How to build a 5.1 clip out of 6 mono files?

[Bill Russell]

Meanwhile, I worked around it using Quicktime Pro 7. But I’d still love to know how to do this properly in Davinci.

Quicktime Pro 7 -> Davinci workaround (if it’s ever needed — probably not if Davinci can handle this properly on its own. But for posterity…)

1. Open first mono file in Quicktime Pro 7. This is the file you will add all the other tracks to. Then open the other five mono files. For each of the other files, ‘Select All’, ‘Copy’, then go to the original file and choose “Edit” menu ->”Add to movie”.

3. Now choose for the original file choose “Window” menu -> “Show Movie Properties”. You should see six audio channels. If you also have six timecode tracks, then delete all but one (and leave it unchecked — all other tracks should be checked). Now in the Properties window, highlight (blue) the first track in the list, click the lower “Audio Settings” tab, click on “mono” and change it to its assigned 5.1 channel. Select the next track in the above properties window, rinse and repeat until all tracks are correctly assigned (L,R,C,Lfe,Ls,Rs or the 5.1 order that is correct for you).

4. Save As this file as an audio only, six channel (5.1) Quicktime Movie. Open it in Davinci. In the clip attributes, change the format to 5.1, then change the number of “Audio Tracks” from 6 to only 1. In the lower part of this attributes window, assign each track to it’s correct 5.1 channel. Finally, in the Fairlight tab under the Fairlight window (Davinci 14b and up), open “Bus Assign”. Change “Main” to 5.1.

And there ya go.

“THE LOST SKELETON OF CADAVRA” –

And more…

[Marc Wielage]

That is very helpful, Bill. (And by the way, Lost Skeleton of Cadavra is a very funny movie — basically the kind of thing Ed Wood would’ve done 20 years ago if he had had the time and money. Hilarious!)

There are still some holes in Fairlight that they are working on (including finishing the Resolve 14 manual), but it’s getting there. Surround sound is a big part of that.

[Bill Russell]

Hey, thanks. It’s the movie nobody’s seen that so many new friends I meet tell me they’ve enjoyed. Somehow it’s lurking despite itself!

So speaking of enjoying, I’m quite enjoying Fairlight. In fact, in the end, instead of doing the above with QT7, I decided I needed to attenuate the center channel because it was averaging way too hot. (With the separation of the other channels in a theater — and I’ll audition it — it should play fine.)

So I brought back the six mono tracks and panned each to its designated channel and bussed to the 5.1 main. Lfe, pan center front and dial up the “Base Boost” — what kind of name is that? — to 0d. (Use the “Base Boost” dial in the advanced pan controls, but don’t enable either of the accompanying switches.)

Perfectly matches levels of the QT7 combined track. (Until I made the channel adjustments, that is.)

Cheers – b

“THE LOST SKELETON OF CADAVRA” –

And more…

[Warren Eig]

How are you guys monitoring the 5.1 out of Resolve 14 so you are hearing the mix accurately?

Warren Eig
O 310-470-0905

email: info@babyboompictures.com
website: https://www.BabyBoomPictures.com

For Camera Accessories – Monitors and Batteries
website: https://www.EigRig.com

[Bill Russell]

I can only use 2.0 monitors and flat-response headphones from within Resolve / NLE, and audition surround mixes externally on 5.1 / 7.1 studio monitors. Final mixes (and picture) are previewed in a cinema elsewhere.

“THE LOST SKELETON OF CADAVRA” –

And more…

[Bill Russell]

(To be sure, I’m not in the habit of attenuating other mixes unless they are not originally broadcast or cinema mixes or taken right off of an editing bench. The docu I’ve got in hand appears to be Lo/Ro or LCR not for broadcast, adapted — or upmixed with little change — for 5.1. To give an idea, the LKFS of the entire mix is -21. While the LKFS of just the dialogue track is… -21. It’s a talking heads doc with a nice sounding mix artistically, in fact, but not a mix balanced for a theater that I would be comfortable exhibiting.)

“THE LOST SKELETON OF CADAVRA” –

And more…

[Bill Russell]

(LKFS -21 being waaay loud for vox!)

“THE LOST SKELETON OF CADAVRA” –

And more…

[Nicolas Horne]

so is QT7pro still more intuitive than resolve for this? can’t really see an answer to the OP