[Michael Kammes]

Hey Steve-

All of the solutions I would recommend are kinda expensive. Digital Rapids Stream hardware and software, plus Inlet’s Spinnaker, but those are more on the enterprise end. Most solutions for RT streaming (or close to it) would require a baseband source – not a file. Of course, that’s what jacks up the price tag.

I’m sure there are more solutions out there, but these are the 2 I’ve most seen “out in the wild”.

Hopefully someone may have a more IT solution out there than Post!

~Michael

.: michael kammes mpse
.: senior applications editor . post workflow consultant
.: audio specialist . act fcp . acsr
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[Michael Kammes]

I’m assuming these are on 2 different machines?

If so…

You don’t “import” MXF files. You add them to the project through the media tool.

You need to add the files to the Avid MediaFiles/MXF/# folder (# being the highest numbered folder in the MXF folder).

Once you do this, Avid should scan the folder and find the file. Then use the media tool too add the file to the project.

If Avid doesn’t scan the folder, quit Avid, and delete the 2 database files in the # folder (msmFMID.pmr” and “msmMMOB.mdb”) then relaunch Avid. Avid should then find the files, and you can use the media tool to find them.

If the files are on the same machine, just from a different project, skip everything above and just use the media tool to add the files into your project.

~Michael

.: michael kammes mpse
.: senior applications editor . post workflow consultant
.: audio specialist . act fcp . acsr
.: michaelkammes.com
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[Michael Kammes]

Looks like we think alike, Steve – and at the same time!

Any luck with your uber-low bitrate encoding project?

~Michael

.: michael kammes mpse
.: senior applications editor . post workflow consultant
.: audio specialist . act fcp . acsr
.: michaelkammes.com
.: twitter: @michaelkammes
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[Michael Kammes]

Could at least say Hi Steve, don’t make me come back to CHIFCPUG and put some hurtin’ on ya 😉

~Michael

.: michael kammes mpse
.: senior applications editor . post workflow consultant
.: audio specialist . act fcp . acsr
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[Michael Kammes]

Well, RED – that’s your first problem – you may want to look into the basics of how FCP works.

RED means unrendered, which means the file cannot be played in safe mode by FCP in Real Time. This is very common, and means your project has not been configured properly, or you are attempting to playback an unsupported file. You need to have your Media file and timeline settings the same to ensure playback.

I recommend going into your preferences and ensuring Auto Conform is on (it is on by default).

Start a new sequence.

Drop the ProRes file onto the timeline, and FCP should ask if you want to conform the sequence to match the media clip. Select yes. The media file should drop onto the timeline, and the bar above it should no longer be Red.

Conversely, you can alter the timeline settings the media is already in without starting a new sequence. This relies on you going into your sequence settings and changing the timeline settings to the same values as the media clip. This is a more manual process, and requires some detail to attention.

~Michael

.: michael kammes mpse
.: senior applications editor . post workflow consultant
.: audio specialist . act fcp . acsr
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[Michael Kammes]

Terry and Philip – even more fun in person!

I think it’s a no-brainer that Thunderbolt will be in the new Mac Pros, whenever they drop.

As far as a smaller MacPro with less slots, at least in the professional film/video market, that would suck horribly. Will it happen. Someday, sure. The next Gen? I don’t think so. Besides Apple already has a solution you’re talking about: the iMac.

As for the MacPros, here are 2 quick points:

-We need the ability for video output. (Kona, BlackMagic). While I expect BlackMagic to have a Thunderbolt I/O announced at NAB, I’m sure it will be awhile before that’s commonplace. I ballpark 2 years before there are enough SHIPPING options on the market before it becomes widely accepted. (announcing it, shipping it, and getting enough in the marketplace are all very different things. Also, how well will it be accepted? USB 3.0-what?) Once this happens – things will STILL be cutting edge, I can see Apple PCIe expansion slots being eliminated.

-Shared networking. Fibre, for example. While again, I concede Thunderbolt or similar, could be used for mass local storage, it’s not currently meant as a replacement for a shared storage fibre solution or to be run long distances. It’s also a no brainer that the industry is shifting to Ethernet (1GigE, bonded, or 10GiGe), so Fibre is definitely on the way out for this purpose. But currently, Thunderbolt is not a solution.

I’m sure both of these issues will be NON issues in the future, but I don’t expect Apple to be THAT forward thinking and make that drastic of a reduction so soon. Thousands of companies make devices that utilize PCIe slots, and I would like to think that Apple wouldn’t screw this billion dollar industry over so fast…at least give them *some* time to START to move to a new technology. Remember when floppies were phased out? There was at least some viable alternatives in the market place at that time.

Perhaps it’s wishful thinking that Apple may not destroy the futures of so many companies (manufacturers AND pro users) by not allowing at least some overlap time.

Then again, it’s Apple – so what the hell do I know.

~Michael

.: michael kammes mpse
.: senior applications editor . post workflow consultant
.: audio specialist . act fcp . acsr
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[Michael Kammes]

While I don’t have an exact reason why…here is some speculation.

Lets say during a power down, the Mac doesn’t “release” (unmount) the volume. When then the system boots back up, and the OS sees the same volume, but reports the other volume is still mounted – because it didn’t unmount properly. The Mac may append the name to 1. Much like if you attempt to download the same file to the same place, the OS appends the file name with a “1”.

Vague, but perhaps an option to explore?

~Michael

.: michael kammes mpse
.: senior applications editor . post workflow consultant
.: audio specialist . act fcp . acsr
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.: twitter: @michaelkammes
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[Michael Kammes]

Gonna need a lot more info.

What type of file in the timeline (Codec?)
What are your timeline settings?
How many tracks are you trying to play at once?
What kind of hard rives are you playing media off of?
Are you trying to play this out to a video monitor, and if so, what are your playout settings?

What color is your timeline bar…? Grey? Green? Blue? Orange? Red?

~Michael

.: michael kammes mpse
.: senior applications editor . post workflow consultant
.: audio specialist . act fcp . acsr
.: michaelkammes.com
.: twitter: @michaelkammes
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[Michael Kammes]

How big are your video media files? (all combined)

~Michael

.: michael kammes mpse
.: senior applications editor . post workflow consultant
.: audio specialist . act fcp . acsr
.: michaelkammes.com
.: twitter: @michaelkammes
.: facebook: /mkammes

Hear me pontificate: Speaking Schedule .

[Michael Kammes]

How big are your video media files? (all combined)

~Michael

.: michael kammes mpse
.: senior applications editor . post workflow consultant
.: audio specialist . act fcp . acsr
.: michaelkammes.com
.: twitter: @michaelkammes
.: facebook: /mkammes

Hear me pontificate: Speaking Schedule .