Hey guys,

First off, thanks for all the great info on these boards. I have two questions that are stumping me to no end.

How come fcp botches my audio no matter what file type it is? I have tried aiff .wav .mp3 and a few more. The track seems like it plays fine but then it has random clipping issues. Probably about 20 flaws per 3 minute song. I know it is not just me as a few of my buddies run into the same issue. We all are editing different media and so it shouldn't be a settings issue, or should it? Im lost.

Also, I have until recently cut everything in h.264 codecs and have had success exporting the same codec. No issues. But now I am working with 5dm2 footage that I have transcoded to prores 422 (LT). I love this codec and my cutting is seamless, but when I go to export I am running into a lot of issues. How do you guys suggest exporting from prores codecs. Most of my finished films just need to be vimeo friendly. I have no issue exporting through compressor for dvd's but I just cant figure out the right container for my vimeo videos.

Fcp 7
imac i7 8g ram
typical sequence
1920x1080
prores LT
linear pcm
44.1

Thanks to anybody who is willing to help me. Have a good one.

What do you mean by random clipping issues. I had problems (total lack of audio knowledge) where my audio was in the yellow zone (-6 to 0 db) and my speakers were blowing out. Set everything below into the green zone and it plays great.

I have never had audio issues, so no help there. I usually convert anything that is not 48khz 16bit to that, maybe that helps or maybe it is just an old habit ... whatever, I have no issues with audio.

As for export -- by what method? Again, my habit is to export a ProRes master, then use that master to generate distribution formats through Compressor -- but I'd have guessed I could go straight from the timeline to Compressor, I just prefer to have a master on file and ProRes seems the way to go.

HTH

GB

The audio sounds like it is "snapping" every now and then. Almost like if you were plugging and unplugging an audio cable. The track is completely clean prior to the timeline though.

The export issue I am having is on a music video that I just finished. The problem is that it was shot in a studio and the walls behind the subject are selectively lit, thus resulting in very smooth gradients. This is what continues to pixelate, especially during cross dissolves. Can you explain your master pro res file you were talking about? I exported in pro res but I am unable to syndicate to the web(youtube) with it. The prores export is the only one that looks solid too.

Thanks

No answer for your audio problem, only that I never have one.

Use the ProRes master in Compressor to generate the version for YouTube -- it is one of the presets & labelled as such.

Cheers,
GB

You don't explain your issues very well. if you do, you'll likely get more response.
Gradient and ProResLT don't mix well IMHO, maybe it's worth making an online edit with HQ. You can also adjust the processing quality of your timeline. Mastering means exporting a self-contained file (no conversion) the taking that into compressor and making the conversion there.

For the audio, is your scratch disk fast enough? how many streams of vid are you pulling with the audio at once? if your required bitrate is approaching the capacity of the disk sometimes the audio can do weird things.

Sorry bout my descriptions. I will definitely try to be more thorough.

When you say "maybe it's worth making an online edit with HQ" do you mean changing my sequence setting to pro res HQ?

How do I adjust the processing quality of the timeline?

How do I know when I have enough room on my scratch disk? Is there any standard to go by?

Thanks a ton for any info.

All of this info is readily available by searching here and consulting the manual.

One way to go online, re-log/transfer the clips that you used. Then use the reconnect media option on each clip to point to it's higher quality version. Then change the timeline to HQ. Changing it now won't help any, youve already thrown anyway info by going LT in the first place.
Another is to use Media Manager, although some people have a really hard time with this direction. I've always had good success with MM but YMMV.

To change your video procesing quality go to sequence settings, then the video processing tab.

No standard really I avoid loading more than 75% full. And NEVER use your system disk for any resources: music, pics, etc. Use your scratch disk.