DaVinci Resolve 18 Out of Beta – Final Release Is Here

Software News

by Jakub HanJuly 21^st, 2022

Today, Blackmagic Design releases the final version of DaVinci Resolve 18, which is therefore now out of Beta. The main new features of Resolve 18 are Blackmagic Cloud support for remote collaboration, DaVinci proxy workflow, new Resolve FX, improved subtitling, AI image stabilization, and Fairlight fixed to FlexBus. Resolve 18 is now available on the Blackmagic Design support webpage.

Back in April 2022 during the NAB Show in Las Vegas, Blackmagic Design announced (among other cool “cloudy” stuff) the new DaVinci Resolve 18 Beta. Of course, our team was there on the show floor and we had Simon Hall from Blackmagic Design tell us about the new features on the color page. Make sure to check out the video in case you missed it.

As with every new generation of DaVinci Resolve, the software starts as Beta and goes through a few updates that iron out possible bugs and stability issues, and fine-tune the new features. Today, after a few months of new Beta versions, Blackmagic Design launched the final release version of DaVinci Resolve 18. Let’s take a look at the details.

DaVinci Resolve 18 final release

Perhaps the most notable updates in Resolve 18 are Blackmagic Cloud support for remote collaboration, DaVinci proxy workflow, new Resolve FX, improved subtitling, AI image stabilization, and Fairlight fixed to FlexBus. The list of new key features in Resolve 18 includes:

• Blackmagic Cloud to host and manage cloud-based project libraries
• Collaborate securely over the internet using Blackmagic ID
• Support for intelligent path mapping to relink files automatically
• Vastly improved project library performance for network workflows
• Improved project performance, especially when working with large projects
• New Proxy Generator app for auto-creating proxies within watch folders
• Ability to choose between prioritizing proxies or camera originals
• Proxy files in subfolders are automatically assigned in the media pool

The full list of new features in DaVinci Resolve 18 is divided into sections corresponding to different sections or pages in the app.

Media & Edit

• Stabilize Blackmagic Pocket Camera clips with camera gyro metadata
• New subtitle improvements including:
  • Support for timed text TTML, XML and embedded MXF/IMF subtitles
  • Ability to view and import subtitles from media storage
  • Support for relinking subtitle clips from the media pool
  • Subtitle region support with multiple simultaneous captions per track
  • Set individual presets, text positions and intuitively edit between regions
  • Add, rename and manage regions from the timeline context menu
  • Ability to export TTML subtitles from the track header context menu
  • Ability to import, export and embed multiple subtitle tracks as TTML
• Support for reversing shape, iris and wipe transitions in the edit page
• Support for showing up to 25 simultaneous multicam angles on the viewer
• Edit Index now shows clip duration
• Ability to navigate keyframes outside trimmed clip extents
• Ability to navigate retime keyframes using hotkeys
• Smart bin filter for disabled timelines
• Render in place and open in Fusion actions can be assigned shortcuts
• Reset Fusion composition now works on multiple clip selections

Color

• New object mask capability in Magic Mask
• Adjustment clips and Fusion generators can bypass color management
• Support for syncing clip groups in remote grading sessions
• Ability to trigger bidirectional tracking from advanced and mini panels
• Support for matte finesse and 3D qualifier in advanced and mini panels
• Dolby Vision highlight clipping support in advanced panels
• Support for bypassing color outputs from advanced panels
• Add key mixers with auto-connected key outs from advanced panels
• Support for bidirectional tracking in advanced panels
• Support for fast review playback mode in advanced panels
• ACES support for Blackmagic Gen 5 camera formats
• Support for the HDR Vivid standard
• Reference gamut compression enabled by default in ACES 1.3

Resolve FX

• New Resolve FX Depth Map to generate 3D depth based keys in Studio
• New Resolve FX Fast Noise
• New Resolve FX Despill
• New Resolve FX Surface Tracker for tracking warped surfaces in Studio
• Improved Resolve FX Beauty with new ultra mode
• Improved edge strength and filter controls in Resolve FX Edge Detection
• Option to composite from a second input in Resolve FX Transform
• New bokeh preset for Resolve FX Lens Reflections
• Green-purple control for Resolve FX Chromatic Aberration
• Sizing awareness option in Resolve FX lens flare and radial & zoom blurs

Fairlight

• Ability to convert fixed bus projects to FlexBus in project settings
• Ability to freely order tracks and buses in the mixer via the track index
• Ability to nudge custom millisecond or sub-frame intervals in the timeline
• Improved quality for time stretched audio
• Improved Dolby Atmos immersive mixing, including binaural monitoring
• Native support for Dolby Atmos production for Linux and Apple silicon
• Independent controls to enable automation and expose parameters
• Improved behavior of automated tracks under VCA control
• Improved meters with configurable decay, peak hold and display modes
• Ability to ctrl-alt click to remove gain and elastic wave keyframes
• Ability to double click a clip in the timeline to rename
• Ability to set record clip name prefix at a per-track level
• Support for renaming underlying tracks when renaming a linked group
• Equalizers with improved Q controls and mouse wheel inputs
• Dynamics with enhanced metering, gain display and enable controls
• Dynamics with improved dry mix, soft knee and metering in FlexBus
• Improved plugin management with replace and copy settings in the mixer
• New built in presets for equalizers and dynamics
• Hold shift and double click clips to extend the edit selection range
• Support for applying audio gain on range selection
• Improved waveform display accuracy under crossfades
• Origination time metadata is now persisted when bouncing mix to track
• Option to trim from unity on the Fairlight Desktop Console
• Support for VCA and bus spill on the Fairlight Desktop Console
• Support for using the Fairlight Desktop Console on Linux systems
• Studio monitoring support for FlexBus on consoles
• Fairlight console option to mute speakers on timeline load
• Support for chasing timecode via Fairlight audio interfaces
• Support for user views in the Fairlight Desktop Console
• Improved mapping for audio effects on the Audio Editor panel
• Ability to use alt + solo to invoke solo safe in the Audio Editor panel
• Support for a new clear mutes action in the timeline menu
• Enabling track mixer controls brings window to focus if already open
• Grid and list modes are persisted for patch, bus and VCA assign

Fusion

• Multi-button mode selection in inspector for multiple tools
• Support for all modern and future python 3 versions for scripting
• Support for live previews when using the Text+ color picker
• Multiple new composition blend modes
• New expression animated Custom Poly modifier for masks and strokes
• Faster GPU accelerated paint tool with smoother strokes
• Faster duplicate tool with additional blur, glow and size controls
• Improved fade-on and text ripple title performance
• Improved performance for night vision, glitch, TV and other effects

Codecs

• Support for Blackmagic RAW SDK 2.6
• Support for video uploads to internet accounts using custom presets
• Support for encoding mono and stereo MP3 audio
• New HyperDeck export preset in the Quick Export and deliver page
• Ability to render individual clips with timeline effects
• Ability to embed Blackmagic RAW metadata in QuickTime renders
• Custom quality and profile media management options where available
• Support for rendering Dolby Vision compatible H.265 clips
• Support for decoding CMYK format TIFF files
• Support for retaining reel name metadata in rendered EXRs
• Support for record date and time metadata for JPEG stills
• Alpha channel support in the IO Encode Plugin SDK
• Support for RED SDK 8.3
• Support for the ARRI Alexa 35 camera
• New 1440p YouTube preset
• Render option to override ACES gamut compression for round trips
• Main10 is now the default H.265 encoding profile on Mac

General

• Support for 10-bit viewers on Windows and Linux in Studio
• Stream video output to remote monitoring in Windows and Linux in Studio
• Apple Neural Engine support for DaVinci Neural Engine on M1 and M1 Pro
• Support for Korean localizations in DaVinci Resolve
• PostgreSQL 13 is now bundled with Project Server
• Support for desktop notifications for collaboration chat
• User preference to import Finder tags as clip keywords on Mac
• Support for importing and exporting Final Cut Pro v1.10 XMLs
• Ability to unlink Dropbox comment and marker sync for timelines
• Playback and render now prevents Mac systems from sleeping
• Render jobs now show progress bars for uploads
• Support for per-system project working paths in collaboration and cloud
• Support for per-system render cache mode in collaboration and cloud
• Support for setting current project settings as default
• Drag and drop project archives to project manager to restore
• Scripting API support for creating Fusion compositions
• Scripting API support for exporting project archives
• Scripting API support to get and set timeline start timecode
• Scripting API support to detect stale media bins and refresh them
• Scripting API support for updating camera raw sidecar files
• General performance and stability improvements

Price and availability

As always, the latest version of DaVinci Resolve is available now as a free download from the Blackmagic Support Center. The full Studio license of DaVinci Resolve 18 is also available on the same page, but you will need to purchase an activation code in order to launch it. The full license for two computers currently costs $295, or you can get the license with a Blackmagic Speed Editor (check our review here) for $395. The license also comes with every new Blackmagic Design camera.

The DaVinci Resolve installer now includes a new standalone application, Blackmagic Proxy Generator Lite. The DaVinci Resolve Studio installer includes the new Blackmagic Proxy Generator and the new DaVinci Resolve Monitoring app. In addition to these, a new version of the DaVinci Resolve Project Server can be downloaded for Mac OS and Windows from their support page.

When it comes to the project library, DaVinci Resolve 18 requires a project library upgrade from Resolve 18.0b5 and all previous versions. It is strongly recommended that you back up your existing (disk-based and PostgreSQL-based) project libraries before upgrading to this release. Once you upgrade your project library to 18, you cannot use that library in previous versions of DaVinci Resolve.

Do you use DaVinci Resolve for your post-production work? What do you think about the new Resolve 18? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section underneath the article.