DaVinci Resolve 18 Beta 2 Update Released – Adds Object Mask and Tracking for Magic Mask and More

Editing Software

by Jakub HanMay 3^rd, 2022

DaVinci Resolve 18 Beta 2 update has been released and it brings object mask and tracking for magic mask, an improved Dolby Atmos immersive mixing, including binaural monitoring, native support for Dolby Atmos production for Linux and Apple silicon, as well as further improvements and bug fixes.

The NAB Show in Las Vegas is now behind us and Blackmagic Design had a strong presence at the show. A few days prior to NAB, the Australian company announced a few new hardware gadgets as well as the new DaVinci Resolve 18 Beta. On the NAB show floor, we met up with Simon from Blackmagic Design who showed us the main new features (other than the cloud functionality). Make sure to check the article and the video. Only two weeks after the Resolve 18 release, Blackmagic Design launches the Beta 2 version with some new improvements, so let’s take a look at it.

DaVinci Resolve 18 Beta 2

Perhaps the most interesting new feature of the Resolve 18 Beta 2 is the addition of a new object mask capability in the magic mask. Make sure to watch our video below from the NAB show where Simon Hall walked us through the new features on the Resolve color page.

Other notable new features comprise an improved Dolby Atmos immersive mixing, including binaural monitoring, and native support for Dolby Atmos production for Linux and Apple silicon.

Here is the full list of improvements and new features in DaVinci Resolve 18 Beta 2:

• New object mask capability in Magic Mask.
• Improved Dolby Atmos immersive mixing, including Binaural monitoring.
• Native support for Dolby Atmos production for Linux and Apple silicon.
• Support for rendering Dolby Vision compatible H.265 clips.
• Addressed firewall issues with initiating collaboration.
• Addressed a crash when zooming out of the timeline with markers.
• Addressed issue where a newly saved project was not locked.
• Addressed issue with proxy indicators not updating.
• Addressed issue with sizing presets on clips without grades.
• Addressed a duration issue with a place on top for still images.
• Addressed an issue with saving Fusion layouts to workspace presets.
• Addressed a crash with some XML timeline imports.
• Addressed a crash when quickly switching between timelines.
• Addressed crashes on certain Intel graphics systems.
• 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 costs currently $295 or you can get the license with a Blackmagic Speed Editor (check our review here) for $395. The license also comes with all new Blackmagic Design cameras.

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 17.4.6 and 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 can not 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 comments section underneath the article.