Preview disabled in log and capture

I am using Final Cut Pro 7 on the latest iMac i7.
I have a DVCam deck connected to the iMac via a firwire 800 cable.
There is a DV tape with DV footage in the deck.
I am able to control the deck from log and capture but the display is the colour bar window with PREVIEW DISABLED on it.
I have checked and double checked that my settings are correct, that video and audio are selected in capture settings etc etc.
Everything is selected correctly on the deck.
All mu suer preferences and presets are also correct.
I have trashed FCP preferences as well.
The content on the tape is viewable fine on the camera and on an external monitor.
So, in summary:
I am unable to log and capture DV material from the tape even though the deck is controllable from log and capture window.

It's a Sony DVCam DSR 11 deck which will play mini DV or DvCam tapes recorded in PAL or NTSC.
I haven't changed anything on the deck at all since last usung it a few weeks ago with the G5 and Tiger OS. I simply unplugged the firewire and plugged it straight into the new iMac.
The old G5 was running FCP6, but because the G5 and Tiger (it's was a pre Intel machine) won't run FCP7 I decided to use this as the reason to upgrade and chage to the iMac i7 Lion OS.
The material in question is PAL DV on mini tapes.
The camera is a Panasonic DVX100A and only capapble of recording in SD DV.
All the selection switches are correct on the deck. I'm puzzled why I can get the image and capture from the camera, with the same cable, and yet not from the deck.
Thanks Michael

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Trouble logging and capturing

in the log and capture window, it says VTR OK at the bottom, but the preview is disabled - I can't see what I want to capture. Please help - urgent situation.

Not all Canon cameras have connection issues, but hanging around this site I've come to recognize their ability to connect in FCP is the most problematic of all the camera brands. If you have a Canon camcorder, and can not get it to connect up with FCP, the following is a way to sort through the issues and get it to work. Some are elegant - some are ugly.
Before we go any farther
-you should be using 'Firewire Basic' as the control protocol. If you aren't, go change it and try again.
-Also, verify that you have a solid installation of Quicktime. You may want to reinstall it using the 'delete receipts' method. Do a quick search here on the site - it is mentioned daily if not hourly.
With some confidence that the software installation and camera settings are correct ... the most direct solution is to purchase another, non-Canon device to use as your capturing machine. The Sony DSR-11 is highly recommended for DV work. A deck will save wear and tear on the camera's lightweight drive mechanism and will allow you to permanently connect a NTSC/PAL monitor for proper viewing. If you are working with HDV, you may have other issues ...
Beyond that, the path you take depends on the model of computer you own.
1. If you have a G5 tower or a MacPro, capture to a second internal drive with only the camera attached. If you need to move material to firewire drive, disconnect the camera. A second internal drive is quite inexpensive these days if you do not already have one.
2. If you have a G5 tower (PCI) MacPro (PCI), G4 powerbook (PCMCIA) or MacBookPro (Expresscard 43) with an available slot, purchase the appropriate firewire card for the slot. Connect your camera to the card and you should be good to go. The new card creates a unique bus and will avoid collisions with the external drives.
3. If you do not have a slot or a second internal drive and you are stuck with the camera, welcome to the camera/drive shuffle.
- shut down and remove the external hard drive(s) from the system
- connect the camera directly to the firewire port of the computer
- start the camera then the computer
- capture to your internal (system) hard drive
- shut down the camera and computer
- disconnect the camera and reconnect the external hard drive(s)
- start hard drive(s) and computer
- move captured files to external hard drive(s)
- edit
If you output back to tape or wish to view your work on an external Video (NTSC or PAL) monitor, you need to set up the camera to use the firewire out as the A/DV converter or VTR - which means reversing the steps:
- copy the file back to the internal drive
- shut everything down
- disconnect the external drive(s)
- connect the camera to the firewire port (and the TV to the camera if needed)
- start the camera then the computer
- play the file.
One caveat here - You may have difficulty getting the file back to tape without dropping frames. Playing files off of the system drive is very demanding and they may have a hard time keeping up.
All in all, if you do not have the option for second bus (i.e. iMacs, eMacs, iBooks, MacBooks) you may want to think about a computer with expandable options next time.
There is the option of capturing using iMovie, but that brings on it's own set of problems and is not recommended.
Good luck.
x

Log and capture problems for HDV using FCP 5.0.1

I cant seem to get a picture in my log and capture browser when using HDV. The screen says my camera is connected, I see timecode correctly rolling in sync with my cameras timecode, I can use the controls, but no picture on the screen?
When I hit capture now, the capture screen pops up and gives a message "waiting for data from device".
we shot at 720p at 25fps, there is no capture preset for this in my version of FCP. Could this be the problem? Please help!!

Thanks for responding.
It's a mac osx 10.4.11 and a 2 ghz intel core duo. I'm using easy set up in final cut pro, but there is no option for hd fire wire basic (which apple support told me to look for). The only hd options are 1080i50, i60 and 720 p30. The other hd options are for the apple intermediate codec. When I use the easy set up for hd 1080i60, then go to log and capture, it doesn't give me the preview window to set in's out, batch capture etc. It only lets me capture straight from the camera and I have to manually stop it and start it which is a major pain. Plus the clips need to be rendered once I put them in a timeline. I've shot and edited on mini dv with final cut for nearly 7 years, but now that i've tried to upgrade and shoot hd mini dv, all of these problems have arrived in capturing. I'm starting to think my version of final cut pro (5.0.1) just doesn't work with hd, unless it's very time consuming. Any ideas?

Clips I've logged and captured are too fast

I'm trying to log and capture AVCHD clips from an external harddrive and use them in FCE 4.0.1
All seems to be going well, I can preview them and they look great. Once I put a clip into the queue, it transfers over into my project. The only problem is that it plays twice as fast (I can't readjust the speed in the timeline or else it looks choppy). The audio plays normally and gets cut off when the clip ends.
It's endlessly frustrating that the clip looks great in the load and transfer window when I'm previewing it, but is completely wrong in the project. What is going on? And how can I fix this?
Thanks

From the existing info, particularly the clip info it seems like that clips are AVCHD Lite NTSC.
Panasonic still cameras typically use this format. It's not a standard AVCHD format that FCE likes.
It won't work directly in FCE so you will have to transcode to Apple Intermediate Codec.
Try Streamclip from Squared 5 and set the Quicktime export to match FCE>Easy Setup>AVCHD-Apple Intermediate Codec 1920 x 1080i60.
BTW: To identfy the EXISTING Sequence properties right click the Sequence Icon in the Browser and select Item Properties.
Al

Why wont my footage log and capture?

Why wont my footage log and Capture?
I have my Canon XH A1 connected to my Mac OS X computer. I am using Final Cut Pro to download the footage onto my Mac. The capture settings are set to HDV capture but it wont download properly.
The computer downloads the first 20 seconds of footage then stops. The tape in the camera continues to roll to the end and then gives me the 'End of tape' window- but nothing has been downloading past the initial 20 seconds.
Usually when HD footage is downloaded Final Cut creates many little clips. (Unlike normal DV which creates one big file). For some reason this isn't happening after the first 20 seconds.
Then, even though I have already created a named folder for the footage to be saved into, the computer asks me to save it as an untitled project somewhere else.
What is going on?
My download settings for HDV log and capture are:
Sequence Present: Apple ProRes 422 1440x1080 50i 48 kHz
Capture Present: HDV
Device Control Present: HDV FireWire Basic
Playback Output Video: Digital Cinema Desktop Preview-Main
Playback Output Audio: Default
Edit to Tape/PTV Output Video: HDV (1440x1080) 50i
Edit to Tape/PTV Output Audio: Default
Help!
Message was edited by: Caroline2

Do you have an external firewire drive connected? Canon equipment is unreliable capturing via firewire to a firewire drive, or even when capturing to a non-firewire drive when there are other devices present on the firewire bus.

Unable to Log and Capture AND make FCP a boot disk

I am unable to go into Log and Capture mode in FCP 4. I can capture from firewire using I movie just fine so I know the sytem works. The minute I open Log and Capture from within FCP (with the JVC Mini-DV camera hooked up thru Firewire), it crashes. Help. I upgraded from FCP 3 to FCP 4 a couple years ago and it hasn't worked right since. Would re-installing the FCP 4 upgrade work? Also, my system works very sluggish. Please explain to me how I would make the veersion of FCP 4 my boot disk. I realize that I can't have the FCP 4 application and the media on the same drive but is there a way to partition one of my drives and make FCP one of the startup disks? Hope this isn't too confusing. Thanks.

First off, FCP 4 was darn unstable. FCP 4.5 is a free upgrade and is STILL the most stable version out there. FCP 5 is getting there.
Secondly, try:
Shane's Stock Tip Mantra: If the program was working fine, and now isn't, or just isn't working the way it should, the first things to do are:
1) Trash your FCP preferences. Download the appropriate version of FCP Rescue at http://fcprescue.andersholck.com/ and run it.
2) Open the Disk Utility and Repair Permissions.
As for partitioning the hard drive, that isn't necessary. Hasn't been since FCP 3.
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Log and Capture in FCP 6.0.5 flash red frames

So I have been having a very odd and troubling issue during my log and capture stage in post production, whenever I try to import a tape into FCP I get this intermittent red colored frame that flashes for what I could only guess is a frame and it happens probably every ten frames or so; I've tried every combination of hardware troubleshooting from a different deck and camera, tapes from all different times and cameras and formats, different firewire cables and even different firewire ports.
Has anyone has any experience with this or even anything like this, and if so how can I make it stop, I have even tried that final cut maintenance program and basically everything short of a clean reinstall... do I really have to go that far!?

Some users have success with the newer drivers others not so fortunate.
Read through this thread:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2676952&tstart=0
Al

No Audio during Log and Capture

Hello, I have FCP 6.0 and am unable to hear my audio during log and capture. I have this problem on all 5 G5 Macs that I have, and have tried different editing docks and cables. I have used FCP for more than 5 years and have never had this problem. iMovie has audio during capture, so I am convinced that there is a pre-set in FCP that I don't have checked properly, but I've been over them many times and still have no answer. I searched past forums and didn't really find anything helpful to me.
My pre-sets are set to DV NTSC 48kHz and the playback pre-sets are set to default. I can hear audio of my clips after I log and capture, but I still need to hear audio during importing. I'm more confused than anything. If anybody has had this problem before or any suggestions for me, I'm all ears.
Thanks.
John

... as Bogie says.
However... this is a non-feature that dates back to slower CPU days... yet, still with all the different formats and such I (ME!!) I believe it's still good practice to leave it off.
Devoting as much CPU work to the capture process lessens the chance for something to go wrong. You can easily monitor the audio directly out of the deck as needed.
Sure -- octo cores need 30 apps open just to get your money's worth and I'm sure you won't have any issues using an 8th of one to send audio thru itself while the other 7 and 7/8ths are used for capture... but who wants to risk it?
Not me... I'm to old to change my ways.
Blast you FCP v1.2.5 on a beige G3 with 7gig and 15gig hard drive -- you taught me well.
CaptM

Log and capture freezes - please help

hi,
I'm using FCP 5 (studio). on G5 dual 2GH 1GB.
it has become a nightmare to log and capture. after few minutes from working with log and capture the applications freezes. I have to force quit FCP.
I trashed the preferences once, I re-installed, but the same thing is happening. I'm working on 2 projects, deadline is approaching.
I appreciate any helpful responses.
sz

Are you trying to record three video streams simultaneously? Or by a video amplifier, you mean a video switcher?
If you are using Capture Now, make sure you have set a capture limit. This is why:
When you use log and capture, the disk system is being asked by FCP to essentially "keep capturing until we tell you to stop ... and no, we don't know HOW much that will be either." It is stressful on the system to be continually wandering around looking for space to stuff those ones and zeros with out any sense of how many they have to accommodate. One solution available to the system is to allocate the ENTIRE empty space on the disk as the potential capture file. This essentially locks the machine as there is no headroom for basic disk operations.
However if you set a limit on capture now, say 60 minutes, the disk system can allocate the space and may seem to be less confused by the process. It still does not know EXACTLY how much you want, but it knows you will not want MORE THAN the limit and therefor can reduce some of the uncertainty.
Better yet is to record to a timecode addressable tape. This allows you to log the tape, then use batch capture. When you do this, the system knows EXACTLY how much space to allocate for each file and is very efficient.
Good luck.
x

Log and capture big problem

I am using FCP 3 (fully registered) i hit the log and capture NOW feature, and the screen brightness drops in half and a message that says I have to restart my computer and freezes up my computer. The message is in 4 different languages making me think that it may be a computer error rather than a FCP message.
I deleted my FCP plist file, and the FCP user data, preference file and the POA cache file. Problem is still there.

That's a kernel panic - whole system stalling.
Do you have both FCP 7 and FCP X installed?
If so, did you follow installation instructions provided by Apple:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4722

Audio lag from Canon XHA1 speaker during log and capture

Hey All,
I'm working with a Canon XHA1. I'm logging and capturing video shot in HDV (1920 by 1080) @ 60i, . I can see the video on screen but the audio playing back from the camera is about half a second behind what I'm seeing on screen.
My video monitor on the camera sincs up fine with the audio during this process AND my final capture is fine. It's just hard to work with this audio delay during the log and capture.
Is this a settings issue? I don't think I can monitor sound through the computer during log and capture, right?
Here are my settings:
Sequence preset:
HDV - 1080i60
Capture preset: HDV
Device control preset:
HDV Firewire Basic
Video Playback: None
Audio Playback: Default
Any suggestions?
AND can anybody tell me what Apple Intermediate Codec 1080i60 means?
PowerBook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.5)

Oh, and I neglected to mention I'm using a MacBook Pro running 10.4.10 and I'm running FCP 5.1.4
Thanks in advance.

Using a Mac Pro Lap top to log and capture.

I am traveling and working on a documentary. I purchased the Mac Book Pro with Final Cut, assuming there would be an IEEE1394 port for a hook up with my video camera. I am really kind of floored there isn't and no one I spoke to when I had it configured mentioned that even though I was like, "I'm buying this because I'm traveling and making a documentary." In the meantime, I am logging and capturing through my external Hard drive, connecting my camera to my hard drive and then my hard drive to my camera.
I am wondering if this is the most efficient way to do this? Also, I am wondering if this is compromising the quality of the image.
Any information you can help me with would be greatly appreciated.

Your MacBook Pro should have a Firewire 800 (9 pin) port. The MacBooks are the ones that don't have a Firewire port at all. You can use a Firewire cable with a 9 pin connector on one end and a 4 or 6 pin connector on the other.
You can also get an Firewire card for the express card slot. That would create a second Firewire bus on your Mac.
-DH

Is it possible to resize the log and capture window?

Hi,
Using Final cut pro, I would like to make my capture window a bit bigger while capturing. I am capturing footage via my Blackmagic Infinity card and get the input through an HDMI cable. I'm capturing in Apple Pro ress on 720p, 59,59 fps.
For a good overview of what I'm capturing at the moment, I would love to have a bigger capture window. For all I know, FC pro doesn't support the resizing of the log and capture window. Anyone an idea on how to solve this?
Thank you.

In my case, the capture window is adjustable if I am capturing SD (DVCAM) video. I can also use the scopes in this case. (Good if you are recording to disk, or using a laptop for monitoring.)
However, both features (adjustable capture window and scopes) are not available if capturing HD (HDV in my case) video.
Message was edited by: amarasme

Logging and capturing from a hard drive camera

I recently bought a jvc hard drive camera. It saves the video to 2 files a .mod file and a .moi file and when I try to use these in FCP it does not recognize these file types. Any help would be appreciated.

Hi:
Has your camera a firewire port? To use Log and Capture you must use such port. What model is it?
Alberto

Perturbing FCP 7 Log and Capture Question

I tried to digitize some HDV footage this afternoon, in theway I’ve always done it, but now suddenly it doesn’t work. Details to follow, but first my rig:
Mac Pro (Nehalem 2009) running Snow Leopard 10.6.8, NOFIREWIRE 400 PORTS
Final Cut Studio 2 with FCP 7
Sony Z1U HDV/SD videocamera connecting to Mac Pro via i.linkcable (aka firewire); I am using this to ingest because I can’t afford a deckat the moment. I know about thewear on the heads, etc., etc.
OWC Mercury Elite-Al Pro external media drive connected tocomputer via eSATA.
Here’s the scenario (keeping in mind that I’ve done thiscountless times in the past with no problems):
I connect the Z1U to the OWC drive with a 4-pin to 6-pinstandard FW 400 cable. I do thisbecause the Mac Pro does not have any FW 400 inputs but the OWC drivedoes. So I am in effect“daisy-chaining” and perhaps this is the problem.
I turn on the camera.
I start up FCP. It tells me: “Unable tolocate the following external devices: HDV (1440 x 1080) 60i.” After hitting “check again” a fewtimes, I hit “continue.”
I load my new project, into which I want to bring all thiswonderful HDV footage of my friends’ wedding. And, as I have done so many times, I hit command-8 to bringup the log and capture window.
To my horror, it says, “Unable to initialize capturedevice. Device is not connected orthe capture preset is not setup [sic] correctly.” Etc., etc.
I have read many posts here and elsewhere on similarproblems, so let me say what I have done:
I check Easy Setup: It says HDV – 1080i60, which is what it should say.
My Audio/Video Settings are:
Sequence Preset: HDV 1080i60
Capture Preset: HDV
Device Control Preset: Sony HDV Firewire
Video Playback: None
Audio Playback: Default
So now I go to my camera. It is set to output HDV. Component says 1080i/480i. i.LINK Convert is off. Down Convert says Squeeze, but I assume that’s meaningless since thei.LINK Convert is set to off. A/V>DV Out is set to off.
None of this makes a lick of difference, as far as I cantell.
I shut off the camera and disconnect the cable, thenreconnect the cable and turn it back on. No help.
I trash my FCP preferences, start FCP again, redo myprefs. Nothing.
I hit the reset button on the Z1U. Nada.
I do all this and then reboot the computer. Bupkis.
The footage was definitely shot in HDV. I can play it fine on the camerascreen.
I check the cable, which is brand new; it is firmly in placeon both ends.
Okay, so now I turned off the camera, quit FCP, ejected theOWC drive and turned it off. Iunplugged the eSATA cable. I wentand got my MacBook Pro and connected it to the OWC drive with a FW 800 cable. The camera was still connected to theOWC media drive via the i.LINK cable. I turned on the drive; I turned on the MacBook Pro; I turned on theZ1U. I started up FCP, and here’swhat happened:
It worked perfectly. No problem recognizing the camera, noproblem controlling it from the L&C window.
You might say that this solves my problem. But I prefer to edit on my desktopcomputer, and I am irritated that I can’t figure out what’s wrong. My suspicions are that it must havesomething to do with the cabling. FCP is working just fine with the Z1U routed through my media drive, theOWC. The only differences are thatmy drive is not connected to the computer via eSATA but FW 800. I see no differences in the settings.
Any insights?
Thanks,
Giraut

From what you say, I would suggest that the OWC enclosure does not utilize/energize the firewire interface when it is using the eSata.
This is just a guess.
Connect the Drive/Camera to your desktop via the FW800 cable: Mac Pro > FW800 Cable > OWC enclosure >FW 6Pin to 4 Pin Cable > HDV Camera. The speed difference between eSata and FW should be minimal as in each case you are limited by the FW400 connection at the camera.
MtD

Preview disabled in log and capture

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