[Bill Davis]

Kesten,

Look up “audio pads” online.

Buy a pair of 30 db pads for your Xoom. (they are barrel shaped connectors that plug into the mic inputs on one side (or to a cable feeding the mic inputs if you don’t want the actual adapters hanging off you’re recorder), and accept your signal line on the other – and reduce the signal strength from line to mic level.

They’re relatively cheap and solve this problem instantly.

Good luck.

“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor

[Bill Davis]

Your tests kinda showed that your problem shows in one mode only.

AC powering of the Lav.

That other mics don’t exhibit the issue, points to the lav.

My suspicion is that you’re using the mic in a situation where there is significant RF interference and the AKG lav has a bad connection and the process (balanced audio) that usually suppresses common mode hum – simply isn’t working.

FWIW, doing a “signal chain” check often works best by simply removing or replacing the major system components one at a a time. That’s each device – and (and this is sometimes overlooked) each connector cable between them.

Replacing one “system” like an AC powered signal chain – with a battery powered one can provide limited info – like whether the problem is in the replaced sub-chain – but it’s usually better to keep the overall system as consistent as possible and simply check out each discrete part of it so there’s no confusion as to which discrete part is the problem, rather than which sub-system is bad.

That’s a suggestion, however, since everyone here knows that when you’re shooting, and you just need the problem to STOP – anything you can do – in whatever order you do it – that gets the result you need – is the correct solution!

Good luck.

“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor

[Bill Davis]

Feels like software designers have sensibly embraced the robust development in graphics technology (transparency now being such a trivial call compared to years ago) and “modal operations” which seem to be the big enablers of the HUD to try to improve function.

High rez graphics with transparency is nothing but good for everyone (tho the 1984 mac interface photo sent me back down memory lane and made me smile.)

Model, however, is the big change for the future. Lots of software programs use it and it’s clearly a growing trend. The button says this now, but if you’re doing something else, it presents a different choice.

That’s a solid win for efficiency when it’s implemented well.

I just hope that as with font menus – where it’s pretty easy for a non-pro to end up with drop down menu with 100+ choices – the designers don’t go crazy with the new tools and push users toward situations where they’re dealing with dozens transparent modal menus floating everywhere.

Still, as that same 1984 Mac interface proved, you give the public a hundred fonts, and somebody WILL use them all in one document.

Progress marches on!

“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor

[Bill Davis]

I think this is a good reflection on the difference between Legacy’s “flat file” lookup system and X’s relational database approach.

Since the database in X is tasked with clip management – and since that management is modal (the same clip based metadata can be used for different functions in different areas of the program – the “spider web” of data links can grow rapidly in X as you work.

In a system like this, changing the underlying ID information of an original asset – can cause huge issues since any change has to propagate out to every instance of that’s clips use.

Imagine changing the name (ID TAG) of a basic clip that might be tied to countless color corrections, audio adjustments, buried in dozens of compound clips, and referenced to multiple projects. The potential complexity is kinda staggering.

So X seems happiest when you tag a base level asset and and then leave that alone — so that the database can reliably do it’s work knowing where the fundamental clip assets reside, and what they’re called.

In a “flat file” system where links to a clip are severely limited – changing an assets name is pretty easy. In a relational database like X employs – not so trivial at all, I suspect.

FWIW.

“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor

[Bill Davis]

Shane,

I’m not sure I’m following, and this could easily just be my work-deadened brain mis-interpreting things… but… in some of my working with others to try to help them understand the shift in the way FCP-X works compared to legacy software – one critical factor is the new way X divides up the editing interface and how working in one area relates to results in another.

Let me be clearer. In Legacy, you had a capture scratch where your basic digital data was stored – a bin where a “pointer copy” was placed to let you work with it – and a timeline where you were expected to arrange and edit your clips. It was a simple, “one directional” flow. Decisions you made in your timeline, were persistent, but nothing you did in the timeline really CHANGED anything in the Bins or in the Capture Scratch. So the edits “happened” in the timeline. Period.

X works differently. There’s a thing kinda sorta like the capture scratch buried in your Movies folder – that’s similar to in Legacy – clips there are never changed by editing operations. But the BIG difference in X is that instead of a single, passive set of BINS to import files into – there are TWO constructs that work very differently.

The first is the Event Library. All clips you “ingest” into X have to be linked to at least one Event Library. Clips can also be linked to multiple event libraries without penalty – since just as clips in the Capture Scratch in Legacy weren’t actually duplicated, but just referenced in your bins – clips in your Event Libraries are references to the originals.

Unlike legacy, meta-data (in this example anything from edit points to filter settings) can be attached to clips not just in the timeline, but in the Event Library as well. And one big difference is that decisions you make in the Event Library are persistent. If you make an editing decision designate and IN and OUT point for a clip in the EB – that attached meta-data (the edit decisions) will STAY attached to that clip no matter which project or event now – or in the future – it’s used by – or referenced from.

One thing you can do with Event Library clips is to put them in timelines. These timelines are reflected in a new X construct called the Project Library.

But while we often “shorthand” this as the “timeline” – it’s actually a quite a bit different than the “timeline” in Legacy. and one way it’s different is that it SHARES data with the clips in the Event Libraries that are linked to it. Legacy was a ONE WAY street. In X there’s a TWO WAY street. with decisions are always dynamically flowing from the Event Browser to the Timeline and back again. So it’s important WHERE you’re working when you make edit decisions. It determines whether that meta-data represented by your decisions is attached to the clip in the TIMELINE and therefore just exist for that timeline – or in the EVENT BROWSER where it persists for all timelines.

When you’re working with a COMPOUND CLIP – the workflow gets even more complex. Compounds can be formed in the Event Browser – but they can also be formed in the Timeline. And so decisions you make on a compound will have different “persistence” characteristics depending on where it lives.

Overall, stuff that happens in the Event Browser is “global” in that it is data that is maintained there to be used by all timelines and across all projects as needed.

But stuff that happens in the “timeline” is stuff that’s applied for that particular timeline only.

That’s fundamental new thinking in X. And *might* be part of the issue you’re having.

I would be suspect about editing decisions made to compound clip while it’s in a timeline. I’d be more comfortable about editing decisions made to a compound clip when it’s in the Event Browser – since my expectation is that EB decisions are persistent – while TL decisions are typically less so.

Or might be totally off-target if I’m simply misunderstanding the problems you’re having.

I’ll check back on Monday after I get some rest and see if this has clarified (or needlessly obscured) the answers you are seeking.

“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor

[Bill Davis]

[Andy Field] “I’ve written to one of the two excellent instructors in that video at the top of this thread and urged them to make an AVID training video as the majority of FCP 7 editors couldn’t continue working with X “

Uh…

So you’re saying that “a majority” of the two MILLION paid FCP Legacy seats (and the untold unpaid ones) “couldn’t continue working with X” and I call BS on that entire idea.

My take is that a significant piece of the top 100,000 of that two million editors “couldn’t continue working with X.”

But literally EVERYONE else can.

There are a range of “high level” facility needs where Legacy was capable that X is not yet equipped to satisfy.And yep, there are probably a dozen “negative” cases where X is totally the wrong tool to apply to the real world needs of some defined class of editors.

But I’m here to tell you that for the VAST majority of day to day editing needs, FCP-X works better than just fine. It works brilliantly.

If you don’t want to explore, or adopt, or even take the time to understand it’s capabilities – fine.

But don’t make statements like the one above. It’s false on it’s face.

Probably ninty percent plus of standard video editing needs. (video stream digitization, cutting, scene-to-scene transitions, scene arrangement, audio editing, titling, cutaways, compositing, etc, etc, etc, etc, ad nauseum – are totally within the capabilities of FCP-X right now, work dependably, reliably, and in a way that generates excellent output that will meet anyone’s quality standards for professionally produced video.

A growing number of us are succeeding with it in professional production situations right now.

So your statement quoted above, fails. Period.

“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor

[Bill Davis]

[Oliver Peters] “Was this brought in as “import from camera”? If so, I believe that works much like Log & Transfer in Legacy. L&T allowed a sort of batch import and it’s likely that’s what you are seeing.

Oliver
“

Actually no, Oliver.

I was using the Import File command, not Import from Camera.

I suspect that one key to my success was that I regularly make Disk Images of my cards as backups. So when I open those disk images, the clip and thumbnail and meta-data relationships are preserved.

So X “sees” the file structure as if the original cards are mounted and that helps it re-connect everything nearly instantly.

FWIW.

“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor

[Bill Davis]

[Chris Harlan] “Bill, I’m way over it. You just have a nasty habit of making up wild metaphors that don’t actually mirror the situation. I was simply taking your misguided metaphor and putting it in proper perspective.

If anyone needs to get over anything–believe me–its you.”

Of all the people on the planet who are NOT over FCP-Legacy, I think you’re right at the front of the line.

Your own words – “Mostly people are trashing the parent’s decision to murder the Trophy winner in his sleep.”

When the caterpillar morphs into the butterfly, the caterpillar doesn’t die Chris, It’s just moving on. For the folks who continue to think the finest form of transportation is remaining rooted to the traditions of soil travel – it might be confusing. But for those who want to fly a bit – not so much.

(couldn’t resist another tortuous metaphor, dude – the temptation is simply way too strong.)

Look ma, my editing is FLYING. Nope, it’s not an airliner yet. In fact, it might be just a itty bitty motorized hang glider. But the view is STUNNING. And people who aren’t afraid to fly are seeing some new perspectives up here. And if this thing ever becomes a real airplane, we’re gonna be changing the standards of world travel, that’s my bet.

(grin)

“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor

[Bill Davis]

[Mitch Ives] “So you’re saying that they didn’t ship FCPX with a Titler that didn’t save your changes and instead defaulted back to the defaults? Why are there threads discussing this then? Why did Apple fix it after 4 months then?”

Legacy shipped without JKL transport functions. They fixed it. We moved on. Same old.

[Mitch Ives] “So any of us that shut down and then when we re-launch some of the work we had done is gone are some how delusional? Jeez Bill, even Steve Connor admits its a problem (to his credit).”

I didn’t say it never happened to anybody. I said it’s never happened to me. And I’m a pretty heavy user these days. My largest FCP-X management problem is clearing off my previous projects to free up render space for the next ones. (Hint: Clear Render Cache is contextual and works for Events when you invoke it from the Event Browser – and clears the cache of Projects when you invoke it under the Project Library – took me a bit of fiddling to realize that.)

[Mitch Ives] “It recovers from crashes better than any other program… maybe that’s because it has to?
“

Some of my timelines have crashed as many as half a dozen times – causing me to slow down my operaion and not “undo” so much. (they tend to be more deadline intensive jobs.

OTOH, I’ve had projects go start to finish without a single crash.

I’m not saying its flawless. Just that it’s effectively getting my work done and I haven’t missed a deadline since I adopted it for all my work.

Nothing more than that.

For me, it’s TOTALLY ready for every day money on the line work.

But I freely acknowledge I’m not everyone. But I’m also not some kind of super user who uniquely knows how to make it work with twine, spit and bailing wire. I’m just a guy with a lot of work right now who cuts most every day on it. And it’s working really well for me.

No more than that.

“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor

[Bill Davis]

Well, actually the menu choice underneath MOVE project is DUPLICATE PROJECT.

So it kinda does facilitate backups.

I mentioned the MOVE command first, because a lot of folks ignore file copying issues until they run out of drive room.

FWIW.

“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor