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Mastering Audio back to Betcam SP
Hi all,
Just looking into some issues I have running a decklink card out to an Betacam SP deck to master to tape. I am not sure how to calibrate the tone for the analogue output. I am also working on my first real broadcast credits in the UK, but need to be sure about settign up correctly for that purpose output as well. They say mark 4 maximum on type 2 PPM. However, I am not sure how the PPM’s also read into the system.
To complicate things a little more, there is an audio patch bay and a mixer smack bang in the middle of the system, which was recently running Avid Express (PC) so now seems to make all the old audio calibration methods not work, now that we are FCP. Perhaps I need to change my refrence for input to match the old analogue system better. What rough peaks should I be aiming for on the SP deck meters?
I am sure you will need clarification on all this, but please do try and get back to me soon on this as I need ot progress before the end of the weekend. Particularly if your in the UK, I’d love your help.
Also, historically we have mastered to SP in house here, what are people’s thoughts on changing to DVCam, especially considering most content is DVCam now.
Nick
Running:
FCp 5.0.4
Dual 1.67? G5
Decklink card
3GB RAM
500Gb + 250 GB Hard Drives -
6 Replies
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Broadcast levels in the digital domain are simple. Ref tone for PAL UK is -18db on the FCP digital scale. Peak levels can go to -10db (ie +8db above reference.) Broadcast audio studios use compressors and limiters to acheive this.
If you are using FCP you will probably find that without using a compressor/ limiter, your program will not have the same apparent loudness. But those are the levels allowed. So if you use the FCP meters to setup tone and measure your peaks, then all you have to do on the SP machine is set the ref tone to 0 VU. I suggest bypassing the mixer if possible as it is likely to be extra electronics and a chance for panning and other issues to get complicated.
As for mastering to DVCam, I would recommend it over SP if you are staying in DV codec all the way. Better is to go to digi beta via your declink card and working in uncompressed for your final timeline.
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Hi Michael and others,
Thanks for that on the ref tone. Its funny I actually found the -18 standard by trial and error. Its the closest fit to our old tone line up system. However, I if I use the “preview tone” option it is clearly not the -18db reference, it puts out much lower so I have had to discard it, which is kind of annoying since I have to then do an edit to tape that I abort once I have the tones set correctly on the deck.
One further problem…
I am using a DSr 45 sonyDVCam deck, and am using an Aj Kona LS card in the mix as well. When I try and edit back to tape I get the message the “deck failed to set mode”. For a while I thought this was becuase of the “insert timecode” button being lit up because I could not seem to switch it off. Then going back to the SP on the RS422 didi take it off and I still got the same message. Actaully, thinking about it, when the insert timecode was on FCp just ignored me when I dropped the sequence on the assemble dropbox. So FCP only paid attention when that button was off… but how do I switch it off? Hmmm, two things going here I guess.
Thanks for your time, much appreciated.
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[boomshadows] “However, I if I use the “preview tone” option it is clearly not the -18db reference, it puts out much lower so I have had to discard it, which is kind of annoying since I have to then do an edit to tape that I abort once I have the tones set correctly on the deck.”
The preview tone is adjustable in the mastering settings. Make sure you have it set to -18, it may be set to something else. I have found it to be accurate.
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Hi john,
I tested it again. If I hit the tone preview button in the Edit to tape windows, and set my deck ref to that, when I finally go on to master, the tone rockets up much louder. So then I need to re-set the deck audio input levels press cancel on the edit to tape and restart.
Is this not what happens in the same situation for you?
Many thanks, Nick
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No. That does not happen to me.
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No. That does not happen to me.
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