This is embarrassingly funny … but can anyone assist me in understanding some Xpress to MC6.5 upgrade settings/layouts?

[James Patterson]

Hi Dean,

The effect icons – I don’t think you can reduce them in size (I’ve never even thought about it to be honest) but you can turn them on and off, if you click the hamburger menu in the bottom left of the timeline
you’ll see effect icons with a tick next to it, click it and you’ll turn them off. You can set this up as a keyboard shortcut as well.

Effects mode – I’m assuming that you’re working on one screen? If so, change your workspace by clicking Windows/Workspaces/Effect editing then arrange your windows so you can see everything (see pic) then go back to the workplaces menu and click ‘save current’, then everytime you click that mode it will display as you want, you should probably do this for all modes. If you’re on two screens you can just drag the effect editor to your other screen hit save current and then everytime you hit the effect mode icon it will open in the same place.

There’s no auto keyframes, you have to put them in yourself, not sure why you would want this?

Sliders – If you click on a slider and use the left and right arrow keys it does what you need.

Less/more detail – if you open the hamburger menu I mentioned for the first point you’ll see the less and more detail options, I also have them set as the up and down keys but you have to set this up yourself as by default it’s set to ‘cmd]’ cmd[ on a mac. Oh and when you set up and menu command as a keystroke you have to choose menu to button reassignment from the command palette.

No need to be embarrassed, if xpress pro was working for your needs then why change plus everyone on here was in the same boat as you at one point.

Best

Paddy

[Dean Fragola]

Hi Paddy,

Thank you so much for helping me as I can’t even begin to tell you how grateful I am. And I appreciate the reassurance that other people have been in this same boat before … as sometime I feel like I’m so far behind with all the technology that I’m just floating around on a sinking old tire tube while everyone else is now cruising along on the Queen Mary.

At any rate …

Thanks to your help, I’ve now been able to get my “Effects Editor” layout set the way I like/need it so that way the effects editor window stays open as I then mouse back-n-form from adjusting parameters in the effects editor window — over to moving keyframes around in the record monitor. Phew.

However, there are a couple of other things that I’m still having trouble with — and I’m hoping you can help me out. I can’t find any commands in any of the command categories in the “command palette” (for “less detail” or “more detail”) that I can then map to the “up and down arrow keys” (those keys underneath the “home” and “end” keys on my keyboard; am I missing them somewhere (as all I can find are the “-” and “+” keys which then just seem to zoom in and out of my record monitor — so perhaps I’m simply not looking in the right place for these “less detail” or “more detail” commands? Plus, honestly Patty, I’m not really sure how “menu to button reassignment” works as I’ve never used it before.

If there is simply no way to reduce the physical size of the effect icons in the TIMELINE, then I’m just going to have to try and get used to it. It’s just that it used to be so much easier on the eyes when the effect icons where small in the TIMELINE (like in Xpress Pro) as that way I could then see the text that was written on the segment.

And maybe you can help me with the TRIM settings — as I’m kinda losing my mind at this point. I used to simply be able to lasso an edit point in the TIMELINE which then simply took me right into TRIM mode — where I would then see the outgoing footage in the source window – and the incoming footage in the record monitor … and then just simply click on the source or record window to switch to “that side as a single roller trim” – and then tap or click single frames to increase or reduce whatever I needed (and I could see exactly what was going on in the footage) …. but now, in MC6.5 I’m baffled …. as there is nothing showing up in the source monitor? …. how does AVID MC expect people to know where they want the new cut point to be if you can’t even see the duel-screens? Plus, am I even able with MC6.5 to still simply click to the source or record monitor to then switch into single roller trim mode?

And I used to be able to lasso a segment and then go right into “slip” or “slide” trim modes (depending on if I started the lasso box at the upper right or left hand corner) …. but now it looks like MC doesn’t offer that? — as the lassoing isn’t working like it did in Xpress Pro. Does MC6.5 even offer slipping and sliding trimming? — or is that simply a thing of the past?

Would you happen to know how I can change the target drive for my renders? … as my “C” drive always appears the drive that AVID wants to send the render to … so I then have to manually drop down the box and select my F drive every time … which is a few extra steps and clicks every single time I try and simply add/render an effect.

And, to really think that I may be going nuts here (lol) as I’m not sure if my eyes are playing tricks on me ….. but I tried adding a very simple “film dissolve” between two segments/clips in the TIMELINE — and I can swear that AVID then actually changed the outgoing shot by moving it back to an earlier starting point as well as then leaving off earlier than where it was?? (so if my eyes are correct, MC actually changed the segment/clip from what I had in my Timeline prior to adding the film dissolve transition effect??) … is that even possible? …

Oh boy …. my head feels like it’s in a hurricane here as so many things look and act differently in MC as compared to Xpress Pro …. but hopefully I can get back on track with the basics here —- as that way I can then at least resume editing from where I was (while I’m moving forward and learning what’s available in MC6.5) ….

Oh and, by the way, what the heck is “small mode trim”?? … as I’ve never even heard of that 🙁

And to answer your question, honestly I would have been happy just sticking with my Avid Xpress Pro …. but unfortunately Xpress Pro just wasn’t compatible with any HD formats … plus Xpress Pro was very limited as far as a lot of effects that people/customers were requests (particle and blur kind of stuff, etc) … so I needed to get more up to date ….

I just would have never dreamed it would be this complicated … as I honestly thought that Media Composer would be like working in Xpress Pro except now being able to handle more resolutions plus having more effects available.

Thanks again for all your help Paddy as I’m indeed very grateful and very appreciative.

Dean

[James Patterson]

No worries, give it a couple of weeks and you’ll wonder why you were ever having problems.

Adding certain commands is probably not as intuitive as it could be, as you add them from menus rather than the command palette directly. Open the command palette ‘ctrl 3’ and open the ‘keyboard’ from within the ‘settings’ tab above your bins. The obvious way you add key commands is to drag buttons from the command palette on to the button of the keyboard you want to change, but more/less detail isn’t on the command palette it’s in the hamburger on the bottom left of the timeline. What you have to do is select ‘Menu to button reassignment’ in the command palette, select the button you want to modify (in this case up or down arrow) select the hamburger then select more or less detail, you’ll then see an MD or LD on the button.

Again, not sure on scaling down the effect icons but you can turn them on/off and set this to a key command exactly like described above.

Trim mode – not sure why you’re having problems, lasso over an edit and you should enter trim mode, are you lassoing completely over the edit from top to bottom if you don’t go over the whole clip it won’t work. With the smart tool enabled you can click on an edit point and you’ll enter trim mode. Once in trim mode you can use it exactly as you have described. The trim tools in Avid are still the best of any NLE (imho)and there are many ways to use them.

Render drive – You can change the default by opening the media creation box tool/media creation or ‘ctrl 5’ the options are in the render tab.

Film fade – not sure about this one, is there any chance you could have slipped the shot back without realising?

I recommend you go through the tutorials by Kevin P McAuliffe https://leaders.creativecow.net/leaders/mcauliffe_kevin/ they’re really good and cover all things you get in a paid course but for free.

Best

Paddy

[Dean Fragola]

Hi Paddy,

Once again, thank you so much for all your patience … and encouragement … and for walking me through some of these new set-ups and configurations and layouts, etc in MC6.5 (as compared to what I’m used to with AVID Xpress Pro).

And your insight has been very, very helpful … as you are very good at giving (non jargon) instructions (step-by-step) on how to achieve exactly what I’m trying to do … and you have a very practical and articulate way of explaining things in a very easy to follow manner (especially to someone like myself who is not tech savvy) …. thus helping me achieve immediately positive results without getting anymore frustrated.

And thanks to you, I’ve now been able to get my Effects Editor Window displayed properly …. get my renders going to the proper drives … get my “show more/less detail” commands assigned to key strokes … and to get my trim mode working (and on a side note, the thing that was screwing me up as far as Trim Mode, was that in the trim mode settings, “always use small trim mode” instead of “never use trim mode” was checked; I’m not even really sure what the heck that means, but it can certainly screw up the layout/function when trying to trim.

And just one other question … when going from AVID Xpress Pro (which I guess is like 16 or 32 bit??) to MC6.5 64-bit, it seems that some of my segments (which have a Color Effect) are now way off … luckily I am able to simply open the Effect Editor and adjust them …. but I’m just curious as to what differences I should be expecting/prepared for now that I’m in a 64-bit system? …. do I need to make any setting adjustments since I imported projects from an Xpress Pro system that has a different bit-rate?

And if I now import HD footage into MC6.5, will I be able to simply edit that content right into my TIMELINE even though the resolution (currently in the sequence) is totally different since the media currently in the Timeline is SD footage that has already been cut into the sequence?

Thanks again for all your help as you have been a true Godsent … and I’m very grateful and very appreciative.

Dean

[Dean Fragola]

Hi Paddy,
I know you’re going to think I’m crazy, but maybe I’m doing something wrong on the keyboard …
As whenever I click a clip in a bin, it is then highlighted (like I would expect) but then when I go to click the next clip below it (without holding the control or alt or shift keys), it then highlights that clip as well … so it’s like I can’t just move down the bin and click the next clip — as it just keeps the highlight on other clips as well).
Plus now, when I highlight a clip and hit the delete key, nothing happens … whereas, I used to be able to hit the delete key and then the box would pop up asking if I want to delete that media.
With all the major things you’ve helped me tackle …… ironically I’m now stuck (no pun intended) on something as simple as just trying to click/isolate single clips in a bin with a simple mouse click, but I can’t even do that now. Oh boy. lol
Dean

[Dean Fragola]

Hi Paddy,

Would you happen to have any idea why I’m getting this message box popping up when I try and create a simple motion effect on a clip in MC6.5?

MESSAGE BOX:

“A motion control cannot be created from a clip with a non-native frame rate. You must open a project matching this clip’s frame rate to make a motion control from it.”

And it’s weird, because I never got that message in AVID Xpress Pro (and I’m working with the same clips/content/media) that I transferred into MC6.5

Is there a settings (regarding using ALL / various / mixed frame rates) that I can change/set/alter in my MC so that it will then be able to handle working with all different frame rates within the same project? ….

It just seems odd that Xpress Pro was be able to handle all different frame rates within the same project, yet now MC can’t?

Thanks.

Dean

[James Patterson]

Hi Dean,

Not sure what problems you’re having with the colour effect, the bit rate of the computer doesn’t have anything to do with it. The colour effect is an 8bit effect though so if you’re working with 10 bit video then you should use the colour correction tool.

If you import HD footage in to an SD project avid will scale the footage down.

Not sure with your keyboard problem, maybe just a glitch that a restart will fix? Also are you still using you user settings from xpress? If so you should delete and create new ones.

Are you linking the mixed frame rates by AMA? With frame rates you need to import to a project with a matching frame rate then open that bin in the project you want to work in. For example, if you’re working in a 1080p/25 project but want to use 1080i/50 footage then you create a new 1080i/50 project and transcode/consolidate the footage. Then go back to your 1080p/25 project, the go file/open bin (ctrl o) and navigate to the avid project with the bin containing the 50i footage and open it. You can drop this on the timeline and play it back as normal or use the motion effect editor (when the clip is on the timeline) to promote the clip in order to enable speed changes. If you import the footage straight into the 25p project it will burn in the rate and play it back at half speed.

Best

Paddy