Premiere Pro Multiple Empty Tracks On Import

[Len Rosenberg]

Camera is a Sony Z200. When I import a video clip (via drag and drop from hard drive to the timeline in Adobe Premiere Pro 2026, I get three video tracks and eight audio tracks. Only one video track and two audio tracks have content, the others are empty. The camera is set to record audio only on inputs 1 and 2. The delete all empty tracks command works on video tracks but not on audio tracks. My questions are 1) how to stop Premiere from creating empty tracks on import, and 2) why does the delete all empty audio tracks not work? I've tried researching this on google but have not found the answers. Many thanks for any help.
Len

[Andrew Smith]

Hi Len, you've come to the right place.

Premiere is doing the honourable thing by bringing in all eight audio channels of the XDCAM etc video format regardless of whether you were actually using each one of them or not. Before moving a clip from the assets bin onto a timeline, right click on it and select Modify--> Audio channels per the screenshots attached.

For my typical useage, I reduce the channel count down to just three and allocare to ch 1 (a lapel mic / PA feed etc) and Ch 3 and Ch 4 for the internal mics on my Sony PMW-300.

This gives me a much more manageable edit timeline when you place the clip there.

Let us know how this works for you.

Andrew

[Len Rosenberg]

Thanks for the reply Andrew. I had tried that and selected 2 audio tracks. It was an improvement, in that I ended up with three video and four audio tracks instead of eight audio tracks, but that is not a fix. I then tried selecting only one audio track, and it reverted to eight audio tracks. I still can't understand why the Delete All Empty Audio Tracks does not work.

[Andrew Smith]

I would guess that because those audio tracks have an audio track/channel in them from the video, they aren't deemed to be "empty" by Premiere.

What video format were you filming in? Soiunds like it is more than mere XDCAM.

Andrew

[Len Rosenberg]

Using XAVC S-I. 3840x2160, H.264, 10 bit, 422, MXF wrapper. XDCAM is not an option on this camera.

[Andrew Smith]

The format I'm not too familiar with. Doug Jensen will know more.

Doug?

Andrew

[Doug Jensen]

What Andrew already posted in his first reply is exactly right and what I teach in my videos. Very easy. And if you do it right, then no deleting tracks on the timeline should ever be necessary. So, if you are having to do that, then you didn't do the Modify Audio step correctly. I recommend starting with a totally fresh Project and a new timeline and experimenting with the Modify settings until you have a feel for what choices to make to ensure the tracks come in as you want them. Then go back to your real project and do the same thing.

QUOTE:Premiere is doing the honourable thing by bringing in all eight audio channels of the XDCAM etc video format regardless of whether you were actually using each one of them or not. Before moving a clip from the assets bin onto a timeline, right click on it and select Modify--> Audio channels per the screenshots attached.

The key phrase in that advice is: "Before moving a clip from the assets bin onto a timeline . . ."

[Len Rosenberg]

Thanks very much Doug. Can you let me know what video(s) you are referring to when you say you teach modify audio? I'd like to watch and learn.

Many thanks,

Len

[Doug Jensen]

I wish I could give you a link, but I don't think I've ever covered that topic in any of my public YouTube videos. It is a topic I cover in some of my Sony camcorder masterclass training videos, but those are all behind a paywall at Vimeo and it would not be worth your money to sign up for an entire masterclass just to watch a little segment about audio import. It's really only about a 1-2 minute segment, out of a 6-8 masterclass.

[Andrew Smith]

Len,

Sign up and do the whole master class anyway. It's absolutely worth it for all the other handy bits you will learn.

Doug is the man, and he hangs out here in the forums at DVinfo. That's how we roll.

Andrew

[Len Rosenberg]

Doug, I purchased your Master Class for the Z90 and the Z200. Both are great and were indispensable for me. There is no way I would have been able to get the Z200 to perform at it's best, let alone understand what's going on under the hood, without your instruction, so to me the class is worth every penny and then some. I have watched both many times over, of course the Z200 most recently. I do not recall any discussion of audio import in either class, and I'm pretty sure I watched every chapter. As you suggested, I will keep trying and hopefully figure it out. Thanks again for your help.

Best,

Len

[Doug Jensen]

Hi Len, I appreciate your support. Thank you. I can't recall if I covered this topic in the Z200 series, but I definitely covered in my FX6 masterclass. In fact, here is the actual script from that section. You can probably follow along even without the visuals to go along with it. I hope it helps.

https://vimeo.com/ondemand/fx6


"You might be surprised to find out the first time you start editing footage from the FX6 that some of your clips will have 4 channels of audio and some will have 8 channels -- depending on the recording format you have chosen. XAVC-L clips will always be recorded with 4 tracks of audio (even if some of them don't actually have any sound). But XAVC-I clips will always have 8 tracks of audio (even though you can only actually use 4 of them).

There is nothing you can do onboard the camera to reduce those numbers and record fewer tracks. The technical specifications for the XAVC-L codec requires there be 4 channels of audio -- and XAVC-L requires 8 channels. Unfortunately, channels 5 through 8 are only available if you’re using a studio deck such as Sony's XDS1000 Professional Media Station. So, for our purposes, as camera operators, it is best to say that the FX6 only records four channels of audio, even if that isn’t entirely accurate.

Fortunately, stripping off any unwanted audio channels in post is simple with most of the major non-linear editing systems. I don’t use Avid or Final Cut Pro, but I can show you how to do it with Adobe Premiere:

First, let’s import a batch of XAVC-I clips into a new bin. Now watch what happens when I drag one of those clips onto the timeline. We get eight audio tracks, but as you can see from the waveforms, only the pair at the top actually has any sound.

Let’s delete that clip from the timeline and go back over to the bin . . . I’ll use a keyboard shortcut to select all the clips in the bin . . . then I’ll right-click on any clip . . . and choose “Modify > Audio Channels.” This then brings up a dialog box where I can configure the audio channels however I want. I could even strip off all the audio tracks if I didn’t want them.

I usually choose “2” for the number of tracks . . . and “Mono” for the channel format. Next, when I click “OK,” all of the clips in the bin that were selected will be instantly changed with no re-rendering or other hassles. And since it’s non-destructive, I can always restore the missing audio channels if I change my mind later.

Now, watch what happens when I drag one of those clips onto the timeline. That is going to be much easier to work with and it only took a few seconds to change all the clips in the bin at once."