DaVinci Resolve 14 w/Fairlight vs Avid Pro Tools

With the very welcome addition of Fairlight to DaVinci Resolve 14 I must imagine that is to compete with Pro Tools (Truly Professional Tools is the headline in the Firelight page!), an industry "standard" and very much part of most profesional workflows.

I love the idea to have Edit, Color and Audio Mix in the same NLE platform, but I wonder how they compare.

Also, in the bottom of the DaVinci Resolve 14 the Firelight name is greyed out, like signaling an additional, stand alone software, or most likely the mix Professional Consoles.

Marco Solario wrote and interesting essay on the Firelight addition to DR14 and a comparison with Pro Tools. Here the link to the complete article http://www.onerivermedia.com/blog/fairlight-part-1/

From Marco Solario:
I’ve been a ProTools user for roughly 20 years now. Over that time, I’ve invested a LOT of money in building and expanding our ProTools equipment in our audio control room and recording studio of the years. Part of that investment includes a 40-channel ProControl mixing console with Edit Pack (surround sound support) that Avid hasn’t supported since ProTools 10 (ProTools is up to version 12.7 as of this writing). In other words, Avid refuses to allow their older control surfaces to work with ProTools 11 or 12 (remember, there is no audio processing in these control surfaces at all) in hopes of forcing their longtime legacy users like me into buying into their new hardware, specifically the high-dollar S3 control surface (singular, non-expandable unit) and S6 modular control surface lineup as the top offerings from Avid (other options include the dated and non-expandable C|24 console and the small but limited Artist Series that include the Artist Mix, Artist Control, and the newer ProTools Dock that requires an addition Apple iPad purchase). The S3 and S6 options are ludicrous to me since (A) my old control surface hardware works perfectly for my needs and (B) other companies have long supported their older control surface hardware with modern software (e.g., a 15-year old DaVinci panel can work under today’s Resolve under Linux and the original Fairlight control surfaces from decades ago still work with today’s Fairlight software). I’ve been more than willing to upgrade to Avid’s newer PCIe hardware and I/O hardware, but the buck stops here with the need to replace my entire surround sound mixing console that is otherwise perfectly functional.



Comparative Pricing At A Glance
(Prices as of this writing in U.S. Dollars)

Blackmagic Design DaVinci Resolve / Fairlight Options
FREE Resolve
$299 Resolve Studio
$995* Fairlight PCIe Accelerator card
$2295* Fairlight 1RU Digital/Analog Audio Interface box
FREE Resolve/Fairlight Support

AVID ProTools Options
$24.92 ProTools (Monthly Subscription, upgrades included, no hardware)
$299 ProTools (Annual License, upgrades included, no hardware)
$599 ProTools (Perpetual License, upgrades NOT included, no hardware)
$2499 ProTools HD (Perpetual License, no hardware)
$2999 ProTools HD (Perpetual license w/ PCIe Native card, no audio I/O hardware)
$4999 ProTools HD (Perpetual license w/ PCIe HDX core card, no audio I/O hardware)
$1899 ProTools HD Software Upgrade (From previous version)
$999 ProTools HD (Reinstatement Plan up to 1 year)
$399 ProTools HD (Annual Support Renewal Plan)
$1999 AVID HD I/O PRE
$1999 AVID HD I/O 16×16 Digital
$2995 AVID HD I/O OMNI
$3499 AVID HD I/O 8x8x8 Digital/Analog
$4499 AVID HD I/O 16×16 Analog
$4495 AVID HD MADI

I have to admit, Avid obsoleting Pro Tools hardware every few years is a frustrating experience for every Pro Tools studio owner.