This is a video I/O card with really nice features and very tight integration into Final Cut Pro. You need the cables or breakout box for it to be useful. It can also be used in a DAW setup to give 8 channels of audio I/O. I gave it three stars because it's such a picky card. Depending on your machine and it's architecture you will need to refer to the manual and install it in the recommended slot. I also have LOTS of coreaudiod freezes while using this card. I found that it does not get along with other PCIe cards very well, or external firewire devices. You may have to move the card to other slots or not use it with other hardware in your machine altogether to get it to behave well. But, if you're making a purpose built machine for HD and 2K editing you should be able to get it under control.