iZotope - FCPX

[Steven Davis]

So, I used iZotope's RX4 to clean my audio. I saved it as a .wav and imported it into FCPX. I then selected my [source) video file in FCPX timeline and opened it. I replaced the audio of the video with my new .wav file. So far so good. I expected then that making any audio changes such as limiter and EQ would then translated to my project timeline since I've changed the main video clip's audio that the timeline used, but is that not the case? My timeline's audio doesn't appear to be changed.

Looking further, it seems I have two 'source' files, one is my original and one is my changed one. Hmm.

[Gary Huff]

Unfortunately that's not how FCPX works. If you alter a clip in the Event, it does not trickle down into your projects. You have to open up each instance in your timeline and apply changes that way.

If you make your video clip and your audio clip a compound clip, and then cut that compound clip into your timeline, then you can make global changes that way.

[Steven Davis]

Well fooey, maybe they'll change that down the road. I ended up through about an hour of trial and error, just taking the 'new' clip and replacing each of my little clips.

[Bill Davis]

Steven,

When you're working in X, it's useful to think about what I call Metadata Flow. Basically, when you Import stuff into X, it comes in with whatever metadata the camera applies it. (At least if you import from a card or volume that has metadata where the program expects to find it)

Then when you work in the Library - what you're doing is adding more metadata to the original stockpile.

When you take those clips and add them to a Project, the original plus the library metadata you added all flows into the project.

Which is where you add additional metadata in the form of your edit and/or clip appearance decisions.

All of which then continue to flow downstream into your SHARE decisions.

The thing is that except for special cases like Compound Clips (that reflect "upstream" back into the Event in the Library) it's always a "one way" flow.

(Yes, there are exceptions, but this is generally the basic rule)

So if you want to make GLOBAL changes to footage, it's best to make it as far upstream as you can.

When you think about this it make good sense. If you want to do a project with a clip as black and white -= you change it at the project stage and ONLY that clip in that project gets it's chroma info dumped.
But if you want to ALWAYS use the clip in Black and White, then you change it upstream in the Library - and from then on, EVERY time you use it, it arrives in Black & White in ALL Projects.

Next time, consider doing a REJECT pass first to get rid of unwanted content - then immediately take the usable clips and Open in Timeline - and apply the Isotope correction to those.

Then no matter what projects you use them in, they'll be correct.

Metadata Flow. A fundamental of FCP X.

Hope that helps.