Is this normal though?

Yes. You would think if you started with a clean drive that you would capture a totally defragged file. This just doesn't normally happen. I've tried starting with a clean drive and always ended up with a fragmented file.

I ran some tests and found that you HAVE to import the MPEG4 video from my camera via Pinnacle's DVS Importer program rather than just downloading the files straight to the hard drive. Your well-put questions solved the mystery. The process takes longer, but not near as long as removing a black frame every couple seconds throughout the timeline. Thanks again.

anyone with FCP experience??? render question...
 

*note, this may be better off in a different forum, i thought maybe a convert here would be able to help though*

hey all...question about Final Cut...

im a pc guy, not familiar with mac very much...

im doing a colloborative school project with other students, they all use the lab at school (mac ofcourse)

they have been rendering out uncompressed .mov files...

i checked the setttings...these use colorspace 4:2:2

ntsc dv is 4:1:1

so it seems that setting would be innefficient for our use..

i only noticed because i went to grab the other girls files...and one of them kept giving me copy error -36 when i was xferring to my ipod to bring home here and add onto Vegas

i thought maybe her file was corrupted, so i went to rerender it out under a diff name and check

noticable her original uncompressed .mov weighed in at 10.5GB

i rendered it back out as .avi DV/DPRO ntsc and its sitting at a measly 1.42GB

i just want to make sure i am keeping it as within spec as the original .avi files i gave them which i catptured with Vegas5. (we still need to combine all files and render out a complete project)

thanks!

Not and have it keep the new numbering sequence.
What you can do is rename all the files after a capturing session by using the Rename all button, or by using rename in the Windows Explorer with all files selected.
If you name a file clip O78, Vegas will rename the next one Clip O78(001)

Check this product:
http://www.promax.com/Products/Detail/27187

Specifying Audio Tracks in DVDA 2.0
 

How do you specify (or name) the audio tracks when using mutiple sources for audio? Whenever I preview my project and switch audio tracks (using the "audio" button) it tells me that each track is unspecified. I tried naming each track in the track edit window but no luck and my help searches turned up empty.

thanks,
Barry

First, Even though the files are 4:2:2, if the source was DV, then the media was originally sampled at 4:1:1. Upsampling didn't gain them anything...
Second, Vegas will open the 4:2:2 files, and you may render those out as 4:2:2 or 4:1:1, or 4:4:4 in Vegas. An uncompressed file converted to DV would be substantially reduced in size, as uncompressed is 4;4;4, DV is 4;1;1.

If you captured in V-5, then you should be outputting DV/NTSC files for their use. Why they are upsampling them to uncompressed makes no sense. FCP 4 will read the .avi files just fine. And Vegas will read FCP's Quicktime DV files just fine. Both systems process at 8 bit unless they've got a 10 bit card on the FCP system, and even so, DV is 8 bit...so nothing gained there, either. Can't get more information into the file than was originally there without having some negative impact on what was originally contained in the file.
Not sure if this answers the question, since I didn't really see a specific question?
But you are correct in your assumption that using FCP in 4:2:2 mode for DV files is a waste of time. You're not really losing anything, except time. And...in all transcodes you lose some information, question is how much before you can see the loss?

you can only name it with the name convention provided by DVDA. In other words, you can call the track anything you want, but the designator is going to be "english" "german" etc. If you name a track "Barry1" and subsequent tracks in that file as "Barry Too", the viewer won't see those names in the remote audio settings. They'll see track 1, track 2, or En, De, etc, if you label them via the dropdowns. Only your created buttons can have the 'creative' name.

well my question was really pertaining to the output of AVI in FCP, as far as options there were none...i was just wondering if there were any specifics to it i should be aware of...

but i think i will take that over to the Mac forum

the 4:2:2 issue i was right about

the problem is that the folks im working with use these macs in the lab and arent really taught much about compression and the like not...i only know about these from reading here on the forums over the past couple o' years.

the systems are G4s and do not have SDI cards, just the 1394 that Apple builds onto those mobo's.

the AVIs used on there clips were originally captured by thru firewire onto my PC vegas system.

i guess i was just looking for a little reassurance that i was correct before i attempt to correct my classmates errors (and save a boatload of their rendering time and hard drive space)

thanks!

can't remove particles when using film effects
 

i have a track in a VEGAS 5 project where i apply "Sony Film Effects" on the whole track (video track FX). i uncheck the "Enable particles" box in order to neutralize dust, hair, flicker, jitter and scratches, but when previewing the track, some dust and scratches, etc. are still visible here and there.

why is this happening? shouldn't unchecking "Enable particles" remove ALL particles completely?

thanks!

This happens with EVERYTHING you do. Just defrag.

I would recommend applying effects ONLY in the small sections where they are needed. Either split the clip and apply it to directly to that smaller clip OR put everything without the effect on a different track. with only the affected clip on the track with the effect.

BatchRender Pro - Doesn't render ac3?
 

I have been attempting to use batchrender pro to render ac3 files. I can render them using vegas, and I can render mpg (DVDA) files using BatchRender Pro.

When I attempt to render ac3 files using BatchRender Pro, it simply runs through the files but does not render.

Any one having luck using BRP with ac3 files. I have attempted to contact Roger for the past week or so but the emails haven't been opened.

Thanks,

Richard

hi edward. i might have not explained my problem clearly.

i want to apply Sony Film Effects to a track (or to an event for that matter).
i click on the Track FX... icon, then i select Sony Film Effects from the Plug-In Chooser - Video Track FX menu and click Add. then i click OK.

now the Film Effects modifying window is visable, where i can adjust it's different parameters (grain, tint, particle type and amount, and so on).

i UNcheck the "enable particles" box so that no dust, scratches, hair, flickers and jitters are visable.

i preview the track or event and see that although "enable particles" is unchecked, particles are still visible to a certain degree. i can still see slight scratch effects, dust and so on.

i was sure that unchecking enable particles would remove particle elements entirly. am i wrong? if not, why is this happening.

Adi,

You need to uncheck enable particles for each type listed in the combobox. Not intuitive, but that is how it works.

Randall

Richard,

If you are using Vegas 5.0b, I just uncovered a bug last night that might be causing your problem. I was helping a user who had this problem using my Capture Cutter tool.

Are you using a custom ac3 template? If so, there is a bug that Vegas does not render the files using this template if it is the first render that you have done after starting Vegas. Try starting Vegas, rendering one file using the standard ac3 template, and then without restarting Vegas, try rendering using your custom template.

If this is not the problem, then it must be something else. If you are still having problems, you could try my MultiRender tool to see if you have the same problem with it. It can be found at:

http://www.peachrock.com/software/veggie-toolkit.html

Randall

I am not sure I agree with your observation, or perhaps misunderstand what you said.

I am using a custom ac3 template, however, I don't think there is anything new about it but the name I called it. I have been avoiding the batchrender issue by opening 5b, and then rendering with the "custom" ac3 template. It appears to be working fine for me.

Thanks for the link to your tool. I'll give it a go if there is a trial version that produces output.

Cheers,

Rusty

Richard,

It does work fine if you are doing it manually. The bug is in the scripting API. So, if you are rendering from a script, you might run into this bug.

I spent three hours debugging this last night with a user of mine and we verified that this was a problem on both his and my machine. I reported the bug to Sony as well and they are going to try to reproduce it also.

Again, the bug only happens is you are rending via a script. The work around it pretty easy, just render one file using a built in template before using the custom template.

Randall

quality differences and blur advice
 

Ok, just for funsies, I rendered something in "draft" quality, assuming it would come out looking significanly crappier than something rendered at "Best" quality. Not so. I could tell little, if any difference.

Is there real difference between Draft, Preview, Good, and Best? I really can't see it.


Also, after almost pulling my hair out because footage that was supposed to be rendered in 60i kept coming out "frame mode" looking, I finally figured out that the culprit was the Gaussian blur I'd applied. For some reason, it makes your footage look "progressive." I guess it works on both fields at once, like Satish's 3d Plugin Pac. Anyway, if anyone else didn't know this, now they do.

Still version 4.0 e, by the way.

The differences between Draft, Preview, Good, and Best are fully documented. I have it copied in the FAQ section on my site. Just click the link under my name.

Okay, that helps a little, but I'm still kind of lost. The clip I was rendering was 60i, with an "add noise," "color balance," and "hsl adjust" plugin added. No frame stretching/squeezing/resizing, etc., and no velocity envelopes.

I guess, then, in this case, I wouldn't see much of a difference?

Vegas 5.0/DVD Architect 2.0 Training Videos
 

Hello all,
It's been a while since I've made a post, but I do read the board often. There are some very helpful people in here :-)

I have a question that I hope is not inappropriate. I've been using Vegas 5.0 for a couple of months (my first NLE) and somehow managed to put together a very credible 50th anniversary video for my parents. However, I had to play it back on DV at their party because Architect left me feeling like an idiot. I think I could benefit from training videos for both programs as 'manual surfing' can be frustrating. I'd love to hear what anyone has to say about either the Douglas Spotted Eagle or Gary Kleiner training videos. Has anyone experienced both? And dare I ask...is one any better than the other?

Thanks in advance!

They are both brand new. I'm not sure many (any?) people have seen either - let alone both. I'm sure both of them are very informative.

You can quickly do a comparison in the video preview window.

Select "good" for the preview quality. Copy the image to the clipboard.

Select best and do the A/B comparison thing.

If you do not notice right away then I would not bother.

Ah! that's just it. The preview LIES! I previewed on a external monitor, my Sony PVM 14m2u, and when you preview, it DOES appear noticably softer on draft than on the others, but when you render, it looks the same. Strange.

Trouble With Cropped Clips Transition
 

I have a video track that is superimposed over another track, in a standard Picture-In-Picture form. The background video is fine - my problem is with the cropped PIP box.

The smaller boxed video (placed using Track Motion) has some clips cropped to my liking using the Event Pan/Crop, and there are a series of simple cuts between them. Nothing fancy.

However, two of the clips have a Hard Flash transition applied between them. Both of the clips have the same cropping and they look great - even the fade transition before the Flash is applied is A-OK. However, for some reason, the Flash transition makes the whole entire 4:3 area light up, instead of just within the cropping. In other words, the transition isn't paying attention to the cropping.

It's so strange - both the clips that are in the transition are cropped. Am I missing something? Shouldn't the transition effect pay heed to the cropping of the two clips it's connecting?

Oh, and I'm still on Vegas 4.0e.

for rendering the choice is really between GOOD & BEST ...
unless you are doing special effects type images that are line intensive ( IE: line animation , line drawings , non photo realism images ) then i have found that preview works better then good/best.

Do you mean as far as getting good quality? I wanted draft because I was trying to make the video look kind of lower res, and when i previewed it via my external monitor, draft seemed to give it the look I wanted. I only found it out it seemed to lose no quality at all when I watched it on the external monitor. I found adding a very slight gaussian blur, vertical only, softened it a bit without simply making it look blurry, but then when I rendered, I lost the 60i look.

Not to my knowledge. If I remember correctly a transition will
always operated on the full frame (ie, ignore cropping). Think
about this. Why didn't you see the fade? Because what is
cropped is already black (I presume). So you can't fade that.

A flash will show op because it will fade to white (instead of
black) shortly. So it seems like transitions ignore cropping.

I just tested this in Vegas 5 and this confirms my suspicision.
The only thing I can currently think of you can do is render
the whole PiP sequence *WITHOUT* the crop but *WITH*
the flash to a new file. Then use this new file and do the
cropping on that. This should yield what you want.

Disregard.

Evelyn Woods school of speed reading fails me again.

Patrick: what do you mean by "had give me flashes between clips"

The problem is not getting flashes. The problem is NOT getting
them outside the crop area.

Imran: another way might be to use two tracks and simply put
a mask in the upper track. That will cut off all information, including
transitions. Not sure how this would work in PiP, though.

As a last resort, couldn't you render those two clips with the flash and then place them back in the timeline as a single event to be played PIP. That takes the Flash Transition out of the equation so it can't (in theory) apply to the whole area.

This will work, but doesn't answer why your original setup wasn't working.

You either have to:

1) Render the footage out with the flash transition- bring it back into the project to THEN apply the crop

or

2) Simulate a crop using generated media. That way the flash can affect the entire 4:3 area yet the generated media will do the cropping for you.

Dern, I was hoping there was just something I was doing wrong. I'll give some of these suggestions a shot. Thanks all!

It appears that if you use Pan/Crop to create the PIP, the transition will apply to the entire video frame. However, if you use Track Motion to create the PIP, the transition appears to only apply to the PIP. That's how it is testing out for me.

Another V5 clip- this time a Wedding
 

mod please delete

Static audio
 

Imported a cd track and most of it is just static, take it over to
sound forge and it sounds fine? Does the format need changed?
How would you do this? The disc plays normal on a player.

What type of file is it? My cd imports are WAV. What program did you use to import it? What if you render from SoundForge to a new WAV file?

Wow am I frustrated, I extracted from InstantWrite, Siren, and others, opened it in SoundForge. It plays parts, then silence,
but mostly loud static. I've tried importing right in Vegas. It just
a cd track from a local band burnt on a cd-r. I mean the file in the
media pool plays fine when sent to soundforge that's getting me
otherwise I'd of thought the file itself was messed up but Vegas
won't play it right, and that's the only place it won't play right.
The thumbnail for it shows a Winamp logo.