[Raymond Singer]

Thank you, Marek. And thanks, too, for continuing the thread. All very interesting… and a bit worrisome.

BTW, I was instructed by SanDisk to reformat the card in the computer as FAT32. It didn’t help the situation. I’m betting with you and will call SanDisk and see if they’ll offer a trade or some other way to get some value out of my 32GB card.

[Raymond Singer]

Thanks to everyone for these replies. Slogging through the new workflow, finding the right settings for the camera, etc, has been a ride on the learning curve. I’m finding my way and feel more secure after everyone’s answers. Thank you.

BTW, yes. There was a ton of color work in that two hour clip I had to export. That probably explains a lot. I tried exporting a simple timeline via QT using ProRes 422 just now, and it went very nicely and quickly.

Thanks to all for getting me off the “Convert to ProRes prior to edit,” idea. Helpful confidence builder.

I suppose the next step will be to see what help my Kona 3 can offer as I down-convert, etc.

Best,
Ray

[Raymond Singer]

Thanks for your reply, Don. Let me answer some of your questions in hopes you’ll find whatever holes may be and help me fill ’em.
I understand the all I frame, long GOP compression thing, and know it’s the cause of the scrubbing problem. I expect editing in ProRes would fix that. For smaller projects with limited life, I’d hoped to avoid the large file sizes, but maybe I shouldn’t and just trash them when the project’s finished while holding on to the compressed footage as archive. The documentary feature I’m on now is a different kettle of clips and I’m used to editing the footage from a JVC HM700 which delivers .mov files and none of these kinds of problems, though I don’t really know why since it’s also a compressed format, and one the Sequence thinks is XDCAM EX.
I’m using CalDigit 1.5 TB SATA drives stripped to RAID O. I’ve cut DVC PRO-HD for HBO with no problems with a similar set-up and much less computer horsepower. (G5 Quad.)
Unlimited RT is active but I realize it’s set to “High” rather than Dynamic. Thank you.
Canvas and Viewer set to Fit to Window, which = 33%.
FCP 7.03
The Sequence is set to render in ProRes.
If I’ve got this right… the long QT cook is due to QT demanding full I frames (?).
The long Compressor time is spent squashing down the 1080 to an SD recipe (?).
Thanks for your questions and insight. I’m encouraged by your success with your 4 core.

Best,
Ray

[Raymond Singer]

I’m seeing nothing but spinning beach balls on even a very simple timeline (720p XDCam EX 23.98) running on a 6 core machine. I’ve done a safe boot, repaired permissions, swapped out drives, trashed preferences – nothing helps for more than a little while. My AJA Kona 3 shows everything out of synch so using my CRT for anything but still frame work is useless. If the Kona has synch, the computer monitor is out of synch. This is a nightmare.
I’m wondering if the fault might be with the 6 core machine. I notice it’s no longer available. Anyone else have some similar problems?

[Raymond Singer]

Good to have work. Always. A question though: I’ve played a bit with the 700 and have found it difficult to get perfect focus using the eyepiece. Maybe it’s my glasses or the eyepiece might not have been adjusted properly, but even with the focus assist, I’m nervous about getting reliable sharp focus. Can you share your experience? Thanks.

[Raymond Singer]

You don’t say whether the strobing effect is present in the footage, only on the LCD and through the viewfinder. In my experience, most viewfinders and LCDs stutter when panning at 24fps but the footage looks fine. Can you upload some footage?

[Raymond Singer]

Looking forward to that shootout. Please post some video if you can. Thanks!

[Raymond Singer]

Yes, thank, Raphael. The image has to be prepared properly in Photoshop [which I’d done]. But if DVD Studio is set for the wrong shape pixels, no matter how the file comes in, Studio changes it.

[Raymond Singer]

And the answer is, for those who’d like to know: Change the pixel shape in DVD Studio. Yeesh, couldn’t be simpler, eh?

[Raymond Singer]

Thanks for your reply. Yes, I’ve tried that. The image looks just fine in Photoshop, Motion and DVD Studio, but when viewed on a monitor, it goes goofy again. The Earth looks stretched.