCPX will also allow brainless camera syncing and for easier color correcting to get the cameras to match. When I make a "surf movie" of my family vacation at the beach, I'll use Sony Vegas to stitch the different formats together (GoPro and others), and the color correcting features of Vegas do a better job of letting me get the rich contrast of a day at the beach just right.This review is starting to ramble, and I'm not sure I need to say more. At the price offered by Amazon for the suite (under $250), Vegas is a steal for semi-pro type editors. If you're new to video editing or don't want to spend days learning ticky-tacky technical detalis it might not be for you. For those of us who like creative control, enjoy technical problem solving and have the time and patience to learn all the obscure little techniques, Vegas is a great product.

This is sophisticated software. For an inexperienced user it's a steep learning curve. Not out of the question however, if you have the wear with all to stick with it. I've only had it for a short time and I've never had any video software of this level of complexity.So, I'm not an expert reviewer. I do, however, have a few suggestions. If you don't have a new computer make sure the update your video drivers before loading this software. It you don't update your video drivers this software may not run properly when you load it. If you don't know how to do this there's a number of web sources that can help. Google search: how to update video drivers; Just don't get duped into paying for an app that will update your software for you. This is free thing; no cost for you to do.This software comes with what they call a platinum phone support package. The phone number for platinum support is: 877-738-9273You have to give them your product serial number to get signed up for the 180 days of platinum support. They won't teach you how to use the software but if you have a technical issue with Vegas or any of the Sony software in the package they will try to help you with that. They always have the voice message that "hold times are longer than expected" and suggest you go to their website. It doesn't matter anytime I've called they've had that message on; which leads me to believe IT'S ALWAYS ON! even during coffee break. Receptionist is nice, support not warm and fuzzy. They do not offer support for any of the third party software that comes with this package. You have to go though email support at the third party company for that.The three stars I give this software is do to, in my humble opinion, less than excellent phone support. My assessment of the software itself is IT'S EXCELLENT! Again, I'm am not an expert; this is only my opinion based on my experience with this software so far and other software in general.The best learning tutorials I've discovered so far are the videos at sonycreativesoftware.com. On the support menu click on training there you'll find some good instructional videos.Best Regards to you.

Ok, so the super low price of $240 and the "Premium" title made me a little skeptical. Vegas is supposed to be $500! SO I did some research before I ordered this version. I took the leap of faith and I'm glad I did. Here are the details.1. I read on multiple sites that Vegas Premium was created for Sony registered retailers, but was never sold by Sony Creative. Supposedly, that's why you never find a mention of it on-line.2. Although the price is less than the Vegas Pro 12 Edit edition, it comes with way more features. It comes with Sony Vegas 12 Pro, DVD Architect Pro 6.0, Sound Forge Pro 10.0 (with a free upgrade to Pro 11.0), NewBlueFX Titler Pro 1.0, and 200 stock sounds.3. I successfully registered all the software listed above. The serial numbers were all accepted and I even added them to my Sony Creative on-line account.4. The software works (at lease on my PC). As someone who has used Vegas 10 and 12 Studio, I instantly had old projects to experiment with.5. This is pure speculation, but I think the lower price has to do with the fact that Pro 13 came out two weeks ago.So if you are a Sony Vegas fan like me and looking to make the jump to PRO 12, this is a really good chance to do it and pay way less than usual.