timecode stops and go

[Charlie Wu]

hi,

i have a bunch of dv tapes with footages on them that are never been edited. so i decided to edit them at once. Then the problem occurs, after i tried to playback the tapes for capturing. here's the situation:

the video and audio were fine during playback. however the timecode would stop by itself or freeze for a couple of moment then go on. sometimes it's really jumpy, sometimes is fine. in other words the video and audio were flowing smoothly, but the timecode was not. sometimes the timecode would even stop for good, but the picture went on.

anyone has encountered this before?
any possible solutions?

cause it makes them almost impossible to capture..

thanks

[Ken Tanaka]

I suspect that the footage was not shot carefully and there are small breaks in time code on the tapes. This happens when, for example, footage is played back but the tape is repositioned past the end of the last recorded material before recording resumes.

There's not much you can do about the tapes. You may be able to capture the material if you use an editor able to overlook the time code breaks.

[Charlie Wu]

as matter of fact the footage was shot continuously. the same situation happens in every tape.

could it be that the tapes' condition have gotten worse?
or could it be a problem with the camera?

(the tapes were shot using a different camcorder)

[Ken Tanaka]

<<<-- Originally posted by Charlie Wu : ...
(the tapes were shot using a different camcorder) -->>>

Different than what?

Were the tapes shot in LP or SP mode?

[Charlie Wu]

they were all shot in sp mode...

the tapes were viewed maybe 4 times over 2 years. if i recall correctly, the timecode was correct before. but now that i finally going to capture them, the problem occured.

[Ken Tanaka]

Again, what is "different"? If you're using a different camera to replay or capture the footage my suggestion would be to try to use the same camera or model of camera if possible.

Also, what are you using to view the footage and time code? Your computer? What editing platform? PC? Mac? Perhaps the problem is actually with your computer and/or editing software?

Basically, it sounds like resolution of the problem will depend on trying variations from one end of the cable to the other. Assuming the tapes were not reused over and over they're probably in good shape. You seem to be able to replay them.

[Charlie Wu]

in the beginning i was trying to capture with fcp 4 and it's keep on telling me there's a timecode break. i tried both capture now and batch capture, but the same thing happened. so i disconnect my camera from the computer and watch the footage, then i saw that on the viewfinder the timecode actually stops while the picture is still playing. for a few seconds, it will then resume (not reset) from the correct place. example: the timecode reads 00,01,23,24, then it stops there; 4 seconds later it will start again at 00,01,27,24.
it's really abnormal, and i no long have the other camera; so i can't double check.

thanks alot ken for helping me out...

[Charlie Wu]

oh.. by the way the tapes were never reused.

[Ken Tanaka]

That's good. Then the tapes are probably not the problem.

I moved Charlie's query here for better topical exposure.

[Ken Tanaka]

Charlie, since you're using FCP4 why not change your preference setting, at least temporarily, to specify that FCP should ignore time code breaks?

[Charlie Wu]

i am going to give it a try.
still i don't understand why it's doing that?
oh well...

[Jack Lean]

Greetings,

I too have been experiencing tc breaks..I have footage gathered over some 4 years. Working with the Canon xl1/fcp4/Mac G4 and Sony tape..I cross international waters often. My last shoot I used some panasonic tape. Batch captured just fine and tc intact aok..so what to make of the other source footage ? Does the tape degrade? Where is the tc laid on minidvtape, and how much problem will it present while editing..the footage was captured with the capture now function.

[Charlie Wu]

me too, the problem happened with only panasonic tapes...

[Jesse Bekas]

This is obviously not going to help you guys with TC breaks now, but I have heard a lot of people blackstriping their MiniDv tapes to avoide this problem. You just record nothing over the entire tape straight through, laying down unbroken timecode. When you use it the next time you shouldn't encounter breaks. I started doing after having the same problem on a Pana cam with Fuji tapes, and it hasn't come back. You could always use a different (cheaper) program to capture tape and then import it, unless you edit by TC.

[Jeff Donald]

Blacking tapes is a waste of time and causes extra wear and tear on the camera. Blacking would also not prevent a 4 second gap in the TC. TC is multiplexed with the video, as per the Dv spec. I suspect the error correction on the tapes is causing the TC to do strange things. Tape quality and storage conditions have probably caused a deterioration of the tapes. Do as Ken suggests and capture with the TC warning off in FCP preferences.