XDCAM EX with grey stripes

[Greg Booth]

Hi,

The gray pattern is demo watermarks for Calibrated{Q} XD Decode, but you don’t need the codec if you have FCP installed and it specifically states our codecs are not for use when FCP is installed. The uninstall instruction are in the ReadME folder in the /Applications/Calibrated/DOc folder.

Cheers,
Greg

Calibrated Software

[Geralyn Abinader]

Thanks, Greg, that took care of the grey stripes, but now I have no image at all, just a white screen. I’ve installed the XDCAM Transfer 2.1. I want to be able to view the files in QT or FCP. Did I use the wrong software?

Thanks, Geralyn

Geralyn

[Rafael Amador]

Hi Geralyn,
I think that you need at least FC 6.0.2 to make it work.
Get rid of the Calibrated software. Having two components to do the same task may cause you troubles.
rafael

http://www.nagavideo.com

(and here some clips for the friends: https://www.vimeo.com/2694745 )

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[Geralyn Abinader]

Sorry to keep up with this, but it’s still unresolved. I’ve upgraded my software. FCP still says 6.0. I can’t find a download for 6.0.2 or higher. It keeps giving me the same link to the same upgrades which I keep installing and they don’t help. OK, I’m whining now, but I’m just a bit frustrated and need to edit this material.

If you can guide me here some more I would really appreciate it.

Thanks

Geralyn

[Hugh john Murray]

Hi Greg –

This is off topic but it does have to do with your software decoder, as today my PC CGI guy tried the demo and he could read my XDCAM EX 108024p files from FCP (Mac) but just the MOVs, and not the MXFs that I exported from FCP using the SONY XDCAM option in export. I have a couple of questions, and maybe you may know the answer to the first.

I’m new to editing with SONY XDCAM footage and don’t fully understand the relationship between the raw files in the BPAV folders when I brought the footage in, and the MOVs that it transferred the footage to so that I could cut it in FCP. Are not those MOVs the files I cut with and will do the final output / master from? They don’t point back to the raw files, do they?

And so that brings me to the calibrated software – can he just read MOVs but not the MXF files? Is it better to edit with the MXFs as opposed to the Movs?

Thanks very much – and it looks like I’m buying the decoder…

Cheers

[Greg Booth]

Hi Hugh,

Calibrated{Q} MXF Import is a little more limited on Windows than it is on the Mac – it’s the same plugin; however QuickTime is much more pervasive on the Mac (its part of OSX) than it is on Windows – and this is reflected in Windows applications as well. On the Mac, many, many applications (including Final Cut Studio) are QuickTime ‘centric’ – meaning that applications will use QuickTime to decode video and open files (even files that are not .MOV). This is less of a case with Windows applications – where Windows applications tend to only use QuickTime to open and decode .MOV files. On Windows, the Calibrated{Q} MXF Import plugin is mainly used for giving QuickTime Player the ability to play MXF files for review and export them out to other formats (if you have QuickTime Player Pro) – there is also some limited QuickTime Reference Movie creation with the Calibrated{Q} MXF Import plugin that we hope to expand on later.

To answer the other questions:

The BPAV folders are the Camera Master and should never be deleted. This is the folder/file structure that many,many applications expect when working with XDCAM EX camera footage. Some applications can natively import XDCAM EX camera footage and others cannot, and even others choose a different route like FCP. The Final Cut Pro workflow is to re-wrap camera footage that is not .MOV files (i.e. P2,XDCAM HD, XDCAM EX ,RED) into .MOV files to edit with in FCP and use with other FC Studio applications. The .MOV files that FCP creates in the Log and Transfer process are not reference movies (they do not point back to the original MP4 or MXF files) – rather FCP takes the video/audio data and simply re-wraps the data into a .MOV files ( think of it as moving the contents from one container to another container)

Your PC CGI worker can read the .MOV’s created in this process with our Calibrated{Q} XD Decode codec – well, really the application reads the .MOV files and simply asks our codec to decode the video. As stated before, on Windows it’s most likely that he wont be able to read the MXF Files unless (a) the application he is using can natively read the MXF files (which it seems his can’t) or (b) the application is more QuickTime ‘centric’ and can use our Calibrated{Q} MXF Import plugin to open the MXF Files (which it seems it can’t either). As stated before, the Calibrated{Q} MXF Import plugin can auto-create QuickTime Reference Movies (small .MOV files that point back to the original MXF Files) which can be used by applications that support QuickTime to ‘work’ with the MXF files. But this feature is rather limited at the moment but we’re looking to expand on this feature at a later date. There are other Windows 3rd party software that can batch create QuickTime Reference Movies from MXF files as well.

>>>Is it better to edit with the MXFs as opposed to the Movs?

Well, that’s really a question you have to ask yourself and look at in terms of your workflow and what you’re trying to accomplish. For example – If you’re just using FCP in a small section of your workflow among a lot of other applications that natively support MXF then it probably would be better edit natively in MXF; or if FCP and FC Studio apps are a large part of your workflow and only a small part is on Windows than .MOV’s might be better. But these are just a couple of examples as everyone has lots of different variables in their workflows.

Well, hopefully that answered some things without being too long-winded or leaving anything out. You can always email me at info@calibratedsoftware.com for more questions.

Cheers,
Greg

[Geralyn Abinader]

This went off in a very informative and helpful direction. Thanks. As for me, I had quite a few upgrades apparently and finally got my system set up with the latest FCP upgrade and it’s all working well. Thank you everyone for your help.

Geralyn

[Hugh john Murray]

Thanks for the info Greg. At the very least, I am going to buy the Decode software. The CGI guy has downloaded the demo. Since I’m coughing up the dough, is there a way for me to pay and…what do I get? A download link for functioning software (that I could forward to him) or a licence number that I can feed to him and he updates his demo? Basically, how do I pay online and get him the functional software?

Thanks

PS – I notice it’s cheaper to buy it bundled with the import software component – is there any recourse to get that deal if I buy a little the import a little later, within a few days, for example. Or is it all or nothing?

[Martin Girard]

Hi,

I have this gray stripes problem also. I have tested the Calibrated demo. I’ve uninstalled it following the instructions. It still does those lines even if I desinstalled the Calibrated. I have installed the Final CUt Express v4 to do some quick editing of my sony xdcam ex3 clips transferred in .mov.

I’m also missing the mpeg .xmi codec.

Can somebody help me with this problem?

Thank you,

[Greg Booth]

Hi,

Did you go into the Library/QuickTime directory on your main harddrive (not the Library Directory in the user folder) and delete the CalibratedXDCodec.component and restart? That will remove the codec from your system. If you had rendered any of your XDCAM EX footage in FCE with the DEMO version then those rendered files would have the gray watermark ‘baked-in’ – not sure if that’s what you’re seeing.

Cheers,
Greg

Calibrated Software