-
can you capture 6 channels of audio off a digi beta tape
Hey guys
I have a client who wants to me to author a short film which will be supplied on Digital Betacam. He asked if i can encode his DVD with 5.1 Surround sound which they have mastered their project in.
Being not one to knock a job back even if i have no idea, i said yes. A quick search on these forums provides me with some answers of apps that can encode in 5.1 and Encore will accept that AC3 stream, but i have no idea how audio is supplied in the first place to encode it.
Will it come on the Digi Beta…. as far as i know the digi only has 4 audio tracks…….
Should they supply 6 seperate audio channels for me to encode…. like 6 wav files.
What questions do i need to get back to my client with, to look like i have done this before.
Thanks guys
Chris
-
5 Replies
-
My Digibeta deck only has 4-channels. I’m not positive there is a DB deck
that is 6-channel, but I wouldn’t count on it.If I were you I’d confirm that it uses all 4-channels
and ask him if 1 & 2 represent front left & right with
3 & 4 being rear left & right.It could get VERY complicated to do if they supply 6 .wav files
for you to encode separately from the video. You chould potentially
have a synching nightmare doing it that way. -
For starters, ask if the audio will be provided on DA-88, if not, what. Also ask for the timecode log to reference sync for encoding picture and sound.
You might want to find someone local who has DD 5.1 experience to help guide you through the other steps in completing this. Then the next time around, you’ll be better prepared to take on similar projects.
…Tom
-
The answer to this depends a lot on what the producer did and what you have to work with. If you have access to a surround encoder and a DA-88, you can use that option. If the surround audio only exists on Digi Beta, you need the Dolby E decoder plus a Dolby Digital 5.1 encoder. Some authoring systems can transcode 6 Wav or AIFF files to DD 5.1. We do this all the time on Sonic DVD Creator, but this function does not appear in inexpensive software because of the cost of licensing the technology from Dolby Labs.
In our facility we have all these machines plus multiple 5.1 hardware encoders, so we do all the workflows.
Bill Stephan
Senior Editor/DVD Author
USA Studios
New York City -
Hi , But what can you do if there’s more than just 1 Language ? Say you pull the 2 channel mix from the Digi and the 5 channel surround from the same Digi beta master , How would they (producer) supply alternative languages like spanish or French .
Thanks -
You can have up to 8 streams of audio (depending on your authoring software). Encode each lanuage mix seperately. For example, if you have a Digital Beta with English stereo on 1/2 and French stereo on 3/4, you encode those streams seperately and drop them both on the picture stream. If the producer hands you a DA-88 tape with 5.1 surround, you encode that and you have another stream to plug-in during authoring.
If you look at a DVD of almost any major motion picture, you will find a combination of stereo and surround streams in various languages. But make sure that you have and know how to use a bit-budgeting spreadsheet before you try this yourself.
Bill Stephan
Senior Editor/DVD Author
USA Studios
New York City
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up