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1200A Downconvert via Firewire
Hi all,
A few weeks ago we had a question on here on whether the Panasonic 1200A can downconvert in real-time via Firewire. The answer is yes.
Menu 894 sets the Firewire video output setting.
0000 is HD (this is factory default)
0001 is DVCPro50
0003 is DVHopefully this will be helpful to others on here.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Creative Genius, Biscardi Creative Media
https://www.biscardicreative.comNow in Production, “The Rough Cut,” https://www.theroughcutmovie.com
Now editing “Good Eats” in HD for the Food Network
“I reject your reality and substitute my own!” – Adam Savage, Mythbusters
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3 Replies
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Walter,
Another important menu under the DIF settings is 880 which is the speed of the firewire transfer.
It must be sent to S400 when outputting dvcpro HD.
If you leave it at S400 you can output dvcpro HD as well as everything else.
In addition you need to make sure you have selected the proper capture setting in FCP.
Deck control will always be dvcpro hd firewire but the proper codec (dvcpro 50, dv or dvcpro hd must correspond to what you have chosen to do under menu 894 which will output dvcpro hd, dvcpro 50 dvcpro or dv). If you do not have the proper settings you will get deck control via firewire but will not see the video output in the capture window.
Also always reboot FCP when you change the codec settings in the capture window so that FCP and the 1200A do their “handshake” properly.
Lastly do not connect or disconnect the firewire cable between the 1200A and mac or else you may fry the 1200A firewire board. The proper procedure is as follows
1)Power off mac and 1200A
2)Connect firewire cable between 1200A and mac
3)Turn on power on 1200A
4)Turn on and boot up Mac
5)Fire up FCPThe 1200A and mac must be hooked up 1:1 (do not daisy chain between other firewire devices).
Tony Salgado
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[tony salgado] ”
Another important menu under the DIF settings is 880 which is the speed of the firewire transfer.It must be sent to S400 when outputting dvcpro HD.”
That is the default setting so as long as you don’t mess with it, you’re ok.
[tony salgado] “Lastly do not connect or disconnect the firewire cable between the 1200A and mac or else you may fry the 1200A firewire board. The proper procedure is as follows”
Actually, we have found that so long as the 1200A is turned off, you’re ok. If the 1200A is turned on and the Firewire cable is connected, it will burn out the FW port on the G5. A local VAR had one client fry 5 G5’s that way here. I haven’t found the need to power down the Mac itself, just to ensure that the 1200A is powered off, and actually any FW device being connected should be powered off during connection.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Creative Genius, Biscardi Creative Media
https://www.biscardicreative.comNow in Production, “The Rough Cut,” https://www.theroughcutmovie.com
Now editing “Good Eats” in HD for the Food Network
“I reject your reality and substitute my own!” – Adam Savage, Mythbusters
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Hi Walter,
Keep in mind the default setting only apply to those who don’t have to deal with rental gear in which the setting are subject to change constantly due to all the rental applications.
I just programmed four 1200A for a rental house and every single one of them was different.
Regarding the power off sequence it is better to be safe than sorry which is why I recommend powering off both the vtr and mac as the first step. In a rental environment the easier the install steps are to remember the less likely it will be to create problems.
Some other menus I forgot to mention are the 600 series menu which deal with video.
600 video in sel set to 1394 (allows recording back to the 1200A via the firewire. Other options are HDSDI and internal signal generator.)
620 downconvert mode- FIT HV for anamorphic downconverting. This selection affects the firewire output in addition to the analog and SD SDI outputs. Other options are for letterbox or side cut.
615- V Com Sel- Cmpst – if you want to view the 1200A menus on a composite NTSC monitor
890- DIF Auo out- CH 1 &2 if you want to output ch 1,2 from the 1200A other option is Ch 3-4.
899- DIF Super – OFF (unless you want to super the menus over the firewire output. Useful if you dont’t have an external monitor and need to see the vtr setup menus.
BASIC menu
005- Super – Cmpst – will output vtr menus via the composite analog output. Other options include SD SDI, HDSDI, component.
etcI spent so much time with the 1200A over the last weekend that I now have every setup menu captured for a quick review via pdf or preview to set up the deck for multiple applications quickly.
Tony Salgado
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