Final Cut Pro X - Technical Specifications

Minimum System Requirements
  • Mac computer with an Intel Core 2 Duo processor or better
  • 2GB of RAM (4GB of RAM recommended)
  • OpenCL-capable graphics card or Intel HD Graphics 3000 or later
  • 256MB of VRAM
  • Display with 1280-by-768 resolution or higher
  • Mac OS X Snow Leopard v10.6.8 and later or Lion v10.7.4 and later
  • 2.4GB of disk space

Application
  • 64-bit architecture to take advantage of more than 4GB of RAM
  • Background rendering using GPU and CPU
  • ColorSync-managed color pipeline
  • High-precision floating-point render in linear-light color space
  • Uses Grand Central Dispatch to tap into all available processors
  • Full-screen, real-time preview playback of SD, HD, 2K, and 4K media on main screen or an attached LED Cinema Display
  • Customizable keyboard
  • Full Unicode support

Editing and Timeline
  • Magnetic Timeline automatically keeps material in sync, prevents clip collisions, and eliminates gaps.
  • Clip Connections keep secondary material in place while trimming and moving the Primary Storyline. Choose to hide or display Clip Connections in the timeline.
  • Compound Clips allow complex compositions to be simplified into a single clip.
  • Auditions combine multiple clips into a single clip to see alternative takes, color grades, or effects in context.
  • Duplicate a clip inside an Audition for comparison of different effects on the same clip
  • Edit while importing media in the background.
  • View material in Filmstrip or List view with a mini-filmstrip and metadata columns.
  • Skimming functionality enables fast viewing of large amounts of material.
  • Skimmable projects in Project Library enable viewing before loading.
  • Mix frame sizes, frame rates, and formats in the same timeline up to 4K in real time.
  • Edit at 23.976, 24, 25, 29.97, 30, 50, 59.94, or 60 fps.
  • Create the correct project setting with the first edit.
  • Insert, Overwrite, Replace, Append, and Connect with keystroke or drag and drop.
  • Extend edit to Skimmer position.
  • Split edits with J and L cuts in the timeline.
  • Top and Tail in a single keystroke for news and documentary editing.
  • Direct access to iTunes, iMovie, iPhoto, and Aperture through Media Browsers.
  • Timeline Index for timeline navigation and the selection of items based on text searches and other important metadata.
  • Position tool for moving and deleting media in the timeline and leaving gap.
  • Clip Markers that include to-do items that can be checked off when tasks are completed
  • Snapping to Playhead, Skimmer, Clips, and Markers.
  • Replace with Gap
  • Lift from Primary Storyline
  • Create Storyline to consolidate B-roll into a single unit
  • Insert Placeholder
  • Insert Gap
  • Numeric entry of precise clip durations
  • Blade tool for adding edits
  • High-quality, real-time vectorscopes, waveforms, and histograms
  • Record Audio tool for adding narration
  • Six Clip Appearance presets for timeline display
  • Multi-Touch gesture support

Trimming
  • Inline Precision Editor allows skimming of media around the edit before trimming.
  • Basic timeline trimming
  • Trim tool for advanced timeline trimming functions
  • Ripple and roll
  • Slip and slide
  • Lift and ripple delete
  • Dynamic 2-Up trimming with Show Detailed Trimming Feedback enabled
  • Keyboard and numeric moving and trimming

Effects
  • Shared Render Engine with Motion and Compressor
  • Add multiple effects and transitions within a range selection.
  • Multistream real-time effects in SD and HD formats
  • Alpha-channel support in real time
  • Integration with Motion for advanced motion graphics work
  • Use “Open in Motion” on any effect, modify in Motion, and save as new in Final Cut Pro.
  • Numeric and keyframe control for precise animation and effects
  • Copy and paste motion and effect attributes to multiple clips.
  • Access music, sound effects, transitions, filters, color looks, and generators through Media Browsers
  • Over 160 advanced 2D and 3D title templates
  • Over 90 high-quality transitions
  • Over 125 sophisticated animation templates with video drop zones created by a top Hollywood effects company
  • Over 110 filters, keys, blurs, and color looks
  • 28 backgrounds, elements, solids, and textures
  • Trim, crop, and Ken Burns effect
  • Distort tool with keyframes and onscreen controls
  • Transform tool with keyframes and onscreen controls
  • Stabilization effect in real time after background analysis
  • Rolling Shutter correction to improve DSLR video
  • Spatial Conform to make different aspect ratios fit into a project seamlessly
  • Retime tool for speed changes controlled in the timeline for entire clips or selected ranges
  • Rewind, Instant Replay, and Speed Ramp in a single click
  • Three Retime quality settings: normal, frame blending, and optical flow
  • Preserve audio pitch when changing speed
  • Find and Replace Title Text
  • Show Title/Action Safe Zones for positioning titles and effects

Audio
  • Subframe audio keyframing
  • Support for audio samples up to 192kHz
  • Real-time Mac OS X Audio Units and Logic plug-in effects included
  • Support for 64-bit third-party Audio Units plug-ins
  • Keyframable audio levels and effects
  • Adjust audio filters in real time during playback
  • 5.1 surround monitoring and keyframe control for panning
  • Preset animations for 5.1 surround panning such as Back to Front, Rotate, Create Space, and more
  • 10- or 31-parameter EQ built into each audio clip
  • Match Audio for smoothing out EQ from different microphones
  • Audio enhancements for volume normalization, background noise removal, and hum removal for both 50Hz and 60Hz
  • Audio analysis during import option to remove serious background noise and flag medium-level issues for enhancement
  • Over 1300 royalty-free sound effects included as a separate download
  • Individual audio channel control for enable/disable and configuration
  • Audio skimming with pitch preserved
  • Fade handles at the head and tail of each clip
  • Audio pan controls
  • Disable and solo controls
  • Audio waveform display in viewer and timeline
  • Logarithmic audio fades
  • More than 100 audio filters
  • “Show Reference Audio Waveforms” preference to see original waveform height when adjusting volume in the timeline
  • VU meters that expand as needed

Color Correction
  • Unique Color Board with controls for saturation, exposure, and color
  • Match Color for precise shot matching in one click
  • Balance Color instantly improves skin tones, removes color casts, and expands dynamic range of bright and dark regions of the image.
  • Keyframable masks with size, rotation, and softness adjustments
  • Adjust inside or outside of color mask
  • Unlimited numbers of color corrections per shot
  • Save and reuse color settings presets
  • 20 Color Board presets
  • Over 20 advanced color Looks in the Effects Browser

Supported Formats and I/O1
  • Apple ProRes family, a 10-bit, full-width VBR codec that supports all major frame sizes and frame rates from ProRes Proxy to ProRes 4444
  • Resolutions supported up to 4K frame sizes
  • Background transcode original media to ProRes 422 or ProRes Proxy for better performance
  • Create Camera Archives from any folder of media for importing into Final Cut Pro.
  • Import Camera Archives from third-party video capture cards and software.
  • Import from Apple devices including iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad 2.
  • Import projects and Events from iMovie.
  • Sony IMX, XDCAM, XDCAM EX, XDCAM HD, and XDCAM HD422 import supported with additional Sony software
  • FireWire device control for streaming capture for tape-based HDV, DV, DVCAM, DVCPRO, DVCPRO 50, and DVCPRO HD
  • Export presets for Apple devices, including Apple TV, iPhone, iPad, and Mac
  • Export presets for YouTube, Podcast Producer, Facebook, Vimeo, CNN iReport, and email
  • Export and burn DVD, AVCHD disc, and Blu-ray disc.2
  • Apple-designed menus for DVDs and animated menus for Blu-ray discs
  • Export as Image Sequence
  • Export as HTTP live streaming for Internet streaming to cellular, Wi-Fi, and broadband.
  • Export audio as AAC, AC3, AIFF, CAF, MP3, and WAVE files.

    Native editing3 support for:

  • H.264 from GoPro and iFrame cameras
  • H.264 from DSLR cameras
  • Broadcast Wave Format
  • DV, DVCAM, DVCPRO, DVCPRO 50, and DVCPRO HD
  • HDV
  • Panasonic AVC-Intra, including AVC-Intra 100 and AVC-Intra 50
  • Sony IMX, XDCAM HD, XDCAM HD422, and XDCAM EX
  • JVC-created XDCAM EX
  • Canon XF MPEG-2; ingest supported with additional software
  • AVCHD, including Panasonic AVCCAM and Sony NXCAM
  • Uncompressed 8- and 10-bit SD and HD
  • Apple Intermediate Codec
  • Still images including PSD, BMP, GIF, RAW, JPEG, PNG, TGA, and TIFF
  • Compressed audio including AAC, AIFF, BWF, CAF, MP3, MP4, and WAV

Media Management
  • Content Auto-Analysis attaches useful metadata during import.
  • Range-based keywords for creating custom searchable metadata
  • Create Smart Collections for automatically organizing clips based on selected criteria.
  • Keyword Collection created by importing a folder of media
  • Mark ranges as Favorites or Rejects for sorting and sifting.
  • Media management tools for moving and copying media
  • Render file deletion per project
  • Move and Merge Events functions
  • Consolidate Project Media for moving media to another system
  • Extensive search, sort, and sift capabilities in the Event Browser
  • Transcode Media function allows a choice between optimizing to ProRes 422 or creating ProRes Proxy media in the background while editing.
  • Group clips by creation date, date imported, reel, scene, duration, or file type.
  • Group Events by year or by year and month.
  • Show date ranges in the Event Library.
  • Arrange clips by name, take, or duration.
  • Reveal clip in Finder or Event Browser.
  • Custom comment fields
  • Preference for connecting to proxy or original high-resolution media
  • Send-to-Compressor integration

 

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