NLE Mac / Final Cut questions from 2002

[Jeff Donald]

I import and export in Quicktime to do the conversion. It works. I hope the next version of FCP has a more elegant method of dealing with audio variables.

Jeff

[Joe Redifer]

Steadihiccup, I have zero problems dealing with audio in FCP 2. What I do is use a simple shareware program called "Track Thief" to rip the tracks from a CD. Any CD ripping program will do however. Then just import the files into FCP and use normally with whatever other audio you are already using. No need to upconvert them to 48khz. You can mix and match the CD audio with the camera audio and do all sorts of stuff. Simply could not be easier, but people tend to think that they MUST upconvert the CD audio or do something complex for it to work. Nope. FCP takes care of you.

Maybe FCP 3 is worse than FCP 2? Sounds like it (pun not intended). Have you made sure to enable multiple audio tracks to play back from the timeline in the FCP preferences? My personal default is 8 tracks. It'll do that fine until I start to add more. You're not using a G3 are you?

[Martin Munthe]

Don't buy any software unless you know exactly what you are going to use it for. Experiment on the demos and trials first.

The strength of Commotion is in rotoscoping. Not all people need that and certainly not all projects.

[Mark Reidy]

Hi,
The quicktime method is also suggested in

------------------------------------------------------------------------*
JULY 02, 2002
Final Cut Pro Quick Tip #3

Import your music the right way
by Stephen Schleicher

Need to import audio files into your Final Cut Pro 3 project? At some point you will need to, and who wants to spend valuable time flipping through four different manuals to find the answer?

------------------------------------------------------------------------
it is available at
http://www.creativemac.com
select Tutorials from the menu at the left and scroll down to the acticle...

[Mark Ross]

Anyone have any quick 'n' dirty tips/tricks on how to make plain ole' in-the-room recorded audio sound like it's "telephone" audio? We were going to record straight from the phone's earpiece but the talent can't do it today and we have the lines recorded "plain."

Any ideas are much appreciated!

Mark

[Charles Papert]

Joe:

Yeah, it sure was easier in 2.0 than 3.0. Not sure why this all happened, but it did. It sounds we are all doing basically the same thing to make it work in 3.0, thanks guys for the confirmation.

(G3, yikes! I got the dual 1ghz when I upgraded to 3.0, only to find out that the realtime effects only function when external video is switched off--that was a disappointment. Looking forward to the next upgrade for all these reasons, importing audio included).

and uh..."steadihiccup"????

[Mark Ross]

Oh yes, almost forgot... I'm editing on a Mac (FCP 2.0), have After Effects, Sound Edit 16 (old school), some version of Peak somewhere, and a PC with Soundforge, so I've got some options for modifying the clips.

[Joe Redifer]

Wha..? You mean that's not your name? Don't make me start reading things more carefully! :)

Does any know where I could get hold of some templates for DVD PRO. I found it a little confusing to use. I have so little time, I wind up using iDVD. Lock & Load baby! It's not what I'd like to see for a completed DVD after dedicating quality work to the project but...

I would like to able to "exchange" template footage for my footage, stills, music, etc. Having some nice buttons already in place; Photoshop work already done...

Anyone willing to barter?

Linwood B.
lbmaestro@yahoo.com

[David C. Scott]

Perhaps a bozo question but how is Canon's XL1S 24fps "frame mode" related to the Final Cut Pro capture process. Should footage shot in "frame mode" simply be captured at the NTSC default of 29.97 fps or at 24 fps (by creating a new preset)? Heretofore I've not worried about it but my recent capture of a long (one hour) piece of MiniDV tape resulted in audio shift late in the capture. I suspect it's just problematic with MiniDV that long FCP captures probably aren't a great idea but I began to wonder if frame mode has something to do with it.

[Jeff Donald]

Telephones lack a great deal of frequency responce. If you adjust the EQ to just use middle tones that will do part of it. The signal to noise ratio is low so use something for background noise. Some kind of white noise that you can put on a seperate track so you can control levels. The mic may need to be muffled a little to reduce frequency response. Experimentation is your best bet. Post back how it works and what you end up doing.

Jeff

[Jeff Donald]

In FCP you need to check the box in preferences>sync adjust movies over 5 minutes. NTSC DV is 29.97 frames per second. Setting the camera to frame mode can not alter the frame rate of a NTSC camera. Frame mode uses inerpolation to simulate motion picture film shot at 24 fps. It in no way changes the NTSC DV spec of 29.97 fps. Capture using DV specs and edit like usual. The loss of audio sync is result of Canon audio not being a perfect 48KHz. Instead it is something like 48.004KHz, I don't remember exactly. Setting the proper preference works for most people.

Jeff

[Jeff Donald]

I don't know of any pre-made templates. I build mine in photoshop. However, try Bruce Nazarian http://www.recipe4dvd.com/ He has some graphics and kits on his site. He has a good reputation for his knowledge of DVDSP and DVD's in general.

Jeff

thanks. I think the Pro Pack 1 has just what I need. "Pre Made projects"

[Mark Ross]

Thanks for the response. I'm actually about to get on a train for NYC (Macworld Expo) so I won't have a chance to try this until I get back Monday week. Will let you know how it works then, though.

(Yes, we missed our self-imposed deadline. :) )