Canon XL2 PAL not compatible with Avid?

[Kelly Wilbur]

I'm getting ready to enter the world of digital cinema. I had planned on obtianing a Canon XL2 PAL instead of NTSC. However, at http://www.avid.com/products/DVDeviceQual.pdf I see that only the XL2 NTSC has been tested with Avid.
Is this an old list? Are there XL2 PAL users exporting to Avid successfully?

I saw that both PAL and NTSC formats of various other cameras were tested successfully. I wonder if there is a specific problem for the Canon XL2 PAL format.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Kelly

[Rob Lohman]

Welcome aboard (H)DVInfo.net Kelly! I have no answer to your AVID question,
but I would like to worn you about PAL versus NTSC.

I assume you are in an NTSC country? If so, why are you getting the PAL
camera? This can give you all sort of problems like:

- can't view the footage on the TV or some monitors

- can't preview the footage on an external monitor (usually, depends on the hardware being used to convert the digital signal to analog)

- you can have problems with lights as they are running on 60 hz in NTSC while the camera is working at 50 hz in PAL

etc. etc.

[Kelly Wilbur]

Rob, thanks for your response and thoughts.

Yes, I am in a NTSC country (US). However, I hadn't anticipated some of the problems you had mentioned.

Out of all the problems, the one that has most relevance to me is the issue with the lights. I had never thought of that. Do lights in Europe have a different frequency?

Regarding the monitors, Avid will edit both PAL and NTSC formats and I have to assume it will display on a monitor. I didn't plan on using a monitor for previewing during a shoot, but if I did, I have already looked at PAL/NTSC monitors.

But still, the lighting issue suprised me. Does it cause some type of strobe effect?

What other issues are there that I haven't thought about?

Thanks,

Kelly

[Rob Lohman]

Yes, the issue is one of strobing/flickering (I'm not sure it happens [as much]
in all types of lights). Here in europe we are on a 50Hz/230volts power
system (hence 25 fps per second [we don't have dropframe either!]) whereas
the US is on 60Hz/110volts, so there is 10Hz difference in cycle. Since PAL
camera's are operating at 25 fps they are running on either a 25 or 50 Hz
frequency internally, which is out of sync with your 60Hz lights.

The AVID might edit in NTSC/PAL (which a computer monitor has no problem
displaying), however, if you go out through an EXTERNAL monitor the device
you use to convert this digital to analog needs to support PAL (if you use
an NTSC camera for this it won't work for example) and the monitor needs
to do this as well!! [unless you edit the PAL footage in an NTSC timeline so
that the NLE will convert the PAL to NTSC on the fly (performance issues!).
I've done this with NTSC footage here in PAL country].

One of the final things I can think of is warranty when something breaks down.

Also see this thread: http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=43862