[Matt Galuszewski]

Hi Jay,

Are you able to share the file for someone else to trial for you ?

I’m offering for one.

[Matt Galuszewski]

Mark,

I agree that the Motion FX and Transitions are great. Creating a Motion FX with published drop shadow controls was the only way I could see to add a drop shadow to a Chroma Key that I needed to do in FCP. I didn’t want to do the key in motion because I wanted the flexibility to trim and reposition the clip on the timeline.

Anyway I am sure you were aware that was possible.

I am here to ask, “Do you have to create the Motion FX project with the same frame size and frame rate as the FCP project it is intended to be used with” also “Does the duration matter in the Motion FX project”

These are all questions I could possibly answer by experimenting or reading the manual but am more than happy to receive a reply saying it is covered in your tutorials.

Regards

[Matt Galuszewski]

Hi Kevin,

In exploring the application I had the same thoughts about the keyer and the lack of a drop shadow in the inspector.

After playing with the effects and the integration of them with Motion 5 I thought why not make my own drop shadow effect.

So in motion 5 I created a new motion effect. I then added a drop shadow to the drop zone and published all the drop shadow controls, saved this with a suitable name and category and then returned to Final Cut.

I located the new effect and dragged it on to the clip. The result s a fully adjustable drop shadow.

Hope this is of some use.

[Matt Galuszewski]

Hi Craig,

For the record I have the same problem / behaviour.

[Matt Galuszewski]

If I understand you correctly you want to SELECT an EDIT.

PRESS the V key.

This selects the edit or closest edit under the timeline cursor on the lowest numbered track with auto select enabled.

… or something like that. I am not in front of a system right now.

[Matt Galuszewski]

..and finally the BBC provide a setup guide for the F500. We use the SRW-5500

https://www.bbc.co.uk/commissioning/production/docs/HDW-F500.pdf

[Matt Galuszewski]

Tony

So going through SDI you are able to capture the Dolby E data and then send it back out?

Yes, we are. Providing we capture the audio from the SDI input and not the AES. Our capture is set to 24 bit. We use a Kona 3 card. Some other cards re-sample the audio.

In your other scenario – where you remix the music – you require a Dolby E encoder.

Yes, we do require both a decoder and an encoder. The decode introduces a 1 frame delay and so does the encode which we compensate for as our delivery requirements specify that the Dolby E signal be 1 frame early on tape.

I assume there is a setting required on the deck ( F500 for example) for it to receive the SDI audio streams as data or is this automatic.

We set nothing on our DigiBeta or HDCAM-SR decks other then the audio edit transition to cut mode to minimise the risk of corruption at the edit point by destroying the data packets. Some people still deliver Dolby E to us where the data packets are not correctly aligned with the video frame. We have equipment to analyise the data stream but we also use the waveforms in FCP for a quick look to see if we are in the ball park.

Below is an excerpt from a Dolby document available on their web site.

Dolby E is a data stream that contains up to 8 channels of audio. The Dolby E signal is divided into frames. The frame rate is user selectable and is designed to match the frame rate of any accompanying video signal. The Dolby E data does not take up all of the available space within the time period of one video frame; at the start and the end of the video frame an error of zero data is produced called the Guard Band. The presence of the Guard Band allows the Dolby E to be edited and switched by standard broadcast equipment without affected the audio data within the Dolby E stream.
In order to maintain the ability to edit and switch Dolby E signals it is essential that the Guard Band position overlaps the switch point to prevent data corruption.

[Matt Galuszewski]

Tony,

Juan is absolutely correct, re-sampling will ruin the Dolby E metadata.

However we do editing on the DOLBY E stream daily with Final Cut Pro and the AJA Kona 3 card. At times we also decode the signal, mix the audio as necessary and then encode back to tape ensuring levels and metadata remain at the same values.

It is immediately obvious with the FCP waveforms if the Dolby E packets are out of alignment with the video frames. Correctly set and aligned decks should negate any corruption when editing the signal back to tape.

The gotcha with the Kona card is to ensure you capture using embedded audio from the SDi as the AES turns the signal into PCM noise due to re-sampling.

[Matt Galuszewski]

Hi,

FCP will show you what looks like timecode but the actual file has no timecode track. COMMAND J in quickitme will show you what tracks are present in the quicktime file.

As the people say add a reel number in FCP which will add a timecode track to the quicktime file (providing you have write permissions to the file itself).

[Matt Galuszewski]

Hi,

Is it possible to create an FCP project with 1 second of material from each of the DV and the DVCPRO media. Check if the project still contains the interlacing issue and then upload all 3 components (project and the 2 media files) somewhere to make it available for download.

I would be happy to take a look at it if you are willing.