Apple Final Cut Express HD: Getting Started - Manual (Page 15)

Chapter 1 Setting Up Final Cut Express HD 15
The Differences Between NTSC and PAL
NTSC and PAL are standards for video. NTSC, or National Television Systems Committee,
is the television and video standard used in most of the Americas, Taiwan, Japan, and
Korea. PAL, or Phase Alternating Line, is the television and video standard used in most
of Europe, Brazil, Algeria, and China. (SECAM, a video standard based on PAL and used
in France, Poland, Haiti, and Vietnam, is not supported by Final Cut Express HD.
However, editing work is usually done in PAL and converted to SECAM.)
Important: Make sure to choose the Easy Setup that corresponds to your country.
The Differences Between Apple FireWire and FireWire Basic
Video devices vary greatly in their functionality and adherence to FireWire
specifications for device control. For this reason, there are two versions of the FireWire
protocol you can use for device control and capture in Final Cut Express HD:
• Apple FireWire: This is the default.
• Apple FireWire Basic: This is a simplified device control protocol for camcorders and
decks that aren’t compatible with the full Apple FireWire set. Using this protocol
doesn’t affect the quality of captured video or audio.
To switch to the Apple FireWire Basic Easy Setup:
1 Choose Final Cut Express HD > Easy Setup.
2 Select the Show All checkbox, and choose the appropriate FW Basic Easy Setup for your
camcorder or deck from the Setup For pop-up menu.
For more information about FireWire technology, go to the Apple FireWire website at
http://www.apple.com/firewire .
Setting Up Scratch Disks
A scratch disk is the disk or disk space you allocate in Final Cut Express HD for digital
video capture and editing, as well as for the storage of a project’s render files.
Final Cut Express HD lets you specify up to 12 scratch disks for storing files. It’s best to set
these after you set up your hardware but before you start to work in Final Cut Express HD.
When you capture or render clips, media files are saved to the first disk in the list. When
that disk is full, Final Cut Express HD goes to the next disk in the list until it’s full, and so
on.