[Andy Mees]

2 things

1) Source codec: you don’t mention what that is, but if it is not native ProRes 1080/25 the you are looking at render time. Obviously the more processor intensive the source codec (HDV, XDCAM etc) the longer that render will be.

2) Motion Blur: this is a processor hog and will significantly impact on the overall render time … a simple test suggests something it increases render time by a factor of 5 or thereabouts.

[Andy Mees]

Sadly cop and paste of individual keyframes, or individual parameters within a Motion group isn’t possible in the current version of FCP

[Andy Mees]

>I understand it’s a huge project at 3 hours but exporting a single timeline to .m2v for DVD shouldn’t be that complicated

yes compressing to mpeg2 is pretty complicated due to the GOP nature of that format. It is extremely processor intensive. Furthermore sending to Compressor from FCP via the Export Using Compressor function causes Compressor to run more slowly as it has to wait for FCP to feed it the data piece by piece … and it also ties up FCP throughout the processor meaning you can’t get on with more work. very inefficient.

>is it the Nattress Chroma Filter that’s probably adding to the render time?

that will certainly add to the processing time

>FCP/Compressor don’t seem to be taking advantage of all 8 of my processors

you need to set up a virtual cluster that will enable Comprsssor to make full use of all 8 cores .. a quick google should find the step by step guide

[Andy Mees]

Despite the support personnel’s best intentions, they’ve told you a load of guff with respect to importing from XDCAM. You need to download and install Sony’s XDCAM Transfer app which will copy the native files to your storage simply rewrapping them as quicktime movies along the way … the actual video/audio essence will remain untouched ie fully native.

You can download Sony’s SxS driver, XDCAM EX Clip Browser software, and the FCP Log and Transfer integration plugin here: https://www.sony.ca/xdcamex/support.htm … I’d recommend downloading the latest version of XDCAM Transfer software itself from here: https://support.sonybiz.net/software/detail.aspx?id=BPE-SS-032F&model=PDZK-P1

[Andy Mees]

>What sort of levels are optimal then?

Thats a little subjective Arturo, and a lot depend on your distribution path. Is this for broadcast? You’ll likely get a wealth of ardently defended opinion … my own personal preference is a line up level of -20db with absolute peaks no higher than -12db

[Andy Mees]

those levels are pretty high .. are you really sure you want to do this? I would be looking at bringing the peaks down not pushing the overall levels up

to answer your question, you can use the Compressor/Limiter filter to compress the dynamic range of the audio whilst simultaneously boosting the level if necessary

[Andy Mees]

Appreciate that you are looking for the most efficient workflow Rob… but there really is no substitute for actually editing every now and again! I’m not being snippy, we just all need reminding once in a while 😉
If you’ve already added a Compressor/Limiter to your satisfaction for the track as a whole, then going in and adding additional filters to isolated sections would actually be rather inefficient … such adjust those levels manually and you’re golden. That said, you might want to have a quick play with your current Compressor/Limiter settings. What value are you currently using for the Ratio ? … the higher the value the more extreme the limiting. Set it too low and the highs will still potentially overmodulate … set it too high and you’ll mush some of the range you’re trying to keep. As with anything, its give and take.

[Andy Mees]

Fair point Walter … yes there could conceivably be issues with the PC installation itself under Bootcamp, but I stand by the point that the presence of Bootcamp on one’s system will not affect the use of the ProApps (or any apps) under Mac OS X

[Andy Mees]

Bootcamp does not affect use of the ProApps, Mac OS X and Windows under Bootcamp can coexist on the same host without any issues whatsoever.

[Andy Mees]

In future you might want to give them a burn in with both original clip timecode and your sequence timecode… then you would give them the dub with the sequence timecode. It may still be your best bet.