This guy built his own custom DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor

Consoles for video editing have become more available than ever these days. With devices like the Stream Deck, Blackmagic’s Speed Editor ($395), Tourbox and Loupedeck/Logitech, it seems we’re spoiled for choice. But what if none of them quite fit your needs?

Well, if you’re Justin Dickson at Flatlander Tech, you build your own. Well, kind of. Justin took the guts of the Speed Editor, along with a Stream Deck ($149.99) & Stream Deck Mini ($59.99) and put them all into a new single custom-designed housing, keeping everything at his fingertips.

Merging multiple control consoles

Removing the components of electronic devices to fit into your own custom enclosure isn’t easy. Even if we forget the risks of damaging them, there are a lot of things to measure, design, 3D print, test, iterate, print and test again. And then you’re in this cycle til it’s done.

There are also technical limitations to overcome. Limitations such as the fact that the Speed Editor and two Stream Decks require three USB ports to connect to your computer. So, a USB hub also needs to be factored into the equation and incorporated into the design.

But doing something like this can be worth the effort and hassle of going through the design and development process with the amount of time it saves when it’s complete.

How well does it work?

Justin has posted a second video showing how it all works. In it, he details the issues with the DaVinci Resolve Speed Editor when it comes to content creation and his workflow. Justin explains that he made the switch from Premiere Pro to DaVinci Resolve.

With Premiere Pro, he used the Loupedeck CT. But four years after its release, the Loupedeck CT still doesn’t have native DaVinci Resolve API support. This isn’t Loupedeck’s fault. Blackmagic simply refuses to allow them access. So, he switched to the Speed Editor.

But it’s not a perfect device for everyone, hence developing his own custom console. Now, every function is at his fingertips.

It’s not a project for the faint of heart, but if you want to give it a go for yourself, Justin has made the files available to download at PCBWay. You can even order the printed parts from them, too, if you don’t have a printer of your own.

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