Multiple audio tracking sync’ing with FCPX

[Jari Innanen]

Make the audio as one polyfile. The multitrack audio editing in FCP X also works best with polyfiles. Sound Devices WaveAgent software can batch do it.

[T. Payton]

This is actually our normal setup. We have multiple video clips and then 4 channels of audio in 2 stereo files (from an h4n). We have never had an instance when they didn’t sync.

Try performing an analysis on the audio tracks and “remove silent channels”. I’ve seen low level noise on a “silent” channel give the synchronizing trouble.

Also try creating a Multicam clip. See if that Syncs better.

——
T. Payton
OneCreative, Albuquerque

[Scott Reynolds]

Thanks for the pointers, but… I’ve analyzed the audio and removed the silent channels and I still have this problem.

Creating a multi-cam clip does work though, but I really thought that I would not need to go there, it seemed “wrong” to me.

I’m not sure whether the channel configuration has something to do with it. The video clip is obviously a stereo (with the guide tracks), but the externally recorded audio tracks are three separate mono channels.

I did a search on the Apple support forums, and I found an identical problem with someone having the identical setup as me – stereo guide tracks on the video and 3 mono channels.

This is such a stock standard configuration, I’m scratching my head as to why this is not working.

[Michael Garber]

The short answer is that synchronizing clips currently only works with single audio clips (that includes multi-channel clips as Jari mentioned).

The longer answer is that there is a way around it, but it involves syncing only the audio first into a new synchronized clip and then syncing that to the video clip. I record on a Roland R26 which records to two separate mono channels (a necessity to get it separately limit audio on each mic and also separately send phantom power to a single channel). I have used this method with two channels and it worked fine. No idea how it would work with 3 channels. But I do worry about the integrity of the final synced clips with lots of contained clips.

The best answer for now is the same as T’s: sync them into multiclips.

Will you be finishing in FCPX?

Michael Garber
5th Wall – a post production company
Blog: GARBERSHOP

[T. Payton]

Humm.

Help me understand the problem with syncing more than one audio clip. Here is a shot of what I have on a project right now:

This was synced using synchronized clip and then placed in a compound clip and then broken apart. That way we have a “parent” interview clip that we can color correct, adjust audio, etc.

So from top to bottom.

7D Clip with Reference Audio
First Stereo file with Channel 1, the Sennheiser Lav, Channel 2 Rhode Video Mic
Second stereo file – H4n Built in stereo mic.

We keep the audio rolling in an interview like this and as you can see start and stop the camera:

Are you finding that you can’t sync like this?

Also, we do most of our interview work with MultiCam clips, not Synced clips because I like the way it handles switching audio sources. There are some limitations, but no need to fear multi cam clip.

——
T. Payton
OneCreative, Albuquerque

[Jeremy Garchow]

Not to mention, multiclips keep tc, synced clips don’t, if that sort of thing is important to you.

[Scott Reynolds]

T. what you are showing is how I would expect it to work, but when I select multiple audio clips and a single video clip and synchronize, I only get the reference stereo and one of the audio clips included in the newly generated synchronized clip.

[Scott Reynolds]

Here’s a couple of screen grabs.

This one shows the video clip with the stereo guide track.

This one shows the multi-mono channel audio, just before I syncrhoized.

Here, I created the sync’d clip.

And here are the audio properties of the sync’d clip

As you can see channels 2 and 3 were NOT added to the sync’d clip.

I have tried multi-cam clips and they do work OK, and a few posters have pointed out some advantages of going this route, so I might bite that off and see how it works.

Doing this project in FCP X is more of an experiment on my part, after reading some encouraging posts indicating that the product has matured sufficiently to be considered for more advanced work. I must admit, I’m still a bit skeptical, but I’ll keep my mind open.

Thanks everyone.
Cheers,
Scott

[T. Payton]

[scott reynolds] ” when I select multiple audio clips and a single video clip and synchronize, I only get the reference stereo and one of the audio clips included in the newly generated synchronized clip.”

So all the clips that you told to sync are not included in the synchronized clip, or do you mean that only 2 of them are synced while others are inserted at the beginning of the clip?

——
T. Payton
OneCreative, Albuquerque

[Scott Reynolds]

Not included at all unfortunately.