“Teach” FCP Timecode Order

[Jerry Hofmann]

YOu don’t have to teach FCP this… it already assumes that later TC is later on the tape… You should be able to just batch digitize the clips if all the TC on them is ascending in time. Doesn’t matter where the TC starts.

Jerry

Apple Certified Trainer, Producer, Writer, Director Editor, Gun for Hire and other things. I ski.

8-Core 3.0 Intel Mac Pro, Dual 2 gig G5, AJA Kona SD, AJA Kona 2, Huge Systems Array UL3D, AJA Io HD, 17″ MBP, Matrox MXO2 with MAX Cinema Displays

[Emory Dunn]

That’s the problem; the timecode isn’t always in order. I’ve had a couple tapes that go in this order: 11,12,1 or have hour 18 before 16 followed by 17.

[Jerry Hofmann]

Well, you’ll have to manually put the tape in the correct hour code before you batch clips within that hour’s code… no other way to do this I’m afraid. Sloppy shooters cause headaches like this for sure.

That said, if you want to start all over, the thing to do is copy the errant TC’d tapes first to get to a continuous TC source tape.

Jerry

Apple Certified Trainer, Producer, Writer, Director Editor, Gun for Hire and other things. I ski.

8-Core 3.0 Intel Mac Pro, Dual 2 gig G5, AJA Kona SD, AJA Kona 2, Huge Systems Array UL3D, AJA Io HD, 17″ MBP, Matrox MXO2 with MAX Cinema Displays

[Emory Dunn]

That’s what I’ve been doing, and it’s a slow process but it works (until it runs into other timecode errors). Thanks for your help!

[John Pale]

Another thing that may be possible would be to give different sections of the tape different reel numbers

such as 5A, 5B etc. This keeps FCP from searching in the wrong direction for the timecode, as it thinks its a new tape. You might have to shuttle a bit, so that you are inside the correct hour on your “reel changes”..

I remember doing this a long time ago, and it made things go a bit faster.

[Matt Callac]

[John Pale] “Another thing that may be possible would be to give different sections of the tape different reel numbers

such as 5A, 5B etc”

I usually do this if there’s some sort of timecode problem. It works well. Not sure how you’d accomplish this where you are right now…unless you already have noted somewhere which tapes have messed up TC.
-mattyc

[Emory Dunn]

That sounds like nice solution unfortunately I don’t always know where the breaks are. And even then that might not always work since some tapes have two of the same hour (hour 1 at the beginning an then another hour 1 at the end). I’m basically just dealing with disastrous tapes.

Thanks for all the suggestion though, I might see if I can find a way to use them.

[John Pale]

Good God.

I might find the nearest bar, instead.

Hope you are billing by the hour.

J

[Matt Callac]

I’d either sit down and scan all the tapes (or pay someone else to) making notes of every time the TC goes out of a normal numeric sequence. then incriment the tapes into parts. For instance notes on one tape
would say TC

11:00:00:00-15:00:00:00
Break
2:00:00:00-4:00:00:00
Break
1:00:00:00-2:00:00:00

then name each chunk as a tape so tape 001 would now be 001a 001b 001c.

then take your notes and modify the reel names in your batch list…and capture.

Unfortunately with your tapes that have multiple areas with the same TC…you’ll have
-mattyc

[Jerry Hofmann]

LOLL

Jerry

Apple Certified Trainer, Producer, Writer, Director Editor, Gun for Hire and other things. I ski.

8-Core 3.0 Intel Mac Pro, Dual 2 gig G5, AJA Kona SD, AJA Kona 2, Huge Systems Array UL3D, AJA Io HD, 17″ MBP, Matrox MXO2 with MAX Cinema Displays