Editors are looking for any tools or tricks to speed up the post-production process. Much of what is required for editing is tedious at the best of times, and any advantage can increase the editor’s output. While hotkeys are a big help, there are a lot to remember. Blackmagic Design, maker of the editing software, Davinci Resolve, have a solution in the form of hardware for their own software; The DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor.
The DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor is, in essence, a macro keyboard with all of the most common commands laid out and clearly labelled, with the added perk of a shuttle/jog wheel. As someone who spent late nights in the editing bays in college editing projects, the time saved from using similar tools is invaluable.
At roughly 9.5” x 6”, the DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor is a nice, portable solution. Editors today aren’t just professionals in studios with their own bay to go to their work. They are creators who do everything in their own space, meaning that they can’t always have their edit controllers set up for them in front of their monitor, awaiting the next edit session. They already have a setup in front of them and, if you want them to set aside their keyboard and mouse setup for your device, you need to make it easy which, taking up such a small footprint, the speed editor does well.
Portability
Beyond the desk at your home or office, many editors are constantly on the move. I recently watched Ryan Trahan’s latest penny series where they were putting out daily vlogs in Europe. His editor would meet him on site to receive the latest footage and go back to cutting together videos that garnered millions of views. Your situation may not be that dire, but you may be on a trip and want to get some editing done but keep up the same workflows as you would at home. The DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor is small enough to take with you in your laptop bag so you have your full editing suite wherever you go.
In the box, you get the DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor, a USB-C cable and, the biggest value in the box, an activation key for DaVinci Resolve Studio, the paid version of DaVinci Resolve with a bunch of extra features not available in the free version. We’ll get into the value that this adds to the package later, but trust me, it’s a lot.
Build Quality
The overall build quality of the DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor is solid. It has the weight to it that sends a clear message that this is no toy. The keys are clicky and responsive, reminiscent less of a current gaming computer and more of the sounds of an older keyboard that you might find at school (when you hear it, you’ll know). But the icing on the cake is the wheel. It is so smooth and feels so good. People who have done anything in broadcasting will never forget the feeling of a truly great jog wheel and this feels incredibly high end. It offers little to no resistance in your hand as you spin it.
Layout and Functionality
With 43 keys plus the jog wheel, the DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor packs in a lot of functionality. Many keys even have a secondary function as indicated on the side of the keys. Among those functions are hotkeys to mark in and out points, smart insert, which allows you to find the nearest edit and insert the desired clip and trim in/out, which lets you slide the clip to get the in or out point just right. You can switch between cameras, toggle between source menu and the timeline, insert transitions and so much more.
The jog wheel does a lot more than just jog through the footage. Depending on which mode you choose, you can jog, which will go through your timeline frame by frame doing 60 frames per rotation, scroll, which will go through the timeline faster at 1 minute per rotation and shuttle, which can fast forward up to 32x speed.The wheel can help you be as speedy or precise as you want to be.
Another great feature is the fact that it can be wireless. The DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor has bluetooth connectivity, allowing you to place it where you want for your comfort and convenience and also making a mobile editing suite that is much more customizable.
Customization
What isn’t customizable, however, is the layout or functions of the keys, which is my only gripe. Given that it doesn’t make sense to change the functions when the keys are labelled, that makes perfect sense, but what I then question is “Is The DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor my best option for performing this function?”
There are stream controllers, macro keyboards and other devices where you can take most of these options and place them wherever you want. Sometimes they have knobs that you can use for anything, from scrolling to zooming in and out on the timeline. I have one in my own setup that I use for editing both video and photos and I have it set up just the way I want it. So why would one get The DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor for $395 USD when they can get something like that even cheaper?
Who is the DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor For?
Sometimes you don’t know what you need until you have it. The DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor is built for editors with every function specifically in mind for editors. If those functions aren’t a part of your everyday workflow, they will be in no time. What kind of an editor is this for, though? The pros will take to this quickly, but hobbyists will have a learning curve. Plus, for the non-professionals amongst us, the multicam controls, which take up a lot of keys, are overkill for a lot of creators, who may only use one or two cameras.
Now I mentioned the $395 dollar price tag and the fact that there is a big value with it. The price for DaVinci Resolve Studio on its own is $295 USD, technically making the DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor only $100 when you take that price into account. There is simply no other controller out there for that value, period. So to get one that is high quality and also get a full license for amazing post-production software at one package price is phenomenal and definitely worth a look if you are looking to take your editing game up a notch.
