Sync problem

[Matt Stahley]

I've just captured 30 min of video using capture now.about halfway thru the video the audio starts to go out of sync when viewed in the canvas etc.When i preview the QT file from the folder in column view (10.2.4) the audio is in perfect sync. I'm thinking FCP is not correctly syncing. I do have the sync adjust movie over 5 min. checked. i tried unchecking etc but nothing has worked. Any suggestions? I'm running all up to date software.

Matt

[Ken Tanaka]

Matt,
Sorry to bear bad news but this sounds like it may be a documented FCP 3.0.4 "synch adjust" problem. Quicktime 6.1 seems to have a hand in the matter.

Here's the MacFixIt article on the problem. (If you can't access it let me know.) The key statement in the article:

QuickTime 6.1 and Final Cut Pro 3.0.4 cannot co-exist for synchronization adjust functionality.

This only affects Canon camera users (presumably those capturing from a Canon camera). So if you have a deck or a different brand of camera to capture from that might provide a temporary work-around.

[Jeff Donald]

Matt,

Have you tried this? Importing the clip into QuickTime, then resave the clip. Then re-import the saved clip into FCP. This works for many people. If it does not, then you can try recapturing the clips, but always keep them under 20 minutes in length. Sync Adjust Movies (SAM) should be on, only if tape was originally recorded by XL1(S). Even if you're capturing with a deck or another camera, set SAM ON if XL1 recorded the tape.

[Vic Owen]

Also, keep in mind that SAM works only during capture. It doesn't have any effect when later playing the clips.

As Jeff mentioned, keep the clips shorter. you can always break them up and do a frame-accurate trim in the Timeline.

[Rob Lohman]

I don't know if you have this camera, but wasn't there also a
problem with the Canon XL1 timing chips? That they produced
a slightly off signal? I think I read about it a while back that
when importing for this camera on a MAC (not on PC) the audio
would start to drift after a certain amount of minutes....

Anyone know about this?

[Jeff Donald]

The default mode for FCP is not to count samples. Most camera manufactures use audio chips that produce exact numbers of audio cycles (48KHz or 32KHz). Canon chips can vary over time and produce rates such as 48.002KHz or 48.032 etc. The sync can be checked by opening up the clip in QT after the capture. The exact rate can be checked in FCP>Tools>Analize Movie Clip. If the rate is below 48KHz you should not lose sync. SAM was developed by Apple to force FCP to count frequencies, not assume the audio is correct. From time to time, certain updates have broken the SAM feature.

[Matt Stahley]

Thanks again guys for the solution ideas i'm going to give them a try.just for your info, i should have posted all this in the previous. I am shooting with a VX2000 and capturing with a PC110.So i should turn SAM off before capturing?

Ken- i could not view the link you had posted.

Thanks,
Matt

[Matt Stahley]

I opened the file in QT saved then imported back into FCP. everything is back in sync.

[Jeff Donald]

SAM is only for tapes recorded by a Canon camera.

[Ken Tanaka]

Matt,
Glad to hear that you're back in business.

Just to respond to your inability to access the MacFixIt article (which is apparently restricted to subscribers), here's an excerpt from the January 24, 2003 article:

So it appears, from the several reports we have received, that QuickTime 6.1 and Final Cut Pro 3.0.4 cannot co-exist for synchronization adjust functionality. We have received reports of Final Cut Pro 3.0.2 working with QuickTime 6.1, and Final Cut Pro 3.0.4 working with QuickTime 6.0.2, but no reports indicating success with the latest versions of both components.

It should also be noted that this issue only affects owners of Canon cameras, as others do not need to use the Sync Adjust in Final Cut Pro.

If you're a Mac user, MacFixtIt is a tremendous resource and well worth the miniscule annual subsciption fee. It's enabled me to pull my caboose out of the fire several times and features some excellent instructive content.

[Vic Owen]

There's some more info on this problem in another thread in this section. Apple needs to get its act together and get the problem fixed. "Real soon now", as Dvorak used to say in Byte magazine!

Keeping the captured Canon clips relatively short makes it bearable, though.

[Jeff Donald]

I think the sync issues will be addressed in FCP 4. All the rumors point to a release just before NAB. So we have about a month.

[Vic Owen]

I agree, Jeff. The only thing between this problem and the fix is time and our wallets.

Unfortunately, though, Apple has been remiss in not fixing it in the current version of FCP/Quicktime. You shouldn't have to spend more money to get a currently advertised feature to operate correctly.

Rant, Grumble, etc....... :)

[Ken Tanaka]

Vic,
Yes, it's always troublesome to discover that long-dried puddles have again become hazards. But, to be fair to Apple, this is really Canon's sloppy engineering problem. If Canon would put more earnest attention to its audio processing, as it should have many years ago, Apple would not have to maintain such a 1-off accommodation.

[Jeff Donald]

It may be fixed by an upcoming update to QuickTime. It is due to be released in the next week or two. It may be a major update, tied to updates of iTunes and an updated iPod. It will probably contain DRM for MPEG-4 also. Hopefully the sync issue will receive fix also.