Phantom High-Speed Camera Workflow on Apple Silicon Macs
Phantom cameras such as the Flex4K record to CineMag, and the CineMag is read on a CineStation. On a modern Mac with Apple silicon, that last step has been the problem.
The Apple silicon gap
The vendor's software development kit for talking to CineStations only runs on Intel Macs, and the vendor's own tools need Windows or an Intel Mac. On an Apple silicon Mac that means keeping an old Intel laptop or a Windows PC on the cart just for offload, or slowing down the set while footage is copied somewhere else.
A native option: MagDock
MagDock talks to the CineStation directly over 10GbE, without the vendor SDK, and runs natively on Apple silicon. It does the two jobs needed on set:
- Review: play any take straight from the CineMag, in slow motion, with the camera's color and anamorphic squeeze undone, frame by frame if needed.
- Offload: copy takes as lossless .cine at about 350 MB/s, ready for DaVinci Resolve.
| MagDock | Vendor tools | |
|---|---|---|
| Runs natively on Apple silicon | Yes | No |
| Play takes from the CineMag | Yes | Intel Mac or Windows PC |
| Offload CineMag to .cine | Yes, ~350 MB/s | Intel Mac or Windows PC |
| Anamorphic-aware playback | Yes | — |
What MagDock does not do
MagDock works with the CineMag through the CineStation. It does not control the camera itself (settings, triggering, live view), and playback is a half-resolution preview for reviewing takes; offloaded files are full resolution.
Supported hardware
Tested with a Phantom CineStation IV and a CineMag IV 1TB recorded on a Phantom Flex4K, over a 10GbE Thunderbolt adapter. Other CineStation and CineMag models use the same protocol but have not been tested yet. If you try one, let me know how it goes.
Step by step: how to offload a Phantom CineMag on a Mac.