NLE Mac / Final Cut questions from 2003

Mike Butler · November 25th, 2003, 05:40 PM

And don't forget the number one expense when production gets more complex...additional people. We all like to get paid, and the more hardware the more labor-intensive it becomes (unless of course you have an all-volunteer crew).

Mike Butler · November 25th, 2003, 05:51 PM

1200 Hz is awful high for hum. That's why it sounds "tinny", all the low end is gone.

FCP's hum remover works at more appropriate frequencies...default is 60 Hz which is the natural frequency of hum in the USA, and it will cover harmonics (multiples) of your selected frequency, up to the 5th.

Mike Butler · November 25th, 2003, 05:58 PM

FCP 3's Hum Remover will cover up to the fifth harmonic (which would be 300 Hz). Beyond that frequency you'll have to try notch filtering to isolate the offending frequency if what you have goes beyond true AC hum, such as droning motors, fans, etc.

Alfred Tomaszewski · November 26th, 2003, 04:25 PM

i own FCP3 and i used an external to take some video to my friends computer who has FCP4....when we loaded it up...we had to convert the files to work for FCP4....now i come home...and the project files wont open on FCP3. is there a way i can convert them back from FCP4 files to FCP3?

Mike Butler · November 26th, 2003, 04:36 PM

I think the player is only doing half the job by feeding the TV a signal it can read but not generating a signal that the PAL deck likes.

Take a look at these guys' website:

www.world-import.com

They have all kinds of converters and multi-system VCRs.

But the research I have done keeps bringing me back to the same thing: the Panasonic AG-W3...it will record or play in PAL, NTSC or even SECAM, and internally convert the signal to the desired format. It will also record tapes in any format (PAL, NTSC, SECAM) from any source. If you can find one of those to borrow, or if you can afford to buy one, that's great.

Or you can do what I still do, bring the tape to a studio up the street and pay them $100 US to make a local-format version of a foreign-sourced tape.

Mike Butler · November 26th, 2003, 05:13 PM

Murad,
When you do this, what position is your GRD70 in...record? stop?

I would like to do the same thing with my Canon Elura to save time.

Right now what I do is record (copy) onto the Elura from the VHS source, then capture the digital video in the same fashion as the rest of my digital video tapes (like the ones I actually shoot)

So a 10-minute clip takes 10 minutes to dub onto the Elura, then 10 minutes to capture=20 minutes total.

cheers
mike

Mike Butler · November 26th, 2003, 05:35 PM

Hey, if that XL has an MA200 or a Beachtek, just plug in your favorite mic, hopefully on a mic stand, (I like the Shure SM58, some guys prefer Sennheiser) and VO up a storm, the XL1s should be nice and quiet. (Just echoing Jeff's suggestion)

Jeff Donald · November 26th, 2003, 06:42 PM

No, to the best of my knowledge FCP 4 projects can't be converted to FCP 3 projects.

Glenn Chan · November 26th, 2003, 07:59 PM

A mic like the shure SM58 needs amplification. You probably want a mixer for voice-over work since it'll bring your mic to the right level and has other nice features. It can put out the right level for your camera. Check out the jay rose articles over at dv.com. Read the article about Pads and how to use them for info on the best way of hooking things up to your camera to get the best sound. The forum there is great too.

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/...hreadid=227171
has recommendations for mics and mixers. The recommendations may not be right for what you need. For example, you would only need a very basic mixer with decent preamps.

The best mic for you is that one that makes the narrator's voice sound the best, not the one that is the best technically. Also a more directional mic would be good if room acoustics are poor.

Murad Toor · November 26th, 2003, 09:24 PM

Hi Mike,

This is how I have it connected:

S-video cable "out" of VCR, connected with the GRD70.

GRD70's AV cable (right, left audio, leaving the yellow video plug unconnected), "out" of VCR, connected with the GRD70.

4-to-6-pin from GRD70 to Mac, 6-to-6-pin from Mac to FW HD.

The camera is set to "play." The VCR is set to "L-1." In the camera, there's a menu choice: "S/AV INPUT." When you're capturing from your TV or VCR (or really any other video source), turn the "S/AV INPUT" to "ON."

In FCP set your external video to uncontrolled, and in the Log & Capture window you should see your video source (the TV, VCR or whatever is connected to your Elura). Then "capture now" to grab the signal.

Alfred Tomaszewski · November 26th, 2003, 10:50 PM

so im pretty much screwed and completely lost the files by ocnverting them to FCP4 files?

Jeff Donald · November 27th, 2003, 07:24 AM

Can your friend check his AutoSave vault for the FCP 3 project files? Apple warned about this in the manual. You can export the finished movie as QT and import the QT but you'll not have your project files.

Justin Morgan · November 27th, 2003, 08:02 AM

Does anyone have any experience with the Final Cut de-interlacing filter and is it worth using (ie is it any good) on non-frame mode footage that is to be viewed on a TV. I have some footage that was shot on an XM2 in Normal mode.

Thanks

Boyd Ostroff · November 27th, 2003, 08:44 AM

There are lots of approaches, including free ones and products you can purchase. I haven't used FCE, just FCP3. The deinterlacer in FCP3 will lower your resolution by discarding one of the fields. You might want to have a look at Joe's Filters. His package includes a nice deinterlacer and lots of other useful stuff. You can download a free trial.

Here are a few other threads to check out:

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...ht=deinterlace
http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...ht=deinterlace
http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...&threadid=3997

Nicholi Brossia · November 27th, 2003, 12:58 PM

I agree with Boyd and the other posts. Joe's Filters are much more accurate than FCE. Plus, the beauty of it, you can tweek the settings to your own liking and come up with even better results.
Joe's Filters aren't just for de-interlacing either. Joe's levels and Broadcast Legalizer come in very handy in all of my projects, and there are many more filters to use on future projects.

November 25th, 2003, 05:40 PM	#1396
Mike Butler Machinist Mate Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Southern Connecticut Posts: 644	And don't forget the number one expense when production gets more complex...additional people. We all like to get paid, and the more hardware the more labor-intensive it becomes (unless of course you have an all-volunteer crew). __________________ I ain't straight outta Compton, I'm straight out the trailer. Cuss like a sailor, drink like a Mc. My only words of wisdom are just, "Radio Edit."

November 25th, 2003, 05:51 PM	#1397
Mike Butler Machinist Mate Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Southern Connecticut Posts: 644	1200 Hz is awful high for hum. That's why it sounds "tinny", all the low end is gone. FCP's hum remover works at more appropriate frequencies...default is 60 Hz which is the natural frequency of hum in the USA, and it will cover harmonics (multiples) of your selected frequency, up to the 5th. __________________ I ain't straight outta Compton, I'm straight out the trailer. Cuss like a sailor, drink like a Mc. My only words of wisdom are just, "Radio Edit."

November 25th, 2003, 05:58 PM	#1398
Mike Butler Machinist Mate Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Southern Connecticut Posts: 644	FCP 3's Hum Remover will cover up to the fifth harmonic (which would be 300 Hz). Beyond that frequency you'll have to try notch filtering to isolate the offending frequency if what you have goes beyond true AC hum, such as droning motors, fans, etc. __________________ I ain't straight outta Compton, I'm straight out the trailer. Cuss like a sailor, drink like a Mc. My only words of wisdom are just, "Radio Edit."

November 26th, 2003, 04:25 PM	#1399
Alfred Tomaszewski Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Shelby Twp., MI Posts: 112	FCP4 to FCP3 QUESTION i own FCP3 and i used an external to take some video to my friends computer who has FCP4....when we loaded it up...we had to convert the files to work for FCP4....now i come home...and the project files wont open on FCP3. is there a way i can convert them back from FCP4 files to FCP3? __________________ Alfred Tomaszewski (Scrambled Visual Entertainment) Scrambled Visual

November 26th, 2003, 04:36 PM	#1400
Mike Butler Machinist Mate Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Southern Connecticut Posts: 644	I think the player is only doing half the job by feeding the TV a signal it can read but not generating a signal that the PAL deck likes. Take a look at these guys' website: www.world-import.com They have all kinds of converters and multi-system VCRs. But the research I have done keeps bringing me back to the same thing: the Panasonic AG-W3...it will record or play in PAL, NTSC or even SECAM, and internally convert the signal to the desired format. It will also record tapes in any format (PAL, NTSC, SECAM) from any source. If you can find one of those to borrow, or if you can afford to buy one, that's great. Or you can do what I still do, bring the tape to a studio up the street and pay them $100 US to make a local-format version of a foreign-sourced tape. __________________ I ain't straight outta Compton, I'm straight out the trailer. Cuss like a sailor, drink like a Mc. My only words of wisdom are just, "Radio Edit."

November 26th, 2003, 05:13 PM	#1401
Mike Butler Machinist Mate Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Southern Connecticut Posts: 644	Murad, When you do this, what position is your GRD70 in...record? stop? I would like to do the same thing with my Canon Elura to save time. Right now what I do is record (copy) onto the Elura from the VHS source, then capture the digital video in the same fashion as the rest of my digital video tapes (like the ones I actually shoot) So a 10-minute clip takes 10 minutes to dub onto the Elura, then 10 minutes to capture=20 minutes total. cheers mike __________________ I ain't straight outta Compton, I'm straight out the trailer. Cuss like a sailor, drink like a Mc. My only words of wisdom are just, "Radio Edit."

November 26th, 2003, 05:35 PM	#1402
Mike Butler Machinist Mate Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Southern Connecticut Posts: 644	Hey, if that XL has an MA200 or a Beachtek, just plug in your favorite mic, hopefully on a mic stand, (I like the Shure SM58, some guys prefer Sennheiser) and VO up a storm, the XL1s should be nice and quiet. (Just echoing Jeff's suggestion) __________________ I ain't straight outta Compton, I'm straight out the trailer. Cuss like a sailor, drink like a Mc. My only words of wisdom are just, "Radio Edit."

November 26th, 2003, 06:42 PM	#1403
Jeff Donald Warden Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Clearwater, FL Posts: 8,287	No, to the best of my knowledge FCP 4 projects can't be converted to FCP 3 projects. __________________ Jeff Donald Carpe Diem Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Where to Buy? From the best in the business: DVinfo.net sponsors

November 26th, 2003, 07:59 PM	#1404
Glenn Chan Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 4,750	A mic like the shure SM58 needs amplification. You probably want a mixer for voice-over work since it'll bring your mic to the right level and has other nice features. It can put out the right level for your camera. Check out the jay rose articles over at dv.com. Read the article about Pads and how to use them for info on the best way of hooking things up to your camera to get the best sound. The forum there is great too. http://acapella.harmony-central.com/...hreadid=227171 has recommendations for mics and mixers. The recommendations may not be right for what you need. For example, you would only need a very basic mixer with decent preamps. The best mic for you is that one that makes the narrator's voice sound the best, not the one that is the best technically. Also a more directional mic would be good if room acoustics are poor.

November 26th, 2003, 09:24 PM	#1405
Murad Toor Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 125	S/AV INPUT: turn it on Hi Mike, This is how I have it connected: S-video cable "out" of VCR, connected with the GRD70. GRD70's AV cable (right, left audio, leaving the yellow video plug unconnected), "out" of VCR, connected with the GRD70. 4-to-6-pin from GRD70 to Mac, 6-to-6-pin from Mac to FW HD. The camera is set to "play." The VCR is set to "L-1." In the camera, there's a menu choice: "S/AV INPUT." When you're capturing from your TV or VCR (or really any other video source), turn the "S/AV INPUT" to "ON." In FCP set your external video to uncontrolled, and in the Log & Capture window you should see your video source (the TV, VCR or whatever is connected to your Elura). Then "capture now" to grab the signal.

November 26th, 2003, 10:50 PM	#1406
Alfred Tomaszewski Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Shelby Twp., MI Posts: 112	so im pretty much screwed and completely lost the files by ocnverting them to FCP4 files? __________________ Alfred Tomaszewski (Scrambled Visual Entertainment) Scrambled Visual

November 27th, 2003, 07:24 AM	#1407
Jeff Donald Warden Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Clearwater, FL Posts: 8,287	Can your friend check his AutoSave vault for the FCP 3 project files? Apple warned about this in the manual. You can export the finished movie as QT and import the QT but you'll not have your project files. __________________ Jeff Donald Carpe Diem Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Where to Buy? From the best in the business: DVinfo.net sponsors

November 27th, 2003, 08:02 AM	#1408
Justin Morgan Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: London Posts: 189	de-interlacing with FCE Does anyone have any experience with the Final Cut de-interlacing filter and is it worth using (ie is it any good) on non-frame mode footage that is to be viewed on a TV. I have some footage that was shot on an XM2 in Normal mode. Thanks

November 27th, 2003, 08:44 AM	#1409
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,801	There are lots of approaches, including free ones and products you can purchase. I haven't used FCE, just FCP3. The deinterlacer in FCP3 will lower your resolution by discarding one of the fields. You might want to have a look at Joe's Filters. His package includes a nice deinterlacer and lots of other useful stuff. You can download a free trial. Here are a few other threads to check out: http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...ht=deinterlace http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...ht=deinterlace http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...&threadid=3997

November 27th, 2003, 12:58 PM	#1410
Nicholi Brossia Major Player Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Oklahoma City, OK Posts: 389	I agree with Boyd and the other posts. Joe's Filters are much more accurate than FCE. Plus, the beauty of it, you can tweek the settings to your own liking and come up with even better results. Joe's Filters aren't just for de-interlacing either. Joe's levels and Broadcast Legalizer come in very handy in all of my projects, and there are many more filters to use on future projects. __________________ Nicholi Brossia