Studio One: Video Editing

Dragging a video clip into Studio One will automatically create a Global Video Track.

Studio One, from version 6 on, is now a surprisingly powerful video editor!

In version 6 of Studio One, PreSonus revamped the Global Video Track from a simple player into something more useful. Video can now become an editable part of your project, letting you build podcasts, pull out TikToks, grab Insta reels or orchestrate your latest movie. I’m sure there are other possibilities between TikTok and eating popcorn at your local flicks, but that’s a discussion for another time. The important thing is that working with film, footage, clips, video, grabs, or movies is now completely possible in Studio One. Let’s check out how.

Elegant Or Simple?

First of all, before we all get too excited, the video support in Studio One is rather elementary. This is not going to replace the depth and detail of Davinci Resolve or Final Cut Pro. There are just enough tools and possibilities to make it worthwhile exploring, but many of the vital things video editors need, like fades and crossfades, text overlay and colour correction, are unavailable. However, if you just shot a video podcast and need to take out all the coughs and “errs” then this is perfect. Alternatively, if you want to experiment with arranging video and audio clips side‑by‑side, this will do the job nicely. And if you are composing to video and need a bit of versatility and proper synchronisation when moving edits, then you will find what you need here.

The point is that a lot of the content we are creating nowadays is mixed media, and we often have to shift from one editing environment to another depending on what’s driving our production. The Global Video Track doesn’t solve that problem entirely, but it can keep you in the familiar space of Studio One more of the time.

In The Frame

As with most things in Studio One, the easiest way to import things is to drag them in from the browser. There’s no limit to the number of videos you can pull in. Use the Files tab to find the folder with your video files; if they are compatible, they will appear with a filmstrip icon. In fact, I think drag‑and‑drop is the only way to import video files, and you can drag them in directly from a folder rather than using the built‑in browser if you prefer.

The supported codecs will depend on your OS. Macs support QuickTime, MPEG‑4 and M4V using the H.264 and HEVC codecs. QuickTime also supports MPEG and Apple ProRes. On Windows, you have MPEG‑4 and M4V using H.264 and HEVC, and MPEG=PS using H.264 and MPEG. You will get the smoothest ride if all the clips within a single project use the same format and frame rate.

Drag your video into any space, and Studio One will automatically create the Video Track at the top of the project in the Global Track lane. Alternatively, you can open the Video Track yourself by clicking on the Global Track Visibility icon and selecting it from the menu. It’s the same place you’ll find the Chord Track, Lyric Track, Markers and so on. Studio One generates thumbnails for...