Pinnacle Studio 9 Media Suite - Video Editing Software Suite

Rating:
Summary: Nice video editing but beware of the audio
Review: I have used Pinnacle Video editing software professionally for several years. My experience with Pinnacle has been positive and I have produced a lot of work with their software. I think Pinnacle has really pioneered video editing for home use as well. Indeed I'm quite familiar with their versions of Studio 7, 8, 9 and 9 plus. I recently purchased their STUDIO MediaSuite for home use. It seemed like a nice package to have video, audio and photo editing all in one. Actually, I didn't need the photo editing because I use Adobe's Photoshop Elements (a really solid piece of software).

The short answer is that the video component works quite well. The interface is easy to understand and use. I'm sure most folks would be up and running in no time. Don't forget to check their web site for product updates.

The sound editing capability is another story. Pinnacle has (apparently) licensed Steinberg WaveLab Lite as the audio editor. WaveLab Lite is a home version of its more robust professional software. The first big problem I ran into using WaveLab is that it has no ability to rip CDs. None. This is quite surprising since that is one of the claims Pinnacle makes for this software on the outside of the box. So if you purchase MediaSuite you will have to purchase a separate software for ripping CDs. The second problem is that neither Pinnacle nor Steinberg will support WaveLab Lite. This makes a certain kind of business logic sense Steinberg doesn't sell it and Pinnacle doesn't own it. Yet it's an orphaned software that no one will claim as their own and will not support. So be forewarned that if you purchase MediaSuite then you are on your own if you have any problems with it.

Other than that, this seems to be a fairly good product all in all.