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The continuing saga of FCP to Resolve to Avid
My goodness, it’s like one of those serialized magazine stories…
So it seems that X to Resolve and back or Avid to Resolve and back is straightforward. X to Resolve to Avid is considerably less so. One issue is that the tutorials I find online are for earlier versions of Resolve. The menus and workflows have changed substantially from v9 to v11. At any rate…
Here are the pertinent details: Some media is consolidated from Avid onto an external drive, other media is copied over from a server or other sources. All of the video is in MXF format, mostly DnXHD 145. Other assets are graphics in the usual formats.
Importing into X and building a sequence works fine. XML to Resolve is fine. Using the deliveries mode, I render the media into a properly configured Avid MediaFiles folder (“1” inside “MXF” inside the main folder). I use the Avid roundtrip preset set to DnXHD 145 8 bit (the in-house standard). From the edit mode, I export an AAF file.
Drive is hooked up to the Avid (it’s a separate computer for security reasons). Avid scans the drive and updates its database and makes the appropriate database file in the folder. Drag the database file from the folder into a bin. Clips populate. Drag the AAF into the bin. Sequence appears.
Media is offline. The media pointed to by the AAF has been renamed. No joy. Do it again. And again. Finally figure out how to turn off the “add prefix or suffix” setting. Now the AAF sequence links to the video but not the audio. Sequence is more or less OK (I mostly just need the timings, not the effects).
Am I missing some thing important here? I can live with this, as these projects typically have only a few SOTs. The rest is music/vo/fx. But I’d surely like to figure out why the audio doesn’t link.
Also of note is that the last time I tried this, I had to reinsert the audio into the Resolve timeline. I decomposed each clip in place to get rid of the compounded graphics and mafch-framed to the video and replaced the audio.
Clearly there are some parameters I’m getting wrong, but I can’t find the answers in with the manual or in the mostly out of date tutorials.
Any help?
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23 Replies
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If it started in X why not just finish in X? Avid’s not exactly awash in unique finishing tools.
Noah
FCPWORKS – FCPX Workflow
Call Box Training -
Well, yes, that’s preferred. I will in fact be finishing in x. (Actually, sending cut from x to ae via clip exporter and bringing the finished graphics back in x. )
The transfer to Avid is a security blanket for the VP. This is an Avid shop. These projects are frequently changed and cut down and repurposed weeks and months after they are finished. I’m a freelancer (for now), and there’s the chance someone else will do the cut downs. So they want a rough cut sequence in the avid in order to make the changes if I’m not available. Hence my desire to find a relatively painless conversion.
I’ve convinced the creative director (my immediate boss) that I can cut these faster and better in x. He needs to manage this process upward in order to make it happen. So the burden is on me to show them it won’t cause any problems for their admittedly outdated workflow.
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I guess you could roll in X2Pro and then some EDL translator to sort of approximate an Avid compatible cut but true 100% fidelity is a bit of a pipe dream.
Noah
FCPWORKS – FCPX Workflow
Call Box Training -
I tried making an edl for the avid, but edl manager wouldn’t recognize it. Nor did it work as an ale file.
I guess what I really need is an experienced resolve user to weigh in on this. Resolve 11, not 9 or 10. Oliver? Anyone?
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I’m not exactly sure where the issue is, but I ran a simple test and it all worked. However, all the media is on internal drives inside my tower. These are the steps I followed.
1. From FCP X, I imported DNxHD .MXF media directly from an Avid MediaFile folder (leave in external location).
2. Edit in FCP X and export .FCPXML for the project.
3. Import that into Resolve and you should see a new timeline. Then go to Deliver page. Export/Render, using the Avid AAF easy set-up. This will render new media and an AAF file to your target folder.
4. Drag that folder into one of your Avid MediaFile/MXF locations and rename it with a number.
5. Open an MC project and import the AAF file. Your bin *should* populate with a set of master clips and a sequence that is correctly linked.
I hope that helps.
– Oliver
Oliver Peters Post Production Services, LLC
Orlando, FL
http://www.oliverpeters.com -
Hi Oliver. Thanks for replying. Apologies in advance for my long response.
I’ve mostly been using Avid clips consolidated onto an external drive (FCP and Resolve are on one computer, Avid is on a different computer & ISIS). These clips are imported and left in place. In FCP, the mxf clips show up as separate audio and video, so I’ve been making synchronized clips for the SOTs. One possibly important note: some of these original Avid clips came from tape & have a reel name. Others are imported and have no reel name.
Edit fine in FCP. Export FCPXML. Import XML into Resolve.
I was having an issue where Resolve didn’t put the audio in the timeline. The clips in the media pool were fine. Saw a Sam Mestman post about synchronized clips not working in round-tripping. Tried again with SOTs broken apart and detached audio in FCP. Import worked. Oddly, Resolve says it can’t find one or more files, but everything shows up.
Decompose in place to get rid of compound clips and transforms. Deliver to a new folder with Avid AAF preset. Copy files into Avid MediaFiles->MXF->1. Launch Avid. Avid scans the folder and makes the .pmr and .mdb files. Drag .mdb into bin. Bin populates with clips. Clips play fine. Drag AAF into bin.
Now it gets goofy.
Sequence shows up in bin along with the audio files that are renamed with “%20” where the spaces should be. So “CM 4.mov.PV01.D0F1A54CC62EF.mxf” (the mxf clip with the video ID name) shows up as “CM%204” with the other characters truncated and no extension. The number of characters in the name varies and sometimes includes part of the V01 string, but always with the %20 in place of the spaces. These renamed files are offline. (Note that they only show up in the bin when the AAF is imported.)
The sequence places the clips correctly. The video is online. Some clips show the non-%20 filenames, others show the %20 filenames. Audio is offline. Clicking in the sequence throws up an Avid error about referencing a nonexistent track in the clip (shows the %20 version of the clip name with a missing A1 track). Match framing to the video allows me to replace the audio.
The music and sfx files (.aif files) don’t come across at all, and don’t even show up in the folder of Resolve renders.
Selecting “Render unique filenames” in the Resolve render settings (on by default with the Avid AAF preset) forces either a unique prefix or unique suffix, which seems to prevent any clip from getting exported unscathed.
I am truly stymied. I can’t find any info online dealing with these issues. The vast majority of posts and tutorials are for Resolve 9, which is rather different from 11. Additionally, while I’m fine with the usual Avid consolidate and relink process, I’ve never understood the intricacies of relinking in Avid well enough to figure how to relink to the correct files (or pieces of files, in this case) in this kind of situation.
Any help appreciated. I’ll buy you drinks at NAB if you’re going this year!
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The bottom line is this… if you go into Resolve expecting to do anything associated with Audio, you are entering a world of pain.
Resolve is simply not ready for prime time when it comes to audio at this point, unless you just want to drop in a finished mix at the end.
It’s a fantastic finishing tool that is learning how to be an NLE… and is a great one as long as you don’t need sound with your picture.
Also, I’ve tried the FCPX to Avid rabbit hole… bottom line is that you shouldn’t trust it for anything remotely complicated.
AAF’s are a bit of a nightmare and Avid is notoriously bad at playing well with others.
Getting to Premiere/FCP7 is a far better insurance policy using X to 7.
X2Pro works great for audio, but breaks down with video over AAF.
Why Avid won’t just use XML already is one of the great mysteries of our time… but until it happens, honestly, even attempting what you’re trying to do is just more trouble than it’s worth.
Sam Mestman
Workflow Architect – FCPWORKS
http://www.fcpworks.com
http://www.wemakemovies.org -
I guess in the end I’m not surprised. Disappointed, but not surprised. Unfortunately, I need to figure out some method of getting the project onto Avid in order to satisfy the execs. I really don’t want to have to recreate the whole thing manually…
Perhaps Resolve for the video and X2Pro for the video is best.
I’m also considering spending the money for EDL-X. I Avid can make a sequence from the EDL and then batch import the files.
I also plan to send these projects to AE via Clip Exporter. I wonder if AE to PPro to Avid works any better?
Thanks to all for advice. Feel free to continue weigh in on this.
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I’m in total agreement with Sam. Resolve is flaky with audio and so far, every attempt I’ve made to move audio through Resolve has been unsatisfactory. The X->R11->MC tests I have done have been with simple video-only timelines. So I would recommend that if you still want to try the experiment, start off with a simplified timeline as a proof-of-concept first.
My suggestions are to follow the steps I posted earlier. Don’t drag the database files into the bin, because the AAF should give you that info. Also no need to do any consolidating. I’m not sure why that need was there, since Resolve’s renders to that for you.
As far as audio, I recommend using roles to export dialogue, SFX and music stems. Then import those into Avid and line them up with your sequence. I would definitely avoid any complex clips, like synchronized, compound and multicam clips. If you have those, break them apart before creating the FCPXML.
Good luck. This is not Avid’s strongest point. I’m also not sure about the viability with an EDL, because this will require relinking – also something Avid is terrible at doing well, when media comes from the outside world.
– Oliver
Oliver Peters Post Production Services, LLC
Orlando, FL
http://www.oliverpeters.com
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