[Bob Cole]

[gary adcock] ”
your cobbled setup is your issue. I do not understand the CD box, when you can take the analog audio and video out of the deck straight into the Kona card?

Hi Gary,

True but not the whole issue.

True: When I unconfused the Kona by disconnecting component video in, the audio click/sync problem disappeared*. (The * is because even though the CD box converts Firewire to RS422, I still have occasional problems with classic HDV timecode breaks. And those problems are severe, with FCP repeatedly reporting major VTR problems before announcing that I’ve reached the end of the tape — at the start of a reel. But so far, with just a few hours of evidence, those problems seem to be confined to the beginning of reels rather than in the middle of takes, as has happened when I used straight Firewire for deck control.)

But my troubles with audio clicks and sync started before the CD box. Here’s an earlier thread:
https://forums.creativecow.net/thread/98/865467

After that earlier episode I finally bought a real deck, the Sony M25, which did not solve the audio click/sync problem. After that, I just abandoned trying to make HD work for awhile, and resorted to DVCAM and HDV.

Gary, you were kind enough to help me with my earlier problem, when I was using component video and analog audio from the Sony camera into the Kona LHe. In that thread, you advised me that “the timing of your signal needs to be re-calibrated since you are not using any sort of “clocking” to generate a fixed sync signal for the audio to lock its timing to.”

I now suspect that I failed to pick up on that comment of yours. What exactly were you advising me to do? I have heard of trilevel sync, but JeremyG has advised me to use “freerun” in the AJA Control Panel, and that seems to work.

To summarize: the CD box works, as long as you disconnect the component video to the Kona. I’m able to capture hour-long tapes, and audio sync is maintained. Using the RS422 converter in the CD box, classic HDV firewire problems seem to be diminished, though not eliminated. (I still haven’t picked an HD monitor, so I can’t speak to the quality difference between SDI and component video.)

Gary, could you help me understand your comment:
Kona Cards want to handle the deck control, without it they do get testy. you are using FW.” With the CD box, I’m only using FW as far as the CD box, which converts it to RS422. (I recall that someone (JeremyG?) wrote that the MacPro has issues with FW sync.)

At any rate, knock on wood, it works, mostly. I now wonder whether I should have bought the Sony 1500 deck — if that would have improved the deck control/timecode break issues.

Thanks very much for reading this encyclopedic thread. And thanks to AJA Support for hanging in there with me. We’ll get it done.

Bob C

MacPro 2 x 3GHz dualcore; 2 GB 667MHz
Kona LHe
Sony HDV Z1
Sony HDV M25U
HD-Connect MI
Betacam UVW1800
DVCPro AJ-D650

[Bob Cole]

The Plot Thickens. I think the bottom line is: Kona LHe is sometimes (not always) confused by multiple video inputs. And when the LHe’s confused, hell breaks loose.

Episode One ended with a brand-new AJA KL Box and cable, kindly provided by AJA Support. With that pristine device, I again attempted to capture (HDV tape-> Sony M25U deck-> Convergent Design HD-Connect HDMI-> Kona LHe SDI input-> FCP Apple ProRes).

FCP gave me this message: “Tape trouble. Check VTR. Do not attempt to eject tape or use transport without checking VTR.” I clicked “OK” a couple of times, getting the same message, until a new message appeared: “Capture Now has reached the end of the tape…” (I had a lot of trouble just shuttling the tape through FCP, as well.)

I disconnected the iLink/Firewire cable, sacrificing timecode and deck control, and the 50-minute capture SEEMED to work. But it played back out of sync, with the familiar audio clicks.

Not only that, but a previously-recorded file (same setup) which had previously played fine, now had audio clicks and dropped frames.

On the advice of Convergent Design I disconnected the video analog component cables that led from the Sony M25 to the Kona LHe. When I did that, the previously-recorded file played fine again, and when I captured with the analog cables disconnected from the Kona LHe, everything is fine, with deck control/video/clean audio, in sync.

Oddly, the AJA Control Panel selected SDI as the input, when I had the analog component video hooked up. But there must be some conflict somewhere. Power cycling the HD-Connect may also have helped.

Bob C

MacPro 2 x 3GHz dualcore; 2 GB 667MHz
Kona LHe
Sony HDV Z1
Sony HDV M25U
HD-Connect MI
Betacam UVW1800
DVCPro AJ-D650

[Bob Cole]

I know this is a v.stupid q.

I understand that Flash video has to be embedded in a .swf file/webpage. Without putting it on a web page, is there a way to send Flash video for client reviews? iow, can I just create a .swf file and upload that to an FTP site, and have the client download the .swf? Or does the whole “magic” of Flash require a streaming connection.

I’m always amazed when I think of the time it takes me to upload/download a relatively low-res video in .wmv, compared to the incredible quality that you see from a streaming Flash webpage.

Bob C.

MacPro 2 x 3GHz dualcore; 2 GB 667MHz
Kona LHe
Sony HDV Z1
Sony HDV M25U
HD-Connect MI
Betacam UVW1800
DVCPro AJ-D650

[Bob Cole]

Thanks for helping out. When your deadline is looming and you have one machine, and it ain’t workin’… it’s mighty nice to get a helping hand.

Bob C

MacPro 2 x 3GHz dualcore; 2 GB 667MHz
Kona LHe
Sony HDV Z1
Sony HDV M25U
HD-Connect MI
Betacam UVW1800
DVCPro AJ-D650

[Bob Cole]

Thanks Jeremy. This seems to be a very weird hardware problem.

(to answer your good questions, FCP, QT, Kona all up-to-date. I uninstalled Kona before reinstallation.)

Under guidance of AJA tech support I swapped out the break-out box, found the problem disappeared. Then I reinstalled the break-out box and selectively plugged in various inputs/outputs. When I unplugged the Analog Video In, the playback problem disappeared. Go figure. The Analog Video In actually works for input — but aborted the playback.

Further muddle: when I replugged the Analog Video In cables, everything now works. So AJA is now replacing the break-out box and the umbilical.

Does this make any sense at all?

MacPro 2 x 3GHz dualcore; 2 GB 667MHz
Kona LHe
Sony HDV Z1
Sony HDV M25U
HD-Connect MI
Betacam UVW1800
DVCPro AJ-D650

[Bob Cole]

[JeremyG] “Does the HD Connect accept reference? Have you tried referencing the HD Connect and Kona?”

No reference into the HD Connect (the picture on the HD Connect capture looked fine.)

I still have the problem after taking the HD-Connect out of the loop entirely (disconnected every wire to it). I’ve done all the normal things: deleted prefs, reloaded Kona software (three times so far), restarted MacPro…

Just captured a short HDV clip. It plays back fine until I try Audio-Video Settings: AJA Kona audio.

I took your earlier advice and made Kona CP visible to see whether the ref in setting changes — it’s still Free Run.

It’s really odd that when I play back a previously successful clip, I get the same lost frames/audio clicks. This is very bad for me, because I have a deadline of tomorrow on an edit that I apparently can’t use the Kona card to export now.

I wonder whether it’s hardware. But it’s so strange that this problem came back just when I tried SDI input.

I am in rather desperate straits at this point, and would appreciate any advice! It must be something so simple I can’t think of it.

Thanks for your help.

MacPro 2 x 3GHz dualcore; 2 GB 667MHz
Kona LHe
Sony HDV Z1
Sony HDV M25U
HD-Connect MI
Betacam UVW1800
DVCPro AJ-D650

[Bob Cole]

[JeremyG] “What is your reference set to in the Kona CP?”

freerun

MacPro 2 x 3GHz dualcore; 2 GB 667MHz
Kona LHe
Sony HDV Z1
Sony HDV M25U
HD-Connect MI
Betacam UVW1800
DVCPro AJ-D650

[Bob Cole]

It’s just as you said — they gave me advice on how to fix the stand. Great customer service, down to just how hard to tap the hammer.

Thanks.

Bob

MacPro 2 x 3GHz dualcore; 2 GB 667MHz
Kona LHe
Sony HDV Z1
Sony HDV M25U
Betacam UVW1800
DVCPro AJ-D650

[Bob Cole]

[David Roth Weiss] “unless your wife does the smacking that is…”

Dang! Did I leave the webcam on again???

MacPro 2 x 3GHz dualcore; 2 GB 667MHz
Kona LHe
Sony HDV Z1
Sony HDV M25U
Betacam UVW1800
DVCPro AJ-D650

[Bob Cole]

[Chris Poisson] “s long as you have your media where it belongs, why worry about emptying the trash?”

I appreciate your response even though I am having a hard time understanding it. Are you saying I should just get my act together better? I agree! I have Shane’s “Organizing” DVD and try to put everything in the right place, but I know I can make mistakes as much as or more than anybody. I have lots of projects in various stages of completion, so it gets confusing.

I’m emptying the Trash because I need the space.

I’m merely observing that FCP can give you the illusion that emptying the Trash is okay, when it isn’t.

re: emptying the Trash while FCP is open. I just tried that. I “hid” FCP, emptied the trash, and when I went back to FCP the file was gone.

MacPro 2 x 3GHz dualcore; 2 GB 667MHz
Kona LHe
Sony HDV Z1
Sony HDV M25U
Betacam UVW1800
DVCPro AJ-D650