Capturing VHS through DV cam to FCP - Audio clipping!!

Hey all,
I'm capturing a VHS through my DV cam (it has analogue to digital version) and when it comes into FCP the audio is clipping (going above 0db)
Is there anyway to lower the input volume?
Thankyou
Paul

The camera doesn't let you change the input volume
What I did was:
Made the VIDEO ONLY go from VCR > DV CAM > MAC
But made the audio go to VCR > PC LINE IN > PC LINE OUT > DV CAM > MAC
When the audio came through my PC - I lowered the LINE IN volume so on the FCP audio level meters the audio peaked at -6dbs.
Not a bad idea hey
Lucky I had all the cables and connectors laying around.

Similar Messages

Is capturing in iMovie before transfer to FCP affect clip quality?

Capturing in iMovie detects all the start/stops. Then, importing in FCP is a fast and easy way to get all start/stops. But, does the resulting video quality just as good as if the capturing had been done entirely in FCP ?
jcjber
PowerBook 12" Mac OS X (10.4.6)

#20 Using iMovie to Capture for FCP edit
Shane's Stock Answer #20:
iMovie handles the media differently from FCP, specifically where audio is concerned. So it is not a recommended workflow. Here's why...
iMovie captures using DV Stream (.dv) standard which does not use timecode. That is a big disadvantage over the way that FCP captures in that you can't go back and recapture the material at a later date if you need to revisit a project.
The DV/NTSC specification (the one FCP uses) also calls for seperate tracks for audio and video, even if you capture it as one clip. iMovie' DV stream format is muxed audio and video, which means that they are tied together (I can't get into specifics because I ain't no engineer or programmer). FCP is a bit more demanding and captures the seperate audio/video tracks, either in a single media file or as seperate video and audio files. With FCP you could capture video only or audio only because each is defined by the DV specs. while with iMovie you can't.
Also, if you drop the iMovie footage into the timeline, your will get the RED render bar forcing you to render the footage in order to see it...
Shane

FCP Audio Clips in Soundtrack Pro - Marking the Start & End Points

When I double click on an audio clip that I've sent from FCP into Soundtrack Pro I seem to open up the entire media file.
How do I lock off or at least mark the clip start & end?
I don't see any markers that tell me which part of the clip is actually used in the imported FCP sequence.
I only want to make (non-destructive) changes to the clip.
I don't want to alter the original media file.
And I just want to work on the part that's used in the FCP sequence.
It makes sense that there's a way to show the start & end points of the clip but I'm just not seeing it.

I am a bit of a newb here, so pardon if my explanation is a little unpolished, but I have been working on some of my projects like you are and this is what i figured out. I select my sequence in FCP and send to stp as a multitrack project. The whole audio timeline shows up just as it looks in fcp, and the video track shows as one large clip that is made up of all my cuts put together. Now, my audio tracks are all on one line, and i can see all the clips with their cuts on the sequence. I click the first one and open it up to work on in the waveform editor. At that point i see the entire audio clip, including the part before and after my cut that i am using in my sequence, but i also see, up near the playhead, gray markers that show the actual part of the clip i am using in my edit. It is easest to hit shift-z to look at the entire clip on screen, and then find the grey markers. Also, if you play audio before the in marker, you will hear it but you will see that the video is not playing anything, then once you enter into the in-out section the video will play along, and when you pass the out marker the video freezes as the audio keeps playing. Hope this helps.

Import VHS through DSR-11 to FCP?

Hello. I have a DSR-11... can I import VHS by hooking up a VHS VCR to the 11 which is in turn connected to my Mac in FCP? I am not a techie and man, I just can't get this to work. If there is anyone out there who imports VHS this way... please advise. Thanks!
Dual 2GHz G5 Mac OS X (10.3.9)

I myself prefer what Shane said about what David said, except I shall add a technical sidebar. you rally should have a TBC and a waveform/vector display if you're going to be investing in VHS-to-DV dubs via composite.
Overkill? Possibly. But correcting the levels and rebuilding for coherent timing will make your life much easier when you ingest the DV. Put some bars and tone on that tape!
bogiesan

Help with capturing VHS onto the FCP drive

Hello, I'm a new (novice) G-5 FCP user and I'm trying to attempt to capture video through my VHS player (from the VHS Tape) and dub it into my new Panasonic PVGS31 mini dv camera, or if possible, bypass the dubbing to mini dv and capture the video straight into the G-5 using the dv camera. I tried to connect the av adapter to the back of the VCR, but no luck...can anyone advise on what to do. I keep spending more and more money at the dubbing house putting VHS onto mini dv and that's got to stop.
Thank you!!
G-5 2.7 Mac OS X (10.4.5)

First off, make sure you're using the correct cable(s) to connect the VHS VCR to your camcorder and that you've connected to the correct outputs on the VCR as well as the right inputs on your camcorder. I know its a simple thing, but sometimes its easy to get the INs and OUTs crossed up.
Next, make sure your camcorder is set for the proper line input. Usually its a menu setting while in VTR mode. Now here's the important part; if your camcorder can pass through an analog signal to its digital output, you should be able to capture directly with FCP without dubbing to tape first. But be aware that not all camcorders have this capability. If yours doesn't, just go ahead and dub to DV tape first then capture the new DV tape with FCP.
Of course, you'll need to have the Firewire port of your camcorder connected to your Mac, and assuming your camcorder is compatible with FCP you should be good to go.
I tried to connect the av adapter to the back of the VCR<<</div>
What exactly is this "AV Adapter" you're referring to? Most all VCRs will have an RCA output jack for video and one (mono) or two (stereo) for audio. You connect these to your camcorder's line input jacks.
-DH

Capturing VHS footage audio sync problem

I'm capturing 2-hour VHS tapes, sending them through my mini DV camera, and the audio is ending up dramatically out of sync. how can i correct this? switching to 12-bit audio? please tell me where i go in the menus to set up FCP correctly in terms of this issue. thanks.

the camera is actually a sony camera, HVR-Z1U.
Then a/v should be locked. Check the DV settings to make sure you're 48k all the way down the line.
Another alternative is to dub your VHS to DV and capture the DV. Those clips will be totally locked. Umm, they SHOULD be. If they're not, you have issues with the camera's DV codec settings and will need to seek the advice of users of that rig.
bogiesan

Different approach for capturing vhs to fcp

yes i know an often asked question ... i happen to have a kona 3 card but it doesn't have any analog input capabilities. so the way i've captured vhs has been to simply to run it into my mini dv camera and record dv out from the camera through firewire. i think that's how most folks do it. works fine but i'm wondering if i'm losing some quality this way. does it make sense or does anyone convert the component analog out from the vhs deck to sdi which in my case can then be captured through kona. i guess canopus, black magic, and decklink make converters that do this. would i be gaining any quality this way? thanks.

You have a grasp of the issues and no, you are not really losing anything by using the DV cam as a converter. VHS was such a sucky format to begin with, the only thing that really might help is to put a TBC between the VHS source and the A/DV converter to deal with any timing/chroma issues.
The Canopus ADVC300 has a line TBC built in which does help some. It's not as effective as a frame TBC.
x

It is possible to capture 1920x1080 instead of 1440x1080 from a HDV camera in fcp ? If do, plz also says the pros and cons.

It is possible to capture 1920x1080 instead of 1440x1080 from a HDV camera in fcp ? If do, plz also says the pros and cons.

And it's easy enough to change to square pixels within the editing application.
Russ

Can't capture HDV from Sony z1 on FCP 7

Hi,
I have set 'easy setup' to HDV (I have also tried HDV Fire wire basic) I've followed tutorial on all the set ups to capture. But when I go to capture, FCP can control the play buttons and I can see the time code on screen but there is no picture or sound coming through to capture and is says 'Capture was aborted due to no incoming data from device'.
I have checked everything.
I followed all the suggestions in an older discussion in this forum -
Unable to capture HDV footage with FCP 5.1
This was the last post in that discussion:
"Re: Unable to capture HDV footage with FCP 5.1
May 23, 2010 4:37 PM (in response to MrMajesticMole)
I just got off the phone with a friend of mine who was having the same problem as you. Although you say the camera playback is set properly, please recheck this. go into your camera's playback menu>menu>standard set>VCR HDV/DV. Unplug your firewire from the camera. Make sure camera is set to HDV NOT auto. replace firewire cable. Now open FCP. Go in Audio/video settings>A/V devices (farthest tab on right). In box for playback edit to tape different from video output (make sure it's checked) mirrored (checked) Video playback 1080i50, Audio HDV. I hope that works now."
I followed all these tips and nothing has changed. This is the first time I am using HDV in FCP. I have used the same Sony z1 camera to shoot and capture DV footage in my current FCP set up and I've had no problems.
The only wierd thing is that under easy set up I selected HDV first with 'all rates' under frame rate. When that didn't work I tried "HDV fire wire basic". Then I tried to put the frame rate in a 50fps. When nothing made any difference I put the frame rate back to all frame rates and while still on Format: HDV selected HDV 1080i50 and also have tried HDV 1080i50 with 'all frame rates' and everythime I go back, it's defaulted to 'HDV 720p50' in the 'use box and frame rate 50fps.
I would really appreciate help with this.

Hi Russ,
Thanks for getting back so quickly.
I was feeling hopeful because I realised I had the fps rate set to 50 and when you said 25fps I thought that must be it. Unfortunatly it hasn't worked at all. It keeps saying there's no data incoming data from device, yet it acknowledges the timecode and I can control the camera from FCP.
I double checked my settings and made sure the camera was on before launching FCP. I am going to study the document you included to see if there is anything else I am doing that isn't working. I am wondering if there are some audio settings mucking it up.
If you have any other thoughts let me know. I will let you know if I figure it out.
Cheers,
Carolyn

Problems capturing VHS video - help please (Elements 11)

I've tried without success trying to capture a VHS tape into Elements 11 for two hours now and really need some guidance please.
The hardware is a Win 7 64 bit desptop and my VCR player is connected to the PC via a Canopus ADVC55 firewire connection, through an S-video and L/R audio inputs. The VHS tape is a Japanese one whihc plays fine through the VCR when it is connected directly to my TV.
The capture process I'm trying to use is "DV Camcorder" but I keep getting an error message in the capture window stating that "Camera settings do not agree with project settings" and that the capture process may not work properly.
To solve this I've tried almost all the NTSC settings in the New Project dialogue box. Sometimes the Canopus isn't recognised, sometimes it is but I get the above error message but nothing gets captured.
I would have thought the correct project setting would be NTSC/DV/Standard 48kHz but i just get the error message. When I ticked the "force these settings for the project" box I got an immediate blue screen of death!
I'm obviously doing something - or several things - that aren't right. I'd be very grateful if somebody could put me straight. All over the internet are articles saying how easy this VHS to DVD transfer is!!
TIA. John.

Thank you very much gentlemen for your help and advice. I've had a whale of a time this afternoon trying to make some sense of the problem.
I've downloaded WinDV and updated the Firewire drivers. I've checked Device Manager and there is nothing there about dropped frames or timcodes. I've also tried every combination of the Canopus dipswitches making sure that I reboot bewteen setting changes. I've tried 2 different VHS players and also swapped out the cables. I've also found an old Miglia capture device and tried that as well in case the problem lies with the Canopus.
The conclusions so far:-
1. Using WinDV with the Canopus set to NTSC I get a picture straight away no problem and audio works as well. BUT the pictures are in black & white not colour.
2. The Canopus doesn't pass the video through to WinDV with the dipswitches set to PAL - the status light stays red.
3. So going back to elements 11 I've tried both dipswitch settings. With PAL the Canopus doesn't pass the signal through as for WinDV.
4. With Elements 11 with the dipswitch set to NTSC and the New Project settings at PAL/HD/Standard 48kHz I get the error message about "Camera settings and Project settings being different" and my PC hangs completely.
5. With Elements 11 with the dipswitches set to NTSC and the New Project settings at NTSC/HD/Standard 48kHz I get the message as above but if I close it then the "record" button is inactive and no video is recorded.
6. And those results are the same for both VHS players.
7. With The Miglia device I get no picture or sound with either WinDV or Elements 11 no matter what type of VHS tape I try to record.
And that's as far as I've got.
Are there any other Project settings I should try? Can anybody help with the Black and White issue with WinDV?
I just want to get the VHS recorded via any piece of software now!
Thanks again.

FCP Audio and firewire at the same time?

Hi, I was pondering an idea that made me wonder this. I hope it is not a stupid one but I am sure I get an "E" for effort or a "god bless his little heart".
I will be moving my mac to a studio to work on a instructional DVD. I will be capturing from one main camera real time via firewire, I have the option of going out of the console via optical for the instrument tracks and vocal. ( whether I can only have one active audio inputed track or two doesn't matter but would like two).
This audio will be pro quality and I just want to use FCP.
I am only interested in the video without the camera audio.
I want to capture the camera video(firewire) and studio(optical) audio at the same time.
If not it's no big deal I can route audio to the 3.5mm audio mike input on the camera.
I am running FCP studio and have no budget and a chance to play. I am on a barter project. I was just hoping for a time saver and down the road I would be happy to know my limitations as I may move into the studio and "sync" up.
I have another camera that I will add later for my Picture in picture effects.

Hey X thanks for your reply
Well I talked to my friend at the studio. and we are still saving the audio on digital hard drive in case this doesn't work. ( Which I know is the right way). I only asked the question because I apparently am lazy and want to spend as little time trying to sinc up later. My solution was to be fluid. In the end the project would be available for download tutorials/lessons from his web page, which will be a whole other delivery question as I am working through the third party whose project this belongs. Given my information I am trying to cover a lot of possibles to create something better than he is asking ( A Pro Job )
I was hoping to cross from "hobbiest" to "entry pro" here. Most I get to play with are relatives videos and stills. I have two completed two paying jobs in which I have purchased the mac and Final Cut Studio.
This is more of a controlled environment and wanted to utilize as many choices as possible.
The camera I am using (Panasonic PV-DV951-K) doesn't record to tape properly or doesn't replay what was recorded on tape. My solution was to go directly to FCP via firewire as a live realtime capture.
I opted for this as having no choice and in the end. Given the amount of lessons that would have to be captured and the equipment I have conjured up I think it is my best solution.
Again I thank you X and I meant no disrespect as to who is clueless. I am the one asking the questions. I don't always ask questions until I have searched the forum for an answer and appreciate those of you who take the time to answer "patiently".
Also I am an electronic technician and in a pinch devour troubleshooting to the point of magiverism.
When this is all over and I am enjoying a pint and reaping what few dollars this creates, I'd like to buy you all a beer. Then I'll plan the next hairbrain project.

Problem Capturing from Sony HVR-A1U to FCP 5 using HDV preset

Hi,
i just got a Sony HVR-A1U and am new to HDV. I am a professional editor so i have a full understanding of FCP. Here are my problems and questions.
Specs of system : Power Mac Dual 2Ghz G5, 1.5GB Ram, GeForce FX 5200 64mb (Do i need a better GFX card?)
1) When i setup the project settings at the start I selected HDV 1080i/60, it automatically states "Codec not found. You may be using a compression type without the corresponding Hardware card." I am quite sure that i have all the codecs i could have without having a hardware card, since i don't have a hardware card. Does this mean that i need a blackmagic HD card or a Kona card just to process the HD into FCP as HDV 1060i/60 even though it is through firewire?
2) I advanced to the Log & Capture mode with the HDV settings, set properly across the board. I can not see picture, can hear audio and can log clips. When i capture it captures black for video but captures the audio just fine. I figure this is because of the missing codec which encodes HDV for FCP from Sony's HDV encoding?
3) I can capture on the fly with the Apple Intermediate Codec, no Log and Capture screen comes up, just a dialogue box that asks me to name the clip. I understand what this codec is and find that i am stuck at the moment using this until I find a way to capture the other way. Is there anyway to have the Log and Capture screen launch using this codec?
4) I can not have pre-logged clips using other methods and then batch capture them using the Apple Intermediate Codec, it just reverts to capturing on the fly. Anyway to Batch Capture using the Apple Intermediate Codec?
Funny thing is that i can digitize fine in iMovie HD although i don't know what codec it is using. This totally baffles me that it works in a certain manner, i can get the job done, but not the way i should be able to. I've been using FCP since '99 and have never encountered something in this manner. And since this is my first experience with FCP and HDV i have nowhere to go from here except get some help or settle for what i can do and change my normal post-production workflow.
A question i really want to know about is whether i need an extra hardware compnent, i know i asked that question above, and i could understand if i did. (i.e GFX card or Capture card - even though i am going through firewire)?
I appreciate any help, i might not respond over the next couple of weeks because i am shooting in Europe and will be back stateside at the start of February, so i will not be active on this post until then. Any input would be great and when i get back i will have loads of footage that i will need to digitize, so i will be very open to help with troubleshooting as well.
Thanks again!!!
Gabe
PowerMac G5 DP 2Ghz, 1.5GB Ram, GeForce FX 5200, 20" Cinema Display Mac OS X (10.4)

All the settings are proper, like i said, it captures with the apple codec for HDV but that is only good for on the fly. iMovie captures it fine, it's just when the settings in FCP are set for HDV it won't capture picture through log and capture.
Are you guys actually reading my post??? I have given all the information that i can, settings are proper, so the post so far are completely redundant.

HD cam with FCP 5.1.4 ?

Hi everybody, as I encounter big problems with my DV Canon XM1, I plan to buy a new one maybe HD cam.
I saw that most of those cams have USB connection and no more FW, will I be able to capture an HD cam from FCP ?
I doubt of it but can you tell me how could I do, would be very nice.
Thanx
Steve
Message was edited by: bullit_steve

Most if not all of these camcorders record AVCHD. You can import these files through USB to ProRes or the AIC.
Depending on what you shoot though, I'd consider HDV tape cameras if you shoot with a lot of motion... the AIC codec isn't very clean, and ProRes is fine if there's not tons of movement in the shots. HDV will transcode to ProRes HQ which takes care of that, and it is supported natively in FCP (no transcoding works much like DV captures).
Also if budget allows, there are other choices here which are better video formats than HDV or AVCHD... P2 comes to mind, and just around the corner (say at NAB in April '09) there will very likely be a watershed of new cameras... RED is planning a whopper for example. Will just BLOW away anything in the price range. These cameras are shooting RAW photography... better than HD, can be transcoded to HD for delivery, but look like 35mm film. I gotta say, there are very big changes on the horizon in this area. Course, they will be likely in the 3-5k range in price though probably. Check out http://www.red.com for more if you're interested.
Jerry

Capturing VHS-C footage: Will this method work?

Ok, I'm new to the whole Video and Digital manipulation realm, but I wanted to run this by everybody before I tried it out.
Two questions:
1. Would this work:
- Capturing at DVD quality (I mean, it's VHS-C tapes, not exactly IMAX level stuff)
2. I'm using my S-VHS player and my DV player as a bridge to my computer. Which of these two is better/higher quality (or either I guess):
         a. Plug my s-video into my vcr and dv player, then usb into my computer, then capture that video using the dv camera as a bridge
          OR
          b. S-video into my dv and vcr, capture the footage onto my DV camera, then import that captured footage from the DV camera.

If you are passing the video through your DV camcorder using AV-DV option, the camcorder is converting the AV to DV, the camera would do the same if you were recording that input to tape. Either way it is DV. When you capture DV via Firewire, you are capturing a stream of binary data that meets the DV IEEE1394 standard. It makes no difference if the stream comes from the pass-through, or from recording to tape first and then capturing the tape. There is no change in quality loss between the methods. Recognize however, the source was only VHS and the DV copy by either method can't be better than the VHS.
As for USB, I do not believe that Premiere pro can capture a USB input, the Premierr pro miniDV/HDV option is only for IEEE1394 capture.
Your USB connection may be passing through a camera-specific utility and being recorded as a AVI file on your HDD. You then have to import that file to Premiere using the project panel

Hum Through DV Cam When CRT Connected

Would anybody have any idea why attaching an external CRT to my PowerBook via the DVI-VGA adapter would cause a rather loud hum from the analog output of a DV cam when it's attached to the PowerBook via firewire?
Even if the external monitor is turned off, the hum still persists. However, it goes away if I unplug the monitor from the power outlet, or unplug it from the DVI-VGA adapter.
I have plugged the monitor into different electrical outlets with no improvement.
Maybe a bad ground in the monitor?
Thanks much,
Brad
Ti PowerBook 1ghz Mac OS X (10.2.x) 1 Gig Ram/Super Drive

The camera doesn't let you change the input volume
What I did was:
Made the VIDEO ONLY go from VCR > DV CAM > MAC
But made the audio go to VCR > PC LINE IN > PC LINE OUT > DV CAM > MAC
When the audio came through my PC - I lowered the LINE IN volume so on the FCP audio level meters the audio peaked at -6dbs.
Not a bad idea hey
Lucky I had all the cables and connectors laying around.

Capturing VHS through DV cam to FCP - Audio clipping!!

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for