Keith Troester
Forum Replies Created
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I would say use a more reliable DVCAM deck, like the 1500A. The cassette holder in the DSR-45 is awful; sometimes Sony gets weird with how tapes go in. The only issue is you can’t play LP tapes in the 1500A, but you shouldn’t be shooting LP anyway.
The DSR-45 also has weird functions like beeping just because REC-INHIBIT is on.
My Weekly Comic for TV Techs: https://fpscomic.blogspot.com
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Yeah, I agree here. Some of it’s marketing, some of it isn’t. I have still found that Sony is the most reliable in terms of drop outs and re-use. There’s a reason networks like Sony.
My Weekly Comic for TV Techs: https://fpscomic.blogspot.com
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I believe my keystroke order was wrong last post. If you do the wrong order, it won’t understand that you want to use the internal signals.
This should be the correct way:
1) Press F1 (Timer Sel).
2) Enter the timecode using the numeric keypad (you don’t need the leading “0”).
3) Press the SET button.
4) Press F3 (Timer Set, NOT Select).
5) Hit REC and PLAY at the same time. You should see it begin on the timecode you just set.REC MODE (F8) has to be on REC, not FREE, when striping a tape.
Make sure you don’t have any other timecode signals coming in to be on the safe side.
As long as you have internal signals set for video and audio, this should work regardless of a reference (which of course should be tri-level and set to the correct resolution to account for HD’s bandwidth, though).
Hope this helps,
KeithMy Weekly Comic for TV Techs: https://fpscomic.blogspot.com
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That is weird. It sounds to me like possibly a LIMIT CAPTURE NOW setting, a timecode break issue, or a hard drive issue. Where are you capturing to? FCP is awful at getting around timecode breaks, too.
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It sounds like FCP was expecting one format or setting, and you gave it another. FCP always comes back to settings, it seems. Could you elaborate on what you shot on, what your settings are, etc.
I’ve actually gotten a similar error message when I tried importing a Quicktime that had some other codec that FCP didn’t like.
My Weekly Comic for TV Techs: https://fpscomic.blogspot.com
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Hey Scott,
The TCR SEL (F5) option is simply what is being read. I would keep it on auto. In general, if LTC and VITC are not matching, there’s something wrong with the timecode, so yes, both should be recorded for maximum efficiency in playback. VITC is more “accurate” with playing by frames (VITC will be on the display when hanging on a frame because it’s accurate that way [read from the Vertical Interval of the vertical timing signal], but too-fast play will not allow VITC to be seen) but LTC being recorded essentially as an audio track can only be seen when the tape is in motion. So if you pause on a frame, LTC won’t be displayed because it can’t be read–just like normal audio can’t be read when the tape isn’t moving.
-Keith
My Weekly Comic for TV Techs: https://fpscomic.blogspot.com
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This is assuming you’re using Sony’s 5500 SR.
You should be able to black and code your tape via the internal generators. I believe if you go into Setup (maybe it’s PF1), then F6 (or perhaps vice versa), you can scroll through the menu–keep going way down until you get to Video Signal Generator and Audio Signal Generator. You have to set each, and Save & Exit. You probably want Black Burst (BB) and Silence. I always set both back to off when I’m done striping.
When you go to stripe, you have to have it on INT. TC and PRESET (click on the TC button to set those). I believe the sequence is TC SET, enter your desired start timecode with the keypad, SET, then TIMER SET. Then begin REC/PLAY. Remember to set your TC back to REGEN and however you want the timecode to be laid down.
Be patient with the jog wheel–it’s slower to respond than some of Sony’s prior decks.
I wish I had the deck in front of me, but it’s a matter of getting the keystrokes and settings down. You can also find the Sony SR manual online.
My Weekly Comic for TV Techs: https://fpscomic.blogspot.com
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In a somewhat related story, I’ve had issues if you keep exporting the same sequence with Compressor (especially with Studio Pro open), sometimes you will get a blank .m2v (just gray). Repetition doesn’t always work well in Compressor. It will sometimes give you a dud.
Also, Studio Pro won’t always find the newest files if you have it open while compressing.
My Weekly Comic for TV Techs: https://fpscomic.blogspot.com
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Supposedly Sony makes more robust tapes, but maybe that’s just smart marketing and the Sony name towering above.
Almost all the networks we deliver tapes to require Sony stock. Some will simply not accept other brands, such as Fuji or (god forbid) Maxell.
-Keith
My Weekly Comic for TV Techs: https://fpscomic.blogspot.com
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Hey Lloyd,
1) If the requirement is SD, then follow the SD specs.
2) Digital Betacam (DigiBeta) is a popular standard definition digital tape format, with 4:2:2 sampling. You will need a PAL DigiBeta deck (usually with “P” in the model #–try Sony DVW-A500P).
3) 625/50 is referring to horizontal line resolution (which corresponds to PAL) and field frequency, respectively.
4) Not sure what you mean by your description here, but true anamorphic will look squeezed (kind of like a funhouse mirror), where as letterboxing will apply the black bars at the top and bottom to fit the correct aspect to a 4:3 monitor. Using Reformat and 16:9 Letterbox in Avid will create the letterboxing, but again, it depends on what exactly they need.
-Keith
My Weekly Comic for TV Techs: https://fpscomic.blogspot.com