This has been the day that FCPX users have been waiting for – The major update to Final Cut Pro X that has been long overdue.

Most of us that come from a Final Cut background are well aware of some of the shortcomings of the original release of X, but many of us have still been using it despite these issues as there are functions in the software that are unmatched in other NLE’s. Multicam for example. But for many users, some of the shortcomings were enough to get them to change platforms. Premiere Pro picked up a lot of ex Final Cut users for good reason. For myself, I used Premiere on occasion to edit R3D’s natively, which was huge. Now, Final Cut Pro X has added in native R3D Support. Be aware though if you want to use 10.0.6 with your RED files, you must download the RED plugin here: http://www.red.com/learn/workflow/red-apple-workflow-final-cut-pro-x

The RED support on FCP X is fantastic. The interface to manipulate your r3d settings in clean and has all of the usual controls. I also like that FCPX automatically brings in only the r3d file you want (not the spanned files) and keeps your folder structure in tact. It works quickly and seamlessly and like any other media you can transcode to ProRes in the background. All in all, I find the implementation far cleaner than Premiere Pro, which does the job but in a messy, clunky way.

For myself, the .r3d native editing was by far the most important new feature in the 10.0.6 update for my specific needs as I shoot and edit a lot of RED footage. With that said though, the other additional updates are equally if not more impressive to other users. On Apple’s site you can find a full list of the added features: http://www.apple.com/finalcutpro/whats-new/

And here is a great article written by Philip Hodgetts about the new update: http://www.philiphodgetts.com/2012/10/final-cut-pro-x-10-0-6/

I haven’t had enough time to test all of the new features to give a full review yet, but all in all what I have seen has been incredible. This should definitely start to put FCP X back on the map for many ex final cutters that had abandoned it in the past.