Hi, and much appreciated for all the tips I've received already!

I have a question about .avi files and importing them into fcp.

I have received an uncompressed SD .avi file and want to take it in to fcp and then export to tape. Will there be quality loss because the file is avi - and I therefore assume must be rendered after being taken into fcp? Can qaulity loss be avoided, minimised? If so, how?

The file is a finished master clip, and for some reason the editing software used did not allow for writing a .mov master.

Suggestons much appreciated!

You shouldn't have any problem. FCP may "complain" about the non-standard format but it will import just fine without loss of quality.

Note, I have had difficulty exporting AVI from FCP, so I hope this is not your target. Remember that AVI and MOV are just "wrappers" for files in different codecs. FCP likes MOV style and PC apps like AVI (so go the wars).