Avid Media Composer User's Guide 7.0 User’s MC Ug

User Manual: avid Avid Media Composer - 7.0 - User’s Guide Free User Guide for Avid Media Composer Software, Manual

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Avid® Media Composer®
UserÕs Guide
Release 7.0



tools for storytellers™

© Copyright Avid Technology, Inc. 2/98. All rights reserved. Printed in USA.
Avid Media Composer Users Guide • Part 121801 Rev. A • 2/98

Contents
Chapter 1

Desktop Basics
Managing Composer Project and User Folders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
About Composer Projects and Avid Users Folders. . . . . . . . . . .
Changing Project and User Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting Projects and User ProÞles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving Projects and User ProÞles from Another System . . . .
Using the Media Conversion Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
About the Media Composer Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Launching the Media Composer Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mounting and Ejecting Disk Drives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ejecting Disk Drives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mounting All Drives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 2

25
26
26
27
28
29
31
32
33
33
34

Starting a Project
Opening a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Identifying a User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting Up a New User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting an Existing User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a New Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Nesting Projects in Folders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting an Existing Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Opening the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Closing a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Backing Up Your Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3

35
36
36
37
38
38
39
40
41
42
42

Saving Your Work on a Diskette or Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Restoring from a Backup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ending the Edit Session . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Quitting the Media Composer Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Turning Off Your Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Session Checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 3

43
43
44
44
45
46

Working with the Project Window
Opening and Closing the Project Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Bins Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying Bins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a Folder in a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting a Bin or Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Emptying Trash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Viewing Contents in the Trash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Managing Folders and Bins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a New Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Renaming a Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Opening and Closing a Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Opening Selected Bins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Closing a Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting Bin Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Saving Bins Automatically . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Saving Bins Manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Retrieving Bin Files from the Attic Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Settings Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
About Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
DeÞning Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Reviewing Basic Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying Project Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Working with Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Another User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Modifying Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4

47
48
50
50
51
51
52
52
54
56
57
58
58
58
59
59
60
61
62
63
63
64
66
66
67

Working with Multiple Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Duplicating Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Renaming Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Among Multiple Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Restoring Default Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Copying Settings Between Settings Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving Settings Between Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Site Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Info Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying a Project ProÞle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying Usage Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
File Structure and Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Importing the Statistics File into a Spreadsheet . . . . . . . . .
About Projects and Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Viewing Memory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accessing the Hardware Tool from the Info Window . . . . . . . .
Customizing Your Workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Assigning a Workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting a Workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Assigning a Workspace Button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 4

68
69
69
70
70
70
71
74
75
76
76
77
79
81
83
84
85
85
86
87
88

Using Basic Tools
Using the Tools Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Using the Deck Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Using the Command Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Using the Blank Button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
About Button Mapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Mapping User-Selectable Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Mapping Menu Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Using the Avid Calculator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Using the Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Displaying System Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
5

Reviewing a Log of Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Getting Information with the Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Hardware Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Serial Ports Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Specifying the AvidDroid Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Specifying the Steenbeck Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Specifying the MUI Controller. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 5

Logging
Logging Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logging Preroll . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logging Timecode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Naming Tapes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Double-Checking the Logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preparing Logs for Import . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using MediaLog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Transferring Bins from MediaLog for Macintosh . . . . . . .
Transferring Bins from MediaLog on the PC . . . . . . . . . . .
Converting Logs with Avid Log Exchange . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Drag and Drop Conversion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Avid Logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using a Word Processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Vantage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Importing Shot Log Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logging Directly into a Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logging with an Avid-Controlled Deck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logging with Non-Avid-Controlled Decks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Modifying Clip Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Modify Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exporting Shot Log Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 6

102
103
103
105
106
106
107

109
110
110
110
111
112
112
113
114
114
116
117
117
118
118
120
121
124
126
127
130

Preparing to Digitize
Preparing the Hardware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
6

Selecting Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deck ConÞguration Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting ConÞgurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deck Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Entering Capture Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting Up the Compression Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
About the Color Rate Option. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting Up the Digitize Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Deck Selection Pop-Up Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting a Tape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Source Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Choosing a Resolution in the Digitize Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Choosing the Target Bin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Targeting Drives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Targeting a Single Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Targeting Separate Drives for Audio and Video . . . . . . . .
Interpreting the Time Remaining Display. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Digitizing to Multiple Media Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Digitizing Across Timecode Breaks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preparing for Audio Input and Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Digital Sync with the Eight-Channel
Audio Converter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Choosing the Audio File Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjusting Audio Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Audio Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Resizing the Audio Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjusting the Reference Level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Choosing a Peak Hold Option. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjusting Input Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Tone Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Console to Check Audio Levels. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preparing for Video Input . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Factory Presets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
7

134
135
140
141
141
143
144
144
145
145
147
148
149
149
150
150
151
152
156
157
158
158
160
163
165
166
167
169
172
173
174
176

Calibrating for Video Input . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Saving Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Saving a Default Video Input Setting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjusting Video Levels by Eye . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Digitize Preparations Checklist. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 7

177
182
183
184
185

Digitizing
Before You Begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preparing Digitize Bins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Special Digitizing Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Avid Media Reader. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logging Errors to the Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Subclips On-the-Fly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Locators On-the-Fly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Comments On-the-Fly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Digitizing and Logging at the Same Time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Digitizing from a Mark IN to a Mark OUT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting Both Marks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting Only One Mark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Digitizing On-the-Fly. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Autodigitizing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Digitizing from a Non-Avid-Controlled Deck . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Digitizing with Timecode-of-Day Timecode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Digitizing to the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Batch Digitizing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preparing to Batch Digitize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Resizing the Digitize Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preparing Settings for Unattended Batch Digitizing . . . .
Starting the Batch Digitize Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Redigitizing Your Material. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Redigitizing Master Clips and Subclips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Redigitizing Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Saving Two Versions of a Sequence When Redigitizing .
8

186
187
187
188
188
189
190
190
190
191
192
193
193
196
197
198
199
200
200
201
201
202
205
205
206
206

Using Decompose When Redigitizing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Redigitizing the Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Editcam Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Acquiring Editcam Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Media Tool to Copy Editcam Master Clips . . . . . . .

Chapter 8

Importing Files
Preparing to Import Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Importing Mixed-Resolution Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Global Import Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Importing Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 9

207
208
210
210
211

213
214
215
215

Organizing with Bins
Before You Begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Audio Timecode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjusting Pan Defaults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjusting Default Pan Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Center Pan Command. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting the Bin Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
About Bin Display Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Bin Fast Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Basic Bin Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting the Bin Font . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Clip Information Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving the Clip Information Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Copying Text from the Clip Information Window . . . . . .
Selecting Clips and Sequences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Duplicating Clips and Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving Clips and Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Copying Clips and Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting Clips and Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sifting Clips and Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Locking Items in the Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
9

222
222
224
224
225
226
228
230
231
231
232
233
233
233
234
234
235
235
236
238

Selecting Ofßine Items in a Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Media Relatives for an Object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Sources Used by an Object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Unreferenced Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Text Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
About Bin Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Customizing Bin Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving and Rearranging Columns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tidying Up Bin Columns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Showing and Hiding Columns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting a Column. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Duplicating a Column. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Customized Columns to a Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changing a Custom Column Heading. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Saving a Custom View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Managing Clip Information in Text Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving Within Column Cells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Modifying Clip Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Copying Information Between Columns . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Copying Information from Another Cell in a Custom
Column. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sorting Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Frame Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changing the Bin Background Color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Enlarging or Reducing Frame Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rearranging Frames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changing the Frame Identifying the Clip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tidying Up Frames in a Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Script Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Text in Script Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rearranging Clips in Script Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Printing Bins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gathering Format Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
10

239
240
240
241
242
243
243
244
244
245
246
246
247
248
248
249
249
250
255
255
256
257
258
259
259
260
260
261
262
262
262
264

Preparing Digital Bars and Tone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Importing a PICT File of Bars. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Leader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Video Leader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Audio Leader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Storyboard Worksheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 10

Managing Media Files
Using the Media Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Basic Media Tool Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Opening the Media Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting Tracks with the Media Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Freeing Storage Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Consolidating Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
About the Consolidate Feature. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Consolidate Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loading the Media Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Backing Up Media Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Finding a Related Media File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Relinking Media Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Relinking to Selected Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Relinking Consolidated Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Relinking Moved Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Unlinking Media Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 11

264
265
266
266
267
268

270
271
272
273
275
276
276
277
279
280
281
282
284
284
285
286

Using Script Integration
Line Script Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Explanation of Symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lining in the Digital Realm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Script Integration Workßow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Script Integration in Video Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Script Window Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Importing a Script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
11

288
289
290
291
292
293
294

Opening, Closing, and Saving the Script Window . . . . . . . . .
Displaying Clip Information in a Script Window . . . . . . . . . .
Navigating in the Script Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjusting the Script Margins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Manipulating Script Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changing the Font of the Script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cutting, Copying, and Pasting Script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Removing Script Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Searching Through Script. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Page and Scene Numbers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding a Page or Scene Number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changing a Page or Scene Number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting a Page or Scene Number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Searching for a Page and Scene Number . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Conducting a Text Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Linking Clips to the Script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Manipulating Slates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Slates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Resizing a Slate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hiding Slate Frames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Showing One Take Per Slate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving a Slate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting a Slate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Manipulating Takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting Takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying Take Numbers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changing the Representative Frame for a Take . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loading Takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Playing Takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjusting Take Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
12

295
295
296
296
297
297
298
300
301
302
302
302
303
304
305
305
306
308
308
308
309
309
310
311
311
311
312
312
313
313
314
314
314

Indicating Off-Screen Dialog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Color Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Script Marks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Placing Script Marks Manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Automating Screening and Marking. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loading and Playing Marked Segments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving a Script Mark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting a Script Mark. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Finding Clips and Script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Finding Script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Finding Clips and Bins from the Script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing with the Script Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Script Editing Workßow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Splicing a Script Range . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Revising the Script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interactive Screenings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 12

315
316
316
317
318
320
320
321
321
321
322
322
323
324
324
324

Viewing and Marking Footage
Customizing the Composer Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changing the Source/Record Window Background Color . . .
Using the 16 x 9 Display Format. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying Tracking Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tracking Format Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying the Clip Information Window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting Timecode Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting Multiple Timecode Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Viewing Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Window Zoom Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loading and Clearing Footage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loading into Source, Record, and Pop-Up Monitors . . . . . . . .
Loading Multiple Clips or Sequences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Monitor Menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Switching Between Loaded Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
13

327
328
329
329
331
332
334
335
336
338
339
339
339
340
340

Clearing Clips from Monitors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341
Loading Footage into Full-Screen Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342
Controlling Playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343
Using Position Bars and Position Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343
Using Buttons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344
Play Reverse, Play Forward, Pause, Stop, Rewind, and Fast
Forward Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344
Step Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345
Using the Keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
J-K-L Keys (Three-Button Play). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
Home, End, and Arrow Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
Using Single-Field Step . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348
Using the Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348
Stepping with the Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349
Shuttling with the Mouse. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349
Marking and Subcataloging Footage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 350
Marking IN and OUT Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 350
Marking an Entire Clip or Segment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 352
Creating Subclips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353
Using Locators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355
Ways to Use Locators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355
Adding Locators While Editing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356
Using the Locators Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357
Features of the Locators Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358
Locators Window Fast Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359
Finding Frames, Clips, and Bins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360
Using Timecode to Find a Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360
Searching a Clip. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 362
Using Match Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
Finding a Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364
Locating a Master Clip from a Subclip in a Sequence. . . . . . . 364
Finding a Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
Using the Manual User Interface (MUI) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
14

Choosing the MUI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
MUI Default Editing Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Customizing the MUI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the MUI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 13

367
368
369
371

First Edits in Source/Record Mode
Entering Source/Record Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting Up a New Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changing the Sequence Clip Info . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting Up Tracks for the New Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
User Preferences for Creating Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Filler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Copying Locators from Source Clips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Making the First Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating an Instant Rough Cut. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Undoing or Redoing Edits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing Additional Shots into the Sequence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Performing a Splice-In Edit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Performing an Overwrite Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Performing a Replace Edit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Single Mark Editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Phantom Marks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting One Mark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding a Second Mark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lifting, Extracting, and Copying Material. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lifting Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Extracting Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Copying Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Clipboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preserving Clipboard Contents. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Recovering Material from the Clipboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Comments to Sequence Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Playing the New Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
15

373
373
375
376
377
377
378
379
381
382
383
383
384
385
386
386
387
387
388
388
388
389
389
390
391
392
393

Starting a Playback Loop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 394
Playback Performance Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 394
Using the Play Length Toggle Feature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395
Mapping the Play Length Toggle Button to the Record
Monitor Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395
Changing the Value for the Play Length Toggle Button from
the Default. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396
Selecting the Play Length Toggle Button to Map to the Play
Button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396
How to Proceed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 397

Chapter 14

Using the Timeline
Customizing Timeline Views. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Timeline Fast Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Additional Procedures for Customizing the Timeline . . . . . .
Enlarging and Reducing Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving a Track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changing the Timeline Background Color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changing the Timeline Track Color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Saving a Customized View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Replacing a Timeline View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting the Scroll Option for the Timeline. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Restoring the Default Timeline View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Navigating in the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Position Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Timeline Scroll Bar/Position Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying Detail in the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Zooming In and Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Focusing the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying Source Material in the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Controlling Movement in the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
IN to OUT Highlighting in the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Segment Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
16

399
401
402
402
403
403
404
404
405
406
407
407
408
408
410
411
412
413
414
415
416

Segment Mode Workßow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting and Deselecting Segments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting with the Segment Mode Pointer . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lassoing One or More Segments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deselecting Segments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Performing Segment Mode Edits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
About Four-Frame Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Extracting/Splicing Segments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lifting/Overwriting Segments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting Segments with Segment Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Marking Clips and Sequences with Segment Mode . . . .
Using Advanced Timeline Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Bin Editing into the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cut, Copy, and Paste in the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Full-Screen Timeline. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing with the Film Track. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing in Heads and Tails View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Working with Multiple Tracks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
About Effects Editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
About Nesting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Track Selector Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Monitoring Tracks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Monitoring Video. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Monitoring Audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Monitoring a Solo Track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Patching Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Locking and Sync Locking Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Locking Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sync Locking Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding a Track. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding an Edit (Match Framing) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
17

416
417
418
418
419
419
420
422
422
423
424
425
425
426
426
429
432
434
434
435
435
436
437
438
438
439
441
442
442
443
443
444
445

Removing Match-Frame Edits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Backtiming Edits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating One-Step Overlap Edits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Additional Ofßine Aids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Detecting Duplicate Frames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tracking Color Frame Shifts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Printing the Timeline. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 15

446
447
448
449
449
451
453

Working in Trim Mode
Customizing Trim Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Basic Trim Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Entering Trim Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exiting Trim Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Toggling Between Big and Small Trim Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Between Trim Sides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Additional Transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Performing a Basic Trim. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Reviewing the Trim Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dual-Image Playback During Trims . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Trimming On-the-Fly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Trimming During a Playback Loop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Overlap Edits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Extending an Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Slipping or Sliding Shots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Segments for Slip or Slide Trimming . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Slip/Slide Display. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Performing the Slip or Slide Trim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Slipping Shots in Source/Record Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Performing a Slide Trim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Maintaining Sync While Trimming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Black When Trimming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Trimming with Sync-Locked Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Transition Corner Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
18

454
457
457
459
459
460
460
462
463
464
465
466
466
467
468
469
470
471
472
472
473
473
474
476

Chapter 16

Working with Audio
About Audio Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accessing Audio Effect Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Audio Editing Aids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Audio Scrub . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Smooth Scrub Versus Digital Scrub. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Tracks for Scrubbing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Smooth Audio Scrub . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the J-K-L Keys to Perform Smooth Scrub . . . . . . . .
Using the Mouse to Perform Smooth Scrub . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Digital Audio Scrub . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjusting Digital Scrub Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Performing the Digital Scrub Procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Waveform Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying Audio Waveforms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Muting the Audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Audio Mix Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Resizing the Audio Mix Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjusting One Audio Track at a Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ganging and Adjusting Multiple Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ignoring Existing Volume and Pan Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjusting Volume While Playing an Audio Effect . . . . . . . . .
Using Audio Gain Automation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
System Clip Gain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Real-Time Response of Audio Gain Automation. . . . . . . . . . .
Using Audio Gain Automation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting Audio Gain Key Frames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving Audio Gain Key Frames on the Timeline . . . . . .
Recording Audio Gain Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Automation Gain Fast Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Automation Gain Window Sliders . . . . . . . . . .
Using a Keyboard Shortcut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Fader to Record Audio Gain Information . . . .
19

480
480
481
482
482
482
483
483
484
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
491
492
498
498
499
500
501
502
503
504
505
507
511
512
513
513

Connecting a Fader to Your Avid Composer System . . . . . . . .
Ganging Sliders on the FaderMaster Fader . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Audio Gain Automation and the Audio Mix Window
Using the Audio EQ Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Audio EQ Tool Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Applying Audio EQ Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Saving Audio EQ Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Removing Audio EQ Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Audio EQ Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Low Shelf Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Small Octave Range Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Audio EQ Templates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Applying an EQ Template . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Your Own Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adjusting EQ While Playing an Audio Effect. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Digidesign AudioSuite Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Installing AudioSuite Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Starting and Quitting the DAE Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting Playback Buffer Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the AudioSuite Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using a Plug-In Dialog Box. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rendering Plug-In Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Plug-In Limitations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Troubleshooting AudioSuite Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Addressing Memory Allocation Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Starting and Stopping the DAE Application . . . . . . . . . . .
Canceling a Render Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Addressing Error Messages When Rendering a Plug-in
Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Digidesign Pro Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Audio Punch-In. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Audio Punch In Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Connecting the Hardware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
20

514
515
516
518
519
521
524
525
526
526
527
528
529
530
533
534
535
536
537
537
538
539
540
540
540
542
542
542
543
543
545
545

Creating the Voice-Over. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Voice-Over Media Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fine-Tuning Audio Transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fading and Dipping Audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fading Audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dipping Audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mixing Down Audio Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 17

Syncing Methods
Autosyncing Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Managing Sync Breaks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing to Avoid Sync Breaks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying Sync Breaks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fixing Sync Breaks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fixing Sync in Trim Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fixing Sync in Source/Record Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fixing Sync in Segment Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Managing Sync with Multiple Tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Sync Lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Syncing with Tail Leader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Syncing with Locators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Add Edit When Trimming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Sync Point Editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ganging Footage in Monitors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Match Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Performing a Match Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Performing a Reverse Match Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Match Frame to Find Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 18

546
548
549
549
550
552
553

555
558
558
559
560
561
561
562
562
562
563
565
566
567
568
569
570
570
571

Multicamera Editing
Developing a Postproduction Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 572
Tape ClassiÞcation Schemes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 573
Production Paths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 574
21

Managing Audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Digitizing Workßow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Digitizing Methods. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logging Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Autodigitizing Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Storage Tips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Checking the Bins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Replacing Missing Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting Extra Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Checking Audio and Image Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Additional Ofßine Editing Aids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grouping and Multigrouping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Group Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Multigroup Clips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
MultiCamera Edit Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Full-Monitor Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Quad Split. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
MultiCamera Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
MultiCamera Editing Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Switching Shots with the Arrow Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cutting On-the-Fly with Hot Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the MultiCamera Linecut Option. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Add Edit Button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Group Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Group Angle Menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Match Frame in Multicamera Editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Workßow Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selective Camera Cutting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cutting On-the-Fly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Combination Cutting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 19

575
576
577
578
578
579
580
580
581
581
581
582
582
585
585
586
587
589
591
592
592
593
594
595
596
597
597
597
598
600

Output Options
Preparing for Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 601
22

Calibrating for Video Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Basic Output Calibration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Advanced Output Calibration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying Advanced Calibration Controls . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Test Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Calibrating Site Output Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preparing for Audio Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting the Calibration Tone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Calibrating Global Output Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preparing Record Tapes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Frame-Accurate Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Manual Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Recording Bars and Tone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Enabling Assemble-Edit Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Recording a Digital Cut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Previewing a Digital Cut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a Custom Countdown Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Recording a Digital Cut to Tape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using EDL Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
VTR Play Emulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 20

602
602
604
604
605
605
608
608
609
614
614
614
615
615
617
618
620
621
624
624

Exporting and Exchanging Material
Using Global Export Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exporting Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preparing to Export a Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Video Mixdown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exporting Frames, Clips, or Sequences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exchanging Files with Other Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
About OMF Interchange . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Choosing an OMF Transfer Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preparing Sequences for OMF Export . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Transferring OMF Files from Media Composer Products to
AudioVision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
23

627
628
629
629
631
639
640
641
642
643

Compatibility Issues for AudioVision Transfer . . . . . . . .
Before You Begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Transferring a Video Sequence to AudioVision . . . . . . . .
Transferring OMF Files to Pro Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Choosing Whether to Consolidate Your Media Files . . . .
Transferring a Project to Pro Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Media Composer QuickTime Codec. . . . . . . . . . . . .
About the Media Composer QuickTime Codec. . . . . . . . .
Installing the Codec in QuickTime Applications . . . . . . .
Exporting with the Media Composer QuickTime
Codec . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exporting from a Third-Party QuickTime Application . .
Exchanging Audio Media Files Between Systems . . . . . . . . . .
Transferring a Project to Another Media Composer
Product . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Compatibility Requirements for Transfer. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Transferring the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Methods for Transferring Media Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Recommended Storage Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using AvidNet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other Network Transfer Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Appendix A

643
644
645
649
649
651
655
655
656
657
662
663
664
664
664
666
666
666
667

Using AudioSuite Plug-Ins
AudioSuite Plug-Ins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Invert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Normalize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Reverse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
DC Offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Pitch Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Index

670
670
671
672
672
672
673

CHAPTER 1
Desktop Basics
For information on the
System Folder and
other Macintosh¨ features, such as the desktop and icons, see your
Macintosh documentation.

The Avid driveÑthe computerÕs internal hard driveÑcontains a number of Þles and utilities you can use to organize and optimize your
work. The desktop elements directly related to the Media Composer
system (also referred to at times as the Avid Composer system) are
stored in the Composer Projects, Avid Users, Utilities, and Media
Composer folders. The System Folder also contains essential extensions and control panels.
This chapter describes basic procedures involving the Composer
Projects, Avid Users, and Media Composer folders in the following
sections:
¥

Managing Composer Project and User Folders

Using the Media Conversion Tool

About the Media Composer Folder

Mounting and Ejecting Disk Drives

Managing Composer Project and User Folders
Managing projects and user proÞles involves moving, copying, or
deleting Þles and folders, and changing project or user names.

About Composer Projects and Avid Users Folders
Composer Projects and Avid Users folders allow you to move whole
projects or selected project and user settings between systems by copying and moving Þles on your desktop.
When you create a new project or user proÞle, the system creates the
following Þles and folders:
¥

When you create a new user, the system creates three items: a user
proÞle Þle, a user settings Þle, and a user folder containing the
two. Each item is given the user name you provide. This new
folder is stored in the Avid Users folder on the Avid drive.

When you create a new project, the system creates three items: a
project Þle, a project settings Þle, and a folder containing the two,
each of which is given the project name you provide. This new
folder is stored in the Composer Projects folder on the Avid drive.

Your settings are initially set to the default values. As you work, the
Þles maintain current settings, while the project folder Þlls with bin
Þles.

Changing Project and User Names
You cannot change project or user names from within the
Media Composer application. You must change the name from your
desktop before starting the application.
To change a project or user name:
1. Double-click the Avid drive to open it.
2. Double-click the Avid Users or the Composer Projects folder to
open it.
3. Click the name of the folder you want to change.
The name is highlighted for text entry, and the arrow changes to
an I-beam. Change or retype the name.
26

4. Close the windows and restart the Media Composer application.
The new project or user name appears in the Project Selection dialog box. The system automatically changes the names of corresponding Þles in the folder.

Deleting Projects and User Profiles
Digitized media related
to a deleted project is
not eliminated with the
project folder. For more
information on deleting media Þles, see
ÒDeleting Clips and
SequencesÓ on
page 235 andÒDeleting
Tracks with the Media
ToolÓ on page 273.

You cannot delete projects and user proÞles from within the Media
Composer application. You must make the change from your desktop
before starting the application.
To delete a project or user proÞle:
1. Double-click the Avid drive to open it.
2. Double-click the Avid Users or the Composer Projects folder to
open it.
3. Drag the project or user folder you want to delete to the Trash.
Empty the Trash to remove the Þles from the system.

Deleting a project also deletes any bins that are in that project.
4. Close the windows and restart the Media Composer application.
The deleted project or user no longer appears in the Project Selection dialog box.

Moving Projects and User Profiles from Another System
Adding a project folder
from another system
does not transfer
accompanying media
Þles. For more information on moving media
Þles between systems,
see ÒTransferring a
Project to Another
Media Composer ProductÓ on page 664.

To open projects and user proÞles created on another system, you
must move the Þles or folders from a diskette or available drive
directly into your Composer Projects or Avid Users folders on the
desktop before starting the application. In addition, if you are using
earlier releases of Media Composer, you need to convert the Þles
before you can open them on your system. See ÒUsing the Media Conversion ToolÓ on page 29.
To add a project or user proÞle from another system:
1. Locate the new folders on the desktop:
¥

If the folders were copied onto a diskette, insert the diskette
into the diskette drive and open it.

If the folders were placed on a network to which you have
access, locate them online.

2. Double-click the Avid drive to open it.
3. Double-click the Avid Users or the Composer Projects folder to
open it.
4. Drag the project or user folder you want to add to the system to
the appropriate folder.

Do not open a project directly from a diskette. You must copy it to a
folder on the Avid drive Þrst.
5. Close the windows and restart the Media Composer application.
The added project or user appears in the Project Selection dialog
box.

Using the Media Conversion Tool
You might need to convert projects and media to make them compatible between different releases of your Avid Composer system.
You can convert your 6.x media Þles from Media File Manager (MFM)
to Media Stream Manager (MSM) by using the Media Conversion
Tool, which is a standalone utility. Release 7.0 Avid Composer products only accept MSM format.
The video format is Joint Photographic Expert Group (JPEG), the
audio formats include: Audio Interface File Format Ñ Compressed
(AIFC) or Sound Designer IIª (SD2).
To convert media Þles:
1. Locate the 6.x MediaFiles folder or the OMFI MediaFiles folder
you want to convert on your media drive. This will be your Source
Folder.

All the Þles must be in either MSM or MFM format. Do not mix Þles of different types in the Source Folder.
2. Choose the media drive where you want the converted Þles to be
saved. The Media Conversion Tool will automatically create a Destination Folder.

The media drive where you choose the Destination Folder to be created must
have at least as much available storage space as the size of your Source Folder.
3. Double-click the Media Conversion Tool icon located in the Utilities folder on the Avid disk.
The utility launches.

4. Click the Source Folder Find button to navigate to the folder you
want to convert.
5. Click the Destination Folder Find button to navigate to the media
drive where you want the Þles to go.

If you select only the media drive, an OMFI MediaFiles folder will be created
for you.
6. Choose a Source Format and a Destination Format.
When you choose MFM Media as your Source Format, MSM
Media becomes your default Destination Format.
7. Choose the Audio and Video format. When the Destination Format is MSM Media, the defaults are already selected.
8. Click Convert to convert the media Þles.
30

A progress box appears. When the conversion is completed, select
another folder to convert or click Quit to exit the tool.
The Media Conversion Tool creates a log of the converted Þles that can
be read by using any word processing or text editing package.
Vantageª, a text editor program, is included with the Avid Composer
system and is located in the Apple menu items in the Utilities folder.

After the media Þles have been converted to MSM format, your bins and
projects will have lost their links to the original media Þles. When a clip
becomes unlinked, it displays the message ÒMedia Ofßine.Ó For information
on relinking media Þles, see ÒRelinking Media FilesÓ on page 282.

About the Media Composer Folder
The Media Composer folder contains essential operational Þles and
supporting Þles. You should not touch any of these Þles, except where
noted in the following descriptions.

Attic Folder: The system automatically places copies of all bins
into the Attic folder at regular intervals for backup. The procedure
31

for recovering bin Þles from the Attic is described in ÒRetrieving
Bin Files from the Attic FolderÓ on page 60.
¥

Media Composer application: The program application icon
resides here. Procedures for launching the program are described
in ÒLaunching the Media Composer ApplicationÓ on page 32.

Settings: In addition to Project and User settings, the system
maintains two settings Þles in this folder that apply to all users
and all projects on the system. You can copy or move the Site settings Þle to other systems on the desktop, using the same procedure described in ÒMoving Projects and User ProÞles from
Another SystemÓ on page 28.

Supporting Files: These are a series of Þles that add functionality
to the application. The system accesses most of these Þles from
within the application. You can add third-party effects to the Third
Party Plug-Ins folder from programs such as Adobe Photoshopª
for use in effects editing, as described in the Avid Media Composer
and Film Composer Effects Guide.

Launching the Media Composer Application
The Media Composer application icon is located in the
Media Composer folder on the Avid drive. For most users, the desktop
or the Apple menu is a more convenient location for launching the
application.

c
For more information
on making an alias and
using the Apple menu,
see your Macintosh
documentation.

The application will not launch properly if the icon is moved out of
the Media Composer folder. To launch the application from a convenient location, Avid recommends that you create an alias and place it
in a convenient location.
To launch the application, double-click the application icon or alias, or
choose it from the Apple menu.
When you launch the Release 7.0 software, a dialog box appears.

Choose the appropriate conÞguration.
After the application starts, the Project Selection dialog box appears, as
described in ÒOpening a ProjectÓ on page 35.

Mounting and Ejecting Disk Drives
You can eject one or several drive volumes mounted on the desktop at
any time from within the Media Composer application. You can also
remount all the drives and return them to the desktop.
This is useful in several circumstances:
¥

If you work with optical drives for backup and retrieval of lowresolution material, you can eject these drives and mount them as
needed to avoid cluttering the desktop during normal use.

If you work with an extensive array of Þxed-storage drives, which
can involve many partitions divided among several projects, you
can selectively mount and eject drives according to use.

If you work with the MediaShare Þle-sharing program, you might
have to eject and remount icons on the desktop. See the
MediaShare documentation for more information.

Ejecting Disk Drives
To eject one or several drive icons from the desktop:
33

1. With the Media Composer application active, choose Eject from
the File menu.
A dialog box appears.

The scroll list displays all drives and partitions currently mounted.
2. Select a drive to eject. Shift-select additional drives.
3. Click Eject. The system removes the drives from the desktop and
can no longer access them.

Mounting All Drives
Because the system cannot interface with ejected drives individually,
you cannot mount selected drives. But you can mount all drives connected to the system, including those previously ejected.
To mount all drives, choose Mount All from the File menu.
The system mounts all partitions and drives that are turned on and
connected to the system.

CHAPTER 2
Starting a Project
For information on the
Macintosh interface and
terminology, see your
Macintosh documentation. For information on
turning on your system,
see the Avid Media Composer Getting Started
Guide.

Your work in Media Composer begins when you turn on the system,
launch the application, and open an existing project or create a new
project. This chapter describes these and other procedures for starting
a project. There are also several techniques you can use to safeguard
and restore your work if necessary. These topics are covered in the following sections:
¥

Opening a Project

Backing Up Your Work

Ending the Edit Session

Session Checklist

Opening a Project
Each time you start the Media Composer application, the Project Selection dialog box appears.

Use the options described in the following sections to establish your
identity as a user with the system, and to select or create a project to
open. You can also create additional folders within which to store
projects, or you can quit the application from the Project Selection dialog box.

Identifying a User
To identify a user for the project, you can either create and identify a
new user or select one from a list of existing users.

Setting Up a New User
To create a new user proÞle:
1. Click the New User button.
The New User dialog box appears.

2. Type your name and press Return or click OK.
The Project Selection dialog box reappears with your user name
highlighted in the list of users.
3. Click OK in the Project Selection dialog box to continue.

Selecting an Existing User
To select from the list of existing users, click the user name to highlight
it in the Avid Users list on the left side of the Project Selection dialog
box. This user proÞle is used when you open a project.
Directory pop-up menu
User name

Parent folder

Parent folders containing collections of users appear with a dot. If the
needed User folder is stored inside a parent folder within the Avid
Users folder:
1. Double-click the folder to open it and display the user names.
2. Click a user name to select it.

If the user proÞle you want is stored on your system outside the Avid
Users folder (in another folder or on a network, for example), you can
locate it by using the Directory pop-up menu.
To search for another user proÞle folder:
1. Click the Directory pop-up menu to display a list of other locations on the system.

2. Select the Avid drive or an external drive from the Desktop submenu if necessary, and locate the folder.
3. Double-click the selected folder to open it. Continue to open any
additional folders until the scroll list displays the appropriate user
Þle name.
4. Click the user name to select it.
You are ready to open a project.

Selecting a Project
To open a project, you can either create and open a new project, or
open an existing project.

Creating a New Project
To create a new project:
1. Click New Project in the Project Selection dialog box.
The New Project dialog box appears.

2. Type the name of your new project in the highlighted text entry
Þeld.
3. Select either NTSC or PAL from the Format pop-up menu.
4. Click OK.
The system creates the new project Þles and folder and returns you to
the Project Selection dialog box where the project name is highlighted
in the Composer Projects scroll list.

Nesting Projects in Folders
You can create folders in the Project Selection dialog box for storing
related projects. To nest a folder, you must Þrst create a folder.
To create a folder:
1. Click the New Folder button in the Project Selection dialog box.
The New Folder dialog box appears.

2. Type a name for the folder, and press Return or click OK.
The folder appears with a dot next to it in the Composer Projects
scroll list.
3. Double-click the folder name to open the folder.
Any new projects you create now are displayed and stored in this
folder. Any existing projects you move into this folder from your
desktop are displayed in this folder.

Selecting an Existing Project
Existing projects appear in the Composer Projects scroll list in the
Project Selection dialog box.
To select an existing project, do one of the following:
¥

Click an existing project name to highlight it.

Press the Þrst letter of the project name on the keyboard to highlight it. (If there are multiple projects that begin with the same letter, the Þrst project appearing with that letter in the list will be
highlighted.)

If the project is nested in a folder:
1. Double-click the folder name to open it and display the contents in
the scroll list.
2. Click the project name to select it.

If the project is stored outside of the Composer Projects folder (in
another folder or on a network, for example) you can locate it by using
the Directory pop-up menu.
To locate a project in another folder:
1. Click the Directory pop-up menu and choose the Avid drive or an
external drive from the Desktop submenu.
The Project Selection box displays all the stored folders.
2. Double-click a folder name to open it. Continue opening folders
until the scroll list displays the project folder you want.
3. Click the project name to highlight it.

Opening the Project
After you select the appropriate user and project names in the scroll
lists, you can open the project with the selected user settings in one of
the following ways:

Read more about the
Project window in
Chapter 3.

Click OK.

Double-click the highlighted project name in the project scroll list.

Double-click the highlighted user name in the user scroll list.

The Composer window opens on the Edit monitor, and the Project
window opens on the Bin monitor with the selected user settings
loaded.

Closing a Project
To close the Project window and return to the Project Selection dialog
box, do one of the following:
¥

Click the close box in the Project window.

With the Project window active, choose Close from the File menu,
or press z Ð W.

The Project window and all open bins close, and the Project Selection
dialog box appears.

Backing Up Your Work
To back up the larger
media Þles that are created when you digitize
footage, you must use a
mass-storage device
such as an Avid digital
linear tape (DLT)
device. For more information, see the Avid
DLT 35/35R for Avid Systems Setup and UserÕs
Guide.

Although the Avid Composer system automatically saves your bins,
projects, and settings, you should back up these items frequently to
avoid losing any of your work in case of a hard drive crash or corruption of the Þles. Because the storage requirements are minimal, you
can back up these Þles easily to a variety of storage devices, such as:
¥

Diskette

Network storage device, such as a Þle server

Mass storage device
42

Saving Your Work on a Diskette or Drive
To save your work on a diskette or drive:
1. Mount or insert the drive or diskette as appropriate.
2. Double-click the icon for the targeted storage drive or diskette to
open it. Double-click any additional folders to target the appropriate storage location.
3. Double-click the Avid drive to open it.
4. Drag a project folder, user folder, or settings Þle to the targeted
storage location.
5. When the system Þnishes copying the Þles, eject the diskette or
drive and store it when appropriate.

Restoring from a Backup
To restore a project, user proÞle, or settings from a backup storage
device:
1. Mount or insert the drive or diskette as appropriate.
2. Open the drive or diskette, and the Avid drive.
If you are restoring an
individual bin or bins,
you must relink them to
the project from within
the Project window. For
more information, see
Chapter 3.

3. Drag the copies from the storage device to the appropriate folder
on the Avid drive:
¥

Project folders and settings Þles go in the Composer Projects
folder.

User folders and settings Þles go in the Avid Users folder.

Site settings Þles go in the Media Composer folder.

4. Launch the Media Composer application. The restored project/
user proÞle appears in the Project Selection dialog box.

Ending the Edit Session
To end the session you must Þrst quit the application, then turn off
your equipment in the order described in this section.

Quitting the Media Composer Application
There are two ways to quit the Media Composer application, depending upon whether you have a project open, or you are between
projects:
¥

If you are working on an open project and want to exit Media
Composer quickly, choose Quit from the File menu.
The project closes and the application quits.

If you are between projects, at the Project Selection dialog box:
a. Click the Quit button. The system asks if you want to leave
the application.

b. Click Leave to quit Media Composer. Click Cancel to return to
the Project Selection dialog box and select another project.

Turning Off Your Equipment
When you are through using your system and want to turn it off completely, follow these steps to avoid damaging your Macintosh or
media storage disks.
1. Choose Shut Down from the Special menu. This turns off your
Macintosh. The screens on the Bin and Edit monitors go dark.
2. Turn off your speakers and monitors.
3. Turn off each drive in the chassis, then turn off the chassis itself.
Move your disks only when the Macintosh is completely off.
4. Turn off all other hardware.

Never remove disks from your Avid Composer system when it is
turned on.

Session Checklist
Turn on your equipment in the proper order: storage Þrst, peripherals
second, Macintosh last. For more information, see the Avid Media Composer Getting Started Guide.
On your desktop, move any settings Þles, Project folders, or User folders from another system into the Avid folders on the Avid drive if necessary before launching the application.
Launch the application.
Create new projects or user proÞles or select existing ones in the
Project Selection dialog box.
After Þnishing your work for the session, quit the application.

Back up your work before shutting down the equipment.
Turn off your equipment in the opposite order: Macintosh, peripherals, and Þnally storage.

CHAPTER 3
Working with the Project
Window
The Project window provides controls in three different display modes
for structuring and viewing important information about your current
project. These include a display of bins and folders associated with the
project, a list of all settings, and basic information about the format of
the project and use of system memory. These topics are described in
the following sections:
¥

Opening and Closing the Project Window

Using the Bins Display

Using the Settings Display

Using the Info Display

Opening and Closing the Project Window
The Project window opens automatically when you select a project in
the Project Selection dialog box.

Close box

To close the Project window and return to the Project Selection dialog
box, do one of the following:
¥

Click the close box in the Project window.

With the Project window active, choose Close from the File menu,
or press z Ð W.

Because the Project window remains open the entire time you are
working within a project, it might be hidden from view by several
open bins or tools on the Bin monitor.
To locate and redisplay the Project window, do one of the following:
¥

Choose Project from the Tools menu.

Click any unobstructed piece of the Project window to bring it forward.

Using the Bins Display
Bins contain the master clips that are created when you digitize source
material. (The master clips are linked to the media Þles.) Bins also contain the sequences, subclips, group clips, and effect clips that you create during a project. From the Project window, you can view a list of
bins associated with the project, and open, close, and create bins. You
can also open bins created for another project.

To view a list of bins associated with the project, click the Bins button
in the Project window.
Bins button

From the Bins list you can examine the number, names, size, and location of bins:
¥

Click the triangle next to a bin icon to display the binÕs contents in
the Project window. Click the triangle again to close up the display.

Double-click a bin icon to open the bin in its own window. A colored icon next to the bin indicates that the bin is closed. A dimmed
icon next to the bin indicates that the bin is open.

To view a list of only the folder contents and not the folders, as in
earlier versions of Media Composer, select Flat View from the Fast
menu.

To open a bin from another project:
1. Select Open Bin from the File menu.
The Select a Bin window opens.
2. Find and select the bin you want.
3. Click the Open button.
The bin appears in the Project window in a folder called Other Bins.
The name Other Bins is in italics. You can rename this folder.
49

Displaying Bins
You can add folders to the Project window to help organize your
project. You can drag and drop bins into folders, or folders into folders. See ÒManaging Folders and BinsÓ on page 52.

New folders

Trash icon

Bin Fast menu

Creating a Folder in a Project
To create a folder in a project:

1. Click Bins in the Project window.
2. Choose New Folder from the Bin Fast menu.
A new untitled folder appears.
3. Click the untitled folder and rename it.

Deleting a Bin or Folder
To delete a bin or folder:
1. Select the bin or the folder you want to delete.
2. Press the Delete key.
A Trash icon appears in the bin folder. It contains the deleted item.

Clips, subclips, and effects that are in a bin appear in the Trash after you
delete the bin. However, if you select a clip, subclip or effect directly and press
the Delete key, the item does not appear in the Trash.

Emptying Trash
To empty the Trash:
1. Choose Empty Trash from the Bin Fast menu.
An alert box appears.

2. Click Empty Trash to delete the bins or folders from the Trash.

Viewing Contents in the Trash
If you need to view the contents in the Trash or decide you do not
want to delete those items in the Trash, you must Þrst move the bins
and folders out of the Trash.
To view items in the Trash:
1. Double-click the Trash icon to open it.
2. Click the bins or folders you want to remove (or view) and drag
them from the Trash to the Project window.
3. Double-click the bin or folder to view it.

Managing Folders and Bins
You can use the Project window to create hierarchies of folders and
bins that reßect the speciÞc workßow of the current project. This structure should provide both simplicity and backup security. Although the
speciÞcs can vary depending upon your production needs and habits,
the following are a few basic principles that can help you get started:
¥

Limit the number of sequences you create in each project. For
instance, consider creating one new project for each show, episode,
spot, or scene.
52

Limit the number and complexity of clips in each bin by creating
and organizing bins in three groups, as follows:
-

Create a set of bins for the digitizing stage.
For example, you can create one bin for each source tape to be
digitized to avoid slowing the system with large bins and
causing confusion between tapes.

Create a second set of bins for organizing your project.
For example, you can create separate bins for each segment of
a video project, depending upon the preferences of the editor.

Create a third set of bins for the editing stage, including:
A current cut bin for storing each work in progress (sequence)
An archive bin for keeping the original version of each cut
(sequence)
A selects or storyboard bin for screening selected clips or cuts
gathered from the source bins
A format cuts bin for storing the Þnal cuts with added format
elements such as segment breaks, bars and tone, slate, or
countdown

For information on creating script windows using scripts for your projects,
see Chapter 11.
¥

(Option) Create additional folders at the desktop level for better
organization.
For example, you can create one folder for each digitizing bin and
show cut bin, or a folder to contain all shot logs to be imported.

Save these Þles as a template for future productions of a similar
nature.

A sample template of bins for a project might be as follows:

Specific structure and terminology of the template can
vary, depending upon conventions at your facility.
Bin icons

Project file

This hierarchy allows you to have one set of bins available in the
Project window during the digitizing and organizing phase, and
another set of bins available during editing to reduce clutter.

Creating a New Bin
To create a new bin from the Project window, do one of the following:
¥

Choose New Bin from the File menu.

Click the New Bin button in the Project window.

Use the Open Bin dialog box, as follows:
a. Choose Open Bin from the File menu.
The Select a Bin dialog box appears.

b. Click New.
A directory dialog box appears.

Directory name
Click and hold here
to display the popup menu.

c. Type a bin name in the New Bin Name text entry Þeld.
d. Save the bin as follows:
¥

To have the system save the new bin in the Project folder, click
Save.

To store the new bin in another location, click the Directory
pop-up menu to select another drive or folder, then click Save.

Performing either of these procedures displays a new (empty)
bin that is given the name of the project as displayed in the
title bar of the Project window (unless you name it in the Open
Bin dialog box). A corresponding Þle is placed in the Project
folder, and a backup copy is placed in the Attic folder.

The default name of the bin appears at the top. You can keep
the name, or rename the bin immediately.

Renaming a Bin
Each new bin that you create takes the name of the project that appears
in the Project window, numbered incrementally.
To change the name of a bin, click the Bins list in the Project window
and type a new name.

Bins list

Opening and Closing a Bin
To open a bin with the Project window active:
1. Do one of the following:
¥

Double-click the bin handle (the icon) next to a bin.

Choose Open Bin from the File menu.

The Select a Bin dialog box appears.

2. Using the Directory pop-up menu to Þnd the correct folder if necessary, select a bin.
57

3. Click Open.
The bin opens and the bin name is added to the current Bins list in
the Project window for future access. This option is especially useful when you want to open a bin not currently displayed in the
Project window.

Never open a bin thatÕs stored on a diskette; otherwise the system
wonÕt be able to save your work. Always copy the bin to your Avid
drive before you open it.

Opening Selected Bins
To open several bins at once:
1. Click the name of one of the bins in the Bins list.
2. Shift-click each additional bin you want to open.
3. Choose Open Selected Bins from the File menu.

Closing a Bin
To close a bin, do one of the following:
¥

Click the close box in the upper left corner of the bin.

Choose Close Bin from the File menu to close the active bin.

Deleting Bin Names
To delete Bin names from the Project window:
1. Select a bin name for deletion. Shift-select additional bins.
2. Press the Delete key. The bin names are deleted from the Bins list.

Bin names deleted from the scroll list remain as Þles in the Projects folder and
in the Attic folder. To delete bins completely, you must open the project folder
on your desktop and drag the bin Þle to the Trash.
58

Saving Bins Automatically
The Avid Composer system automatically saves changes to your work
on a regular basis during each session. Two things happen when autosave occurs:
¥

Any open bins are updated with changes made since the last autosave.

Copies of these bins are placed in the Attic folder as backup.

The system automatically places copies of all bins into the Attic folder
at regular intervals for backup. The procedure for recovering bin Þles
from the Attic folder is described in ÒRetrieving Bin Files from the
Attic FolderÓ on page 60.
You can manually save bins for added securityÑfor instance, immediately after an important edit. When your work is lost, or when you
want to recover an earlier version of a bin or sequence, you can
retrieve Þles from the Attic folder.

The Save Bin command is dimmed if there have been no changes since the last
time the active bin was saved.

Saving Bins Manually
There are three ways to save bins manually:
¥

To save a speciÞc bin:
a. Click the bin to activate it.
b. Choose Save Bin from the File menu.

To save selected bins:
a. Activate the Project window by choosing Project from the
Tools menu or clicking anywhere on the window.
b. Click a bin handle to select it. Shift-click any additional bins.
59

c. Choose Save Selected Bins from the File menu.
The system saves all the selected bins.
¥

To save all the active bins:
a. Click an open bin to activate it, or click the Project window to
activate it but donÕt select any individual bins listed in the
window.
b. Choose Save All from the File menu.

The system saves all the open bins for the project.

Retrieving Bin Files from the Attic Folder
You retrieve Þles from the Attic folder in the following circumstances:
¥

When you want to replace current changes to a sequence or clip
with a previous version

When the current bin Þle becomes corrupt

When a copy of a bin Þle is stored in the Attic folder, the system adds
the extension Ò.bakÓ plus a version number to the bin name. When
you view the Attic folder in the Name view, you can identify the most
recent backup Þle based on the name and timestamp of creation displayed in the Last ModiÞed column.
To retrieve a Þle from the Attic folder:
1. If you do not plan to overwrite existing Þles, create a new bin.
2. Open the Attic folder in the Project window.
Click the triangle next to the Attic folder icon or double-click the
Attic icon. (If you open the Attic window, select by Name from the
View menu if the Folder window is not already in the Name view.)
3. Open the bin that you want to retrieve in the Attic folder.
4. Lasso or Shift-select the desired Þles.
60

5. Drag the Þles to the desired destination.
If you want to maintain the Attic Þles in the Attic folder, duplicate
the selected Þles and drag the duplicates as desired.
There is no conßict with
sequences, so there is no
need to modify the creation date of a
sequence.

Once you have moved the objects, modify their creation dates so they
are considered newest by the system.
To modify the creation date:
1. Click the F button at the lower left of the bin window to put the
bin in Frame display mode.
2. Select the object (for an entire bin, choose Select All from the File
menu).
3. Advance the frame displays by one frame by pressing the Step
Forward button or key. Move back again by pressing the Step
Backward button or key.
The date stamp is updated to the present time and date.

Using the Settings Display
From the Settings display you can view, select, open, and alter various
User, Project, and Site settings, as described in this section.
To view the Settings display, click the Settings button in the Project
window.

Settings button

Setting type

About Settings
Three types of settings are displayed in the Settings scroll list, as indicated in the third column of information: User, Project, and Site settings.
¥

User settings are speciÞc to a particular editor. In general, User
settings reßect individual preferences for adjusting the user interface in Media Composer. Individual User settings are stored in
each user folder within the Avid Users folder on the Avid hard
drive.

Project settings are directly related to individual projects. When a
Project setting is changed, it affects all editors working on the
project. SpeciÞc Project settings are stored in each project folder
within the Composer Projects folder on the Avid hard drive.

Site settings establish default parameters for all new users and
projects on a particular system. These can apply to particular conÞgurations of equipment installed at the site (for example spec
and node settings for an external switcher). They can also include
other user or project settings that you copy into the Site Settings

window. Site settings are stored in a separate Settings folder in the
Media Composer folder on the Avid hard drive.

Defining Settings
You can use the Settings display to establish a hierarchy of settings
that address the speciÞc needs of each production phase. For example,
you can establish:
¥

User settings for the assistant editor: Facilitate logging, digitizing,
and organizing projects.

User settings for the editor: Include editing interface preferences.

Project settings: Reßect the speciÞc needs of the project.

Bin View settings: Display useful columns of information for each
of the bins described in ÒManaging Folders and BinsÓ on page 52.

By establishing these settings once, and selecting the appropriate setting or bin view in context, you can save time and effort that would be
spent searching for information or adjusting bin headings on-the-ßy.
You can also save these settings along with your template (as
described in ÒManaging Folders and BinsÓ on page 52) for use on
similar projects.

Reviewing Basic Settings
For a complete description of all settings and
their options, see the
Avid Media Composer
Products Reference.

The following list describes basic system settings to review at the start
of your project:
¥

Bin settings

General settings

Interface settings

Double-click each setting in the Settings scroll list of the Project window to view the following dialog boxes:
63

Bin settings deÞne general system functions related to bins,
including:
-

Parameters of the Auto-save function

Maximum number of bin backup Þles stored in the Attic
folder

Whether double-clicking objects in the bin loads them into
Source/Record monitors or pop-up monitors

General settings deÞne fundamental system defaults, including:
-

Starting timecode for sequences edited in Media Composer

Setup default for either American NTSC or NTSC/EIAJ video
input (affects calibration)

Whether the system uses the drive-Þltering function to automatically target only the fastest drives when digitizing highresolution media

Interface settings determine the level of basic information displayed in the interface, including:
-

Whether the system displays long (complete) menus or short
(simpliÞed) menus

Whether written labels are displayed beneath icons in the various command palettes

Displaying Project Settings
You can display the Project Settings window in different ways,
depending on what you need to view. Table 3-1 describes the Project
Settings options.

Table 3-1

Project Settings Options

Option

Description

All Settings

Displays all settings available in the Avid Composer system.

Base Settings

Displays project settings only; no views are displayed.

Bin Views

Displays all the bin view settings you created.

Timeline Views

Displays all the Timeline view settings you created.

Title Styles

Displays all the templates you created for the Title
Tool.

Video Tool Settings

Displays all the Video Tool settings.

Workspaces

Displays all the workspace settings you created.

To change a project setting display:
1. Click the Settings buttons in the Project window.
The Project Settings window opens.
2. Choose a settings display from the Fast menu or from the Settings
menu.

Settings menu

Fast Menu button

Working with Settings
You can view and modify most of your current settings by doubleclicking them in the Project window and selecting new options. You
can duplicate, rename, copy, and move settings among Þles or systems.

Selecting Another User
Because User settings are not project or site speciÞc, you can display
another set of user settings within the Project window.
To select another user, choose another name from the User pop-up
menu.

User pop-up menu

The previous userÕs settings are saved, and the new userÕs settings are
loaded into the Avid Composer system and the Project window.

Modifying Settings
You can alter the default options for various settings to reßect the speciÞc needs of a project or to customize the system based on personal
preferences.
There are three types of settings you cannot modify. These are:
¥

Settings that require the presence of standalone peripherals, such
as the Avid Media Reader

Settings that can be modiÞed only from within the tools in which
they are used, such as Bin and Timeline views

Film settings when working in nonÞlm projects

To modify available settings:
1. Double-click the name of a chosen setting in the Settings scroll list.

Double-click in these columns to open a
settings dialog box.

A dialog box or window opens.
2. Enter new values or select new options for the settings.
3. Click OK, Save, Cancel, or the close box when done.
The system saves changes in the appropriate User, Project, or Site
settings Þle.

Working with Multiple Settings
You can have multiple versions of settings in your Project window that
apply to several users at various stages of production. For example,
you can have:
¥

Two bin settings: one that automatically saves more often when
you are editing intensively, and one that automatically saves less
often when you are doing organizational work in the bins

Multiple Digitize settings for digitizing various types of source
material

Multiple Keyboard and Composer settings to use for various
activities such as digitizing, ofßine editing, Þlm editing, or online
effects editing

Multiple Deck settings for various types of digitizing or for output

Duplicating Settings
To create a new version of a setting:
1. Click the Settings button in the Project window to display a list of
your current settings.
2. Click the setting you want to copy. Shift-click any additional settings you want to copy.
3. Choose Duplicate from the Edit menu.
A copy of each setting appears in the window, with each setting
name followed by a period and a version number. Rename your
settings to indicate their functions.

Renaming Settings
You can rename settings to differentiate among more than two copies
or to indicate a speciÞc use.
To rename settings:
1. Click the settingÕs name in the Settings scroll list.

Setting name

2. Type a new name and press Return.
The new name appears in the list and is saved in the settings Þle.

Selecting Among Multiple Settings
With multiple settings, only one setting at a time is active. Settings that
are currently active have a checkmark to the left of the setting name.
To change the active setting, click in the space to the left of the setting
you want to select as the active setting.
A checkmark indicates that it is now active.

Deleting Settings
You can delete settings from the Settings list in the Project window at
any time. For example, you might choose to delete one or more among
multiple versions of a particular setting. Or you might want to delete
all but a few settings to transfer into another settings window.
To delete a setting:
1. Click a setting to highlight it. Shift-click each additional setting
you want to delete.
2. Press the Delete key or choose Delete from the Edit menu.
The selected settings are immediately removed.

You cannot undo the deletion. You can, however, restore the default
settings, or you can transfer settings from other Þles, as described in
the following sections.

Restoring Default Settings
You can restore your settings to the default values at any time by
doing the following:
1. Click a setting to highlight it. Shift-click each additional setting
you want to select.
2. Choose Restore to Default from the Special menu.
An alert box asks whether you want to save the settings.
70

3. Click Copy & Restore to copy the current settings before restoring
the default settings, or click Cancel to discard the current settings.
The system restores the default values for the selected settings.

Copying Settings Between Settings Files
You can copy selected settings between existing settings Þles or into a
new settings Þle for use in other projects, for transfer to other Avid
Composer systems, to change one type of setting to another, or into the
Site Settings folder to establish standard system settings for all new
projects and users.
To copy settings between Þles:
1. With Settings display active, open the target settings Þle in one of
the following ways:
¥

Create and open a new settings Þle by choosing New Setting
File from the File menu.
An untitled settings window appears.

Open an existing settings Þle by choosing Open Setting File
from the File menu.

A dialog box appears.

Locate and select a settings Þle in the Composer Projects or
Avid Users folder and click Open. The settings Þle window
opens.
¥

Choose Site Settings from the Special menu.
The Site Settings window opens.

2. Click the setting you want to copy in the settings window scroll
list of the current project. Shift-click any additional settings that
you want to copy.
3. Drag the highlighted settings to the new settings window.

Settings Scroll List

New Settings Window

To copy, drag settings
between windows.

When you copy settings back into the settings window scroll list, a
dialog box appears.

4. Click Add to add the new settings to the project without affecting
the projectÕs current settings. Or click Replace to replace the current version of each setting with the new settings. Additional versions of each setting are not affected.
The copied settings are saved when you close or save the Þle or
project.

Moving Settings Between Systems
You can automatically transfer settings to another Avid Composer system without having to re-create them. You do this by copying your
User folder, Project settings Þle, or Site settings Þle and moving it to
the new location.
To move settings between systems:
1. Insert a diskette into the computerÕs diskette drive.
2. From your desktop, open the appropriate folder (Avid Users
folder, a speciÞc project folder, or the Settings folder) on your Avid
hard drive.
3. Drag the settings Þle or User folder to the diskette icon.
The Macintosh copies the Þle or folder to diskette.
4. Eject the diskette and bring it to another Avid Composer system.
5. Insert the diskette into the new Avid Composer system.
6. Double-click the diskette icon to open it.
7. Double-click the Avid hard disk icon and open the appropriate
folder (Avid Users, a chosen project folder, or the Settings folder).
8. Drag your settings Þle or User folder to the folder on the Avid
drive.
The next time you open a project at the new location, your settings will
be available as follows:
¥

User settings folder. Your name appears in the list of editors.

Project settings Þle. Your project settings are active in the chosen
project.

Site settings Þle. Your site settings are active for all projects at the
new location.

When you choose your name and a project, your customized settings
are loaded into the new system.
74

Using Site Settings
When the system opens a new project, it Þrst searches the Site settings
Þle (located in the Media Composer folder) and loads any settings
placed here. The system then proceeds to load any Project and User
settings not included in the Site settings.
This feature is useful if you need to establish global settings for all new
users and projects, such as switcher settings, a speciÞc start timecode
for all sequences, or various customized features of the interface.
To load settings into the site settings folder:
1. Open a project with the settings you would like to establish as site
settings. If a project does not already exist with the desired settings, create one and make adjustments to the default settings as
needed.
2. Choose Site Settings from the Special menu.
The Site Settings window opens.

3. Click a setting in the Project window or Shift-select multiple settings and drag them into the Site Settings window.
Copies appear in the Site Settings scroll list.
4. Close the Site Settings window.
All new users and projects opened from the Project Selection dialog
box use these settings as the default settings.

Using the Info Display
The Info display in the Project window allows you to view basic
project information, such as the video format (NTSC, for example) or
frame rate (24 fps for Þlm projects).
To activate Info display, click the Info button in the Project window.

Info button

The items listed in this view are for information only and cannot be
changed from the Info list.
The Fast Menu button at the bottom of the Info window displays four
menu items: ProÞle, Memory, Usage, and Hardware.

Fast Menu button

Displaying a Project Profile
ProÞle displays basic project information, such as the video format
(NTSC or PAL) or frame rate (24 fps for Þlm projects).
To display the ProÞle information:
1. Click the Info button in the Project window.
76

2. Choose ProÞle from the Fast menu.
Basic project information is displayed.

Displaying Usage Information
The Avid Composer system includes a statistics feature that gathers
and reports information on system usage. You can use this information
to support business functions such as resource management.
All statistics are gathered and reported by project. The Þle that contains this information is formatted so that you can use it as input to
software programs such as analysis applications, spreadsheets, or
report generators.

Do not rely on the statistics feature for billing or other Þnancial purposes.
To view statistics for an open project:
1. Click Info in the Project window.
2. Choose Usage from the Fast menu.
You see a display similar to the following:

Fast Menu
button

3. Click the Info button again to update the Usage window to reßect
any changes you made to the project.
To print this Þle, choose Print from the File menu.
A new Þle is created each time you open the project. The Þles are
stored in a Statistics folder inside each project folder.
The Þle name has the following format:
Statistics.yymmdd.HHMMSS
where:
yy indicates the last two digits of the year
mm indicates the month
dd indicates the date
HHindicates the hour
MMindicates the minute
SSindicates the seconds
78

File Structure and Layout
The statistics Þle is formatted as comma-separated ASCII text, so it can
be accepted by a variety of software programs. Each line in the Þle is
tagged with indicators for identifying content and data type to assist
in programming custom applications. Figure 3-1 shows a sample data
Þle.

Figure 3-1 Sample Data File
01,01,Project Name: april5,,,Statistics as of:
Fri Apr 05 11:39:37 1997
02,01,Project created: Fri Apr 05 07:44:40
1997,,,Last Session Started: Fri Apr 05 11:36:22
1997
117,04,
03,04,
03,04,Elapsed Time:,---,Total,---,---,Last
Session,--03,04,
,Hours,Minutes,Seconds,Hours,Minutes,Seconds
101,02,Time Project Open ,1,10,04,0,00,00
03,04,
102,02,Digitize Tool open ,0,45,08,0,00,00
104,02,Digitize Tool active ,0,14,16,0,00,00
116,02,Digitize Tool logging ,0,00,00,0,00,00
115,02,Digitize Tool digitizing ,0,25,04,0,00,00
03,04,
111,02,Title Tool open ,0,00,00,0,00,00
113,02,Title Tool active ,0,00,00,0,00,00
114,02,Title Tool rendering ,0,00,00,0,00,00
03,04,
110,02,Effects rendering ,0,00,00,0,00,00
03,04,
Description of Data File Values
The values in the Þrst column indicate the content of the line. Values
are:

01title1
02title2
03heading
100project info
101Time Project open
102Digitize Tool open
104Digitize Tool active
105Digitized Media bytes used
106Rendered Effects bytes used
110Effects rendering time
111Title Tool open
113Title Tool active
114Title Tool rendering
115Digitize Tool digitizing
116Digitize Tool logging
117user comments
The value in the second column indicates the type of data in the line.
Values are:
01project info
02time used
03bytes used
04text string

Importing the Statistics File into a Spreadsheet
You can import the statistics Þle into spreadsheet or other programs as
an ASCII Þle and use the application to set up the proper format. For
example, to create a statistics Þle in Microsoft¨ Excelª on a Macintosh:
1. From the Finder, locate the statistics Þle you want to copy.
2. Start Excel.

3. Open the Þle by choosing Open from the File menu and navigating to the directory the Þle is in.
After you open the Þle, the Text Import Wizard starts.
To complete the steps for the Text Import Wizard:
1. Choose Delimited for the Original Data Type and click Next.
2. Choose Comma for Delimiters and click Next.
3. Choose General for Column Data Format.
4. Click Finish.
The statistics Þle appears in spreadsheet format.
Spreadsheet Form of Statistics Data File
Figure 3-2 is the same sample Þle as it appears when you import into a
spreadsheet.

Figure 3-2

Sample Spreadsheet Form

About Projects and Memory
The way in which a project uses memory has a direct effect on performance. As a project develops, the number of media Þles in use (clips,
effects, and other bin items) increases. Because the system keeps track
of them in RAM, they can be played back faster, but the memory
requirements can slow down the system in other ways.
The Avid Media Composer and Film Composer Release Notes provide
information about system requirements for RAM. Occasionally you
might need to adjust the way your Macintosh uses its RAM in order to
work efÞciently. There are two factors that can affect the performance
of your system:
83

If you opened and quit several applications during a session, or if
you opened and closed various Avid Composer tools repeatedly,
your computerÕs memory might become fragmented. As a result,
your system might be sluggish. To solve this problem, close all
applications and restart your Macintosh.

If you need to open more or larger Þles within the Avid Composer
system, you might want to increase the amount of memory allocated to the application from the desktop.

To check and adjust the allocation of system memory (RAM), see your
Macintosh documentation.

Viewing Memory
To display system memory information:
1. Click the Info button in the Project window.
2. Choose Memory from the Fast menu.
The Memory window opens.
The window displays the total number of objects (all clips, sequences,
and other objects associated with a bin) in use for a particular project,
the total free memory, and the total memory available.
If the memory in use is already near the limit of the total memory, you
might want to consolidate Þnished elements and eliminate old material from the project, or break the project up into separate, segmented
projects. For more information on consolidating, see ÒConsolidating
MediaÓ on page 276.

Accessing the Hardware Tool from the Info Window
You can display the Hardware Tool by choosing Hardware from the
Tools menu. You can also choose it from the Fast menu in the Info window.
To activate the Hardware Tool:
1. Click the Info button in the Project window.
2. Choose Hardware from the Fast menu.
The Hardware Tool appears.

Customizing Your Workspace
A workspace is the arrangement and size of windows displayed on
your Avid Composer system. If you are accustomed to working with a
particular group of windows arranged and sized in a particular setup,
85

you can assign a workspace setting to remember that arrangement.
For example, during digitizing you might want to have the Digitize
Tool and Video Input Tool open. During editing, you want to have the
Effect Palette, Effect Editor and the Keyboard window open and
arranged in a particular order and size. You can have as many workspace settings as you want.
Eight buttons allow you to switch between user-customized workspaces. The buttons are assigned to the workspaces in the Settings
window in the order that they appear. For example, W1 button is
assigned to the Þrst workspace that appears in the Settings window.
W2 is assigned to the second workspace that appears in the Settings
window.

Assigning a Workspace
To assign a workspace:
1. Click Settings in the Project window.
The Settings window opens.
2. Scroll to the bottom of the Settings list and select Workspace.
Workspace is highlighted.
3. Press kÐD to duplicate the workspace.
Workspace appears twice.
4. Click a workspace you want to use. (Click to the left of the word
ÒWorkspace.Ó)
A checkmark appears next to the workspace.
5. In the second column (to the right of ÒWorkspaceÓ), move the cursor until the pointing hand becomes a text cursor.
6. Type a new workspace name; for example, digitizing.

7. Open the windows that you want to associate with the workspace.
Resize and position the windows the way you want them in the
workspace.
The windows and placements are assigned to the new workspace.

Deleting a Workspace
To delete a workspace:
1. Select the workspace you want to delete from the Project Settings
list.
The selection is highlighted.
2. Press the Delete key.
The selection is removed from the Settings list.

You cannot delete the active workspace.

Assigning a Workspace Button
To assign a workspace button:
1. Choose Command Palette from the Tools menu.
2. Click the More tab.
3. Select the Button to Button Reassignment box.
4. Click and drag the W1 (or W2ÐW8) button to a location on another
palette (for example, under the Source/Record monitors or a user
tear-off palette).
W1 button

More tab

Button-to-Button Reassignment

The W1 button appears in the new location.
5. Press the W1 button to display the Þrst assigned workspace.

CHAPTER 4
Using Basic Tools
The Tools menu on the Media Composer menu bar provides quick
access to a collection of essential tools for use in your projects. This
chapter provides information about several basic tools that you can
use at any time during your project.
¥

Using the Tools Menu

Using the Deck Controller

Using the Command Palette

Using the Avid Calculator

Using the Console

Using the Hardware Tool

Using the Serial Ports Tool

Using the Tools Menu
You can open any of the most frequently used system tools from the
Tools menu located on the Bin monitor menu bar.
To open a tool, choose its name from the Tools menu.

The Tools menu also allows you to activate or open windows that have
been closed or are covered by other windows. These include any open
tools, plus the Composer, Timeline, and Project windows.
The following sections describe several basic tools that you can use at
any time during a project. For a brief description of all the tools listed
in the Tools menu, see the Avid Media Composer and Film Composer
Quick Reference.

Using the Deck Controller
The Deck Controller provides direct serial or VLXi¨ (V-LAN¨) control
of an Avid-compatible tape deck at any time during editing. This
allows you to cue and screen footage from source tapes in various edit

modes or when recording a digital cut, without entering Capture
mode.
To open a Deck Controller, choose New Deck Controller from the Tools
menu.
The Avid Deck Manager program is initialized, and a new Deck Controller window opens.
Status indicator
Timecode indicator
Controls
Deck Selection pop-up menu
New Tape button

For information on
compatible decks and
cabling, see the Avid
Media Composer Products
Connecting Audio and
Video Equipment manual.

Each Deck Controller includes the following elements:
¥

The Status indicator provides information about the control status
of the tape deck, as follows:
-

If the deck is properly connected and power is on, the Deck
Controller displays timecode when a tape is mounted.

If a deck is not properly connected to the system or power is
off when you open the Controller, the indicator displays the
message ÒNo Driver.Ó

If you turn the deck power off with the Deck Controller
already open, the indicator displays the message ÒPower Off.Ó

If you switch the deck control to Local on the VTR, the indicator displays the message ÒLocal.Ó

The Timecode indicator ßashes green during playback or digitizing to indicate that the system is receiving valid timecode from the
source tape. If the indicator remains unlit, the system is not receiving timecode.

The deck controls provide a standard range of playback capabilities, including fast forward and rewind, stop and play, step back
and step forward, pause, and eject.

The Deck Selection pop-up menu allows you to specify a deck
with deck control parameters that you can customize in the Deck
ConÞguration dialog box. For more information, see ÒDeck ConÞguration SettingsÓ on page 135.

The Deck Controller allows you to associate a tape name with the
controller by clicking the New Tape button and selecting a tape in
the Tape Selection dialog box. For more information, see ÒLogging
with an Avid-Controlled DeckÓ on page 121.

You can also click the size box in the Deck Controller window to open
a window of controls for logging IN and OUT marks while cueing
your tape.

Zoom box
Timecode display
Mark IN button
Mark OUT button
Go To Mark
button
Erase Mark
button

For more information
on logging with the
Digitize Tool, see ÒDigitizing and Logging at
the Same TimeÓ on
page 190.

Marks you set with the Deck Controller are temporary, and allow you
to return to timecode locations entered in the window while screening
and cueing a tape. If the Digitize Tool is open, however, timecodes
logged here also appear in the Digitize Tool, and can be entered into an
open bin.

Using the Command Palette
The Command Palette provides a central location for all user-selectable
buttons (USBs) that you can map to various locations for ease of use.
User-selectable buttons allow you to perform a wide range of commands with a single click of the mouse. You can map buttons to any
command palette in a pop-up, Source, or Record monitor and to reconÞgure the keyboard, AvidDroid buttons, or the Manual User Interface
(MUI) keys. You can also map menu commands to various buttons
and keys.
The Command Palette groups buttons by editing function. Tabs are
displayed for each function and the buttons that perform those functions are displayed within each tab. The functions are: Move, Play,
Edit, Trim, FX, 3D, MCam, Other, and More.

Functions can also be performed directly from the Command Palette by deselecting the reassignment boxes at the bottom of the palette.
Figure 4-1 and Figure 4-2 show the Command Palette tabs.

Move buttons

Play buttons

Edit buttons

Trim buttons

Effect buttons

Figure 4-1

Command Palette Tabs 1-5

3D Effects buttons

Multicamera buttons

Miscellaneous buttons

Workspace buttons

Figure 4-2

Command Palette Tabs 6-8

Using the Blank Button
The Blank button allows you to replace a deÞned button with an undeÞned button. If you donÕt need or use a speciÞc button within the
Source/Record monitor, a pop-up monitor, or a user command palette,
you can replace these buttons with a blank button.
95

To map the blank button to a new location, see ÒMapping User-Selectable ButtonsÓ on page 97. For information on button mapping, see
ÒAbout Button MappingÓ on page 96.

About Button Mapping
You can also map USBs
and menu commands to
the Manual User Interface (MUI). For more
information, see Chapter 6.

Mapping of user-selectable buttons allows you to reconÞgure command palettes or the keyboard in various combinations to suit various
editing needs. The following are a few examples:
¥

Subcataloguing clips: You can map the Make Subclip button and
other clip-management-oriented buttons.

Complex layering and effects editing: You can map buttons such
as Motion Effect, Remove Effect, Render Effect, Transition Corner
Display, Fade Effect, Add Dissolve, Grid (which displays Safe Title
overlays), and Cycle/Picture Sound.

Film projects: You can map buttons and commands such as the
Slip Left One Perf and Slip Right One Perf buttons, and the AutoSync and Cut List menu commands.

For more information
on multiple settings, see
ÒWorking with Multiple SettingsÓ on
page 68.

Multicamera editing: You can map the MultiCamera Mode menu
command, the Quad Split and Gang buttons.

When you remap buttons or commands, the system immediately
saves your new conÞguration in one of the default settings that you
can open from the Project window. You can also save, rename and
recall multiple versions of any of these settings to serve various purposes. Media Composer saves button conÞgurations as follows:
¥

Changes to the keyboard, the Steenbeck controller, or the MUI
controller are saved with their respective settings.

Changes to the pop-up monitor command palettes, monitor command palettes, and user tear-off palettes in the Composer window
are saved with the Composer settings.

Changes to command palettes in Trim mode are saved with Trim
settings.

Mapping User-Selectable Buttons
To remap buttons or keys on the keyboard, using the Command Palette:
1. Open a window that has a user-selectable button palette by doing
one of the following:
¥

Activate the Source or Record monitor in the Composer window.

Click and drag one of the user command palettes to tear off a
menu.

Open a clip in a pop-up monitor.

Enter Trim mode in the Composer window.

Open the Keyboard or MUI or Steenbeck palette from the
Project Settings scroll list.

2. Choose Command Palette from the Tools menu.
The Command Palette appears.
Click a tab.

Click the Button to Button Reassignment box.

3. Select the Button to Button Reassignment box.
4. Select the tab from which you want to choose a user-selectable
button.
5. Click and drag the button from the Command Palette to a location
on the other palette.

If you want to perform a command function from the Command Palette, for
example, click the Play button in the Command Palette to play the material in
the Source window. You must have both the Button to Button and Menu to
Button Reassignment boxes deselected. Then activate the Source window and
click Play in the Command Palette.

Mapping Menu Commands
You can map menu commands displayed in the pull-down menus on
the Bin monitor directly onto buttons in any of the command palettes
or onto the keyboard. This is especially useful if you make much use of
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the keyboard or command palettes during editing. In some phases,
you can avoid using the menus altogether.
To map menu commands:
1. Open a window that has user-selectable buttons by doing one of
the following:
¥

Activate the Source or Record monitor in the Composer window.

Tear off the user command menu that contains the item you
want by clicking and dragging it.

Open a clip in a pop-up monitor.

Enter Trim mode in the Composer window.

Open the Keyboard or MUI or Steenbeck palette from the
Project Settings scroll list.

2. Choose Command Palette from the Tools menu.
The Command Palette appears.

Click the Menu to Button Reassignment box.

3. Select the Menu to Button Reassignment box.

4. Press a target button on the keyboard or palette (for example, the
palette under the Source or Record monitor).

The pointer changes to a small white menu.
5. Choose the menu command you want to map to the target button.
The initials for the menu command appear on the target button.

Menu command mapped
to button

Using the Avid Calculator
The Avid Calculator helps you calculate video and Þlm durations and
convert timecode and Þlm key numbers to different formats. For
example, you can:
¥

Convert drop-frame to non-drop-frame timecode values

Convert timecode durations between 30-fps and 25-fps projects

Convert a duration in video to the corresponding length in footage
and frames for measuring 35mm Þlm

To use the Avid Calculator:
1. Choose Calculator from the Tools menu to open the Avid Calculator window.
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Format pop-up menu

2. Choose a format from the format pop-up menu.
3. Make calculations in the selected format. Click numbers and functions in the Avid Calculator, or enter numbers and functions with
the numeric keypad or the top row of numbers on the keyboard.
You donÕt need to enter leading zeroes, colons, or semicolons for
timecode.
4. To convert your totals at any time to another format, choose a different frame code or key number format from the pop-up menu.

Using the Console
The Console window provides a number of features, including:
¥

Current system information, including your system ID number

A log of error messages

Detailed information about sequence segments in the Timeline or
about objects in a bin

Information after you digitize or import

101

Do not use the programming features of the Console without guidance from Avid professionals. Contact Avid Customer Support with
speciÞc questions.

Displaying System Information
To display current system information:
1. Choose Console from the Tools menu to open the Console window.

2. Scroll to the top of the Console window to view your system information and ID.
This feature is especially useful for Þnding the system ID when
contacting Avid Customer Support.

Reviewing a Log of Errors
To review errors logged to the console:
1. When an error occurs, exit the alert box and choose Console from
the Tools menu.
2. Scroll through the Console window to Þnd a log of the error to use
when contacting Avid Customer Support.

102

Getting Information with the Console
This function provides quick access to bin information such as total
duration of selected clips, or total items in a bin including hidden
items. You can also use this procedure to display information about a
shot, segment, or sequence in the Timeline.
To get information with the Console window:
1. Choose Console from the Tools menu, or press kÐ6.
2. Select the item about which you want information:
¥

In the Timeline, place the position indicator in the chosen shot
or segment.

In the bin, select an object or Shift-select multiple objects.

3. Choose Get Bin Info from the File menu, or press kÐI.
Information about the shot appears in the Console window.

Using the Hardware Tool
The Hardware Tool provides information about the systemÕs hardware
conÞguration.
103

To check the conÞguration of your system, choose Hardware from the
Tools menu to display the Hardware Tool.

Speakers indicate
audio cards
Monitors indicate
video cards
Board slots

Online disks

Each online disk is listed on the right side of the tool. The shaded
portion of the bar graph next to each disk shows the amount of
storage space currently Þlled.

At the center of the window is a display box for each board slot in
the computer. The names of the currently installed boards appear
in the display boxes.

To the left of the display boxes, two speakers identify audio boards
and two monitors identify video boards.

The name of the central processing unit (CPU) appears in a gray
area beneath the list of boards. Any internal card, such as an internal 8-bit video board, is also listed in the same location.

104

Using the Serial Ports Tool
The Serial Ports Tool allows you to view the current conÞguration of
the Macintosh serial interface at any time during editing. You can also
use it to reconÞgure the ports without closing the Media Composer
application or shutting down the computer.

Although you can use the Serial Ports Tool to reassign ports, you still need to
reconnect the appropriate cables to the newly assigned ports.
To access the Serial Ports tool:
1. Choose Serial Ports from the Tools menu.
The Serial Ports Tool appears.

2. Assign ports for deck control, the Avid Controller, the Steenbeck,
the Manual User Interface (MUI), VTR emulation, or the
Media Reader as necessary by choosing Modem port, Printer port,
or no port from any of the pop-up menus.

The Deck Control pop-up menu appears only if you have already selected a
deck from the Deck ConÞguration window. The Audio Faders pop-up menu
appears only if you choose the Automation Gain Tool from the Tools menu.

105

Specifying the AvidDroid Controller
To specify the AvidDroid controller and its port:
1. Choose Serial Ports from the Tools menu.
The Serial Ports Tool appears.

Choose Avid Controller

2. Choose Avid Controller from the Controller type pop-up menu.
3. From the Avid Controller pop-up menu, choose the port to which
you connected the AvidDroid cable. See the AvidDroid Setup and
UserÕs Guide for more information about connecting cables.
4. Close the Serial Ports Tool.
5. Continue setting up the AvidDroid as described in the AvidDroid
Setup and UserÕs Guide.

Specifying the Steenbeck Controller
To specify the Steenbeck controller and its port:
1. Choose Serial Ports from the Tools menu.
The Serial Ports Tool appears.

106

Choose Steenbeck

2. Choose Steenbeck from the Controller type pop-up menu.
3. Check the back of your Avid system to see which port the Steenbeck cable is plugged into.
4. From the Steenbeck pop-up menu, choose the port to which you
connected the Steenbeck cable.
5. Close the Serial Ports Tool.

Specifying the MUI Controller
To specify the MUI controller:
1. Choose Serial Ports from the Tools menu.
The Serial Ports Tool appears.

107

Choose MUI

2. Choose MUI from the Controller type pop-up menu.
3. You donÕt need to specify a port for the MUI.
4. Close the Serial Ports Tool.

108

CHAPTER 5
Logging
When you log with a deck or import shot log Þles, you provide the
Avid Composer system with frame-accurate clip information used to
digitize the source footage. The logs you create form the foundation
for organizing, tracking, storing, retrieving, and generating lists of edit
information throughout your project. Techniques for preparing log
information prior to digitizing are covered in the following sections:
¥

Logging Tips

Preparing Logs for Import

Importing Shot Log Files

Logging Directly into a Bin

Modifying Clip Information

Exporting Shot Log Files

Logging Tips
Observe the following important guidelines for preroll, timecode formats, and naming of tapes when logging prior to digitizing.

109

Logging Preroll
Be sure to leave adequate preroll with continuous timecode prior to IN
points when logging your tapes. The recommended minimum preroll
is 1 second for Betacam playback, and 5 seconds for 3/4-inch U-matic
playback.

You set the default preroll for tape playback by using Deck Settings. For more
information, see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

Logging Timecode
Within an NTSC project, check the timecode format of each tape (dropframe versus non-drop-frame timecode) when you are logging without a tape in the deck. Log drop-frame timecode by using semicolons
(;) between the hours, minutes, seconds, and frames. Log non-dropframe timecode with colons (:).

To change the logged timecode format, use the Modify command from the clip
menu. For information, see ÒModifying Clip InformationÓ on page 126.

Naming Tapes
When entering tape names in the Digitize Tool, consider the following:
¥

Tape names must be alphanumeric characters (A to Z, 0 to 9), with
no spaces before the name. They can include uppercase and lowercase characters. The maximum length of a name is 32 characters.

It is possible to have a single tape listed as several different tapes if
you alter the case of the letters. For example, if you type a single
name as TAPE, Tape, and tape on three different occasions, all three
names will appear. This can cause signiÞcant problems in keeping
track of clips when batch digitizing, redigitizing, and generating
an EDL. Choose a case convention and maintain it throughout a
project.
110

If you want your Avid Composer system to consider master clips as coming
from the exact same tape, you should try to choose that tape name from the
Select Tape dialog box. If you do not see the tape you are looking for, but know
you have online media from that tape, you should click the Scan for Tapes button. For more information, see ÒLogging with an Avid-Controlled DeckÓ
on page 121.
¥

It is important that you devise a naming scheme for your tapes.
For example, tapes with similar names can be easily sorted and
viewed together in a bin. However, it can be difÞcult to distinguish among numerous tapes with similar names when trying to
locate a speciÞc tape quickly. Name tapes based upon the amount
and complexity of your source material.

If you are planning to generate an EDL for import into an edit controller for online editing, double-check the controllerÕs speciÞcations beforehand. Some edit controllers will truncate source tape
names to as few as six characters, while others will eliminate characters and truncate to three numbers. Alterations like these at the
EDL stage might cause the system to identify different source
tapes with similar names in the same way, causing you to lose
track of source material.

Double-Checking the Logs
When importing shot logs for video, the Avid Composer system compares the video duration to the video out minus the video in. When
importing Þlm shot logs, the system compares the key number out
minus the key number in.
If the system detects a discrepancy, it reports the error to the console
and does not bring the clip into the bin. For more information on using
the console, see ÒUsing the ConsoleÓ on page 101. The best way to
ensure that clips are not discarded on import is to double-check the
logs for discrepancies in duration and marks.

111

Preparing Logs for Import
Your Avid Composer system provides many useful tools to help you
prepare frame-accurate log information for import into the bin from
any number of sources. This process can involve one or more of the
following methods, which are described in this section:
¥

To log the material on any Macintosh or PC, use the MediaLog
application, and transfer the bins directly into the Avid Composer
system with minimum effort, as described in ÒUsing MediaLogÓ
on page 112.

To quickly convert logs (created by other sources), use the Avid
Log Exchange program, as described in ÒConverting Logs with
Avid Log ExchangeÓ on page 114.

Use a word processor or standard text editor to create and import
logs, as described in ÒCreating Avid LogsÓ on page 117.

Using MediaLog
For information on speciÞc MediaLog procedures, see the Avid
MediaLog for Macintosh
UserÕs Guide or the Avid
MediaLog for PC UserÕs
Guide.

MediaLog is a standalone application that speeds the process of creating and importing log information from any Macintosh or IBM¨-compatible computer. MediaLog mirrors the Avid Composer interface for
creating projects, bins, and clip information in the bin, and includes
serial deck control for logging directly from tape.
If you purchased Film Composer or Media Composer 1000, 4000, or 8000, the
MediaLog application is included with your application disks. If you have the
Media Composer 900 or Ofßine models and would like to purchase MediaLog,
contact your Avid sales representative for more information.

112

Transferring Bins from MediaLog for Macintosh
If you log your source footage by using MediaLog for Macintosh, you
can transfer the bins directly to the Avid Composer system for batch
digitizing by moving the bin Þles in the Finder.
To transfer bins from MediaLog for Macintosh:
1. Save the MediaLog bins to a 3.5-inch diskette.
2. Quit the Media Composer application.
3. In the Finder, open the project folder where you want to store the
MediaLog bins. This folder is usually located inside the Composer
Projects folder on the Avid drive.
4. Insert the disk from MediaLog into the diskette drive.
5. Double-click the diskette icon.
If your MediaLog folders are available through a server or other
networked source mounted on your desktop, then locate the
MediaLog folder there instead.
6. Shift-select the bins in the Disk Directory window and drag them
into the project folder.
7. Restart the application and open your project.
8. Associate the imported bins with your project by doing the following:
a. Choose Open Bin from the File menu.
b. Locate the new bin by using the Directory pop-up menu.
c. Double-click the bin to open it within your project.
d. The new bin appears in the Bins scroll list in the Project window.
The bins you have imported contain master clips only with no associated media Þles. Before you can view or manipulate these clips, you
must create the associated media Þles by batch digitizing the source
material.
113

Transferring Bins from MediaLog on the PC
If you log your source footage by using MediaLog on the PC, you can
import the logs by using the same procedure as you would for other
Avid-compatible log formats, as described in ÒImporting Shot Log
FilesÓ on page 118.

To work with PC Þles such as MediaLog on the PC, you must have
the Macintosh 7.5 or later operating system or the DOS Mounter
application on your system.

Converting Logs with Avid Log Exchange
You can use the Avid Log Exchange program included with your system to quickly convert shot logs that are created by other sources. You
can then import the Þles directly into bins, as described in ÒImporting
Shot Log FilesÓ on page 118.
To convert a Þle:
1. In the Finder, open the Utilities folder on the Avid drive and locate
the Avid Log Exchange application inside the folder labeled ALE f.
2. Double-click the Avid Log Exchange icon to start the application.
The Avid Log Exchange window opens.

114

Files you
can convert

Files you
can generate
Clean
option
Track
selection

Convert button

For speciÞc information on the various Þle
types shown here, see
the Avid Media Composer
Products Reference.

Quit button

3. Make a selection for Input and Output.
The default output selection is the Avid Log Exchange (.ALE) format. This is the required format for import into an Avid Composer
bin.
4. Select the tracks to include in the Tracks column of the log. After
you import the log into an Avid Composer bin, the system digitizes all tracks shown in this column when batch digitizing.
5. Select the Clean option if you want Avid Log Exchange to clean
the input Þle to eliminate overlapping timecodes for clips.
When you select the Clean option, the utility removes the end
timecode from any clip that overlaps the start of the next clip.
6. Click the Convert button to open the Þle selection dialog box.
7. Open the disk and folder that contain the Þles you want to convert.

115

Location of the
files

File to be
converted

8. Double-click the input Þle name. Only one Þle is converted at a
time.
Avid Log Exchange stores the converted Þle in the same folder as
the original input Þle.
Input file

Converted file

The original Þle name extension is replaced by the extension for the
new format. The .ALE Þles can be imported only into Avid products.

Drag and Drop Conversion
Use this shortcut to convert any type of Þle into an .ALE Þle:
1. Insert the disk in the Macintosh disk drive if the Þles you want to
convert are stored on a 3.5-inch diskette.
2. Open the folder that contains the Avid Log Exchange utility icon.
3. Open the folder that contains the Þles you want to convert, positioning the folder so the Avid Log Exchange icon is visible.
4. Select Þles for conversion.
116

Select files, drag to the
icon, and release.

5. Drag the selected Þles to the Avid Log Exchange icon and release.
The system converts the Þles to Avid format, adding the .ALE
extension to the new Þle names.

Creating Avid Logs
You can prepare an Avid log on any type of Macintosh or IBM-compatible computer by using a word processing application or a text editor.
In either case, to ensure accuracy, you must follow closely the speciÞcations described in the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.
When logging manually, you should document the following information:
¥

Identify the source tape for each shot.

Document each clipÕs name, start timecode, and end timecode.

This is the minimum information required to digitize successfully. You
can also add other information such as comments, auxiliary timecodes, or key numbers for Þlm projects. You can make a separate log
Þle for each videotape, or log clips from several different videotapes in
one log.

Using a Word Processor
If you use a rich-text formatted program like Microsoft Word or
WordPerfect¨, you must do the following:
117

1. Enter shot log information according to the speciÞcations
described in the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.
2. Save your Þle as an ASCII text Þle in the Save As dialog box.

The Avid Composer system only accepts text Þles (ASCII format).

Using Vantage
Another alternative is to use a text editor, such as the Vantageª program provided with your system. Text editors like Vantage always
maintain the log information in text Þle (ASCII) format. Vantage also
provides useful tools for arranging and conforming text to various
shot log, cut list, and EDL (edit decision list) speciÞcations. The Vantage program is located in the Utilities folder.

Importing Shot Log Files
You can also import an
EDL to a bin for use in
digitizing. For more
information, see
ÒUsing EDL ManagerÓ
on page 624.

You can import any log created or converted to meet Avid log speciÞcations. You can also combine or merge events while importing a log
so that fewer master tapes require digitizing, as described in this section.
To import shot log Þles into a bin:
1. Open a bin, click anywhere in an open bin to select it, or create a
new bin for the shot log import.
2. Choose Import from the File menu. The Select Files to Import dialog box appears.

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Directory pop-up menu

Source file scroll list

Import file scroll list

File Type pop-up menu

3. Choose Shot Log from the File Type pop-up menu.
4. (Option) Select the option Show All Files in the lower left corner of
the dialog box to display all Þles in a chosen folder, regardless of
Þle type. Use this option if you want to batch-import from multiple Þle types.

When you batch-import multiple Þles and Þle types, you should establish
global import settings in advance. See ÒUsing Global Import SettingsÓ on
page 215.
5. Click the Options button to open a dialog box if you want to select
options for combining events on import from the import settings.
119

6. After selecting the appropriate options, click OK to close the
Import Settings dialog box and return to the Select Files to Import
dialog box.
7. Use the Directory pop-up menu to locate the folder containing the
source Þle.
8. Select the Þle name in the source Þle list and click the Add button,
or double-click the Þle name to add it to the import Þle list on the
right.
9. Click Done.
When the system Þnishes importing the Þle, the clips appear in the
selected bin.

Logging Directly into a Bin
You can log clip information in advance, allowing you to batch digitize
the clips in one step. To log the clips in advance, do one of the following:
¥

Prepare shot logs using MediaLog, a word processor, or a standard
text editor, and then import the logs directly into Avid Composer
bins. For more information see ÒPreparing Logs for ImportÓ on
page 112.

Log the clip information directly into the bin, as described in this
section.

You can log clips directly into a bin by using the Digitize Tool in one of
two ways described in this section:
For complete information on working with
bin columns and clip
information, see
ÒUsing Text ModeÓ on
page 242.

Log directly into a bin with an Avid-controlled deck for semiautomated data entry.

Log manually during or after viewing of footage ofßine with a
deck or other source that is not Avid-controlled.

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Logging with an Avid-Controlled Deck
For information about
connecting a compatible deck to your system,
See the Avid Media Composer Products Connecting Audio and Video
Equipment.

When you log with a compatible tape deck controlled from within
your Avid Composer system, you can automate part of the logging
process by using buttons to enter frame-accurate timecode information from the deck. This method is more accurate than manual entry
because timecodes are transferred directly from tape to the bin.
To log clips to a bin by using the Digitize Tool:
1. Turn on power to the tape deck and make sure the deck is properly connected.
2. Open the bin where you want to store the clips.
3. Choose Digitize from the Tools menu. The Digitize Tool opens and
the third, full-screen monitor displays playback from the deck.

Track Selection

Log button

Message bar

Mark IN

Timecode display
Erase Mark

Deck controls

Deck Selection pop-up
menu
Mark OUT

Memo field
(constant)

If you forgot to connect and/or turn on the power to the deck before opening
the Digitize Tool, you can reinitialize deck control after turning it on by using
the Check Decks command in the Deck Selection pop-up menu.

121

4. If the Digitize Tool is not currently in Log mode, click the Digitize/Log Mode button to display the Log icon.
5. Load your tape into the deck. The system prompts you for a name.
You can select the option ÒShow other projectÕs tapesÓ to display
the tape names and associated project names for all bins that have
been opened in the current session.

Because the media Þle database no longer opens when you bring up your Avid
Composer system, tape names of all online media Þles no longer appear automatically.
If the tape name you are searching for does not appear in the Select Tape dialog box, click the Scan for Tapes button. Tape and project names are listed.
New tape name

List of tapes

Show Tapes option

For guidelines in naming tapes, see ÒLogging
TipsÓ on page 109.

6. Select a tape name from the scroll list. Tape names and associated
projects are listed in two columns. Or, click the New button and
enter a new tape name in the name entry Þeld that appears at the
bottom of the dialog box. You can cancel the process any time by
clicking the Cancel button.

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New tape name
text entry field

7. Press Return. The tape name is displayed in the Digitize Tool.
8. Click the Log Mode button in the Digitize Tool.
The Capture Message bar displays a message that the system is
waiting for you to mark an IN point. The Log button displays an
IN mark.
9. Set either an IN mark or an OUT mark for the clip you want to log,
using one of the following methods:

Mark IN

Use the deck controls in the Digitize Tool to cue your source
tape to the start or end point, and click the Mark IN or Mark
OUT button.

Click the large Log button in the upper right corner of the Digitize Tool to enter the mark.

If the footage starts at a known IN or ends at a known OUT,
type the timecode in the display area next to the mark, press
the Go To IN or Go To OUT button to scan the tape forward to
the mark, or press Return to enter it.

Mark OUT

Go To IN

Go To OUT

After you set the mark, the icon in the Log button changes to the
corresponding OUT or IN mark, and a pencil appears on the button.
10. To Þnish logging the clip, do one of the following:
¥

Set the remaining IN or OUT mark on-the-ßy by using the
buttons.
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Type a timecode for the clipÕs IN, OUT, or duration in the
timecode entry Þeld next to the corresponding icon and press
Return.

The system automatically calculates the appropriate timecode for
the remaining mark IN, mark OUT, or duration, and enters the
clip into the bin. The clip name, which is chosen and automatically
numbered by the system, is highlighted and ready to be changed.

You must enter at least two of the three timecode marks (IN mark,
OUT mark, or duration) in order to complete the log entry.
11. Name the clip by typing a new name before clicking any of the
buttons in the Digitize Tool.

You should change the clip name immediately because it is very easy to forget
the contents of each clip among the dozens that you log. You can, if necessary,
accept the clip name and proceed with the logging process and change the clip
names in the bin at a later time.
12. Repeat these steps until you have logged all your clips.
While viewing the footage, you can continuously update your marks
on-the-ßy by clicking the Mark IN or Mark OUT button repeatedly
before entering the second mark.

Logging with Non-Avid-Controlled Decks
You can use the Digitize Tool to log clips directly into a bin from a
source that is not Avid-controlled. For example, you can log clips from
a deck that is not connected to the system, or from handwritten or
printed log information for a tape that was previously logged but is
not currently available.
1. If there is a deck connected to the system, eject the tape from the
deck.

124

For NTSC projects, when you are logging within the Digitize Tool, you
should leave the deck empty. If a tape remains in the deck, the system will
determine drop-frame or non-drop-frame from that tape whether or not it
matches your tapeÕs timecode format.
2. Double-click Deck Preferences in the Settings scroll list of the
Project window to open the Deck Preferences dialog box.
3. For NTSC projects, choose Non-Drop-Frame or Drop-Frame from
the When No Tape in Deck Log pop-up menu.
4. Click OK to close the dialog box.
5. Open the bin where you want to store the clips.
6. Choose Digitize from the Tools menu. The tool opens.

Track
Selection

Log
button

Message
bar

Timecode
display

Deck
controls

Erase
Mark
button

Deck Selection
pop-up menu

Memo field (constant)

Mark IN button
Tape Name
button

Mark OUT button

125

7. Click the Digitize/Log Mode button in the Digitize Tool to activate
Log mode.
8. Click the Tape Name button. A dialog box appears.

9. Click Yes to open the Tape Selection dialog box.
10. Double-click the name of the tape in the dialog box, or click New
and enter the name of the tape. Click OK.
11. Select the tracks you want to log in the Digitize Tool.
12. Type the start and end timecodes in the mark IN and mark OUT
displays.
13. Click the Log button, or press the B key.
The clip is logged into the bin.

Modifying Clip Information
For complete information on working with
bin columns and clip
information, see
ÒUsing Text ModeÓ on
page 242.

You can change or modify the information logged in the bin. This is
especially useful if you Þnd that some of the data is incorrect, or if you
need to update the information based on technical needs, such as
varying timecode formats.

126

For additional bin
shortcuts, see the
ÒShortcutsÓ section of
the Avid Media Composer
and Film Composer
Quick Reference.

There are two ways to modify clip information prior to digitizing:
¥

You can modify the information directly by clicking in a column
and entering the new information one Þeld at a time.

You can use the Modify command to change selected groups of
clips all at once.

Using the Modify Command
The Modify command gives you specialized control over groups of
clip information. For example, you can use the Modify command to
change the name of source tapes for some or all of your clips, to
change the timecode format from drop- to non-drop-frame, or to increment or decrement the start and end timecodes by a speciÞed length of
time for one or several clips at once.
To modify selected clips:
1. Open the bin.
2. Click a clip icon to select it. Shift-click each additional clip you
want to modify.

Selected clips are
highlighted.

3. Choose Modify from the Clip menu.
The Modify dialog box appears.

127

Click here to display
pop-up menu.

4. Choose an option, such as Set Timecode By Field, from the pop-up
menu.

Depending on the modiÞcation you select, different options
appear in the dialog box that allow you to establish the speciÞc
modiÞcation as shown in Table 5-1.

128

Table 5-1

Modify Dialog Box Options

Type of ModiÞcation

Options

Description

Set Timecode Drop/
Nondrop

Drop, Nondrop radio buttons

Changes the timecode format between
drop- and non-drop-frame.

Set Timecode By Field

Start or End radio buttons

Changes either the start or end timecode.

Fields for Hour, Minutes, Second, Frame

Allow you to enter custom timecode.

Start or End radio buttons

Changes either the start or end timecode.

Timecode entry Þeld

Allows you to enter custom incremental
timecode.

Start or End radio buttons

Changes either the start or end timecode.

Field for timecode

Allows you to enter new incremental timecode.

Set Key Number
Generic (PreÞx)

Field for Key Number

Allows you to enter a custom generic key
number.

Set Pullin

Punch frame timecode entry
Þeld

Sets the timecode location of the punch
frame for pullin.

A, B, C, or D radio buttons

Selects the pulldown frame to match to the
timecode entry.

Increment Timecode

Decrement Timecode

Set Tracks

V, A1, A2, A3, A4 track selector Changes the clips conÞguration of tracks.
buttons

Set Source

Opens the Tape Name dialog
box

Selects another source tape name for the
clips.

5. After choosing the type of modiÞcation, select an option or enter
information into the entry Þelds (timecode values, for example)
when they appear.
6. Click OK. The modiÞcation takes effect.
129

Exporting Shot Log Files
You can export a shot log Þle from the Avid Composer system in one
of two formats for making adjustments in a text processor or for
importing into another system.
To export a shot log based on clip information in a bin:
1. Open the bin containing the clips you want to export and change
to Text mode.
2. Choose Export from the File menu. The Export File Type dialog
box appears.

130

3. Select either Avid Log Exchange or Tab Delimited as the Þle type.
4. Click OK.
A destination dialog box opens with a default Þle name in the
Export As text box, based on the Þle type.
5. Change the Þle name, if you want (keep the Þle extension), and
select the destination folder for the Þle and click Save.
The Þle is exported and appears at the chosen destination.

131

CHAPTER 6
Preparing to Digitize
Digitizing is the process of converting source material from analog videotape to digital form. Before you begin this processÑdescribed in
Chapter 7Ñyou need to complete the following preparations:
¥

Preparing the Hardware

Selecting Settings

Entering Capture Mode

Setting Up the Compression Tool

Setting Up the Digitize Tool

Preparing for Audio Input and Output

Preparing for Video Input

Digitize Preparations Checklist

Preparing the Hardware
Your source material can originate from a videotape, a digital audiotape (DAT), a compact disc (CD), an in-house router, a tuner, or
straight off-the-air, with the proper hardware conÞguration.

132

For information on connecting your equipment, see the Avid
Media Composer Products Connecting Audio and Video Equipment manual.
The following are a few last-minute items to double-check prior to digitizing.

For more information
on the 16 x 9 format
option, see ÒUsing the
16 x 9 Display FormatÓ
on page 329.

Video Slave Driverª settings. If your system is equipped with
the Digidesign¨ hardware, make sure the pulldown switch on the
front of the Video Slave Driver is set to the X 1.00 setting for normal use. For information on settings to use for Þlm projects, see
the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

Third, full-screen monitor. Before you begin digitizing and editing, set up your NTSC or PAL full-screen monitor by using a color
bar generator (or house pattern) and lock in those settings, if you
havenÕt done so already.

16 x 9 format. You can edit with video in the 16 x 9 wide-screen
format. To digitize footage shot in the 16 x 9 format, you must
have a compatible playback deck. To view the footage on a full
screen, you must have a 16 x 9 compatible full-screen NTSC or
PAL monitor.

Remote switch. The deck control switch on the front of the source
deck must be set to remote rather than local to control the deck
with the Digitize Tool.

Striped drives. If your footage contains complex images that you
digitize at high resolution, you must use striped drives as
described in the AVIDdrive Utility UserÕs Guide. In addition, various models and AVRs have different striping requirements. For
more information, see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

DAT (digital audiotape). To digitize music or audio from a DAT
machine, check the Avid Media Composer Products Connecting Audio
and Video Equipment manual to determine whether your model
requires VLXi for deck control. Also, when digitizing from DAT
you must choose Digital from the Sync Source pop-up menu in the
Audio Tool Setup display. For more information, see ÒPreparing
for Audio Input and OutputÓ on page 157.
133

The Avid Composer system does not support input and output of S-Video.
Use the composite input/output to and from your S-Video equipment or a
transcoder to digitize from S-Video format.

Selecting Settings
For more information
on all settings options,
see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.
For a complete description of procedures for
locating and changing
settings, see ÒUsing the
Settings DisplayÓ on
page 61.

Several settings have a direct bearing on the digitizing process. Before
digitizing, review the following options:
¥

General Settings include options for NTSC tape formats and
drive Þltering:
-

Drive Filtering Based on Resolution causes the system to dim all
drives for which speed capabilities are unknown or untested
in a particular Avid Video Resolution (AVR). This is the
default setting in the General Settings dialog box.

The Avid Composer system will not prevent you from using non-Avid drives,
but their reliability cannot be assured.

NTSC Has Setup applies to standard NTSC format. This is the
default setting in the General Settings dialog box. If the source
footage is in the NTSC/EIAJ format standard (used primarily
in Japan), deselect NTSC Has Setup.

The Audio File Format pop-up menu allows you to choose
either AIFF or SDII as the default audio media for the project.
For more information, see ÒChoosing the Audio File FormatÓ
on page 158.

Digitize Settings include essential options for digitizing, batch
digitizing, autodigitizing, and digitizing to multiple media Þles.
-

Digitize Video to Multiple Files allows you to create longer
clips whose media Þles would otherwise exceed the
Macintosh operating system Þle size limitation of 2 GB. For
more information, see ÒDigitizing to Multiple Media FilesÓ
on page 152.
134

Digitize across timecode breaks causes the system to begin digitizing a new master clip at each timecode break. Select this
option when you are performing unattended batch digitizing
or autodigitizing. Deselect this option if you plan to digitize
the entire tape as a single clip by digitizing to multiple media
Þles. For more information, see ÒDigitizing Across Timecode
BreaksÓ on page 156.

The with outpoint set option allows you to mark an OUT point
to stop digitizing when you are performing unattended batch
digitizing or autodigitizing.

Deck Configuration Settings
Deck ConÞguration settings and global deck control preferences
appear as separate items in the Settings scroll list of the Project window.

Deck control settings

Deck conÞguration settings allow you to establish deck control parameters for a single deck or for multiple decks. As with all settings, you
can create multiple versions, allowing you to select among them for
frequent changes in hardware conÞgurations.

135

You must manually conÞgure the appropriate hardware connections
before deck conÞguration settings can take effect. For more information, see the Avid Media Composer Products Setup Guide or the Avid
Media Composer Products Connecting Audio and Video Equipment
manual.
To conÞgure a deck or multiple decks:
1. Double-click Deck ConÞguration in the Settings scroll list.
The Deck ConÞguration dialog box appears.

2. If you are conÞguring your system for the Þrst time, click the Add
Channel button to add a new channel box on the left side of the
Deck ConÞguration dialog box and automatically open a Channel
dialog box.

136

Channel refers to the signal path for deck control, whether through a serial
port or a V-LAN VLXi system. Direct serial port connection provides two
channels (modem port and printer port), while a V-LAN VLXi system provides multiple channels.
3. Choose either Direct (serial port) or V-LAN VLXi from the Channel Type pop-up menu, depending upon your system conÞguration.
4. If you chose Direct for the channel type, choose either Printer Port
or Modem Port from the Port pop-up menu.

If you are not sure which port to choose, check the serial cable connection on
the back of the Macintosh.
5. Click OK to close the Channel dialog box.
A new channel appears in the display area of the Deck ConÞguration dialog box.

137

Channel boxes appear on the left side

You can reopen the channel settings to change the options at any time by
double-clicking the channel box.
6. Click the channel box to select it.
7. Click Add Deck to add a new deck box on the right side of the
Deck ConÞguration dialog box and automatically open a Deck
Settings dialog box.

With a deck already connected to the system, you can also click the AutoconÞgure button to bypass the Deck Settings dialog box and automatically conÞgure a deck with the default settings.

138

8. ConÞgure deck settings.

For information on deck settings, see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.
9. Click OK to close the Deck Settings dialog box and return to the
Deck ConÞguration dialog box.

139

Decks appear on the right side

You can reopen the Deck Settings dialog box to change the options at any time
by double-clicking the deck box.
10. Repeat steps 2 to 9 for each additional channel or deck you want to
conÞgure.
11. Click Apply to complete the conÞgurations and close the Deck
ConÞguration dialog box.
12. If necessary, double-click Deck Preferences in the Settings scroll
list of the Project window to adjust global deck control options for
default timecode format, insert or assemble editing, and stop key
and shuttle operation.

Deleting Configurations
You can delete deck conÞguration elements to remove or replace them.

140

To delete deck conÞguration elements in the Avid Composer system:
1. Double-click Deck ConÞguration in the Settings scroll list of the
Project window.
The Deck ConÞguration dialog box appears.
2. Click a channel box, a deck box, or the entire conÞguration to
select it.
3. Click the Delete button in the dialog box, or press the Delete key to
delete the element.

Deck Preferences
Deck preferences are global settings for basic deck control. These settings apply to all decks connected to your system, regardless of your
deck conÞguration. You can open the Deck Preferences dialog box
from the Settings scroll list of the Project window (see ÒDeck ConÞguration SettingsÓ on page 135). For information on deck preferences,
see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

Entering Capture Mode
Capture mode provides all the tools and controls you need to capture
your footage in digital form. When you enter Capture mode, the system initializes these tools and establishes an interface with the analog
playback equipment attached to the system.
To enter Capture mode:
1. Make sure the playback deck is turned on and properly connected
to the system.
2. Open your project and the bin in which you want to store your
master clips.

141

3. With the bin active, choose Go To Capture Mode from the Bin
menu. The Bin monitor displays the Digitize Tool, Compression
Tool, and the active bin.

In Capture mode, the Client monitor displays the playback footage on a full
screen at all times when the video track is selected in the Digitize Tool.

142

Setting Up the Compression Tool
You can choose various compression parameters in the Compression
Tool. To choose compression settings:
1. Choose Compression from the Tools menu.

Audio settings

Video compression
settings

2. Make sure the proper audio sample rate is indicated under Audio
Rate. The audio sample rate shown cannot be adjusted within the
tool, but reßects hardware settings, as follows:

Systems using a two-channel audio board support 44100 Hz
(44 kHz) only. This is the default setting in the Compression
Tool.

If your system uses the Digidesign audio interface and a fourto eight-channel audio card, you can set the audio sample rate
at either 44100 Hz or 48000 Hz by adjusting the sample rate
switch on the front of the Video Slave Driver.

Settings in both the Compression Tool and the audio interface do not affect the
sample rate of digital audio signals.
3. Choose an AVR and color rate from the pop-up menus.

143

About the Color Rate Option
In addition to the AVR, the Color pop-up menu allows you to choose
to Þlter out color from each frame of video with the monochrome
option.
If you are digitizing black-and-white images, storage space will not be
affected by these settings.

If you choose one of these settings and you intend to record professional-quality digital cuts, you will need to redigitize at Full
Chroma before recording.

Setting Up the Digitize Tool
The Digitize Tool provides controls for cueing, marking, and logging
footage, and speciÞes digitizing parameters such as source and target
locations. Deck control in the Digitize Tool operates in the same way as
in the Deck Controller. Click anywhere in the Digitize Tool to activate
it.

Digitize indicator
Track Selection

Record button

Digitize/Log mode
Trash/Abort
Subclip status
Message bar

Deck control
Deck Selection
pop-up menu
Tape Name display

144

Using the Deck Selection Pop-Up Menu
The Deck Selection pop-up menu in the Digitize Tool contains a list of
all decks that were connected to the system, powered up, and initialized when you entered Capture mode. Deck 1 is selected by default.
You must have V-LAN
VLXi hardware to control more than one deck
at a time. For more
information on V-LAN
equipment, contact
your Avid sales representative.

To activate playback from another available deck, choose the deck
from the Deck Selection pop-up menu.
The menu also contains the command Check Decks below the list of
decks. The Check Decks command helps you reestablish deck control
if the power on your decks was turned off or the decks were disconnected when you Þrst entered Capture mode.

Check Decks appears at the bottom of the
Deck Selection pop-up menu.

Once deck control has been properly initialized, it will remain active for all
deck controllers throughout the session until you quit the application.

Selecting a Tape
To select a source tape:
1. Insert a tape into your deck. The Select Tape dialog box appears.

145

2. In an NTSC project, play the tape brießy so that the system can
detect the timecode format of the tape (drop-frame or non-dropframe). Otherwise, the system maintains the timecode format set
in Deck Settings, regardless of the format on the tape, and you
might receive a Wrong Tape message.

n
For information on
tape naming conventions, see ÒNaming
TapesÓ on page 110.

Drop-frame timecode appears in the Timecode indicator with semicolons
between hours, minutes, and seconds, and frames. Non-drop-frame timecode
appears with colons.
3. Provide the system with a tape name in one of the following ways:
¥

Select the name of the tape from the list in the Select Tape dialog box and click OK.

Click New if the tape is not in the list. A new tape name line
appears at the bottom of the dialog box. Type the new name
and click OK.

146

Selecting Source Tracks
You can choose the tracks to digitize from the source tape. Click the
video and audio track buttons in the Digitize Tool to select only those
tracks that you want to digitize.

When using an Avid-controlled deck, the TC (timecode) track will be selected
by default, and the system will digitize the timecode from the source tape. If
you deselect the TC button, the system will digitize with timecode-of-day. For
more information, see ÒDigitizing with Timecode-of-Day TimecodeÓ on
page 198.

If you are not seeing the source video or hearing source audio in Capture mode, toggle these buttons to make sure they are not the cause.

n
c

You can select or deselect all tracks at once by pressing the Option key and
clicking any track selector.
When batch digitizing, if the tracks are already logged into the bin,
this selection will be made automatically, unless you deselect the
option ÒDigitize the tracks logged for each clipÓ in the Digitize Settings. For more information on Digitize Settings, see the Avid
Media Composer Products Reference.

147

Choosing a Resolution in the Digitize Tool
If you did not already choose a resolution in the Compression Tool, or
the Compression Tool is closed, you can use the AVR pop-up menu in
the Digitize Tool.
To choose a resolution, click the pop-up menu above the deck controls
in the Digitize Tool and make a selection.
Release 7.0 of the Media Composer products addresses AVR 70 and
AVR 75 as follows:

AVR 70 and AVR 75 in Release 7.0 of the Media Composer products correspond to AVR 70B and AVR 75B used to record media in
the Þeld with the Ikegami¨ Editcamª. As a result, users can now
transfer media directly from the Ikegami Editcam to a
Media Composer product for editing. For information on transferring media directly from the Ikegami Editcam, see ÒUsing Editcam MediaÓ on page 210.

When you choose AVR 70 or AVR 75 during digitizing, the video
column in the bin will display AVR 70B or AVR 75B for the new
clips.

If you transfer AVR 70 or AVR 75 media from an earlier release of
the Media Composer products, the Video column in the bin displays AVR 70 and AVR 75 for the older media.

You can play older AVR 70 and AVR 75 media within Release 7.0,
but you cannot digitize in the older format.

For more information on AVRs, see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

148

Choosing the Target Bin
You select a target bin as the destination for the master clips created
when you digitize on-the-ßy. Or, you select a target bin containing the
logged clips you will use to batch digitize your media.
To choose a target bin, do one of the following:
¥

Choose an existing bin from the pop-up menu.

Activate a previously created bin by choosing Open Bin from
the File menu, and then by locating and opening the bin in the
Open Bin dialog box.

Create a new bin by choosing New Bin from the File menu,
and then naming and opening the new bin in the New Bin dialog box.

Targeting Drives
Targeting drives for the digitized media is a three-step process:
1. Make sure you are in Digitize mode. If the tool is in Log mode,
click the Digitize/Log button to return to Digitize mode.

For tips on targeting
media drives for effective storage and playback, see the Avid Media
Composer Products Reference Guide.

2. Decide whether to digitize audio and video to a single drive, or
separate drives, as described in the following sections.
3. Choose the speciÞc target drives from the pop-up menus, as
described in the following sections.

149

Targeting a Single Drive
By default, the Digitize Tool targets a single media drive volume for
digitizing the audio and video for each clip. Use this option when
you are digitizing in a single-Þeld resolution, for instance, and playback performance is generally not an issue.
To target a single drive:
1. Click the One/Two Disk Mode button to display a single drive
icon.

2. Choose a drive volume from the Target Drive pop-up menu.
The name shown in bold in the menu has the most storage available. Time remaining on the selected drive, displayed above the
menu, is calculated based on your AVR selection.

Targeting Separate Drives for Audio and Video
To achieve optimal performance, stripe two or
more drives. AVRs 71
and 75 require drive
striping. For more information, see the AVIDdrive Utility UserÕs
Guide.

Optionally, you can target separate drives for video and audio tracks.
This option improves performance because the system is not required
to address all the information in separate locations on a single disk.
You can also digitize for the longest continuous amount of time
because the system is storing material on two disks rather than one.
To target separate drives for audio and video:
1. Click the One/Two Disk Mode button to display a two-drive icon.

150

2. Choose separate drive volumes for audio and video from each
Target Drive pop-up menu.
Names shown in bold in the menus have the most storage available. Time remaining on each selected drive, displayed above each
menu, is calculated based on your AVR selection.

Interpreting the Time Remaining Display
By default, the Digitize Tool displays a time remaining for each clip
after you select an AVR and target drive or drives for the digitized
media.

Time remaining

One/Two
DIsk Mode
button

You can interpret this display based on the following factors:
¥

Each digitized clip is limited by the Macintosh operating system to
a maximum Þle size of 2 GB (gigabytes).

When adequate space exists on the chosen drive, the time remaining displayed in the Digitize Tool is based on 2 GB per clip at the
chosen AVR. This number will reappear for each clip digitized, as
long as there is adequate disk space.

When you choose another AVR, the time remaining display
adjusts accordingly.

When the storage space on the chosen drive is less than 2 GB, the
time remaining will begin to decrease for each clip digitized, until
the drive is full.
151

You can also press the Option key and click the One/Two Disk Mode
button to show the total time remaining on the chosen drive at the
selected AVR.

Digitizing to Multiple Media Files
You can digitize video to multiple media Þles across multiple drive
volumes, with the following advantages:

You can create longer clips whose media Þles would otherwise
exceed the Macintosh operating system Þle size limitation of 2 GB.

You can group all drive volumes with the multiple Þles options,
enabling the system to record continuously during digitizing of
long video clips Ñ such as satellite feeds or program airchecks.

The system makes more efÞcient use of drive space, particularly
when digitizing long clips.

This feature applies to video Þles only because audio media Þles rarely exceed
2 GB in size.
To digitize video to multiple media Þles:
1. Double-click Digitize in the Settings scroll list of the Project window.
The Digitize Settings dialog box appears.

152

Multiple file
options

2. Select the option ÒDigitize Video to Multiple Files.Ó
3. Select the option ÒPrepare multiple Þles for (minutes).Ó You can
accept the default or enter a different time limit in the text Þeld,
based on the following explanation:
Prior to digitizing, the system goes through a process of preparing
the drive volumes. This process is called preallocation. With the
ÒDigitize Video to Multiple FilesÓ option selected, the allocation
process can take a long period of time in preparation for potentially unlimited video clip lengths. This option instructs the system to preallocate according to an estimated maximum video clip
length. The default is 30 minutes.

153

If you think that any of your digitized video clips might exceed
30 minutes, make sure you enter a higher estimate in this Þeld; otherwise, the system will stop digitizing at 30 minutes.
4. Click OK to close the dialog box and apply the options.
5. Enter Capture mode or open the Digitize Tool.

Target Drive
pop-up menu

6. To digitize to multiple Þles across drive volumes, choose Change
Group from the Target Drive pop-up menu in the Digitize Tool.

154

The Volumes dialog box appears.

7. Shift-select multiple volumes to include in the digitizing session,
or click the All button to select all volumes.
8. Click OK to close the dialog box and apply the changes.
When you digitize, any clip that exceeds the capacity of a volume
(whether that volume is empty or already contains media Þles)
will continue digitizing onto another volume in the group.

c
n

For media Þle management purposes, any video clip whose media
exceeds the 2-GB limit will have more than one media Þle associated
with it. When you view the source Timeline for the clip loaded in
the Source monitor, you will also notice edit breaks based on the
separate media Þles (the breaks do not appear in the record-side
Timeline).
For more information on managing media Þles, see Chapter 10.

155

Digitizing Across Timecode Breaks
You can use control track instead of timecode for VTR preroll when
digitizing across timecode breaks.
For more information
on all settings options,
see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.
For a complete description of procedures for
locating and changing
settings, see ÒUsing the
Settings DisplayÓ on
page 61.

Control track preroll allows you to capture all the footage following a
timecode break. Otherwise the system uses approximately 1 to
6 seconds of unbroken timecode following the break to perform the
preroll before digitizing begins.
This is especially useful when you are batch digitizing across timecode
breaks, but you can also select this option when you are manually digitizing one clip at a time.

Preroll option

156

Preparing for Audio Input and Output
The Media Composer products support direct input and output of up
to eight channels of audio, depending upon your model. Systems supporting eight-channel input and output provide the following features:

For eight-channel audio input, source track assignments are
mapped directly to audio tracks in the digitized clips. For example, when you digitize source footage with audio channels 1 to 5,
the resulting master clip has matching audio tracks 1 to 5.

For eight-channel audio output, you can reassign output channels
from tracks in a sequence or clip to any of the eight optional output channels. For more information, see ÒAdjusting Output on
Four-Channel or Eight-Channel Audio Board SystemsÓ on
page 610.

Eight-channel audio input and output require the appropriate hardware conÞguration. For more information, see the Avid
Media Composer Products Connecting Audio and Video Equipment
manual.
You can switch the hardware conÞguration to use either four-channel
or eight-channel audio. If you change the conÞguration after launching the software, you can choose a new conÞguration in the Audio Settings dialog box without restarting the software.
To change the audio interface conÞguration after launching the software:
1. ReconÞgure the hardware. For more information, see the Avid
Media Composer Products Connecting Audio and Video Equipment
manual.
2. Double-click Audio in the Settings scroll list of the Project window.
The Audio Settings dialog box appears.
3. Choose the new audio interface conÞguration from the Peripheral
pop-up menu.
157

Using Digital Sync with the Eight-Channel Audio Converter
The eight-channel audio converter is limited to acquiring digital sync
signal from channels 1 and 2.

Channels 1 and 2 are often the Þrst choice for input of a signal that
provides digital sync. If you want to input audio from channels 3
through 8, however, you must have a valid digital signal coming in
on either channel 1 or 2.
Check for a valid digital sync signal as follows:
¥

If the green indicator light labeled DIGITAL on the audio converter shines steadily during input, the system is receiving a valid
digital sync signal.

If the green light blinks during input, the system is not receiving
valid sync signal. Make sure you have a digital sync signal source
properly connected to channel 1 or channel 2.

The effects of capturing audio without a valid digital sync source can
include random noise, silence, or a jittering effect in the audio when
played back.

Choosing the Audio File Format
The Media Composer products support the creation of audio media in
the industry-standard Audio Interchange File Format (AIFF). The
Media Composer products continue to support the Sound Designer II
(SDII) format.
AIFF and Sound Designer II audio media Þles can be mixed within a
project. The system default is 16-bit OMF (AIFF) audio.
158

Choose the SDII format for all audio media when you need to transfer audio
media Þles directly to a Pro Tools¨ or AudioVision¨ system for audio sweetening.
To toggle between AIFF and SDII:
1. Double-click General Settings scroll list of the Project window.
The General Settings dialog box appears.
2. Choose either AIFF or SDII from the Audio File Format pop-up
menu.

Audio File
Format popup menu

Audio is written in the chosen Þle format when you:
¥

Digitize audio tracks in Capture mode

Create new clips by using the Audio Punch-In Tool

Create tone media by using the Audio Tool

Mix down audio tracks by using Audio Mixdown

Import Þles by using the Import dialog box
159

Apply a Digidesign audio plug-in that creates new source audio

If you switch the audio format in the middle of a project, all new audio
media Þles will be written in the new format with the following exceptions:
¥

Media Þles written when rendering audio effects: The system
uses the Þle type of the A-side (outgoing audio) media for a transition. For example, if the A-side of an audio dissolve is in OMF
(AIFF) format and the B-side (incoming) is SDII, the rendered Þle
will be OMF (AIFF).

Audio media Þles written when using the Consolidate feature:
Media Þles that are copied or created during a consolidate procedure retain their original Þle types.

Adjusting Audio Settings
You can use the Audio Settings dialog box to check the current conÞguration of audio hardware, and to choose various input options.
To open the Audio Settings dialog box, double-click Audio in the Settings scroll list of the Project window.
The dialog box appears.

160

Display for fourchannel board
systems

Two-channel audio boards now support both 44100-Hz (44.1 kHz) and
48000-Hz (48 kHz) audio rate settings. The broadcast standard of most
high-end video postproduction houses is 48 kHz. The sound quality of
the two rates is very similar; you should select the rate based on the
requirements of your facility. For more information on settings, see the
Avid Media Composer Products Reference.
On a two-channel board, select the rate by choosing a value from the
Sample Rate menu in the Audio Settings dialog box. You access the
dialog box from the Settings scroll list in the Project window. For fourto eight-channel systems, adjust the sample rate on the audio interface
or audio converter.
The setup display for two-channel board systems includes the same
setup information as the display for four- to eight-channel systems,
with these exceptions:
¥

There is no peripheral display because there are no audio peripherals connected.

The sample rate option is Þxed at 44 kHz with two-channel board
systems.

161

There is no Digital Format display option because two-channel
systems can only input S/PDIF (Sony/Phillips Digital Interface
Format) digital audio.

The Þrst four items in the display are informational, and cannot be
changed from within the Audio Tool. These include:
¥

The type of audio card installed

The slot number where the card is located

The sample rate for audio input, determined by the position of the
Sample Rate switch on the Digidesign audio interface (four- to
eight-channel systems only)

The type of peripheral audio device attached to the system (audio
interface)

You can make adjustments to any of the Þnal three options from
within the Audio Tool by clicking the option and making a new selection from the pop-up menu. These selections include:
¥

The Sync Mode pop-up menu, which includes two optional
sources for audio sync:
-

InternalÑThis sets the clock and timing for the sample rate
internally. If your system is equipped with the Digidesign
audio interface and black burst generator, set the Sync Mode
to Internal.

DigitalÑIf you are using a digital source that provides a digital word-clock signal, set the Sync Mode to Digital. Choose
digital if you are digitizing from DAT (digital audiotape).

You must plug a digital source device to the digital input port on the
two-channel audio board directly or through the Digidesign audio
interface if you have system with a four- to eight-channel audio
board.
¥

The Input Source pop-up menu, which includes two options for
the type of input: analog or digital.
162

The Digital Format pop-up menu (systems with four- to eightchannel audio boards only), which provides two options for the
digital input format if you chose Digital as the input source:
-

AES/EBU (Audio Engineering Society/European Broadcast
Union)Ñthe industry format

S/PDIF (Sony/Phillips Digital Interface Format)Ñthe consumer format

Using the Audio Tool
The Audio Tool, along with your hardwareÕs audio parameters, allows
you to do the following in preparation for input:
¥

Check and manage your audio hardware setup.

Calibrate system input levels.

Set audio levels before digitizing.

In addition, controls in the Audio Tool allow you to calibrate, set levels, and generate customized calibration tone for output to the speakers or a record device. For more information on output procedures
involving the Audio Tool, see ÒPreparing for OutputÓ on page 601.
Audio Tool
button

To open the Audio Tool, choose Audio Tool from the Tools menu, or
click the Audio Tool button in the Digitize Tool.

Audio Tool command

163

The Audio Tool appears. The tool displays meters for two to eight
channels, depending on your Media Composer model.

Four-Channel Audio Board

Two-Channel Audio Board

Output options
button

Output button

In/Out toggle

Reset Peak
button

Peak Hold
button

Input button (2channel boards
only)

Meter display
Analog VU scale
(adjustable)

Digital scale
(fixed)

The Audio Tool has the following characteristics:
¥

The Output Level button displays a panel that contains a single
slider control for raising or lowering global audio output.

The Output Options button displays a panel that contains options
for channel assignments, mixing tracks, and ignoring pan and volume settings.

The Reset Peak button resets the current maximum peak measurements. It also stops the playback of the internal calibration tone.

The In/Out buttons toggle the meter displays for each channel
between input levels from a source device and output levels to the
speakers and record devices. I indicates Input, and O indicates
Output.

The Peak Hold button displays a pop-up menu that allows you to
choose options for customizing the meter displays, and setting
and playing back the internal calibration tone.
164

The digital scale to the left of the meters displays a Þxed range of
values from 0 to Ð90 dB (decibels), according to common digital
peak meter standards.

The analog VU (volume unit) scale to the right of the meters displays a range of values that you can conform to the headroom
parameters of your source audio.

The meters dynamically track audio levels for each channel as follows:
-

Meters show green below the target reference level (default
reference level is Ð14 dB on the digital scale).

Meters show yellow for the normal headroom range, above
the reference level to approximately Ð3 dB.

Meters show red for peaks approaching overload, between Ð
3 dB and 0 (zero) dB.

Thin green lines at the bottom indicate signals below the display range.

Resizing the Audio Tool
You can resize the Audio Tool for greater visibility during input and
output. For example, when batch digitizing in a busy facility, you can
make the tool larger to watch levels from across a room.
To adjust the size of the Audio Tool, click the size box in the lower corner and drag to the preferred size.

165

Size box

Adjusting the Reference Level
The VU (Volume Unit) scale to the right of the meters is a sliding scale
relative to the Þxed digital scale displayed on the left. You can adjust
the VU scale up or down based upon the headroom parameters of your
playback devices.
To customize the VU scale:
1. Choose Set Reference Level from the Peak Hold pop-up menu.

A dialog box appears.

166

2. Enter the new value for the reference level (-12, for example), and
click OK.
The VU meter scale slides to match the new reference level, which
is displayed on the digital scale.

VU scale slides up to display
less headroom.

Digital scale displays corresponding reference value.

Choosing a Peak Hold Option
The Peak Hold pop-up menu provides two options for displaying
peak levels in the meters, as follows:
¥

When you choose Peak Hold, the meters display a normal rising
and falling volume trail in the meters. This is the default option.

167

When you choose the InÞnite Hold option, each meter permanently retains a single bar at the peak volume level measured during playback. The effect is cumulative: the bar continues to rise
and hold with each new peak, and serves as a record of the highest
peak for each channel.

Infinite hold peaks
remain during and after
playback.

To delete the peaks and start over at any time, click the Reset Peak
button.
To enable either Peak Hold or InÞnite Hold, click the pop-up menu
and choose an option.

168

Adjusting Input Levels
This section describes procedures for calibrating and adjusting audio
input levels with the Audio Tool. The types of adjustments you can
makeÑand the procedures you useÑvary depending upon whether
your system is equipped with a two-channel audio board or a four-to
eight-channel audio board, as follows:
¥

You can use the calibration controls in the Audio Tool to calibrate
the Digidesign audio interface input levels on systems equipped
with four- to eight-channel audio boards.

You can use input level controls in the Audio Tool on systems
equipped with two-channel audio boards to calibrate and set levels during digitizing.

You can use additional procedures described in this section to
avoid digitizing over- or under-modulated audio due to variations
in levels among the source material, playback devices, and the
Media Composer system.

To adjust input levels:
1. Click the In/Out toggle buttons for the appropriate channels to
display the I for Input.
2. Play back the source audio (from a videotape or DAT, for example). If the recording includes reference tone, cue to the tone and
play it back.

Voice recording serves as a good backup reference. Upper peaks of inßection
should reach the normal target range (around -14 dB on the digital scale or
0 dB on the VU scale with playback from videotape, for example).
3. Adjust the output on the playback device so that the deviceÕs volume meter shows the appropriate level for the reference signal
(0 dB for videotape playback, for example).
4. Adjust the input levels using the following procedures for either
two-channel or four- to eight-channel systems.

169

Adjustments for Four- to Eight-Channel Audio Board Systems
You can use the calibration features of the Audio Tool to Þne-tune the
Trim level settings of the Digidesign audio interface. These adjustments should be made when you Þrst install the system, and repeated
occasionally thereafter (once a month, for example).
To calibrate the audio interface:
1. Choose Calibrate from the Peak Hold pop-up menu.

The Audio Tool changes to Calibrate mode: the scales display a
range of approximately 2 dB, and the meters indicate levels within
this range.

VU scale varies, displaying
custom reference level setting,
+1 dB above and -1 dB below.

2. Use a jewelerÕs screwdriver to Þne-tune the Input Level Trim pots
on the Digidesign audio interface until the peaks rest at the appropriate value.
170

3. To return to the default display, choose Calibrate from the Peak
Hold menu.
To set the input level during digitizing, adjust the level externally until
the signals fall within the appropriate range on the meters:

Adjust the output level on the playback device.

Put an audio mixer in line, and use it to adjust track separately.

Put an audio compressor in line. This allows other adjustments of
the audio levels as well as overall volume.

You cannot adjust the levels for four- to eight-channel audio board
systems from within the Audio Tool.
Adjustments for Two-Channel Audio Board Systems
To set the input level during digitizing for two-channel audio board
systems:
1. Click the Input button (microphone icon) to display the input level
slider.

Input slider

2. View the meters and adjust the slider to the appropriate level.
171

Creating Tone Media
Early releases of the Avid Composer products allowed you to set up
your own custom calibration tone for output to tape. You can now create your own tone media and master clips for editing directly into
sequences.
To create tone media:
1. Open a bin.
2. Choose Create Tone Media from the Peak Hold pop-up menu in
the Audio Tool.
A dialog box appears.

3. Set the appropriate calibration tone parameters for the project. You
can also use the default output tone of Ð14 dB (digital scale) with a
1000-Hz signal.

If you set the tone media frequency to 0, the system generates random noise.

172

4. Choose a target bin for the tone master clip and a target disk for
the tone media from the pop-up menus.
5. Click OK.
After a few seconds, the media Þle is created and a master clip
appears in the target bin. The default name reßects the options
you selected. You can rename the clip by typing a new name.

Using the Console to Check Audio Levels
Once you have played back audio through the Audio Tool, you can
use the Console to view a list of precise information about the peak
levels.
To check peak levels in the Console:
1. Click the Reset Peak button to clear the systemÕs record of the
most recent maximum peaks.
2. Open the Audio Tool and play a sequence or portion of the
sequence.
3. After playing back the audio, open the Console by choosing Console from the Tools menu.
4. In the Console command line, type:
DumpMaxPeaks
5. Press Enter.
173

A list of peak values appears in the Console.

Preparing for Video Input
The Avid Composer system provides both a Video Output Tool and a
Video Input Tool for calibrating either composite or component video.
If your system is equipped with the serial digital video I/O board
(used in place of the Betacam card) you can digitize material directly
from a D1 or digital Betacam VTR without the need of calibration Ñ
much like direct input of digital audio from DAT or CD.
To open either the Video Input or the Video Output Tool, choose one
from the Tools menu.

174

Video Input Tool

Video Output Tool

You can also open the Video Tools in Capture mode by clicking the
Video Tools button at the lower right corner of the Digitize Tool.
For more information
on calibrating for video
output, see ÒCalibrating for Video OutputÓ
on page 602.

Release 6.0 and later of Media Composer allow you to input and output NTSC or PAL video in both composite and Betacam component
formats without additional hardware, such as a transcoder. Direct
input and output of Betacam component video allows you to maintain
better image quality for online editing with Media Composer.
Media Composer supports the SMPTE/EBU component standard, but does
not support the MII component video standard.
This section provides essential information for input calibration. You
should proceed as follows:
¥

Make sure your monitor is properly calibrated for displaying footage accurately. See your monitorÕs hardware documentation for
more information.

175

If your systemÕs output settings have not already been calibrated
according to house standards, use the procedures described in
ÒCalibrating for Video OutputÓ on page 602. If you are in a facility where this is not necessary, leave the output settings at their
preset values.

If you are using footage in the NTSC/EIAJ format standard, deselect the option NTSC Has Setup in the General Settings dialog box.
This will enable the appropriate display for the setup portion of
the signal in the Waveform monitor.

Proceed to calibrate the input levels for each videotape when you
digitize in order to ensure continuity of picture quality between
tapes, as described in ÒCalibrating for Video InputÓ on page 177.

If your system is equipped with the serial digital video I/O board for input
from a D1 or digital Betacam VTR, you do not need to calibrate input signals.
Proceed to Chapter 7.

Using the Factory Presets
The preset buttons on both the Video Input Tool and the Video Output
Tool show the status of each calibration setting as follows:
¥

When you Þrst open the tools, all preset buttons are lit (green),
with the factory presets loaded for each slider.

176

Video Input Tool

Video Output Tool

Preset buttons

When you click a lit preset button, the button becomes unlit
(gray), and the slider returns to the most recent manual level setting.

When you click an unlit preset button, it becomes lit (green), and
the slider moves to the factory preset level for that parameter.

As you adjust levels in the tools, you can toggle the preset buttons
between the levels you set manually and the factory preset levels.

Calibrating for Video Input
To calibrate for videotape input:
1. Choose Video Input Tool from the Tools menu. The Video Input
Tool opens.

177

2. Choose the appropriate input channel from the Input menu: Composite or Component.

Choose either
Composite or
Component to display the correct
controls and select
the proper input
channel.

3. Cue the tape to the section containing bars and tone (usually the
beginning) and play the tape.

Always play the tape when calibrating. Signal display is unstable when the
tape is paused.

178

The third, full-screen monitor displays either of the following
types of bars:

Full-field color bars

Full-field bars
(NTSC or PAL)

Full-field bars can
be either 75% (maximum signal amplitude as percentage
of peak white) or
100%.

SMPTE standard split bars

SMPTE bars
(NTSC only)

Color bars
(lines 16 to 182)

7.5 black level
(lines 183 to 202)
100% white
(lines 203 to 263)

4. Open the internal Waveform monitor by clicking the icon located
at the lower right of the tool.

179

NTSC waveform values
(IRE)
White level at 100 IRE
(100% bars)
(White level at 77 IRE
(75% bars)

Black level at 7.5 IRE
(Setup level falls at 0 IRE
for NTSC/EIAJ)
Line Selector

PAL waveform values
(volts)
White level at 1 volt
(100% bars)

Black level at 0.3 volt

5. Adjust the Line Selector slider located below the Waveform monitor to display the appropriate line of the test pattern, then adjust
the luminance values based on Table 6-1.

180

Table 6-1
Parameter

SMPTE bars

Luminance Settings
Full-Þeld bars at
75% signal level

Full-Þeld bars at
100% level

Black level (setup) Adjust Line Selector Adjust Line Selector Any line
to approximately
to approximately
183
150
Adjust Black slider
to
7.5 IRE (NTSC)

Adjust Black slider
to
7.5 IRE (NTSC),
0.3 volt (PAL)

NTSC/EIAJ

Any line

Adjust Black
slider to
0.0 IRE

White level (gain) Adjust Line Selector Adjust Line Selector Adjust Line Selector Adjust Line Selecto 203
to 150
to 150
tor to 203
Adjust Gain/Y
Gain slider to
100 IRE (NTSC)

Adjust Gain/Y
Gain slider to
77 IRE (NTSC),
0.825 volt (PAL)

Adjust Gain/Y
Gain slider to
100 IRE (NTSC),
1.0 volt (PAL)

Adjust Gain/Y
Gain slider to
92.5 IRE (NuVista
card systems) or
100 IRE (ABVB
card systems)

6. Close the Waveform monitor, and open the Vectorscope monitor
by clicking the Vectorscope button.

181

Vectorscope button

7. Adjust the Line Selector to display the signal for color bars at
around line 150 (this applies to all formats and all types of bars).
8. Adjust the Sat and Hue sliders (composite) or the RY Gain and BY
Gain sliders (component) until the angle and amplitude of the six
color vectors fall within the target boxes on the vectorscope.

There is no hue adjustment for PAL video.

Saving Settings
You can also color correct shots by applying
the Color effect to segments in the Timeline
and making adjustments in Effect mode.
For more information,
see the Avid Media Composer and Film Composer
Effects Guide.

You can save the settings for an individual tape each time you calibrate bars. For example, you can have one or a series of shots that
require color correction (the shots are dark, too bright, or were not shot
with the proper color balance or Þltering). You can make corrections
by using the Video Input Tool now, or at any time during or after editing in order to match shots in the sequence.

182

To save the calibration settings for an entire tape:
1. After calibrating as described in ÒCalibrating for Video InputÓ on
page 177, choose Save As from the Settings pop-up menu. The
Save As dialog box appears.
2. Type a name for the settings.
3. Click OK.

If you give the settings the same name as the tape name, Media Composer will
apply the settings automatically when that tape is loaded into the deck in the
future (for example, when redigitizing).
Whenever you batch digitize or redigitize, the system recalls the saved
settings as follows:
¥

The system looks for a tape setting. If the setting exists, the system recalls it.

If no tape setting exists, the system uses the default Video Input
Tool settings.

Saving a Default Video Input Setting
Each time you insert a new tape into the VTR, the Video Input Tool
reverts to its default settings for composite input, and the Settings
pop-up menu displays the name ÒUntitled.Ó
Use the following procedure to save your own custom default setting
for the current project Ñ for example, if you want the Video Input Tool
to display a set of calibrations for component video each time you put
in a new tape.

The default setting for the Video Input Tool is a project setting. You must create a new default setting for each project.
To save a new Video Input setting default:
1. (Option) Insert a tape into the VTR and cue up the bars.
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2. Choose Video Input Tool from the Tools menu.
The Video Input Tool opens.
3. Calibrate the default settings that you want to save.
4. Choose Save As from the Settings pop-up menu.
5. Type the name ÒDefault,Ó and click OK.

You must use the name ÒDefaultÓ for the setting, otherwise it will not function as the default. Capitalization does not affect it.
The system uses the default setting in the current project whenever
you load a new tape that does not have its own setting.

Adjusting Video Levels by Eye
Color bars are the best way to set the video levels consistently. However, if you have a tape or series of tapes with no color bars, you might
need to adjust levels by eye. To do this, use the following criteria:
¥

Blacks should not seem ßat and lacking detail. Find the blackest
region of an image (shadows work better than black objects) and
adjust the setup.

Whites should not be washed out or lacking detail. Find the whitest region of an image (bright, well-lit regions work better than
white objects) and adjust the gain.

Skin colors should be realistic. Find a skin color and adjust both
hue and saturation as necessary.

Pure yellows should be a rich gold and not reddish or greenish in
tone. Find a pure yellow and adjust both hue and saturation as
necessary.

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Digitize Preparations Checklist
Make sure you have the options selected in the General Settings, Deck
Settings, and Digitize Settings dialog boxes.
Check your hardware conÞgurations: power on switches, cable connections, pulldown switch on the Video Slave Driver, and remote
switch on the source deck for deck control.
Consider striping your drives in advance according to the AVIDdrive
Utility UserÕs Guide if you are working on a complex project with multiple streams of video and high-resolution images.
Insert a tape into the deck and set up the Digitize Tool for track selection, target bin, target drives, source tape, and source deck.
Set up the Compression Tool for audio sample rate, AVR, detail and
color compression, and frame rate.
Use the Audio Tool to set the audio input levels.
Use the Video Tool to set the video input levels for setup, gain, saturation, and hue; save your video settings for future use.

185

CHAPTER 7
Digitizing
When you digitize, you convert source material from videotape into
master clips that contain reference information. You also create associated media Þles that contain the digital audio and video. Once you
prepare the capture tools, as described in Chapter 6, you can digitize
the source material in one of several ways, as described in the following sections:
¥

Before You Begin

Special Digitizing Procedures

Digitizing and Logging at the Same Time

Digitizing to the Timeline

Batch Digitizing

Redigitizing Your Material

Using Editcam Media

Before You Begin
Depending upon your immediate needs, use the following guidelines
for working through this chapter based on a chosen digitizing method:

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If you want to use the Avid Media Reader, add locators, create
subclips, or log errors to the console during digitizing, read ÒSpecial Digitizing ProceduresÓ on page 187.

If you have no logs and would like to begin digitizing right away,
see ÒDigitizing and Logging at the Same TimeÓ on page 190.

If you want to digitize video to multiple media Þles across multiple drives, see ÒDigitizing to the TimelineÓ on page 199.

If you have logs already entered in a bin and would like to automate the digitizing process with playback from an Avid-controlled
deck, see ÒBatch DigitizingÓ on page 200.

If you are redigitizing deleted media or have imported a sequence
that lacks the associated media Þles, see ÒRedigitizing Your MaterialÓ on page 205.

Preparing Digitize Bins
If you have not already prepared a structure of bins for your project, as
described in ÒManaging Folders and BinsÓ on page 52, consider the
following tips before digitizing:
¥

You can create one bin for each source tape. This helps to avoid
slowing the system with large bins, associates each bin with a
source tape for better organization, and simpliÞes redigitizing.

You can name the bin after the tape, so that when you autodigitize
or digitize on-the-ßy without noting a tape name, the system will
automatically name each clip or take after the bin (tape) and number them sequentially for easy reference.

Special Digitizing Procedures
This section describes several optional procedures that you can use
during the digitizing process.

187

Using the Avid Media Reader
If your system has the
Media Reader, see your
Avid Media Reader Setup
and UserÕs Guide before
digitizing. If you are
interested in learning
more about the
Media Reader, contact
Avid for details.

The Avid Media Reader is a powerful and ßexible external standalone
LTC/VITC timecode reader and encoder. It enables the Avid Composer system to decode up to three lines of VITC (vertical interval
timecode) or one line of VITC and one line of LTC (longitudinal timecode) while digitizing. It automatically adds the information to the bin
while creating subclips based on timecode breaks in any or all of the
VITC lines.

Logging Errors to the Console
The Console is useful during the digitizing process for logging digitize
errors, as described in ÒUsing the ConsoleÓ on page 101.
To open the Console, choose Console from the Tools menu:
For more information
on Digitize Settings, see
the Avid Media Composer
Products Reference.

If the option ÒLog errors to the console and continue digitizingÓ is
selected in the Digitize Settings dialog box, when you batch digitize and the system encounters an error, it will abort the clip, enter
error comments into the console, and continue digitizing the next
clip.

If the option ÒLog errors to the console and continue digitizingÓ is
not selected in the Digitize Settings dialog box, an alert message
will appear and the system will pause if an error occurs while digitizing. If this happens, do the following:
a. Click Try Again to retry the operation. The clip might digitize
successfully.
b. If the clip does not digitize the second time you try, the error
message appears again. Click Next Clip to skip the clip that
caused the error, and continue batch digitizing any remaining
clips, or click Abort to cancel the entire batch digitize process.

188

c. Make note of all errors, messages, and steps that youÕve taken
and decide whether to troubleshoot the problem on your own
or contact Avid Customer Support.

Creating Subclips On-the-Fly
For information about
creating subclips after
digitizing, see ÒCreating SubclipsÓ on
page 353.

Subclips are marked sections of a longer master clip that you can view
and edit like any other object in a bin. This section describes a shortcut
method for creating subclips on-the-ßy during digitizing. The maximum number of subclips you can generate while digitizing a clip is 50.
To create a subclip on-the-ßy:
1. Start digitizing as usual.

Subclip
status

2. At the point where you want to begin the subclip, press the F1 key.
This highlights the subclip IN mark in the Digitize Tool.
3. While the system is digitizing, you can enter a name for the subclip by typing the name. Press the Tab key to enter comments
about the clip.
4. When you want the subclip to end, press the F2 key. This highlights the subclip OUT mark in the Digitize Tool.

You can press the F2 key repeatedly as you search for the end point of the subclip. The system accepts the last occurrence as the end point. You can also
press the F1 key at anytime before pressing F2 again to remove the previous subclip marks and start a new subclip IN point.
The subclip appears in the target bin when you press the F1 key
again to mark another subclip, or when you stop digitizing.
As you continue to mark subclips while digitizing, a number
appears between the subclip indicators to show the number of
subclips created so far.

189

Adding Locators On-the-Fly
For more information
on speciÞc uses for locators, see ÒUsing LocatorsÓ on page 355.

Locators mark a single frame within a clip or sequence so that you can
attach a note or Þnd the frame at a later time. This section describes a
shortcut method of adding locators on-the-ßy while digitizing.
To add a locator to a frame while digitizing, watch the playback of the
footage in the Edit monitor and press the F3 key when you see the
appropriate shot or frame.

Adding Comments On-the-Fly
The Avid Composer systemÕs annotate feature allows you to type comments during the digitizing of a clip. These comments are saved in the
clip Comments column in the bin. You can add comments about such
things as color correction or directions for editing.

To carry your comments over to the sequence so that they will appear in the
Timeline, in EDLs, or in cut lists, you must add the comments again when
creating the sequence by using the Add Comments command in the Monitor
menu.
To add comments on-the-ßy, start typing at any time during the digitizing of a clip. The annotate window opens on screen, allowing you to
see the text as you type. You cannot edit the text until after the digitizing is complete, but you can backspace and retype the information.

Digitizing and Logging at the Same Time
When you digitize without entering log information in a bin ahead of
time, the system creates clips and associated media Þles while you digitize. Digitizing in this manner involves manually cueing source footage with an Avid-controlled deck, using the deck controls in the
Digitize Tool.
190

There are several ways to digitize and log at the same time:
¥

Digitizing from a mark IN to a mark OUT. This method lets you
specify the exact timecode location to begin and end digitizing.
You can also specify only a mark IN or mark OUT, and enter the
other mark on-the-ßy. These procedures are described in ÒDigitizing from a Mark IN to a Mark OUTÓ on page 191.

Digitizing on-the-ßy. This method is easier than setting marks,
but it is more imprecise. It involves using the deck controls in the
lower left corner of the Digitize Tool to cue, play, and stop the
source footage manually while digitizing. These procedures are
described in ÒDigitizing On-the-FlyÓ on page 193.

Autodigitizing. This method requires the least amount of supervision and effort, but usually calls for more digitizing time and disk
storage space. It involves playing each source tape from a cue
point near the beginning and letting the system digitize the entire
tape, automatically naming and entering each cut into the bin.
These procedures are described in ÒAutodigitizingÓ on page 196.

Two additional techniques you can use when digitizing and logging at
the same time are described in ÒDigitizing from a Non-Avid-Controlled DeckÓ on page 197 and ÒDigitizing with Timecode-of-Day
TimecodeÓ on page 198.

Digitizing from a Mark IN to a Mark OUT
Digitizing from a mark IN to a mark OUT lets you specify exactly
where to begin and end digitizing. You can specify only a mark IN or
mark OUT, and the system enters the other mark on-the-ßy. Use this
method in the following circumstances:
¥

If logs exist in written or printout form but not in the proper format for quick import into the system

If the IN and OUT marks are rough and need to be
double-checked for accuracy

191

If you are familiar enough with the source material to estimate the
timecode for the mark IN, the mark OUT, or both, quickly and
accurately

Setting Both Marks
To digitize by specifying a mark IN and a mark OUT:
Mark IN
Mark OUT

1. Set either an IN mark or an OUT mark for the clip you want to
digitize, using either of the following methods:
¥

Use the deck controls in the Digitize Tool (or on the MUI or
Steenbeck controller). Cue your source tape to where you
want to start or end the clip, and click the Mark IN or Mark
OUT button.

If the material starts at a known IN or ends at a known OUT,
you can type the timecode in the display area next to the
mark. Press Return to enter the mark.

To double-check the accuracy of the IN or OUT mark, click the Go
to IN button. The system cues the tape and pauses the deck at the
mark. You can play the tape and reset the mark, if necessary.
2. To Þnish logging the clip, use either of the following methods:
¥

Set the corresponding IN or OUT mark.

Type a timecode for the clipÕs duration in the display area next
to the Duration mark (below the OUT mark).

The system automatically calculates the appropriate timecode for
the corresponding mark IN, mark OUT, or duration.
3. Click the Record button in the Digitize Tool, or press the B key on
the keyboard.
The Digitize Tool automatically rewinds the tape to the preroll
point before the IN point of the clip, and the tape begins to play.
The Record button becomes bright red, and the message bar displays the message that the Avid Composer system is digitizing.

192

4. While the system is digitizing, you can type a clip name. To enter
comments about the clip, press the Tab key after typing a clip
name. The information that you type does not appear on the
screen until you have completed digitizing. (After you log clips,
you can modify information to correct input errors or to add information.)
When the tape reaches the clipÕs OUT point, digitizing stops and
the system creates a new clip in the bin.

Setting Only One Mark
To set only one mark and enter the other mark on-the-ßy:
¥

Set an IN point and click the Record button to begin digitizing.
Then, click the Record button again to stop digitizing on-the-ßy
and set a mark OUT.
This method is useful if you donÕt need a precise mark OUT. You
save time because you donÕt have to shuttle to locate the mark
OUT before digitizing.

Set a mark OUT only, then move to the position on the tape where
you want to start digitizing. Click the Record button to begin digitizing on-the-ßy. When the tape reaches the clipÕs OUT point, digitizing stops.
This method is useful if you donÕt need a precise mark IN, but do
need to stop at a precise OUT point, for example, just before a
timecode break.

Digitizing On-the-Fly
If you are digitizing
from a source that cannot be controlled by the
system, see ÒDigitizing
from a Non-Avid-Controlled DeckÓ on
page 197 for additional
steps.

Use the digitizing on-the-ßy method in any of the following circumstances:
¥

If you are eager to begin editing immediately and no adequate
logs exist for importing into the system or setting marks

193

If you are digitizing from a source deck that cannot be controlled
by the Digitize Tool or a V-LAN VLXi unit

If your source tape does not have timecode

If you are digitizing from a digital source such as a CD or DAT
player

If you are digitizing from a live source, such as a studio feed, or an
in-house router

There is a slight delay of several frames after you manually select a spot both
to start and to stop digitizing. Therefore, use this method when you do not
need precise beginning and end points in your clip.
To digitize on-the-ßy:
1. Make sure you have selected the proper Digitize Settings and set
up the capture tools, as described in Chapter 6.
2. Click the Digitize/Log Mode button on the left side of the Digitize
Tool until the DIG icon appears.
3. Use the deck controls in the bottom left corner of the Digitize Tool
to locate the position on the tape where you want to start digitizing.

Fast forward/Rewind
Stop
Pause

Single-frame step

Play Shuttle
Eject

4. To begin digitizing, play the deck and when it gets up to speed,
click the red Record button.

194

Make sure you have cleared any previous marks so that the deck does not
begin cueing to the previous location.
Digitizing begins within a few frames, and the timecode for the
clipÕs IN point appears. The horizontal LED above the Record button ßashes on and off. The title bar displays a message that your
Avid Composer system is digitizing.
5. While the system is digitizing, you can type a clip name. The
Annotate window appears with the new clip name typed into the
Name Þeld.

If you want comments
to appear in EDLs or cut
lists, add them during
editing by using the
Add Comments command from the Monitor
menu. For more information, see ÒAdding
Comments to Sequence
ClipsÓ on page 392.

6. Press the Tab key after typing a clip name to enter comments
about the clip. You cannot edit the text during digitizing, but you
can backspace to retype the comments.
7. Click the Pause button at any time to pause play. You can also
abort the digitize procedure by clicking the Trash button. The clip
will be discarded.
8. To stop digitizing and enter the OUT point of the clip, click the
Record button, or press the Escape key on the keyboard.
The system creates a new clip in the bin. It also enters basic log
information for each clip, consisting of the mark IN, the mark
OUT, the duration, and any other information typed in during the
digitize procedure.
9. If you did not enter a clip name while digitizing, type it now while
the clip name is highlighted in the bin. If you return to the Digitize
Tool and begin another clip, the default clip name remains in the
bin until you change it.
In some circumstances, the digitized material might exceed the logical
Þle size of the Avid Composer application. For example, the maximum
size of a media Þle cannot exceed the size of a 2-GB partition. A 2-GB
Þle at a high resolution, such as AVR 71, consists of approximately 10
to 18 minutes of footage. In such a case, consider digitizing the shot in
shorter overlapping pieces, breaking it at points that are likely to be
cut out during editing.
195

Autodigitizing
Autodigitizing can save you time by allowing you to bypass both the
logging process and the time it takes to cue each shot. However, this
process requires the most storage space, and more time is spent while
the system is actually digitizing entire reels.

This process is for tapes shot with starting and stopping timecode and no
control track breaks (where snow appears between shots).
When you autodigitize, you mount and cue your tape to a starting
point and launch the digitizing process through the Digitize Tool. If
you follow the tips and techniques described in this section, you can
allow the system to complete the digitizing process unattended.
The following tips apply to autodigitizing entire reels:
¥

Select the ÒDigitize across timecode breaksÓ option in the Digitize
Settings dialog box prior to digitizing. For more information, see
the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

Select the ÒLog errors to the console and continue digitizingÓ
option in the Digitize Settings dialog box. For more information,
see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

Under Deck Settings, turn off the Fast Cue option and set the preroll to approximately 4 seconds. For more information, see the
Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

You should have accurate notes on the number and content of takes
on each reel to identify the content of each clip when necessary.

To autodigitize:
1. Create one bin for each reel. This keeps bins to a manageable size
and automatically names all clips from each reel after the name of
their respective bins.
2. Name each bin after the source reel number: by default all clips are
named after the reel and numbered incrementally beginning with
the sufÞx .01.
196

3. Enter Capture mode from the Bin menu and open the bin for the
Þrst reel.
4. Load the source tape and cue past any false starts.
5. Play the tape, and wait 4 seconds before clicking the Record button.
When you have long continuous shots (for example, footage from a
live event), the digitized material for a single clip might exceed the
logical Þle size of the Avid Composer application. For example, the
maximum size of a media Þle cannot exceed the size of a 2-GB partition. In such cases, consider digitizing the shot in shorter overlapping
pieces, broken at points that are likely to be cut out during editing. For
more information, see ÒDigitizing to Multiple Media FilesÓ on
page 152.

The Avid Composer system can digitize across timecode breaks and
control track breaks, but it cannot digitize across breaks in the
recording (that is, if the recorded footage breaks up into noise
between shots). If such breaks in recording exist on your tape, consider using the methods described in ÒDigitizing On-the-FlyÓ on
page 193.

Digitizing from a Non-Avid-Controlled Deck
If you have a deck that cannot be controlled directly by the system,
you can digitize with manual deck control as follows:
1. Enter Capture mode and set up the tools.
2. Click the Deck Ofßine button in the Digitize Tool to disable the
deck controls and leave only the Source Tape Name display.

The TC button also disappears. The footage will be digitized with timecode-ofday generated by the system.

197

3. Click the Source Tape Name display to open the Tape Name dialog
box and identify the source tape.
4. Play the tape manually and click the Record button to stop and
start the digitizing of each clip.

Digitizing with Timecode-of-Day Timecode
When you digitize with an Avid-controlled deck, you can digitize your
footage with timecode-of-day rather than source timecode.
To digitize with timecode-of-day timecode:
1. Enter Capture mode and set up the tools.
2. When selecting tracks, deselect the TC button.

198

3. Digitize by using any of the techniques described in ÒDigitizing
On-the-FlyÓ on page 193.

Digitizing to the Timeline
You can digitize footage directly from tape into a sequence loaded in
the Timeline in one step, bypassing several steps such as organizing
and reviewing clips, marking edit points, and performing edits.
To digitize to the Timeline:
1. Prepare for digitizing by using standard procedures. For more
information, see Chapter 6.
2. Load a sequence into the Record monitor.
3. Mark an IN point in the sequence or place the blue position indicator where you want the edit to take place.
4. Mark the source material that you want to digitize by using the
Digitize Tool logging controls. For information on setting marks in
the Digitize Tool, see ÒDigitizing and Logging at the Same TimeÓ
on page 190.
5. (Option) You can mark an OUT point based on the following:
¥

If you are digitizing to the middle of a sequence in the Timeline, mark both IN and OUT points for frame accuracy.

If you are digitizing onto the end of a sequence, you can mark
just an IN point and then mark the OUT point later on-the-ßy.

6. Click the Splice-in button or the Overwrite button in the Digitize
Tool to choose the type of edit.

199

Click the Splice-in
button or the Overwrite button.

Logging controls

7. Click the red Record button to begin digitizing.
8. If you did not mark the OUT point in advance, click the Record
button again when the footage reaches the appropriate frame.

If you already marked an OUT point, digitizing will stop automatically.
When digitizing ends, the clip appears in place in the sequence,
and a master clip appears in the bin.

Batch Digitizing
You can also use the
batch digitize process to
redigitize existing clips.
The redigitizing process is described in
ÒRedigitizing Your
MaterialÓ on page 205.

Once you have imported a log or manually logged a group of clips
into a bin, you can automate the digitize process by using the Avid
Composer systemÕs batch digitizing capabilities. To batch digitize,
source tapes must have timecode.

Preparing to Batch Digitize
Preparing for batch digitizing involves optional procedures for resizing the Digitize Tool, and establishing settings that allow you to batch
digitize with a minimum of supervision.

200

Resizing the Digitize Tool
Because your clips are already logged in the bin, you can simplify the
interface during batch digitizing by hiding the deck controller and logging window in the Digitize Tool.
To resize the Digitize Tool during batch digitizing, click the zoom box
in the upper right corner of the tool.

Preparing Settings for Unattended Batch Digitizing
Unattended batch digitizing allows you to digitize a large number of
clips with a minimum of supervision by selecting Digitize Settings that
avoid a pause in the digitize process.
For more information
on all Digitize Settings,
see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

To prepare for unattended batch digitizing, select the following
options in the Digitize Settings dialog box:
¥

Log errors to the console and continue digitizing

Switch to the emptiest drive if current drive is full

Digitize across timecode breaks

201

You cannot batch digitize clips that contain timecode breaks
between the logged IN and OUT marks. Also, you cannot digitize
across breaks in the recording (that is, if the recorded footage breaks
up into noise between shots). If such breaks in recording exist on
your tape, consider using the methods described in ÒDigitizing Onthe-FlyÓ on page 193.

Starting the Batch Digitize Process
To batch digitize clips:
1. Make sure you have selected the proper Digitize Settings and set
up the capture tools, as described in Chapter 6.
2. Open the bin that stores the logged clips.
3. Select the clips to batch digitize:
¥

Choose Select All from the Edit menu, or press kÐA to select
all the clips.

Shift-click to select speciÞc clips.

4. Choose Batch Digitize from the Clip menu. A dialog box appears.

202

Handle length options
appear only when a
sequence is selected.

If the logged clips that you want to batch digitize are not highlighted in the
active bin, Batch Digitize is dimmed in the Clip menu.
5. Select options in the dialog box:

For more information
on handle lengths when
redigitizing, see
ÒRedigitizing
SequencesÓ on
page 206.

If the bin contains some clips that are already digitized and
you do not want to redigitize those clips, select the option
ÒDigitize only those items for which media is currently
unavailable.Ó If this option isnÕt selected and some of the
selected clips have media Þles, the system deletes the media
Þles and redigitizes new media Þles.

If your selections include a sequence for batch digitizing, the
dialog box prompts you for handle length information,
because the system will create new master clips based on the
length of edited clips in the sequence.

If you are batch digitizing the original source master clips used in the
sequence, the sequence will automatically be updated. Therefore, you might
want to deselect the sequence during this procedure.

203

6. Click OK.
If you havenÕt loaded a tape, the system prompts you to insert the
Þrst tape.

7. Insert the tape into the tape deck and click Mounted.
A conÞrmation dialog box appears.
8. Click OK to conÞrm the tape and deck entries and begin the digitizing process. The system digitizes each clip from the tape, in start
timecode order.
9. If the system needs another source tape, the system prompts you
for the tape. At this point you have several options:

Insert the new tape and click Mounted to continue the digitizing process.

Click Skip this clip to skip just the Þrst clip from the tape and
continue digitizing the remaining clips.

Click Skip this tape to skip all the clips from the mounted
tape. The system then prompts you for the next tape.

Click Abort to end the batch-digitizing process. You can also
stop digitizing at any time by clicking the Trash button in the
Digitize Tool.

To skip speciÞc clips in the process of batch digitizing a particular tape, you
must abort each clip manually by clicking the Trash button, then click next
clip in the Abort window to continue.
204

10. When the system has Þnished batch digitizing, a dialog box notiÞes you that the process is complete.

Redigitizing Your Material
Redigitizing is the process of capturing previously digitized source
footage based on existing clips and sequences. Redigitizing uses the
batch digitize process and does not require extra logging time because
the clip information for such things as source tracks, timecodes, and
compression settings already exists in the bin.
There are several situations in which you might want to redigitize:

You can quickly redigitize selected clips if you make an error
while digitizing the Þrst time (for example, if you forget to check
audio levels or set the correct AVR).

You can redigitize clips if you accidentally delete media Þles.

You can redigitize a sequence after you transfer it to another system.

You can redigitize low-AVR clips at a higher AVR setting after they
have been edited into a sequence.

Redigitizing requires your original source footage. Do not delete the
media Þles if the source footage is no longer available, unless you
will not need the material again.
For information on loading the media database to relink clips, see
ÒLoading the Media DatabaseÓ on page 279.

Redigitizing Master Clips and Subclips
The procedure for redigitizing master clips and subclips is identical to
the process for batch digitizing logged clips. See ÒBatch DigitizingÓ
on page 200.
205

Although the procedure is the same, the result is slightly different, as
follows:
¥

Master clips are linked to entire media Þles and serve as sources
for subclips and sequences. Therefore, when you redigitize a master clip, changes in compression settings and levels affect all subclips and sequences created from the master clip.

Subclips are smaller sections of master clips. When you redigitize
a subclip, the system creates a new, smaller master clip that is
linked to new media Þles and reßects the shortened length of
material. Therefore, redigitizing subclips streamlines the digitize
process.
Also, redigitizing breaks the link from the subclip to the original
master clip. But if you edit the subclip into a sequence, the
sequence will reßect any changes in the newly digitized subclip.

Redigitizing Sequences
Redigitizing a sequence creates new master clips and associated media
Þles based on the length of each shot edited into the sequence. It
breaks any links to the original source clips, and only the sequence and
its new master clips are linked to the newly digitized media Þles.
Redigitizing a sequence can involve any of the procedures described
in the following sections.

Saving Two Versions of a Sequence When Redigitizing
To save the original version of your sequence before redigitizing, you
can create a duplicate. For example, use this method if you create a
sequence at a low AVR to save storage space and want to redigitize the
sequence at a higher AVR while retaining the Þrst version. This is recommended if you intend to use the Decompose feature.
To make a duplicate of the sequence:
1. Select the sequence in the bin and choose Duplicate from the Edit
menu.
206

2. Create a new bin by choosing New Bin from the File menu and
move the duplicate sequence into the bin. This step is optional, but
saves you the confusion of mingling new sequences and master
clips with existing ones, especially when using Decompose.

Using Decompose When Redigitizing
Decompose creates new master clips in the bin for each shot in the
sequence prior to redigitizing. Decompose allows you to create new,
shorter master clips based only on the material you have edited and
included in your sequence, which saves system memory. Using
Decompose gives you greater control during the redigitizing process.
You can use this procedure to sort clips in the bin, modify them, and
then redigitize selected clips in the sequence.
To use Decompose:
1. Activate the bin that stores the sequence.
2. Choose Decompose from the Clip menu.
The Decompose dialog box appears.

207

3. If you want to preserve clips that already have existing media
Þles, select the option ÒDecompose only those items for which
media is currently unavailable.Ó Deselect this option if you plan to
decompose and redigitize the entire sequence.
4. Click the Handle Length box and type the number of additional
frames you want to digitize at the heads and tails of the new master clips. This provides enough overlap for trimming and adding
transition effects.

If you attempt to trim or add effects with no handles, you will get an
error message notifying you that there is ÒinsufÞcient media.Ó
5. Click OK. The new master clips appear in the bin. You can now
sort and select these clips like all other objects in the bin.
6. Proceed with the redigitizing procedures described in ÒRedigitizing the Sequence.Ó

Redigitizing the Sequence
When you redigitize the sequence without using Decompose, the digitize process creates media Þles for each shot in the sequence during
the digitizing process. Skipping the Decompose procedure saves only
a small amount of time, and you cannot make changes after the media
Þles are created without repeating the entire procedure. Therefore,
review ÒUsing Decompose When RedigitizingÓ on page 207 before
proceeding.
To redigitize a sequence:
1. Choose Go To Capture Mode from the Bin menu.
2. Open or activate the bin that stores the sequence or decomposed
clips.
3. Select one or more sequences, or the decomposed clips you want:
¥

Choose Select All from the Edit menu to select all the clips in
the bin.

208

Shift-select speciÞc clips.

4. Choose Batch Digitize from the Clip menu. The Batch Digitize dialog box appears.

5. To preserve clips that already have existing media, select the
option ÒDigitize only those items for which media is currently
unavailable.Ó Deselect this option if you plan to redigitize the
entire sequence.
6. Click the Handle Length box and type the number of additional
frames you want to digitize at the heads and tails of the new master clips. This provides enough overlap to allow for trimming and
transition effects.

If you attempt to trim or add effects with no handles, you will get an
error message notifying you that there is ÒinsufÞcient media.Ó
7. Click OK. The system prompts you to insert the Þrst tape.
8. Insert the tape into the tape deck if you have not already done so.
9. Click Mounted to indicate to the system that the correct tape is
loaded and ready for digitizing.
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A conÞrmation dialog box appears.
10. Click OK to conÞrm the tape and deck entries. The system digitizes each clip from the tape, in start timecode order. If another
source tape is needed, the system prompts for the tape.
11. You can stop the Batch Digitize process at any time by clicking the
Trash icon in the Digitize Tool.
When batch digitizing is Þnished, an alert box notiÞes you that the
process is complete. The new master clips appear in the bin, and
associated media Þles exist on the targeted drive or drives.

Using Editcam Media
For more information
about setting up and
using the Avid Desktop
FieldPak Adapter, see
the Avid Desktop FieldPak Adapter Setup and
UserÕs Guide.

The Media Composer products support media captured in AVR 70
and AVR 75 with an Ikegami Editcam. The Editcam is a Digital News
Gathering (DNG) camera. You access Editcam media from an Avid
FieldPak¨ loaded into an Avid Desktop FieldPak Adapter connected
to the Avid Composer system.

Acquiring Editcam Clips
There are two ways to acquire Editcam clips from an Avid FieldPak
that is loaded into an Avid Desktop FieldPak Adapter:
¥

Use the import procedure to import master clips or sequence playlists into a bin, as described in Chapter 8.

To read about import speciÞcations for Editcam media, see the Avid Media
Composer Products Reference.
¥

Use the Media Tool to copy Editcam master clips from the
FieldPak into a bin, as described in ÒUsing the Media Tool to
Copy Editcam Master ClipsÓ on page 211.

210

You cannot rename, delete, or overwrite the clips on the FieldPak with the
Avid Composer system and adapter.

Using the Media Tool to Copy Editcam Master Clips
You can use the Media Tool to copy Editcam master clips from the
FieldPak to the Avid Composer system.
To copy Editcam master clips from a FieldPak by using the Media
Tool:
1. Insert the FieldPak into the Desktop FieldPak Adapter.
2. Launch the system and open your project.
3. Open the bin in which you want to store the Editcam clips.
4. Choose Media Tool from the Tools menu.
The Display Media Selector dialog box appears.
5. Select Other Projects and Digitized Master Clips.
6. Click OK. The Media Tool window opens.
7. Choose Custom Sift from the Media Tool Fast menu.
The sift dialog box appears.
8. Enter a search criteria to list just the clips on the FieldPak:
a. Type the name of the FieldPak in the box next to Òcontain.Ó

The FieldPak icon on the desktop is named AV with a 6-digit number
(AVnnnnnn).
b. Choose Disk from the adjacent pop-up menu.
c. Click OK.
Only the clips on the FieldPak are displayed in the Media Tool
window.

211

9. Select clips in the Media Tool window and drag them into the
open bin.
The bin now contains master clips from the FieldPak media Þles that
you can edit with the Avid Composer system.

212

CHAPTER 8
Importing Files
The Media Composer products support numerous Þle types. For a
complete list, see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference. The following sections describe how to import Þles:
¥

Preparing to Import Files

Importing Mixed-Resolution Projects

Using Global Import Settings

Importing Files

Preparing to Import Files
Before you begin the import process, make sure the system and the
Þles are ready for import as follows:
¥

To read about issues and tips for mixed-resolution projects, see
ÒImporting Mixed-Resolution ProjectsÓ on page 214.

Before importing complex graphics and animation, check Render
settings to determine the correct softening parameters that can
affect import of large Þles. For more information, see the Avid
Media Composer and Film Composer Effects Guide.

213

For graphics Þle import, prepare the Þles in advance according to
speciÞcations described in the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

For QuickTime¨ import, prepare the Þles in advance according to
speciÞcations described in the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

For OMF¨ Þle import, prepare the Þles in advance according to
speciÞcations described in the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

For a complete description of all options in the Import Settings
dialog box, see the ÒFile Format SpeciÞcationsÓ chapter of the Avid
Media Composer Products Reference.

Importing Mixed-Resolution Projects
For more information
on resolutions, see the
Avid Media Composer
Products Reference.

Beginning with Release 6.0 of the Media Composer products, you can
work with mixed resolutions in the same sequence. This feature allows
you to import graphics that will accompany video at the highest resolution you will be using.
For example, assume that you want to use a low resolution such as
AVR 12 for your initial work and then redigitize your media at AVR 77
for the Þnal version. In this case, you should import the graphics at
AVR 77. Then when you redigitize your material, you will not have to
reimport the graphics.
If you plan to redigitize your media at a higher AVR, the lower AVR
must be from the same family (single-Þeld or two-Þeld). For example,
if you plan to Þnish at AVR 77, you could start the project at AVR 12,
but not 6s.

214

Using Global Import Settings
You can establish a set of global import parameters in the Import Settings dialog box prior to beginning the import process. These parameters remain the default settings for all imported Þles, unless you
change them during import. This is especially useful when you batch
import a number of Þles in one procedure.
To adjust options in the Import Settings dialog box, double-click
Import in the Settings scroll list of the Project window.

Importing Files
When you import source shot logs, graphics, animation, audio,
QuickTime, or OMFI (Open Media Framework¨ Interchange) Þles, the
system converts them into objects in a bin. You can manipulate and
edit these objects as you would any other clip or sequence. Any corresponding media Þles are stored on a target drive that you specify.
215

You can access Þles for import from any folder or drive source
mounted on the desktop, such as a 3.5-inch diskette, Þxed drive,
removable magnetic (RMAG) drive, or network server. You can import
more than one Þle at a time, including Þles of multiple types.
To import Þles:
1. Open the bin in which you want to store the imported Þles. Click
anywhere in the bin to select it.
2. Choose Import from the File menu.
The Select Files to Import dialog box appears.
Directory pop-up menu

File Type pop-up menu

Source file list

Resolution pop-up menu

Options button

216

Import file list

Media Disk pop-up menu

3. Choose an import Þle type from the File Type pop-up menu:
¥

Choose Shot Log to import ASCII text or Avid Log Exchange
(ALE) Þles containing clip information into a bin. For more
information about Avid Log Exchange speciÞcations, see the
Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

Choose Graphic/Audio to import one of more than 30 supported graphics and audio Þle types. For more information on
the various Þle types and their import speciÞcations, see the
Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

Choose OMFI to import Þles that have been saved in the
OMFI Þle format, such as sequences transferred from an
effects or digital audio workstation.

Choose Editcam to import master clips captured with an Ikegami Editcam. You can also import a sequence playlist. For
more information, see ÒDigitize Preparations ChecklistÓ on
page 185.

By default, the system displays Þle types that belong to the chosen
category only in the source Þle list on the left side of the dialog
box.
4. (Option) Select the option Show All Files in the lower left corner of
the Select Files to Import dialog box to display all Þles in a chosen
folder, regardless of Þle type. Use this option if you want to batch
import from multiple Þle types.

When you batch import multiple Þles and Þle types, you should establish
global import settings in advance. See ÒUsing Global Import SettingsÓ on
page 215.

217

5. Click the Options button to open a dialog box for adjusting the
import settings.

The Import Settings dialog box contents depend on the Þle type selected.
6. Select the appropriate options. Click OK to close the Import Settings dialog box and return to the Select Files to Import dialog box.
7. Choose a destination disk for the imported Þle from the Media
Disk pop-up menu.
8. For graphics and video Þles, choose a resolution for the imported
media from the Resolution pop-up menu.

For optimum speed when importing an OMF Þle, set the resolution to match
the resolution of the OMF File you are importing. If you are using mixed resolutions, choose the highest AVR that you will be using for the Þnal version of
the sequence. See ÒImporting Mixed-Resolution ProjectsÓ on page 214.
9. Use the Directory pop-up menu to locate the folder containing the
source Þles.
10. Add Þles to or remove Þles from the import Þle list on the right,
using the following methods:
218

To add a single Þle, select a Þle name in the source Þle list and
click the Add button, or double-click the Þle name.

To add all the Þles in the source Þle list, click the Add All button.

To remove a single Þle from the import Þle list, select a Þle
name and click the Remove button.

To remove all the Þles from the import Þle list, click the
Remove All button.

If you are importing a sequential series of image Þles, you need to add only the
Þrst Þle in the series to the import Þle list.
11. Click Done.
If you are batch importing OMF Þles at multiple resolutions with
the OMFI Resolution: Ask Me option selected in the Import Settings dialog box, a warning appears whenever the AVR of the
source Þle does not match the current AVR setting in the Select
Files to Import dialog box.

Choose either the AVR of the source Þle or the current AVR setting
to continue.
When the system Þnishes importing the Þles, the clips appear in
the selected bin.

219

If you import an OMF Þle with a stereo sound track, the Avid Composer system creates a new master clip that contains the right channel of the sound
track. The original master clip contains the left channel. Both clips appear in
the bin you select.

220

CHAPTER 9
Organizing with Bins
The Avid Composer system provides powerful database tools for
organizing and managing your digitized material. You can view bins
in three different display modes. You can rename, sort, sift, duplicate,
and delete clips and sequences. You can also print out single clip
frames or whole bins. A worksheet at the end of this chapter provides
guidelines for using these techniques to create and print storyboards
for your project. These topics are covered in the following sections:
¥

Before You Begin

About Bin Display Modes

Basic Bin Procedures

Using Text Mode

Using Frame Mode

Using Script Mode

Printing Bins

Gathering Format Elements

Storyboard Worksheet

221

Before You Begin
There are several procedures you might want to perform before you
begin organizing your project, because they affect the display of information in bins or the way the clips play back during screening:
¥

If you digitized clips by using LTC (longitudinal timecode)
recorded on an audio track, and would like to instruct the system
to address this timecode during editing, see ÒUsing Audio TimecodeÓ on page 222.

If you would like to center the pan between left and right speakers
for some or all of the clips in a bin, see ÒUsing the Center Pan
CommandÓ on page 225.

If you would like to customize the types of objects (clips, subclips,
and so on) displayed in a bin, see ÒSetting the Bin DisplayÓ on
page 226.

If you digitized some of your video and audio clips separately,
and need to synchronize them for editing, see ÒAutosyncing
ClipsÓ on page 555.

If you need to group or multigroup material, see ÒGrouping and
MultigroupingÓ on page 582.

Using Audio Timecode
The Avid Composer system can read audio timecode (LTC or longitudinal timecode recorded on an audio track). If you captured the LTC as
an audio track during the digitizing process, use the Read Audio
Timecode command. This instructs the system to address this track for
timecode information to be displayed in the bins and used in editing.
To use timecode on an audio track:
1. In the bin, select the appropriate clips, then choose Read Audio
Timecode from the Special menu.
The Read Audio Timecode dialog box appears.
222

2. To read timecode stored in the User Bits of the LTC, select User Bit
Timecode. If this option is not selected, the system reads the LTC
timecode.

Information contained in the user bits of the LTC must be timecode
only. Other data stored in the user bits will not appear in
Media Composer unless you use the Avid Media Reader. For more
information about the Avid Media Reader, contact your Avid sales
representative.
3. Choose the audio track containing the timecode from the Audio
Timecode Source pop-up menu. A1 is the default.
4. Choose the target auxiliary timecode bin column for recording the
audio timecode from the Destination Track pop-up menu. Aux 1 is
the default selection.
5. Select Fill Undecodeable Frames to instruct the system to Þll in
any timecode breaks with continuing timecode. This is the default.
For example, in a 3-minute master clip, the audio timecode starts
at 1:00:20:20. At 1:00:22:10, the timecode ends. With the Fill Undecodable Frames option selected, the system assigns 1:00:22:11 to
the next frame and continues assigning timecode.
223

Deselect this option if you do not want to Þll timecode breaks.
6. Click OK to complete the procedure. The timecode appears in the
bin in the auxiliary timecode column that you chose.

Adjusting Pan Defaults
For information on
using the Audio Mix
Tool to adjust pan for
individual clips in a
sequence, see ÒUsing
the Audio Mix ToolÓ
on page 490.

The way your footage was recorded in the Þeld, and digitized in
Media Composer, will affect the way sound pans between the speakers. By default, the system pans audio tracks 1 and 3 to the left speaker
output and pans tracks 2 and 4 to the right speaker output.
You can set global pan settings before or during editing by using the
Audio Settings dialog box and the Center Pan command, as described
in this section.

Adjusting Default Pan Settings
The Audio Settings dialog box provides options for adjusting the
default audio pan when editing with new clips, and digital audio
scrub parameters for monitoring and analyzing audio tracks and transitions.

224

By default, the audio tracks for clips alternate with track 1 on the left
and track 2 on the right speaker for monitoring and output. The All
Tracks Centered option instructs the system to center the pan of all
tracks between the two speakers for monitoring and output.

Using the Center Pan Command
You can use the Center Pan command on source material in bins. Use
it prior to editing or at any time during the editing process.
As opposed to adjusting pan on individual clips by using the Audio
Mix Tool, Center Pan allows you to create a standard distribution of
audio between left and right speakers. You can adjust the pan on
selected clips or all clips with a single command. This is especially useful when you have clips with Þeld audio recorded (and subsequently
digitized) variably between A1 and A2. Panning all of the audio to
center eliminates the distraction of having to listen to left and right
speakers in turn. It also smooths the playback of the edited sequence,
with all shots panned to center.
To adjust the pan on clips:
1. In a bin, select the clips you want to pan to the center.
2. Choose Center Pan from the Clip menu.
A dialog box appears and asks you to conÞrm the pan.

3. Click OK. The system pans all of the selected clips to the center.
225

Setting the Bin Display
By default, your bins display all existing media objects except source
clips and rendered effects. To reduce crowding in the bin and to display only those objects that you need to organize your project, you can
display selected media objects.
To set the bin display:
1. Choose Set Bin Display from the Bin menu.
The Display Bin Selector dialog box appears.

Table 9-1 brießy describes the icons listed in the Display Bin Selector dialog box.

226

Table 9-1

Object Icon Descriptions

Object Icon

Object Description

Master Clip

A clip that references audio and video media Þles
formed from digitized footage or imported Þles.

Subclip

A clip that references a selected portion of a master
clip.

Sequence

A clip that represents an edited program, partial or
complete, that you create from other clips.

Source Clip

A clip that references the original videotape source
footage for master clips.

Effect

A clip that references an unrendered effect that you
create.

Motion effect

A Þle in the bin that references effect media Þles
generated when you create motion effects.

A clip that references an effect media Þle generated
Rendered effect when you render an effect.
(For multicamera editing) A clip containing two or
Multigroup clip more grouped clips, strung together sequentially
according to common timecodes.

2. Select the object types that you want to see: master clips, subclips,
sequences, and so on.
3. The option ÒShow clips created by userÓ is selected by default.
Deselect this option only if you want to hide all objects except
those created by the system.
4. Select the option ÒShow reference clipsÓ to automatically display
objects that are referenced by sequences in the bin, whether those
clips were previously in the bin or not.
5. Click OK. The bin displays objects according to your speciÞcations.
227

About Bin Display Modes
There are three display modes for viewing and working with clips in a
bin: Text mode, Frame mode, and Script mode, as follows.
¥

In Text mode, clips are displayed in a database text format, using
columns and rows, with icons representing the various objects.
You can save various arrangements of columns, text, and objects
as customized views.

Column headings

Object icons

Bin View menu
Text Mode button
Bin Fast menu

For information on speciÞc Text mode features,
see ÒUsing Text ModeÓ
on page 242.

To enter Text mode, click the Text Mode button (labeled T) in the
lower left portion of the bin.
¥

In Frame mode, each clip is represented by a single picture frame,
with the name of the clip. You can play back the footage in each
frame, and change the size of frames. You can also rearrange the
frames in any order within the bin.

228

Clip frame

Clip name

For information on speciÞc Frame mode features, see ÒUsing Frame
ModeÓ on page 257.

To enter Frame mode, click the Frame Mode button (labeled F) in
the lower left portion of the bin.
¥

In Script mode, the system combines the features of Text mode with
Frame mode, and adds space for typing notes or script. The frames
are displayed vertically on the left side of your screen with a text
box to the right of each clip. Clip data is displayed above the text
box.

229

Script text box

For information on speciÞc Script mode features, see ÒUsing
Script ModeÓ on
page 261.

Clip information

To enter Script mode, click the Script Mode button (labeled S) in
the lower left portion of the bin.

Bin Fast Menu
All Bin menu commands are also available in the Bin Fast menu
located in the lower left corner of every bin.
To open the Bin Fast menu, click the Fast Menu button in any of the
three display modes.
230

Fast Menu button

The Bin Fast menu is especially convenient when you are working
with several open bins and need to access Bin menu commands
quickly.

Basic Bin Procedures
There are some basic procedures that you can use in any of the three
bin display modes for manipulating clips in the bin. These include
selecting, deleting, duplicating, moving, copying, and sifting clips and
sequences.

Setting the Bin Font
To change the bin font:
1. Choose Set Font from the Edit menu.
A dialog box appears.

2. Choose a font from the Font pop-up menu.

231

Any font loaded in the Fonts folder in the Macintosh System Folder appears
in the list.
3. Enter another point size for the font in the Size entry Þeld.
4. Click OK. The new font appears in all bin display modes.

Using the Clip Information Window
The Clip Information window displays statistical information about a
clip. You can open the Clip Information window from a bin, Source
and Record monitors, a pop-up monitor, or a script window. This window updates information automatically.

To open the Clip Information window from a bin, press the Command
(k) key and click the clip for which you want to display information.
For information on displaying clip information from the Script window, see ÒDisplaying Clip Information in a Script WindowÓ on
page 295. For information on displaying clip information from the
Source, Record, or pop-up monitors, see ÒChanging the Sequence
Clip InfoÓ on page 375.

232

Moving the Clip Information Window
To leave the Clip Information window open:
1. While holding the mouse button down to display the Clip Information window, move the cursor over the window.
2. Drag the window to a new location or another monitor.
An outline of the window appears. When you release the mouse
button, the Clip Information window opens.

Copying Text from the Clip Information Window
You can cut, copy, and paste information from the Clip Information
window anytime, but you cannot edit or change any information
within the window.
To copy text from the Clip Information window:
1. Click and drag your cursor over the information you want to copy.
2. Press kÐC to copy the information.
3. To paste the information, place and click your cursor at the location you want to paste it and press kÐV.

Selecting Clips and Sequences
Use one of the following procedures to select clips in a bin:
¥

Click the clip or sequence icon (Text mode), or click the picture
area of the clip or sequence (Frame mode).

Select multiple clips or sequences by Shift-clicking additional
items, or lassoing several clips.

To reverse your selection, choose Reverse Selection from the Bin menu.
The clips that you previously selected are deselected and those clips
that were previously deselected are selected.
233

Duplicating Clips and Sequences
When you duplicate a clip or sequence, the system creates a separate
clip linked to the same media Þles. You can move, rename, and manipulate this clip without affecting the original clip.
To duplicate a clip or sequence:
1. Select the clip or sequence that you want to duplicate, or Shiftselect multiple clips.
2. Choose Duplicate from the Edit menu.
A copy of the clip or sequence appears in the bin, with the original
clip or sequence name followed by the extension .Copyn, where n
is the number of duplicates created from the original clip or
sequence.

Moving Clips and Sequences
You can move clips and sequences to other bins in order to group and
organize various types of material based on project needs.
To move clips or sequences from one bin into another:
1. Create or open another bin. Give the bin a name that represents its
purpose or contents.
2. Position the bins so that you can see both of them at the same time.
You might need to resize the bins to do this.
3. Select the clip or sequence that you want to move, or Shift-select
multiple clips.
4. Drag the clips to the new bin.

If the destination binÕs display has been set to show reference clips, the referenced object types do not appear until you save the bin. For more information
on setting the bin display, see ÒSetting the Bin DisplayÓ on page 226.

234

Copying Clips and Sequences
When you copy clips or sequences, you are essentially cloning the
same clip or sequence in another bin. Any change you make to the
copy will affect the original as well. The system does not add the
.Copy extension to the clip or sequence as it does when duplicating.
You cannot copy clips to the same bin, and you cannot return a clip
copy to the same bin where the original resides.
To copy clips or sequences from one bin into another bin:
1. Position the bins so that you can see both of them at the same time.
You might need to resize the bins to do this.
2. In the original bin, click the clip or sequence that you want to copy,
or Shift-select multiple clips or sequences.
3. Press the Option key and drag the clips to the destination bin and
release.
The clips appear in the new bin, displayed in the destination binÕs current display mode (Script, Frame, or Text), and the originals remain in
the Þrst bin. If the destination binÕs display has been set to show reference clips, the referenced object types do not appear until you have
saved the bin.
When you copy clips from one bin to another, the custom columns that
you created in the Þrst bin are also copied to the second bin. The custom columns appear in the order in which you created them.

Deleting Clips and Sequences
To delete clips or sequences from a bin:
1. Select the clips and sequences that you want to delete.
2. Choose Clear from the Edit menu or press the Delete key on the
keyboard.
A dialog box displays information about the selected items.
235

In this example, two subclips and two master clips (along with
their media Þles) are highlighted for deletion.
3. Select the items highlighted for deletion. Do not select items you
do not want to delete.
4. (Option) Delete the associated media Þles for master clips and
effect clips. You can select clips and media Þles for deletion, or you
can select only the media Þles if you want to retain the clips for
later redigitizing.
5. Click OK.
A dialog box asks you to conÞrm the deletion.
6. Click Delete.

Sifting Clips and Sequences
When you sift clips, the bin displays only those clips that meet a speciÞc set of criteria. For example, you can do a custom sift to display
only those clips containing the word Òclose-upÓ in the heading column. The custom sift dialog box provides you with six different levels
of criteria.
236

To sift clips and sequences:
1. Choose Custom Sift from the Bin menu.
The custom sift dialog box appears.
Operator menu

Sift criteria field

Column specification box

2. Move the cursor to the box containing the word Òcontain.Ó This is
called the Operator menu box. Click and hold to display a pop-up
menu.

Pop-up menu

3. Select one of the sifting options.
4. Click the Þrst Sift criteria Þeld and enter the text that you want to
use as a sift criterion.

237

5. Click the column pop-up menu and select a column heading to
which you want to apply the criterion.
6. Enter additional sift criteria, and make additional column selections, as necessary.
Only the clips that meet your criteria remain in the bin, with the
word ÒpartialÓ added to the bin name.
After you have sifted the clips in a bin, you can display the bin in a
sifted or an unsifted state.
¥

To view the entire bin, choose Show Unsifted from the Bin menu.

To view the sifted bin, choose Show Sifted from the Bin menu.

The word ÒpartialÓ after the bin name appears or disappears to indicate the current state of the bin you are viewing.

Locking Items in the Bin
You can lock any item in the binÑincluding source clips, master clips,
subclips, and sequencesÑto prevent deletion. When you lock clips in
the bin, you lock their associated media Þles on your desktop as well.
To lock items:
1. Click a clip, subclip, or sequence to select it. Shift-select additional
clips if necessary.
2. Choose Lock Bin Selection from the bottom of the Clip menu.

238

For more information
on displaying columns,
see ÒAbout Bin ViewsÓ
on page 243.

A lock icon appears for each locked clip in the Lock column of the
default Statistics Bin view.

Lock icon

To unlock previously locked items:
1. Select the items in the bin.
2. Choose Unlock Bin Selection from the Clip menu.

You can use the clip-locking feature along with archiving software such as
Cheyenne to automatically archive all locked media Þles. For more information on archiving locked Þles, see your archiving softwareÕs documentation.

Selecting Offline Items in a Bin
Ofßine items are clips, subclips, or sequences that are missing some or
all of their original media Þles.
To identify ofßine items, choose Select Ofßine Items from the Bin
menu.
The bin highlights all items that are missing media Þles.

239

Selecting Media Relatives for an Object
When you identify the media relatives of a selected clip or sequence, the
system highlights all other clips linked to the selected clip, such as
subclips or other sequences.
To identify media relatives:
1. Open the bin that contains the chosen clip or sequence.
2. Open any other bins that might contain the media relatives that
you want to Þnd.
3. Resize and position the bins so that you can see their contents.
Text mode is best for viewing as many objects as possible.
4. Select the chosen clip or sequence, and choose Select Media Relatives from the Bin menu.
The system highlights all related objects in all open bins.

Selecting Sources Used by an Object
Use the Select Sources command to identify all of the sources used by
a particular object. For example, if you select a sequence as the object,
240

you use the Select Sources command to identify every master clip,
subclip, tape, and media Þle that is a source for that sequence.
To identify sources for a clip or sequence:
1. Select one or more objects in a bin.
2. Choose Select Sources from the Bin menu.
All sources for the selected objects in all open bins are highlighted.

Selecting Unreferenced Clips
When you select Unreferenced Clips, the system highlights all clips
that are not currently referenced by clips or sequences that are present
in the open bins. Any master clips, subclips, or effect clips you have
edited into a sequence in the bin are not highlighted. This command is
effectively the reverse of the Select Media Relatives command.

The Unreferenced Clips command is useful for Þnding unused footage or
media.
Identify unreferenced clips as follows:
1. Open the bin containing the sequence or clip that is referenced.
2. Open all other bins containing clips that were used during editing.
3. Choose Select Unreferenced Clips from the Bin menu.
An alert box warns you that unreferenced clips will be highlighted
in open bins only (items in closed bins will not be shown).
4. Click OK.
All unreferenced clips are highlighted in the open bins.

241

Using Text Mode
Text mode provides the most complete view of clip information. It
uses database columns that you can rearrange and customize to suit
your needs.
To enter Text mode, click the Text Mode button (labeled T) in the lower
left corner of the bin.

242

About Bin Views
For complete information on all Film and Statistical column
headings, see the Avid
Media Composer Products
Reference.

To the right of the Display Mode buttons is a pop-up menu of titles for
different bin views. This option is available only in Text mode. Bins
have three default views that are automatically loaded:
¥

Statistics view: Uses the standard statistical column headings
derived from information established during capture, such as start
and end timecodes, duration, resolution, and so on.

Film view: Has Þlm-related column headings, including key number, ink number, pullin, and so on. If you are working on a nonÞlm-related project, and select the Film view, a dialog box informs
you that only the non-Þlm-related columns will be displayed.

Custom view: Allows you to create and save customized views.
The only required heading is the clip name, displayed by default.
You can customize the view by adding, hiding, or rearranging column headings.

Customizing Bin Views
There are several ways to customize views of the bin:
243

For more information
on working with settings, see the Avid Media
Composer Products Reference.

Alter the arrangement of existing columns in the standard Statistics view or Film view to suit your needs, without adding or hiding columns. These arrangements will be recalled each time you
choose Statistics view or Film view.

Add or hide columns of information to create customized Statistics or Film views. These will be saved as additional view settings
in numerical order, for example Statistics.1, Statistics.2, unless you
choose another name.

Add, hide, copy, or rearrange standard or customized columns in
any combination to create your own custom views. You can name
and save these to suit your needs.

When you create a new bin view, the system saves the settings for this
view so that you can later access and alter, copy, or delete these settings.

Moving and Rearranging Columns
To move a text column in a bin:
1. Click the heading of the column that you want to move.
The entire column is highlighted.
2. Drag the column to the desired position and release the mouse
button.
The column appears in the new position, and columns to the right
are moved over to make room.

Tidying Up Bin Columns
When you tidy up bin columns, the system maintains the same order
of columns from left to right, but spaces them according to the length
of contents. This is especially useful for removing spaces left after
moving or rearranging columns.

244

To tidy up bin columns, choose Tidy Up Columns from the Bin menu,
or press kÐT.

Showing and Hiding Columns
You can select individual or multiple headings to display or hide in
the bin.
To choose column headings by using the headings dialog box:
1. With a bin in Text mode, choose Headings from the Bin menu. You
can also double-click a bin view setting in the Settings list of the
Project window.
A dialog box appears.

You can also display a
frame for each clip
along with statistical
information in Text display mode by displaying the Frame column.
For information, see
ÒAdding Customized
Columns to a BinÓ on
page 247.

2. Select the headings you want to add to the bin:
¥

Click the name of a heading to select it.

Click a highlighted heading to deselect it.

Click Select All to highlight all the headings in the bin.

Click Deselect All to deselect all the headings.

245

3. Click OK. Only the headings highlighted in the headings dialog
box appear in the bin or bin view.

Deleting a Column
Deleting a statistical column is the same as hiding the column; you can
restore the column at any time by using the headings dialog box, as
described in ÒShowing and Hiding ColumnsÓ on page 245. When
you delete a Custom column, however, you must re-create the column.
To delete a column:
1. Click the column heading.
2. Choose Clear from the Edit menu or press the Delete key.
The column disappears from the view and surrounding columns
close to Þll the space.

Duplicating a Column
You can duplicate existing columns containing timecode information
in other compatible columns that you target in a dialog box.
To duplicate a timecode column:
1. Select the column you want to duplicate by clicking its header.
2. Choose Duplicate from the Edit menu.
A dialog box appears.

246

In the example, the user has selected the Duration column to duplicate; thus ÒCopy Duration to:Ó appears at the top of the dialog box.
Select a column name from the list. The column must be of the same
type of data for the copy to occur. For example, you can copy start
timecodes to the Aux TC column, but you cannot copy timecodes to
the Pullin column.
The column of information appears in the column you designated.

Adding Customized Columns to a Bin
In addition to the standard statistical or Þlm headings, you can add
your own column headings to describe information about clips and
sequences. For example, you might want to add a column heading to
describe what kind of shot (close-up, wide shot, master shot, extreme
close-up, and so on) is used in a clip.
To add a new column:
1. Click an empty area to the right of the current headings in the
headings box.
2. Move any existing column to the right or left in order to create an
empty area.
3. Type the column heading you want and press Return. Column
headings must contain fewer than 30 characters, including spaces.
247

This puts the cursor in the data box, beside the Þrst clip in the bin.
4. Use the Tidy Up Columns command after you have entered the
new column heading.
5. Type the information and press Return to move to the next line.

Changing a Custom Column Heading
You can change the heading name of custom columns. You cannot
change any of the standard statistical or Þlm column headings.
To change the name of a custom column:
1. Hold down the Option key and click the heading to highlight it.
2. Type the new text for the heading and press Return.

Saving a Custom View
Any time you add, hide, or delete a column, the bin view name
changes to an italicized name to indicate that it no longer matches the
original view. If you try to select a new bin view setting while the current setting is untitled or italicized, a dialog box asks if you want to
discard the current setting.

If you donÕt save the view after adding or deleting headings, it is discarded.
To save a bin view:
1. Add or hide columns according to preference. The bin view name
becomes italicized.
2. Choose Save As from the Bin View pop-up menu.

248

The view name dialog box appears.

3. Name the custom view:
¥

To keep the default view name, click OK or press Return.

To create a new name for the custom view, type the name and
click OK or press Return.

Managing Clip Information in Text Mode
For additional bin
shortcuts, see the
ÒShortcutsÓ section of
the Avid Media Composer
and Film Composer
Quick Reference.

There are several ways to manage clip information in Text mode columns. These methods include copying information between cells,
moving information between whole columns, sorting clip information,
and modifying clip data, as described in this section.

Moving Within Column Cells
Use the keyboard shortcuts to move from cell to cell in bin columns:

249

Tab: Moves the cursor to the parallel cell in the next column. You
can continue to press the Tab key to scroll through the cells to the
right until the cell in the last column is highlighted. The next time
you press the Tab key, the cell in the Þrst column is highlighted.

Shift-Tab: Moves the cursor to the left to the cell in the previous
column. You can continue to press the Shift-Tab keys to scroll
through cells to the left until the cell in the Þrst column is highlighted. The next time you press Shift-Tab, the cell in the last column is highlighted.

Return: Enters any new information typed into the cell and moves
the cursor down to the cell in the next row. You can continue to
press the Return key to scroll down the column until the last cell in
the column is highlighted. The next time you press the Return key,
the Þrst cell in the column is highlighted.

Shift-Return: Moves the cursor up to the cell in the previous row.
You can continue to press the Shift-Return keys until the cell in the
top row is highlighted. The next time you press the Shift-Return
keys, the cell in the last row is highlighted.

Modifying Clip Information
You can change or modify the information in certain columns for your
master clips, subclips, tapes, and other objects stored in the bin. This is
especially useful if some of the data is incorrect, or if you need to conform information for organizational purposes.
The following conditions apply to modifying clip information:
¥

When you modify a clipÕs information, related objects are automatically updated to reßect the new data. For example, if you
change the name of a clip, the updated name appears in the
sequences that use the clip.

Some data cannot be modiÞed after digitizing because changes
would prevent you from playing back and editing the material
successfully.

250

Sequence data cannot be changed, even though it appears in your
bin. The only way to modify sequence data is to edit the sequence
itself. You can, however, change the name and start time for the
master timecode track, as described in ÒChanging the Sequence
Clip InfoÓ on page 375.

There are two ways to modify data:
¥

You can modify some data directly for master clips, subclips, and
other objects stored in a bin.

You can use the Modify command to change speciÞc information
for clips only.

Modifying Data Directly
When you modify information directly, you click a cell and type the
new information. For example, you can type a new name for a clip, or
correct the start and end timecodes.
You can directly modify any data in the bin prior to digitizing. After
the footage is digitized, however, you can directly modify only
selected headings, with restrictions as shown in Table 9-2.

Table 9-2

Direct Modification Headings

Heading

Restrictions

(Clip) Name

No restrictions.

Mark IN

Altering the mark IN also alters the IN to OUT duration. This replaces any
previous mark.

Mark OUT

Altering the mark OUT will also alter the IN to OUT duration. This replaces
any previous mark.

Color Framing

Must be according to tape speciÞcations. See ÒTracking Color Frame ShiftsÓ
on page 451.

Auxiliary timecodes, 1Ð5

No restrictions.
251

Table 9-2

Direct Modification Headings (Continued)

Heading

Restrictions

KN (key number) Start

Only for Þlm projects; altering the starting key number will also alter the
ending key number to maintain the duration. This can also cause discrepancies with any auxiliary timecode information that you entered manually.

KN (Key Number) End

Only for Þlm projects. Altering the KN end also alters the KN Start to maintain the duration. This can also cause discrepancies with any auxiliary timecode information that you entered manually.

Pullin

Pullin data imported from a telecine-generated list can only be altered by
using the Modify command. See ÒUsing the Modify CommandÓ on
page 253. (NTSC only.)

Pullout

Pullout data imported from a telecine-generated list can only be altered by
using the Modify command. See ÒUsing the Modify CommandÓ on
page 253. (NTSC only.)

To modify the clip data directly:
1. Enter Text mode.
2. Click the cell that you want to modify. Select only one item at a
time. In this example, the timecode data is highlighted.

3. Click the cell again to enter text.
If the cursor does not change to an I-beam, you might be attempting to modify a column that cannot be directly modiÞed.
4. Type the new information and press Return.
252

Using the Modify Command
The Modify command gives you specialized control over information
in speciÞc headings. For example, you can use the Modify command
to change the name of source tapes, or to increment or decrement the
start and end timecodes by a speciÞed length of time for one or several
master clips at once.
For a complete description of the Modify dialog box options, see
ÒUsing the Modify
CommandÓ on
page 127.

You can apply changes with the Modify command to master clips
only; subclips and sequences cannot be altered in this way. In addition,
you can only perform modiÞcations that alter the end timecodes or the
tracks before digitizing, as described in Table 9-3.

Table 9-3

Modify Command Options

Option

Restrictions

Set Timecode Drop/Nondrop

Setting must match the timecode format of the
tape

Set Timecode By Field

Only start timecode can be altered after digitizing

Increment Timecode

Only start timecode can be incremented after
digitizing

Decrement Timecode

Only start timecode can be decremented after
digitizing

Set Key Number Generic
(PreÞx)

Only for Þlm projects

Set Pullin

Only for Þlm projects

Set Tracks

Only for Þlm projects

Set Source

Should match the original source tape name

253

Table 9-3

Modify Command Options (Continued)

Option

Restrictions

Pullin

Only for adjusting Pullin information from an
imported telecine list for a Þlm project

Pullout

Only for adjusting Pullout information from an
imported telecine list for a Þlm project

To modify selected data:
1. Open the bin.
2. Click the small Þlm clip icon to the left of the clip, sequence, or
other object you want to modify. Shift-click each additional object
you want to modify.
3. Select objects in the bin: master clips, subclips, sequences, tapes,
audiotapes, Þlm reels, effects, group clips, or rendered effects.
4. Choose Modify from the Clip menu.
The Modify dialog box appears.
Modify Options pop-up menu

254

5. Choose an option, such as Set Timecode By Field, from the Modify
options pop-up menu.

6. Select an option or enter information into the entry Þelds (timecode values, for example) when they appear.
7. Click OK. The modiÞcation takes effect.

Copying Information Between Columns
The following steps describe how to copy all the information in one
column to another. To demonstrate these steps, you will copy timecode information in one column to a new column.
1. Select the timecode column that you want to copy.
2. Choose Duplicate from the Edit menu or press kÐD.
A dialog box prompts you to target a timecode column for the
data.
3. Select the target column for the data and click OK.

Copying Information from Another Cell in a Custom Column
To copy information from another cell in a custom column:
255

1. Hold down the Option key while you click in the destination cell
to reveal a pop-up menu of all items entered in that column.
2. Select the text from the menu. The text appears in the cell.
You can also use the following two shortcuts to move information
between cells in a custom column:
¥

Press Option-Tab to load the text from the cell below into the current cell, then select the cell to the right of the current cell.

Press Option-Shift-Tab to load the text from the cell below into the
current cell, then select the cell to the left of the current cell.

Sorting Clips
Sorting clips arranges them in either numerical or alphabetical order,
based on the data in the column you select as the sorting criteria. You
can sort clips in several different ways, using an ascending sort, a
descending sort, and a multilevel sort.

You can sort clips and sequences in Text mode only. If you need to view sorted
clips in Script or Frame mode, sort them in Text mode Þrst and then return to
Script or Frame mode.
Sorting Clips in Ascending Order
To sort clips in ascending order:
1. Click the heading of the column that you want to use as the criterion.
The column is highlighted.
2. Choose Sort from the Bin menu or press kÐE.
The objects in the bin are sorted.

If the Sort command is dimmed in the menu, you have not selected a column.

256

To reapply the last sort, choose Sort Again from the Bin menu with no
column selected. This step is especially useful after you have added
new clips to a sorted bin.
Sorting Clips in Descending Order
To sort clips in descending order:
1. Click the heading of the column that you want to use as the criterion.
The column is highlighted.
2. Hold down the Option key while you choose Sort Reversed from
the Bin menu, or while you press kÐE.
Sort Reversed displays the column in descending order.
Multilevel Sorting with Columns
You can select multiple columns in a bin and perform a multilevel sort
by using the information in the columns.
To do this, rearrange the columns in the bin to establish the primary
column. The column that appears farthest to the left in Text mode
becomes the primary criterion for the sorting operation.

Using Frame Mode
In Frame mode, each clip is represented by a single frame, with the
name of the clip displayed below the frame. The system uses the head
frame as the default, but you can play back the footage within any clip
and select any frame to represent the footage. You can make the pictures larger to see more detail, or smaller to see more clips in the window. You can also rearrange the frames in any order.
To enter Frame mode, click the Frame Mode button (labeled F) in the
lower left portion of your screen.
257

Each frame appears on your screen with its assigned name directly
below it.

Changing the Bin Background Color
You can customize the background color of the bin behind the frames.
Changes affect one bin at a time. However, changes you make in
Frame mode appear in Script mode as well.
To change the bin background color:
1. Activate the bin you want to change and make sure you are in
Frame mode (or Script mode).
2. Choose Set Color from the Edit menu, and select a color from the
pop-up palette.

258

The bin color changes based on your selection.

Enlarging or Reducing Frame Size
You can enlarge and reduce the size of the frames appearing on the
screen to Þve available sizes. You must enlarge or reduce all frames
together. You cannot change the size of individual frames.
¥

To enlarge the frame size, choose Enlarge Frame from the Edit
menu. The display size increases each time you choose this option,
up to Þve times.

To reduce the frame size, choose Reduce Frame from the Edit
menu. The display size decreases each time you choose this
option, up to Þve times.

Rearranging Frames
Frame mode allows you to rearrange the display of the frames in the
bin by moving them.
To rearrange frames:
1. Click and drag a single frame to its new position.
To rearrange more than one frame at a time, Shift-select or lasso
multiple frames and drag them to a new position in the bin.
2. Click the background area of the bin to deselect the clips.

259

Changing the Frame Identifying the Clip
If you have Group or
MultiGroup clips in the
bin and want to change
the displayed frame,
you must use controls
in Source/Record
mode. For more information, see ÒMultiCamera Editing
TechniquesÓ on
page 591.

By default, Frame mode displays the Þrst frame of each clip in the bin.
However, you can choose a different frame.
To change the frame identifying the clip:
1. Select the clip that you want to change.
Hold the K key on the keyboard (Pause) and press the L key (Play)
to roll the footage within the frame forward at slow speed. To
move backward through the footage, hold the K key and press the
J key (Reverse Play).
2. When you see the frame that you want use, release the keys.
When you Þnd the frame you want to use, Media Composer saves
your choice as part of the bin conÞguration.

Tidying Up Frames in a Bin
To realign or tidy up the frames in a bin after you have changed their
display, use one of the following procedures:
¥

To align all frames to an invisible grid, choose Tidy Up Columns
from the Bin menu.

To align only selected frames, choose Align Selected to Grid from
the Bin menu.

To spread out the frames evenly to Þll available space in the bin
window, choose Fill Window from the Bin menu.

To arrange frames in the order in which they are sorted in Text
mode, choose Fill Sorted from the Bin menu.

260

Using Script Mode
Script mode combines the features of Text mode with Frame mode,
with an added script box next to each frame. The frames are displayed
vertically on the left side of your screen with the script box next to
each. Clip data matching the column headings in Text mode appears
above each text box.
To enter Script mode, click the Script Mode button (labeled S) in the
lower left portion of the bin.

261

Adding Text in Script Mode
To type text into the script box, click the box and begin typing. This
text does not appear in sequences edited from the clips, only in printouts of the bin in Script mode.
You can use basic word processing procedures to highlight, delete, cut,
copy, and paste text between script boxes.
If the notes or script you type extend beyond the size of the text box,
you can use the Page Up or Page Down keys on the keyboard to scroll
through the text.

Rearranging Clips in Script Mode
You can rearrange the order of clips in Script mode in two ways:

You can drag each clip up or down to a new location in the bin.

You can sort and sift clips in Text mode, then return to Script mode
to display selected clips in the desired sort order.

When you return to Text mode, the order of the clips is changed there as well.

Printing Bins
Media Composer allows you to print entire bins or individual frames
in hardcopy form.
To print entire bins in Text, Script, or Frame mode:
1. Install the correct printer driver in the System Folder on the Avid
disk.

262

Directions for installing the printer driver are included in the manual for your printer and in the Macintosh system documentation.
2. Select the printer by using the Chooser.
Directions for selecting the printer are included in the Macintosh
system documentation.
3. Click the T (Text mode), S (Script mode), or F (Frame mode) button
in the lower left corner of the bin to select the view you want to
print.

To print a frame in Script or Frame mode, you must use a printer capable of
rendering graphics or PICT Þles.
4. Choose Page Setup from the File menu. A Page Setup dialog box
appears, reßecting speciÞc options for the type of printer you
have.
5. Select the appropriate options from the Page Setup dialog box,
then click OK.
6. Choose Print Bin from the File menu. The print dialog box
appears, reßecting speciÞc options for your type of printer.
7. Set the print options in the print dialog box, then click Print.
The system prints the frame currently displayed in the active monitor.
To print a single frame of a clip or sequence:
1. Load a clip or sequence into the Source or Record monitor.
2. Select the frame you want to print.
3. Choose Print Frame from the File menu, or press kÐP.
4. Make any needed adjustments to the print setup and click Print.
The system prints the frame currently displayed in the active monitor.

263

Gathering Format Elements
While organizing your project, you can gather various format elements into a single bin that you can open and use later during editing.
Some useful format elements might be:
¥

Bars and tone

Head and tail leader

Repeated titles

Countdowns

Graphic elements (repeated animations, and so forth)

This section describes techniques for creating digital bars and tone, as
well as leader clips for use in sequences. For information on creating
or importing graphic elements and titles, see the Avid Media Composer
and Film Composer Effects Guide.

Preparing Digital Bars and Tone
If you expect to output your Þnal sequence as a digital cut that
requires calibration before playback (a digital cut that will be broadcast, for example), then in most cases you need a clip of color bars. You
can add the clip to the front of the sequence in Media Composer, or
you can output the clip separately as an assemble or insert edit onto
tape during recording of a digital cut.
There are several ways to acquire a clip of bars, each with different
advantages:
¥

Digitize bars and tone from a house generator. This method
requires the least effort with good results, because you capture
high-quality bars and tone simultaneously, with a minimum of
calibration. Not all facilities, however, have a house generator.

Digitize bars and tone from a videotape. This method allows you
to capture bars and tone simultaneously, but you must calibrate
264

carefully to ensure accuracy. In addition, the Þnal clip reßects the
quality of the source tape recording.
¥

Digitize bars from an external color bar generator. This method
provides good results, but you must have a color bar generator
available, and you must rearrange your system inputs to attach
the generator. In addition, you must acquire tone separately and
sync it with bars within Media Composer.

Import a PICT Þle of bars. This method provides the highest quality results, because the source image is already digital. If the PICT
Þle is accurate, the quality of the clip is ensured. You must, however, acquire tone separately, and sync it with bars within Media
Composer.

Importing a PICT File of Bars
The following procedure describes the method for importing a PICT
Þle. This method is available to all users because your Media Composer system includes a SMPTE bars PICT Þle.
To import bars:
1. Open an existing bin, or create a new one for the test pattern.
2. Choose Import from the File menu to open the Select Files to
Import dialog box.
3. Using the directory pop-up menu on the left side of the dialog box,
locate the Color Bars for Import PICT Þle in the Avid Goodies
folder. The Avid Goodies folder is located on the Avid (internal)
drive.
4. Import the Þle by using options described in ÒPreparing to Import
FilesÓ on page 213.
5. Create a clip of tone media by using the Audio Tool. For more
information, see ÒCreating Tone MediaÓ on page 172.

265

Match the resolution of the tone to the audio resolution of the sequence.
6. Load the new color bars clip into the Source monitor, and create a
subclip of appropriate length for use in sequences (1 minute is a
common standard).
7. Select the new subclip and the audio clip containing the tone, and
choose AutoSync from the Bin menu.
A new subclip containing bars and tone appears in the bin.
8. Rename the clip as necessary.

Creating Leader
Film editors traditionally use standard head and tail leaders for cueing
and syncing material. You can use digital leader in Media Composer to
mark the beginning and ending of tracks, and to help you maintain
sync, as described in ÒManaging Sync with Multiple TracksÓ on
page 562. You can create your own leader for video or Þlm, as
described in this section. Whatever your choice for speciÞcation, be
sure to make all your leader clips the same length, with common sync
points.

Creating Video Leader
To create leader for picture tracks:
1. Create a black screen in the Title Tool for tail leader, or a white
screen for head leader. See the Avid Media Composer and
Film Composer Effects Guide for information on using the Title Tool.
Optionally, you can type a title onto the screen that says ÒTail
LeaderÓ or ÒHead Leader.Ó
2. Name this clip Head Leader or Tail Leader when you save the title.
3. Subclip an appropriate length of the clip, according to your chosen
speciÞcations.
4. (Option) Mark a sync frame in the subclip as follows:
266

a. Load the clip into the Source monitor.
b. Find an appropriate sync point and add a locator.
c. (Option) Double-click the locator in the Source monitor to add
a sync point notation that appears on the monitor.
d. (Option) To make the sync point visible within the Timeline,
step one frame backward and place an add edit before the
sync frame, then step two frames forward and place an add
edit after the sync frame.

For information on
placing add edits, see
ÒAdding an Edit
(Match Framing)Ó on
page 445.

Once the leader is prepared, you can splice the leader during editing
onto the tracks that you want to keep in sync. You can use the sync
points for visually aligning tracks.

Creating Audio Leader
To create tail leader for audio tracks:
1. Load a clip that includes a section of digitized tone into the Source
monitor.
2. Subclip an appropriate section of the clip, according to your chosen speciÞcations.
3. Name this new subclip Head Leader or Tail Leader.
4. Load this subclip into the Source monitor.
5. Prepare the sound levels by using one of the following options:
¥

For leader without a sync point (no audio pop), open the
Audio Mix Tool and bring the audio level all the way down
for the entire clip.

For leader that includes a sync point (audio pop), do the following:
a. Find the appropriate sync point.

267

For information on
placing add edits, see
ÒAdding an Edit
(Match Framing)Ó on
page 445.

b. Step one frame backward and place an add edit before the
sync frame, then step two frames forward and place an add
edit after the sync frame.
c. Place the position indicator before the Þrst add edit, and
open the Audio Mix Tool.
d. Bring the audio level all the way down.
e. Place the position indicator after the second add edit, and
use the Audio Mix Tool to bring the level all the way down.
Once the leader is prepared, you can splice the leader during editing
onto the audio tracks that you want to keep in sync. You can use the
sync points for visually aligning tracks.

Storyboard Worksheet
Make preliminary preparations such as synchronizing picture and
sound, converting audio timecode, and modifying clip data.
Set the bin display to show only the media objects you will use for
your storyboard.
Narrow down the clip selection by deleting, moving, copying, sorting
and sifting clips.
Select either Script mode or Frame mode to display your storyboard in
the bin with or without a text box. Enter information into the script
box if necessary.
Rename clips to include additional information such as numbered
ordering, or enter this information into the Script box in Script mode.
Use the keyboard to jog through each clip and display the reference
frame you want to use for each clip.

268

Rearrange the clips in sequential order by selecting and dragging one
or several clips at a time to a new location.
Enlarge or reduce the size of the frames as necessary.
Tidy up the rearranged frames along invisible grid lines when using
Frame mode.
(Option) Change the font and background color for the storyboard.
Choose Save Bin from the File menu when the storyboard is complete.
Choose Print from the File menu to print the storyboard in its Þnal
form.

269

CHAPTER 10
Managing Media Files
When you digitize footage, the system creates digital media Þles for
the video and audio tracks on the media drives attached to your system. In addition to the bin tools that allow you to organize the clips
that reference these media Þles, your Avid Composer system provides
useful tools and features for directly managing media Þles for storage
and playback efÞciency, for backup, and for transfer between systems.
These procedures are described in the following sections:
¥

Using the Media Tool

Freeing Storage Space

Consolidating Media

Backing Up Media Files

Finding a Related Media File

Relinking Media Files

Unlinking Media Files

Using the Media Tool
The Media Tool is your window onto the digitized video and audio
data Þles stored on your media drives. As an important counterpart to
the bins, the Media Tool provides similar database tools for manipulat270

ing digital media Þles in tandem with your organization of clips and
sequences. Unlike bins, however, the Media Tool gives you access to
separate video and audio portions of each clip.

Basic Media Tool Features
The Media Tool provides many of the same controls for viewing and
managing information that you use with bins, including the following:
¥

Three display modes in the Media Tool function like those in bins:
Text mode, Script mode, and Frame mode.

The Media Tool Fast menu gives you quick access to all the same
commands available in the Bin Fast menu.

You can highlight, move, copy, duplicate, delete, and sift clips. You
can also select media relatives, sources, and unreferenced clips, as
described in ÒBasic Bin ProceduresÓ on page 231.

You can use Text mode headings and display options for columns
of clip and media Þle data. You can also use procedures such as
customizing the display of columns, moving within columns, and
sorting information, as described in ÒUsing Text ModeÓ on
page 242.

You can use the same Frame mode display options described in
ÒUsing Frame ModeÓ on page 257.

You can use the same Script mode display options described in
ÒUsing Script ModeÓ on page 261.

You can print Media Tool data by using the same procedures for
printing bins, described in ÒPrinting BinsÓ on page 262.

In addition to the procedures described, the Media Tool has a number
of unique functions, described in this section. These include the following:
¥

Unlike bins, the Media Tool displays all the tracks digitized for
each clip as separate media Þles. Therefore, when you view, delete,

271

and manipulate Þles, you have the added option of specifying
individual video and audio tracks.
¥

The Media Tool does not display sequences and subclips. Only
master clips, precompute (rendered effect) master clips, and associated media Þles are displayed.

The following Bin and Clip menu commands do not apply to the
Media Tool: Modify, Select Ofßine Items, Reveal File and Relink.
You must perform these functions from the bin.

The Media Tool database and display options are not saved as
they are with bins. Instead they must be re-created each time you
open the tool. Likewise, when you close the Media Tool, any customization of columns or other views elements is deleted.

Opening the Media Tool
To open the Media Tool:
1. Choose Media Tool from the Tools menu. The Display Media
Selector dialog box appears.

2. Select display options:

272

You can display Þles for just the current project, or all other
projects.

You can display digitized master clips, precompute (rendered
effect) master clips, individual media Þles, or all three.

3. Click OK. The Media Tool window opens.

Deleting Tracks with the Media Tool
You can use the Media Tool to delete selected media Þles without
harming the related master clips, subclips, and sequences.

If you use the Media Tool to delete selected media Þles, you will no longer
have access to visuals of the deleted material. If you load a clip for which a
media Þle has been deleted, a black screen appears with the words ÒMedia
Ofßine.Ó If you need to use those clips again, you must redigitize from tape.
Depending on your needs, you can do one of the following:

273

Delete selected audio or video tracks and retain other tracks from
a clip.

Delete entire sets of media Þles and related clips from within the
Media Tool.

Delete all unrelated media upon completion of a project, and
retain only the media required for playback of a Þnished sequence
as described in ÒConsolidating MediaÓ on page 276.

To delete selected media Þles:
1. Open the Media Tool. In the Display Media Selector dialog box, be
sure to select the types of Þles you want to delete.
2. Select one or more media Þles (audio, video, or both) or master
clips whose media Þles you want to delete.
3. Choose Clear from the Edit menu, or press the Delete key to open
the Delete Media Files dialog box.

4. Select the media objects that you want to delete:

274

Audio media Þle (A1, A2, A3, A4). The master clip linked to
that Þle will be silent. Subclips and sequences created from the
master clip are affected in the same way.

Video media Þle (V1). The master clip linked to that Þle will
be black, with the message ÒMedia OfßineÓ displayed. Related
subclips and sequences are affected in the same way.

Precompute media Þle (V, A). The section of the sequence
with the effect becomes black with the message ÒMedia
OfßineÓ displayed.

Audio Mixdown File (A). The section of the sequence with
the mixdown becomes silent.

5. Click OK.
A conÞrmation dialog box appears.
6. Click Delete.

Freeing Storage Space
To quickly view remaining storage on your
media drives at any
time, open the Hardware Tool as described
in ÒUsing the Hardware ToolÓ on
page 103.

Unlike the bin Þles stored in project folders on the Avid drive, media
Þles require considerable storage space. When you Þnish either a
rough cut or a Þnal version of a sequence, you can quickly free storage
space by deleting the media and clips that are not referenced by the
sequence. This procedure is performed on clips selected in bins only.
To delete all unreferenced clips and media Þles:
1. Choose Select Sources from the Bin menu. All source clips for the
sequence are highlighted in the bin.
2. Click the bin containing the highlighted clips to activate it.
3. Choose Reverse Selection from the Bin menu. All the clips in the
bin that are not source clips for the sequence are now highlighted.
4. Press the Delete key, then click the check boxes in the Delete dialog
box to delete the clips or the media Þles.
275

Consolidating Media
When you consolidate media Þles, the system Þnds the media Þles or
portions of media Þles associated with selected clips, subclips, or
sequences. It then makes copies of them, and saves the copies on a target disk that you specify. Because the Media Tool displays only master
clips, you cannot consolidate subclips or sequences with the Media
Tool. You can consolidate master clips, subclips, and sequences in the
bin.

About the Consolidate Feature
For illustrations of the
different types of consolidation, see the Avid
Media Composer and Film
Composer Quick Reference.

The Consolidate feature operates differently depending upon whether
you are consolidating master clips, subclips, or sequences. There are
also different advantages in each case, as follows:
¥

Master clips: When you consolidate a master clip, the system creates exact copies of the media Þles. If you link the original master
clip to the new Þles, the system creates a master clip with the
extension .old that remains linked to the old Þles. If you maintain
the link between the original master clip and the old media Þles,
the system creates a new master clip with the extension .new that is
linked to the new Þles. The new clips are also numbered incrementally beginning with .01. Consolidating master clips does not save
storage space because the system copies the same amount of
media for each clip.

Subclips: When you consolidate a subclip or group of subclips,
the system copies only the portion of the media Þles represented in the subclip, and creates a copy of the master clips and
the subclips. The sufÞx .new is attached, along with incremental
numbering beginning with .01.

Sequences: When you consolidate a sequence, the system copies
only the portions of media Þles edited into the sequence, and creates new master clips for each shot in the sequence. The sufÞx
.new is attached to the master clips, along with incremental
276

numbering beginning with .01. The sequence is not renamed,
but is automatically relinked to the new media Þles.

Because a consolidated sequence is linked to the new Þles by default, consider
duplicating the sequence each time you consolidate if you need to maintain
links to the original Þles.

Using the Consolidate Command
To consolidate master clips, subclips, or sequences:
For more information
on rendering effects, see
the Avid Media Composer
and Film Composer
Effects Guide.

1. If you are consolidating a sequence, duplicate the sequence to
maintain links to the original Þles, if necessary, and render any
unrendered effects.
2. With the bin open, select the clips or sequence to consolidate.
3. Choose Consolidate from the Clip menu. The Consolidate dialog
box appears.

277

4. Select one of the following:
¥

ÒDelete original media Þles when doneÓ to delete original
media Þles automatically.

ÒSkip media Þles already on the target diskÓ if some related
media Þles are already located on the target disk.

ÒRelink selected clips to target disk before skippingÓ to ensure
that all selected clips are linked to media on the target drive.
This option appears when you select ÒSkip media Þles already
on target disk.Ó

5. Select a target disk from the pop-up menu.
Make sure that you choose a target disk with enough storage
space for all the consolidated media Þles.
6. Enter a handle length for the new clips in the entry Þeld, or leave it
at 60 frames to accept the default.
For more information
on group clips, see
ÒGrouping and MultigroupingÓ on page 582.

7. If you are consolidating a group clip or a sequence that contains
group clips, select the option ÒConsolidate all clips in a group
editÓ to copy media for all the clips in the group. This option is
dimmed if there are no group clips in your selection.
8. Click OK. If you did not choose to delete the original media Þles, a
second dialog box appears and offers you a choice.

278

9. Link the original master clips to the new or old media Þles, according to preference.
10. Click OK.
Another way to back up media Þles is to copy them directly onto
another hard drive in the Finder. You cannot, however, take advantage
of the storage-saving features of the Consolidate command, and it is
more difÞcult to identify particular media Þles when searching
directly through folders.

Do not make copies of media Þles in the Finder while the Avid Composer system is running. Also, do not keep duplicate copies of
media Þles online; either delete the originals, take the backups
ofßine, or store the backups in a folder with a different name.

Loading the Media Database
The media database is a catalog of master clips and precomputes
stored on the external media drives. One use of the media database by
the Avid Composer system is to display master clips and precomputes
in the Media Tool.
Bins also contain references to some of the media Þles based on the
contents of the bin. The Avid Composer system does not maintain the
entire database in memory at all times but instead builds up a partial
database for the bins that have been opened in the current session in
order to preserve as much memory as possible for editing.
If you store the master clips and the edited sequences for a project in
separate bins, there are two cases in which you need to load the entire
database in order to relink clips to their media Þles:
¥

Redigitizing: When you redigitize the master clips while the
sequences bin is closed; quit the Avid Composer application;
relaunch the application and open the sequences bin only Ñ the
sequences might appear to be ofßine.
279

Consolidating: When you consolidate the master clips and relink
them to the consolidated media while the sequences bin is closed;
quit the Avid Composer application; relaunch the application and
open the sequences bin only Ñ the sequences might appear to be
ofßine.

To update the ofßine sequences with the new media Þles, choose Load
Media Database from the File menu to load all online master clips and
precomputes.

n
c

You need not load the media database more than once during a single editing
session because the database remains in memory until you quit the application or restart the Avid Composer system.
If a bin continues to display Media Ofßine after loading the media
database, either the media Þles are missing or the links have been
broken. For more information, see ÒRelinking Media FilesÓ on
page 282.

Backing Up Media Files
The MediaFiles folders on your external media drives contain the individual media Þles created when you digitize source material. Unlike
the smaller Composer Project and Avid User folders, these folders are
too large to back up onto diskettes.
The following are the options for backing up media Þles:
¥

You can use the Consolidate feature, described in the previous section, to make copies of selected media Þles on a target hard drive
connected to the system.

280

For information on
archiving procedures,
see your AVIDdrive
DLT documentation.
For information on purchasing AVIDdrive
DLT, contact your Avid
sales representative.

You can back up smaller projects digitized at low AVRs (AVR 1sÐ
3s, for example) to optical drive cartridges.

You can archive larger media Þles and folders to a dedicated massstorage system, such as AVIDdrive DLT (digital linear tape).

You can consolidate or make copies of media Þles for transfer to
another system. For more information, see ÒTransferring a Project
to Another Media Composer ProductÓ on page 664.

Finding a Related Media File
The Reveal File command allows you to select a clip in a bin and automatically open up its related media Þle. This is useful if you want to
delete, move, or label the media Þle.
To Þnd a related media Þle:
1. Select the clip for which you want to Þnd the media Þle.
The clip is highlighted.
2. Choose Reveal File from the File menu.
The system searches on all available drives and opens the folder
and highlights the related media Þles.

281

Related
media files

Relinking Media Files
Sometimes after you consolidate or move material between systems,
the clips or sequences lose their link to the original media Þles. When a
clip becomes unlinked, it displays the message ÒMedia Ofßine.Ó If
appropriate media exists online, you can use the Relink command to
reestablish the link.

Media Offline message indicates a
clip with no link to
media files.

282

When you select subclips or sequences and choose the Relink command, the system searches for master clips that contain the same material included in the selection.
You can also relink master clips to appropriate media Þles. The system
compares information such as source tape name, timecode information, and channels digitized. If the search is successful, the system
establishes new links to the available media Þles. You can instruct the
system to search speciÞc drives, or all available drives.
To relink clips, subclips, or sequences:
1. Select the unlinked object or objects.
2. Choose Relink from the Clip menu.
The Relink dialog box appears.

3. Choose an option from the Volume pop-up menu:
¥

Choose All Available Disks to search across all drives that are
online.

Choose a speciÞc drive volume if you know the location of the
media, or want to relink to media on a speciÞc drive.

4. Select the option:

283

Select Relink To Selected to direct a relinking of related subclips or sequences to the highlighted clip in the bin.

Select the option Relink Master Clips to relink master clips to
media Þles that share similar database information.

5. Click OK. The system searches the selected drives and relinks if
possible.
The system disregards capture rate and audio resolution when matching media Þles.

If you want to be sure to maintain the original capture settings for a subclip
or sequence, use the Batch Digitize command; do not use the Relink command.

Relinking to Selected Clips
You can also use the Option key to modify the Relink command for
connecting subclips or sequences to selected master clips and subclips.
To relink to selected master clips and subclips:
1. Place the subclips or sequences that you want to relink into the bin
containing the clips.
2. Select the clips targeted for relinking.
3. Press the Option key and choose Relink from the Clip menu.
4. The subclips or sequences are linked to the selected clips or subclips.

Relinking Consolidated Clips
If the appropriate media exists online, you can reconnect consolidated
clips, subclips, or sequences to the new or old media Þles by choice.

284

For example, if you consolidated a sequence and forgot to create a
duplicate, and later Þnd that you want to use the original media Þles
instead of the consolidated media Þles, you can break the new link and
reestablish the old link to the original Þles.

Because subclips and sequences do not point directly to the media Þles, you
can only perform this procedure by using the source master clips.
To relink consolidated subclips or sequences:
1. Select the new master clips for a consolidated subclip or sequence
(the clips will have the sufÞx .new attached), and unlink them.
2. Choose Relink from the Clip menu.
3. Target the volume containing the original media Þles in the Relink
dialog box.
The clips are relinked to the original media.

Relinking Moved Projects
If you move projects between systems with similar media existing at
each site, but digitized separately, your clips and sequences will display the message ÒMedia Ofßine.Ó You can use Unlink and Relink
commands to reconnect the Þles at either site.
For example, if you have a project that requires sharing work repeatedly between two different sites, you can digitize the source material
once at each site, and exchange only the project folder at each stage,
rather than moving large media drives back and forth. The project
folder can be exchanged on 3.5-inch diskette, or instantly across a network. Because the media Þles maintain slightly different parameters at
each site, you must relink the material each time.
To relink a moved project:
1. Select the sequences and unlink them.
2. Select existing clips in the bin.
285

3. Press the Option key and choose Relink from the Clip menu.
The sequences are relinked to the local media.

Unlinking Media Files
You can use the Control and Shift keys to modify the Relink command
for unlinking clips from their media Þles.
To unlink master clips from their current links:
1. Select master clips to unlink.
2. Press Control-Shift and choose Unlink from the Clip menu.
The clips are unlinked and display the message ÒMedia Ofßine.Ó

Because subclips and sequences do not point directly to the media Þles, you
can only perform this procedure by using the source master clips.
If you have similar material from different sources, you can duplicate
a set of clips, unlink the duplicates, and then modify the sources of the
duplicates before digitizing the new source material.

For more information
on working with multicamera material, see
Chapter 18.

For example, if you are working with multicamera material, you can
digitize one reel, unlink the clips, duplicate them several times, and
rename their source tapes to batch digitize the remaining reels.

286

CHAPTER 11
Using Script Integration
The lined script is traditionally used as a tool for managing scene and
take information during postproduction on a dramatic feature Þlm or
television production. In Media Composer and Film Composer, script
integration allows you to adapt the lined script to the digital realm for
use in any type of production, from drama to documentary to spot
advertising. The following sections describe these methods:
¥

Line Script Basics

Script Window Basics

Manipulating Script Text

Searching Through Script

Linking Clips to the Script

Manipulating Slates

Manipulating Takes

Using Script Marks

Finding Clips and Script

Editing with the Script Window

287

Line Script Basics
The conventional lined script Ñ which evolved during decades of trial
and error in Hollywood Ñ provides assistant editors and chief editors
with a road map that helps them Þnd the coverage they need to edit
scenes in a Þlm or television show.
Traditionally, the continuity person creates the lined script on the set at
the time of shooting. All notes are handwritten. The following is an
example of a scene from a lined script:

88/1
88A/1 88A/2

88C/1 88C/2
88B/188B/2

288

88B/3

Explanation of Symbols
Each vertical line drawn through the scene represents a single take
from the moment the director says ÒActionÓ to the moment the director says ÒCut.Ó Each scene might require several camera angles and
positions, with one or more takes, all of which are lined and identiÞed
alphanumerically.
The following is a brief summary of the lining techniques and numbering system shown in the previous example:
¥

Master shot: The long line drawn through the middle of the scene
labeled 88/1 is the master shot that usually covers all the action in
a wide shot. The Þrst number in the label indicates the scene number as written on the script (scene 88). The number following the
slash indicates that this is the Þrst take captured on Þlm for the
master shot. A second take of the master shot, for example, would
be labeled 88/2.

Additional setups: The lines for each subsequent camera setup
within the scene are labeled with the scene number (88 in our
example) followed by a letter for each setup (A, B, C, and so forth),
followed by a slash and the number of the take within that setup.
These lines can be any length, depending upon what portion of
the script is covered by the particular shot.

Off-screen dialog: The jagged lines in the script represent the
parts of dialog where the actor is off screen. For example, the character Amanda is off camera during the action described in the second paragraph (when the character Laurel enters), so a jagged line
is drawn through the shots that cover Amanda (88A/1 and 2).

When the scene is recorded on videotape Ñ in a sitcom shoot, for
example Ñ the line script can also include timecode notes written next
to speciÞc lines of dialog that represent a sync point between the dialog on the page and the recorded dialog on tape. These sync points
provide assistant editors or chief editors with a quick path to speciÞc
points in the source material.

289

Lining in the Digital Realm
Script integration in Media Composer and Film Composer provides a
number of enhancements to this traditional system. These enhancements allow you to shorten dramatically the distance between the concepts captured on the page and the source materials used to assemble
a Þnished program.
Unlike the traditional lining of a script, digital script integration is
usually performed after the shoot Ñ by the assistant editor, for example Ñ using the notes of the continuity person. The following is an
example of the script shown in the previous section, prepared and
lined using script integration:

Tool bar
Slates

Color
indicator

Takes

Off-screen
indicator
Script mark

290

In addition to the standard lining conventions, script integration
includes the following enhancements:
¥

Slates: Takes are organized into slates that display a representative
frame and clip name for the take that is currently selected.

Takes: The nodes and lines extending from the bottom of each
slate indicate the number of takes for that scene. Click on a node to
select the take.

Indicators: You can apply off-screen dialog indicators or colors to
indicate such things as preferred takes, takes used in the current
active sequence, or line changes in dialog.

Script marks: The double arrows marking the takes at various
points represent marked lines of dialog in the script that have been
synchronized to matching dialog in the source clip. Script marks
are especially effective during editing, allowing the editor to
quickly locate dialog and piece together parts of a scene.

The script window provides additional controls for matching back to
clips in the source bins, loading and playing back takes, and searching
for takes and script text.

Script Integration Workflow
The basic workßow for script integration is as follows:
1. The continuity person or an assistant creates the lined script in
hardcopy form on the set during shooting.
2. Source footage from the shoot is prepared and digitized by using
methods described in Chapter 6 and Chapter 7.
3. The assistant editor uses the lined script from the shoot, a text Þle
of the script itself, and methods described throughout this chapter
to import and line the script, link clips to the script, place script
marks, and customize the display of takes prior to editing.
4. The editor uses the fully prepared script window to edit the program.
291

Using Script Integration in Video Projects
Script integration can be an effective tool for editing any type of production, not just feature Þlms and television drama. For example:
¥

You can adapt many of the procedures described in this chapter
for use in audio/visual scripts for documentaries, corporate spots,
news magazine segments, and spot advertisements.

You can turn script integration into a quick storyboarding tool by
positioning selected slates in the script window and printing out
storyboard bins that include your script.

The following is an example of an audio/visual script for a news magazine piece, imported into the script window, with most of the basic
features of script integration applied.

292

Narration track is
synced to the script.
All possible B-roll
shots are ready to be
loaded and cued.
Color indicates preferred shots.

Music cuts are linked
to appropriate sections of the script.

Script Window Basics
This section describes basic procedures for creating and manipulating
script windows, including importing script text; navigating through
the script; displaying clip information; opening, closing and saving
windows; and adjusting margins.

Before you begin creating script windows, make sure you have established the
proper defaults in Script Settings for font, margin, and display of frames and
takes, as described in the Avid Media Composer Products Reference. These
parameters can also be changed manually, as described throughout this chapter.
293

Importing a Script
The Þrst step in script integration is to import a script in the correct
format.

The imported script must be in ASCII text format. However, to
maintain the original formatting, export the script from your word
processor by using the Òtext with layoutÓ option. If you export the
script as ÒtextÓ only, the formatting will be lost.
To import a new script:
1. Place the Þle in a directory that is available to your system in one
of the following ways:
¥

Transport the Þle on a diskette and copy it to your internal
hard drive.

Place the Þle in a network location that you can access from
your system.

2. From within the Media Composer application, choose New Script
from the File menu.
A directory dialog box appears.

3. Locate the Þle and double-click it, or select the Þle and click Open.

294

The system creates a new bin named after the project by default.
The script, with its original layout, appears in the bin.
4. Change the name of the script bin by clicking the title in the
Project window and typing a new name.

Opening, Closing, and Saving the Script Window
The script window behaves in many respects like a bin:
¥

When you make changes in the script window, a small diamond
icon appears in the title bar to indicate that the changes have not
yet been saved.

You perform a save by choosing Save Script from the File menu.

Auto-save functionality also applies to the script window, based
on parameters established in the Bin settings.

Script window Þles are saved in the folder for the project along
with bins, and backup copies are automatically stored in the Attic
folder.

You can use the Open and Close commands in the File menu to
open additional script windows and add them to the Project window, or to close script windows.

Displaying Clip Information in a Script Window
To open the Clip Information window from a script window:
1. Press the Option key and click the take tab.
2. Drag the window to a new location to leave the window open.
For information on the Clip Information window, see ÒUsing the Clip
Information WindowÓ on page 232.

295

Navigating in the Script Window
After importing a script, you can navigate to any point in the text by
using basic techniques available in most word processors:

Scroll bar
Size box

Use the scroll bar on the right to scroll up or down.

Resize the window by dragging the size box in the lower right corner.

Press the Page Down or Page Up key to move a screen at a time.

Press the Home or End key to move to the beginning or end of the
script.

Press the Up Arrow or Down Arrow key to move your line selection up or down by one line.

You can also use several search features, as described in ÒSearching Through
ScriptÓ on page 302.

Adjusting the Script Margins
You can resize a script window at any time to show more script or to
enlarge the right margin by dragging the size box in the lower right
corner.
The default size of the left margin is established on import, based on
the current Script settings. You can also override the margin setting
and adjust the left margin after importing the script.
To adjust the left margin of an imported script:
1. Choose Left Margin from the Script menu.
The margin dialog box appears.

296

2. Type a new margin size, in pixels, into the text entry box and click
OK.
The script window reßects the new setting.

Manipulating Script Text
After importing a script, you can customize its appearance by changing the font and font size. You can also cut, copy, paste, or remove lines
of script to reßect changes that might occur in the course of a project.

Changing the Font of the Script
The default font and font size used in the script are established on
import, based on the current Script settings. You can also override the
settings and change the font and size after importing the script.
To change the font and size of imported script:
1. Choose Set Font from the Edit menu.
The font dialog box appears.

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2. Choose a new font from the pop-up menu. The menu includes all
fonts currently installed in the Fonts folder of the Macintosh System Folder.
3. Type a new font size into the entry box and click OK.
The script window reßects the new settings.

As you enlarge font size, the available sizes for the slate frames also increase.
This can be useful for presentation or screening purposes, when you need to
display extra-large text and slate frames for a large audience or across a room.
For information on enlarging slate frames, see ÒResizing a SlateÓ on
page 308.

Selecting Text
Selecting text in the script window is similar to making selections in a
word processor, except that the smallest unit you can select is an entire
line of text.
To select a single line of script, click anywhere in the line to highlight
it.

298

Selected lines are
highlighted.

To select several lines of script, use one of the following methods:
¥

Lasso the Þrst line of the selection and drag through the text. As
you drag, a box appears to outline your selection.

Lasso a portion of
script to select it.

299

Release the mouse button when you Þnish lassoing the chosen
lines. The text is highlighted.
¥

Click the Þrst line of the selection, then press the Shift key and
click the last line. The entire block of text is highlighted.

You can also extend a selection by pressing the Shift key and clicking a line of
text preceding or following the current selection.

Cutting, Copying, and Pasting Script
You can cut, copy, and paste text in the script just as you would in a
normal word processor. However, because you cannot select individual words or characters, you can only move lines or paragraphs.

You cannot undo cut, copy, or paste procedures in the script window.
To cut or copy and paste lines of script:
1. Select the lines.
2. Press kÐC to copy, or kÐX to cut.
3. Select the line below the location where you want to insert the text.
4. Press kÐV to paste the text.
If only one line is selected at the insertion point, an alert message
asks if you want to replace the selected line.

300

5. Select one of the following:
¥

Click Yes if you selected lines at the insertion point that you
want to overwrite.

Click No if you want to insert the text above the selected line.

The text is pasted into the script.

To rearrange or rewrite individual words or characters in the script, you
should make the changes in a word processor before importing them into a
separate script window. You can then use the procedures in this section to
copy and paste the new lines into the existing script window, overwriting the
incorrect lines.

Removing Script Text
You cannot delete lines of text from the script window by using the
Delete key as you would in a normal word processor. Use the Cut
command to remove the text instead.
To remove lines of script:
1. Select the lines of script you want to delete.
2. Press kÐX to cut the text from the script.
Unlike a normal deletion, the text remains in the Macintosh Clipboard
until the next time you copy or cut a selection.

301

Searching Through Script
You can use the Find
Bin and Find Script buttons to match back and
forth between script
and clips. For more
information, see ÒFinding ScriptÓ on
page 321.

Script integration provides a number of search tools you can use during the preparation phase, during editing, or during screenings. You
can apply and search for page or scene numbers, or you can conduct a
full-text search.

Using Page and Scene Numbers
When you add page and scene numbers to the script window, you
gain the ability to search for them during preparation of the script and
during editing. You can customize page and scene numbering by adding, changing, and moving the numbers as necessary.

Adding a Page or Scene Number
To add a page or scene number:
1. Select the line of the script at the beginning of the scene or page.
2. Click the Add Scene or the Add Page button in the script window
tool bar, or choose Add Scene or Add Page from the Script menu.
The Add Scene or Add Page dialog box appears.

3. Type the number for the scene or page, and click OK.

302

In the case of a scene, the number appears in the left margin next
to the Þrst line of the selected region.

New scene number

Scene/page status bar

Scene and page numbers both appear in the status bar at the bottom of the script window, and reßect your current position within
the script. Each scene or page number will continue throughout
the script until you mark another line as the beginning of a new
scene or page.

Changing a Page or Scene Number
You can change a scene or page number both to correct any errors that
occur when adding numbers, and to reposition scene and page numbering to match script changes during postproduction.
To change a page or scene number:
1. Select the beginning line of the previous scene or page.
2. Click the Add Scene or Add Page button in the script window tool
bar, or choose Add Scene or Add Page from the Script menu.
The Change Scene or Change Page dialog box appears.

303

3. Type a new number for the scene or page and click OK.
4. If the renumbering affects page or scene numbers that precede or
follow the current change, then repeat these steps as necessary.

Deleting a Page or Scene Number
To delete a page or scene number:
1. Select the Þrst line of the scene or page.

You can also delete all page or scene numbering throughout a range of the
script by selecting the range of lines, or the entire script.
2. Press the Delete key.
The Delete dialog box appears.

304

3. Select the options for Delete scene or Delete page break(s), as
appropriate, then click OK.
The numbering is deleted from the script window.

Searching for a Page and Scene Number
Once you have added scene and page numbers, you can search for
them quickly during editing.
To search for a page or scene number:
1. Choose Goto Page or Goto Scene from the Script menu.

You can also click on the page or scene display in the status bar at the bottom
of the script window.
A dialog box appears.
2. Type the number of the scene or page and click OK.
The script window scrolls to the page or scene, and the Þrst line of
script is highlighted.

Conducting a Text Search
To search for text in the script:
1. With the script window active, choose Find from the Edit menu.
The Find dialog box appears.
2. Type the text you are looking for.
3. Select one of the optional search parameters, when appropriate:
¥

Choose Ignore case if you do not want the search to be case
sensitive.

Choose Whole word if you do not want the search to highlight
instances where your text is one part of another word.

305

4. Click OK.
The Þrst occurrence of the text is highlighted in the script window.
5. Choose Find Again from the Edit menu to search for the next
occurrence of the text.

Linking Clips to the Script
To link clips to the script:
1. Open the script bin.
2. Open the source bin for the clips that you want to link to the script.
3. (Option) Sort the source clips to make the job easier:
¥

You can sort the Scene/Take column for an alphanumeric list
of clips that matches their relative order in the script.

If you are not working with scene and take information (for
example, in a video documentary project), you can provide
your own numbering for the clips in a custom column, or you
can sort the clips manually in Frame mode according to their
order in the script. For more information on adding a custom
column, see ÒAdding Customized Columns to a BinÓ on
page 247.

4. Select the portion of the script that is covered by the Þrst clip or
clips.
5. Select the clip or clips in the source bin and drag them to the highlighted text.

306

Drag a clip or several clips to
the highlighted text.

A slate frame appears above the text, with one or more of the takes
covering the scene as lines.

The slate appears.

6. Continue to apply clips to additional portions of the script until
you have Þnished creating all your slates.
Alternatively, you can create slates one at a time, place script
marks, and Þne-tune the lining of each scene before proceeding to
the next portion of the script.
307

Manipulating Slates
Once you create a slate by dragging a clip into the script window, you
can manipulate the slateÕs appearance and position.

Selecting Slates
There are several ways to select slates:

Click a slate to select it.

Shift-click additional slates to select all the active takes.

Drag a lasso through a region of the script containing slates. All
slates and takes within the lasso are selected.

Selecting multiple slates is especially useful when you are adding or deleting
color or off-screen dialog indicators across takes, as described in ÒManipulating TakesÓ on page 311.

Resizing a Slate
You can resize a slate the same way you resize frames in the bin in
Frame mode:

To enlarge a slate, select it and press kÐL or choose Enlarge Frame
from the Edit menu.

To reduce a slate, select it and press kÐK or choose Reduce Frame
from the Edit menu.

You can enlarge the font size of the script to increase the size of the slate
frames. This can be useful for presentation or screening purposes, when you
need a large display for an audience. For information on resizing the font, see
ÒChanging the Font of the ScriptÓ on page 297.

308

Hiding Slate Frames
By default, the system displays a representative frame for each take in
the slates. You can hide this frame display and show only the clip
name to simplify the interface or speed up scrolling and movement in
a complex script window.
To hide the slate frames, choose Show Frames from the Script menu.
The script window shows only the clip names for the takes.

To restore the frames, choose Show Frames again.

Showing One Take Per Slate
You can display only one representative take per slate to minimize
clutter on the screen.
To show one take per slate, choose Show All Takes from the Script
menu. The script window shows only the Þrst take in each slate.

309

A single take is shown.

To display all the takes, choose Show All Takes again.

Moving a Slate
You can adjust the position of slates to make room for more slates, to
avoid blocking words, or to display takes over speciÞc lines.
To move a slate, use one of the following methods:
¥

To move a slate horizontally, click the slate and drag it to the left or
the right. (If necessary, resize the script window by dragging the
size box.)

To move a slate vertically without moving the position of the take
lines in the script, click the slate and drag it up or down. The take
lines remain Þxed over the text to which they have been previously linked.

To move the slate and all its take lines vertically to a new location
in the script, press the Command key, then drag the slate to the
new location.

310

As you move the slate, the takes continue to cover the same number of lines in
the script. To lengthen or shorten the number of lines covered in the takes at
the new location, see ÒAdjusting Take LinesÓ on page 314.

Deleting a Slate
Occasionally you might need to delete a slate Ñ for example, when
you Þnd that the takes in the slate are no longer needed.

When you delete slates and takes from the script window, the digitized source
clips remain in the source bins.
To delete a slate:
1. Select all the takes in the slate by pressing the Shift key and clicking the tab for each take.
2. Press the Delete key.
The Delete dialog box appears, indicating the number of takes to
be deleted.
3. Click OK to delete the takes.
The slate and all its takes are deleted from the script.

Manipulating Takes
Script integration provides a number of tools and techniques for
manipulating the relationship between lined takes in the script window and their source clips, as described in this section.

Selecting Takes
To select takes, use one of the following methods:

311

Click any take tab to select it. The outline of the take becomes bold
to indicate that the take is active.

Shift-click additional takes in the same slate or across slates to
select them.

Drag a lasso through an entire region of the script. All takes within
the lasso are selected.

Selecting multiple takes is especially useful when adding or deleting color or
off-screen dialog indicators, as described in ÒIndicating Off-Screen DialogÓ
on page 315, and ÒUsing Color IndicatorsÓ on page 316.

Adding Takes
To add another take to an existing slate:
1. Select the region of the script that the take covers.
2. Open the bin where the clip for the take is located.
3. Drag the clip to the slate.
The new take appears in the slate and is applied to the selected
region of the script.

Deleting Takes
As you screen clips, you might Þnd that a take has been applied to the
wrong scene and should be deleted from the slate. Or, you might
decide to delete a bad take to simplify the script interface for the editor.
To delete one or more takes:
1. Select the takes.
2. Press the Delete key.
The Delete dialog box appears.
312

3. Click the Delete Takes checkbox, then click OK.
The takes are deleted.

Displaying Take Numbers
To display take numbers within the tab of each take, enter the numbers
in the Take column of the source bin for the clips.
Numbers in the Take column
appear in the tabs for each
take.

Changing the Representative Frame for a Take
To change the representative frame that appears in the slate for a take:
1. Select the take.
2. Press the appropriate J-K-L (step) keys on the keyboard to advance
the footage displayed in the slate forward or backward to the
frame you want.
You can also select multiple takes and advance them all at once.
313

Loading Takes
You can load individual takes into the Source monitor one at a time, or
you can load multiple takes, as follows:
¥

Double-click any take tab.

Select multiple takes, then double-click any take in the selection.

Playing Takes
There are two ways to play back a take:
¥

Double-click a take to load it into the Source monitor, then click
the Play button or press the Play key.
The clip plays back and stops when it reaches the end.

Select a take in the script, then click the Play button at the top of
the script window.
The clip loads and plays back in a continuous loop until you press
the space bar. If you selected more than one take, each take will
play in sequence.

Adjusting Take Lines
As you screen clips in the script, you might Þnd that a take or group of
take lines should begin earlier or end later in the script. You can adjust
the take lines by moving the beginning mark, the end mark, or both.
To change the length of a take line:
1. Press the Command key (k).
Notice the movement icon that appears when you point the cursor
at either end of the take.
2. Click the end mark or beginning mark of a take and drag it until
you reach the correct line in the script.
314

3. Press the Command key and drag the opposite end of the take to a
new location if necessary.
4. Repeat the procedure for other takes in the slate as necessary.

Indicating Off-Screen Dialog
In the traditional lined script, you indicate off-screen dialog by drawing a jagged line next to the dialog. You can apply a similar effect to
lines in the script window.
To indicate off-screen dialog:
1. Select the range of script containing the off-screen dialog.
2. Select one or more takes that you want to mark with the off-screen
indicators.
3. Click the Off-Screen button in the script window tool bar.
The indicators appear, superimposed on the selected takes. You
can toggle the indicators on or off by clicking the button repeatedly.
To remove one or more off-screen indicators:
1. Select the range of script containing the off-screen indicators.
2. Select only those takes that display the indicators.
3. Click the Off-Screen button.

315

Using Color Indicators
You can use color to indicate several pieces of information, including:
¥

Preferred takes or takes used in the current active sequence

Picture versus audio track used in the current active sequence

Line changes in dialog

Use of multiple cameras

To apply color to takes:
1. Choose a color from the Color submenu of the Script menu.
2. Select the region of the script that covers the range within the take
or takes that you want to highlight with color.
3. Select one or more takes.
4. Click the Color button in the script window tool bar.
The color appears only in the highlighted script region of the
selected takes. You can toggle the indicators on or off by clicking
the button repeatedly.
To remove one or more color indicators:
1. Select the range of script containing the color indicators.
The Þrst take in the selected region determines the color indicator
status displayed in the Color button.
2. Select only those takes that display the indicators.
3. Click the Color button.

Using Script Marks
Script marks allow you to synchronize individual lines of script with
matching points in digitized clips. When you place a mark in the
316

script, an IN mark also appears in the clip when you load it into a
monitor for editing. This provides line-by-line control over alternative
takes that the editor can instantly load and edit into the sequence.
You can place script marks one take at a time, or you can automate the
process of screening and marking selected takes in a playback loop.

Placing Script Marks Manually
To place script marks manually:
1. Map the Add Script Mark button from the Command Palette to a
user-customizable palette or to the keyboard.
2. Double-click in the script window at the intersection of a take and
the line of dialog that you want to mark.

Intersection of take
and line of dialog

The take is selected in the slate, the chosen line of the dialog is
highlighted, and the clip loads into the Source monitor.
3. Click or press Play. The take plays in the monitor.
Alternatively, you can step (jog) or shuttle through the footage,
place the position indicator on the exact frame, or scrub the audio
317

to Þnd the exact line of dialog. The clip does not have to be playing.
4. When the playback reaches the chosen line of dialog, click the Add
Script Mark button or key.
The line is marked in the script window with a small horizontal
bar, and play stops.

The script mark
appears

5. Repeat these steps to add additional script marks.

Automating Screening and Marking
The script window provides controls for automating the process of
screening and placing script marks for a single take or across multiple
takes.
To use automated screening and marking:
1. Select one or more takes.
2. Click the Record Marks button in the script window tool bar.
The Þrst selected take turns green in the script window, the system
automatically loads the clip into the Source monitor, and the clip
begins to play.

318

Several takes are
selected for automated
playback.

Current playback is
highlighted in green.

3. As you hear a line of dialog (or see a particular shot) that you want
to mark, click the matching line in the script window.
A script mark appears at that location in the take, and the clip continues to play.
4. Continue to mark additional sync points by using one of the following methods:
You can scroll through
the script window without affecting playback.

Click a line that already contains a mark to replace the previous mark and update the sync point in the clip.

Click a line in the script before or after the range of the existing take line, and the mark will be added while the take line is
extended to include the new line.

Use variable-speed play controls (J-K-L keys on the keyboard)
to shuttle, step, or pause during playback.

Press the Tab or Shift-Tab keys on the keyboard to begin playback of the next or the previous take.

As each take reaches its end, the system automatically loads and
plays the next take.
5. Continue to place marks until all takes have been screened.
6. To stop the playback loop, press the space bar.

319

Loading and Playing Marked Segments
Once you have placed marks syncing lines in your script to points in
the source clips, you can quickly load and cue takes for selected lines
of dialog. You can load a single take, or you can load all the coverage
for any given range of lines.
To load the marked segment of a take, click the script mark at the line
of dialog that you want to cue.
The take is loaded into the Source monitor and cued to the synced line
of dialog. An IN mark is placed at the sync location.
To load all the coverage for a range of lines:
1. Select the lines in the script window, dragging through all intersecting takes.
The script lines and takes are highlighted.
2. Click the Play button in the script window if you want to screen
the takes for those lines, or click the Record Marks button if you
want to add script marks.
The takes load and play back one after another. You can use the
Tab key or J-K-L keys to jump between takes and control playback.

Moving a Script Mark
When you move a script mark up or down, the mark in the source clip
remains at the same frame, but is resynced to a new line in the script.
To move a script mark:
1. Press the Command key.
Notice the movement indicator that appears when you point the
cursor at a mark in the script.
2. Click the mark and drag it to the new position.
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Deleting a Script Mark
When you remove a script mark, you do not delete the marked portion
of the take, only the sync point between the script and the source clip.
To delete a script mark:
1. Click once on the mark. (If you double-click, you will load the clip
and make the Source/Record window active.)
2. Press the Delete key.
The Delete dialog box appears.
3. Click OK. The mark is deleted.

Finding Clips and Script
After you have placed script marks, synchronizing lines in the script
window to frames in the source clips, you can use the Find Bin or Find
Script buttons to search back and forth between the two.

Finding Script
The Find Script button allows you to quickly match back from currently loaded clips to portions of script in the script window to which
the clip has been linked.
To Þnd the script linked to a loaded clip:
1. Place the position indicator in the clip at the line of dialog (or
within a range of dialog) that you want to Þnd.
2. Click the Find Script button.
The script window instantly scrolls to and highlights the portion
of script that most closely matches the clip location.
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Finding Clips and Bins from the Script
Script integration allows you to search instantly through bins and Þnd
the source clips for takes that have been linked to the script. You can
search on a single take, or on multiple takes across several slates.
To Þnd source clips and bins:
1. Select the takes that you want to Þnd.
2. Click the Find Bin button in the script window tool bar.
The system searches through bins linked to the project, opens the
bin containing the linked clips, and highlights them in the bin.

Editing with the Script Window
Using the script window in combination with the Single Mark Editing
feature, an editor can conduct a highly streamlined form of editing. To
use the script window most effectively during a session, make sure:
¥

The script window is fully prepared, including preferred takes,
alternative takes (indicated with colors), and script marks for
matching lines of text to sync points in the clips.

322

The Single Mark Editing option is enabled in Composer settings.
This option allows you to skip several steps by performing edits
on-the-ßy while playing back clips (without marking OUT points).
For more information, see ÒUsing Single Mark EditingÓ on
page 386.

Script Editing Workflow
To quickly assemble a rough cut from the script window:
1. Open the script window for the current cut.
2. Double-click the Þrst preferred take and load it into the Source
monitor. The IN point is already marked and cued.
3. Play the take until the appropriate OUT point is reached, and click
the Splice-in or Overwrite button to make the Þrst edit.
4. Prepare the sequence for the next edit:
a. Create new tracks if necessary.
b. Enable the appropriate source and record tracks.
c. Patch the tracks if necessary.
d. Mark an IN point in the sequence for the next edit.
5. Double-click the next preferred take to load it.
6. Play the clip until you reach the appropriate OUT point, and perform the edit on-the-ßy.
7. Repeat steps 4 through 6 until you have walked through the entire
scene or segment.
8. Fine-tune the edits by using normal trimming and editing procedures. Continue to use the script window to quickly load and cue
alternative takes as necessary.

323

Splicing a Script Range
During editing, you can use the Control key to instantly splice clips
linked to ranges of script directly from the script window into the
sequence. To use this feature with accuracy, you should carefully mark
the ranges of script during the screening and marking phase.
To splice a range:
1. Mark an IN point or place the position indicator at the location in
the sequence where you want to splice in the segment.
2. Press the Control key. Notice that the Splice-insert arrow appears
when you point to a take.
3. Double-click the preferred take within the range of dialog that has
been marked.
The marked section of the clip is spliced into the sequence.

Revising the Script
During or after each session, or when a scene or segment is completed,
the editor or assistant editor can update the script window to reßect
the Þnal edit decisions made during the day. In this way you can
maintain a complete record of the elements used to construct the scene
or segment, as well as all existing alternatives. When further changes
or repackaging are required, you can quickly retrieve all the source
material in one window.

Interactive Screenings
The script window can be an invaluable tool during screenings of
work in progress, allowing you to:
¥

Quickly search for scenes and pages with clips attached for instant
retrieval.

324

Sequences cannot be
loaded into the script
window. Alternatively,
you can perform a
video mixdown and
load the resulting master clips instead. For
more information, see
ÒUsing Video MixdownÓ on page 629.

All alternative takes are
available for viewing and
comparing.

Match back and cue source material to compare alternative takes.

Quickly Þnd and open bins for retrieval of additional material not
included in the script window.

Enlarge the script font and slate frames for better viewing by your
audience.

The script window provides a visual, interactive look at the content of
the original script versus the elements in the Þnal piece.
Matching colors indicate takes
used in the preferred cut as
well as alternative cuts.

325

You can mix down alternative
cuts to form master clips and
place them alongside the script.

CHAPTER 12
Viewing and Marking
Footage
Before making your Þrst edit, you can review your footage, add locators to clips, mark IN and OUT points, or create subclips. By viewing
and marking your material in advance, you can concentrate on editing
and reÞning your sequence at a later time without having to pause
and set marks each time you load a new clip. Complete techniques for
playback, viewing, and subcataloging clips are described in the following sections:
¥

Customizing the Composer Window

Viewing Methods

Using the Window Zoom Box

Loading and Clearing Footage

Controlling Playback

Marking and Subcataloging Footage

Finding Frames, Clips, and Bins

Using the Manual User Interface (MUI)

326

Customizing the Composer Window
The Composer window is central to the editing process, providing all
the essential controls for viewing, tracking, marking, and editing
source and record footage.
The Composer window consists of all the elements displayed by
default in the Edit monitor. The upper region of the screen constitutes
Source/Record mode. The lower region constitutes the Timeline window.
Composer window

Source/Record
window

Timeline
window

Use the Composer Settings dialog box and various pull-down menus
within the Composer window to conÞgure displays and functions.
You can learn about Composer settings as follows:

327

For an overview of all Composer settings, see the Avid
Media Composer Products Reference.

For more information on the following settings, see the applicable
sections in this guide:
-

Digital audio scrub parameters (see ÒUsing Digital Audio
ScrubÓ on page 484)

Play Multicamera Singularly option (see Chapter 18)

Sync Point Editing (see ÒUsing Sync Point EditingÓ on
page 567)

Phantom Marks option (see ÒUsing Phantom MarksÓ on
page 386)

Options for creating tracks in the Timeline (see ÒAdding a
TrackÓ on page 443)

In addition, you can:
¥

Map various buttons onto command palettes or the keyboard, as
described in ÒAbout Button MappingÓ on page 96.

Display or hide labels on buttons by using Interface settings, as
described in ÒReviewing Basic SettingsÓ on page 63.

ConÞgure the appearance of the Timeline as described in ÒCustomizing Timeline ViewsÓ on page 399.

Changing the Source/Record Window Background Color
To change the background color of the Source/Record window:
1. Click in the Source/Record window to make it active.
2. Choose Set Composer Background from the Edit menu.
3. Choose a shade of gray for the background from the pop-up palette.

328

Using the 16 x 9 Display Format
Releases 6.0 and later of the Avid Composer system support the 16 x 9
display format for standard NTSC and PAL signals. This option allows
you to display the full aspect ratio of wide-screen video in the Source
and Record monitors during editing.

The 16 x 9 preference does not enable the use of 16 x 9 HDTV (High DeÞnition Television) video with the Avid Composer system. You can, however,
transfer HDTV to NTSC or PAL videotape formats that you can digitize for
ofßine editing.
To enable the 16 x 9 display:
1. Click the Settings button in the Project window.
2. Double-click Composer in the Settings scroll list. The Composer
Window Settings dialog box appears.

16 x 9 option

3. Select Big Source/Record Monitors.
4. Select the option for 16 x 9.

Displaying Tracking Information
Tracking information consists of any type of format used to identify
clips, audio and video tracks, individual frames, or footage durations
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while you work. The Media Composer interface displays this information above the monitors in the Source/Record window. This information is updated continuously to reßect your current position in the
footage. You can choose various alternative tracking formats from
pull-down menus.

Tracking Information Displays for the Source and Record monitors
Click on display
area to access
Tracking Information Display menu
Second row of
information (the
top row)
First row of information (the bottom
row)

Pull-down menus
for the selected
source-side row

By default, the tracking information area displays no information until
you select a tracking format. In addition, there is no display of tracking
data when there is no material loaded in the monitor. If you load a clip
and no information is currently displayed, you can still open the pulldown menu by clicking in the area above a monitor.
To choose a tracking information format:
1. Load a clip or sequence into the monitor.
2. Click in the information display area in either the Þrst or second
row of information above the monitor and choose a format.

330

For more information
on Composer settings,
see the Avid Media
Composer Products
Reference.

If you select the option for two information rows above the monitors
in the Composer settings, you can display two different types of tracking information for the footage in each monitor. For example, you can
display both running timecode and IN to OUT durations for clips
loaded in the Source monitor. You can display similar information for
the sequence shown in the Record monitor.

Tracking Format Options
The Tracking Information Display menu contains a number of options
for information to display above the monitors. The following is a summary of the contents of the menu.
¥

The upper portion of the menu lists options for summary information, such as master timecode (Mas), duration of the entire clip
(Dur), IN to OUT duration (I/O), absolute timecode (Abs), and
time remaining (Rem).

Upper portion of
the menu

The second portion of the menu lists options for displaying the
timecode for a speciÞc track (V1, A1, A2, and so forth). This list
contains options only for the tracks existing in the currently
loaded clip or sequence. For example, a clip with only one audio
track does not show an option for A2.

Second portion of
the menu

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The menu for the Record monitor contains an added third portion
for displaying Clip Name. Choose this option to display clip
names in the sequence for a particular track that you choose from
a submenu. The name displayed is continuously updated based
on the location of the position indicator.

The lower portion of the menu lists tracking formats, such as timecode in hours, minutes, seconds, and frames (Timecode), feet and
frames for Þlm projects (Footage), a sum total of frames for either
Þlm or video (Frames), or none, to leave the display area blank.

Third portion
(Record monitor
menu only)

Lower portion of
the menu

Displaying the Clip Information Window
The Clip Information window displays statistical information about a
clip. You can open the Clip Information window from the Source and
Record monitors or a pop-up monitor. The window updates the information automatically.
With the Timeline active, click in the gray area just above the Splice-in
or Overwrite buttons.
¥

To display information about the clip or sequence in the Source
monitor, click above the yellow Splice-in button.

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To display information about the sequence in the Record monitor,
click above the red Overwrite button.

Only Þelds with data will be displayed.

As you move the position indicator through the clip in the Source or
Record monitor, the information in the window is updated.

Around the Source and Record monitors, you can click almost anywhere
within the gray area to open the Clip Information window.
If no clip is loaded in the Source or Record monitor, the Clip Information window does not open.
To open the Clip Information window from a pop-up monitor:
1. With a pop-up monitor open, click in the gray area at the top of the
pop-up monitor.
2. Drag the window to a new location to leave the window open.
For more information, see ÒUsing the Clip Information WindowÓ on
page 232.

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Setting Timecode Displays
Each pop-up monitor has two lines available to display timecode. The
Timeline also displays two lines of timecode. The Timecode window
allows you to display up to eight lines of timecode in a separate window.
To set a timecode display:
1. Choose Timecode from the Tools menu.
The Timecode window opens.
Close box

Resize

If you resize the Timecode window, the text adjusts to Þt the window.
2. Click anywhere in the Timecode window. The Timecode pop-up
menu appears.
3. Choose an option from the Timecode pop-up menu. See Table 12-1
for a description of these options.
The window displays the timecode you have chosen.

Table 12-1

Timecode Display Options

Option

Description

Mas

Displays master timecode at present location.

Dur

Displays total duration of the sequence.

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Table 12-1

Timecode Display Options (Continued)

Option

Description

I/O

Displays duration between IN and OUT marks.

Abs

Displays absolute time duration at present position.

Rem

Displays time remaining at present position.

Displays the source track of the video on track 1.

Displays the source track of the audio on track 1.

Displays the source track of the audio on track 2.

Timecode

Displays tracking information as timecode.

Footage

Displays tracking information as feet and
frames.

Frames

Displays tracking information as total frames.

None

Hides the display of information.

Add Display

Allows you to set multiple timecode displays.

Setting Multiple Timecode Displays
To set multiple timecode displays:
1. Place the cursor anywhere in the Timecode window, and press the
mouse button.
2. Select Add Display from the pop-up menu. The maximum number of lines to display is eight.

You might need to resize the timecode display to see all the options. To do so,
click and drag the lower right corner of the window.
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3. Click the close box to close the Timecode window.

Viewing Methods
You can work with clips and sequences in several different ways,
depending upon your needs and preferences. Each method has its
own uses and advantages, as follows:
¥

Viewing in bins: You see pictorial images of the clips in your bins
by using Frame view. You can also list the clips by name by using
Text view.

Viewing in the Source monitor: You can load clips and sequences
into the Source monitor to view and mark or subcatalog shots for
use in a sequence that you build in the Record monitor.

Viewing in the Record monitor: You can load a sequence into the
Record monitor to view, mark, or modify an existing sequence.
You cannot load clips directly into the Record monitor unless you
option-drag a series of clips to create an Òinstant sequence (rough
cut).Ó For more information, see ÒCreating an Instant Rough CutÓ
on page 381.

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Source monitor with clip loaded

Record monitor with sequence loaded

Viewing in pop-up monitors: You can load clips into pop-up
monitors to view and mark one or several clips simultaneously in
smaller, movable windows.

Two pop-up monitors with clips
loaded

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Viewing in the Timeline: Use the Timeline to view individual
tracks for either a sequence or a source clip.

Viewing in NTSC mode: You can use the third, full-screen monitor to view your footage in a broadcast format.

Timeline in Source
mode for viewing
tracks

Using the Window Zoom Box
The zoom box allows you to shrink the Source and Record monitors
and any pop-up monitor, displaying only the position bars for each
window, the editing buttons, and the Timeline. No video is displayed
(except on the third, full-screen monitor).
To shrink the monitors to display only the position bars, the editing
buttons, and the Timeline:
1. With the Record monitor active, click the zoom box located in the
upper right corner of the Record monitor.
Zoom box

The video disappears. Only the Source and Record monitors, position bars, buttons, and Timeline are displayed.
2. With the Record monitor active, click the zoom box again to redisplay the video.

338

Loading and Clearing Footage
You can load individual or multiple clips or sequences into the Source
and Record monitors, into pop-up monitors, or into Full-Screen mode
by using different methods. You can also use the Monitor menus to
display or clear clips and sequences from the screen, as described in
this section.

Loading into Source, Record, and Pop-Up Monitors
To load a single clip or sequence:
1. Open a bin and locate the clip or sequence.
2. Double-click the clip or sequence with one of the following results:

Press and hold the
Option key, then double-click to reverse the
outcome.

If you have set the ÒLoads clip into source or record monitorÓ
option in the Bin Settings dialog box (the default setting), a
clip loads into the Source monitor or a sequence loads into the
Record monitor.

If you have set the ÒOpens new monitor for clipÓ option in the
Bin Settings dialog box, the clips load into multiple pop-up
monitors.

You can also load a sequence into the Source monitor (for editing into
another sequence, for instance) by clicking and dragging from the bin
to the monitor.

Loading Multiple Clips or Sequences
You can quickly load several clips and sequences into the Source and
Record monitors, or into multiple pop-up monitors.
To load multiple clips:
1. Open a bin and Shift-select clips, or lasso multiple clips.
339

You can also drag multiple clips directly into
the Record monitor to
create a sequence. For
more information, see
ÒSelecting Clips and
SequencesÓ on
page 233.
Press and hold the
Option key, then
double-click to reverse
the outcome.

2. Drag the selected clips to a monitor, or double-click one of the
selected clips, with one of the following results:
¥

If you have set the ÒLoads clip into source or record monitorÓ
option in the Bin Settings dialog box (the default), the clips
load into the Source monitor.

If you have set the ÒOpens new monitor for clipÓ option in the
Bin Settings dialog box, the clips load into multiple pop-up
monitors.

Using the Monitor Menus
When you have clips loaded into a monitor, you use the Monitor pulldown menu located above each monitor to switch between various
loaded clips, or to clear clips from monitors.

Switching Between Loaded Clips
When you have loaded multiple clips into the Source or the Record
monitor, you will see only one clip displayed at a time. You can view
an alphabetical list of the loaded clips and choose an alternate clip for
viewing.
To switch between clips:
1. Click the name of the current clip displayed above the monitor to
reveal the Monitor menu. The list in the lower portion of the menu
contains a list of all the clips or sequences currently loaded in the
monitor.

340

The lower portion
of the Monitor
menu contains a
list of loaded
clips.

2. Choose a different clip name from the menu. The selected clip will
replace the current clip in the monitor display.

To see the list of clips or sequences sorted in the order in which they were
loaded into the monitor, press the Option key while opening the pop-up menu.

Clearing Clips from Monitors
There are two options for clearing clips:
¥

Remove the clip display and leave the monitor black but keep the
clip loaded.

Remove all the clip names from the Monitor menu and leave only
the displayed clip loaded.

To clear the monitor or the clip names from the menu:
1. Click the Source monitor or the Record monitor to select.
2. Click the name of the clip currently displayed above the monitor
to reveal the Monitor menu.
3. Choose one of the following commands:
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Clear Monitor removes the displayed clip from the screen,
leaving black. The clips are still loaded.

Clear Menu deletes the list of all loaded clip names and leaves
only the clip currently displayed.

Loading Footage into Full-Screen Mode
Release 7.0 and later of the Avid Composer system supports the use of
a full-screen monitor. The Full-Screen Monitor window appears on the
Edit monitor (you do not need a special editor monitor) whether or not
you have a third (client) monitor. This is helpful when you want to:
¥

Get a better feel for how your footage will play in a large format.

Examine details in the picture.

Screen clips or sequences for production personnel or an audience
seated some distance away from the monitors.

To load footage into a full-screen monitor:
1. Load the sequence into the Record monitor.
2. Choose Command Palette from the Tools menu.
3. Click the Toggle Full Screen icon.
The system creates a Full Screen mode workspace, reßected in the
Settings scroll list. The full screen appears on the Edit monitor.
The Þrst time you use Full Screen mode, you must drag the
Source/Record Monitors window and the Timeline window to the
Bin monitor. Subsequently, these windows will appear in the Bin
monitor whenever you go to Full Screen mode.
4. To return to regular mode, click the Toggle Full Screen icon.
The Full Screen Mode icon can be mapped the same way as other
command icons.

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Controlling Playback
You can also use the
MUI (Manual User
Interface) if your system is equipped with
one. For more information, see ÒUsing the
Manual User Interface
(MUI)Ó on page 366.

There are several ways to play, view, and cue clips:
¥

Instantly access frames or move through footage by using the position indicator within the position bar under the Source, Record, or
pop-up monitors.

Play, step (jog), or shuttle through footage by using user-selectable
buttons.

Play, step, or shuttle by using keyboard equivalents.

Step or shuttle by using the mouse.

Using Position Bars and Position Indicators
You can quickly access frames within a clip thatÕs been loaded into a
monitor or move through the footage by using the position indicators
that appear in both the position bars under Source, Record, or pop-up
monitors, and in the Timeline when you are viewing a sequence.
¥

You can move the position indicator within the position bar under
the Source, Record, or pop-up monitors by clicking anywhere in
the position bar, or by dragging the position indicator to the left or
right. The speed with which you drag the position indicator determines the speed at which you move through the footage.

Position indicator

Position bar

In the Timeline, the position indicator shows your position within
the sequence. It is always in the same position as the position indicator in the Record monitorÕs position bar, and works in the same
way: you can click anywhere in the Timeline to relocate the posi343

tion indicator, or you can drag the position indicator through footage at varying speeds.

Position indicator in Timeline

You can go directly to the beginning or end of a clip or sequence
by clicking at the far left or far right of the position bar or the
Timeline.

Using Buttons
You can use the user-selectable buttons that appear below the Source
and Record monitors and in the pop-up monitors to play and step
through your footage. You can also use the keyboard to manipulate
footage.
For more information
about mapping userselectable buttons, see
ÒAbout Button MappingÓ on page 96.

Aside from the default conÞgurations, these buttons can be remapped
from the Command Palette in any conÞguration onto any of the user
palettes and the keyboard.

Play Reverse, Play Forward, Pause, Stop, Rewind, and Fast Forward Buttons
The Play Reverse, Play Forward, Pause, Stop, Rewind, and Fast Forward buttons work much like the buttons on any conventional VCR.
With a clip loaded in a monitor, the Play Forward button plays your
footage at a normal rate. The Play Reverse button plays backward at a
normal rate. The Fast Forward and Rewind buttons instantly cue the
footage to the next transition between clips.
The Play Forward, Fast Forward, and Rewind buttons appear by
default in the Þrst row of buttons below the Source and Record moni344

tors and the pop-up monitors. Map the Play Reverse, Stop, and Pause
buttons onto your button rows from the Command Palette.

During playback, the Play Forward button also acts as a Stop button.
When viewing sequences in the Record monitor, you can play only
video and audio tracks that are currently monitored in the Track Selector panel. For more information, see ÒUsing the Track Selector PanelÓ
on page 435.
Play a clip by using the following procedure:
1. Load a clip or sequence into a monitor.
2. For sequences in the Record monitor, click the Video or Audio
Monitor buttons in the Track Selector panel.
3. Go to the start of the clip or sequence by clicking the start of the
position bar under the monitor, or pressing the Home key.
4. To play the clip or sequence, click the Play button under the chosen monitor.
5. To stop playback, press the space bar or click the Play button
again.

Step Buttons
You can also use the Step buttons under the monitors to play the clip
backward or forward in 1- to 10-frame increments.
When you have a single row of buttons displayed under your monitors, the Step Forward and Step Backward buttons appear. If you press
and hold the Option key while clicking either button, you can advance
10 frames forward and 10 frames backward.

To display all four Step buttons, you must display two rows of buttons under
the monitors when conÞguring the Source/Record window in the Composer
Window Settings dialog box. For more information, see the Avid
Media Composer Products Reference.
345

To step through footage:
1. Load a clip or sequence into a monitor.
2. Press the appropriate key to step 1 or 10 frames forward or backward.

Using the Keyboard
The default keyboard contains all of the buttons mentioned thus far.
Step buttons

Play/Step/Shuttle buttons

Home key
End key

Play button

Stop

You can move and replace buttons on the keyboard by using the Command
Palette, as described in ÒAbout Button MappingÓ on page 96.

J-K-L Keys (Three-Button Play)
The J-K-L keys on the keyboard allow you to play, step, and shuttle
through footage at varying speeds. This feature, also referred to as
three-button or variable-speed play, allows you to use three Þngers to
manipulate the speed of playback for greater control.
To shuttle through the footage by using the J-K-L keys on the keyboard:
1. Do one of the following:
346

Load a clip or sequence into the Source or Record monitor.

Open a pop-up monitor.

Select a clip in a bin in Frame mode.

2. Use the following keys to shuttle at varying speeds:
¥

Press the L key to move forward through the footage at normal speed. Press once to increase the forward speed 2 times,
twice to increase it 4 times, and 3 times to increase it 8 times
normal speed.

Press the J key to move backward at the same shuttle speed
increments.

Press the K and L keys together for slow forward.

Press the K and J keys together for slow backward.

Press the K key and tap the L key or the J key to step through
footage one frame at a time.

3. To pause the shuttling, press the K key.
4. To stop shuttling, press the space bar.

Home, End, and Arrow Keys
You can also use the Home, End, and arrow keys (located to the left of
the numeric keypad) to move through footage when a clip is loaded in
a monitor.
¥

The Home key takes you to the beginning of a clip or sequence.

The End key takes you to the end of a sequence.

The Left Arrow key moves the footage one frame forward.

The Right Arrow key moves the footage one frame backward.

347

Using Single-Field Step
Your Avid Composer system enables you to locate defects on individual Þelds of a frame with the single-Þeld step feature. By default,
Media Composer displays the Þrst Þeld of every frame when you step
through material frame by frame.
With single-Þeld step, you can view both Þelds of each frame sequentially to locate a dropout from the source videotape, or dust and
scratches from the original Þlm footage.
To use single-Þeld step:
1. Hold down the Control key and click the Step Forward button or
the Step Backward button.
2. Continue to hold down the Control key while you click the Step
Forward button (or the Step Backward button) to view each consecutive Þeld.
3. To return to viewing one Þeld from each frame, release the Control
key and click the Step Forward button (or the Step Backward
button).
Media Composer references the Þeld you were parked on (either
Þeld 1 or Þeld 2) when you released the Control key. Subsequent
single-frame steps will be based on this Þeld.

Any edits you make using the paint tools affect both Þeld 1 and Þeld 2 of each
frame.

Using the Mouse
You can use the mouse for one-handed control of playback. You can
either step or shuttle by using the mouse.

348

Stepping with the Mouse
To step by using the mouse:
1. Do one of the following:
¥

Load a clip or sequence into the Source or Record monitor.

Open a pop-up monitor.

Select a clip in a bin in Frame mode.

2. Do one of the following:
¥

Press the N key to activate mouse control for stepping.

Click the Mouse Jog button, which is available on the Command Palette and can be mapped to any button under the
Record monitor.

3. Move the mouse to the right to step forward, or to the left to step
backward.
4. To quit stepping with the mouse, press the space bar.

Shuttling with the Mouse
To shuttle by using the mouse:
1. Do one of the following:
¥

Load a clip or sequence into the Source or Record monitor.

Open a pop-up monitor.

Select a clip in a bin in Frame mode.

2. Do one of the following:
¥

Press the semicolon (;) key to activate mouse control for shuttling.

Click the Mouse Shuttle button, which appears on the Command Palette and can be mapped to an editing button under
the Record monitor.
349

3. Move the mouse to the right to increase the shuttle speed, or to the
left to decrease the shuttle speed.
4. To quit shuttling with the mouse, press the space bar or doubleclick the mouse button.
You can also use the keyboard in conjunction with the mouse to control shuttling. For example, if youÕre shuttling with the mouse and you
press the L key, the playback speeds up to the next normal play rate
(30, 60, 120, or 240 fps for NTSC; 25, 50, 100, or 200 fps for PAL; 24, 48,
96, or 192 fps for Þlm projects). You can continue to change the shuttle
speed and direction with the mouse.

Marking and Subcataloging Footage
You can speed the editing process by marking clips with IN and OUT
points, and/or by subcataloging by using locators and creating subclips, explained in this section. When subcataloging, you might want
to create or open additional bins for storing and isolating speciÞc subclips, marked clips, or sequences, as described in ÒUsing the Bins DisplayÓ on page 48.

Marking IN and OUT Points
You can mark IN and OUT points for your clips in advance, which
provides several advantages:
¥

You can quickly build a sequence by splicing the marked clips into
place one after another.

You can use the process of rough-cut or storyboard editing, which
allows you to instantly splice several prepared clips into a
sequence, as described in ÒCreating an Instant Rough CutÓ on
page 381.

You can play back and mark clips in the bin before loading a single
clip, saving several steps.
350

Even if your marks are not accurate now, Media Composer allows you
to trim the edit points and Þne-tune the sequence later without reediting the material.
To mark INs and OUTs in advance:
1. Load a clip or sequence from a bin into a monitor, or select a clip in
the bin.
2. Play, step, or shuttle through the material. Use the J-K-L keys
when playing a clip in a bin.
3. Click the Mark IN button under the monitor to mark an IN point
and stop playback. Use the Mark IN key on the keyboard when
marking a clip in a bin (Mark IN on the keyboard does not stop
playback).
The sawtooth icon appears on the left side of the monitor to indicate the IN mark frame.

Marked IN point

351

4. Continue playing, stepping, or shuttling through the material.
5. Click the Mark OUT button under the monitor to mark an OUT
point and stop playback. Use the Mark OUT key on the keyboard when marking a clip in a bin.
The sawtooth icon appears on the right side of the monitor to indicate the OUT mark frame.
6. To clear a mark and set a new one, do one of the following:
¥

To set a new IN point, click the Mark IN button or key when
you reach a different frame. Or, click the Clear IN button or
key to remove the IN point and then mark a new one.

To set a new OUT point, click the Mark OUT button or key
when you reach a different frame. Or, click the Clear OUT button to remove the OUT point and then mark a new one.

To clear both the IN and OUT points, click the Clear Marks
button or press the G key on the keyboard.

Marking an Entire Clip or Segment
Use the Mark Clip button to select an entire clip or an entire segment
from a sequence. (A segment in a sequence consists of the material
between any two edit points.)
1. Load a clip or sequence into a monitor.
2. In the case of a sequence, place the position indicator on the segment that you want to mark.
3. In the Source or Record monitors, select the tracks corresponding
to the cuts you want to mark.

352

4. Click the Mark Clip button under the monitor, or press the T key.

To ignore the current track selection and mark the smallest clip at the current
position in the sequence, press and hold the Option key while you click the
Mark Clip button.

Creating Subclips
When you mark footage with IN and OUT points, you can either save
the entire clip along with the new marks, or you can create subclips
based on the marks you set to break up longer master clips into
smaller segments of selected footage.
This is similar to creating outtakes of all of your best footage before
editing. Unlike outtakes, however, subclips do not directly reference
the original media. Subclips remain linked to the master clips from
which they are created, and the master clips in turn reference the digitized media Þles located on your storage drives. As a result, none of
the original footage is lost.
You can also create subclips while digitizing as
described in ÒCreating
Subclips On-the-FlyÓ
on page 189.

You can create subclips directly from the marked section of material in
the monitors by using one of the following methods:
¥

Use the Option key: Press and hold the Option key, then drag the
picture from the monitor to the bin in which you want to store the
subclip.

Use the Subclip handle: Click the subclip handle located above
and to the side of the monitor; then drag the subclip handle to the
bin in which you want to store the subclip.

Subclip handle

353

The subclip handle changes to an icon of a frame during the drag,
then becomes a subclip icon when you release the frame in the
intended bin.
¥

Use the Subclip button: Click the Subclip button located in one of
the command palettes to create the subclip and place it into the
active bin by default. If you press the Option key while you click
the Subclip button, a dialog box allows you to select the destination bin for the subclip.

The new subclip will be listed in the bin, preceded by a subclip icon
and identiÞed with a numbered .Sub sufÞx, as shown in the following
illustration.

A new subclip as referenced in
Text Display mode

For more information
on trimming, see Chapter 15.

Subclips do not limit your access to the original, digitized master clip
material when trimming. Therefore, if you must trim beyond the
marked IN to OUT boundaries of the subclip to make it longer or
shorter, your system does accommodate the boundary adjustments
during the trim.

354

Using Locators
Locators are a type of electronic bookmark. They allow you to Þnd and
identify speciÞc frames during editing. Key words you enter into the
comments attached to a locator allow you to use standard Find procedures to call up the clips quickly.

Ways to Use Locators
By default the Add
Locator button appears
only on the user tear-off
palettes in the Composer window. You can
map the Locator button
elsewhere, as described
in ÒAbout Button MappingÓ on page 96.

There are many possible uses for locators. A few basic examples are:
¥

Color correction notations: Use locators to mark clips or specify
frames that require color correction, with notes on the speciÞc correction to perform if someone else does the job.

Visual track alignments: Use locators at matching points in synchronized audio and video tracks, so that if the tracks lose sync
you can visually realign the locators in the Timeline to restore sync
(for more information on sync, see Chapter 17).

Music cues: Use locators to mark the IN and OUT points for
music.

Trim markers: Use locators in the Timeline to return directly to an
edit youÕve designated for further trimming at a later time.

Cutaway markers: Use locators to identify cutaway shots with
comments, so that when you return to cover jump-frame edits
with cutaway footage, you can quickly call up the shots using
basic Find procedures.

When you insert a locator, it appears as an orange oval in the Timeline,
the position bar, and at the bottom of the frame in the monitor.

355

Locator displayed in
the monitor, the position bar, and the
Timeline

You can add locators to your source material while you are in an editing session, as described in the following section. You can also add
locators while digitizing, as described in ÒAdding Locators On-theFlyÓ on page 190.

Adding Locators While Editing
To add locators while in an editing session:
1. Load a sequence or clip.
2. Cue to the frame and click the Add Locator button.
The locator oval appears in the Timeline, in the position bar, and at
the bottom of the frame in the monitor.
3. Double-click the locator in the position bar under the monitor or
click the large oval on the frame.
A dialog box appears.

356

4. Type the locator information and click OK. The amount of information you can enter is limited to 255 characters.
The information is stored with the marked frame, and the Þrst line
of the information appears at the bottom of the clip in the monitor.
5. To go quickly to a frame with a locator while editing, use the Find
command in the Edit menu to search for a particular comment.
This command works only when the sequence containing the locators is in the Record monitor.
Locators are copied from the Source monitor to the Record monitor
when you edit group clips, motion effects, and sequences. They are not
copied when you edit master clips and subclips, in which case you
must reenter the information in the Record monitor.

Using the Locators Window
The Locators window allows you to quickly add, delete, go to, and
print out a list of locators in the currently loaded clip or sequence.
The following illustration shows a Locators window with four
locators.

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To view locators in the window:
1. Load the sequence containing the locators.
2. Choose Locators from the Tools menu.

Features of the Locators Window
Many features of the Locators window are similar to those of the bin
window:
¥

The window displays information in text columns.

A Fast menu allows you to modify and sort the display.

You can print out the Locators window. This is especially useful
for identifying and listing speciÞc framesÑto be color corrected or
used in an effect, for example. You can also make a list of marked
IN and OUT points for adding music.

The Locators window also provides speciÞc controls for manipulating
locators in the sequence:

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You can double-click any locator to go to that locator in the
sequence.

You can select a single locator or Shift-select speciÞc locators and
press the Delete key to delete them in one step.

Locators Window Fast Menu

The Fast menu allows you to do the following:
¥

Display a timecode or footage column.

Sort or reverse-sort the display by timecode/footage, track, comment, or locator color. Choose the text at the top of a column to
specify which column to sort.

Display the frame associated with each locator.

Change the color of the locator icon. The Avid Composer system
uses the same color in the Timeline, position bar, and Record monitor display.

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Finding Frames, Clips, and Bins
Once you have digitized, viewed, marked, and subcataloged numerous shots for a project, you might have difÞculty relocating speciÞc
clips or frames among several bins. The Avid Composer system provides a number of features for quickly locating and cueing footage,
including conventional timecode and frame-offset techniques, text
searches, and Match Frame and Find Bin commands.

Using Timecode to Find a Frame
At any time during editing, you can type timecode values into the
numeric keypad on the right side of the keyboard to cue a loaded clip
or sequence to a speciÞc frame. In addition, you can cue backward or
forward from the current location in the clip or sequence by a speciÞed
number of minutes and seconds plus frames using positive or negative
frame-offset values.
For more information
on selecting the display
of tracking information, see ÒDisplaying
Tracking InformationÓ
on page 329 and the
Avid Media Composer
Products Reference.

The system interprets the numbers you type into the numeric keypad
according to the type of tracking format you have chosen in the row of
information displayed above the monitor. If you have two rows of
information, the system looks to the top row.
To cue to a frame based on a known timecode, enter the timecode for
the frame by using the numeric keypad on the right side of the keyboard, then press Enter.
In this example, the interface displays master timecode. Use one of the
formats described in the next two paragraphs.

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Master track

Type a master
timecode to find
a frame in the
sequence.

SMPTE timecode ÑUse two digits each for the hours, minutes, seconds, and frames with no leading zeros. For example, type
01230200 to enter 01:23:02:00.

Current timecodeÑIf you are Þnding a timecode that starts at the
same time as the current timecode, just type the last digits. For
example, if the current timecode is 1:05:12:13 and you type 4:25,
the system Þnds the frame at 1:05:04:25.

To cue a frame by using frame offset:
1. Using the numeric keypad, type a plus (+) sign to move forward
or a minus (Ð) sign to move backward from the current position.
2. Enter a number for the frame offset and press Enter. Use the following formats:
¥

One or two digits Ñ Enter 1 through 99 to specify a number of
frames forward or backward. For example, enter Ð42 to move
backward 42 frames.

Three digits ÑEnter 100 or a greater number to move forward
or backward a speciÞed number of seconds and frames. For
example, if you enter +100 and the master timecode is selected
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on the top line of the Timecode display, you move forward one
second and zero frames.

Searching a Clip
You can use the Find feature to search a clip loaded in the Source monitor or the sequence in the Record monitor for:
¥

Locator text

Text displayed in the Timeline

Clip names

To do a text search of a loaded clip or sequence by using the Find feature:
1. Load the clip or sequence into the monitor.
2. Choose Find from the Edit menu.
The Find dialog box appears.

3. Enter part or all of the text you are searching for. If the exact text is
unknown, enter only a known word or portion of a word.
4. Select one or more options:
¥

Clip Names to search for matching text in Clip names only.

Locators to search for matching text entered into locator comments only.

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Timeline Text to search for matching text in any clip text displayed in the Timeline.

5. Click OK.
If the system Þnds matching text, it cues to the head of the clip in
the case of Clip Name or Timeline text, or it cues to the Locator
frame in the case of Locators.
6. If the cue point is not the one you want, choose Find Again from
the Edit menu to search for another incidence of matching text.

Using Match Frame
The Match Frame function locates the source footage for the frame currently displayed in either the Source or Record monitor, loads it into
the Source monitor, cues to the matching frame, and marks an IN
point. It removes the source clipÕs original IN and OUT marks.
In addition to helping you relocate and reedit master clips during a
session, the Match Frame command can be used to locate clips quickly
based on media relatives when you have forgotten their location.
To use Match Frame:
1. Load a sequence into the Record monitor.
2. Move to the frame that you want to match.
3. Make sure you select the correct track for the frame that you want
to match in the Track Selector panel.
4. Click the Match Frame button in the Record monitor command
palettes or the Command Palette.
This loads and marks the source clip in the Source monitor.

If you do not want to mark the source clip and remove the original marks,
hold the Option key when you click the Match Frame button.

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Finding a Bin
With a clip or sequence loaded into a monitor, you can quickly Þnd the
original bin in which it is stored by using the Find Bin button. This
command Þnds the bin, opens it, and highlights the clip within the
bin. This works for sequences, subclips or clips within sequences, or
clips in the Source monitor.
To locate a bin:
1. Click the Source or Record monitor to activate it.
Be sure the clip or sequence is displayed.
2. Click the Find Bin button on one of the command palettes. The
system opens the bin and highlights the clip or sequence.
To Þnd the bin in which a speciÞc clip is located:
1. Place the position indicator on the clip within the sequence.
2. Press and hold the Option key and click the Find Bin button. The
system opens the bin and highlights the clip.

Locating a Master Clip from a Subclip in a Sequence
To Þnd the original clip in the bin for a subclip thatÕs been edited into a
sequence, you can use the Match Frame and Find Bin buttons together.

For this operation, you must have the Match Frame button mapped below
both the Source and Record monitors.
To locate a master clip from a subclip:
1. Cue to the subclip in the sequence.
2. Click the Match Frame button to load the subclip into the Source
monitor.

364

3. Click the Match Frame button in the Source monitor to load the
original master clip into the Source monitor.
4. Click the Find Bin button in the Source monitor to open the bin
and highlight the master clip.

Finding a Frame
The Find Frame button allows you to trace a digitized frame of footage
displayed in a sequence or source clip back to its analog source on
tape. This is useful for Þnding frames for color correction, or for redigitizing speciÞc clips to lengthen them or make alterations in digitize
parameters.
To Þnd a frame:
1. Make sure the source deck is properly connected to the system
and load the clip or sequence.
2. In the Timeline or position bar, place the position indicator on the
frame you want to Þnd.
3. Click the Find Frame button. If the tape is not in the deck (for
example, if you do not know which tape the footage is on), a dialog box prompts you to insert the appropriate tape.

4. Insert the tape. The system cues to the requested frame and displays it. You can redigitize as necessary.

365

Using the Manual User Interface (MUI)
Media Composer 8000 systems include the Manual User Interface (or
MUI, pronounced ÒMoo-eeÓ), an alternative playback device you can
use to mark, play, step, and shuttle through footage. If you have
another model and are interested in using a MUI, contact Avid for
details.
The Manual User Interface allows you to perform a collection of functions normally controlled by the keyboard and mouse with one hand.
Several movable parts allow you to arrange the controls in a variety of
positions to suit your personal preference.

MUI keyboard
MUI shuttle

Reverse shuttle

Pause

Forward shuttle

For information on how to install the MUI controller at your site, refer
to the Avid Media Composer Products Setup Guide.
The MUI consists of two functional parts:
¥

The MUI shuttle consists of a weighted foot with a thumb-control
for shuttling through a clip or sequence loaded into a Source,
Record, or pop-up monitor, or the Timeline. The control knob
glides easily from pause into the forward, fast-forward, reverse, or

366

fast-reverse positions. You can also nudge the control knob right
or left for one-frame advance or reverse.
¥

The MUI keyboard consists of an arc of keys that Þt onto the foot of
the shuttle, and can be placed in the middle of the foot or slid to
the left or right to accommodate the left or right hand, as shown in
the illustration. An additional foot is provided to support the keyboard on either side.

Choosing the MUI
You must specify in the Deck settings which controller you want to
use.

For information on using the Serial Ports Tool to specify the MUI controller,
see ÒSpecifying the MUI ControllerÓ on page 107.
To choose the MUI controller:
1. In the bin window, click Settings.
2. In the Settings list, double-click Deck.
The Deck Setting dialog box appears.

367

Editing Controller
pop-up menu

3. Choose MUI from the Editing Controller pop-up menu.

MUI Default Editing Buttons
Each MUI editing button matches a button or control within the Media
Composer application, as shown.
Splice-in
Shuttle Forward

Pause
Play

Shuttle Reverse

Press one of
these buttons
to enter Trim mode.
Mark IN

Mark OUT
Overwrite

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Go to Previous Edit
Go to Next Edit

For access to the additional functions, press and hold the Shift key
while pressing an editing button.

Activate Source or
Record Monitor

Step Backward 10 Frames

Extract

Step Forward 10 Frames
Play IN to OUT

Shift Key
Shift key
Go to IN

Lift

Go to OUT

Step Forward

Step Backward

Customizing the MUI
Once you install a MUI, the system automatically adds a MUI settings
option to the Settings scroll list in the Project window. You can customize the MUI keys and shuttle speed by using the MUI settings dialog
box.
To customize the shuttle speed:
1. Double-click MUI in the Settings scroll list of the Project window
to display the Default MUI Settings dialog box.

369

Key settings

Shuttle speed

Position Counter
and Play Rate
Graphical
representation
of the shuttle

2. Select a Speed Increment from Coarse to Fine.
Coarse moves quickly from 0 fps to the maximum play rate. Fine
moves through 0 to 30 fps, and then to the maximum play rate.
Move the shuttle to see what speed you want. Notice the Position
Play Rate change.
3. Select 2x, 3x, 5x, or 10x (2, 3, 5, or 10 times the normal rate) for the
Maximum Shuttle Speed for fast forward and reverse.

The graphical representation of the shuttle moves on your interface as the
MUI shuttle moves.
To customize MUI keys:
1. Open the Command Palette and position it in proximity to the
MUI Settings dialog box.
2. Press and hold the Command key while you drag the command
icon you want from the Command Palette to a key displayed in
the MUI dialog box.
The system saves the new MUI key layout immediately after you
remap a key.
To customize Shift-level commands:
1. Press the Shift and Command keys.
370

2. Drag the appropriate command icon from the Command Palette
to the MUI button.

Using the MUI
Follow this procedure each time you use the MUI:
1. Set the shuttle control knob to the center (pause) position.
2. Turn on the system and start the Media Composer application.
3. To calibrate the system, wait several seconds. Do not move the
shuttle control knob.
The Media Composer system needs to know where the pause
(zero detent) position is to calibrate the shuttle control.
If you forget to calibrate the shuttle when you start the system,
you can always calibrate it later by setting the shuttle control knob
to the center detent and waiting several seconds.

If you donÕt calibrate the shuttle control, it will not operate.
4. Within Media Composer:
a. Load clips and sequences into the Source, Record, or pop-up
monitor. Click the monitor you want to use.
b. Open a bin and select Go To Capture Mode from the Bin menu
to access the deck controls.
5. Use the MUI to control the activated deck or monitor.

Activating the mouse to step and shuttle disables the MUI control.
MUI control returns when you deactivate the mouse by pressing the
space bar.

371

CHAPTER 13
First Edits in Source/Record
Mode
After you have viewed and marked your clips or created subclips, you
are ready to create a sequence. This chapter introduces you to procedures you use in Source/Record mode to build a basic sequence, as
described in the following sections:

Entering Source/Record Mode

Setting Up a New Sequence

Making the First Edit

Undoing or Redoing Edits

Editing Additional Shots into the Sequence

Using Phantom Marks

Lifting, Extracting, and Copying Material

Adding Comments to Sequence Clips

Playing the New Sequence

How to Proceed

Illustrations of the Avid Composer window show two button rows, two information rows, and Center Duration. For information about changing the
default display, see ÒUsing the Settings DisplayÓ on page 61.
372

Entering Source/Record Mode
Source/Record mode is the default editing mode, and is composed of
the screens and controls shown in the Source/Record window within
the main Composer window on the Edit monitor.
To enter Source/Record mode from within another mode, click the
Source/Record Mode button displayed in both the Source/Record
window and in the Timeline tool bar.

Source/
Record
Mode
button

Setting Up a New Sequence
There are two ways to establish a new sequence:
¥

If you have speciÞc parameters in mind for the project that you
would like to establish Þrst, you can create and name a sequence,
set the start timecode, and determine the numbers and kinds of
tracks to use before you make the Þrst edit, as described in this
section.

373

If you would like to begin editing right away and build the
sequence as you go without setting parameters ahead of time, skip
to ÒMaking the First EditÓ on page 379.

To set up a sequence with the New Sequence command:
1. Choose New Sequence from the Clip menu. One of the following
occurs:
¥

If just one bin is open, or one of several bins is selected and
you have clicked a speciÞc bin to activate it, the new sequence
appears in that bin. It also appears in the Record monitor and
in the Timeline, with the generic title ÒUntitled Sequence n.Ó
Each new sequence is numbered incrementally until you
rename it.

If several bins are open but none is activated, the Select a Bin
dialog box appears.

Select the bin in which to store the new sequence, or click the
New Bin button to create and open a new bin, and click OK.
An untitled sequence appears in the bin, in the Record monitor, and in the Timeline.

374

New sequence

2. To rename the new sequence, immediately type a new name while
the name Þeld is active in the bin.

If you click anywhere in the interface after creating the new sequence, you
deactivate the name Þeld. Click the sequence name again to rename the
sequence.

Changing the Sequence Clip Info
You can also change the
default start timecodes
for all new sequences
by using General Settings. For more information, see the Avid
Media Composer Products
Reference.

The following optional procedure allows you to rename the new
sequence and set a customized start timecode by using the Clip Info
command.
1. With your sequence loaded and the Record monitor active (click it
to make it active), choose Get Clip Info from the File menu to open
the Clip Info dialog box.

2. Drag a cursor across the sequence name in the Name Þeld, then
type a new name.
3. Drag a cursor across the start timecode, then type a new timecode.

375

4. Click OK.

Setting Up Tracks for the New Sequence
When you create a new sequence by using the New Sequence command, and no material is loaded into the Source monitor, the Timeline
displays only the TC (master timecode) track.

You can add any number of audio or video tracks to the sequence
before making the Þrst edit, as follows:
¥

Choose New Video Track from the Clip menu to add a video track.

Choose New Audio Track from the Clip menu to add an audio
track.

The following illustration shows the Timeline after one video and two
audio tracks have been added, with no material loaded in the Source
monitor.

376

User Preferences for Creating Tracks
For information on
opening and changing
settings, see ÒUsing the
Settings DisplayÓ on
page 61.

Your Avid Composer system provides two options in the Composer
Settings dialog box that help automate the way tracks are created and
enabled as you edit. You can adjust these settings in advance based on
personal preference.
The default settings are:
¥

Auto-create New Tracks: Whenever you edit new source material
from the Source monitor, the system automatically creates any
new tracks in the sequence that match enabled tracks on the
source side.

Auto-enable Source Tracks: Whenever you load new source
material into the Source monitor, the system automatically enables
all existing source tracks.

Alternatively, you can do the following:
¥

Deselect the Auto-create New Tracks option to have the existing
tracks in the sequence remain the same when you edit in new
source material. This allows you to create new tracks selectively as
you edit, which is often preferable at the more advanced stages of
a project.

Deselect the Auto-enable Source Tracks option to leave the tracks
of newly loaded material in whatever state they were in when
they were last loaded. This allows you to turn on the source tracks
more selectively as you edit, which is often preferable at the more
advanced stages of a project.

Adding Filler
You can add a small amount of black Þller at the start of your sequence
before making the Þrst edit. A brief moment of black before the start of
your sequence is sometimes useful during playback, or when recording a digital cut. You can also add Þller at any time during editing to
another part of the sequence.
377

To add Þller:
1. Click on the clip name above the Source monitor and choose Load
Filler from the monitor menu. The system loads a 2-minute clip of
Þller into the Source monitor.
2. Mark the desired length of Þller, as needed.
3. Click the Splice-in or Overwrite button to edit the black into the
sequence.

Copying Locators from Source Clips
You can copy all locators currently placed in source clips directly into
the sequence as you edit. The locators and the locator text appear in all
sequence segments that reference the source clips.
To automatically copy source locators as you edit:
1. Double-click Composer in the Settings scroll list of the Project window to open the Composer Settings dialog box.

378

Copy
Source
Locators
option

2. Select the Copy Source Locators option.

Making the First Edit
Whether you establish a new sequence in advance, or do not prepare a
sequence and want to begin editing right away, use the following procedure to begin editing:
1. Load the Þrst clip into the Source monitor. If you have not already
marked IN and OUT points for the clip in advance or created a
subclip, view and mark the clip as necessary.

379

Source Tracks

2. Click buttons in the source track selector panel to select the tracks
you want to include in the edit. Only the tracks that have been digitized for the clip appear as source tracks in the Timeline. For more
information on using the track selector panel, see ÒUsing the
Track Selector PanelÓ on page 435.
For example, with a talking head you might select tracks V1 (picture) and A2 (sound), if the voice was recorded on that track. You
would deselect track A1, which might have unwanted wild sound
picked up from a second microphone, or it might have no sound at
all.
Or, as another example, if you are Þrst laying down a music track,
you would select track A1 or A2 depending upon where the music
was digitized, and deselect V1.
3. Click the Splice-in button to add the edit to the sequence in the
Record monitor.
The Record monitor displays the end of the last frame of the new
edit. (You can scroll the position indicator in the Timeline or the
position bar beneath the Record monitor to review the shot.) The
edit also generates a graphical display of the cut in the Timeline.

380

Sequence

Screen display of the
first edit in a
sequence
Source clip

The end of the last
frame of the first new
edit

Splice-in button

Timeline generated
by the edit

Creating an Instant Rough Cut
For additional information on editing directly
from the bin into the
Timeline, see ÒBin Editing into the TimelineÓ
on page 425.

As an alternative to creating a new sequence by editing shots one at a
time, you can quickly create a rough cut by selecting and loading multiple clips directly from the bin into the Record monitor by using the
Shift or Option keys. You can load clips that have been sorted in a bin
in Text mode. Or, you can create a storyboard in Frame or Script mode
and then load these clips directly.
To create a rough cut from a bin:
1. To create a more accurate rough cut, screen and mark clips in the
bin in advance, as described in ÒMarking IN and OUT PointsÓ on
page 350.

381

2. In the bin, sort the clips in the order in which you want them to
appear in the sequence:
¥

In Text mode, alphabetic or numeric sorting of clips might not
provide you with the clip ordering that you want. You can create a new bin column for numbering the clips in the order in
which you want them to appear, then sort the column numerically.

In Frame or Script mode, rearrange frames and prepare a storyboard as described in ÒStoryboard WorksheetÓ on
page 268.

3. Select the source and record tracks for the edit.
4. Shift-select or lasso the clips. Choose Select All from the Edit menu
if there are no other clips in the bin.
5. Press and hold the Option key and drag the highlighted clips to
the Record monitor to splice the clips into place. Alternatively,
press and hold the Shift key and drag the clips to overwrite them
into an existing sequence.
The clips are spliced together to form a new sequence based on the
order in which they are listed in the bin. If there is a sequence
already loaded into the Record monitor, the new clips are spliced
or overwritten in the sequence beginning at the location of the
position indicator or an IN point marked in the sequence.

Undoing or Redoing Edits
You can undo or redo up to 32 previous actions listed in the Edit
menu. You can quickly undo or redo a just completed command, or
you can search through a submenu to undo or redo all commands
leading back to a particular command.

382

Undo/Redo commands
for previous edit
Prior Redo commands appear in the
upper portion of the
Undo/Redo List sub-

Prior Undo commands
appear in the lower
portion of the submenu

To undo only the previous edit or function, choose Undo from the
Edit menu.

To redo only the previous edit or function, choose Redo from the
Edit menu.

To undo or redo everything back to a particular command, choose
a command from the Undo/Redo list in the Edit menu. All of the
previous commands, back to and including the command chosen
from the submenu, are undone or redone as appropriate.

Editing Additional Shots into the Sequence
You can use two or
sometimes one mark to
complete an edit by
using phantom marks.
For more information,
see ÒUsing Phantom
MarksÓ on page 386.

The three primary edit functions for adding material to your sequence
are the splice-in, overwrite, and replace commands. In most cases you
perform three-point edits in which you set three marks Ñ two in the
source material and one in the sequence, or the reverse. The fourth
mark is determined automatically. The way you set marks depends
upon the type of edit you perform, as described in this section.

Performing a Splice-In Edit
A splice-in edit inserts the material marked in the Source monitor into
the sequence without replacing material already in the sequence.
383

Existing material moves down beyond the spliced material, lengthening the overall duration of the sequence.
To perform a splice-in edit:
1. Load a clip into the Source monitor.
2. Mark an IN and OUT point.
3. Mark an IN point in the sequence as follows:
a. Move the position indicator in either the Timeline or the position bar of the Record monitor to the point where you want to
splice the shot into the sequence.
b. Click the Mark IN button or press the Mark IN key on the keyboard.

If you donÕt mark an IN, the system splices the new shot into the sequence at
the current location of the position indicator.
4. Click the Splice-in button (yellow) to complete the edit.

Performing an Overwrite Edit
An overwrite edit replaces a section of the sequence with the material
you select in the Source monitor. Unlike a splice-in edit, an overwrite
edit replaces existing material and therefore does not lengthen the
overall duration of the sequence.
To perform an overwrite edit:
1. In the Source monitor, mark an IN or OUT, but not both, to show
the start or end of the shot you want to use.
2. In the Record monitor, mark both an IN and OUT to select the
material in the sequence you want to overwrite. Or you can mark
an OUT and move the position indicator in the Timeline or position bar to the IN point.
384

3. Click the Overwrite button (red) to complete the edit.

Performing a Replace Edit
You use the Replace button (blue) to replace a clip in the sequence
(video, audio, or both) with new material from the Source monitor,
while maintaining the original IN and OUT points of the previous
edit. The Replace button must be mapped to a button under the
Record monitor before you begin to edit.
To perform a replace edit:
1. Choose a sync frame in the source clip by moving the position
indicator to display that frame in the Source monitor.
The sync frame can be an IN point, an OUT point, or any frame inbetween that you want to sync to a frame in the existing shot in
the sequence based on the location of the position indicator.
2. Choose the sync frame in the sequence for the edited shot that you
want to replace by moving the position indicator in either the
Record monitor position bar or in the Timeline to that frame.
3. Click the Replace button (blue).
The system calculates IN and OUT points for the source material
by using the sync frames and the existing IN and OUT points in
the sequence for the previously edited shot that you are replacing.

n
For more information
on sync point editing,
see ÒUsing Sync Point
EditingÓ on page 567.

If you are replacing a clip in an overwrite edit, and the position indicator falls
within the overlap, you might end up replacing the wrong material unless
you select the entire segment you want to replace. See ÒSelecting and Deselecting SegmentsÓ on page 417.
Like replace editing, Sync Point Editing allows you to overwrite material in the sequence based on alignment of the position indicators in
the source material and in the Timeline. The difference is that Sync
385

Point edits end at the nearest marks in either the source or record
material, while replace edits always Þll the IN to OUT of the clip in the
sequence.

Using Single Mark Editing
Single mark editing (also called mark and park editing) allows you to
establish a single mark, then use the location of the position indicator
to determine the second mark when making the edit. You can use this
procedure in several ways to save steps:
¥

You can mark an IN point in the Source monitor and then perform
a splice-in, overwrite, or replace edit without adding an OUT
mark.

You can mark an OUT point, then locate a frame for the IN mark,
and perform the edit without marking the IN point.

You can mark the IN or OUT, play, step (jog), or shuttle through
the clip forward or backward, then press the Splice-in, Overwrite,
or Replace button to perform the edit on-the-ßy without adding
the second mark.

To enable single mark editing, open the Composer Settings dialog box
from the Project window and select the Single Mark Editing option.

Using Phantom Marks
Phantom marks provide visual guidance when editing according to
the three-mark rules described in ÒEditing Additional Shots into the
SequenceÓ on page 383. When you enable phantom marks, the system
displays gray IN or OUT mark icons in the position bars below both
the Source monitor and the Record monitor. These phantom marks can
indicate one, two, or sometimes three edit points calculated by the system to complete an edit. The following are a few sample scenarios.

386

Setting One Mark
In this example, you set only the IN mark on the source side. By
default, the system uses the location of the position indicator as the IN
mark for the sequence, and calculates both OUT points based on the
length of the source clip.
Three phantom marks

One IN mark

You can see the system calculations instantly and can make the edit
after setting just one mark, when appropriate.

Adding a Second Mark
If you decide that an OUT mark is required Ñ to shorten the source
clip, for example Ñ then the system recalculates and displays new
phantom marks.
New phantom marks

Additional OUT mark

Phantom marks can help you see the results of marks you set before
you complete the edit, and is especially useful when doing sync-point
editing or other complicated replace edits in which two or more marks
are calculated automatically.

387

Lifting, Extracting, and Copying Material
Extract/Splice-in and
Lift/Overwrite are Segment mode functions
you can also use to
remove and reposition
segments. For more
information, see
ÒUsing Segment
ModeÓ on page 416.

Lifting, extracting, and copying allow you to remove or reposition material quickly in your sequence. For example, you can move a clip from
the end of your sequence to the beginning; or you can remove the
material from the sequence altogether. Lifting, extracting, and copying
place the removed material into the Clipboard. You can then paste the
material elsewhere in the sequence, or in another sequence altogether.
These procedures are described in this section.

Lifting Material
The Lift function removes selected material from a track in the
sequence and leaves black Þller or silence to Þll the gap. You can later
move or Þll this gap with other footage. When you lift material, the
overall duration of the track (or sequence) remains the same.
To lift material:
1. Mark IN and OUT points at the start and end of the material in the
sequence that you want to lift.
2. Select the tracks containing the material. The system will perform
the function on selected tracks only.
3. Click the Lift button to complete the edit.

Extracting Material
The Extract function removes selected material from a track in the
sequence and closes the gap left by its removal. As a result, when you
extract material you shrink the duration of the track or sequence.
To extract material:
388

1. Mark IN and OUT points at the start and end of the material in the
sequence that you want to extract.
2. Select the tracks containing the material. The system will perform
the function on selected tracks only.
3. Click the Extract button to complete the edit.

Copying Material
For more information
on using the Clipboard,
see ÒUsing the ClipboardÓ on page 389.

The Copy to Clipboard function makes a duplicate of selected material
in the sequence and leaves the material intact. When you copy material, the sequence remains unaffected. The material can then be
inserted into the sequence elsewhere or into another sequence.
To copy material to the Clipboard:
1. Mark IN and OUT points at the start and end of the material in the
sequence that you want to copy.
2. Select the tracks containing the material. The system will perform
the function on selected tracks only.
3. Click the Copy to Clipboard button.
The system copies the selected material to the Clipboard, and
leaves the sequence untouched.

Using the Clipboard
The Avid Composer systemÕs Clipboard is a cut, copy, and paste tool
adapted to the special needs of the editing environment. You can place
a marked section of the sequence into the Clipboard at any time by
clicking the Lift, Extract, or Copy to Clipboard buttons.

389

The Copy to Clipboard function is useful for moving or repeating
material in a sequence without moving multiple segments in Segment
mode, or rebuilding the section at another location. For example, you
can:
¥

Copy a portion of a sequence for pasting into another sequence.

Isolate and copy a portion of an audio track for looping music or
repeating a sound effect.

Copy graphic elements for repeating at other locations in a format
cut.

Preserving Clipboard Contents
The Clipboard stores only one clip at a time; each time you copy, lift, or
extract additional material, you delete and replace the previous contents.
To keep the Clipboard contents throughout a session, do one of the following:
¥

Choose Clipboard Contents from the Source Monitor menu.
The contents appear as a clip in the Source monitor, and the name
ÒClipboard Contents.nÓ appears above the monitor and in the
Monitor menu. The n is an incremental numbering of clips placed
in the Clipboard during the session.

Press the Option key when you copy, lift, or extract the material.
The contents appear as a clip in the Source monitor, and the name
ÒSequence name. SubÓ appears above the monitor and in the Monitor menu.

Repeat these procedures each time you want to preserve copied, lifted,
or extracted material during a session. All the clips remain available in
the Monitor menu until you choose Clear Menu or close the project.

390

Material placed in the Clipboard does not appear as a clip in the bin, and is
deleted when you close the project. To save a portion of a sequence for future
use, mark the section and create a subclip.

Recovering Material from the Clipboard
The Clipboard allows you to restore lifted or extracted segments
quickly. This is especially useful if youÕve performed one or more edits
since removing the material. In contrast, if you restore the material by
using the Undo function, the system also undoes all edits performed
in the meantime. The Clipboard provides the beneÞt of restoring the
material while maintaining subsequent edits.
To restore material from the Clipboard:
1. Load the Clipboard contents in one of two ways:
¥

Choose Clipboard Contents from the Source Monitor menu to
place the contents into the Source monitor and the Monitor
menu list of clips.

Open the Clipboard as a pop-up monitor by choosing Clipboard Monitor from the Tools menu.

391

2. Click the Mark Clip button to mark the entire segment.
Optionally, view the sequence segment as a source Timeline by
clicking the Toggle Source/Record button in the Timeline tool bar
to mark and select speciÞc tracks.
3. Locate the IN point in the sequence from which the segment was
removed. Place the position indicator here, or mark an IN.
4. Splice or overwrite the material back into the sequence.

Adding Comments to Sequence Clips
You can add comments to sequence clips to appear in the Timeline or
in lists that you create, such as an EDL or a cut list. Comments can
392

include such things as instructions for color correction, or for adjusting
an effect.
To add comments to the sequence:
1. Click one of the Segment Mode buttons (located below the Timeline) and highlight the clip in the Timeline to which you want to
add a comment.
2. Choose Add Comments from the Monitor menu. The Comments
dialog box appears.
3. Type your comments in the text box and click OK.

You can display the comments in the Timeline by using the Clip Text option
in the Timeline Fast menu.
4. Click one of the Segment Mode buttons again to leave Segment
mode.

Playing the New Sequence
After completing a rough cut, you can play the new sequence to see
the results of your editing. You can view the sequence in the Record
monitor or in the third, full-screen monitor.

If you need to prepare a screening of the sequence away from the system, see
Chapter 19.
To review your work thus far:

If you have several
tracks of audio, you
might need to mix them
down and adjust levels
before playback. For
more information, see
Chapter 16.

1. Make sure that the video track monitor icon is located on the
uppermost video track in order to display all video tracks and
effects during playback.
2. Make sure the audio track monitor icon on the uppermost audio
track is enabled to ensure proper playback of all audio tracks.
393

3. Go to the start of the sequence in the Record monitor by clicking
the left side of the position bar to reposition the position indicator
at the beginning, or press the Home key on the keyboard.
4. Use the position indicator, buttons, mouse, or keyboard to play,
step, or shuttle through footage. View the sequence in the Record
monitor or in the full-screen monitor.

Starting a Playback Loop
You can play back your sequence in a continuous loop by augmenting
the Play IN to OUT command with the Control key. You must set
marks in the sequence to determine the range of the playback loop.

You can also use this technique to isolate and continuously play back a small
portion of the sequence during a difÞcult edit.
To start a playback loop:
1. Place IN and OUT marks in the sequence. To play back the entire
sequence, place the IN mark at the beginning and the OUT mark
at the end.
2. Press the Control key and the Play IN to OUT key or button.

control

The playback loop begins and continues until you press the Stop
key or click anywhere with the mouse.
You can also press the Control key and the Play to OUT button. The location
of the position indicator acts as the IN point for a continuous loop.

Playback Performance Tips
As you continue to edit, you might Þnd the playback performance of
the system diminishing as the sequence grows in length and layers.
This can happen when you are using a great deal of RAM for playback

394

of large and complex sequences. The following are a few tips for
improving playback performance:
¥

Check the number of media objects in use for your project in the
Memory window, as described in ÒViewing MemoryÓ on page 84.
If this number is large (more than 50,000 objects on a system with
32 MB of RAM, for example), reduce the number of media objects
by doing one of the following:
-

Close bins that are not in use.

Reduce the number of clips in the open bins.

Unmount drives that are currently not in use by dragging
them to the Trash. You can remount the drives at any time by
choosing Mount All from the File menu.

Restart the computer every few hours to refresh the system memory. Frequent opening and closing of Þles, tools, and applications
can diminish the functional capacity of RAM.

Split the sequence into two or more segments, if possible.

Using the Play Length Toggle Feature
Long sequences with many effects can be time consuming to work
with in the Timeline. Working with a smaller sequence can save time.
The Play Length toggle feature allows you to toggle between playing
the entire sequence and playing a limited duration of the sequence.
When you use the Play Length feature, Þrst map the Play Length toggle button from the Command Palette to the Record monitor command palette, then set the value for the Play Length toggle button. You
can then use the toggle button to switch between playing the entire
sequence and playing a limited duration centered around the current
position.

Mapping the Play Length Toggle Button to the Record Monitor Palette
To map the Play Length toggle button to the Record monitor palette:
395

1. From the Tools menu choose Command Palette.
2. Select the Play tab at the top of the Command Palette.
3. Click and drag the Play Length toggle button to the Record monitor command palette.

Changing the Value for the Play Length Toggle Button from the Default
To change the value for the Play Length toggle button from the
default:
1. From the Tools menu choose Console Window.
2. In the Console window text box, enter
playlength n
Where n is the duration (in minutes) you want mapped to the Play
Length toggle button.

The n variable must be a whole number set to 1 or higher.
3. Press return.
The Console window displays the value for Playlength. For example, if you set playlength to 1, the console window will display
playlength = 1 (half forward/half backward).

Selecting the Play Length Toggle Button to Map to the Play Button
To select the Play Length toggle button to map to the Play button:
1. Press the Play Length toggle button. It toggles between play entire
sequence and play length 1 minute.
2. Set the toggle button to play length 1.
With the Play Length toggle button activated, press the L key or
the Play button. The sequence will play from the position indicator forward 30 seconds (half forwards). If you press the J key or

396

Play Reverse button, the sequence will play from the position indicator backward for 30 seconds (half backward).
3. To set the Play Length back to play entire sequence, press the Play
Length toggle button again.

How to Proceed
If you have Þnished a rough cut and are ready to Þne-tune the
sequence, you can return to Source/Record mode, or you can proceed
with the following:
¥

To learn about the Timeline and Segment mode editing techniques, see Chapter 14.

To make frame-accurate adjustments to your edits by using Trim
mode, see Chapter 15.

To edit with audio or mix audio tracks in preparation for playback
or output, see Chapter 16.

To edit with synced tracks, see Chapter 17.

To edit with multicamera material, see Chapter 18.

To add effects to your sequence, see the Avid Media Composer and
Film Composer Effects Guide.

397

CHAPTER 14
Using the Timeline
The Avid Composer system represents each edit and effect in a graphical timeline structure to help you track and manipulate the elements of
your sequence. The Timeline continuously updates as you work, displaying an extensive array of icons and information that you can customize in various ways.
In addition, the Timeline has its own set of editing tools that you can
use to create and revise edits and transitions across multiple tracks.
These features are described in the following sections:
¥

Customizing Timeline Views

Restoring the Default Timeline View

Navigating in the Timeline

Using Segment Mode

Using Advanced Timeline Techniques

Working with Multiple Tracks

Additional Ofßine Aids

Printing the Timeline

398

Illustrations of the Composer window in this chapter show the full set of two
button rows, two information rows, and Center Duration display, as selected
in Composer Settings. For more information, see the Avid Media Composer
Products Reference.

Customizing Timeline Views
There are also a number
of on-the-ßy procedures
for changing your view
of the Timeline (such as
the Zoom and Focus
functions) that are not
saved as part of a Timeline view.

You can customize your view of the Timeline to display a variety of
information about your sequence as well as the clips and transitions it
contains. You use the Timeline Fast menu to change the display. You
can also save different custom views that you can call up instantly in
various circumstances.
The following are a few examples:
¥

Effects editing: If you are editing complex visuals with multiple
tracks and effects, you can display Effect contents, Effect and Dissolve icons, Clip Frames, and Clip Transition Durations within
enlarged video tracks in the Timeline.

Complex audio work: If you are doing advanced audio work with
multiple tracks, or Þne-tuning difÞcult audio edits, you can hide
video tracks and enlarge audio tracks while displaying waveform
plots.

399

Film and Animation editing: If you are working on a Þlm or animation project, you can display the Þlm track, show every frame
in the sequence, and/or display sync breaks where they occur.

Editing for online: If you are editing ofßine with plans to generate
an EDL and Þnish the sequence in an online videotape suite, you
can track detailed clip and dupe-reel information by displaying
clip text and enabling Dupe Detection.

Basic trimming: If you are Þne-tuning and trimming simple edits
at the early stages of a project, you can view the sequence in Heads
and Tails view to see a display of the Þrst and last frame of every
shot.

400

Using the Timeline Fast Menu
To create a custom Timeline view, you choose various options from the
Timeline Fast menu. The Timeline Fast Menu button appears in the
bottom left corner of the Timeline tool bar.
To select an item from the Timeline Fast menu, click the Fast Menu
button and scroll through the menu to select or deselect an option.
Selected options have check marks (√) next to them. You must select
some options from a submenu.

Timeline Fast menu

Show Track submenu

You can learn about the various Timeline view options as follows:
¥

For an overview of all Timeline Fast menu options, see the Avid
Media Composer and Film Composer Quick Reference.

For more information on Effect icons and displays, see the Avid
Media Composer and Film Composer Effects Guide.

For information on different view types, see ÒCustomizing Timeline ViewsÓ on page 399.

For information on Dupe Detection in the Timeline, see ÒDetecting Duplicate FramesÓ on page 449.

For information on displaying the Þlm track, see ÒEditing with
the Film TrackÓ on page 429.

401

For more information on the display of sync breaks in the Timeline, see Chapter 17.

For more information on displaying energy and waveform plots in
audio tracks, see Chapter 16.

For more information on manipulating the height of tracks or
moving tracks as part of a view, see ÒAdditional Procedures for
Customizing the TimelineÓ on page 402.

Additional Procedures for Customizing the Timeline
In addition to the options provided in the Timeline Fast menu, you can
customize a Timeline view by enlarging or reducing the size of tracks,
or by moving tracks up or down in the Timeline hierarchy.

Enlarging and Reducing Tracks
You can enlarge or reduce the height of one or more tracks to improve
visibility and display more information within the tracks. You can save
these changes with a Timeline view.
To enlarge or reduce the height of tracks:
1. Select the tracks that you want to resize.
2. Do one of the following:
¥

Choose Enlarge or Reduce Track from the Edit menu.

Press and hold the Option key and move the cursor to the bottom edge of the track selector until it appears as a bar with a
vertical up and down arrow. Drag the edge up or down to
make the track narrower or wider. This method applies to
only one track selection at a time.

You can use the Control key along with the Enlarge Track (kÐL) or
Reduce Track (kÐK) shortcut key combinations to change the height
of all tracks quickly in the Timeline regardless of track selection. You
can use this enhancement to:
402

Reduce and view all the tracks in a multilayer sequence, and
enlarge them when Þnished

Enlarge all tracks to view waveform plots or other displays in
multiple tracks

Do one of the following to enlarge or reduce all highlighted tracks at
once:
¥

Press the Control, Command (k), and L keys to enlarge all tracks.

Press the Control, Command (k), and K keys to reduce all tracks.

Moving a Track
You can move a track to reposition it vertically relative to the Timeline.
Surrounding tracks are repositioned above or below the track. You can
save these changes with a Timeline view. Moving tracks is especially
useful when you are working with multiple-layer effects and discover
that the tracks are built in the wrong hierarchy to apply the effect correctly.
To move a track, press and hold the Option key, click the track selector
for the track that you want to move, and drag the track to its new
position.

Do not move a track when patching to another track would be more appropriate. Moving whole tracks can throw effects and track monitoring out of place.

Changing the Timeline Background Color
To change the background color of the Timeline, you also have to
change the background color of the Source and Record monitors. To
change the color:
1. Click in the Source or Record monitor to activate them.
2. Choose Set Composer Background from the Edit menu.

403

3. Choose a shade of gray for the background from the pop-up
palette.

Changing the Timeline Track Color
To change the color of the tracks in the Timeline:
1. Click in the Timeline to activate it.
2. Choose Track Color from the Timeline Fast menu.
3. Choose a color for the tracks from the pop-up
palette.

Saving a Customized View
You can save a customized Timeline view. Timeline views appear in
the Settings scroll list in the Project window. You can save, rename,
and copy several views.
The system saves the following Timeline information with each view:
displayed tracks, track sizes, and track positions; clip names and
frames; audio waveforms; and type of view (Time, Heads, or Heads
and Tails).
Once you have created and saved several Timeline views, you can
choose alternate views at any time from the Timeline View pop-up
menu located near the middle of the Timeline tool bar at the bottom of
the screen. The Timeline view is labeled Untitled until you name and
save a customized Timeline view.
To name a Timeline view or to change a viewÕs name:
1. Choose Save As from the Timeline View pop-up menu.

404

Timeline View popup menu

A dialog box appears.

2. Type a name for the view and press Return.
The following is an alternative procedure:
1. Press and hold the k key, then click the name displayed in the
Timeline View pop-up menu and drag it to the Project window.
The system adds the Timeline view to the project.
2. Click the Settings button in the Project window to display the
Settings scroll list. The Timeline view appears in the scroll list.
3. Click the User Name column of the Timeline view, type a new
name, and press Return.

Replacing a Timeline View
If your saved views become extensive and there are views you no
longer use and would like to replace, use the following procedure:
1. Press and hold the Option key while you click the View button to
display the list of saved view names, each appended with the
Replace command, as shown:
405

2. Select a saved view name from the list.
The current Timeline view is applied to the selected name, and that
name is displayed in the Settings scroll list in the Project window. You
can change the User Name in the Project window if you want.

Setting the Scroll Option for the Timeline
You can have the Timeline scroll over the position indicator while you
play a sequence.
To set the scroll option:
1. Click Settings in the Project window to display a list of your current settings.
2. Double-click Timeline to display a list of your current Timeline
settings. For more information on Timeline settings, see the Avid
Media Composer Products Reference.
3. Select the Scroll While Playing option.
To turn off scrolling
while you play, deselect it in the Timeline
Settings window.

4. Click OK.
When you play a sequence in the Timeline, the sequence scrolls
over the position indicator. When the Timeline has passed the
playhead and the end of the Timeline is revealed, the Timeline
stops moving and the blue position bar travels the remaining distance.

406

For the Timeline to scroll, you might need to display more detail in the Timeline to expand the sequence. Click the scale bar and drag it to the right to
expand the Timeline.
All effect icons are hidden as you scroll.

Restoring the Default Timeline View
To restore the default view in the Timeline, choose Default Setup from
the Timeline Fast menu.

Navigating in the Timeline
The Timeline window provides various controls for quickly moving
through a sequence and adjusting your view of details displayed in
the tracks while editing. You can use the position indicator, the Timeline scroll bar/position bar, the scale bar, Zoom In and Zoom Back
commands, or the Focus button. In addition, marked sections of the
sequence can be highlighted for visual reference.
Position
indicator

Track Selector
panel

Timeline Fast
Menu button
Focus button

Source/Record Toggle button

Figure 14-1 Timeline Window

407

Scale box

Timeline scroll bar

Using the Position Indicator
The position indicator in the Timeline marks your place in the
sequence. It also determines how some of your commands are interpreted. For example, when you perform an edit, the system takes the
location of the position indicator as the Mark IN in the absence of
established marks.
When you move the position indicator in the Timeline, the smaller
position indicator within the Record monitorÕs position bar also
moves.

Using the Timeline Scroll Bar/Position Bar
By default the Timeline scroll bar appears along the bottom of the
Timeline window, on the right side of the Timeline tool bar, as shown
in Figure 14-1.
The Timeline scroll bar functions like any standard Macintosh scroll
bar. You can drag the scroll box to reposition yourself within the Timeline, or click the arrows to scroll left or right.
You can change the Timeline scroll bar to a position bar that acts like
the position bar in the Record monitor, except that you can manipulate
it without deactivating the Timeline window.
To use the Timeline position bar, select Show Position Bar in the Timeline Settings window.
To access the Timeline Settings window:
1. From a Project window, click Settings.
The Settings scroll list appears.
2. Scroll down to Þnd Timeline and double-click on it.
The Timeline Settings (Current) window opens.
408

3. Click the appropriate options.
An X appears in the box. To deselect an option, click it again.
For more information on the Timeline settings, see the Avid
Media Composer Products Reference.
4. Click OK.
The scroll bar changes to a position bar.

An advantage of the position bar is that when you focus on just a portion of the sequence, both the Timeline and Record monitor position
bars show a highlighted region around the position indicator. This represents the range of material displayed in the window.

409

Position indicator and highlighted
region

Position indicators

Highlighted region

Displaying Detail in the Timeline
The scale bar stretches and contracts the Timeline area centered
around the blue position bar. This allows you either to zoom in to
focus on a speciÞc area of your sequence, or to zoom out to display
your whole sequence. This feature is especially useful when you have
a lengthy sequence with many edits.
The scale bar replaces three buttons formerly in the Timeline tool bar:
Show More Detail, Show Less Detail, and Show Entire Sequence.

Dotted blue line

410

Scale bar

Scroll bar

To zoom in on a section of the Timeline at the position indicator and
then zoom back to your original display:
1. Click the scale box and drag it to the right.
The following happens:

As Timeline expands, a
shadow position indicator appears.

The Timeline expands horizontally.

The Timeline track shows more detail.

The position indicator splits into a solid blue line and a dotted
blue line (or ÒshadowÓ), marking the beginning and end of the
current frame. You can click either the line or the shadow to
move exactly one frame forward or back.

2. Move the scale box back to the left.
The Timeline shrinks to its original size.

Zooming In and Out
The Zoom In/Back commands in the Timeline Fast menu stretch out
the Timeline like an accordion to allow you to focus on detail, but with
the following differences:
¥

The Zoom In command does not expand the Timeline incrementally, but allows you to select a portion of the Timeline of any size
to instantly expand to Þll the window.

The Zoom Back command does not shrink the Timeline incrementally, but instantly restores it to its former size.

The Zoom In and Zoom Back commands are not dependent on the
position bar. You can select any portion of the Timeline to expand
and contract.

411

To zoom in on a section of the Timeline and then zoom back to your
original display:
1. Choose Zoom In from the Timeline Fast menu. The cursor arrow
changes to a selection bar.
2. Position the cursor at either the start or end of the place you want
to zoom in on, and drag to select the chosen section.

When you release the mouse button, the material inside the Zoom
In box expands to Þll the Timeline window.
3. To return to the previous Timeline display, choose Zoom Back
from the Timeline Fast menu.

Focusing the Timeline
The Focus button also allows you to zoom in on a section of the Timeline. It is located in the Timeline tool bar next to the Fast Menu button.
Focus button

The Focus button allows you to center the position indicator quickly
and expand the Timeline. The Focus button always expands the Timeline to a scale of 90 pixels per 1 second. The position indicator is centered in the window. When you click the Focus button a second time, it
always returns the Timeline to its previous size.

412

To focus the Timeline:
1. Place the position indicator at frame or transition you want to
expand.
2. Click the Focus button.
This centers and enlarges the region of the Timeline immediately
surrounding the position indicator.
3. Click the Focus button again to return to the previous view.

Displaying Source Material in the Timeline
The Source/Record toggle button allows you to view multitrack
source material quickly in the Timeline for selecting and marking speciÞc tracks.
By default the Timeline displays only the available tracks for source
material.
Source Tracks

Source/Record
toggle button

When you click the button to display the source material, both the button and the position indicator turn green to indicate that you are viewing source material.

413

Button and position indicator turn green.

This feature is particularly useful when you are editing with a
sequence or subclip created from a sequence; you can also use it to
look at the contents of any source clip in a Timeline display.

Heads or Tails views are disabled when you are displaying material from the
Source monitor.

Controlling Movement in the Timeline
While working in the Timeline window, you can use Control, Option,
and Command keys to control the movement of both the position indicator and any segments that you move in Segment mode.
The Timeline provides a small icon window called the motion mode
indicator in the Timeline tool bar.

Motion mode indicator

This small window displays a speciÞc icon, depending on the key you
press to augment your movement within the Timeline. The keys and
movements are as follows:
¥

To snap to the head of transitions as you move through the Timeline sequence, press and hold the Command (k) key as you drag
414

either the position indicator or any segments selected in Segment
mode.
¥

To snap to the tail of transitions, press and hold the Command
(k) and Option keys as you drag either the position indicator or
any segments selected in Segment mode.

To move frame-by-frame, hold the Option key and drag either the
position indicator or any segments selected in Segment mode.

The Control key affects the movement of segments only. To snap
the selected segments to an edit point in the track above or below
the current track, click a segment mode button, then press and
hold the Control key and drag the segments.

IN to OUT Highlighting in the Timeline
When you mark a sequence with IN to OUT points, the system indicates the selection by highlighting the marked region in the Timeline.
Only selected tracks are highlighted.
All tracks selected

Highlighted region

This visual guide helps you monitor track and segment selection more
carefully when mixing or applying effects across multiple tracks and
segments.
To turn the highlighting feature on and off, select Show Marked
Region from the Timeline Settings window.

415

Using Segment Mode
Segment mode provides editing controls for moving, deleting, marking, and editing entire segments in the Timeline. A segment is a portion of the sequence that includes two or more transitions. There are
two modes for editing segments or adding shots: Extract/Splice-in,
indicated by a yellow arrow, and Lift/Overwrite, indicated by a red
arrow.
Unlike traditional tape editing, Segment mode allows you to instantly
reposition entire segments by using visual controls as though you
were physically ÒdraggingÓ portions of your sequence around on a
tape. You can move shots separately or together, on one track or across
tracks.
Observe the following guidelines when editing in Segment mode:
¥

Transition effects on either side of a moved selection are deleted.
Transition effects inside the selection are preserved.

You can track the audio while moving segments by pressing the
Caps Lock key to enable audio scrub. For more information, see
ÒUsing Audio ScrubÓ on page 482.

When you are Þnished, Segment mode continues to affect your
editing in Source/Record mode or Trim mode unless you click the
active Segment Mode button to deactivate it.

Segment Mode Workflow
The following is the basic workßow for editing segments in Segment
mode:
¥

Select the segments by clicking with the Segment Mode pointer, or
by lassoing segments with the mouse, as described in ÒSelecting
and Deselecting SegmentsÓ on page 417.

416

Move, mark, or delete the segments in either Extract/Splice-in
mode or Lift/Overwrite mode, as described in ÒPerforming Segment Mode EditsÓ on page 419.

Use Segment mode, if desired, to edit directly from a bin as
described in ÒBin Editing into the TimelineÓ on page 425.

Selecting and Deselecting Segments
There are two basic methods for selecting segments for moving or
editing:
¥

Click a Segment Mode button, and select segments with the
pointer.

Lasso one or more segments on one or more tracks by using the
mouse.

Once you enter Segment mode by using either of these methods, you
can continue to select or deselect additional segments. The selected
segment or group of segments becomes highlighted, and remains in its
original position during the move until you select its new position.
Observe the following guidelines when selecting tracks:
¥

You cannot simultaneously move segments that are separated
along a track. You can, however, move segments separated on different tracks.

You cannot overlap the source and destination tracks. For example, you can move audio segments from A3 and A4 to A1 and A2,
but you cannot move them from A3 and A4 to A2 and A3 (A3
overlaps).

With a group, you can click any selected segment to drag the
entire group to a new position.

You can select black Þller as a segment.

417

Selecting with the Segment Mode Pointer
When you enter Segment mode, the cursor becomes an enlarged
pointer that is yellow to indicate Extract/Splice-in mode, and red to
indicate Lift/Overwrite mode. Outside of the Timeline, the cursor
changes back to the standard arrow or I-beam, allowing you to perform other functions while in Segment mode.
To select segments with the pointer:
1. Click one of the Segment Mode buttons located in the Timeline
tool bar next to the scale bar. The arrow changes to an enlarged
pointer.
2. Click a segment in any track to select it. Shift-click additional segments to select a group.

Lassoing One or More Segments
You can use the mouse to lasso a single segment or a group of segments across one or more tracks.
To lasso segments, draw a lasso beginning in the area above the tracks
in the Timeline. Drag left to right and down to select more than one
transition.
To select, drag a lasso from left to right and down.

Extract/Splice-in Segment mode is enabled by default when you draw
a lasso. To switch to Lift/Overwrite mode, click the Overwrite button
after drawing the lasso.
Observe the following guidelines when lassoing segments:

418

Position the cursor above the tracks before dragging. If you click
within the tracks, you simply relocate the position indicator to that
position. To lasso segments in the middle of the Timeline between
multiple tracks, hold the Control key while you click and drag.

Lasso at least two transitions, or all transitions included in multiple segments. If your lasso surrounds only one transition, you
enter Trim mode.

Drag from left to right. If you drag from right to left, you enter
Trim mode with slip rollers selected.

Deselecting Segments
To deselect one or more selected segments, do one of the following:
¥

To deselect an entire track, click the track selector. For example, if
you lasso segments on V1, V2, and A1, you can click the V2 and
A1 track selectors to leave only the segment on the middle
track, V1, selected, as shown.
Tracks V2, A1 deselected

Only the segment on V1
remains highlighted.

Use the Shift key and the Segment Mode pointer to deselect speciÞc segments on any track, leaving the remaining tracks selected.

Performing Segment Mode Edits
Once youÕve selected one or more segments and entered Segment
mode, you can reposition the segments by clicking and dragging with
the Segment Mode pointer. You can also delete or mark the segments
in one step.
419

You cannot overlap the source and destination tracks. For example, you can
move audio segments from A3 and A4 to A1 and A2, but you cannot move
them from A3 and A4 to A2 and A3 (A3 overlaps).

About Four-Frame Display
When you begin to drag the segments, the interface changes to the
Segment mode four-frame display:
¥

The Source/Record monitors change to a four-frame monitor display. The two outer frames are updated while you drag the segment forward and/or backward in the Timeline, indicating the
frames you pass as you drag the segment. The outer two frames in
the four-frame display make it easy to view and analyze the
frames between which you might want to drop the selected segment.

A centered numeric offset counter appears directly below the
frame monitors. The counter tracks the number of frames you
move while you drag the selected segment from its starting point.

Four-Frame Display

The two inner
frames represent
the start and end
frame of the segment.

The two outer
frames indicate
ending and beginning frames of
shots before and
after the segment.

When you drag the segments, the original highlighted segment
remains in place, while a ÒghostÓ segment enclosed in a dotted white

420

box moves along with the pointer until you release it at a new edit
point.
Selected segment is dragged to new position.

When you release the segment into its new position, the actual lift
(Overwrite) or extract (Splice-in) occurs. The preservation of the segment position in the Timeline until then allows you to maintain your
perspective of the sequence while selecting the new edit point.
Suppressing Four-Frame Display
The four-frame display of incoming/outgoing frames can occasionally
slow the movement of segments as you drag them through the
sequence. You can improve the speed of segment editing by using the
Shift key to suppress the four-frame display.
To suppress the four-frame display:
1. Click either the Extract/Splice-in button (yellow) or Lift/Overwrite button (red) to enter Segment mode.
2. Choose Show Segment Drag Quads from the Timeline settings.
3. Press the Shift key, then drag the segments you want to move.
As you begin to drag, notice that the monitors maintain their
Source/Record conÞguration, rather than shifting to the fourframe display.

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Extracting/Splicing Segments
Use Extract/Splice-in to move the selected segments in the Timeline
without affecting any of the adjacent material. The total duration of
the sequence is unaffected.
Like the standard Splice-in function, the Extract/Splice-in edit inserts
the segment into the new position. However, as an additional function, it also ÒextractsÓ or removes the segment from its previous position and closes the gap.
To perform an Extract/Splice-in:
1. Click the Extract/Splice-in button (yellow) in the Timeline tool
bar.
2. Select the segments you want to move.
3. Click and drag the segment to its new position. Use the four-frame
monitor display, the offset counter, and the segment image in the
Timeline to carefully determine the new position.
4. Release the mouse button. The system extracts the selected segment from its old position, closes the gap left by its removal, then
splices the material back into the sequence at the newly selected
location.
5. Click the Segment Mode button again if you want to leave Segment mode, or continue to extract and splice-in segments.

To cancel a segment edit in progress, drag the edit out of the Timeline window
and release the mouse button. Alternatively, choose Undo from the Edit
menu.

Lifting/Overwriting Segments
Use Lift/Overwrite to replace existing material at the new position,
while leaving blank space in the previous position. The total duration
of the sequence is unaffected.

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Like the standard Overwrite function, the Lift/Overwrite edit deletes
and replaces underlying material at the new position, effectively creating new edits. It also ÒliftsÓ the segments from the previous position,
leaving black or silence of the same duration.
To perform a Lift/Overwrite:
1. Click the Lift/Overwrite button (red) in the Timeline tool bar.
2. Select the segments you want to move.
3. Click and drag the segment to its new position. Use the four-frame
monitor display, the offset counter, and the segment image in the
Timeline to determine the new position carefully.
4. Release the mouse button.
The system lifts the selected segment from its old position, leaving
black, then overwrites the material onto the sequence at the newly
selected location.
5. Click the Segment Mode button again if you want to leave Segment mode, or continue to lift and overwrite segments.

To cancel a segment move, drag the edit out of the Timeline window and
release the mouse button. Alternatively, choose Undo from the Edit menu.

Deleting Segments with Segment Mode
Segment mode allows you to delete whole segments in the Timeline
quickly without having to mark IN and OUT points Þrst. In addition,
you can select multiple segments in separate tracks anywhere along
the Timeline to delete at once.
To delete segments quickly:
1. Click one of the Segment Mode buttons:
¥

Extract/Splice-in (yellow) deletes the segments and closes the
remaining gaps. The total duration of the sequence is shortened, and any synchronized tracks lose sync.
423

Lift/Overwrite (red) deletes the segments but leaves blank
space or silence in their place. The total duration of the
sequence remains the same, and sync is maintained.

2. Select one or multiple segments.
3. Press the Delete key. The segments are deleted.

If the segment has an effect, the effect is deleted Þrst.

Marking Clips and Sequences with Segment Mode
As an alternative procedure to marking sections of the Timeline in
Source/Record mode for deleting, copying, subclipping, rendering, or
creating an EDL or digital cut, you can use Segment mode to mark
segments quickly, as follows:
1. Click one of the Segment Mode buttons. In this case, it does not
matter which Segment Mode button you click.
2. Click one or more segments to highlight a section of the sequence.
3. Click the Mark Clip button.
The system marks an IN point at the start and an OUT point at the
end of the selected segments. If you have more than one track
selected, the IN and OUT points mark where the edit points across
tracks line up.

IN point

OUT point

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Using Advanced Timeline Techniques
There are several advanced techniques for displaying and editing in
the Timeline that you can use in any combination, including:
¥

Editing directly from a bin

Cutting, copying, and pasting

Full-screen editing

Editing with the Film track

Editing in Heads and Tails view

Bin Editing into the Timeline
For information on editing multiple clips
directly from the bin
into the Record monitor,
see ÒCreating an
Instant Rough CutÓ on
page 381.

You can use Segment mode to edit clips directly from a bin into the
sequence in the Timeline. Bin editing allows you to bypass the process
of loading clips into the Source monitor, setting marks, and clicking
the Splice-in or Overwrite buttons.
To perform a direct edit from a bin into your Timeline:
1. For a more accurate edit, mark IN and OUT points for each clip or
create subclips, as described in ÒMarking and Subcataloging
FootageÓ on page 350. Otherwise, the entire clip is edited into the
sequence.
2. Click one of the Segment Mode buttons:
¥

Lift/Overwrite (red arrow) acts as an overwrite edit, causing
the clip to overwrite material of the same length in the
sequence, while maintaining the same duration of the
sequence.

Extract/Splice-in (yellow arrow) acts as a splice edit, inserting
the clip into the sequence, moving existing material down,
and lengthening the total duration.

425

3. Drag a clip from the bin into the Timeline. You only can edit one
clip at a time.
The cursor changes to the selected Segment mode icon, and the
interface changes to the four-frame monitor display. In this case,
the numeric offset frame counter displays zero because there is no
offset. As you drag, a white outline of the clip indicates the segment position.
4. When you Þnd the right placement for the clip, release the mouse
button. The Timeline reßects the new edit.

Once the edit is completed, you remain in Segment mode until you click the
active Segment Mode button again to deactivate it.

Cut, Copy, and Paste in the Timeline
You can use the traditional Macintosh shortcut keys for cutting, copying, and pasting segments selected in the Timeline.
To cut, or copy:
1. Select the segment by using one of the Segment mode pointers.
2. Press kÐC to copy, or kÐX to cut.
3. Place the position indicator at the new IN point, and press kÐV to
paste the segment in.

The action of the cut and paste action depends on the Segment mode selected.

Using Full-Screen Timeline
As an alternative to constantly scrolling through the Timeline window
or resizing tracks to get a view of the material, you can resize the Timeline window to full-screen display.

426

To resize the Timeline window, click the Zoom box at the upper right
corner of the window.

Zoom
box

Notice that a Timeline with reduced tracks wraps around to show
more of the sequence. As you reduce tracks in a full-screen Timeline,
the sequence wraps around up to four times, allowing you to examine
a long sequence in greater horizontal detail.

427

You can also enlarge the tracks to view complex audio or video layers
in greater vertical detail. To enlarge tracks, select them and press kÐL.

428

With the proper controls mapped to the keyboard and a full-screen
monitor connected to your system, you can edit with a full-screen
Timeline for long periods.
You can also continue to work in Source/Record mode by resizing the
Timeline window so that the two windows overlap.
You can click in either window to activate it and bring it forward at
any time. Or you can click in the title bar of the Timeline window and
drag it to the Bin monitor to place each window in its own monitor.
To restore a resized Timeline to its default position, choose Home from
the Windows menu.

Editing with the Film Track
You can use the Þlm track to examine each frame of the sequence in a
linear display, much as you would when looking at a strand of Þlm on
a ßatbed or workbench. Unlike your view of the footage in the monitors, which display one frame at a time, the Þlm track within the Timeline allows you to compare individual frames side by side within a
range of frames.
429

To display the Þlm track, choose Film from the Show Track submenu
of the Timeline Fast menu.

A row of Þlm frames appears at the top of the Timeline.
The film track displays as many representative
frames as possible within the window.

To adjust your view of the Timeline quickly for frame-by-frame viewing and editing, choose Show Every Frame from the Timeline Fast
menu.

430

The position indicator splits to surround each
frame. The solid blue bar indicates the head, and
the shadow bar indicates the tail of each frame.

The Þlm track displays frames for the topmost video track only. You cannot
display more than one Þlm track at a time.
To quickly view more frames as you scroll, click the zoom box in the
upper right corner of the Timeline for a full-screen view. You can
reduce the size of Timeline tracks to wrap the sequence around several
times.

431

As you continue to scroll, each strand of the Timeline wraparound is
updated.

Editing in Heads and Tails View
While in the early stages of editing a project, you can easily rearrange
shots in the sequence visually by using Heads view or Heads and Tails
view. These display formats are useful for quickly rearranging simple
straight-cut edits.

432

If you rearrange a split edit (in which the audio extends beyond the
video, or the reverse) the system cuts all tracks to the same edit
point. To rearrange split edits, edits on multiple video tracks, or to
move audio and videopicture separately, use Segment mode editing
techniques described in ÒUsing Segment ModeÓ on page 416.
To edit in Heads view or Heads and Tails view:
1. Choose View Type from the Timeline Fast menu, then choose
Heads, or Heads and Tails, from the submenu.
The Timeline changes to one of the following displays.
Head frame for each clip

Heads view

Head and tail frame for each clip
Heads and
Tails view

2. Click the track selector buttons to select the tracks to be edited.
3. Hold down the Option key, click the frames representing the shot
you want to move, and drag the shot to its new position. The
sequence is rearranged to match the changes you made.

433

Working with Multiple Tracks
As your project progresses, you might need to add and edit with additional audio or video tracks. The Avid Composer system allows you to
edit up to 24 tracks of video and 24 tracks of audio. In addition, you
can step into tracks to create additional tracks for nested effects.
While working with multiple tracks, you can use the Track Selector
panel to select, manipulate, delete, lock, patch, and monitor your
tracks. You can use multiple tracks to layer audio effects and sound,
or to add video titles and other effects, as described in this section.

Multiple video tracks do not immediately play back at the same time until you
apply an appropriate effect that composites the layers. Multiple audio layers,
however, do play back immediately if correctly monitored.

About Effects Editing
Your primary use for multiple tracks of video is in the use of effects.
Effects editing techniques in the Avid Composer system fall into the
following basic categories:

Motion effects, such as freeze-frame and slow- or fast-motion
effects, involve applying frame-motion parameters to selected
footage, usually on a single video track.

Transition effects, such as dissolves and wipes, involve making the
transition from one edited clip to another on the same video track.

Segment effects, such as picture-in-picture, keys, or color effects, are
applied to whole segments. These often require multiple layers of
video.

For more information on all types of effects editing, see the Avid
Media Composer and Film Composer Effects Guide.

434

About Nesting
Occasionally, effects editing involves a unique procedure known as
nesting. This involves stepping into existing tracks to reveal added layers for combining multiple images and digital video effects. When the
effect is applied, you can step out to view and render the effect as one
segment on the track.
Media Composer allows you to nest up to 24 additional tracks within
each track.

For more information on nesting techniques, see the Avid Media Composer
and Film Composer Effects Guide.

Using the Track Selector Panel
The Track Selector panel provides numerous controls for working
effectively with multiple tracks. With this one resource you can select,
delete, monitor, enlarge, reduce, sync lock, patch, and move any video
or audio track.
The Track Selector panel also provides a quick display of track information. You can see which tracks are available, active, patched, monitored, or locked on the source and/or record side at any time. The
following conÞguration shows just one example. The Track Selector
panel can look very different depending on the nature of the source
material or the work underway in the sequence.

435

Source track monitors
Source tracks
Track lock indicators
Record tracks
Record track monitors

Timecode track

The source side of the panel displays only those tracks available for
the clip currently loaded and displayed in the Source monitor. For
instance, a clip that has audio digitized for track A1 only does not display an A2 track in the Track Selector panel.
The record side of the panel displays only those tracks currently in use
for the sequence. However, if you edit source material with a track
selected that does not yet exist on the record side (A3 or V2, in the previous example), by default the track appears on the record side after
the edit takes place.

Selecting Tracks
You can select tracks on either the record side or the source side of the
Track Selector panel as follows:
¥

You can edit selected tracks on the source side directly into the
sequence, assuming you have selected parallel tracks on the
record side.

You cannot edit deselected tracks on the source side into the
sequence, regardless of record track selections.

You cannot edit deselected tracks on the record side, regardless of
source track selections.

There are four methods for selecting tracks:
436

Click any deactivated track to select it. Click any activated track to
deselect it.

Drag a lasso around multiple tracks to select them at once.

With the Timeline window active, choose Select All Tracks from
the Edit menu to select all tracks on the record and source side.

Click the Cycle/Picture Sound button to cycle among selection of
the video tracks, the audio tracks, and all tracks.

For example, you might select the source and record tracks for V1, A1,
and A2 to edit picture and audio from the source clip into the
sequence. Select only V1 source and record tracks to edit the picture
without sound. Or, select only A1 and A2 to edit the sound without the
picture.

There are also keyboard equivalents for selecting tracks. Check your keyboard
or the Keyboard settings in the Settings scroll list in the Project window.

Monitoring Tracks
You determine the monitoring of tracks by clicking the monitor column of either the source- or record-side tracks to activate or deactivate
the monitor icons. Video monitors and audio monitors behave differently in some circumstances, as described in this section.

437

Video track monitor
Audio track monitor

Monitoring Video
The video track monitor determines whether you see video during
playback. You can turn it off at any time to monitor only audio during
editing. When there are multiple video tracks, all tracks below the
monitored track are active during playback.
When you edit with multiple tracks, you can activate the monitor on a
lower track to monitor only the video on that track. This is especially
useful when you have multiple layers of video effects, and need to see
one track without the additional layers.

If you reposition the video monitor, be sure to return it to the topmost track to
view, render, or record all the tracks together. Unmonitored tracks are not
included in playback.

Monitoring Audio
Your Avid Composer system allows you to monitor up to eight audio
tracks at a time.

438

Starting at Release 7.0, you can monitor eight channels of audio on
two-channel audio boards. Previously, you could only monitor four
channels with a two-channel board.
The following characteristics apply to audio track monitoring:
¥

The system pans odd-numbered tracks to the left speaker, and
even-numbered tracks to the right by default.

If your sequence includes more than eight audio tracks, you can
select any eight tracks to monitor at any one time by clicking in the
monitor column of the Track Selector panel to display speaker
icons in the chosen tracks.

To hear more than eight tracks at once, you must mix some of
them down to a maximum of eight. For more information, see
ÒMixing Down Audio TracksÓ on page 553.

A speaker icon (either solid or hollow) indicates that the tracks are
monitored for playback and output. However, only the track with
the hollow icon is monitored for audio scrubbing.

The topmost audio track displays the hollow scrub icon by default
until you select another track for scrubbing. To activate audio
scrub for a particular track, Option-click in the monitor column.
For more information, see ÒUsing Audio ScrubÓ on page 482.

When you choose Direct Out in the Audio Mix Tool, tracks 5 to 8
play back on channels 1 to 4. You can also customize the output of
the tracks, as described in ÒUsing the Audio Mix ToolÓ on
page 490.

Monitoring a Solo Track
You can use the k key to quickly select an individual video or audio
track for monitoring during editing.
¥

To select a track for solo monitoring, press the k key and click in
the monitor column for the chosen track. The monitor icon is highlighted in green to indicate solo monitoring.

439

Video track
selected for solo
monitoring

Audio track
selected for solo
monitoring

To deselect solo monitoring, press the k key and click again in the
monitor column. The monitor icons return to normal functionality.

Solo monitoring provides several advantages:
¥

You can overcome slowed playback and cueing when working
with a complex sequence by isolating tracks for monitoring.

You can quickly isolate an individual audio track without having
to click several times in the monitor column to deselect all other
tracks.

You can monitor the upper layers of a composited effect apart
from the lower layers.

The screen on the left shows a multitrack
matte key effect with the upper track
selected for normal monitoring.

The screen on the right shows the same
effect with the upper track selected for solo
monitoring.

440

Patching Tracks
When working with multiple tracks, you occasionally encounter a circumstance where you must edit source audio or video onto a track
other than the parallel track displayed in the Track Selector panel. To
edit the source material onto another record track above or below it,
you must patch the source track to the targeted record track.
You can perform only one patch per edit, but there is no limit on the
number of times you can patch from the same source track. Audio can
only patch to audio, and video to video.
¥

To perform a patch, drag from a source track (audio or video) to
the targeted record track (a white arrow appears during the
patch).

New source
track order
identifies the
patch

An audio patch
from a source
track to a record
track

After Patch

During Patch

To undo a patch, click in the Record monitor or Timeline. Choose
the Restore Default Patch command from the Special menu, or
manually repatch to the previous track.

The selected source track moves beside the record track to which it is
patched as soon as you draw the arrow and release the mouse. The
patched track remains highlighted in preparation for your edit. You
can proceed to select any other tracks required for the edit.
After you make the edit, you can continue to work on the same track
or patch to a different track as necessary.

441

When patching from one video track to another, the video track
monitor icon moves to the track you patch to. Be sure to return the
icon to the topmost track when necessary to play back and output all
video tracks.

Locking and Sync Locking Tracks
The system provides two ways of locking tracks:
¥

You can lock selected tracks to prevent further editing from being
performed on them.

You can sync lock selected tracks, so that when you trim one track,
the other track follows.

The middle row of the Track Selector panel displays a slash mark icon
for sync-locked tracks, and a padlock icon for locked tracks. The procedure for applying the locks is different in each case.
Slash icon
Padlock icon

Locking Tracks
Locking tracks to prevent further editing is especially useful in circumstances like the following:
¥

For video editing, you can lock tracks when you have completed a
set of complex, multilayer edits and want to avoid making accidental changes while you work on other adjacent tracks.

For audio editing, you can lock audio tracks that contain sync dialog that should be maintained while you edit on adjacent video
tracks or audio tracks.

For projects involving multiple editors, you can lock tracks to prevent unnecessary or accidental changes.
442

To lock tracks:
1. Select the tracks to be locked (Source and/or Record) by clicking
to select each in turn.
2. Choose Lock Tracks from the Clip menu. The padlock icon indicates that the selected tracks are locked.
No further editing can occur on locked tracks until you choose
Unlock Tracks from the Clip menu.

Sync Locking Tracks
For more information
on using the sync-lock
feature in Trim mode,
see ÒUsing Sync LockÓ
on page 562.

Sync locking affects trimming and splice-in edits. This feature is especially useful when you are working with multiple tracks and want to
maintain sync between two or more tracks.
To sync lock the tracks, click in the center column between track selectors to activate the slash mark icon for each synchronized track. When
you need to resume editing on individual tracks, click again to remove
the slash marks.

Adding a Track
To add a new track to a sequence, do one of the following:
¥

With a sequence loaded in the Record monitor, choose New Audio
Track or New Video Track from the Clip menu.
The new track appears in the Timeline.

If you want to manage the numbering scheme of tracks rather than
use the consecutive numbering default:
a. Hold down the Option key and choose New Audio Track or
New Video Track from the Clip menu. A dialog box appears.

443

Track type pop-up menu
Track number pop-up menu

b. If you want to switch from the type of new track you chose
(for example, from a new video to a new audio track), choose
the other option from the track type pop-up menu.
c. If you want to select a track number other than the default
consecutive numbering offered by the dialog box, choose
another number from the track number pop-up menu. You
cannot choose the number of an existing track.
d. Click OK. The new track appears in the Timeline and in the
Track Selector panel.

Deleting Tracks
You can remove one or more tracks from a sequence if you no longer
need the tracks.
To delete one or more tracks from the sequence:
1. Enable the tracks, and press the Delete key. A dialog box appears.

2. Click OK. The tracks are deleted.

444

When you delete a track, it is permanently removed. If you want to
remove the track temporarily, hide the tracks as described in ÒCustomizing Timeline ViewsÓ on page 399.

Adding an Edit (Match Framing)
The add edit function places an artiÞcial edit point between frames of
a clip. In other words, the edit appears in the Timeline as a transition
between two clips, but when you play the clip, the footage appears
unchanged because the frames are continuous.
Add edit placed between frames.

Footage continues to play back fluidly.

This form of edit is also known as a match frame. In traditional analog
editing, match framing is used to accomplish speciÞc tasks, such as
creating a dissolve between two shots. In the Avid Composer system,
however, add edits (or match frames) function differently. Use match
frames primarily to divide and isolate portions of a clip or sequence in
order to modify that portion without affecting the rest of the footage.
Once you make the adjustment, playback of the clip is no longer seamless because the two portions of the clip are different.
You can add an edit to a single audio or video track, or you can place
the add edit across several tracks at once.
To add a match-frame edit:
1. Place the position indicator at the chosen frame.
2. Select the tracks where you want to add the edit.
445

3. Click the Add Edit button. The edit appears in the sequence, with
an equal sign to indicate a match frame.

Equal sign indicates
a match frame.

By default, the match frame indicator appears white. If a change in level
occurs the match frame indicator changes to red.

Removing Match-Frame Edits
You can also remove
individual match
frames by selecting
them in Trim mode and
pressing the Delete key.
For more information
on Trim mode, see
Chapter 15.

If you make a mistake when adding an edit, or if you have Þnished
performing edit functions with multiple add edits and want to remove
them, you can remove all add edits in the entire sequence, or within a
selected portion of the sequence.
To remove match-frame edits:
1. Select the entire sequence or a portion as follows:
¥

Select a portion of the sequence by marking an IN point and
an OUT point surrounding the match-frame edits (add edits)
you want to remove.

Select the entire sequence by removing any IN and/or OUT
points.

2. Select the tracks from which you want to remove the edits.
3. Choose Remove Match Frame Edits from the Clip menu.
The Avid Composer system removes the edits.

446

You cannot remove match-frame edits between segments in which
audio pan or volume levels have been adjusted.
Alternatively, you can select the match-frame edit in Trim mode and
press Delete.

Backtiming Edits
Backtiming an edit is effectively the reverse of the process you normally use for marking footage: instead of marking from the IN points
forward, you mark according to the OUT points.
For example, you might have a track of audio (music or voice) that
ends at a speciÞc point, and you want to synchronize a video clip to
end on a particular shot. You can backtime the edit to match the end
points of the tracks.
Here are a few concepts to keep in mind:
¥

The Avid Composer system needs only three marks to perform a
backtimed edit when four edits of unequal duration exist in the
sequence. The IN and OUT points set on the record side always
take precedence.

If you do not mark an IN point in the sequence, the Avid Composer system uses the position indicator as the IN point.

If you do not mark an OUT point in the clip, the Avid Composer
system uses the end of the clip as the OUT point.

If you mark OUT points in both the Source monitor and in the
Record monitor, the Avid Composer system uses the OUT point
on the record side.

To backtime an edit:
1. Mark an OUT in the sequence where you want the edit to end.
Also mark an IN where the edit is to start.
2. Select the appropriate tracks.
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3. Load the clip into the Source monitor.
4. Mark an OUT point in the Source monitor to synchronize to the
OUT point in the sequence.
5. Click the Overwrite button.
The source material is added to the sequence, with the synchronized ending.

Creating One-Step Overlap Edits
You can quickly create an overlap edit (also known as an L-cut or
delay edit) at the end of a sequence by using the Option key while performing an overwrite edit.

For more information
on creating overlap
edits in Trim mode, see
ÒCreating Overlap
EditsÓ on page 466.

To perform a one-step overlap edit:
1. Move the position indicator to the edit point before the end of the
sequence.
2. Select record tracks for overlapping either the video or the audio:
¥

Before edit

To extend the video beyond the audio, select the audio record
tracks.
Track Selectors

After edit

Overlapping the video
V1

V1
A1

New

A1
A2

New

Position indicator

To extend the audio beyond the video, select the video record
tracks.

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Before edit

Track Selectors

After edit

Overlapping the audio
V1

V1
A1

A1
A2

New
New
New

Position indicator

3. Press the Option key while you click the Overwrite (red) button.
The overlap edit is complete.

You can also use the Audio Mark In button to create an overlap edit.

Additional Offline Aids
Your Avid Composer system provides two features speciÞcally
designed to aid the ofßine editing process by helping you track and
adjust edits to avoid extra work in the online suite. These features are
Dupe Detection and Color Frame tracking.

Detecting Duplicate Frames
When editing ofßine with plans to generate an EDL, the Dupe Detection feature allows you to visually track duplicate frames of footage as
you edit so that you can eliminate or manage the requirements of an
online dupe reel.
When you activate Dupe Detection, each set of duplicate frames is
tagged with a different color. (Up to 10 color sets can be distinguished
during a single detection process.) Matching frames have matching
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colors. If the duplicate frames are unnecessary, you can use any of the
Trim mode options to remove the superßuous frames prior to generating an EDL.
The colored bars that distinguish duplicate frames in the sequence are
automatically drawn above the frames in the Timeline, as shown.
Two duplicate frames marked above the clip by the automatic Dupe Detection option

Red bars mark the Þrst set of duplicate frames; green bars mark the
second set, and so on. You can use Dupe Detection while you are editing to locate duplicate frames and remove them as the sequence
evolves.
To activate Dupe Detection, choose Dupe Detection from the Timeline
Fast menu.

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Dupe Detection is instantaneous and retroactive; if duplicate
frames already exist in your sequence, the colored bars appear
immediately. As you edit, the system shows duplicate frames as
they occur.

The handle size used by Dupe Detection can be changed in the Timeline settings.

Tracking Color Frame Shifts
If you are preparing for an online edit using 1-inch reel-to-reel sources,
you can enable the Color Framing option to track and correct instances
where an edit cuts between the four Þelds (two frames) required to lay
down a complete NTSC color sync signal phase.
When Color Framing is enabled, green bars appear beneath the Overwrite and Splice-in buttons and blink whenever a color sync signal is
interrupted by an edit. The blinking lights indicate that color framing
is out of phase at the edit transition.

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Start Frame color phase indicator

Green color frame phase bars
blink during an interruption

End Frame color phase indicator

Use the following procedure to enable Color Framing while editing:
1. Click the Settings button in the Project window, then double-click
Composer Settings in the projectÕs settings list.
The Composer Window Settings dialog box appears.

Color Framing
option

2. Click the Color Framing pop-up menu and choose the appropriate
option:
¥

For NTSC video, choose the 4-Þeld option.

For PAL video, choose the 8-Þeld option.

The dialog box displays the setting you selected.
3. Click OK to complete the setting selection.
To correct color frame interruption as you edit:
1. Note any edits that cause the green lights to blink below the edit
buttons. You can adjust the edits now, or place locators to return to
these edits and correct them at a future time.
2. To adjust the edit, enter Trim mode.
In Trim mode, the Avid Composer system displays small green
boxes on the top-adjacent frame corners. When the color sync signals are in phase, the boxes are aligned horizontally.

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Color Framing Indicator Lights
Incoming frame

Outgoing frame
Boxes are out of alignment when color
sync signal is out of phase

3. Trim one frame at a time on one side of the transition or the other
until the indicator boxes are aligned, and the indicator lights
below the Splice-in and Overwrite buttons stop blinking.
If you are careful about color framing while editing, you will not need
to consider the subject again when assembling your master tape. If
you ignore color framing during the edit session, you might have to
make adjustments during online editing if your edits interrupted any
color-frame Þelds in the sequence.

Printing the Timeline
To print the Timeline:
1. Choose Print Timeline from the File menu. The print dialog box
appears.

The name of the printer and details of the dialog box will vary depending
upon facilities.
2. Select printing options, then click Print.
The system prints the current view of the Timeline. You can also
use the Print Timeline command to print the Timeline in Heads
view or in Heads and Tails view.

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CHAPTER 15
Working in Trim Mode
Basic editing in Source/Record mode and in the Timeline initially produces a rough cut, which can be loosely deÞned as a series of straightcut edits with many rough edges and few effects. After creating a
rough cut, you can enter Trim mode and Þne-tune the transitions
between each shot or between whole segments. You can also trim edits
as you build a sequence, rather than creating a rough cut Þrst. The following sections describe the Trim mode procedures:
¥

Customizing Trim Mode

Using Basic Trim Procedures

Creating Overlap Edits

Extending an Edit

Slipping or Sliding Shots

Maintaining Sync While Trimming

Using the Transition Corner Display

Customizing Trim Mode
Trim mode provides a unique set of controls within the Composer
window for Þne-tuning edits with various trim procedures. These controls appear in both the Source/Record window and in the Timeline.
454

Big Trim mode is the systemÕs default conÞguration for trimming.
Small Trim mode is an optional display mode. In either mode you can
perform many of the same functions, such as removing or adding
frames, or slipping or sliding shots.
In Big Trim mode,
Source and Record
monitors are replaced
by displays of outgoing
and incoming frames.
Big Trim mode also
shows transition playback loop parameters.

Outgoing
frames

Incoming
frames

Playback loop
parameters

Trim buttons

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Frame offset
counters

Play Loop button

Small Trim mode
leaves the Source monitor display intact, but
has smaller displays for
incoming and outgoing
frames, and does not
provide access to transition playback loop
parameters.

Outgoing
frames
Incoming
Frames
Frame offset
counters
Trim
buttons
Play Loop
button

Use the Trim Settings dialog box to conÞgure basic displays and
functions.
You can learn about Trim settings as follows:
¥

For an overview of all settings, see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

For more information on transition playback loop parameters, see
ÒTrimming During a Playback LoopÓ on page 466.

For information on dual image playback during trims, see ÒDualImage Playback During TrimsÓ on page 464.

In addition, you can:
¥

Map trim-related buttons onto palettes in Trim mode, as described
in ÒAbout Button MappingÓ on page 96.

ConÞgure a Trim-mode-speciÞc Timeline view, as described in
ÒUsing the Timeline Fast MenuÓ on page 401.

456

Using Basic Trim Procedures
For illustrations of the
various types of trim
edits you can perform
in Trim mode, see the
Avid Media Composer
and Film Composer
Quick Reference.

You can enter Trim mode in several different ways, depending on the
type of trim you expect to perform. Once in Trim mode you can:
¥

Select additional tracks

Toggle between Big and Small Trim mode

Toggle between trim sides

Perform and play back the trim

Entering Trim Mode
There are four alternative methods for entering Trim mode:
¥

Click the Trim Mode button. By default, the system enters Trim
mode and selects the tracks nearest the position indicator for dualroller trimming. This method is useful for selecting straight-cut
transitions on one track or across video and audio tracks.
Default Trim mode selection
for a straight cut

When you deselect one or more tracks in the Track Selector panel,
by default only the transitions in the highlighted tracks are
selected for trimming. If the transitions are not straight cuts (overlap cuts or L-edits), the system highlights the topmost track nearest the position indicator.
¥

Lasso the transitions in the Timeline. Draw the lasso by clicking
at a point above the top track in the Timeline and dragging to surround the transitions. This method is useful when you need to

457

select multiple transitions staggered across parallel tracks (overlap
cuts) for simultaneous trimming.

Lasso drawn across three tracks

Transitions are selected for dual-roller trim

You can drag from right to left, or left to right, and you can lasso
single transitions across several contiguous tracks. However,
avoid lassoing more than one transition on a single track, because
this activates Segment mode.

To select transitions located below several track layers, you can draw a lasso
within the Timeline by pressing the Control key while you drag.
¥

Click the Go to Previous Edit or Go to Next Edit buttons. By
default, the system selects the nearest transition in either direction
of the selected track for dual-roller trimming.
If the transition is a straight cut, the system selects all edited
tracks. If the transition is an overlap edit, with staggered transition
points, the system selects the topmost track.

Click the Play Loop button on a palette or the keyboard.
This is useful if you like to trim quickly as you edit, going back
and forth between Trim mode and other edit modes. This method
is described in ÒTrimming During a Playback LoopÓ on page 466.

The Play Loop button does not appear in Source/Record mode by default. You
must map it to the keyboard or a palette in advance. For information on button mapping, see ÒAbout Button MappingÓ on page 96.
458

Exiting Trim Mode
You can exit Trim mode at any time in one of several ways:
¥

Click the Source/Record Mode or the Effect Mode button.

Press the Escape key on the keyboard to enter Source/Record
mode by default.

Click a speciÞc location in the Timecode (TC1) track at the bottom
of the Timeline to exit Trim mode. The position indicator moves
to that location.

esc

The system exits to Source/Record
mode, and relocates the position indicator.

Click in the TC track at a
selected location.

Toggling Between Big and Small Trim Mode
When you click the Trim Mode button, by default the system enters
Big Trim mode. If you click the Trim Mode button again, the interface
toggles between Big and Small Trim mode.
If you prefer the larger monitors and controls of Big Trim mode, select
this as the default in the Trim Settings in the Project window. When
you need to use the Monitor menus to switch between sequences, or
have occasion to edit source material into the sequence, you can click
the Trim Mode button to enable Small Trim mode, which includes the
Source monitor controls.
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Selecting Between Trim Sides
There are three ways to select sides of a transition to trim:
A-side B-side A and B

A-side

A and B

A-side

B-side

Highlight indicates
active side

In Big or Small Trim mode display, click the outgoing (A-side) or
incoming (B-side) monitor to deÞne which side of the transition to
trim. Notice that the pointer changes to a single-roller A-side,
single-roller B-side, or double-roller icon depending on position.

You can also use the Trim-side keys on the default keyboard (or
map them onto one of the monitor palettes while in Trim mode) to
select side A, side B, or both.

You can use the Cycle Trim Sides button to cycle between selection
of the A-side, B-side, or both.
The selected parts of the transition are highlighted, and the corresponding rollers appear in the Timeline. Also, one or both of the
frame counter indicators below the monitors are highlighted to
reßect the active trim sides: A-side, B-side, or both. The number
indicates how many frames have been added or subtracted from
the transition. Click to choose a side. Shift-click to choose both.

Selecting Additional Transitions
While you are in Trim mode, you can select additional transitions for
trimming in different contexts in one of the following ways:

460

Select tracks on
the record side
to add transitions.

To quickly select additional transitions on contiguous tracks for
trimming on the same side, click the corresponding record-side
track selectors in the Track Selector panel. For example, if you
select a single transition in track V1 for single-roller A-side trimming, and want to add A1 and A2 tracks at the same transition,
click the corresponding track selectors.
Likewise, you can deselect tracks in the track panel to remove
transitions on those tracks from the trim procedure.

To select additional transitions for single-roller trimming in varying locations on different tracks, Shift-click the transitions in the
Timeline. This method is useful when you are working with staggered transitions across multiple tracks; it also allows you to select
both A- and B-side transitions for simultaneous trimming in opposite directions (asymmetrical trim). This is not possible with dualroller trims.

Two A-sides and one B-side
selected for asymmetrical
trimming

A-side

Notice as you move the cursor back and forth across a transition,
the roller icon changes from an A-side roller (facing left) to a Bside roller (facing right) to indicate the type of selection.

B-side

You do not see the dual roller within the Timeline. To select both
sides, you must Þrst select one side, then Shift-click to select the
other.
¥

To quickly add multiple transitions to the currently selected transitions, press the Shift key and lasso the additional transitions. Press
Shift-Control while lassoing tracks that are below other tracks.

You can select and trim two heads or tails simultaneously, in any
combination, for each track in the sequence. All selected transitions are trimmed the same number of frames. This allows you to

461

save time, and in some cases, maintain sync by performing a single trim procedure across multiple tracks and transitions.

In this example, tail frames
on both shots are trimmed
simultaneously across an
overlap edit.

Performing a Basic Trim
With your transitions and trim sides selected, you can perform a basic
trim by using one of the following alternative procedures:

1 frame 10 frames

Use the Trim buttons to trim forward or backward by 1- or 10frame increments.

Use the numeric keypad at the right side of the keyboard, as follows:

To move the transition a speciÞc number of frames, type a
plus sign (+) or minus sign (Ð) and the number of frames (from
1 to 99) you want to move forward or backward. Then press
Enter. If the number of frames is larger than 99, type an F after
the number to indicate frame count. For example, to enter 200
frames, type 200F and press Enter.

To move the transition to an exact timecode, type a timecode
number larger than 99, including frames. For example, type
102 to enter 1 second and 2 frames (1:02).

Use controls in the Timeline by clicking a roller at the selected
transition and dragging forward or backward in the sequence.

462

Click and drag a transition in the Timeline.

For greater control:
-

Press the Option key as you drag to move one frame at a time.

Press the Command key to snap to other transition points.

As you trim, all selected transitions in the Timeline move in unison.
The Frame counter displays the frame count backward or forward for
one or both trim sides, and the monitors display the new incoming or
outgoing frames.

Reviewing the Trim Edit
To review the most recent trim edit, or to play the currently selected
transition while in Trim mode:
1. To see the Timeline in a closer view while you review the trim,
click the Focus button. (Click the button again to return to your
original view of the Timeline.)

You can also choose an option in Trim Settings to focus the Timeline automatically when you enter Trim mode. For more information, see ÒFocusing the
TimelineÓ on page 412.
2. To view the playback in Full-Screen mode, press the Full Screen
(Single Quote) key on the keyboard.
3. Click the Play Loop button.

463

The system enters a playback loop. This repeatedly begins at a
preroll point before the transition and ends at a postroll point,
pausing brießy before beginning playback again.
4. You set and alter the length of the preroll, postroll, and intermission intervals by clicking in the appropriate timing Þeld and typing a new value.
Intermission timing

Preroll timing

Postroll timing

5. Stop the playback loop by clicking the Play Loop button.
6. To leave Trim mode, click the timecode track in the Timeline, or
click the Source/Record Mode button.

Dual-Image Playback During Trims
Dual-image playback allows you to preview A-side and B-side frames
in real time while performing a trim. You can play through the transition by using the J-K-L keys or the Play and Trim buttons.

Dual-image playback works with single-Þeld resolutions only.
Only one side rolls when you attempt to use dual-image playback
with material digitized at AVRs 12, 70, 75, and 77.
To use dual-image playback during trims:
1. Double-click Trim in the Settings scroll list in the Project window
to open the Trim Settings dialog box.
2. Select the Dual Image Play option and click OK.
3. Enter Trim mode and select a transition for trimming.
4. Press a playback button or key combination.

464

As the transition plays or loops, notice that both the A-side and Bside of the trim play back in the Trim monitors.
5. When you see or hear the point that you want to trim to, press the
space bar to stop playback and update the transition in the
sequence.

Trimming On-the-Fly
In both Big and Small Trim mode, you can use the J-K-L keys on the
keyboard to play through outgoing or incoming material and mark
trim points. This is similar to the procedure for marking footage onthe-ßy, as described in ÒMarking and Subcataloging FootageÓ on
page 350.
For convenience, this method isolates the trim controls to just three
keys. However, when performing a dual-roller trim, you cannot view
both sides at once; the monitors play only the A-side during the procedure, updating the B-side once the trim is completed.
To trim on-the-ßy:
1. Select one or more transitions for single- or dual-roller trimming.
2. Use the J-K-L keys to step (jog), play, or shuttle through the footage at varying speeds:
¥

Press and hold the K key while pressing J or L to step slowly
backward or forward through the footage. When you Þnd the
frame where you want to relocate the transition, release the K
key to complete the trim.

Press the J or L keys once to play at normal speed, or more
than once to shuttle at higher speeds. When you see the frame
where you want to relocate the transition, press the space bar
or the K key to complete the trim.

The monitors and the Timeline are updated to reßect the trim.

465

Trimming During a Playback Loop
An alternative method for trimming is to view the transition continuously in a playback loop, and use the keyboard to adjust the transition
in 1- or 10-frame increments until you achieve the trim you want. You
can perform this procedure in Big or Small Trim mode, using either
single-roller or dual-roller trims.
1. Enter Trim mode and select transitions for trimming.
2. Click the Play Loop button to repeatedly play the selected transitions.

n
1 frame 10 frames

To make adjustments to the playback loop for preroll, postroll, or intermission
intervals, see ÒReviewing the Trim EditÓ on page 463.
3. Press a keyboard equivalent to perform a Trim function. Also, if
you are having difÞculty determining which side of the transition
to trim (for example, during a difÞcult audio edit), use the Go to
IN and Go to OUT keys to review just one side.
The system performs the trim before the next playback loop, so
you can view the trimmed transition during playback, then make
further changes until you are satisÞed with the adjustment.
4. When you are Þnished, exit the playback loop by pressing the
space bar or clicking the Play Loop button.

Creating Overlap Edits
You can use an overlap edit to smooth a transition by giving the
viewer the subtle illusion that the audio, or video, is shared between
two separate but adjacent shots.
To create an overlap edit:
1. Perform a straight-cut edit between two shots, including audio
and video tracks: If the timing of the video edit is crucial, mark
466

edit points according to picture. If the timing of the audio transition is crucial, edit to audio.
2. Perform a dual-roller trim on either the video track or the audio
tracks, but not both:
¥

If the video transition occurs at the right place, but you want
the audio from one shot to linger into the other (or the
reverse), trim the audio tracks accordingly.

If the audio transition occurs at the right place, but you want
the picture to transition either before or after the audio cut,
trim the video track accordingly.

Extending an Edit
Use an extend edit to perform dual-sided (A- and B-side) trims on
selected tracks from within Source/Record mode. Using an extend
edit allows you to quickly create a split edit without entering Trim
mode. It also allows you to establish the exact frame that you want to
trim to by using the position indicator. (If you enter Trim mode, by
default the position indicator moves to the nearest transition.)
You can extend edits backward or forward in the Timeline. In either
case, like a dual-roller trim the extend edit function always maintains
sync relationships.
To perform an extend edit:
1. Select the tracks you want to extend.
2. Find the point in the sequence to which you want to trim. If the
trim point is before the edit, mark an IN. If it is after the edit, mark
an OUT.

467

Audio tracks are
selected for extending back.

Mark IN

3. Click the Extend button. You can import the Extend button from
the Command Palette. For information on the Command Palette
and button mapping, see ÒAbout Button MappingÓ on page 96.
The adjustment appears in the Timeline.

Slipping or Sliding Shots
Slip and slide procedures are two unique Trim mode techniques that
allow you to make frame-accurate adjustments to a selected clip.
These occur without affecting the overall duration of the sequence or
the sync relationships between multiple tracks. Procedures for performing them are described in this section.

468

Selecting Segments for Slip or Slide Trimming
There are three ways to select segments for either slip or slide trimming:
¥

While in Source/Record mode, make a selection for slipping. Then
enter Trim mode by dragging a lasso from right to left around a
segment (two or more transitions). To select for slide trimming,
press the Option key while you drag.

OUT

Drag right to left around at least two
transitions.

You can also select two or more contiguous segments within a
track for slipping or sliding as a whole by dragging the lasso
around four or more transitions.

Be sure to draw the lasso from right to left; if you draw from left to
right, you enter Segment mode.
¥

While in Trim mode, double-click a segment to select it for slip
trimming. To select it for slide trimming, press the Option key
while you click.
You can also select two or more segments on different tracks for
simultaneous slip or slide trimming. To do so, press the Shift key
as you repeat this procedure. However, you cannot use the Shift
key to select additional segments on the same track.

While in Trim mode, press the Shift key and select both the head
and tail of a clip for slipping. Alternatively, select the outgoing tail
frame of the preceding shot and the incoming head frame of the
following shot in the sequence to prepare the clip for sliding.

469

You can also use this method to select two or more contiguous segments on the same track, and/or additional segments on other
tracks for slipping or sliding as a group.

You must select all multiple selections for either slipping or sliding. You cannot perform both functions simultaneously.
You can slip and/or slide the video and audio for a shot together.
Alternatively, slip and/or slide a single segment of video or audio
independently from the rest of the shot. You can also slip shots in
Source/Record mode by using the Slip Left and Slip Right buttons.

The Slip/Slide Display
Once you select the clips for slipping or sliding, the Trim mode interface changes to a four-frame display. For more information on fourframe display, see ÒAbout Four-Frame DisplayÓ on page 420.

Outgoing and
Incoming
video (or Aand B-side)

Tail and head
frames of the
selected clip

470

The type of trim you perform (slip or slide) determines which frames
are updated, as follows:
¥

In slip trimming, the two inner monitors for the head and tail
frames of the clip change, because only the contents of the clip are
adjusted. The frames that precede and follow the clip are not
affected.

In slide trimming, the two outer monitors for the outgoing (Aside) and incoming (B-side) frames change, because the clip
remains Þxed while the footage before and after it is trimmed.

Performing the Slip or Slide Trim
To slip or slide a shot:
1. After selecting the segments, as described in ÒSelecting Segments
for Slip or Slide TrimmingÓ on page 469, do one of the following:
¥

Click any roller in the Timeline, drag the selected material to
the left or right, and release.

Use the numeric keypad to enter speciÞc frame-count or timecode values, and press Enter.

Use the trim keys or buttons to shift the selection by 1- or 10frame increments.

2. Monitor the progress of the trim by using the monitors, the frame
counters, and the Timeline.
When you reach the end of available material while slipping a
shot, the trim stops. Similarly, when you reach the next transition
while sliding a shot along a track, the trim stops. A bright white
line at the transition indicates the limit. After completing the initial slide, you can perform another slide in the same direction.
3. When you are Þnished, exit slip or slide mode either by clicking
another transition for trimming, or by clicking either the Source/
Record Mode or Effect Mode button to exit Trim mode.

471

Slipping Shots in Source/Record Mode
You can use this alternative procedure to slip a shot in Source/Record
mode by using the Slip Left and Slip Right buttons, as follows:
1. In Source/Record mode, select the tracks for the clips to be
slipped.
2. Place the position indicator within the shot that you want to slip.
3. Slip the shot by doing one of the following:

Click the Slip Left button to slip the shot one frame left
(revealing later material from the source clip).

Click the Slip Right button to slip one frame right (revealing
earlier material from the source clip).

Hold the Option key while you click the Slip Left or Right button to trim 10 frames at a time.

The Slip Left and Slip Right buttons do not appear on the interface or keyboard by default. You must map them from the Command Palette Trim tab to
use this procedure.

Performing a Slide Trim
To perform a slide trim:
1. While in Big Trim mode, press the Option key and double-click a
shot or a segment of video or audio to select the frames that precede and follow the shot or segment.
Or hold the Option key, then press the mouse button and drag a
lasso around the material you want to slip.
2. In the Timeline, press one of the selected heads or tails, then drag
the shot to the left or right.
If you slide the shot to the right, the edit before the shot is
extended to the new IN point for the shot. The edit after the shot is
trimmed forward to the new OUT point for the shot.
472

If you slide the shot to the left, the edit before the shot is trimmed
back to the new IN point for the shot. The edit after the shot is
extended back to the new OUT point for the shot.

Maintaining Sync While Trimming
For more information
about sync relationships, as well as additional procedures for
managing sync, see
Chapter 17.

Trim mode has two features that you can use to ensure that you do not
break sync unintentionally between two or more video and/or audio
tracks when performing single-roller trims.
¥

You can add black to the track while trimming.

You can sync-lock tracks that maintain a synchronized relationship.

Adding Black When Trimming
If you are trimming a
video track and need to
Þll the black, you can
perform a replace edit
to add another piece of
footage. For more information, see ÒPerforming a Replace EditÓ on
page 385.

Because single-roller (A-side or B-side) trims shorten or lengthen the
duration of the track being trimmed, any relationships that exist with
other tracks downstream of the trim will be thrown out of sync. You
can use the Control key while trimming to add black on either the Aside or the B-side to maintain the overall duration of the track and the
sync relationships.
To add black while trimming, press and hold the Control key while
performing any of the A-side or B-side trim procedures. The system
adds a black segment to Þll the duration of trimmed frames.

473

No black is added and sync
breaks appear in the Timeline.
Trimming without
adding black

Adding black while
trimming
(Control key + trim)

Black fills the trim duration, and
sync is maintained.

You can only add black while performing single-roller trims, because dualroller trims do not cause sync breaks.

Trimming with Sync-Locked Tracks

Sync-locked tracks aid only single-roller trim functions in Trim mode because
dual-roller trims do not cause sync breaks.
Trim with sync-locked tracks as follows:
1. Sync-lock the tracks as follows:

Sync-lock icon

Click in the center column next to the tracks you want to keep
in sync. The sync-lock icon appears.

Click in the narrow column to the left of the TC1 button to toggle sync-lock on and off for all tracks.

2. Perform single-roller trims as necessary, with the following
results:
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When you trim the A-side of a transition forward, all other
segments locked in sync move forward with the trim. If the
transitions are staggered, this might split one or more of the
segments at the sync point established by the position indicator, leaving Þll.

Before trimming forward,
three tracks are sync-locked.

After trimming forward,
sync is maintained from
position indicator forward.

If you trim the B-side of the transition in the same direction,
the additional sync-locked segments slide back in the
sequence to maintain sync until they encounter another segment in the same track. At this point, you can trim no further
and the system emits a warning sound.
¥

When you trim back the A-side of a transition, additional segments locked in sync move back as well. If the segments are
staggered and one of the additional sync-locked segments
encounters another segment on the same track, you can trim
no further and the system emits a warning sound.

475

Before the trim,
three tracks are
sync-locked.

Trim is stopped here
After the trim, sync
is maintained, but
the trim stops at
earlier segment.

If you trim the B-side of the transition in the same direction, all
other segments locked in sync move forward to stay in sync. If
the transitions are staggered, this action might split one or
more of the sync-locked segments at the sync point established by the position indicator. Fill is added where the split
occurs.

Slip and slide trims are not protected for sync. Be sure to select all synced
tracks for simultaneous slipping or sliding to avoid sync breaks.

Using the Transition Corner Display
The Transition Corner Display is a Trim Mode interface that shows six
important frames you use as reference points when trimming a transition effect:

476

Transition Corner
Display button

Frames on which the
transition effect starts

The two frames between
which a cut point defines
the transition

Frames on which the
transition effect ends

Use the Transition Corner Display to trim the transition effectÕs start
frames, end frames, and duration. As you trim the transition effect,
you will be able to see the corresponding frame adjustments in all six
monitors simultaneously.

477

The Transition Corner Display is only applicable to the trimming of
transition effects (for example, dissolves, wipes, picture-in-picture,
and so on). It is not designed for trimming key, image, or segment
effects.
To trim a transition by using the Transition Corner display:
1. Select a transition effect for trimming:
¥

Lasso the effect in the Timeline from right to left.

Enter Trim mode and click on the transition in the Timeline.

Use the Go to Transition buttons to enter Trim mode and step
through transitions until you highlight the desired transition.

2. Click the Transition Corner Display button.
The button turns bright green, and the display is enabled.
3. Trim the transition effect by clicking the outgoing or incoming
frame you want to trim, then use one of the following three trim
methods:
¥

Position your mouse on the rollers and drag the transition
backward or forward. (Hold the Option key to roll forward or
backward slowly one frame at a time.)

Click the appropriate trim button to trim backward 10 frames;
trim backward 1 frame, trim forward 1 frame, or trim forward
10 frames.

Enter the number of frames you want to move forward on the
numeric keypad, then press Enter. Or, type a minus sign (Ð)
and enter the number of frames you want to move backward,
then press Enter.

4. To review your edit, click the Play Loop button.

478

CHAPTER 16
Working with Audio
You edit audio by using many of the same techniques and tools you
use to edit video, including Source/Record mode, Segment mode, and
Trim mode functions. Your Avid Composer system also provides several unique features that facilitate audio editing, such as audio scrub,
waveform displays, and tools for adjusting and mixing audio levels
and pan between speakers. In addition, you can adjust the high, low,
and midrange frequency ranges of segments by using the Audio
Equalization (EQ) Tool. These procedures are described in the following sections:
¥

About Audio Tools

Accessing Audio Effect Tools

Audio Editing Aids

Using the Audio Mix Tool

Using Audio Gain Automation

Using the Audio EQ Tool

Using Digidesign AudioSuite Plug-Ins

Using Audio Punch-In

Fine-Tuning Audio Transitions

Mixing Down Audio Tracks

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About Audio Tools
The Avid Composer system provides a collection of tools for managing and Þne-tuning audio volume, pan, equalization, and transitions.
The general purpose of each tool is as follows:
¥

Use the Audio Tool primarily for adjusting and calibrating global
input and output levels when digitizing from analog sources or
outputting to tape. For more information, see ÒPreparing for
Audio Input and OutputÓ on page 157 and ÒPreparing for OutputÓ on page 601.

Use the Audio Mix Tool primarily for adjusting pan and volume
levels on clips or whole tracks within a sequence. For more information, see ÒUsing the Audio Mix ToolÓ on page 490.

Use the Audio Gain Automation feature in the Timeline for Þner
control over volume key frames and ramps within a sequence. For
more information, see ÒUsing Audio Gain AutomationÓ on
page 500.

Use the Audio EQ Tool for adjusting the sound characteristics of
audio clips in the sequence based on three-band control over high,
low, and midrange frequencies. For more information, see ÒUsing
the Audio EQ ToolÓ on page 518.

Use the Digidesign AudioSuite plug-ins to access third-party
audio plug-ins. For more information, see ÒUsing Digidesign
AudioSuite Plug-InsÓ on page 534.

Use the Audio Punch In Tool to record up to two channels of audio
directly into the Timeline for voice-over narration. For more information, see ÒUsing Audio Punch-InÓ on page 543.

Accessing Audio Effect Tools
You can now access the following tools from the same window:
¥

Audio Mix (for adjusting pan and volume)
480

Audio EQ

Audio Gain Automation

Digidesign AudioSuite Plug-Ins

To access one of the audio effect tools:
1. Choose one of the tools from the Tools menu.
2. To switch to another tool, choose the name from the Tool Name
menu.

Tool Name menu

To keep more than one tool open at the same time, choose the tool
from the Tools menu or hold the Option key while choosing a new
tool from the Tool Name menu. To prevent confusion, the Avid
Composer system allows only one copy of a given audio effect tool
to be open at any given time.
The following section describes two features that help you locate transitions and monitor audio samples while editing or adjusting sound
with the tools.

Audio Editing Aids
The Avid Composer system provides audio scrub features and waveform plots speciÞcally designed for frame-accurate cueing, marking,
481

and editing of audio. You can use these features any time during editing or while making adjustments with the audio tools.

Using Audio Scrub
The term audio scrub originates in the Þlm industry. It describes the
process of ÒscrubbingÓ a magnetic audiotape across the playback
heads to monitor a portion of sound. This process helps isolate portions of audio to accurately mark edit points, or to analyze transitions
for careful trimming.

Smooth Scrub Versus Digital Scrub
You have two options for scrubbing audio in either the sequence or the
source material:
¥

Smooth audio scrub mimics the variable pitch playback of traditional analog tape.

Digital audio scrub takes advantage of the digital environment by
sampling incoming and/or outgoing frames at normal pitch and
playback rate.

Each type of scrub has its advantages:
¥

Smooth scrub makes it easier to examine sound at varying speeds.

Digital scrub allows you to focus quickly on individual bits of
incoming or outgoing audio for frame-accurate edits and adjustments.

Try both and see which works best in different situations.

Selecting Tracks for Scrubbing
By default, the system selects the topmost audio track unless you
make a selection. Always check the position of the hollow speaker icon

482

and select the correct track, if necessary, to avoid marking or trimming
the wrong track.
Hollow speaker indicates a track
selected for scrubbing.

To select a track for scrubbing, hold down the Option key and click the
speaker icon in the track panel beside the Timeline.
The speaker icon becomes hollow to indicate that it is selected for
scrubbing.

Using Smooth Audio Scrub
You perform the smooth audio scrub procedure by using either the JK-L keys or the mouse, as described in this section.

Using the J-K-L Keys to Perform Smooth Scrub
You can use three-button play with the J-K-L keys to perform smooth
audio scrubbing of selected tracks of audio at variable speeds. You
cannot activate digital audio scrub with three-button play. You can
monitor while stepping (jogging) 1 frame at a time, 10 frames at a time,
or while shuttling at Þxed rates up to 8 times normal speed.
To monitor audio with three-button play:
1. Select the correct track and adjust playback volume as necessary.
2. Play the audio, using the three-button variable speed playback
procedures described in ÒJ-K-L Keys (Three-Button Play)Ó on
page 346.
483

Using the Mouse to Perform Smooth Scrub
You can use the mouse to perform smooth audio scrubbing of selected
tracks. (You cannot activate digital scrub by using the mouse.) Like the
J-K-L keys, you can step and shuttle with the mouse. Unlike
three-button play, however, playback rates with the mouse are not at
Þxed increments. They can vary all the way from 1 to 300 fps (NTSC),
depending on manipulation of the mouse.
To monitor audio with the mouse:
1. Select the correct track and adjust playback volume as necessary.
2. Activate the mouse for stepping or shuttling by pressing the
Mouse Jog button or the Mouse Shuttle button. Mouse Jog allows
you to move the position indicator with the mouse. Mouse Shuttle
allows you to control the speed of the position indicator by dragging the mouse at different speeds.
To deactivate shuttle, press the space bar or the Escape key.
3. Play the footage with the mouse, as described in ÒUsing the
MouseÓ on page 348.

When you use the MUI, smooth audio shuttling is invoked by default.

Using Digital Audio Scrub
Digital audio scrub enables you to sample selected frames of incoming
or outgoing audio as you move through the footage, without a change
in pitch or speed. The following are unique characteristics of digital
scrub:
¥

The frames of audio you hear are always at your point of destination. For example, if you step forward 10 frames, you hear a
selected number of audio frames from a point behind the position
indicator (outgoing frames) to a point in front of the position indicator (incoming frames) as it reaches the new destination point.
484

The audio is always sampled in a forward playback direction;
whether you step back or forward through the material, you hear
the same audio sampling at each destination frame.
Digital Scrub Example
This entire section is sampled.
Step 10 frames

Selected
track
Outgoing frames
(behind position indicator)

Incoming frames
(ahead of position indicator)

Adjusting Digital Scrub Parameters
The default parameters for the number of frames you hear as you
scrub are zero frames of outgoing audio (behind the position indicator), and one frame of incoming audio (ahead of the position indicator). For the common purpose of isolating frames for marking or
trimming, the default parameters are sufÞcient.
You can increase these settings to include more frames of audio on
either side Ñ for example, when you want to sample whole words or
parts of words as you scrub to Þnd edit points within a phrase. Or you
can reverse the settings to sample frames behind the position indicator
(outgoing frames) as you scrub. In general, you should avoid increasing the number of sampled frames on both sides at once because this
can make it difÞcult to isolate an edit point or trim point based on the
location of the position indicator.
To adjust the parameters for digital scrub:
1. Open the Audio Settings dialog box, using one of the following
procedures:
¥

Double-click Audio in the Settings scroll list of the Project window.
485

For more information
on displaying digital
scrub parameters, see
the Avid Media Composer
Products Reference.

If you have digital scrub parameters displayed in the second
row of information above the Composer window monitors,
you can Option-click the digital scrub parameters or open
Audio Settings in the Project window.

Source-side digital
scrub parameters

Record-side digital
scrub parameters

The Audio Settings dialog box appears.

2. Click in an entry Þeld and type a new number of outgoing or
incoming frames on the source side, the record side, or both.
3. Press Return. The new parameters are now in effect.

Performing the Digital Scrub Procedure
To locate an audio edit point in either source-side or record-side audio
by using digital scrub:
486

1. Select an audio track for scrubbing, and adjust the output volume,
if necessary.
2. Press the Caps Lock key to activate digital audio scrub.
3. Move through the material in one of the following two ways to
hear the scrub:
¥

Drag the position indicator.

Click the step buttons to step through in Þxed increments:
1 frame backward, 1 frame forward, 10 frames backward,
10 frames forward.

When youÕve found the right frame, mark the location, trim the transition, or perform any other function you choose.
If you are sampling incoming frames (with the default scrub parameters, for example), you see the position indicator is located at the head
of the last sampled audio point. If you are sampling outgoing frames,
you see the position indicator is located at the tail of the last sampled
audio point.

Using Waveform Plots
You can use waveform plots to help you visually locate points in an
audio track for editing or trimming. There are two types of waveform
plots, Energy or Sample, that you choose from the Timeline Fast menu.

487

Displaying Audio Waveforms
To display audio waveforms:
1. If you are searching for a point in a known section of the tracks,
zoom in and/or show more detail in the sequence to isolate a section of the audio. With less audio to display, the system draws the
waveform plot faster.
2. Choose Audio Data from the Timeline Fast menu. A submenu
appears containing two waveform plot options.

Choice of plot type is a matter of visual preference:
¥

The Energy Plot option displays only the peaks of the audio
amplitude in the waveform from the baseline. It is a graphical
representation of the mathematical Energy Function for audio
waveforms.

The Sample Plot option displays the entire amplitude of the
audio waveform. This is the same as the sample voltage values you would see on an analog oscilloscope waveform.

Waveform
energy plot

Waveform
sample plot

After you make a choice, the waveform appears in the selected
tracks.
3. To maximize the visibility of your waveform display, use the following optional procedures:
488

Audio waveform plots
can slow your navigation through the Timeline. You might want to
use these selectively. To
facilitate this, you can
create a custom Timeline view, as described
in ÒCustomizing Timeline ViewsÓ on
page 399.

Continue to expand or shrink your view of the Timeline (by
using the scale bar), effectively spreading out the waveform
plots to show detailed variations in the audio levels.

Enlarge or reduce the height of selected audio tracks, and subsequently the waveform displays, by pressing kÐL to enlarge
or kÐK to reduce.

You can also increase or reduce the size of the Sample plot
image itself (this does not work with Energy plots), without
enlarging its track, by pressing kÐOptionÐL to enlarge, or kÐ
OptionÐK to reduce.

4. Move through the audio shown in the waveform by using any of
the playback methods. You hear sound as you track the audio
visually. When you have the position indicator parked at the
desired point in the waveform, you can mark, trim, or perform
any other function.
Once youÕve created a customized waveform view, you can simply
select it from the Timeline View pop-up menu when needed, and
return to another view when done.

Muting the Audio
The Mute button, which is located in the Command Palette, allows
you to quickly turn all sound tracks on and off during editing. This is
especially convenient when Þne-tuning complex audio and video
edits, making it possible to shift quickly between the two. You can set
your audio levels and speaker volumes and mute them whenever necessary without changing the settings.
Click the Mute button to mute all audio tracks. Click it again to turn
them on.

489

Using the Audio Mix Tool
For additional information on audio levels for
digital cut output, see
ÒPreparing for OutputÓ
on page 601.

The default volume for master clips is set to zero (that is, with no
attenuation) when you Þrst digitize the media. Pan is based upon the
tracks recorded in the Þeld, and is subsequently digitized into the system.
The pan option in the Audio Settings dialog box determines how the system
plays back the default pan. For more information, see the Avid
Media Composer Products Reference.
The Audio Mix Tool allows you to:
¥

Adjust pan and volume for an individual clip, a whole track, several tracks at once, or a whole sequence.

Adjust the volume and/or pan for one track at a time.

Adjust volume and/or pan for multiple tracks simultaneously by
ganging them together.

The system uses these adjustments for all playback, including output
to a digital cut.

You can also adjust volume levels in the Timeline by using Audio Gain Automation. For information, see ÒUsing Audio Gain AutomationÓ on
page 500.
Open the Audio Mix Tool by choosing Audio Mix from the Tools
menu.

490

Audio Effect Mode
Selector pop-up
menu

Fast menu

Play Loop button

Display/
Hide Sliders
Button

Resizing the Audio Mix Tool
You can simplify the Audio Mix Tool display by clicking the Display/
Hide Sliders button to toggle between hiding and displaying the volume sliders.

491

Volume Level display

With the window collapsed, you can continue to adjust levels by
selecting a track and typing values by using the numeric keypad on
the keyboard, or by typing a value into the volume level display.

Adjusting One Audio Track at a Time
To adjust one audio track at a time in the Audio Mix Tool:
1. Load a clip or sequence, and activate the appropriate monitor:
¥

To adjust a track in a source clip, make sure the Source monitor is active.

To adjust a track in a sequence, make sure the Record monitor
is active.

2. Select the track or portion of a track to be adjusted:
¥

To adjust the track in a single edited shot in a sequence, place
the position indicator in the shot.

To adjust an isolated section of audio on a track, mark IN and
OUT points. Adjusting a clip with mark IN and mark OUT
adjusts the entire clip.

To adjust levels from an IN point through the end of the track,
mark an IN point only. One mark also adjusts the entire track
from the beginning of the clip that includes the mark.

To adjust levels globally throughout the track, make no marks.
492

3. Choose Audio Mix from the Tools menu to open the Audio Mix
Tool.
Output Options pop-up
menu
Audio
Effect
Mode Selector
pop-up menu
Track selection
pop-up menu

Gang buttons

If you have Þve audio
tracks or more, and
need to adjust all of
them, consider mixing
down to four tracks, as
described in ÒMixing
Down Audio TracksÓ
on page 553.

The Audio Mix Tool contains four to eight panels (depending
upon your system model), one for each audio track you can monitor and adjust. The Audio Mix window can only display tracks
that exist in the sequence, or tracks that were digitized with the
source clip.
4. Choose the type of audio output from the Output Options pop-up
menu:
¥

Choose Stereo Mix to make adjustments for output to left and
right speakers.

Choose Mono to make adjustments with all levels panned to
center between speakers.

493

Choose Direct Out when performing a digital cut for output of
up to eight source tracks to a maximum of four output channels. For more information, see ÒAdjusting Output on FourChannel or Eight-Channel Audio Board SystemsÓ on
page 610.

5. Select the audio track to be adjusted by choosing the track from
the Track Selection pop-up menu in a panel.
6. Choose the type of mix you want when applying stereo mix output from the Mix Tracks pop-up menu:
¥

Mix To 1 & 2 sends the stereo mix to output channel one and
the left speaker, and output channel two and the right speaker.

Mix To 3 & 4 send the stereo mix to output channel three and
the left speaker, and output channel four and the right
speaker.

7. With the Audio Mix window active, use any playback method
(such as the J-K-L keys on the keyboard) to play, shuttle, or step
through the audio to check for necessary volume or pan adjustments.
The keyboard can control either the Source or Record monitor,
depending on which monitor was active when you opened the
Audio Mix Tool. Switch your selection by clicking the appropriate
monitor.
8. Decide whether to raise or lower the volume, or pan left or right.

494

Volume level display
Click gang buttons to select a track or
to gang multiple tracks.

Audio Level slider

Pan Value display

To change a value in the panel, use any of the following methods:

Pop-up slider for pan

Click a number along the vertical edge of the Audio Level
slider.

Click the slider and type a value.

Values are cumulative until you press Return. For example, if
you want to enter the value 12, simply type it. However, if you
enter 1 and then want to change the value to 2, press Return
before typing the 2.

Click the slider and then drag it.

Click the Volume level display box and type a value.

Set a value of zero decibels by clicking the slider and entering
0, or by clicking 0 along the vertical edge of the volume slider.

Adjust pan by clicking the Pan Value display to reveal the
pop-up slider, then drag the slider to a new position.

If the sequence is playing, notice that play stops when you make
an adjustment (the Audio Mix window does not provide real-time
audio control).
9. Apply the adjustments to a chosen region of the track by using the
Audio Mix Fast menu located at the upper right of the tool.
495

Fast menu
Mix Tracks pop-up menu

Options in the Fast menu are dimmed until you select a track by
clicking the gang button. The options vary depending upon the
types of marks you set within the clip or sequence, as follows:

The Clip Gain values set by the Audio Mix Tool is the value for the entire segment that was set; for example, you cannot set a subsection of a segment without affecting the entire segment.
¥

With IN and OUT marks: Commands apply adjustments to
selected tracks between the marks.

With an IN mark (no OUT mark): Commands apply adjustments to full clips from the IN point to the end of selected
tracks.

With no marks: Commands apply globally (across entire
tracks).

496

To apply the adjustments, do one of the following:
¥

The Set commands (Set Pan, Set Level) apply the same pan or
volume levels currently set in the Audio Mix Tool to all segments in the marked region of the tracks.

The Adjust Pan/Vols command opens a dialog box for adding
incremental adjustments to all current settings across segments in the marked region of selected tracks.

For example, when you enter Ð1 into the Gain Adjustment
Þeld, the various audio level settings across all segments of
the marked region of selected tracks will be lowered by
exactly one decibel when you click OK.
¥

The Remove Pan/Vols command deletes all audio mix adjustments that have been applied to segments in the marked
region of selected tracks. Each audio clip is restored to its previous pan and volume settings.

10. Play through the audio again, using the J-K-L keys. Repeat steps 8
through 10 until you are satisÞed with the pan and volume levels.
The system uses the new settings whenever you play back or
record the sequence.

497

Ganging and Adjusting Multiple Tracks
You can gang multiple tracks in the Audio Mix Tool in order to maintain the same relative settings between tracks when you make adjustments. This is useful in a variety of circumstances. For example, you
can gang tracks to raise the overall volume of a portion of a sequence
while maintaining variations in level adjustment among tracks.
To gang and adjust multiple tracks:
1. Click the Gang button in the Þrst track panel.
2. Click the Gang button of any additional panels. Click the button a
second time to deselect it.
3. Adjust either volume or pan for one of the tracks by using any of
the techniques described in the previous section, and the other
tracks will maintain the same relative levels.
When you gang two or more panels, you gang both the volume and
pan sliders.
To set all ganged sliders to the same value:
¥

For volume, click the number along the vertical edge of the volume slider or enter a value into one of the Volume Level displays.

For pan, click the pan value display box and enter a value.

Ignoring Existing Volume and Pan Settings
You can have the system ignore the volume settings established with
the Audio Mix Tool when playing back or recording a sequence. You
can also deactivate the pan settings by choosing Mono or Direct Out
from the Output Options pop-up menu.
To turn off current volume adjustments, click the Ignore Volume check
box located next to the Output Options pop-up menu at the top of the
Audio Mix Tool.
498

The volume controls disappear. Deselect the option to restore the current settings.
To turn off pan adjustments, choose one of the following from the Output Options menu:
¥

Direct Out plays back the tracks with their default pan settings.

Mono pans all tracks to center during output.

When you choose one of these options, the pan controls disappear in
the Audio Mix Tool. Choose Stereo Mix to restore the current settings.

Adjusting Volume While Playing an Audio Effect
You can use the Play Loop button to create or change the volume on an
Audio Mix effect while you play the clip.
Play Loop button

To adjust volume while playing an effect:
1. Choose an existing Audio Mix effect or identify an area of the clip
with IN and OUT marks.
2. Click the Play Loop button. The Avid Composer system repeatedly loops through the audio effect.
3. Adjust the volume as necessary.
4. Click the Play Loop button to stop. The Avid Composer system
automatically saves your changes as part of an Audio Mix effect.

499

Limitations
If there is not an existing Audio Mix effect on the clip before you start,
you will not hear any changes until you click the Play Loop button to
stop and replay the effect.
As you adjust the volume values on an existing Audio Mix effect, you
might not hear the results immediately. It takes a few moments for the
Avid Composer system to apply the changes to the clip. The response
time for this feature is considerably longer than for adding EQ effects
while using Play Loop. You might need to click Play Loop to complete
the edit and then play the effect to hear the result.
To improve the response time, you can do the following:

Monitor as few audio tracks as possible.

Deselect the video track if practical.

Use IN and OUT marks to choose a narrow interval to adjust.

For additional ways to change the volume while playing an audio effect, see
ÒRecording Audio Gain InformationÓ on page 507.

Using Audio Gain Automation
Audio Gain Automation (also known as audio volume rubber-banding) allows you to change the volume of a segment by adding and
manipulating gain key frames in the Timeline. The following illustration shows an expanded audio track containing gain key frame information.

500

Gain values in decibels

Graphic representation of key frames and gain
ramps in the Timeline

The Avid Composer system uses a linear ramp to change the volume
from one gain key frame to the next. The above illustration shows four
ramps.

System Clip Gain
When you add a key frame, the Avid Composer system adds the point
at the level currently set for that track in the Audio Mix Tool.

501

Current
volume
settings

Values set by the volume sliders in the Audio Mix window are referred
to as system clip gain values. Audio gain key frames are not additive
to the system clip gain values. When you move a gain key frame up or
down, it cancels the system clip gain for that point in the sequence.
Use of Automation Gain disables gain sliders in the Audio Mix Tool.
For more information, see ÒUsing Audio Gain Automation and the
Audio Mix WindowÓ on page 516.
If you move the volume slider for a clip in the Audio Mix window, all
the key frames for that clip move relative to the new value.

Real-Time Response of Audio Gain Automation
In real time, the Avid Composer system reads the gain value every
2000 audio samples and linearly ramps between readings. For example, at 44.1 kHz (44,1000 samples per second), the Avid Composer system checks the gain value every 0.0416 second. This works well when
you use gradual ramps.

502

Using Audio Gain Automation
To use Audio Gain Automation:
1. Select an audio track for adjusting volume.
2. Choose Volume from the Audio Data submenu of the Timeline
Fast menu.

You can enable both Volume and Energy Plot or Sample Plot in the Audio
Data submenu of the Timeline Fast menu to display audio gain meters and
key frame information superimposed over waveform plots in the Timeline.
A straight line appears in the selected audio track. The line shows
the current gain level for that track in the Audio Mix Tool.
3. (Option) Expand the audio track by pressing kÐL, or pressing the
Option key and dragging in the Track Selector panel.

The following illustration shows the expanded audio track.

503

Initially gain is set to the clip gain setting in the Audio Mix Tool

4. Click the Add Key Frame button in the FX section of the Command Palette to add key frames along the Timeline. The Avid
Composer system adds a key frame to each enabled track.

n
By default the Add Key
Frame button is
mapped to the double
quote key (Ò). You can
map the button to
another key or to existing button locations in
the Source/Record
monitor.

You adjust gain in the Automation Gain window by dragging key frames in
the Timeline or by placing the position indicator on a key frame and adjusting
the slider.
After you add one key frame to a segment, you can adjust the gain for
the entire clip.When you move the point up or down, the corresponding volume slider in the Automation Gain window moves also.

Deleting Audio Gain Key Frames
To delete key frames, do one of the following:
¥

To delete a single key frame, move the cursor over the point.
When the cursor turns into the pointing hand, press the Delete
key. If there are identical key frames in other active tracks, the system deletes them also. (Do not press the mouse button.)

To delete groups of key frames, mark an IN to OUT or mark the
entire segment, then delete any key in the marked area.

504

Moving Audio Gain Key Frames on the Timeline
To move key frames, do one of the following:
¥

Click a key frame and drag it up or down to increase or decrease
the gain at that point. If there is a point at the same position on
another enabled track, it moves also.

To snap to the decibel lines, hold the Command key (k) while you drag the
point.
¥

Move a key frame horizontally to move the start or end of a ramp.
Option-click the point and drag it. You cannot move one key
frame on top of another.

Move several key frames on a track at the same time by placing IN
and OUT marks to select the area you want. When you move one
key frame within the marked area, all key frames within the

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marked area move in relation to each other. This works for all
enabled audio tracks.
This is similar to ganging sliders on an audio mixing board or in the
Audio Mix Tool.
This example shows how to move key frames within IN to OUT marks
on two tracks.

Notice that the key frames outside the IN to OUT marks do not move.

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Recording Audio Gain Information
You can instruct the Avid Composer system to record your actions
while playing the clip as you move sliders to adjust the volume. The
system creates the corresponding key frames and saves them as part of
a pan volume audio effect. After you Þnish the recording, you can
move, add, and delete key frames to achieve the results you want.
The following illustration shows the Automation Gain window.
Recording status light

Hardware Toggle button
Cancel button

Automation Gain
Fast menu

Record button

Track Solo
button

External fader box
position indicators
Gang button

You can record audio gain information by using the Automation Gain
window directly. You can also use an optional external fader box. For
507

information on connecting a fader to your Avid Composer system, see
ÒConnecting a Fader to Your Avid Composer SystemÓ on page 514.
Some portions of the Automation Gain window are identical to the
Audio Mix and Audio Punch In Tools. For example, the following
record features are identical to the Audio Punch In Tool:
¥

The Record button starts and stops the recording.

The Cancel button stops a recording without saving the recorded
data.

The Recording status light is black when there is no activity, green
during a preroll, red during recording, and blue during a postroll.

The PreRoll text box allows you to provide a visual cue before the
recording begins. The Avid Composer system backs up the blue
position indicator for the prescribed number of seconds. During
the preroll, the Recording status light is green.

The PostRoll text box gives the same kind of visual cue at the end
of the recording. During the postroll, the Recording status light is
blue.

The remainder of the features described in this section are speciÞc to
the Automation Gain window.
The Hardware Toggle button switches control between the external
fader sliders and the sliders on the Automation Gain window.

Button Color

To Enter the Mode

Description

Gray (default)

Click the button.

The sliders in the Automation Gain
window control volume when the
position indicator is placed on a key
frame. The system ignores the external fader.

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Button Color

To Enter the Mode

Description

Pink

Click the button.

The fader sliders control volume.
The sliders in the Automation Gain
window do not allow user input.

Blue

Option-click the
button.

The Automation Gain window
slider positions reßect the hardware. This is for display purposes
only. You cannot control volume in
this mode.

When the HW button is blue, the external fader controls the volume
sliders in the tool window. When you move the external fader sliders,
the software sliders move also. This has the following beneÞts:
¥

You can view the decibel values as you move the slider for each
track. (The FaderMaster does not have numbers along its sliders.)

It is a good test of whether the fader is working correctly.

The Track Solo button (speaker icon) lets you mute and solo individual
audio tracks during audio gain automation recording.

Button Color

Description

Gray

The audio track is muted.

Yellow

The track is soloed. You can solo more than one track at a
time.

Green (default)

The audio track is on.

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Click or press the number keys 1 to 8 to toggle between solo and on.
The number keys (at the top of the keyboard) let you quickly select a
track.
To toggle between on and mute, use Option-click or Option-number
key.
When you turn off solo, the button returns to its previous state (mute
or on). To change the previous state of a button, Option-click the button.

c
Position
indicator
lights

While the Automation Gain window is active, the Avid Composer
system overrides any other mappings of the number keys 1 to 8 at
the top of the keyboard. Number keys on the right side of the keyboard are not affected.
The position indicator lights provide information about the current
location of the sliders on the external fader.

Colors

Description

Both lights blue

The fader slider matches the current Timeline volume.

Only top light blue

The slider is higher than the Timeline volume.

Only bottom light blue The slider is lower than the Timeline volume.
Both lights gray

Either there is no fader attached to the system or the
Avid Composer system does not recognize the fader.
If the system does not recognize the fader, check the
connection and restart the system as described in
ÒConnecting a Fader to Your Avid Composer SystemÓ on page 514.

The position indicator lights are useful because it is important to position the fader sliders close to the track volume before you start record510

ing. Otherwise you might create an unwanted jump in the volume
when you move the sliders during a recording.
Note that the Avid Composer system does not record values from a
fader slider until you move the slider. Then it reads the current position of the slider and adjusts the volume accordingly.
Also note that in many cases it is not possible to exactly match the
Timeline value.

Automation Gain Fast Menu
To make the Automation Gain Fast menu active for a given track, click
the Gang button for that track.

Gang
button

The following illustration shows the Fast menu when an In/Out area
is marked. When no area is marked, the words In/Out are replaced by
the words Global. This allows you to perform the operation on the
entire clip rather than just the marked region.

The Automation Gain Fast menu is similar to the Audio Mix Fast
menu with the addition of the following items:
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Filter Automation Gain In/Out removes approximately 50 percent of
the key frames in the marked region. If you hold down the Option
key while selecting the menu item, the system removes all key
frames in the selected area, except for the minimum and maximum peaks.The Avid Composer system tries to save major gestures while removing redundant points and points on a linear
ramp. This is useful for deleting extra key frames after a recording.
See the examples later in this section for more information.
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When there are no In/Out marks on the track, the menu item is
Filter Automation Gain Global. This option allows you to remove
key frames from the entire track.
¥

Remove Automation Gain In/Out removes all of the audio key
frames within the marked region.
When there are no In/Out marks on the track, the menu item is
Filter Automation Gain Global. This option allows you to remove
all of the audio key frames on the track.

Using the Automation Gain Window Sliders
To record audio gain information by using the Automation Gain window sliders:
1. Select an audio track for adjusting volume by clicking the gang
button.
2. Choose Volume from the Audio Data submenu of the Timeline
Fast menu.

3. (Option) Expand the audio track by pressing kÐL, or by pressing
the Option key and dragging the top or bottom of the Track Selector panel.
4. Move the blue position indicator to the section of audio that you
want to adjust and mark IN and OUT points.
5. Click the Record button to start recording your actions.
6. Listen to the audio and adjust the volume sliders on the Automation Gain window as necessary.
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The Avid Composer system adds volume key frames to the audio
in the Timeline. Because it records every movement of the sliders,
there are usually more key frames than you need.
7. To decrease the number of key frames:
a. Click the Gang button for the track to enable the Fast menu.
b. Choose Filter Automation Gain Control In/Out from the
Automation Gain Fast menu.
8. Repeat step 7 until you have decreased the number of key frames
to an acceptable level.
You should remove as many excess key frames as possible while
still maintaining the desired volume changes.
You can move, add, and delete key frames individually or as groups to
further adjust the volume. For details on how to adjust the key frames,
see ÒUsing Audio Gain AutomationÓ on page 500.

Using a Keyboard Shortcut
Click the Gang button on a track to turn it green. Then you can use the
Fast Forward and Rewind buttons to jump to the next or previous
audio key frame. You can map these keys to your keyboard to speed
your editing of audio key frames.

Using the Fader to Record Audio Gain Information
To record audio gain information, using the fader box:
1. Attach the fader box to your system (see ÒConnecting a Fader to
Your Avid Composer SystemÓ on page 514).
2. Move the blue position indicator to the section of audio that you
want to adjust and mark IN and OUT points.
Position
indicator
lights

3. Note the color of the position indicator lights for the track you
want to adjust. Move the fader box slider until both lights are blue.

513

If you canÕt adjust it to the exact position where both are blue, get
it as close as you can.
4. Set PreRoll and PostRoll values if necessary.
5. Click the Record button to start recording your actions.
6. Listen to the audio and adjust the volume sliders on the fader box
as necessary.
7. Play the clip to test your results.
8. To decrease the number of key frames, choose Filter Automation
Gain Control In/Out from the Automation Gain Fast menu.
9. Repeat step 8 until you have decreased the number of key frames
to an acceptable level.
You should remove as many excess key frames as possible while
still maintaining the desired volume changes.

Connecting a Fader to Your Avid Composer System
Your Avid Composer system supports the JL Cooper FaderMaster Professional fader. You connect the fader to your printer port or modem
port by using a standard Macintosh serial cable. The FaderMaster
sends and receives MIDI data, so you need to attach a MIDI translator
to convert the MIDI signals to a format that can travel over a serial
line.
To initialize the fader:
1. Attach the cables as described in the Avid Media Composer Products
Connecting Audio and Video Equipment manual.
2. Turn on the fader.
3. In the Composer application, choose Serial Ports from the Tools
menu. The Serial Ports Tool appears.
4. Choose Printer Port from the Audio Faders menu and close the
tool.
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If your printer port is already in use, attach the cable to the
modem port and choose Modem port.
To test the fader:
1. Choose Automation Gain from the Tools menu. The Automation
Gain window opens.
2. Option-click the HW button in the Automation Gain window. The
box turns blue.
Position
indicator
lights

3. Check the color of the position indicator lights. If the external
fader is not connected, the lights are off (gray). If the fader is connected, at least one of the lights is on (blue).
4. Move the sliders on the fader. The corresponding slider should
move in the Automation Gain window.

The external fader position lights will be off (gray) if the box is not connected.

The fader is optional. It is not required to perform Audio Gain Automation
recording.

Ganging Sliders on the FaderMaster Fader
You can use software features available on the FaderMaster Professional to gang sliders. When the sliders for two tracks are ganged, the
fader sends identical volume messages for both tracks when you move
one slider. This can be useful when you have stereo tracks.
Note that the ganged sliders do not move together physically. For
information on ganging the sliders, see the FaderMaster userÕs manual. For example, if you have two stereo tracks and want to gang faders 1 and 2 to respond to movement on fader 1:
1. On the FaderMaster, press the PROG button to light the Fader
LED.

515

2. Hold down the Group button and move fader 2 until "1" is displayed.
3. Press the PROG button to turn off the Fader LED.
Now when you move slider 1, the Avid Composer system will receive
identical volume information for slider 2.
To turn off the group feature, repeat steps 1 to 3 but assign fader 2 to 0.

Using Audio Gain Automation and the Audio Mix Window
This section describes the interactions between the Audio Mix window
and the Automation Gain window.
When you add the Þrst audio key frame to a track, the Avid Composer
system adds the point at the level currently set for that track in the
Audio Mix Tool.
Values set by the volume sliders in the Audio Mix window are referred
to as system clip gain values. Audio gain key frames are not additive
to the system clip gain values. When you move a key frame point up
or down, it cancels the system clip gain for that point in the sequence.
You can add key frames to some tracks and use the Audio Mix window to control the volume on other tracks. The Avid Composer system
provides visual clues to let you keep track of which type of audio
effect is on a given track.
The following illustration shows the Audio Mix window and the
Automation Gain window with audio data on two tracks. In this
example there is audio gain automation information on track A1 and a
system clip gain setting on track A2.

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Track A1 has
audio gain
automation.

Track A2 has
system clip gain
settings from the
Audio Mix window.

When you have audio gain automation on a track, the slider for the
track does not appear in the Audio Mix window. The system displays
the word Auto in the track volume text box to indicate that audio gain
automation is associated with the track.
Likewise, when you use the Audio Mix window to change volume for
a track, the slider for the track disappears from the Automation Gain
window. The word Clip appears in the track volume text box.
To add audio gain automation to a track that contains system clip gain
information, you simply need to add an audio key frame. To use the
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Audio Mix sliders on a track containing audio gain automation, you
must Þrst remove all of the audio key frames from the track. Choose
Remove Automation Gain Global from the Automation Gain Fast
menu. You need to remove any IN and OUT points on the track before
the menu item changes from In/Out to Global.

Using the Audio EQ Tool
The Audio Equalization (EQ) Tool supports real-time, segment-based
frequency equalization on individual clips. This allows you to adjust
the high, low, and midrange frequency ranges of an audio clip. You
can also save a variety of audio EQ effects and apply them in different
circumstances, as described in this section.
You can access the Audio EQ Tool in one of two ways:
¥

Choose Audio EQ from the Tools menu.

Choose EQ from the Audio Mix pop-up menu.

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The Audio EQ Tool appears.
Effect icon
Play loop button
Fast menu

Track Selection
pop-up menu
Low shelf
Parametric
midrange

3-band controls

High shelf

EQ Range Slider

Audio EQ Tool Features
The Audio EQ Tool provides three bands of control:
¥

The Þrst band, the low shelf, has four turnover points (50 Hz, 80 Hz,
120 Hz, and 240 Hz). A turnover point is the point at which the
curve starts to return to 0.
A shelf affects all frequency values within the range of the shelf.
The low shelf affects all frequency values from 20 Hz to the low
shelf turnover point.

519

The second band is the parametric midrange. This band has two
bandwidth values, 1/4 octave and 2 octaves. These control the
width of the curve.

The third band, the high shelf, has four turnover points (6 kHz,
8 kHz, 12 kHz, and 15 kHz). The high shelf affects all frequencies
from the high shelf turnover point to 20 kHz.

The horizontal center line of the graph is 0. As you move the curve
below the zero line, the corresponding frequencies are deemphasized.
Above the zero line the corresponding frequencies are emphasized.
The parametric midrange allows a smooth transition from deemphasized frequencies to emphasized frequencies.
The IN button allows you to turn off the EQ effect. The button is yellow when the effect is on (inline) and gray when the EQ effect is off.
You apply Audio EQ like effects:
¥

Audio EQ can only be applied to entire segments. You cannot isolate portions of a segment for an Audio EQ effect by using IN and
OUT marks. You must use add edits (match frames) to mark off a
smaller segment.

You can use IN and OUT marks to select a range of complete segments for applying an Audio EQ effect. Segments that fall within
the marks, either in part or in whole, will have the effect applied to
them.

The following illustration shows the Audio EQ Tool with the frequency response curve displayed and identiÞes the related areas of the
window. The graph displays from 20 Hz to 20 kHz.

520

Bandwidth around the
center point of the parametric curve – 1/4 octave
(narrow) or 2 octave
(wider)

The current value of the EQ
parameters

Turnover point where low
shelf curve starts moving
back toward 0

Turnover point where high
shelf curve starts moving
back toward 0

Center point of the parametric midrange curve

0 line
High shelf
Low shelf

Parametric midrange

The Audio EQ Tool allows you to emphasize or deemphasize audio
frequencies. The height of the curve shows the amount of emphasis or
deemphasis (also called boost or cut) that is being applied. The range
is from +15 dB to Ð20 dB.

Applying Audio EQ Effects
To adjust audio EQ for a track:
1. Load the sequence containing the audio track.
2. (Option) Isolate a portion of an audio segment by placing add
edits.
3. (Option) Mark off a range of audio segments by adding IN and
OUT marks in the track.
4. Open the Audio EQ Tool.
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5. Select the audio track to be adjusted from the Track Selection popup menu in the Audio EQ Tool.

Track selection
pop-up menu

Notice that the Track Selector panel in the Timeline window is
updated to reßect your selection.
6. Click the Play Loop button to play the currently selected audio
clip within the current In/Out range. To stop playing the loop,
click the button again or click anywhere in the Timeline.
7. Use any of the following methods to change a value in the Audio
EQ Tool:
¥

Click a number along the vertical edge of the volume slider.

Click the slider and type a value.
Values are cumulative until you press Return. For example, if
you want to enter the value 12, simply type it. However, if you
enter 1 and then want to change the value to 2, press Return
before typing the 2.

Click and drag the slider.

Click the EQ Parameter display and type in a value.

Set a value of 0 dB by clicking the slider and entering 0, or by
clicking 0 along the vertical edge of the volume slider.

8. Apply the adjustments to a chosen region of the track by using the
Audio EQ Fast menu located at the upper right of the tool.

EQ Fast menu button

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The Fast menu on the Audio EQ Tool allows you to remove or
apply an EQ effect to clips included within the current IN to OUT
range. For a description of a number of predeÞned audio templates, see ÒUsing Audio EQ TemplatesÓ on page 528.
For example, the following illustration shows a segment with one
EQ applied to the Audio Clip 2 in track A2. If you choose Set EQ
In/Out, the current EQ effect is also applied to Audio Clip 1 and
Audio Clip 3 on track A2.

Before Set EQ In/Out

After Set EQ In/Out – EQ effect is added to Audio Clip 1 and Audio Clip 3.

If there is no EQ setting on the currently selected clip, choosing Set
EQ In/Out deletes the EQ settings on all clips within the IN to
OUT range. For example, because there is no EQ setting on Audio
Clip 3 in the following example, Set EQ In/Out deletes the EQ
effect from Audio Clip 1 and Audio Clip 2.

523

Before Set EQ In/Out

After Set EQ In/Out – EQ effect is deleted from Audio Clip 1 and Audio Clip 2.

Set EQ In/Out applies only to the audio track currently selected
by the Audio EQ Tool. You can change your selected region by
eliminating or adding marks in the Timeline, or by selecting a different track.
9. Play through the audio again, using the Play Loop button.
10. Repeat steps 8 through 10 until you are satisÞed with the EQ
adjustments.

Saving Audio EQ Effects
The Avid Composer system treats an EQ setting as an effect. You can
save EQ settings in a bin just as you save any other effect template.
This makes it easy to save EQ settings and apply them whenever you
need them. The following illustration shows EQ Effect icons in a bin
and in the Timeline.

524

EQ effect templates in a bin

EQ effect in the Timeline

Use the Effect icon to save EQ settings in a bin or to copy the settings
to another audio clip. Either drag the icon into a bin or drag the icon to
another audio clip in the Timeline. For more information on using
effect templates, see the Avid Media Composer and Film Composer Effects
Guide.

Removing Audio EQ Effects
To remove an effect:
1. Place the position indicator on the effect.
2. From Source/Record mode, click the Remove Effect button.
From Trim or Effects mode, press Delete.

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Audio EQ Examples
The following examples show two different ways to use the Audio EQ
Tool to remove excess bass from an audio track. These examples use
the sound track from the Rain Forest sequence. The bass in the sound
track is very pronounced, and we use the Audio EQ Tool to deemphasize it. The main challenge with this particular sound track is that
there are voices on the same track as the music. The human voice covers a wide range of frequencies and the challenge is to preserve the
bass frequencies of the voices while deemphasizing the bass drum
sound.
Keep in mind that the goal of the adjustments is the Þnal sound. In
general, you should use small adjustments to preserve as much of the
original sound track as possible. DonÕt be overly concerned about speciÞc parameter values.

Low Shelf Example
This example adjusts the low shelf to deemphasize the bass. By dropping the low shelf down Ð20 dB, we are able to deemphasize it. However, there are voices on this track and simply dropping the low shelf
also removes some bass from the voices. So we did the following to
compensate for this:
1. Use the 2 octave midrange setting to create a wide midrange.
2. Move the midpoint of the parametric curve over to 90 Hz.
3. Boost the midrange of the parametric curve to +7.7 dB.

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Small Octave Range Example
This example isolates the particular frequency that we want to deemphasize. In this example we donÕt use the low shelf, but instead use the
parametric midrange to isolate the frequency.
1. Use the 1/4 octave inßuence range.
2. Set the midrange EQ parameter to Ð15 dB.
3. Use the slider to move the midpoint of the parametric curve until
it isolates the bass frequency. In this case the bass frequency we
want to deemphasize is approximately 80 Hz.

527

Use this slider to move
the center point of the
parametric curve and
locate a specific
frequency.

This technique allows you to locate a speciÞc frequency and either
emphasize or deemphasize it:
¥

Use the 1/4 octave inßuence range and a large negative decibel value.

Keep both the high and low shelf set to zero.

Use the slider to move the center point of the parametric curve
along the frequency range while you play the audio track.

Once you locate the desired frequency, you can adjust it as needed.

Using Audio EQ Templates
Your Avid Composer system provides a set of predeÞned audio EQ
templates. These templates address a number of common audio problems such as removing tape hiss or boosting the low frequency on a
music track. The templates are accessible from the Fast menu on the
Audio EQ Tool. You can also add your own custom EQ templates to
the Fast menu list.
528

The Fast menu on the Audio EQ Tool provides access to a number of
predeÞned EQ templates as shown in the following illustration.

The EQ templates are designed to Þx problems that are often encountered with audio clips. For example, Tape Hiss Filter rolls off frequencies above 4 kHz. NTSC Hum Buster cuts the bass on frequencies that
often cause hum on NTSC systems.

Applying an EQ Template
To apply an EQ template from the Audio EQ Tool Fast menu:
1. Place the blue position indicator on the audio clip in the Timeline.
2. Choose the template from the Audio EQ Tool Fast menu.
The Avid Composer system places the EQ effect on the audio clip.
The following illustration shows the contents of the EQ window when
you select the Female Voice with Presence template in the Timeline. As
529

explained in the window, you cannot change the parameters of a predeÞned EQ template.

To see the parameter values of one of the EQ templates, view the Console window after you apply the effect. To open the Console window,
choose Console from the Tools menu.

Creating Your Own Templates
If you create an EQ effect that you want to use again in another
sequence or on another track, simply drag the Effect icon to a bin.The
system creates an effect in the bin called EQ Effect. Rename the template by clicking the text and typing a new name.

530

Effect icon

You can add your own EQ templates to the EQ Fast menu. You do this
by storing your EQ template in the same bin as the predeÞned templates.
The Avid Composer system stores the predeÞned EQ templates in a
special bin named Site_EQs_Bin. This bin resides in a new Site_Effects
folder in the Supporting Files directory. The following illustration
shows the binÕs location.

The IN button in the EQ window allows you to turn off the particular EQ
effect. The button is yellow when the effect is on (inline) and gray when the
EQ effect is off. The Ignore EQ check box turns off all EQ effects for the
sequence.

531

In this example, the Supporting
Files folder resides in the
Media Composer folder.

EQ templates bin

To add an EQ template to Site_EQs_Bin:
1. Choose Open Bin from the File menu.
A dialog box appears.
2. Open the bin named Site_EQs_Bin as follows:
a. Open the Media Composer folder.
b. Open the Supporting Files folder.
c. Open the Site_Effects folder.
d. Double-click the Site_EQs_Bin Þle.
3. Drag one of your own templates to Site_EQs_Bin.
4. If you have not already done so, name the template by clicking the
text and typing a name.
532

5. Close the bin.

The Avid Composer system does not save the effect to the bin until you close
the bin.
6. Select the Audio EQ Tool Fast menu and look for your new template.
For more information on using the Audio EQ Tool, see ÒUsing the
Audio EQ ToolÓ on page 518.

Adjusting EQ While Playing an Audio Effect
You can use the Play Loop button to create or change an EQ effect
while a clip is playing.
Play Loop button

To adjust EQ while playing an effect:
1. Choose an existing EQ effect or identify an area of the clip with IN
and OUT marks.
2. Click the Play Loop button. The Avid Composer system repeatedly loops through the audio effect.
3. Adjust the EQ as necessary.
4. Click the Play Loop button to stop. The Avid Composer system
automatically saves your changes as part of an EQ effect.

533

Limitations
If there is not an existing EQ effect on the clip before you start, you will
not hear any changes until you click the Play Loop button to stop and
replay the effect.
As you are adjusting the EQ values on an existing EQ effect, you might
not hear the results immediately. It takes a few seconds for the changes
to be applied to the clip. To improve the response time, you can do the
following:
¥

Monitor as few audio tracks as possible.

Deselect the video track if practical.

Use IN and OUT marks to choose a narrow interval to adjust.

Using Digidesign AudioSuite Plug-Ins
Your Avid Composer system supports AudioSuite, Digidesign's new
host-based, Þle-based Plug-In speciÞcation. Users now have access to
audio processing plug-ins developed by Digidesign and by
Digidesign's third-party developers, including Waves, Arboretum,
DUY, S.A., Steinberg, and others. For example, plug-ins are available
to perform pitch processing, artifact removal, reversing of audio, and
many other processes. For more information on using the AudioSuite
plug-ins, see Appendix A.
For information on Digidesign and third-party plug-ins, see the
AudioSuite Plug-In Catalog available from Digidesign. Contact
Digidesign at 800-333-2137.
For a list of plug-ins that are not supported by the Avid Composer system, see ÒPlug-In LimitationsÓ on page 540.

534

Installing AudioSuite Plug-Ins
The Avid Composer system installation software automatically creates
a folder in your System Folder named DAE Folder (DAE stands for
Digidesign Audio Engine). The DAE application manages the AudioSuite Plug-Ins.

DAE application icon

The Avid Composer
system requires this
file.

The DAE Folder contains the following Þles and folders:
¥

The DAE application program.

A Plug-In Settings folder. The plug-in vendor might install settings in this folder.

A Plug-Ins folder containing the following:
-

A set of basic plug-ins from Digidesign.

A Þle named Avid Application PlugIn. The Avid Composer
system requires this Þle; do not delete it.

The following basic plug-ins are installed automatically:
¥

InvertÑInverts the polarity (phase of the audio Þle).

DuplicateÑThis plug-in does not work on Avid Composer system
audio Þles.

NormalizeÑFinds the peak value in the source audio Þle and
scales the entire Þle proportionally to that maximum value.

535

GainÑSame as normalize, but allows positive or negative gain
adjustment.

ReverseÑÒFlips the tape over,Ó making audio signals run backward.

DC Offset RemovalÑRemoves an audio artifact that is common in
digital audio Þles. A DC offset is caused by poorly calibrated
A/Ds (analog-to-digital converters), and can produce clicks and
pops on clip edit transitions if not removed.

When you purchase additional plug-ins, the third-party vendor will
provide instructions on how to load the plug-ins. Some might require
you to drag the plug-in to the Plug-Ins folder. Others might perform
the task automatically for you by using an installation program.

Starting and Quitting the DAE Application
When you open the Digidesign AudioSuite window (see ÒUsing the
AudioSuite Plug-InsÓ on page 537), the Avid Composer system automatically launches the DAE application. The application continues
running even after you close the window. To quit the DAE application
while the window is open, kÐclick the status display in the AudioSuite window.

Plug-In
Selection menu
Drive Selection
menu
Status display

536

The DAE application uses between 9 and 16 MB of memory, depending on
how many plug-ins are loaded. If you plan to use other applications while the
Avid Composer system is running, you might Þnd it useful to quit the DAE
application to free up memory for the other application.

Setting Playback Buffer Size
While the DAE application is running, you can choose Set Playback
Buffer Size from the DAE applicationÕs File menu. However, this command has no effect on the Avid Composer system performance. For an
example of how to use this command, see ÒAddressing Memory Allocation ProblemsÓ on page 540.

Using the AudioSuite Plug-Ins
The following illustration shows the AudioSuite window.
Audio Effect Mode Selector
pop-up menu

Effect icon.

Play Loop button

Render effect
button

Fast menu

Plug-In Selection menu
Drive Selection menu
Status display

Track Selection menu

Plug-In button

To apply an AudioSuite plug-in:
1. Open the AudioSuite window and do one of the following:
537

Choose AudioSuite from the Tools menu.

If an audio tool is already open, choose AudioSuite from the
Tool Selection menu.

2. Select the track to modify in the AudioSuite window. You can only
work on one track at a time.
3. Choose a plug-in from the Plug-In Selection menu.
The Avid Composer system automatically applies the plug-in
effect to the track in the Timeline.
4. Click the Plug-In button to open the dialog box associated with the
plug-in.
5. Make any necessary adjustments and click the Play Loop button to
preview the effect. For more information, see ÒUsing a Plug-In
Dialog Box.Ó
6. To save the effect, click OK. To close the dialog box without saving
the effect, click Cancel.

Using a Plug-In Dialog Box
The contents of the plug-in dialog boxes vary, but the top six buttons
will always be visible. If a particular button is not available, it is
dimmed. The following illustration shows the Digidesign Gain plug-in
as an example.

These six
buttons appear
on all AudioSuite
dialog boxes.

OK saves the effect and closes the dialog box.
538

Cancel closes the dialog box and does not save the effect.

Render renders the effect and creates a new audio media Þle.

Preview plays back a portion or all of the currently selected audio
clip with processing.
Some plug-ins can preview in real time and some cannot. If the
plug-in cannot preview in real time, the Avid Composer system
plays back the processed audio in 2-second intervals. The Avid
Composer system processes 2 seconds of audio, plays it, processes
the next 2 seconds, plays it, and so on.

Bypass plays the selected audio without processing. This is useful
for comparing the audio with and without processing applied.

Optional performs an analysis pass on the audio data.

Some plug-ins require an analysis pass on the audio data before they
can process the information. If so, they perform the Þrst pass automatically. Other plug-ins do not require a Þrst pass but can achieve more
accurate results if you allow them to perform a Þrst pass. If the plug-in
supports the optional pass, this button will be available. Otherwise it
will be dimmed.

Rendering Plug-In Effects
Some plug-ins can process a Þle in real time and some cannot, due to
the complexity of the effect. Even if a plug-in can run in real time, you
must render it before you can add it to the following:
¥

An audio mixdown

An EQ effect

If you do not render the effect manually, the Avid Composer system
automatically renders the effect before it creates an audio mixdown or
audio dissolve containing the effect.

539

For more information, see ÒTroubleshooting AudioSuite Plug-InsÓ
on page 540.

Plug-In Limitations
There are a few important exceptions to the list of compatible plug-ins.
The following types of plug-ins do not work with the Avid Composer
system:
¥

Third-party plug-ins that process audio in stereo pairs, such as stereo sound Þeld expanders. These plug-ins only receive input on
the Þrst channel.

Plug-ins that perform analysis passes, using playlist information
to cache analysis data.

Plug-in options that perform time compression/expansion. For
example, some Pitch Shift plug-ins have an option for changing
the length of the audio Þle. You can use the plug-in as long as you
donÕt choose that option.

Also note that you can only work on one track at a time. This means
that you should use the mono AudioSuite Plug-Ins where applicable.

Troubleshooting AudioSuite Plug-Ins
This section describes problems you might encounter when using the
AudioSuite Plug-Ins.

Addressing Memory Allocation Problems
The DAE application requires between 9 and 16 MB of RAM, depending on how many plug-ins are loaded. When the application launches,
it attempts to allocate enough memory for all the plug-ins in the PlugIns folder in the DAE Folder. If you have a lot of plug-ins (for example,
more than 10), the application might not be able to allocate enough
memory for all of them.
540

If you receive memory allocation errors or if the screen does not
redraw correctly when you use the AudioSuite Plug-Ins for the Þrst
time, you should do the following:
1. Quit the Avid Composer application.
2. Locate the DAE Folder in your System Folder and click the DAE
application icon within the DAE Folder.
3. Press kÐI to display the Get Info dialog box.
4. Change the Preferred Size value to a large number, such as 30000
(30 MB), to change the memory allocation.
5. Close the Get Info dialog box.
6. Start up the DAE application by double-clicking the DAE application icon.
The DAE application automatically checks the available plug-ins
and allocates enough memory to run all of the plug-ins.
7. Choose Set Playback Buffer Size and set the buffer size to 0.

The Set Playback Buffer Size setting has no effect on Avid Composer performance.
8. Quit the DAE application.
9. Use the Get Info dialog box again and change the Preferred memory size back to the Suggested Size.
10. Restart the Avid Composer system.
If you still receive memory errors when you use the AudioSuite PlugIns, you might have too many plug-ins in the Plug-Ins folder in the
DAE Folder. Move some plug-ins out of the folder and try running the
AudioSuite Plug-Ins again. For example, you could create a Plug-Ins
Disabled folder for storing plug-ins that are not in use.

541

Starting and Stopping the DAE Application
By default, the DAE application is always running while the AudioSuite window is open. You can stop the DAE application to free up
memory for other applications.
To stop the DAE application while the AudioSuite window is open,
kÐclick the status display in the AudioSuite window.
To restart the DAE application, Option-click the status display.

Canceling a Render Operation
You can press kÐperiod to cancel a render operation. However, be
careful not to press kÐperiod multiple times. If you press the command after the render operation has been stopped (from a previous
kÐperiod), the Avid Composer system closes the window after it cancels the render operation.

Addressing Error Messages When Rendering a Plug-in Effect
If the DAE application is not running when you start to render a plugin effect, the system displays an error message stating that the DAE
connection does not exist. The dialog box gives you the following
choices:
¥

Cancel stops the rendering process. This allows you to launch the
DAE application and then start rendering again.

Bypass continues rendering but doesnÕt render the plug-in effect.

In most cases, you should click Cancel and restart the DAE application. Either open the AudioSuite Plug-In window or, if the window is
already open, Option-click the status display in the AudioSuite window.
If the plug-in is not installed when you go to render a plug-in effect,
the system displays an error message and tells you which plug-in is

542

not installed. At that time you can cancel or bypass as previously
described.

Using Digidesign Pro Tools
If you plan to use Digidesign Pro Tools on the same system with the
Digidesign AudioSuite Plug-Ins, install Pro Tools Version 4.1.1 or
greater. This version has the matching version of the DAE application.

Using Audio Punch-In
Audio punch-in allows you to record up to two channels of audio
directly into the Timeline for voice-over narration. This saves the extra
steps of recording the narration to tape Þrst, digitizing, and then editing the audio clip into the sequence.
You access the Audio Punch In Tool from the Tools menu.

The following illustration identiÞes the various elements of the tool:

543

Recording status light
Record button

Cancel button
Preroll and Postroll boxes

Display Audio Tool
button
Handles box
Input channel
selection buttons
and menus

Timeline Track selection menus

Bin selection menu
Drive selection menu

Features of the Audio Punch In Tool are as follows:
¥

The Record button starts and stops the recording.

The Cancel button stops a recording without saving the recorded
data.

The Recording status light is black when there is no activity, green
during a preroll, red during recording, and blue during a postroll.

The Display Audio Tool button displays the Audio Tool so that
you can monitor and adjust the audio levels during recording.

The PreRoll text box allows you to provide a visual cue before the
recording begins. The Avid Composer system backs up the blue
position indicator for the prescribed number of seconds.

The PostRoll text box gives the same kind of visual cue at the end
of the recording.

The Handles text box instructs the Avid Composer system to
record audio at the beginning and end of the clip. This allows you
to perform trim edits on the audio.

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The input channels identify the channels on the audio hardware
that are used for recording. Click the button to select the channel.
The button turns pink when it is selected. Option-click the button
to display a menu and select another channel.

The Track selection menus allow to specify where the Composer
system places the audio in the Timeline. Either choose New Track
or choose an existing track. When you choose an existing track, the
Avid Composer system overwrites the audio on that track
between the IN and OUT points.

Using the Audio Punch In Tool
This section provides an overview of how to set up and use your Avid
Composer system for creating voice-overs in the Timeline.

Connecting the Hardware
Before you can use Audio Punch In, you need to connect a microphone
or other input device to your system. The following are typical examples:
¥

Connect a microphone to a mixer and connect the mixer to the
Audio board or to the Audio Interface on your Avid Composer
system.

Connect a microphone to a microphone preamp and connect the
preamp to the Audio board or to the Audio Interface on your Avid
Composer system.

For information on connecting the hardware, see the Avid
Media Composer Products Connecting Audio and Video Equipment manual.

545

Creating the Voice-Over
You can replace part (or all) of an existing track or you can instruct the
Avid Composer system to create a new track for the voice-over. The
following procedure shows how to use the tool when you want to
mark IN and OUT points and plan to create a new track for the voiceover.
1. Mark the IN and OUT points in the Timeline as shown in the following illustration.

2. Choose Audio Punch In from the Tools menu.
The Audio Punch In Tool appears.

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Recording status light

Cancel button

Record button

3. Choose the channels that correspond to your hardware setup and
set other values in the dialog box as appropriate.
4. To start recording, click the Record button.
If you started with both IN and OUT points in the Timeline, the
Avid Composer system automatically stops recording when it
reaches the OUT point (or after it adds the appropriate audio handle after the OUT point). If you only added an IN point, click the
record button a second time to stop the recording.
The following illustrations show the results after adding a voice-over.
The system automatically names the voice-over. You can change the
name as you would any clip (for example, change the name in the bin).

547

Voice-over adding a new track

Voice-over replacing a portion of a track

Voice-Over Media Files
The Avid Composer system automatically names the voice-over and
stores it as an audio clip as shown in the following illustration.

548

Fine-Tuning Audio Transitions
When making audio level and pan adjustments, the Avid Composer
system looks at either an individual clip in the Source monitor, a segment in the sequence, or entire tracks. To change level or pan settings
in an area not deÞned by a discrete clip or group of clips, use the Add
Edit function to deÞne your own custom area.
1. Find the start of the area where you would like to change the pan
or level, leaving your position indicator on that frame as a marker.
2. Turn on the appropriate track in the track panel.
3. Click the Add Edit button.
This places an edit where the position indicator is parked.
4. Find the end of the area where you want to change the pan or
level, leaving your position indicator on that frame as a marker.
5. Turn on the appropriate track.
6. Click the Add Edit button.
7. Use the process described in ÒUsing the Audio Mix ToolÓ on
page 490 to change the level or pan within this new segment.

Fading and Dipping Audio
In traditional analog editing, you manually change volume levels to
smooth audio transitions between elements in an edited sequence by:
¥

Fading audio up or down

Dipping to a lower level

Crossfading between audio elements on two separate channels

With the Avid Composer system, these effects are more accurately
termed audio dissolves because they occur instantly when you apply the
same dissolve effect that you use for video tracks.
549

You can use the procedures described in ÒUsing Audio Gain AutomationÓ on page 500 to achieve these effects. If your model does not
include Audio Gain Automation (releases prior to Release 6.1), you
must use the procedures described in this section.
This section describes three basic procedures for achieving fades, dips,
and crossfades with the Avid Composer system. For complete information on applying and adjusting effects, see the Avid Media Composer and
Film Composer Effects Guide.

Fading Audio
To fade or crossfade audio, you can use the procedures described in
ÒUsing Audio Gain AutomationÓ on page 500. If your model does
not include Audio Gain Automation (releases prior to Release 6.1), you
must use the procedure described in this section.
Fading and crossfading audio are easy effects to achieve. The procedure that differs most from analog editing is crossfading. In the analog
world, unless you are using a mixer, you must lay down audio on two
separate channels and fade one down, then fade up the second on an
overlapping section. With the Avid Composer system, you simply
apply the aural equivalent of a visual dissolve.
To apply a fade or crossfade:
1. Place the position indicator on a transition.
2. Click the Add Dissolve button (it appears by default on the second
row of buttons below the Record monitor).
The add dissolve dialog box appears.

550

3. Do not choose another effect from the Add pop-up menu at the
top; only dissolves work with audio tracks.
4. Select a duration for the dissolve, measured in frames (30 frames
equals 1 second of NTSC footage; 25 frames for PAL).
5. Choose the location for the dissolve from the Position pop-up
menu.

Ending at Cut fades the audio to 0 from the A-side segment by
the cut point.

Centered on Cut, or Custom Start creates a crossfade. Custom
Start allows you to begin the dissolve off-center Ñ that is,
closer to the transition and ending later into the B-side, or the
reverse.

551

Starting at Cut fades the audio up from the B-side starting at
the cut point.

6. If you chose Custom Start, enter the number of frames before the
transition to begin the effect in the ÒStarts x frames before cutÓ
entry box. Otherwise, leave the default value in the entry box.
7. (Option) Choose a media drive other than the default Effect
Source Disk from the Target Disk pop-up menu.
8. Click Add to place the effect at the transition point without rendering. Click Add and Render to do both at once.

In most cases you can choose the second option, Add and Render, to allow
immediate real-time playback of the audio effect (rendering of audio dissolves
is usually instantaneous).
The effect is completed.

Dipping Audio
To dip audio from a higher level to a lower oneÑfor example, when
bringing music down and under a voice-over trackÑyou can use the
procedures described in ÒUsing Audio Gain AutomationÓ on
page 500. If your model does not include Audio Gain Automation
(releases prior to Release 6.1), use the procedure described in this section.
To apply a dip in audio:
1. Play back the section of the sequence where the dip will take place
to determine the start point for the dip, and apply an add edit to
the audio track.
2. Do the same for the end point where the audio will dip back up.
3. Place the position indicator over the new segment of audio, and
open the Audio Mix Tool.
4. Adjust the track to the desired volume level as described in the
section ÒUsing the Audio Mix ToolÓ on page 490.
552

5. Apply a Quick Dissolve to both Add Edit points, using the techniques described in the previous section. Be sure to choose ÒCentered on CutÓ or ÒCustom StartÓ from the Position pop-up menu.
After rendering, the audio dips smoothly from the higher levels of the
adjacent segments of the track to the lower level applied to the middle
segment.

Mixing Down Audio Tracks
When you work with multiple audio tracks while editing your material, you might need to mix the Þnal audio down to two tracks.
After you edit a number of tracks of audio, mix them down to one or
two tracks of audio by following these steps:
1. Load a sequence into the Record monitor.
2. Click the track selectors to select the audio tracks you want to mix
down.
3. Mark an IN and an OUT at the start and end of the material you
want to mix down.
If you do not mark the section of audio you want to mix down, the
system mixes down all of the selected audio tracks.
4. Choose Audio Mixdown from the Special menu. The top of the
box displays the source audio tracks and the start and end timecodes for the section of audio youÕve selected to mix down.

553

Destination track

Selected section of audio

5. Click Mono and select the target track to which you want to mix
down the audio.
If you want stereo, click Stereo and select two target tracks for the
mixed-down audio. The system mixes down all the odd audio
tracks to the left track and all the even audio tracks to the right.
6. Choose a target disk.
The target disk is the media disk where the system stores the
media Þles for the mixed-down audio.
7. Click OK.
The audio is mixed down and ready for two-channel playback.

554

CHAPTER 17
Syncing Methods
Your Avid Composer system provides special tools that help you
establish and maintain sync relationships between various clips. This
includes managing sync between unrelated clips or clips with the
same timecode, ganging footage, match-framing footage, and using
Sync Point Editing. These topics are discussed in the following sections:
¥

Autosyncing Clips

Managing Sync Breaks

Managing Sync with Multiple Tracks

Using Sync Point Editing

Ganging Footage in Monitors

Using Match Frame

Autosyncing Clips
For more information
on tracking sync breaks,
see ÒDisplaying Sync
BreaksÓ on page 559.

When you digitize footage that includes both audio and video, the system automatically establishes sync when it creates clips in the bin.
Autosyncing applies to audio and video clips that have been digitized
separately, usually from two separate sources. Autosyncing creates a

555

new subclip that displays sync breaks in the Timeline as though the
audio and video were digitized simultaneously.

Sync break displayed
in the Timeline

Autosyncing is often used for Þlm projects in which picture and sound
are captured separately. These clips are often synced based on common Þlm timecode, sound timecode, or auxiliary timecode. You can
also autosync any audio and video clips based on an artiÞcial IN point
or OUT point relationship you establish with marks.
Use the following guidelines when autosyncing:
¥

You can autosync audio clips with video clips only. To link two or
more video clips or audio clips, use the Grouping option described
in ÒGrouping and MultigroupingÓ on page 582.

You can create only one autosynced subclip at a time. You cannot
autosync numerous pairs of audio and video clips simultaneously.

If the audio and video clips do not have matching source or auxiliary timecode, you must establish common sync frames. To do
this, mark IN points (or OUT points) on both clips before autosyncing.

If you are autosyncing clips of different lengths, the longer clip is
truncated to the length of the shorter clip.

If you autosync according to common timecodes that are staggered (one clip starts later than the other), the later starting timecode becomes the start of the new subclip. The clip with the earlier
starting timecode is trimmed accordingly.

To create an autosynced subclip:
1. Highlight the two clips in the bin. Choose AutoSync from the Bin
menu.
The AutoSync dialog box appears.
556

2. Select an option, based on the following:
¥

Film TC/Sound TC if you are syncing clips with matching Þlm
and sound timecode recorded in the Þeld; this option is
dimmed if you are not working on a Þlm project.

Inpoints if you are syncing according to IN points set in both
clips.

Outpoints if you are syncing according to OUT points set in
both clips.

Source Timecode if the two clips have matching timecode.

Auxiliary TC1-TC5 if the two clips have matching timecode in
the same auxiliary timecode column. Choose an Auxiliary TC,
1 through 5, from the pop-up menu.

3. Click OK. The subclip is created and named by default after the
video clip with the sufÞx .sync.n, where n is the incremental number of subclips created with the same name.

557

You can change the name according to preference. You can load an
autosynced subclip into the Source monitor and immediately edit it
into a sequence.

Managing Sync Breaks
Sync breaks occur when a frame-accurate relationship between two
clips or between the audio and video tracks within a single clip is offset during editing. Often this happens unintentionally when you perform one of the following actions:
¥

Selecting only one track in a synced relationship (for example,
audio only or video only) and performing edit functions that
lengthen the duration, such as Splice-in, Extract/Splice-in, or adding frames in Trim mode.

Selecting only one synced track and performing edit functions that
shorten the duration, such as Extract, Extract/Splice-in, or removing frames in Trim mode.

Your Avid Composer system provides several features for avoiding,
tracking, and removing sync breaks, as described in this section.

Editing to Avoid Sync Breaks
One way to avoid breaking sync is to maintain the duration of the
track when adding or removing material, as follows:
¥

When adding material to a track, use the Replace or Overwrite
functions instead of Splice-in, whenever possible.

When removing material from a track, use Lift instead of Extract
(the Lift function leaves Þller of the same duration when removing
footage).

When performing Segment mode edits, use the Lift/Overwrite
function instead of Extract/Splice-in whenever possible (Lift/
558

Overwrite leaves Þller behind and overwrites material at the new
destination, maintaining sync in both cases).
¥

In Trim mode, you can sync lock tracks to avoid breaking sync, or
use the Control-key function for adding black during trims, as
described in ÒMaintaining Sync While TrimmingÓ on page 473.
You can also perform dual-roller trims (that maintain duration)
instead of single-roller trims.

There are many cases in which you cannot avoid splicing or extracting
material, or performing single-roller trims that break sync. The following sections describe features for tracking and Þxing sync breaks in
those circumstances.

Displaying Sync Breaks
By default the Timeline displays sync breaks whenever they occur
during editing. These appear at break points as white numbers indicating negative or positive offset values relative to zero. The Sync
Breaks option also displays match-frame edits by displaying an equal
sign (=) on the edits.

Match frames

Sync Breaks

You encounter sync breaks and match frames in different circumstances:
¥

You can encounter sync breaks in one or several video tracks,
audio tracks, or both. Sync-break offset numbers appear by default
only in the affected tracks.
559

For more information
on match frames, see
ÒAdding an Edit
(Match Framing)Ó on
page 445.

You encounter match-frame cuts whenever you perform an add
edit or whenever you move a segment up against footage from the
same clip, and the timecode is continuous across the edit.

You can also customize the Timeline view to display sync breaks and
match-frame edits in video tracks only, audio tracks only, or none.
To customize the sync break display, choose Sync Breaks from the
Timeline Fast menu, and choose an option from the submenu.

This feature applies only to master clips in which audio and video tracks were
digitized simultaneously, to autosynced subclips, or to any other subclip with
video and audio tracks.

Fixing Sync Breaks
In general, sync breaks are displayed only when the out-of-sync tracks
overlap. In other words, if an overlapping portion of one of the tracks
is deleted, replaced, moved, or trimmed, then the sync break disappears. You Þx sync breaks in one of several ways, based upon the type
of break and the needs of your sequence.

560

Fixing Sync in Trim Mode
For more information
on trimming, see
Chapter 15.

In Trim mode, restore the frames to sync by performing one or more
single-roller trims on the out-of-sync tracks. Trim the exact number of
sync-break frames displayed in the Timeline to reverse the break. Keep
in mind the following considerations:
¥

Sync lock any additional tracks that are synced to the track you are
trimming. Otherwise, you might restore sync in one track and
break it in the others.

Do not perform a dual-roller trim Ñ this does not remove the sync
break.

Do not perform the trim on the OUT point (A-side transition) of
the out-of-sync segment. This does not remove the sync break.
Always perform the trim on the IN point (B-side transition) of the
segment.

Fixing Sync in Source/Record Mode
For more information
on editing in Source/
Record mode, see
Chapter 13.

In Source/Record mode, restore sync by either adding new material or
extracting material from the out-of-sync track. Add or extract the exact
number of offset frames displayed in the Timeline, with the following
considerations:
¥

Do not use the Overwrite or Lift functions. These do not remove
the sync break. You can, however, overwrite or lift the out-of-sync
material entirely to eliminate the break.

You can splice in or extract selected frames of Þller when necessary.

You can use the add edit function to isolate just a portion of a clip
or Þller segment in the sequence for extracting or replacing.

561

Fixing Sync in Segment Mode
For more information
on editing in Segment
mode, see ÒUsing Segment ModeÓ on
page 416.

In Segment mode, you can restore sync in some circumstances by
selecting and moving the entire out-of-sync segment. You can move
the segment forward or backward in the opposite direction of the
break to reverse it, but with the following considerations:
¥

Use Lift/Overwrite (the red arrow) to leave Þller behind and
maintain any other sync relationships that might be affected by
the move.

Use Lift/Overwrite to delete the entire segment and leave Þll to
eliminate the break.

Use the add edit function to isolate a portion of the clip for moving
or deleting.

Move the out-of-sync track, if possible, beyond the overlapping
range with the synced material to eliminate the sync break.

Managing Sync with Multiple Tracks
The Sync Breaks display in the Timeline makes it easy to manage sync
between video and one or two audio tracks. There are a number of
additional techniques you can use to manage sync when working with
four or more tracks. These include the sync lock feature, tail leaders,
and add edits.

Using Sync Lock
For more information
on sync locking tracks
in Trim mode, see
ÒMaintaining Sync
While TrimmingÓ on
page 473.

The sync lock feature allows you to maintain sync among several tracks
while adding or removing frames in Trim mode. For example, if you
insert an edit into one track that is sync locked to a second track, the
system automatically inserts Þller in the second track to maintain sync
between the two.

562

Sync lock indicator

You activate sync locking by clicking the indicator box in the Track
Selector panel to display the Sync Lock icon. You can also toggle all
locks on or off by clicking in the TC indicator box.
There are several unique aspects to sync locking:
¥

Sync locking is a Trim mode feature only. Edits performed in
Source/Record, Segment, or Effect mode will override synclocked tracks.

Sync locking applies to single-roller trims only, because dual-roller
trims do not break sync.

You can sync lock any number of tracks in any combination. In
other words, the tracks do not require matching timecode or common sources, and can include multiple video tracks as well as
audio tracks.

Sync locking affects entire tracks. This means that parallel segments in other sync-locked tracks are affected when you trim anywhere in the sequence.

Syncing with Tail Leader
You can add tail leader to the audio or video material in your Avid
Composer system to provide a useful visual reference in the Timeline
for tracking and Þxing sync breaks across any number of tracks.

Tail leaders lined up for multiple
video (vid) and audio (aud) tracks

Film editors traditionally use standard head and tail leaders for this
purpose. You can create your own leader according to any speciÞcation, as described in ÒCreating LeaderÓ on page 266.
563

With tail leader added to synchronized tracks, you can go to the end of
the sequence after making a complicated edit and see whether the
leaders are lined up. If they are out of line, this indicates a sync break
that you can measure and eliminate as follows:
1. Place the position indicator in the black segment that follows the
out-of-sync leader.
2. Select the track, then click the Mark Clip button. You can measure
the break by checking the IN to OUT duration of the marked segment.

Mark Clip allows you to
measure the break.

3. To restore sync, Þnd the point at which the sync was lost. Add or
remove frames using the appropriate edit function, as described in
ÒFixing Sync BreaksÓ on page 560.
As a quick Þx, you can enter Extract/Splice-in Segment mode by clicking the yellow arrow button. Drag the black segment at the end of the
out-of-sync tail leader to the location where the sync was lost. This
segment of black, created when the track went out of sync, is the exact
length of the sync break.
Move the black
segment, using
Extract/Splice-in.

564

Syncing with Locators
For more information
on using locators, see
ÒUsing LocatorsÓ on
page 355.

Like tail leaders, you can add locators to material in the Timeline to
track and adjust breaks in sync between any number of tracks. You can
place locators anywhere in the sequence and you can add speciÞc
notes.
To mark sync points with locators:
1. Place the position indicator at the point in the sequence where you
want to maintain sync between two or more tracks.
2. Select the Þrst track and click the Add Locator button.
The system adds a red locator to the track in the Timeline and in
the Record monitor.
3. To add a note that will appear in the Record monitor whenever
you park on the locator frame Ñ such as Music sync or Sound Effect
sync Ñ double-click the locator in the Timeline, type the text into
the Locator text box, and click OK.
4. Repeat the procedure for subsequent synchronized tracks. Make
sure you keep the position indicator in the same location in order
to line up the locators in sync.

Locators in sync

You can use the Find
procedure to go to a
locator quickly with
text. For more information, see ÒFinding
Frames, Clips, and
BinsÓ on page 360.

5. After completing an edit that you think might have affected the
sync, return to the segment that contains the locators and click the
Focus button. If the locators are not lined up, the sync is broken.
To adjust the sync break:

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1. Measure the sync break by Þrst placing the position indicator on
the leftmost locator and clicking the Mark IN button. Then place it
on the other locators and click the Mark OUT button.
2. Check the IN to OUT duration of the marked section.
3. To restore sync, Þnd the point at which the sync was lost. Add or
remove frames by using the appropriate edit function, as
described in ÒFixing Sync BreaksÓ on page 560.

Using Add Edit When Trimming
When trimming with several audio tracks in sync, you can use the
Add Edit button to create an edit in the silent or black areas of the
synced tracks. These occur in line with the track you are trimming,
and they trim all the tracks at once to maintain sync.
To use the Add Edit button while trimming:
1. Place the position indicator on the edit that you want to trim.
2. Select only the additional tracks that are in sync, and click the Add
Edit button.
The system adds a transition at the location of your position indicator in the Timeline.

Add Edits in black

3. Select the transition and trim (be sure to select all the synced
tracks).
As you trim, frames are added or removed from the additional
tracks as well.

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4. When you are Þnished trimming, remove the add edits from the
sync tracks by choosing Remove Match Frame Edits from the Clip
menu.

Using Sync Point Editing
Sync Point Editing (SPE) allows you to overwrite material onto your
sequence in such a way that a particular point in the source material is
in sync with a particular point in the sequence. For example, you can
sync an action in the source video with an audio event, such as a musical beat in the Record monitor, then edit it so that the action occurs on
the beat.
Like a replace edit, Sync Point Editing uses the relative location of the
position indicator in both the source and record material as the sync
point. However, Sync Point Editing determines the duration of the
new edit according to marks that you set, as opposed to a replace edit,
which uses the head-to-tail frame duration already established in the
Timeline. You can apply these marks across multiple tracks when
marking a sequence. This allows you to add overlap cuts.
SPE requires two pieces of information:
¥

The sync points: These are the points where the synchronized
relationship between the source and record material is established.

The duration of the relationship: This is determined by the positions of the head and tail frames (and sometimes by the position
indicator). Both marks can be in one monitor, or one mark can be
in one monitor and the other mark in the other monitor. The duration of the material being edited into the sequence must be sufÞcient for the size of the edit.

To perform a sync-point edit:
1. Load a clip or sequence into the Source monitor.
2. Load a sequence into the Record monitor.
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3. Mark the material in one of the following ways:
¥

Mark the IN and OUT points in either the Source or Record
monitor, leaving the opposite monitor clear of marks.

Mark an IN or OUT point in the Source monitor, or an IN or
OUT point in the Record monitor. For example, if you marked
an IN point in the Source monitor, mark the OUT point in the
Record monitor.

4. Move the source position indicator to the sync frame in the clip.
This establishes the source sync point.
5. Move the record position indicator in the Source/Record window
to the sync frame in the sequence.
6. Select Sync Point Editing in the Composer Settings dialog box, or
choose Sync Point Editing from the Special menu.
Notice the orange box on the Overwrite button that signals that
Sync Point Editing is active.
Orange mark
indicates Sync
Point Editing.

7. Select the source and record tracks for this edit. Click the Overwrite button.
The sync point edit is completed.
To turn off Sync Point Editing, deselect the option from the Composer
Settings dialog box or from the Special menu.

Ganging Footage in Monitors
The Gang function does not combine tracks into a synced relationship,
but rather locks monitors in sync so that you can move through footage in two or more monitors simultaneously. This is convenient for
viewing and marking the sequence and source material simultaneously, based on syncing of the position indicators in each monitor.
You can gang the Source monitor and/or any number of pop-up monitors with the Record monitor. For instance, before editing them into a
568

sequence, you can gang a music track in a pop-up monitor, source
footage in the Source monitor, and a sequence in the Record monitor.
Then you can view the footage, adjust the sync points, and mark them
before completing the edit.
To gang monitors:
1. Load a sequence into the Record monitor.
2. Load one or more clips into the Source monitor and/or pop-up
monitors.
3. Click the Gang button for each monitor that you want to synchronize (the Record monitor is always ganged). The button turns
green when enabled.

The Gang button appears by default in the second row of buttons below the
Source monitor, and in the second row of information above the Source/
Record monitors.
4. View the footage in any of the monitors by using standard playback methods.
Notice as you move through footage in one monitor, the footage in
all other monitors freezes. The footage is updated when the play
stops. Simultaneous full-motion playback is not possible, although
sync is maintained at all times.

Using Match Frame
The Match Frame feature allows you call up and display matching
footage in the Source monitor from the Record monitor. Reverse Match
Frame lets you load a source clip and locate its sync frame in the
sequence.

569

Like the Gang function, match framing does not create a permanent
sync relationship between clips, but instead provides you with a convenient way of locating, marking, and editing matching material.
Track selection determines the match frame. If you select a video track,
the system matches a frame from the video. If you enable several
tracks, the system matches the frame from the highest selected track
level, in descending order: V1, A1, A2, and so on.
The Match Frame button appears by default in the second row of buttons below the Source monitor. To match frame from footage in the
Record monitor, you must map the button to the Record monitor palette.

Performing a Match Frame
To use Match Frame:
1. Load a sequence into the Record monitor.
2. Select a track for the footage you want to match, and place the
position indicator on a selected frame.
3. Click the Match Frame button.
The system loads the source clip into the Source monitor, parks on
the match frame, and marks a new IN point to prepare for making
an edit.

Any previous IN or OUT marks are removed when you use match frame. To
override this, Option-click the Match Frame button.

Performing a Reverse Match Frame
To perform a reverse Match Frame:

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1. Place the position indicator on the desired frame in the source
footage.
2. Make sure the appropriate tracks are selected in the Timeline.
3. Press the Control key and click the Match Frame button under the
Source monitor.
The system cues the sequence to the matching frame on the record
side. If the shot exists in more than one place, the sequence cues to the
Þrst location of the match frame, and continues through the sequence
to subsequent locations each time you click the Match Frame button.

Using the Match Frame to Find Sources
The Match Frame function also provides the ability to trace objects
quickly through their hierarchy of links. For example, you can match
frame a cut in the sequence to its original subclip, then from the subclip to the original master clip, and Þnally locate the bin in which the
master clip is saved.

For more information on Þnding clips and frames with Match Frame, see
ÒUsing Match FrameÓ on page 363.

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CHAPTER 18
Multicamera Editing
The Avid Composer multicamera editing tools allow you to incorporate multiple camera angles easily into the nonlinear editing process.
Systems equipped with the Multicamera Play option can also play
back, in real time, up to four camera angles in a Source monitor quad
split, along with playback of the sequence in the Record monitor. Techniques for using these features are described in the following sections:
¥

Developing a Postproduction Model

Grouping and Multigrouping

MultiCamera Edit Modes

MultiCamera Editing Techniques

Workßow Options

Developing a Postproduction Model
As the name indicates, multicamera production multiplies the amount
and complexity of source material you manage in a project. As a result,
comprehensive postproduction planning is essential to avoid the hazards of mismatched shots, takes, and entire reels during digitizing and
grouping.

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This section presents a postproduction model that can help you organize your material. While the routines of a typical situation comedy
are used to illustrate these organizing principles, you can easily adapt
this model to suit the particular needs of other productions, such as
sports, documentary, and music videos.
The guidelines of organizing for a large multicamera project are as follows:
¥

Choose a tape-numbering scheme and be consistent.

Record the multicamera shoot logically according to ofßine and
online editing needs.

Manage the production path of both sound and picture for quality
and efÞciency.

Tape Classification Schemes
Because multicamera production involves both sequential and synchronous recording on numerous reels, a comprehensive classiÞcation
scheme for reels, takes, and clips can help avoid confusion.
Many situation comedies that record on videotape classify their master record reels with two digits indicating both the sequential and synchronous identity of the tape, as follows:
¥

The Þrst digit indicates the order in which the reel was recorded.

The second digit indicates the source that feeds the reel.

For example, if there is a line feed or directorÕs cut (a switched version
of the show), this source is designated with a 0 (zero), so that reel 10 is
the Þrst reel of the line feed. Reel 11 is the Þrst reel recorded on iso (isolation) camera one, and so forth.
Each set of reels, then, forms a decimal group, called a tape load. Each
load is traditionally referred to by its preÞx. In this example, reels 10 to
14 are called the tens, reels 20 to 24 the twenties, and so on.
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Production Paths
In addition to a numbering scheme, you can organize the ßow of
recorded material throughout postproduction to make efÞcient use of
resources and maintain the quality of video and audio.
For videotaped production, often two sets of reels are recorded during
production: a set of online masters, and a set of ofßine work tapes. The
online masters remain untouched until editing of the Þnal show master begins. Clips from the ofßine work tapes are digitized, then used
for editing and generating an EDL in Media Composer.
Online masters

Finished program

Online Edit

Betacam
D2

Simultaneous
multicamera
recording

Offline work tapes

EDL

Digitize

Offline Edit

3/4 inch

Facilities and tape formats might vary. The basic model can apply to
any multicamera production in which a broadcast-quality program is
the goal.

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Managing Audio
The Media Composer MultiCamera features allow you to patch channels of audio from any source clip to any track during editing. You can
strategically designate speciÞc channels of audio to record on speciÞc
reels or tracks in preparation for editing and generating an effective
EDL.
In this example, the goal is to create a Þnished master with production
dialog on channel 1, music and sound effects on channel 2, audience
left on channel 3, and audience right on channel 4. To achieve this, you
record channels to ofßine work tapes with only two channels as follows:
¥

Line Feed: dialog on channel 1, mono audience on channel 2

Camera 1: dialog on channel 1, music and effects on channel 2

Cameras 2 and 3: dialog on channel 1, mono audience on 2

Camera 4: audience left on channel 1, audience right on 2

If the online master tapes are capable of recording four channels of
audio, these usually duplicate the conÞguration of channels on the
Þnal master.

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Record:

Digitize:

Online edit:

Line
Dialog &
Audience

Ch 1: Dialog

Video
only

Cam 1
Dialog &
Effects

11
Cam 2

Dialog &
Audience

Ch 4: Audience R

Video &
Audio

Video
only

Ch 2: Music & FX
Ch 3: Audience L

EDL generates
the final mix
Offline edit:

Cam 3
Dialog &
Audience

Video
only

Cam 4
Audience L
Audience R

Video &
Audio

Digitize and patch selected
channels in Media Composer

This is just one example. Choose the right path for your production.

Digitizing Workflow
The organization of the digitize bins helps to avoid slowing the system
with large bins. It also keeps editing resources free of clutter. The basic
procedure for using the digitize bins is as follows:
1. When you are ready to digitize, create one bin for each tape. This
keeps bins to a manageable size, and when you autodigitize the
system automatically names each clip (take) after the name of the
bin (tape), and numbers them sequentially.
2. Gather the clips for each tape load into one bin. This helps avoid
accidentally grouping clips with the same timecode from different
days. Sort the clips by name so they group in the right order.
3. After creating groups or multigroups, move all the new clips into
a separate bin. This helps simplify the contents of the bin for editing.
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Using the numbering scheme and production plan described in the
example, the path of video for the Þrst tape load digitized in Media
Composer might be as follows:

Line
10
Cam 1
11
Cam 2

3. Gather all multigroups
into one bin for easy access.

12
Cam 3

2. Gather each tape load
into one bin, sort by name,
then multigroup.

13
Cam 4
14

1. Digitize each reel separately.

Digitizing Methods
For more information
on logging and digitizing procedures, see
Chapter 6 and
Chapter 7.

There are three approaches to digitizing multicamera material:
¥

Log in advance and digitize selected takes: This method allows
you to shorten the time required for digitizing and to lessen the
amount of digitized material by logging timecodes noted on
selected takes during the shoot and subsequent screenings.

Log and digitize all takes in advance: This is similar to the previous method, except that you save less storage space by digitizing
portions of all takes.

Autodigitize entire reels: This method allows you to bypass the
logging procedure, but requires the most storage space.

577

However you choose to digitize, you should have accurate notes on
the number and content of takes on each reel in order to identify the
content of each clip when necessary.

Logging Tips
For additional logging
tips, see ÒLogging
TipsÓ on page 109.

The following tips apply to methods that involve logging in advance
for digitizing multicamera material:
¥

Narrow the IN and OUT points to avoid false starts on one or
more reels in a tape load.

Save time by logging just one ISO reel in each tape load, exporting
in the .ALE format, modifying reel and clip names in a text editor,
then reimporting into bins for each of the other reels.

When logging in advance, name each clip with the source tape
name (same as the master tape to be used in online) and a cut
number, for quick identiÞcation when clips get moved or copied.

Autodigitizing Tips
The following tips apply to autodigitizing entire reels:
For more on Digitize
Settings and Deck Settings, see the Avid Media
Composer Products Reference.

Select the ÒDigitize across timecode breaksÓ option in the Digitize
Settings dialog box prior to digitizing.

Select the ÒLog errors to the console and continue digitizingÓ
option in the Digitize Settings dialog box.

Under Deck Settings, turn off the Fast Cue option and set the preroll to approximately 4 seconds.

When loading a tape and assigning a name to a source reel, give
the reel the same name as the online master tape (same as the
work tape).

Name each bin after the source reel number. By default, all clips
are named after the reel and numbered incrementally beginning
with the sufÞx .01.

578

To start digitizing, cue the source reel past any false starts, play the
tape, and wait 4 seconds before clicking the Record button in the
Digitize Tool.

Storage Tips
The following tips can help you make the best use of storage drives:
¥

To save storage space, digitize only the audio channels required
for ofßine editing.

For the most efÞcient playback of multicamera material, distribute
the reels in each tape load between drives.

To avoid switching drives while digitizing the same reel, target
one volume per reel whenever possible.

With a large multicamera production, you can plan the use of drives in
advance, based on the number of drives available, the chosen AVR,
and the length of each reel.
Consider the following example:
¥

You have a four-camera production yielding two tape loads
(approximately 50 minutes per tape).

You want to autodigitize at AVR 3m.

You need to digitize 2-channel audio at 44.1 kHz from cameras
one and four.

For storage, you have four 4-GB drives.

With this set of circumstances, you might distribute the media as
shown in the following illustration. Storage requirements are based on
information provided in the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

579

Work tapes

Tracks digitized

Storage required

001

2 GB

002

3.5 GB

003

004

005

Targeted drive

2 GB

3.5 GB

Checking the Bins
Before gathering the digitized clips into bins for grouping, you should
open the bins in each tape load and compare the clips for inconsistencies. You can take steps to conform the bins now and avoid problems
during grouping and editing, as described in the following sections.

Replacing Missing Clips
If one bin has fewer clips than the others in the tape load, the ISO reel
might have been stopped during a particular take. If you group the
take with the missing camera, the shots shift in the Quad Split to Þll
the missing angle, which can disorient the editor. Correct this problem
by creating a dummy clip.
To create a dummy clip:
1. Log a new source clip into the bin.
2. Match the timecode from one of the clips from another camera,
and use any name.
580

When the clips are grouped and loaded during editing, this dummy
clip displays the message ÒMedia Ofßine,Ó and maintains the distribution of camera angles in the Quad Split.

Deleting Extra Clips
For speciÞc procedures
for deleting clips, see
ÒDeleting Clips and
SequencesÓ on
page 235.

If a particular bin has more clips than the others in the load, one or
more false starts might have been recorded during digitizing. If you
create a multigroup, the extra clips form unusable sections with only
one or two camera angles.
To eliminate the clips:
1. Compare timecodes among bins until you isolate the unique clips.
2. Load the clips into the Source monitor, and/or compare timecodes
with a line script if available.
3. If the clips are useless, delete them and their media until you have
the same takes in each bin.

Checking Audio and Image Quality
Check the Audio column to make sure the audio was recorded on the
correct channels, from the correct source reels, at the correct kHz. You
cannot play back audio compressed at different rates within the same
group or multigroup.
You can also spot-check the picture quality by loading two or more
clips from each bin into the Source monitor and viewing the clips. If
you Þnd a problem, you can redigitize before the edit session begins.

Additional Offline Editing Aids
If you are editing your multicamera material with the intention of generating an EDL and preparing a master tape in an online tape editing
suite, Media Composer provides features speciÞcally designed to aid
the ofßine editing process, including:
581

For more information
on these features, see
Chapter 14.

Color Frame tracking, for avoiding color frame shifts in online
editing with 1-inch videotape

Dupe Detection, for avoiding duplicate frames in online editing

Grouping and Multigrouping
The grouping and multigrouping procedures both gather selected
clips into a single unique clip. Both allow you to use special MultiCamera editing features, such as Quad Split and cutting on-the-ßy in
MultiCamera mode. The difference between the two can be summarized as follows:
¥

Grouping creates a separate group clip out of a single set of master
clips, from the IN point to the OUT point of the longest clip. Multigrouping takes the Group function one step further, literally
stringing numerous sequential groups into a rough sequence. For
this reason, multigroups are also known as sequence clips.

The Group function allows you to sync clips based on common
source timecode, auxiliary timecode, or marks placed in the footage. Because of the need for complete accuracy in sorting and
grouping the clips, multigrouping is performed on the basis of
common source timecode only.

The MultiGroup function is designed primarily for situation comedies and similar productions that record multiple takes sequentially on the same source tapes. Multigrouping does not provide
any beneÞt when you edit with clips that do not share common
timecode or were not recorded sequentially, and might even cause
the wrong clips to be grouped together.

Creating Group Clips
In addition to the multicamera context, grouped clips can be useful in
other circumstances. Unlike multigrouping, which requires clips with
matching source timecode, you can group clips that were shot at dif582

ferent times, on different days, and on completely different source
tapes. This means that you can:
¥

Use group clips to create montage sequences quickly with fastcutting between unrelated shots

Use group clips to sync and edit an audio track (music for
instance) with two or more video tracks (especially useful in
music-video editing)

Use group clips for multicamera editing when you want to isolate
each take as a group, and edit selectively, rather than build a larger
sequence clip

Use carefully synchronized marks to group selected portions of
multicamera clips

The last two options are generally for use in smaller multicamera
projects. Sorting, marking, selecting, and grouping individual takes of
a larger project can be very time consuming.
To create a group clip:
1. If you are using a sync point, load the clips and mark an IN at the
sync point at the start of each clip, or mark an OUT at the sync
point at the end of each clip.

For multicamera video or Þlm shoots, you typically use a slate for marking IN
and OUT points. But you can use any visual or aural event that is recorded
by all cameras simultaneously.
2. In the bin, select all the clips you want to group.
3. Choose Group Clips from the Bin menu. The Group Clips dialog
box appears.

583

4. Select an option, based on the following:
¥

Film TC/Sound TC: If you are syncing clips with matching Þlm
and sound timecode recorded in the Þeld. This option is
dimmed if you are not working on a Þlm project.

Inpoints: If you are syncing according to IN points set in each
clip.

Outpoints: If you are syncing according to OUT points set in
each clip.

Source Timecode: Select if the clips have matching timecode.

Auxiliary TC1-TC5: If the clips have matching timecode in the
same auxiliary timecode column.

5. Click OK. A group clip appears in the bin, with the name of the
Þrst clip in the group, followed by the extension Ògrp.n.Ó
The n is an incremental numbering of group clips with the same
name in the same bin. You might want to rename this to something easier to read, such as name.Group.

584

Creating Multigroup Clips
Multigrouping is strictly for use in large multicamera productions,
such as situation comedies, in which all synchronous camera shots are
recorded with the same timecode. The MultiGroup function is a single
Bin menu command that eliminates the time-consuming steps of collecting, sorting, grouping, and assembling large volumes of multicamera clips.
To multigroup your material:
1. Sort the clips by name in the bin.
2. Choose Select All from the Edit menu to select the master clips.
3. Choose MultiGroup from the Bin menu.
The system creates several group clips for each take in the bin,
then creates a multigroup from the groups. The multigroup has
the same icon as the groups, but the icon is preceded by a plus
sign.

MultiCamera Edit Modes
The three edit modes you use during multicamera editing are FullMonitor display, Quad Split, and MultiCamera mode. You can edit
with either group clips or multigroup clips in all three modes.
585

Full-Monitor Display
When you Þrst load a grouped or multigrouped clip, the Source monitor displays a single frame from one clip in the group in Source/
Record mode. This is called Full-Monitor display when working with
group clips, because you can view each angle in full-monitor size as
you edit. Also, in Full-Monitor display, the full-screen monitor also
remains full screen.

The basic features of Full-Monitor display are as follows:

586

Provides source-oriented control of multicamera material. In other
words, you can switch camera angles, cue, and mark material
without affecting the sequence.

Provides all the same Source monitor controls that are available
when editing other clips in Source/Record mode.

Provides all the same multicamera editing tools that are available
in Quad Split and MultiCamera mode. These are described in
ÒMultiCamera Editing TechniquesÓ on page 591. The only distinction is that in Full-Monitor display you can view each angle
full-size as you edit.

Quad Split
After loading a group clip into the Source monitor, you enter Quad
Split by clicking the Quad Split button located in the Command Palette on the MCam command tab. The Source monitor splits into four
quadrants. A Group Menu icon appears in the second row of information above the Source and Record monitors. The third monitor displays the Quad Split when the Source monitor is active, and fullscreen when the Record monitor is active.

587

Group Menu icon

Quad Split display

Sequence or linecut

The basic features of Quad Split are as follows:
¥

Provides source-oriented control of multicamera material, like FullMonitor display. In other words, you can switch camera angles,
playback, cue, and mark material without affecting the sequence.

Provides the same Source monitor controls that are available when
editing other clips in Source/Record mode.

588

Provides all the special multicamera editing features that are available in Full-Monitor and MultiCamera mode, as described in
ÒMultiCamera Editing TechniquesÓ on page 591.

Provides a list of all group clip video and audio tracks in the
Group menu for custom selection and patching.

Allows you to toggle the Quad Split button to switch the Source
monitor between Full-Monitor and Quad Split viewing and editing (editing functions are the same in both).

Displays whichever monitor is active in the third monitor (you can
toggle between Quad Split and full-screen as needed).

MultiCamera Mode
After loading a group clip into the Source monitor and editing it to create a new sequence, you choose MultiCamera Mode from the Special
menu to activate the features. MultiCamera mode takes the Quad Split
one step further: it gangs all shots in the group clip displayed in the
Source monitor to the sequence footage displayed in the Record monitor. All shots are synchronized and continuously updated during playback and editing.

589

Group Menu icon

Source monitor controls are
disabled

The Gang icon turns
green.

The basic features of MultiCamera mode are as follows:
¥

Provides sequence-oriented control of multicamera material, in contrast to Full-Monitor and Quad Split. In other words, whenever
you play back, cue, switch camera angles, or mark material, your
changes take place in the sequence.

Provides only Record monitor controls.

590

Provides special MultiCamera editing features that are available in
Full-Monitor display and Quad Split, as described in ÒMultiCamera Editing TechniquesÓ on page 591.

Provides the ability to cut between shots on-the-ßy during fullmotion playback, as you would during live switching of a show.

Provides a list of all video and audio tracks in the group in the
Quad Split menu, for custom selection and patching.

Lets you deselect MultiCamera Mode in the Special menu at any
time to switch between source-oriented and sequence-oriented
multicamera editing.

Lets you deselect MultiCamera Mode when you need to play back
full-screen.

MultiCamera Editing Techniques
When you load a group or multigroup clip into the Source monitor
and begin editing, the Timeline provides a unique display of the clip
name to indicate the presence of a group.
(G) indicates a group clip.

The system uses the name of the clip within the group to identify the
shot in each cut, but adds a G in parentheses to indicate the group.
Using various keys and functions, you can switch and edit the displayed group shot at any point in the sequence, as described in this
section. These features apply to both group and multigroup clips.
591

Switching Shots with the Arrow Keys
You can switch the display of camera angles by using the Up Arrow
and Down Arrow keys. The angle selection switches in either the
Source monitor (source material) or in the Record monitor (sequence
material), whichever is active.
When the Record monitor is active, you can place the position indicator within any segment and use the arrow keys to switch the group
shot selected for that segment.

Whenever you switch camera angles, you also switch the frame representing
the group in the bin. You can use this method to change the representative
frame for bin display and storyboarding.

Cutting On-the-Fly with Hot Keys
You can switch the display of up to eight camera angles by using hot
keys on the keyboard. The default hot keys are F9 to F12 for cameras 1
to 4. You can map an additional four cameras from the Command Palette to the keyboard for the full eight.

592

Key equivalents for quadrants:

F10

F11

F12

If you press a hot key when the footage is stopped, the system
switches the camera angle and also creates an edit in the sequence. You
can use this method to walk through one long group or multigroup
sequence and edit camera angles as you go.

To switch without creating a cut, hold the Option key when you press a hot
key.
You can also cut on-the-ßy during playback by using the hot keys. Systems equipped with the Media Composer Release 6.0 or later can cut
on-the-ßy with live playback of all four quadrants, creating a virtual
live-switching environment with the added ability to stop, trim, or
adjust edits at any time

Using the MultiCamera Linecut Option
The Linecut option in the Composer Settings dialog box allows you to
edit and playback a linecut (single stream playback of the edited
sequence) while in MultiCamera mode. Primarily for systems that
593

include the Avid MultiCamera Play option, this preference allows you
to switch between singular and quad-split playback without exiting
MultiCamera mode. The Linecut option is not selected by default.
To select the Linecut option:
1. Double-click Composer in the Settings scroll list of the Project window. The Composer Settings dialog box appears.
2. Select Play MultiCamera Linecut.

Using the Add Edit Button
You can use the Add Edit button like a hot key to add edits while stepping through a sequence, or on-the-ßy during playback. The only difference is that you are not switching camera angles until after you set
the edit points.
This method is especially useful when editing to music because it
allows you to concentrate on the beats and ignore camera angles until
the edits are placed.
To use this method, you must Þrst map the Add Edit button onto the
keyboard. Consider mapping the Add Edit button to a function key
next to the default hot keys. For more information on mapping keys,
see ÒAbout Button MappingÓ on page 96.
To add edits on-the-ßy:
1. Load the group or multigroup into the Source monitor and splice
it into a sequence.
2. Play the sequence. Each time you want to make an edit, press the
Add Edit key. When you stop the sequence, the edits appear in the
Timeline.
Play the sequence repeatedly to add more edits, or remove edits in
Trim mode by lassoing them in the Timeline and pressing the
Delete key.
594

3. After adding the edits, place the position indicator within each
segment and use the arrow keys to switch camera angles.

Using the Group Menu
The Group menu allows you to select video or audio channels from
any of the clips in the group and patch to the tracks available in the
sequence. This means that you can potentially have eight camera
angles and eight or more audio tracks synchronized and available for
patching at any time.
Click the Group Menu icon
to display the pop-up menu.

The Second Row of Info option must be selected in Composer Settings to display the Group Menu icon above the Source monitor.
In addition, you can choose the Audio-Follow-Video option from the
Group menu to instruct the system to switch both audio and video for
each camera angle together when you cut on-the-ßy or single-camera
style.
595

Audio-Follow-Video overrides the track selection beside the Timeline
and switches audio in track A1 only. Audio-Follow-Video edits appear
in the Timeline as match frames (that is, the transition contains an
equal sign).

Using the Group Angle Menus
You can use the Group menus to group up to eight clips at a time, and
select additional shots to display in any of the Source monitor quadrants.
To select an additional shot from the group to display in one of the
quadrants:
1. Press the Control key to activate the display of shot names in the
Source monitor quad split.
2. Click the name of the quadrant where you want to display the
new shot. The Group menu of shots in the group appears.
Select additional
angles from the
Group menu

596

3. Choose the shot you want to display from the menu. The new shot
appears in the quadrant.

Using Match Frame in Multicamera Editing
You can use the Match Frame button to call up the matching shot
within the group when matching from the sequence. Or you can call
up the original clip when match framing from the source group. For
more information on using the Match Frame feature, see ÒUsing
Match FrameÓ on page 569.

Workflow Options
The Media Composer MultiCamera editing features make possible
three basic workßow models for cutting multiple-angle shows: selective camera cutting, cutting on-the-ßy, and combination cutting. Each
workßow option has its own advantages. When and how to use them
is a matter of preference.

Selective Camera Cutting
Selective camera cutting involves marking and editing source material
into the sequence, much as you build a sequence by using nongrouped
clips in a normal session. You can play, cue, and mark clips on the
source side, then splice, overwrite, and trim shots in the sequence.
You can perform selective camera cutting in two ways:
¥

Lay down an entire group as a master sequence, then add edits,
switch camera angles, and trim within the sequence or cut in new
shots.

597

Edit one clip at a time, without laying down a master sequence
Þrst, effectively building a sequence as you would with
single-camera material.

The advantage of selective camera cutting with grouped clips is that
all the clips are synchronized, for simpliÞed selection of camera
angles. Selective camera cutting generally requires use of a detailed
line script, or detailed notes, that enable you to select shots and assemble the sequence one clip at a time.
To perform selective camera cutting:
1. Load the group or multigroup into the Source monitor.
2. Using timecode notes and the numeric keypad, type in the timecode for the Þrst take to begin the sequence, and press Enter to cue
the clip in the Source monitor to the take.
3. Mark IN and OUT points for the entire scene.
4. Select a camera angle for the Þrst shot, then splice the entire scene
into a sequence.
5. Use the arrow keys and/or the Add Edit button to select edit
points and switch to different angles throughout the master scene
in the sequence.
6. To replace a portion of the take with a better part from another
take, use the timecode notes again to cue up the take, set marks,
and perform a replace edit.
7. When you are Þnished with a scene, repeat the procedure for each
additional scene in the sequence.

Cutting On-the-Fly
When cutting on-the-ßy, you use MultiCamera mode in conjunction
with the hot keys (function keys F9 to F15) to switch between Quad
Split camera angles ganged to the record sequence. The capability of
full-motion quad-split playback with the Avid video board set allows
598

you to virtually re-create the live event atmosphere, as though you
were switching the shots live on location.
While you are cutting on-the-ßy, the Source monitor controls are disabled. You cannot mark IN and OUT points as you do during selective
camera cutting. Generally, you are editing from the quads according to
the action in the Record monitor.
To cut on-the-ßy:
1. Load the group or multigroup into the Source monitor.
2. Using timecode notes and the numeric keypad, type in the timecode for the Þrst take to begin the sequence and press Enter to cue
the clip in the Source monitor to the take.
3. Mark IN and OUT points for the entire scene.
4. Select a camera angle for the Þrst shot, then splice the entire scene
into a sequence.
5. Choose MultiCamera Mode from the Special menu to enter MultiCamera mode.
6. Play the sequence from the beginning. Watch the shots in the
Quad Split and the sequence footage in the Record monitor; then
use the hot keys to switch to different angles on-the-ßy.
7. Press the space bar to stop the sequence and update the Timeline
to include all the edits you made while cutting. Repeat the procedure until you have the edits you want.
8. When you are Þnished with the scene, repeat the procedure for
each additional scene in the sequence.
After cutting in various angles, you can adjust transitions and/or edit
out the superßuous material from the sequence in Trim mode.

599

Combination Cutting
Combination cutting involves the use of both selective camera cutting
and cutting on-the-ßy interchangeably. Most productions use both
methods at one time or another. Others use them in combination
throughout postproduction. The following are two examples:
¥

If you are editing a situation comedy or similar production that
requires a speciÞc show length for the Þnished master, you can
begin using selective camera cutting to edit the show for time.
This often involves emphasizing the audio on the Þrst editing pass
(also known as a radio edit), and then cutting on-the-ßy in subsequent passes to get the timing of shot transitions and cutaways.

If you are editing a live-on-tape event, such as a concert or comedy
club performance, you can begin by cutting on-the-ßy to capture
transitions spontaneously. However, you have the added beneÞt
of stopping and returning to a transition if you make a mistake,
and trimming or adjusting edits in a nonlinear fashion.

The difference in alternative editing styles is a matter of preference.
Choose the approach that works best for your production.

600

CHAPTER 19
Output Options
The Avid Composer system provides tools for generating output for
individual tracks or entire sequences to various videotape or audiotape formats. In addition, you can generate an edit decision list (EDL)
to be used by editors in a videotape suite for preparing a master tape.
You can also use VTR emulation for direct playback of sequences by
using an edit controller in an analog editing suite. These options are
described in the following sections:
¥

Preparing for Output

Recording a Digital Cut

Using EDL Manager

VTR Play Emulation

Preparing for Output
Preparing for video output involves the following procedures:
¥

Render all non-real-time effects, as described in the Avid
Media Composer and Film Composer Effects Guide.

Calibrate and adjust video output levels, as described in ÒCalibrating for Video OutputÓ on page 602.

601

For more information
on mixing down audio
tracks, see ÒMixing
Down Audio TracksÓ
on page 553.

Calibrate and adjust audio output levels, as described in ÒPreparing for Audio OutputÓ on page 608.

Decide whether you want to generate stereo or mono audio.

Mix down multiple audio tracks if necessary. Systems equipped
with a two-channel audio board can generate a maximum of two
channels. Systems equipped with the Digidesign audio interface
can generate a maximum of four channels.

Prepare the record tapes.

(Optional) Record reference bars and tone to tape.

Calibrating for Video Output
Read the information in the following sections based on the following:
¥

Calibrating for video output (optional): All users can follow the
steps for calibrating video output, as described in ÒBasic Output
CalibrationÓ on page 602.

Calibrating/syncing output signals in a production facility:
Advanced users and house engineers should follow the steps for
adjusting and conforming output signals to house standards, as
described in ÒAdvanced Output CalibrationÓ on page 604.

Basic Output Calibration
You can calibrate by using digital bars and tone that you create and
edit into the sequence, as described in this section.

If you or your site engineers calibrate the system as a general maintenance
procedure, or if you do not have an external Waveform monitor, leave the
Video Output Tool set to the preset values.
To calibrate for video output:
1. Choose Video Output Tool from the Tools menu. The tool opens.
602

The Video Output Tool for systems equipped with the serial digital video I/O
board for recording to a D1 or digital Betacam VTR displays a single slider
control for H-Phase adjustment only. All other levels remain in digital form
and cannot be adjusted from within Media Composer.
2. Cue the sequence to bars and tone, and click or press Play (basic
calibration requires digital bars and tone). Color bars are displayed on the third, full-screen monitor, and signal appears on the
Waveform and Vectorscope monitors.

603

3. Adjust luminance values based on the video format and the type
of bars in the sequence.
4. To save this setting, choose Save As from the Settings pop-up
menu, type a name, and click OK.

Advanced Output Calibration
Advanced users and site engineers can Þne-tune output calibrations
by using test patterns, genlock options, and signal timing controls, as
described in this section.

Displaying Advanced Calibration Controls
To display the advanced calibration controls in the Video Output Tool,
click the arrow button at the lower left corner of the window.
The additional options appear and the arrow button points down. To
return to the normal display, click the arrow again.

Composite output
settings

Component output
settings

Test Patterns
pop-up menu

Genlock pop-up menu

604

Using Test Patterns
The expanded Video Output Tool provides a pop-up menu of test patterns you can use to calibrate the system output. To display a test pattern, click the pop-up menu and choose a pattern.

You can add test patterns to the list by doing the following:
1. Close the Media Composer application.
2. Find or create a PICT Þle for a chosen pattern.

You can create your own test pattern Þles by digitizing the pattern from videotape, and exporting it as a PICT Þle. You can improve the accuracy of the
image by correcting colors and removing errors in a third-party application
such as Adobe Photoshopª.
3. Place the Þle into the Test Patterns folder in the Supporting Files
folder, which is located in the Media Composer folder on the Avid
drive.
4. Start the Media Composer application. The new pattern appears
in the Test Patterns pop-up menu on the Video Output Tool.

Calibrating Site Output Settings
If you have connected a Waveform monitor between the output of the
Avid system and your video destination, you can use the Video Output Tool to adjust the video output levels and timing to reference
video.

If you do not have external Vectorscope and Waveform monitors, leave the
calibration settings at their preset values.
605

To calibrate the output signal:
1. Choose Video Output Tool from the Tools menu. The tool opens.
2. Click the arrow button at the lower left corner, if the left side (Output: Composite) display shows only two sliders.
Additional options appear and the arrow button points down.

Composite output
settings

Component output
settings

Test Patterns
pop-up menu

Genlock pop-up menu

3. Choose the appropriate genlocking method from the Genlock
menu:
¥

Choose External to use a genlock source connected to the Avid
video boardÕs genlock input. Make sure a genlock source is
attached.

If there is no external source, choose Internal to create an internal reference signal.

4. Choose ColorBars from the Test Patterns pop-up menu.
Standard full-Þeld, 75% color bars appear on the third, full-screen
monitor, and on the Vectorscope and Waveform monitors.
5. Set luminance values based on the settings in Table 19-1.

606

Table 19-1
Parameter

SMPTE bars

Luminance Settings
Full-Þeld bars at
75% signal level

Full-Þeld bars at
100% level

Black level (setup) Adjust Line Selector Adjust Line Selector Any line
slider to 183
slider to 150
Adjust Black slider
to
7.5 IRE (NTSC)

Adjust Black slider
to
7.5 IRE (NTSC),
0.3 volts (PAL)

NTSC/EIAJ

Any line

Adjust Black
slider to
0.0 IRE

White level (gain) Adjust Line Selector Adjust Line Selector Adjust Line Selector Adjust Line Selecslider to 203
slider to 150
slider to 150
tor slider to 203
Adjust Gain/Y
Gain slider to
100 IRE (NTSC)

Adjust Gain/Y
Gain slider to
77 IRE (NTSC),
.825 volts (PAL)

Adjust Gain/Y
Gain slider to
100 IRE (NTSC),
1.0 volts (PAL)

Adjust Gain/Y
Gain slider to
92.5 IRE

6. Adjust chrominance levels as follows:
¥

If you do not have separate Vectorscope and Waveform monitors, you can use
the full-screen monitorÕs Òblue onlyÓ feature, if available, to adjust SC phase
(hue) for composite output. To determine if you have this feature, see the documentation supplied with your monitor.
¥

For composite video, for NTSC users, set hue by adjusting the
SC Phase slider until the six color vectors fall within the target
boxes on the vectorscope.

Set subcarrier to horizontal phase timing by adjusting the
SC/H slider according to house standards.

SC/H phase becomes important only when video signals from two or more
sources are combined or sequentially switched. If this is not the case, leave the
SC/H slider at the preset value.

607

Set the horizontal phase by adjusting the H Phase slider
according to house standards.

For component video, use a three-channel Waveform monitor
to calibrate R-Y gain. For NTSC users using 75% color bars,
the R-Y value should have a peak-to-peak deviation of
700 millivolts. PAL users should have a peak-to-peak deviation of 525 millivolts.

Calibrate B-Y gain by adjusting the slider. For NTSC users
using 75% color bars, the B-Y value should have a peak-topeak deviation of 700 millivolts. PAL users should have a
peak-to-peak deviation of 525 millivolts.

Save this setting by choosing Save As from the Settings pop-up menu,
typing a name, and clicking OK.

Preparing for Audio Output
The Audio Tool allows you to generate and customize calibration tone,
and adjust global output levels. For information on additional audio
mix procedures such as adjusting volume and pan, mixing down
selected tracks, or ignoring mix levels, see Chapter 16.

Setting the Calibration Tone
The Audio Tool provides an internal calibration tone that you can customize and play as a reference signal on a digital cut. You can use the
recorded reference signal for calibrating the digital cut audio at
another site.
The default tone playback is Ð14 dB (digital scale) with a 1000-Hz signal. In some cases you might need to customize the signal. For example, a common reference signal convention for audio work involves
recording 30-second segments of 1-kHz, 10-kHz, and 100-Hz tone back
to back.

608

To change the parameters for the calibration tone:
1. Choose Set Calibration Tone from the Peak Hold pop-up menu.

A dialog box appears.

2. Enter new values for the tone level and frequency, and click OK.
To play back the tone, choose Play Calibration Tone from the Peak
Hold pop-up menu. To check the adjusted tone level in the meters,
make sure the In/Out toggle buttons are toggled to O for Output.

Calibrating Global Output Levels
You can use the meters and a master attenuator (output slider control)
in the Audio Tool to make global level adjustments for output from the
system. These adjustments affect levels for all output tracks to both the
speakers and to record devices. The procedures differ slightly for systems equipped with a four-channel audio board and systems
equipped with a two-channel audio board.

609

Normally you should leave this setting at the factory preset of 0 dB.
Adjust the level only when necessary to raise or lower the overall
volume based on the headroom parameters of the record format, or
consistently overmodulated or undermodulated source material.
Adjusting Output on Four-Channel or Eight-Channel Audio Board
Systems
To adjust global output from a four-channel or eight-channel audio
board system:
1. Choose Audio Tool from the Tools menu.
2. Click the output level button (the speaker icon) to display the master attenuator (slider).

Output Options button
Output Level button

Master attenuator
Peak Hold pop-up

Output Type pop-up menu

In/Out toggle buttons
Reset Peak button
Output Options panel

Track number displays

Channel assignments

Mix Tracks
pop-up menu

3. Click the Output Options button to open the options panel.
4. Choose a type of output from the Output Type pop-up menu.
610

Choose Stereo Mix to mix the currently monitored audio
tracks into a stereo pair.

Choose Mono to pan all the currently monitored tracks to center.

Choose Direct Out to map tracks directly to up to eight-channels of output (depending on your hardware conÞguration).

5. (Option) Depending on your type of output, you can make additional adjustments:
¥

By default, Stereo Mix directs the mixed tracks to output channels 1 and 2. Alternatively, you can choose Mix To 3 & 4 from
the Mix Tracks pop-up menu.

By default, Direct Out maps all audio tracks in numerical
sequence to existing output channels. You can remap a track to
any channel by clicking the channel assignment display and
choosing another channel.

You can select Ignore Volume or Ignore EQ to disable the customized pan, volume, or equalization effects you applied with
the audio tools.

6. Click the In/Out toggle buttons above the meters to display O for
Output.
7. Play back one of the following sources of reference audio:
¥

Choose Play Calibration Tone from the Peak Hold pop-up
menu.

Play back a representative sequence or clip containing audio.

8. Watch the levels in the meters, and adjust the master attenuator to
the level that you want.

To adjust levels for individual tracks, you must use the Audio Mix Tool.
9. Close the tool.

611

Adjusting Output on Two-Channel Audio Board Systems
Systems equipped with two-channel audio boards (Avid Xpressª,
Media Composer Ofßine, Media Composer 900,
Media Composer 1000) can use the Pro Level option to take advantage
of the professional audio output features of the board.
By default, the ÒproÓ output levels option is not selected, and the volume scales for output sliders in the Audio Tool reßect levels for consumer-grade VCRs and recording devices.
To adjust the levels for recording to professional record decks:
1. Choose Audio Tool from the Tools menu.
2. Click the Output Level button (the speaker icon) to display the
master attenuator (slider) and the Pro L. check box.
Output Options button

Output Level
button

Master attenuator

3. (Option) Select the Pro L. check box to enable professional output
levels.
4. Click the Output Options button to open the options panel.

612

5. Choose a type of output from the Output Type pop-up menu:
¥

Choose Stereo Mix to mix the currently monitored audio
tracks into a stereo pair.

Choose Mono to pan all the currently monitored tracks to center.

Choose Direct Out to map tracks directly to up to eight channels of output (depending on your hardware conÞguration).

6. (Option) Depending on your type of Output, you can make additional adjustments:
¥

By default, Stereo Mix directs the mixed tracks to output channels 1 and 2. Alternatively, you can choose Mix To 3 & 4 from
the Mix Tracks pop-up menu.

By default, Direct Out maps to all audio tracks in numerical
sequence to existing output channels. You can remap a track to
any channel by clicking the channel assignment display and
choosing another channel.

You can select Ignore Volume or Ignore EQ to disable the customized pan, volume, or equalization effects you applied with
the audio tools.

7. Click the In/Out toggle buttons above the meters to display O for
Output.
8. Play back one of the following sources of reference audio:
¥

Choose Play Calibration Tone from the Peak Hold pop-up
menu.

Play back a representative sequence for clip containing audio.

9. Watch the levels in the meters and adjust the master attenuator to
the level that you want.
10. Close the tool.

613

Preparing Record Tapes
There are two basic methods of recording to tape: frame-accurate
recording by using the Digital Cut Tool, and manual recording by
using controls on the record deck. Each of these methods requires different treatment of the record tapes.

Frame-Accurate Recording
Frame-accurate recording involves using the Digital Cut Tool to record
your sequence onto a prestriped tape (a tape with prerecorded control
track and timecode), or a partially striped tape.
Before you can record a frame-accurate digital cut, you must prepare
the record tapes in advance by using one of the following options:
¥

If you intend to perform assemble edit recording, you must record
black with timecode onto the tape including the necessary preroll
prior to the IN point plus at least 10 seconds.

If you intend to perform insert edit recording, you must stripe the
record tapes (record black and timecode for the entire duration of
the tape) in advance.

Manual Recording
Manual recording (sometimes referred to as crash recording) involves
bypassing deck control in Media Composer and using manual operation of the record deck. Because the timing of playback is based on
manual procedures, the recording is not frame-accurate. However, you
do not need to record timecode onto the tape in advance. You can also
record onto non-Avid-controlled decks, such as consumer grade VHS
or Hi8.
To record manually:
1. Set the serial control switch on the record deck to Local.
2. Use the controls on the deck to start the videotape recording.
614

3. Play the sequence in Media Composer.

Recording Bars and Tone
You can also record a portion of bars and tone onto the tape before
recording a digital cut. There are two methods of recording bars and
tone to tape:
¥

If your recording must be frame-accurate, then consider adding a
segment of digital bars and tone to the front of your sequence, or
prepare it as a separate sequence that you can record by using the
Digital Cut Tool. For more information, see ÒPreparing Digital
Bars and ToneÓ on page 264.

If your recording does not need to be frame-accurate, you can
manually record direct output of bars and tone from Media Composer.

To manually record bars and tone:
1. Open the Video Output Tool and the Audio Tool by choosing them
from the Tools menu.
2. Choose a color bars pattern from the Test Patterns pop-up menu in
the Video Output Tool.
3. Choose Play Calibration Tone from the Peak Hold pop-up menu in
the Audio Tool.
4. Place the record deck on Local for manual recording.
5. Record the bars and tone as either an insert or assemble edit
according to the operation of your record deck and chosen
method.

Enabling Assemble-Edit Recording
Insert editing is the default setting for the Digital Cut Tool. You can
also use assemble-edit settings in Media Composer, along with the

615

assemble-editing capabilities of your record deck, to quickly record
frame-accurate digital cuts without striping entire tapes in advance.

To avoid accidentally breaking timecode on prestriped tapes during
Digital Cut recording, enable assemble editing only when in use,
and disable it during normal insert edit recording.
To enable assemble editing:
1. Double-click Deck Preferences in the Settings scroll list of the
Project window to open the Deck Preferences dialog box.

Assemble-editing
option

2. Select the option ÒAllow assemble edit for digital cut.Ó
Once assemble editing is enabled, you select additional options in the
Digital Cut Tool when you are ready to record, as described in the section, ÒRecording a Digital Cut to TapeÓ on page 621.
These switches are often
located below the
machineÕs playback
control buttons. For
more information, see
your record deviceÕs
manual.

In addition, make sure the record deck has the following settings:
¥

The free run/rec (record) run switch should be set to record run.

The Ext (external)/Int (internal) sync switch should be set to internal.

The switch for internal timecode should be set to Regen (regenerate) or Slave Lock, not Preset.

616

After you record 15 to 30 seconds of timecode onto the record tape
for jam syncing, return the Local/Remote switch to Remote for
deck control from within Media Composer.

Recording a Digital Cut
The Digital Cut Tool provides frame-accurate control when recording
a sequence to tape. You can also use the Digital Cut Tool to preview
the sequence with a computer-generated countdown.
The Digital Cut Tool includes its own Deck Controller for cueing a
record deck and marking points during recording of digital cuts. It
also includes track selection buttons for the record deck.

Record track buttons

Logging
controls for
marking IN
and OUT
points.

Deck controls

617

The Deck Controller and track selection buttons provide the following
advantages:
¥

Deck control within the tool allows you to cue the tape from
within the tool and log your own IN and OUT points for frameaccurate recording during a digital cut. This capability applies
when you choose Mark In Time from the ÒatÓ pop-up menu.

For more information on logging procedures, see Chapter 5.
¥

The record track buttons allow you to specify which tracks on the
record tape you want to record to from the selected source tracks.

Previewing a Digital Cut
You can manually
record a digital cut
including countdown,
but the recording will
not be frame-accurate.
For information, see
ÒPreparing Record
TapesÓ on page 614.

You can preview a digital cut before recording it to tape to make sure
your preparations and output settings are correct, or for screening purposes.
To preview a digital cut:
1. Choose Digital Cut from the Output menu.

The Digital Cut Tool appears.
2. Deselect the Record to Tape option.
The With Countdown option is enabled.
3. Select the With Countdown option to preview the digital cut using
a countdown. The default is a computer-generated countdown
containing the Avid logo.

618

When you select With Countdown, the Custom Screen option is
enabled.

Select Custom Screen to count down using a customized countdown screen that you create, as described in ÒCreating a Custom
Countdown DisplayÓ on page 620.
4. Select the audio and video tracks you want represented in the digital cut preview. The display of tracks in the Digital Cut window
varies according to the tracks existing in the sequence.
Only those tracks beside and beneath the speaker icon and the
monitor icon are included in the digital cut.
5. Click Play.
The system plays the digital cut in the Record monitor and the
full-screen monitor.
6. To stop the playback at any time, press the space bar.

619

Creating a Custom Countdown Display
The Custom Screen option allows you to change the font (type style),
size, and color of the countdown numbers. You can also import your
own PICT graphic Þle as a background.
To create a custom countdown:
1. Select both the With Countdown and the Custom Screen options.
The Custom Screen box appears in the Digital Cut Tool.

Custom
Screen
box

2. Click the Custom Screen box. The Digital Cut Countdown Screen
dialog box appears.

Font
Font Size
Font Color

3. (Option) Choose another font, font size, or font color from the
pop-up menus.

The menus display all currently available fonts, as determined by the contents
of the Fonts folder in the Macintosh System folder. For information on adding
fonts to your system, see your Macintosh documentation.
620

4. Click the Import button if you want to import an available PICT
Þle to use as a custom background. The Directory dialog box
appears.

5. Locate a PICT Þle to serve as the new background image and
select it.
6. Click OK. The custom countdown screen is ready for previews.

The best resolution for imported PICT Þles is 720 x 486 for NTSC and
720 x 576 for PAL. The resolution cannot be changed after import.

Recording a Digital Cut to Tape
If you have a Media
Reader connected to
your system, you can
create burn-in timecode
on the digital cut. For
more information, see
the Avid Media Reader
Setup and UserÕs Guide.

The Digital Cut Tool provides several options for managing the
recording of your sequence. For example, you can:
¥

Record by using either assemble or insert edits

Record a selected portion of the sequence or selected tracks

Record according to different timecode parameters

To record a digital cut:
1. Load a sequence into the Record monitor. (You cannot access digital cut options without a sequence loaded.)

621

2. Choose Digital Cut from the Output menu.
The Digital Cut Tool appears.

Menu appears only with
assemble editing enabled.

3. (Option) Select the Record to Tape option and choose either Insert
Edit or Assemble Edit from the pop-up menu. This menu only
appears if you enabled assemble editing in the Deck Preferences
dialog box.
4. Select or deselect the Entire Sequence option based upon the following:
¥

Select the Entire Sequence option if you want the system to
ignore any IN or OUT marks and play the entire sequence
from start to Þnish.

Deselect this option if you have established IN and/or OUT
marks for recording a portion of the sequence.

5. Choose an option from the Record to Tape pop-up menu as follows:

622

You can change the start
timecode to match the
record tape. For more
information, see
ÒChanging the
Sequence Clip InfoÓ on
page 375.

Choose Sequence Time to start the recording at a timecode
existing on tape that matches the start timecode of the
sequence. If you intend to record several sequences to tape
one after another, this option requires resetting the start timecode on each sequence to match appropriate IN points on the
tape.

Choose Record Deck Time to ignore the timecode of the
sequence, and start the recording wherever the record deck is
currently cued.

Choose Mark In Time to ignore the sequence timecode. Establish a speciÞc IN point on the record tape by cueing and marking with the deck controls.
Timecode entry field

6. Select the audio and video tracks you want represented in the digital cut preview. The display of tracks in the Digital Cut window
varies according to the tracks existing in the sequence.
Only those tracks beside and beneath the speaker icon and the
monitor icon are included in the digital cut.
7. Select the audio and video tracks you want represented in the digital cut. Only those tracks beside and beneath the speaker icon and
the monitor icon are included in the digital cut.
The display of tracks in the Digital Cut window varies according
to the tracks existing in the sequence.
8. Click Play.
The system cues the record deck, then plays and records the digital cut. The playback appears in the Record monitor and the fullscreen monitor.
9. To stop the recording at any time, press the space bar.

623

After assemble-edit recording, a freeze frame is usually added after the OUT
point for one or more seconds, depending upon the record deck model. This
provides several frames of overlap for the next IN point, before control track
and timecode break up.

Using EDL Manager
An EDL (edit decision list) is a detailed list of the edits contained in a
sequence, including all the timecode and supported effects information required to re-create the sequence in an online videotape suite.
The EDL is organized into a series of chronological instructions called
events, which are interpreted by an edit controller that automates the
assembly of the videotape master.
Your system includes the EDL Manager, an application with powerful
features and sorting capabilities to help you prepare an EDL.
To launch EDL Manager, choose EDL from the Output menu.
For more information on speciÞc features and capabilities of EDL
Manager, see the Avid EDL Manager UserÕs Guide.

VTR Play Emulation
VTR play emulation allows you to control a sequence loaded in the
Record monitor from an edit controller for playback in the edit room
along with other sources.

To use VTR play emulation, you must connect a supported controller (any
controller that uses Sony¨ serial control protocol) to the Macintosh¨ by
using a 9-pin to serial cable.
With a controller properly connected, enable VTR play emulation as
follows:
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1. Choose Serial Ports from the Tools menu to open the Serial Ports
Tool.

2. Select the appropriate port (printer or modem) from the VTR
Emulation pop-up menu.
3. Close the Serial Ports Tool. The system saves the setting as a Site
setting, effective for all projects.
4. Choose VTR Emulation from the Special menu when you are
ready to use the system for playback.
A check mark appears next to the command to indicate that the
system is ready. A yellow outline appears around the Play button
in the Record monitor to indicate that VTR emulation is active.

This command behaves like a Local/Remote switch on a playback device, with
VTR play emulation disabled (in Local mode) by default when you launch the
system.
Once active, VTR play emulation allows you to control the sequence
with an edit controller as follows:
¥

You can shuttle, step (jog), play, cue, and mark points based on
master sequence timecode for editing onto another master. Mark
points will appear in the Timeline only if the controller sends that
information to the Avid Composer system.

Your control of the Avid Composer system is for play only. For
example, you cannot arm tracks or send record commands to the
Avid Composer system itself.
625

Smooth audio scrub is enabled by default, emulating analog audio
scrub on a VTR.

626

CHAPTER 20
Exporting and Exchanging
Material
At the advanced stages of a production, you might need to export or
exchange material with another system, another application, or
another platform. Your Avid Composer system provides tools for
exporting clips and sequences in various formats, or for transferring
projects and media between systems, as described in the following sections:
¥

Using Global Export Settings

Exporting Files

Exchanging Files with Other Systems

Using Global Export Settings
You can establish a set of global export parameters in the Export Settings dialog box prior to beginning the export process. These parameters remain the default settings for all exported Þles, unless you
change them during export. This is especially useful when you batch
export a number of Þles directly from a bin in one procedure.

627

To adjust the options in the Export Settings dialog box, double-click
Export in the Settings scroll list of the Project window.

Exporting Files
You can export material directly from a Media Composer product to
any one of more than 25 supported Þle types. You can export an individual frame, a selected region of footage, or an entire clip or
sequence.

For information on a speciÞc Þle format, see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.
There are several reasons why you might want to export video, audio,
or both from the Avid Composer system:

You can export audio Þles for audio sweetening in compatible
applications.

You can export picture Þles for touching up or creating special
effects in third-party applications.

You can export Þles compatible with CD-ROM for use in multimedia projects.

You can use the export process to convert audio media Þles
between the two supported formats: AIFC and Sound Designer II
(SD2).

If you plan to transfer the exported Þles to another Avid Composer system or
third-party application, see ÒExchanging Files with Other SystemsÓ on
page 639 for recommended steps and advice.
The following sections describe general procedures for preparing to
export a sequence and for exporting frames, clips, and sequences.

628

Preparing to Export a Sequence
If you are exporting part or all of a sequenceÑto QuickTime,
ERIMovie, Sequenced PICT, or OMFI Þle types, for exampleÑyou can
speed the export process by preparing the sequence in advance, as follows:

For more information
on rendering, see the
Avid Media Composer
and Film Composer
Effects Guide.

Make sure all media for the sequence is online. For more information, see ÒSelecting Ofßine Items in a BinÓ on page 239.

If you want to archive the source sequence before making any
alterations, duplicate the sequence, place the duplicate in another
bin, and prepare the duplicate for export. The original sequence
will be unaffected.

Consider rendering all effects in advance. Although any unrendered effects are rendered on export (except for an OMF export),
rendering effects in advance saves you time during the export process.

If your sequence contains numerous video tracks, consider mixing
down the tracks in advance for faster export, unless you need to
preserve the multiple track information. For more information, see
ÒUsing Video MixdownÓ on page 629.

If your sequence contains numerous audio tracks with various
audio effects and level adjustments, consider mixing down the
tracks for faster export, unless you need to preserve the information. For more information, see ÒMixing Down Audio TracksÓ on
page 553.

Using Video Mixdown
Video mixdown allows you to combine several tracks into a single
new master clip. This is convenient for building multilayered effects,
for consolidating media, and for export and exchange.

629

When you mix down video tracks, you cannot separate them again to
work on the tracks individually. Use this function only during the
last stages of editing when you no longer need to make changes, or
to make a copy for previewing.
To perform a video mixdown:
1. Choose Compression from the Tools menu.
The Compression Tool opens.
2. Choose an AVR for the mixdown from the AVR pop-up menu in
the Compression Tool.
3. Make sure the video track monitor is in the topmost track that you
want to mix down.
Video mixdown works from the monitored track down, regardless
of track selection.
4. Mark an IN and OUT point around the area to mix down.
5. Choose Video Mixdown from the Special menu.

The Video Mixdown dialog box appears.

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6. Choose a Target Disk for storing the new master clip and click OK.
A progress indicator appears, indicating the progress of the video mixdown. When the mixdown is completed, a new clip appears in the bin
along with the sequence, and a new media Þle is created on the target
disk.

Exporting Frames, Clips, or Sequences
To export frames, clips, or sequences:
1. Select the material you want to export in one of the following
ways:
¥

To export speciÞc tracks in a clip or sequence, enable those
tracks in the Track Selector panel, and disable all others.

When you select speciÞc tracks for export, you must select the option
Use Enabled Tracks in the Export Settings dialog box. If no tracks
are enabled and you want to export all the tracks in the clip or
sequence, you must deselect Use Enabled Tracks.
¥

To export a single frame, mark an IN point to export the
marked frame from a bin or a monitor, or put the position
indicator on the frame you want to export from a clip in the
monitor.

631

When you place IN or OUT marks to determine a frame or range for
export, you must select Use Marks in the Export Settings dialog box.
¥

To export part of a clip or sequence, mark IN and OUT points
to export the marked range from a bin or a monitor. If you
mark an IN point and no OUT point, the system exports from
the IN mark to the end of the clip or sequence.

To export the entire clip or sequence, deselect the options Use
Enabled Tracks and Use Marks in the Export Settings dialog
box, and make sure the topmost track is monitored.

When you export to an OMF Þle, you do not need to select both the sequence
and its source clips. Select only the sequence to export all the necessary information, including reference clips.
2. Choose Export from the File menu.
The Export File Type dialog box appears.

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3. Select the appropriate Þle type and options based on the descriptions in Table 20-1.

Table 20-1
Option

Suboption

Export File Type Dialog Box Options
Description

Avid Log Exchange

Exports the selected bin as a shot log Þle that complies with
Avid Log Exchange (ALE) speciÞcations. For more information, see ÒConverting Logs with Avid Log ExchangeÓ on
page 114.

Tab Delimited

Exports the selected bin as a shot log Þle in the form of a tabdelimited ASCII text Þle.
633

Table 20-1
Option

Suboption

OMFI Composition StandardÑAIFC

Export File Type Dialog Box Options (Continued)
Description
Choose this option to export a standard OMFI composition for
transfer to a third-party workstation that supports OMFI. The
export is Composition only, unless you select the With Media
option.

AudioVision

Choose this option speciÞcally for export to AudioVision.
Appropriate options for OMFI 1.0 and With Media are automatically chosen for this type of export. If you choose Video
and Audio from the second pop-up menu, the video media is
embedded in the OMFI Composition Þle. Audio media is
external to the OMF Þle. If necessary, the system translates
AIFC audio into the SD2 format.

SD2

Choose this option for export to Pro Tools or another product
that supports the SD2 (Sound Designer II) audio format. The
With Media option is automatically selected. Audio media is
external to the OMF Þle. If necessary, the system translates
AIFC into the SD2 format.

TIFF Video

Choose this option to export video tracks to a third-party,
OMFI-compatible application that does not support video
media for Release 7.0 of the Media Composer products. If the
third-party application is compatible with Release 7.0 video
media, choose StandardÑAIFC instead.

OMFI Composition Video and Audio
(second pop-up
menu)

Choose this option if you are using both video and audio
tracks of a clip or sequence in an OMFI-compatible editing or
graphics enhancement system.

Video Only

Choose this option if you do not need audio tracks; for example, when adding video or Þlm effects in an OMFI-compatible
application.

Audio Only

Choose this option if you do not need video tracks and are
using or enhancing audio in an OMFI-compatible application
such as a digital audio workstation. You must choose this
option if you are transferring to Pro Tools.

634

Table 20-1
Option

Suboption

OMFI Composition OMFI 1.0
(third pop-up
menu)

Export File Type Dialog Box Options (Continued)
Description
Choose this option if the application to which you are exporting does not support OMF Version 2.0.

OMFI 2.0

Choose this option if the application to which you are exporting supports OMF Version 2.0. If you are not sure, choose 1.0.

With Media

Choose this option when you want to transfer the audio media
Þles along with the OMF Composition for use in a third-party
application that supports the type of media Þles used in the
exported OMFI composition.
Audio media is external to the OMF Þle.

QuickTime

Sound

Video and Audio

Choose this option if, for example, you are using an entire clip
or sequence in a multimedia project.

Video Only

Choose this option if, for example, you are adding effects in a
third-party application or using only the video in a
multimedia project.

Audio Only

Select this option if, for example, you are using or enhancing
audio in a third-party application or using only the audio in a
multimedia project.

SD2

Exports audio tracks in the Sound Designer II format that
is compatible with Pro Tools and other third-party
applications.
You can use this option to convert AIFC audio media to
Sound Designer II media on export.

AIFF

Exports audio tracks in the industry-standard Audio Interchange File Format (AIFF) that is compatible with many thirdparty sound editing and multimedia applications.
You can use this option to convert Sound Designer II audio
media to AIFF media on export.

635

Table 20-1
Option

Suboption

Export File Type Dialog Box Options (Continued)
Description

Graphic

Exports a single frame as a graphic Þle or series of frames as
sequenced graphic Þles. Choose a Þle type from the pop-up
menu.

Options button

Opens the Export Settings dialog box for reÞning export
options. For information on all options, see the Avid
Media Composer Products Reference.

After you select export Þle type options, additional current
options for the clip or sequence are listed in the lower-third region
of the dialog box. The following screen shows an example of a
sequence selected for export as a QuickTime Þle.

Lower-third region
of the Export File
Type dialog box

4. If the additional options listed need correction, click the Options
button.
An appropriate subset of export options appears based on the
selected Þle type. The following screen shows an example of
options for a graphics Þle export.

636

5. Adjust the additional export settings, and click OK to return to the
Export File Type dialog box.

For a complete description of all options in the Export Settings dialog box, see
the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.
6. When all options are listed correctly, click OK.
A destination dialog box appears with a default Þle name in the
Export As text box, based on the Þle type.

637

7. (Option) Change the Þle name.

If you are transferring the Þles for use in a third-party application, keep the
default extension to avoid conßicts. Also, avoid names that include spaces or
special characters.
8. Select the destination folder for the Þle and click Save.
For most Þle types, the Þle is exported and appears at the chosen
destination.

For OMFI export, if the sequence contains effects that are not supported by
OMFI 2.0, a dialog box appears. You can choose to cancel or continue exporting a composition that will not include the unsupported effects.
With the following Þle types, an additional dialog box appears
before the Þles are exported:
¥

BMP

Cineon

ERIMovie

JPEG

Photoshop

PNG
638

SGI

Targa

TIFF

Wavefront

YUV

9. If you are exporting one of the Þle types shown in the previous
list, see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference to select additional export parameters.
10. Click OK to complete the export.

c
c

Macintosh systems prior to Release 8.1 allow a maximum Þle size of
approximately 2 GB. If you exceed this limit, the Þle is unusable and
the system displays an error message.
If a power failure or mishap occurs during the export process, the
entire Þle is unusable. You need to repeat the export process. The
only exception is a PICT sequence, where all frames up to the point
of failure are usable.

Exchanging Files with Other Systems
This section provides speciÞc steps and recommendations for
exchanging Þles and media in the following circumstances:
¥

Audio sweetening in AudioVision: To export a sequence with
audio tracks for audio sweetening in the AudioVision application,
see ÒTransferring OMF Files from Media Composer Products to
AudioVisionÓ on page 643.

Audio sweetening in Pro Tools: To export a sequence with audio
tracks for audio sweetening in the Pro Tools application, see
ÒTransferring OMF Files to Pro ToolsÓ on page 649.

Audio sweetening in other compatible applications: To transfer
Þles to other OMF-compatible third-party digital audio applica639

tions, see ÒTransferring OMF Files to Pro ToolsÓ on page 649.
Also see the digital audio workstationÕs documentation.

Visual effects in OMFI-compatible applications: To export video
tracks for touching up or creating special effects in OMFI-compatible effects applications, see ÒExporting Frames, Clips, or
SequencesÓ on page 631. Also see the effects workstationÕs documentation.

Visual effects in QuickTime applications: To export video tracks
for touching up or creating special effects in QuickTime-compatible applications, see ÒUsing the Media Composer QuickTime
CodecÓ on page 655.

Exchange of audio media Þles between systems: To transfer
audio media Þles directly from the OMFI MediaFiles folder for use
in any third-party application that supports the AIFF or Sound
Designer II formats, see ÒExchanging Audio Media Files
Between SystemsÓ on page 663.

Transfer of projects to other Media Composer products: To transfer whole projects between Media Composer products (for example, if your facility uses different system models at different stages
of postproduction), see ÒTransferring a Project to Another
Media Composer ProductÓ on page 664.

To learn more about OMF Interchange, see ÒAbout OMF InterchangeÓ on
page 640.

About OMF Interchange
OMF Interchange is a platform-independent Þle format that stores
both the digital media (video, audio, graphics, animation) and the
recipe describing how the media ingredients are edited together to
form a Þnal sequence. This editing information, called a composition,
is the OMF representation of the sequence created in the Avid Composer system. The OMF Interchange format is the result of cooperative
efforts of many industry and standards partners and Avid Technology,
Inc.
640

Any other program that supports OMF can read OMF Þles, even if the
program resides on a different computer platform. As a result, with
OMF you can transfer among different applications on different platforms, without worrying about cross-platform translations. This can
be very effective for importing animation or audio Þles created on proprietary platforms.

To avoid errors and incompatibilities when importing and exporting
OMF Þles, observe the recommendations described in the Avid
Media Composer Products Reference.
See the Avid Media Composer Products Reference for an appendix that
lists applications that currently support OMF Interchange. For the latest information, see the Avid OMFI web site:
http://www.omÞ.org

Choosing an OMF Transfer Method
OMF Interchange, as implemented in the Avid Composer system, provides two basic methods for exporting Þles:
¥

Method 1: OMF compositions only without media Þles
The Avid Composer system can export an OMF Þle that contains
only the editing information about a selected master clip or
sequence. You then need to transfer both the OMF Þle and the
media Þles, or redigitize the media on the other system. After you
have transferred the media once, you can transfer revised composition-only Þles (unless you consolidated the media, in which case,
you must transport the media Þles as well. For more information,
see ÒConsolidating MediaÓ on page 276.

Method 2: OMF compositions with media Þles
The Avid Composer system exports an OMF Þle that contains all
the editing information for the selected master clip or sequence
along with references to the audio media Þles for that master clip
or sequence. In the case of AudioVision or SD2 export, audio
media is converted if necessary to the SD2 format.
641

If you are not sure what audio Þle format the third-party application supports, export by using the more universal Standard ÑAIFC option for use in
other OMF-compatible applications that might not be able to read the
Sound Designer II Þle format. The OMF Tool can also be used to convert the
Þles back to the Sound Designer II format. You can download the OMF Tool
from the Avid OMFI web site:
http://www.omÞ.org

Preparing Sequences for OMF Export
If you are exporting part or all of a sequence to an OMF Þle, you can
speed the export process by preparing the sequence in advance:
¥

Make sure all media for the sequence is online. For more information, see ÒSelecting Ofßine Items in a BinÓ on page 239.

Duplicate the sequence and place the copy in a new bin. (This preserves the links from your original sequence to the original media
disk or disks.)

Check and adjust all pan and audio levels in advance. All current
pan and level settings in the sequence are carried through to the
exported media. For more information on performing an audio
mixdown, see ÒMixing Down Audio TracksÓ on page 553.

Consider rendering all effects in advance to shorten the time
required for export. For more information, see the Avid
Media Composer and Film Composer Effects Guide.

Consider consolidating the sequence to create smaller source clips,
thereby saving time and disk space. For more information, see
ÒConsolidating MediaÓ on page 276. For information on appropriate storage devices for consolidating, see ÒRecommended Storage DevicesÓ on page 666.

642

OMF Þles with very complex sequences can fail during import
into some applications, due to memory limitations. Try one of the
following solutions:
-

Break the sequence into smaller sequences and export the new
sequences.

Allocate more memory to the application.

Add more physical memory.

To export multiple clips in a single OMF Þle, create a sequence
from them. For example, you can select all the clips and Optiondrag them into the Record monitor to create an instant sequence,
then export it.

Transferring OMF Files from Media Composer Products to
AudioVision
After editing in Media Composer, you can export and transfer your
sequence and media to AudioVision for audio sweetening, using OMF
Interchange.

Compatibility Issues for AudioVision Transfer
Observe the following compatibility issues between AudioVision and
the Media Composer products when transferring Þles:
¥

Video media is not directly compatible between Release 7.0 of the
Media Composer products and AudioVision. You cannot move
video media Þles directly to the AudioVision system. However,
you can use the AudioVision option in the Export procedure to
transfer video. The Avid Composer system converts the video
media to the TIFF video format, which is reconverted to
AudioVision compatible media when you import the Þles into
AudioVision.

AudioVision Release 4.0 and Releases 6.0, 6.1, and 6.5 of the
Media Composer products are compatible in terms of both video
643

media and audio media. You can include both video and audio
tracks in the export, and you can transfer media Þles directly
between systems.
¥

Video media in Release 3.6 or earlier of AudioVision is not compatible with Release 6.0 or later of the Media Composer products.

Video media in Release 3.6 or earlier of AudioVision is compatible
with Release 5.51 or earlier of the Media Composer products. If
you want to include video tracks in the transfer, see the documentation that came with the earlier release.

In cases where video media is not compatible, you can add video
to the transfer as follows:
-

Record a digital cut to tape of the video track only. You donÕt
have to record the audio tracks to the videotape unless you
need a scratch track reference.

Be sure to match the timecode on the tape to the sequence
timecode. You can do this by striping the videotape with
appropriate timecode before the transfer. The digital cut will
place the video onto the tape at the proper timecode location.

Before You Begin
To avoid problems, follow these guidelines when exporting from
Media Composer:
¥

Prepare the sequence as described in ÒPreparing Sequences for
OMF ExportÓ on page 642.

The audio sampling rate of the sequence must be 44.1 kHz or
48 kHz. All audio clips in the sequence must be the same rate.

Do not modify the start or end timecodes of master clips, and do
not convert the frame rates.

Make sure that the sequence contains video digitized at a single
AVR level. AudioVision does not display video for sequences that
contain mixed AVR levels.

644

Occasionally, AudioVision stops importing and an ÒOut-of-memoryÓ error message appears. This occurs because the OMF Interchange composition is too large. To correct the problem, export
from Media Composer in smaller sections as follows:
-

Divide the sequence into smaller segments by duplicating the
sequence (perhaps several times) and deleting different portions of each copy.

Export and import each segment individually.

After the segments are imported, you can edit them together
easily and accurately.

The size of the OMF Interchange composition is determined not
by the length of the sequence but by its complexity. For example, a
short sequence with many edits and tracks might be larger when
exported as an OMF Interchange composition than a long
sequence with only a few edits and only a few tracks of audio and
video.

Transferring a Video Sequence to AudioVision
To transfer a video sequence to AudioVision:
1. Select the material you want to export in one of the following
ways:
¥

To export speciÞc tracks in a clip or sequence, enable those
tracks in the Track Selector panel, and disable all others.

When you select speciÞc tracks for export, you must select the option
Use Enabled Tracks in the Export Settings dialog box. If no tracks
are enabled and you want to export all tracks in the clip or sequence,
you must deselect Use Enabled Tracks.
¥

To export a single frame, mark an IN point to export the
marked frame from a bin or a monitor, or put the position
indicator on the frame you want to export from a clip in the
monitor.

645

When you place IN or OUT marks to determine a frame or range for
export, you must select Use Marks in the Export Settings dialog box.
¥

To export the entire clip or sequence, deselect the options Use
Enabled Tracks and Use Marks in the Export Settings dialog box,
and make sure the topmost track is monitored.

646

3. Select OMFI Composition, and choose AudioVision from the Þrst
pop-up menu.
The system automatically chooses the correct options for OMFI
Version 1.0 With Media.
4. Choose an appropriate option from the second pop-up menu:
¥

If you want to include the video tracks with the audio, choose
Video and Audio.

If you do not want to include the video tracks, choose Audio
Only.

5. Depending upon how you marked the source material for export,
click the Options button and adjust the export settings for
Use Marks and Use Enabled Tracks if necessary.
647

Use Marks: Instructs the system to use IN and OUT marks
currently set in the selected media to determine the starting
and ending frames for the export. Deselect this option to
export the entire clip or sequence.

Use Enabled Tracks: Instructs the system to export only the
currently enabled tracks for a selected sequence during the
export. Deselect this option if you want to export all tracks in
the sequence.

6. Click OK to close Export Settings and return to the Export File
Type dialog box.
7. When all the options are listed correctly, click OK.
A directory dialog box appears with a default Þle name in the
Export As text box.

8. (Option) Change the Þle name if you want (keep the default extension), select the destination folder for the Þle, and click Save.
The sequence is exported.

Macintosh systems prior to Release 8.1 allow a maximum Þle size of
approximately 2 GB. If you exceed this limit, the Þle is unusable and
the system displays an error message.
9. Close the application and shut down your system.
648

10. Remove the drive or diskette containing the OMFI composition
and the drive containing the media Þles, and transport them to the
AudioVision system.

For more information on the correct procedures for connecting and disconnecting drives, see the appropriate hardware guide.
11. With the AudioVision system turned off, insert or connect the
drives and boot the system.
12. Start the AudioVision application and import the composition. For
more information, see the Avid AudioVision UserÕs Guide.
13. (Option) If you made a digital cut of the video track for the transfer, digitize the tape in AudioVision.

Transferring OMF Files to Pro Tools
You can use OMF Interchange to transfer audio tracks from
Media Composer products to Pro Tools for audio sweetening. Procedures and special considerations are described in the following sections:
¥

To decide whether to consolidate the source sequence prior to
export, see ÒChoosing Whether to Consolidate Your Media
FilesÓ on page 649.

To prepare the sequence for more effective export, see ÒPreparing
Sequences for OMF ExportÓ on page 642.

To perform the transfer, see ÒTransferring a Project to Pro ToolsÓ
on page 651.

Choosing Whether to Consolidate Your Media Files
Before you export the sequence, you need to decide whether or not to
consolidate your media Þles based on the following scenarios.

649

Pro Tools and the Avid Composer System on the Same Computer
If you are running Pro Tools and the Avid Composer system on the
same computer, you do not need to consolidate your Þles. You can
simply:
1. Shut down and reconnect the hard drive (with the audio Þles)
from the Avid SCSI bus to the Macintosh SCSI bus.
2. Start up and open the Pro Tools session. Pro Tools looks for the
associated audio Þles in the Avid Composer system OMFI
MediaFiles folder.

Pro Tools will be able to play back audio Þles only from drives connected to the
Macintosh computerÕs SCSI bus.
The advantage of this method is that you do not need to consolidate,
convert, or copy media Þles, thereby saving time and effort. The disadvantage of this method is that you must move the hard drive from one
bus to another.
Pro Tools and the Avid Composer System on Different Computers
If you are running Pro Tools and the Avid Composer system on different computers, you have two options for handling the media that is
referenced in the sequence that you are converting.
¥

Consolidate the media Þles: Consolidating saves time and disk
space by copying only the required media to a designated hard
drive. In the process, the system creates smaller media Þles based
on portions of clips used in the sequence.

For more information on consolidating media Þles, see ÒConsolidating
MediaÓ on page 276.
¥

Copy or transport the media Þles manually from one system to
another: Copying media Þles to another drive or transporting the
drives themselves to another system lets you avoid managing
duplicate media Þles in different locations. If you simply move the
Þles, however, either the OMF Tool or Pro Tools might display a
650

Where Is dialog box to locate the media (by Þle name) after it has
been copied. You are responsible for knowing the names of the
speciÞc media Þles.

For more information on transporting media Þles between systems, see
ÒMethods for Transferring Media FilesÓ on page 666.

Transferring a Project to Pro Tools
To transfer a project to Pro Tools:
1. Select the material you want to export in one of the following
ways:
¥

n
c

To export speciÞc tracks in a clip or sequence, enable those
tracks in the Track Selector panel, and disable all others.

Pro Tools does not support playback of video transferred from
Media Composer products.
When you select speciÞc tracks for export, you must select the option
Use Enabled Tracks in the Export Settings dialog box. If no tracks
are enabled and you want to export all tracks in the clip or sequence,
you must deselect Use Enabled Tracks.
¥

To export a single frame, mark an IN point to export the
marked frame from a bin or a monitor, or put the position
indicator on the frame you want to export from a clip in the
monitor.

To export part of a clip or sequence, mark IN and OUT points
to export the marked range from a bin or a monitor. If you
mark an IN point but not an OUT point, the system exports
from the IN mark to the end of the clip or sequence.

When you place IN or OUT marks to determine a frame or range for
export, you must select Use Marks in the Export Settings dialog box.

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To export the entire clip or sequence, deselect the options Use
Enabled Tracks and Use Marks in the Export Settings dialog box,
and make sure the topmost track is monitored.

3. Select OMFI Composition and choose SD2 from the Þrst pop-up
menu.

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The system automatically chooses the With Media option.
4. Choose Audio Only from the second pop-up menu.

Pro Tools does not support video media exported from the Avid Composer system.
5. Choose an option from the OMFI Version pop-up menu:
¥

If you are transferring to a newer Pro Tools system, choose
OMFI 2.0.

If you are transferring to an older Pro Tools system that does
not support OMFI 2.0, choose OMFI 1.0.

If you are not sure which version your system supports,
choose OMFI 1.0.

6. Depending upon how you marked the source material for export,
click the Options button and adjust the export settings for
Use Marks and Use Enabled Tracks if necessary:
¥

Use Marks: Instructs the system to use IN and OUT marks
currently set in the selected media to determine starting and
ending frames for the export. To export the entire clip or
sequence, deselect this option.

Use Enabled Tracks: Instructs the system to export only the
currently enabled tracks for a selected sequence during the
export. To export all tracks in the sequence, deselect this
option.

7. Click OK to close the Export Settings dialog box and return to the
Export File Type dialog box.
8. When all the options are listed correctly, click OK.
A directory dialog box opens with a default Þle name in the
Export As text box.

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9. (Option) Change the Þle name if you want (keep the default extension), select the destination folder for the Þle, and click Save.
The Þle is exported and appears at the chosen destination.

Macintosh systems prior to Release 8.1 allow a maximum Þle size of
approximately 2 GB. If you exceed this limit, the Þle is unusable and
the system displays an error message.
10. Copy the OMF Þle from the Avid Composer system to the
Pro Tools system and transfer the media Þles. For more information, see ÒMethods for Transferring Media FilesÓ on page 666.
11. Use the OMF Tool to convert the exported OMFI Þle to a Pro Tools
Session.

For more information on acquiring and using the OMF tool, visit the OMF
Web site at:
http//www.omfi.org
12. Open and save the Pro Tools Session in Pro Tools. For more information, see the Pro Tools documentation.

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Using the Media Composer QuickTime Codec
You can speed the process of importing and exporting QuickTime Þles
by using the Media Composer QuickTime codec when you intend to
treat the Þles in a third-party application before reimporting them into
Avid Composer products. The following sections describe the codec
and procedures for using it:
¥

To learn more about how the codec works, see ÒAbout the Media
Composer QuickTime CodecÓ on page 655.

To prepare a third-party application for working with Avid Composer QuickTime Þles, see ÒInstalling the Codec in QuickTime
ApplicationsÓ on page 656.

To review speciÞcations for QuickTime export, see the Avid
Media Composer Products Reference.

To prepare a sequence for QuickTime export, see ÒPreparing to
Export a SequenceÓ on page 629.

To perform the export, see ÒExporting with the Media Composer
QuickTime CodecÓ on page 657.

To perform an export from a third-party application, see ÒExporting from a Third-Party QuickTime ApplicationÓ on page 662.

About the Media Composer QuickTime Codec
This software-based codec creates encapsulated media Þles for quick
export of high-resolution Þles that are readable within QuickTime
applications also equipped with the codec.

Using the QuickTime codec usually involves maintaining the ITU-R -601
(CCIR 601) standard video dimensions of the media (720 x 486 nonsquare
pixels for NTSC, 720 x 576 for PAL) as well as large media Þle sizes. This
codec might not be appropriate for some uses. For example, if the destination
of your QuickTime export is a multimedia title, you should use another
appropriate codec such as Cinepak.

655

The codec allows you to maintain AVRs up to AVR 77. It also speeds
the QuickTime import and export processes to a rate of approximately
four times real time or better (depending on resolution). The codec
provides a vast improvement over the standard QuickTime conversion, which can take as long as 300 times real time or more with fullsize, high-resolution clips.

Avid Composer QuickTime Þles can be quite large, depending on the AVR,
and require adequate storage and transfer capacities.

Installing the Codec in QuickTime Applications
After you install Avid Composer Release 7.0 on your system, the new
codec is automatically installed in the Extensions folder inside the System Folder. You can copy this extension and install it at other workstations where you are using QuickTime-compatible applications. Once
the Media Composer codec is installed on the workstation, you can
export Þles either from the Avid Composer system or from the thirdparty application for reimport into the Avid Composer system.
You can install the codec on either a Power Macintosh¨ or non-Power
Macintosh system. To install the Media Composer codec on the system
where the third-party application resides:
1. Drag the copy of the extension labeled Avid Codec onto the
System Folder and release the mouse button.
A dialog box asks if you would like to install the Þle in the Extensions folder.
2. Click OK.
3. Restart your system.
The codec is installed.

If you are having trouble opening or playing the export in a third-party application, increase the memory allocated to the program.

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Exporting with the Media Composer QuickTime Codec
To export with the Media Composer QuickTime codec:
1. Select the material you want to export in one of the following
ways:
¥

To export a single frame, mark an IN point to export the
marked frame from a bin or a monitor, or put the position
indicator on the frame you want to export from a clip in the
monitor.

When you place IN or OUT marks to determine a frame or range for
export, you must select Use Marks in the Export Settings dialog box.
¥

To export speciÞc tracks in a clip or sequence, enable those
tracks in the Track Selector panel and disable all others.

To export the entire clip or sequence, deselect the options Use
Enabled Tracks and Use Marks in the Export Settings dialog box,
and make sure the topmost track is monitored.

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3. Select one of the following options:
¥

QuickTime Video and Audio: Select this option if, for example, you are using an entire clip or sequence in a multimedia
project.

QuickTime Video Only: Select this option if, for example, you
are adding effects in a third-party application.

QuickTime Audio Only: Select this option if, for example,
you are using or enhancing audio in a third-party application.

After you select export options, note that additional current
options for the clip or sequence are listed in the lower-third region
of the dialog box. The following is an example of a sequence
selected for export as a QuickTime Þle.
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Lower-third region
of the Export File
Type dialog box

4. If the additional options listed need correction, click the Options
button in the Export File Type dialog box and select options in
Export Settings dialog box based on the descriptions in Table 20-2.

Table 20-2
Option

Suboption

Export Settings Options for QuickTime Codec

Description

Use Marks

Instructs the system to use IN and OUT marks currently set in the
selected media to determine starting and ending frames for the
export. To export the entire clip or sequence, deselect this option.

Use Enabled Tracks

Instructs the system to export only the currently enabled tracks for a
selected sequence during the export. To export all tracks in the
sequence, deselect this option.

Use Both Fields

Select this option if you are exporting any of the two-Þeld resolutions (AVR 70B to AVR 77, or AVR 12). This option exports both
video Þelds for higher resolution.

Destination Size 720 x 486
(NTSC)
720 x 576 (PAL)

Full-screen, non-square-pixel dimensions according to ITU-R-601
(CCIR 601) video standards.Use these dimensions, for example,
when treating video footage in a third-party application before
reimporting into the Avid Composer system.

Audio Output

Mono

Pans all tracks to center on export.

Stereo

Exports all even-numbered tracks to track 1 and all odd-numbered
tracks to track 2.

659

Table 20-2

Export Settings Options for QuickTime Codec

Option

Suboption

Description

Audio Sample
Rate

Native Rate

The native rate of the chosen audio media (44.1 kHz or 48 kHz).

22.254 kHz
(Std Macs)

Half the sample rate of 44.1-kHz media for playback on standard
Macintosh models.

22.050 kHz
(AV Macs)

Half the sample rate of 44.1-kHz media for playback on AV (Audio/
Video enabled) Macintosh models.

11.127 kHz

One-quarter the sample rate of 44.1-kHz media for playback on
standard Macintosh models.

11.025 kHz

One-quarter the sample rate of 44.1-kHz media for playback on AV
Macintosh models.

8 bits

Exports an 8-bit audio sample size for use in third-party systems
that do not support 16-bit; also used to minimize the data throughput requirements (for example, to improve playback in multimedia
projects).

16 bits

Exports a 16-bit audio sample size (currently the industry standard
bit rate for digital audio).

Audio Sample
Size

Create Movie Preview

Creates a QuickTime poster (a still-frame preview image) for your
movie (slows the export process).

Cross-Platform Movie

Creates a single-fork, cross-platform compatible movie that can be
opened on both the Macintosh and the PC for use in cross-platform
multimedia development.

Compression Settings

This button appears when Use Source Compression is not selected.
Click this button to open the Compression Settings dialog box. For
more information, see the Avid Media Composer Products Reference.

5. Click the Compression Settings button in the Export Settings dialog box and select options in the Compression Settings dialog box
based on descriptions given in Table 20-3.
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Table 20-3

Compression Settings Options for the QuickTime
Codec

Option

Suboption

Description

Compressor

Media Composer

Creates encapsulated media Þles for quick export of high-resolution
Þles that are readable within QuickTime applications also equipped
with the codec.
Exporting with the Media Composer codec does not cause any loss
in quality because the codec maintains the identical media data.
However, the quality cannot be better than the original resolution of
the digitized media.

Quality

If you selected the Media Composer codec, when you click the quality slider and drag it, a dialog box appears. This dialog box allows
you to select another AVR.
If you change the AVR, when you click OK to close the Compression
Settings dialog box, another dialog box allows you to decide
whether to accept the new AVR or maintain the original AVR.

n
Motion

Because the Media Composer codec uses the AVR of your original source
Þles, selecting another AVR requires conversion of the media and slows
down the export process considerably. Maintain the AVR of the source
media whenever possible.
Choose 29.97 to maintain NTSC video frame-rate standards.

6. Click OK to close the Compression Settings dialog box and return
to the Export Settings dialog box.
7. Click OK to close the Export Settings dialog box and return to the
Export File Type dialog box.
8. When all options are listed correctly in the Export File Type dialog
box, click OK.
A directory dialog box opens with a default Þle name in the
Export As text box based on the Þle type.

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9. (Option) Change the Þle name if desired.

If you are transferring the Þles for use in a third-party application, keep the
default extension to avoid conßicts. Also, avoid names that include spaces or
special characters.
10. Select the destination folder for the Þle and click Save.
The Þle is exported and appears at the chosen destination.

c
n

Macintosh systems prior to Release 8.1 allow a maximum Þle size of
approximately 2 GB. If you exceed this limit, the Þle is unusable and
the system displays an error message.
If a power failure or mishap occurs during the export process, the entire Þle is
unusable. You need to repeat the export process.

Exporting from a Third-Party QuickTime Application
Exporting from a third-party QuickTime application by using the
Media Composer QuickTime codec and the default Avid Composer
system frame size allows you to speed the process of importing back
into the Avid Composer system to approximately three to four times
real time (video only).

662

To export Avid Composer Þles from a QuickTime-compatible application for import (or reimport) into the Avid Composer system:
1. Make sure the Avid codec is installed in the System FolderÕs
Extensions folder.
2. Conduct the export procedure according to the manual included
with the particular software.
3. When you get to the step where the standard QuickTime Create a
Movie dialog box appears, select the option Use Source Compression.

If you select another frame size, the Avid Composer system will not import
the Þle quickly using the Media Composer codec.
4. Complete the export according to the procedures used by the particular software.

Exchanging Audio Media Files Between Systems
You can transfer audio media Þles directly from the OMFI MediaFiles
folder for use in any third-party application that supports the AIFF,
AIFC, or SD2 formats:
¥

To identify the appropriate media Þles in the OMFI MediaFiles
folder, use the Media Tool. For more information, see ÒFinding a
Related Media FileÓ on page 281.

To convert some or all of the media Þles on a mixed project to
either the SD2 or AIFF format for direct transfer to a third-party
application, choose the desired format when exporting the master
clips from the bin. For more information on exporting audio Þles,
see ÒExporting Frames, Clips, or SequencesÓ on page 631.

To copy the selected Þles quickly onto a target drive, use the Consolidate feature. For more information, see ÒConsolidating
MediaÓ on page 276.

663

To transfer the Þles, transport them on a removable or Þxed drive.
For more information, see ÒMethods for Transferring Media
FilesÓ on page 666.

You cannot transfer audio media Þles that have been altered in a
third-party application directly into the OMFI MediaFiles folder on
an Avid Composer system.

Transferring a Project to Another Media Composer Product
This section describes basic steps for transporting Þles with a removable storage device.

Compatibility Requirements for Transfer
When you transfer a project to another Avid Composer system, make
sure that:
¥

The memory allocation of the Avid Composer system is similar in
both systems.

The AVRs are compatible between systems.

The release of the Avid Composer system on each system is compatible. See the Avid Media Composer and Film Composer Release
Notes for a complete description of compatibility issues between
releases.

Transferring the Project
There are two basic methods for transferring projects between Avid
Composer systems:
¥

Back up the project Þles to a 3.5-inch diskette, and transport the
media Þles on a removable storage device.

Send sequences, clips, or entire projects over a high-speed network using AvidNet.

664

For more information on using AvidNet, see the AvidNet Peer-to-Peer Setup
and UserÕs Guide. If you would like to purchase AvidNet, contact your Avid
sales representative.
To transfer a work in progress and associated media to another Avid
Composer system:
1. (Option) Consolidate the media for the project onto an appropriate
drive for transfer to the other system.

For more information on consolidating, see ÒConsolidating
MediaÓ on page 276.

For more information on removable storage devices, see ÒRecommended Storage DevicesÓ on page 666.

Do not rename the folders named OMFI MediaFiles located on the
media drive. The target Avid Composer system uses the folder
names to locate the media Þles.
2. Copy the project folder and any settings Þles you want to maintain
at the new location onto a 3.5-inch diskette. For more information,
see ÒBacking Up Your WorkÓ on page 42.
3. Close the Avid Composer application and shut down your system.
4. Remove the drives containing the media, and take these and the
3.5-inch diskette to the new location.
5. With the system turned off at the new location, insert or connect
the drives and boot the system.
6. In the Finder, copy the Project folder and any settings to the Avid
drive. For more information, see ÒMoving Projects and User ProÞles from Another SystemÓ on page 28.
7. Start the Avid Composer application, open the project, and resume
work.

The Avid Composer system will reconstruct the MediaFiles database the Þrst
time you launch the application to incorporate the new media into the systemÕs internal directory.
665

Methods for Transferring Media Files
The fastest methods for transferring media Þles between systems
involve either transporting removable storage devices or sending your
material over a high-speed network using AvidNet. These methods
and others are described in the following sections.

Recommended Storage Devices
The following is a list of storage devices, and related restrictions, to
consider for the transfer of media Þles:

Removable hard drive: Both the Avid Composer system and the
target system must have compatible RMAG XL or MediaDock
chassis. Both systems should be running the same version (latest)
of the AVIDdrive Utility.

Fixed hard drive: Both the Avid Composer system and the target
system must have compatible device drivers. Both systems should
be running the same version (latest) of the AVIDdrive Utility.

Avid DLT (digital linear tape) drive: Both the Avid Composer
system and the target system must have compatible versions of
AVID/MEZZO archive software.

If you are transferring media from striped drives, make sure the other system
supports striped drives. Check the Extensions folder for the AVIDstripeª
extension.

Using AvidNet
If your facility is equipped with AvidNet, you can simplify and speed
the exchange of media between workstations by sending your material over a network by using the AvidNet Transfer Tool and the Inbox
located in the Tools menu.

For more information on AvidNet, see the AvidNet Peer-to-Peer Setup and
UserÕs Guide. If you would like to purchase AvidNet, contact your Avid sales
representative.
666

Other Network Transfer Methods
Other methods of Þle transfer include:
¥

AppleShare¨: You can transfer Þles between Macintosh systems
by using Macintosh Þle sharing or an AppleShare server. See your
Macintosh documentation for more information.
From UNIX¨ systems to Macintosh systems, you can use programs such as Xinet¨ K-AShareª to mount UNIX volumes on a
Macintosh desktop.

Internet File Transfer Protocol (FTP): You can transfer Þles
between networked systems by using TCP/IP and FTP, including
transfer from UNIX, PC, or other platforms. For transferring from
Silicon Graphics systems to Avid Composer systems by using
Fetch, see the Avid Technical Note, ÒUsing Fetch to Transfer OMF
Files,Ó available through Avid Customer Support.

To transfer audio media Þles back into a Avid Composer product,
use the import procedures. For more information, see
Chapter 8.

You cannot transfer audio media Þles that have been altered in a
third-party application directly into the OMF MediaFiles folder on
an Avid Composer system.

667

668

APPENDIX A
Using AudioSuite Plug-Ins
This appendix describes how to use the AudioSuite Plug-Ins. Access
the Plug-Ins by choosing AudioSuite from the Tools menu. The following illustration shows the AudioSuite Plug-In Window.
Plug-In
Selection
pop-up
menu
Drive
Selection
pop-up
menu

Status display

For details on installing and accessing the Plug-Ins, see Chapter 16.

669

AudioSuite Plug-Ins
The following basic plug-ins are installed automatically as part of the
Avid Composer system software installation:
¥

Invert - Inverts the polarity (phase of the audio Þle).

Duplicate - This plug-in does not work on Avid Composer system
audio Þles.

Normalize - Finds the peak value in the source audio Þle and
scales the entire Þle proportionally to that maximum value.

Gain - Same as normalize, but allows positive or negative gain
adjustment.

Reverse - Rewrites the selected audio in reverse.

DC Offset Removal - Removes an audio artifact that is common in
digital audio Þles. A DC offset is caused by poorly calibrated
A/Ds (analog to digital converters), and can produce clicks and
pops on clip edit transitions if not removed.

Pitch Shift - Change pitch with or without changing length.

The following sections give a brief overview of each plug-in, and
where appropriate, describe how to use the plug-in.

Invert
The Invert Plug-In reverses the polarity of the selected audio. All positive sample amplitude values are made negative, and all negative
amplitudes are made positive. This process is useful for permanently
altering the phase (polarity) relationship of tracks. Inverting can be
useful when mixing because it alters frequency response between
source tracks recorded with multiple microphones, and also allows
you to correct for audio that was recorded out of phase.

670

Normalize
In cases where a sound Þle has been recorded with too little amplitude, or where volume is inconsistent throughout the duration of a
sound Þle (as in a poorly recorded narration), the Normalize function
ensures that the inherent dynamics of the performance remain
unchanged while the overall volume level of the passage is raised.
In addition to the standard AudioSuite parameters (described earlier
in this chapter), the Max Peak At controls lets you specify how close to
maximum level (the clipping threshold) the peak level of your selection/Þle will be boosted. You can enter this in three ways:
¥

By entering a numeric decibel value below the clipping threshold

By entering a percentage of the threshold

By adjusting the on-screen slider

Editing any of these controls automatically calculates the equivalent
value in the others.
To conÞgure the Normalize parameters:
1. Enter the amount of boost you want applied during the Normalize
process.
2. To set a speciÞc decibel amount below maximum, double-click
and enter that value in the Max Peak at: (dB) Þeld.
3. To set the amount of normalization as a percentage of maximum,
enter the desired percentage in the Max Peak at: (%) Þeld. To manually set the amount, click and adjust the Max Peak slider (hold
down the Command key to Þne-adjust).

671

Gain
Gain allows you to boost or lower amplitudes in a Þle or selection by a
speciÞed amount. The Change Gain command is ideal for smoothing
out undesirable peaks and other dynamic inconsistencies.
To conÞgure the Gain parameters, do the following:
¥

Enter the new level as a decibel amount (dB) or percentage (%) by
double-clicking on the respective Þeld and entering a new value.

Use the slider to adjust the Gain manually (hold down the Command key while dragging the slider to Þne-adjust).

Reverse
Reversed sounds are useful effects in many music and Þlm/video
projects. The Reverse Plug-In lets you perform this type of processing
very easily.

DC Offset
The DC Offset Plug-In removes DC offset from your audio Þles. The
term ÒDC OffsetÓ describes a very speciÞc type of audio artifact which
infrequently appears in digital audio signals.
DC Offset Plug-Ins can be identiÞed in a waveform overview because
they appear to have a near-vertical fade in with a constant or ÒsteadystateÓ offset from zero, when the Þle is actually ÒsilentÓ (it contains no
audible audio). The DC Offset Plug-In can help remove (or at least
reduce) the DC Offset from your source audio Þles.

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Pitch Shift
The AudioSuite Pitch Shift Plug-In allows you to adjust the pitch of
any source audio Þle with or without a change in its duration. This is a
very powerful function which essentially allows sounds to be transposed a full octave up or down in pitch with or without altering playback speed.

673

Edit the Pitch Shift parameters by double-clicking and typing into any
the Destination Þelds (tempo, bar:beats:ticks, or time sig), or by clicking and dragging the coarse, Þne or ratio sliders. All Pitch Shift Plug-In
controls are linked so that changing one changes the others.
Gain
The gain controls set the input level, in tenths of a dB. This should be
set so that the Plug-In can adequately handle amplitude peaks in the
selection. Dragging the slider to the right increases gain, dragging to
the left decreases gain.
Coarse and fine
Adjust the pitch by dragging either of the two faders, or by typing values in the boxes below them. The Coarse slider transposes in semitones (half steps); the Fine slider transposes in cents (hundredths of a
semitone).
Time Correction
This box must be checked for Avid Composer systems.

You cannot use plug-in options that perform time compression/
expansion because the output would have a different sample
duration than the original Þle.
Ratio
The Ratio slider lets you set the amount of transposition (pitch
change). Moving the slider to the right raises the pitch of the processed
Þle, while moving the slider to the left decreases its pitch. Hold down
the Command key while dragging the slider to Þne-adjust.
Crossfade
This slider allows you to manually adjust the crossfade length in milliseconds to optimize performance of the Pitch Shift Plug-In according
674

to the type of audio material you are processing. The Pitch Shift PlugIn achieves pitch transposition by processing very small portions of
the selected audio material and very quickly crossfading between
these alterations in the waveform of the audio material.
Crossfade length essentially affects the amount of ÒsmoothingÓ performed on audio material to prevent audio artifacts such as clicks
when the audio is looped to generate the desired pitch shift. In general, small narrow-range pitch changes require longer crossfades while
larger transpositions require smaller crossfades. The disadvantage to
long crossfade times is that they smooth the signal, including any transients. While this can be desirable for audio material such as vocals, it
is not appropriate for material with sharp transients such as drums or
percussion.
The default setting for this parameter is Auto (full left), in which crossfade times are set automatically, according to the settings of the coarse
and Þne controls. This setting should be sufÞcient for most applications. However, by using this slider, you can manually adjust and optimize crossfade times if necessary. For audio material with sharper
attack transients, use smaller crossfade times. For audio material with
softer attack transients, use longer crossfade times.
Min Pitch
The Min Pitch slider lets you select the minimum, or lowest, pitch that
will be used in the Plug-InÕs calculations during the Time Compression/Expansion process. The slider has a range of 40 Hz to 400 Hz. By
being able to control the minimum pitch, you can focus the Time Compression/Expansion process for maximum efÞciency Ñ it all depends
on the audioÕs spectral shape. This slider should be set lower when
processing bass guitar or other instruments with a similarly low range.
Set the min pitch higher when processing other instruments such as
snare drums, violins, and other higher range instruments/sounds.
After reading the following sections, begin experimenting with combinations of the other Þne-tune controls in relation to the min pitch
slider.
675

Accuracy
Use the accuracy slider to prioritize the processing resources allocated
to audio quality (sound) or timing (rhythm). Moving the slider toward
sound generally results in better sonic quality and fewer audio artifacts. Moving the slider toward rhythm puts the emphasis on keeping
the tempo consistent. When working with loops, listen carefully until
you Þnd the setting which keeps timing solid within the region. Start
and end times will be precise, but the perception of beats may be
ÒshufßedÓ if the accuracy sliderÕs rhythm setting is too low.
Reference Pitch
Generates a sine wave tone that you can adjust to match a selected
portion of audio material, then use as an audible reference when pitchshifting other audio material in your session.
To use the reference pitch feature:
1. Select the audio material you wish to use as a pitch reference.
Click the preview button to begin playback of the selected audio.
2. Click the Reference Pitch button to activate the reference sine
wave tone.
3. Adjust the note and detune settings to match the reference tone to
the pitch of the audio playback. Adjust the level setting to change
the relative volume of the reference tone. It may also be helpful to
toggle the reference pitch on and off to compare pitch.
4. Select the audio material to be pitch shifted.
5. Adjust the coarse and Þne Pitch Shift controls to match the pitch of
the audio playback to the reference pitch.

676

Index
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXZ

Numerics

Adding
bin columns 247
color indicators (script window) 316
comments
during digitizing 190
during editing 393
edits 445
filler
during a trim 473
to a sequence 377
locators
during digitizing 190
while editing 355
new tracks 443
off-screen indicators (script window) 315
page and scene numbers in the script
window 302
script marks 317
takes in the script window 312
Adjusting
digital scrub parameters 484
input levels with the Audio Tool 169
margins in the script window 296
output on four- or eight-channel systems

16 x 9 display option 329
16 x 9 format 133
3/4-inch U-matic videotape See Videotape
4 x 4 audio interface See Digidesign audio
interface

A
A2 timecode option 335
Absolute timecode 335
Add Channel button (Deck Configuration
dialog box) 136
Add Comments command (Monitor menus)

393
Add Deck button (Deck Configuration dialog
box) 138
Add dissolve dialog box 550
Add Edit function
for maintaining sync 566
for multicamera editing 594
Add edit function
using 445
Add Page button (script window) 302
Add Scene button (script window) 302
Add Scene or Page dialog box 302

610
output on two-channel audio board systems

612
pan in the Audio Mix Tool 490
677

reference level in the Audio Tool 166
take lines in the script window 314
volume in the Audio Mix Tool 490
volume in the Timeline 500
AES/EBU (Audio Engineering Society/
European Broadcast Union) digital format,
defined
ALE (Avid Log Exchange), converting shot log
files with 114
Alias, launching an application from 32
Align Selected to Grid command (Bin menu)

number of tracks supported 434
output
calibrating 608 to 613
preparing for 608
pan
adjusting in Audio Mix Tool 490
centering 225
defaults, setting 224
sample rates
in the Audio Setup display 162
scrub 482 to 487
setup, in the Audio Tool 160
tracks
mixing down 553
monitoring 437
volume
adjusting in Audio Mix Tool 490
adjusting in the Timeline 500
adjusting while playing 499
waveform plots, displaying 487
Audio 4 x 4 interface See Digidesign audio
interface
Audio Data command (Timeline Fast menu)

260
Annotate feature 190
AppleShare, for file transfer 667
Arrow keys, stepping with 347
ASCII text files
importing to a script window 294
A-side (outgoing frames), in trims 460
Assemble edit recording 614
enabling in Deck Settings 616
Attic folder
defined 59
retrieving files from 60
Audio
See also Audio Gain Automation, Audio Mix
Tool, Audio Tool
checking for multicamera 581
crossfading 550
dipping 552
dissolves 549
eight-channel input 157
EQ templates 528
fading 550
input levels See Audio Tool
leader
creating 266
using to maintain sync 563
levels
fine-tuning with add edit 549
mixdown 553
multicamera, managing 575, 575

487
Audio effect tools, accessing 480
Audio Engineering Society/European
Broadcast Union (AES/EBU) See AES/
EBU
Audio EQ (Equalization)
adjusting while playing 533
templates 530
Audio EQ command (Tools menu) 518
Audio EQ Tool
examples of uses 527
Fast menu options 522
features of 519
opening 518
saving effects 524
See also EQ effect
Audio File Format pop-up menu 134

678

troubleshooting 540
AudioVision
transferring OMF files to
compatibility issues 643
guidelines for 644
Autodigitizing 196, 577
Automation Gain
and the Audio Mix window 516
connecting a fader 514
Fast menu 511
keyboard shortcuts 513
Auto-save function, described 59
AutoSync command (Bin menu) 556
Autosync dialog box, options in 556
Autosyncing 555
Auxiliary timecode 335
Avid Calculator Tool, using 100
Avid Composer system
application
launching 32
location of 32
quitting 44
settings 61
turning off the equipment 45
Avid controller, specifying 105
Avid drive, described 25
Avid Log Exchange See ALE
Avid logs See Shot Log files
Avid Media Reader, defined 188
Avid Users folder
deleting folders from 27
described 26
moving work between systems 28
AvidDroid, specifying a port for 105
AvidNet 666, 666

Audio file types
importing 215
Audio Gain Automation
deleting key frames in 504
enabling and adding key frames in 503
real time response for 502
Audio Mix command (Tools menu) 490
Audio Mix Tool
adjusting volume and pan
on a single track 492
on multiple tracks 497
and Automation Gain 516
Fast menu options 495
Audio Mixdown
media files, deleting 275
procedure 553
Audio Mixdown command (Special menu) 553
Audio Mixdown dialog box 554
Audio Settings dialog box 224, 486
Audio Setup display See Audio Tool
Audio solo feature 439
Audio timecode, using in Composer 222
Audio tone media, creating 172
Audio Tool
adjusting input levels with 169
Calibrate mode 170
digital scale, defined 165
features, described 164
Peak Hold option, choosing 167
reference level, adjusting 166
resizing 165
Setup options 160
volume meters, defined 165
VU (volume unit) scale, defined 165
Audio Tool command (Tools menu) 163
Audio volume rubber-banding See Audio Gain
Automation
AudioSuite Plug-Ins
applying 534
limitations 540
rendering 539

B
Background color, changing
in bins 258
679

in the Source/Record window 328
Background color, changing in the Timeline 401
Backing up
media files 42, 280
Backtiming edits 447
Backups
Attic folder 60
Bandwidths in Audio EQ Tool 520
Bars and tone
for calibrating video output 602
preparing for digitizing 264
recording to tape 615
Batch Digitize command (Clip menu) 202, 209
Batch Digitize dialog box 202
Batch digitizing
See also Autodigitizing, Digitizing,
Redigitizing
preparing for 200
procedure 202
sequences, procedure 206
Betacam See Videotape
Big Trim mode
defined 455
toggling with Small Trim mode 459
Bin editing in Segment mode 425
Bin Fast menu 230
Bin names, deleting from the Project window 58
Bin settings, defined 64
Bin views
customizing 243
types of 243
Bins
auto-save function, described 59
background color, changing 258
Bin View pop-up menu 243
changing the display font in 231
checking for multicamera 580
closing 58
columns in
adding 247
deleting 246

duplicating 246
moving 244
showing and hiding 245
tidying up 244
creating 54
deleting 58
deleting names 58
display modes for 228 to 230
displaying in Project window 48
editing from in Segment mode 425
Fast menu 230
finding 364
finding from the script window 322
Info Display 76
information in Console 103
locking items in 238
logging directly into 120 to 126
managing 52
opening 57
opening from a different project 49
organizing a project with 221 to 263
preparing for digitizing 187
printing 262
rearranging clips in 259, 262
renaming 56
retrieve 60
saving
using system backup 42
using the Save Bin command 59
selecting
media relatives in 240
offline items in 239
sources in 240
unreferenced clips in 241
setting clip display in 226
targeting for digitizing 149
transferring
with MediaLog for Macintosh 113
Bins display (Project window) 48
Black level, adjusting
for input 180
680

for output 606
Black segment See Filler
Blue bar See Position indicator
Blue only feature (as substitute for Waveform
and Vectorscope) 607
B-side (incoming frames), in trims 460
Buttons
See also User-selectable buttons
Add Channel 136
Add Deck 138
Add Scene and Add Page (script window)

audio output 609
global levels 608
of digital cut 608
video input 177
table of luminance settings 181
with vectorscope 181
with waveform monitor 179
video output 602
advanced procedures 604
Calibration tone
creating media for 172
setting 609
Camera setups, in the lined script 289
Camera, Digital News Gathering (DNG) 210
Capture mode
entering 142
Center Pan command (Clip menu) 225
Change Scene or Page dialog box 303
Changing
background color
in bins 258
in the Source/Record window 328
in the Timeline 401, 404
bin font 231
font in the script window 297
frame size 259
page and scene numbers in the script
window 303
representative frame in takes 313
the frame identifying a clip 260
Channel Settings dialog box 136
Check Decks command (Deck Selection pop-up
menu) 145
Choosing a user 36
Chrominance
adjusting for output 607
Clear command (Edit menu) 235, 246, 274
Clear Monitor command (Monitor menus) 341
Clearing clips from monitors 341
Clearing IN and OUT points 352

302
Color (script window) 316
Find Bin 364
Find Frame 365
Focus 412
for controlling playback 344
Grid 96
In/Out (Audio Tool) 164
Input (Audio Tool) 171
mapping user-selectable 96
Mark IN 352
Mark OUT 352
New Project (Project Selection dialog box) 38
New User (Project Selection dialog box) 36
Off-screen (script window) 315
Output Options (Audio Tool) 164
Play (script window) 314
Preset (Video tools) 176
Reset Peak (Audio Tool) 164
Source/Record toggle 413
B-Y gain adjustment 608

C
Calculator command (Tools menu) 100
Calculator Tool, using 100
Calibrate command (Peak Hold pop-up menu)

170
Calibrating
681

rearranging
in Frame mode bin display 259
in Script mode bin display 262
relocating 363
replacing 580
searching for text in 362
selecting 233
sifting 236
tracking the duration of 331
Closing a project 42
Closing bins 58
Closing the Project window 48
Color
frame shifts 451
Color bars
See also Bars and tone
in Dupe Detection 449
types of 179
Color button (script window) 316
Color indicators (script integration)
adding to takes 316
described 291
Color submenu (Script menu) 316
Columns See Bins
Combination cutting in multicamera editing

Clip information
modifications table 129
Clip Information window
displaying 232
displaying from a monitor 332
opening from a bin 232
opening from a script window 295
Clip names, finding in a monitor 362
Clipboard
copying to 389
preserving contents of 389
recovering material from 389
Clipboard Contents command (Monitor menu)

390
Clips
See also Master clips, Subclips, Group clips,
Multigroup clips
autosyncing 555
clearing from monitors 341
clearing marks from 352
copying 235
deleting 235
deleting extra multicamera 581
deleting unreferenced 275
duplicating 234
Editcam, copying 211
Editcam, importing 210
exporting 628
group, creating 583
linking to script 306
loaded, switching between 340
loading into monitors 339, 339
locking 238
marking
entire segments 352
with IN and OUT points 351
modifying information in 126
moving 234
multigroup, creating 585
playing
using buttons 344

600
Command Palette
using 93, 93
Command palettes
See also Command Palette
mapping 99
Commands See Menu commands
Comments
adding during digitizing 190
adding to sequence clips 393
Compatibility between AudioVision and Media
Composer 643
Compatibility requirements for transfer 664
Component output settings 606
Composer Projects folder
deleting folders from 27
682

described 26
moving work between systems 28
Composer tools 89 to 105
Composer window, customizing 327
Composite output settings 606
Compression command (Tools menu) 143
Configuring decks 135
Console
bin information in 103
checking peak levels with 173
displaying system information in 102
Console command (Tools menu) 102, 173
Console Tool, using 102, 103
Consolidate command (Clip menu) 277
Consolidate dialog box 277
Consolidating
for transfer to Pro Tools 649
Consolidating media files
defined 276
group clips 278
master clips 276
procedure 277
sequences 276
subclips 276
Control track breaks, digitizing across 202
Control track, using for preroll 156
Controller, specifying 105
Converting
media files 29
projects 29
shot log files with Avid Log Exchange 114
Copying
clips and sequences 235
Editcam master clips 211
in the Timeline 426
locators from source clips 378
text from the Clip Information window 233
text in the script window 300
to Clipboard 389
Countdown
customizing 617

in a digital cut 617
Crash recording (Manual recording) 614
Creating
See also Editing, Deleting
a folder in a project 50
an instant rough cut 381
Avid log files 117
bins 54
group clips 583
leader 266
multigroup clips 585
overlap edits 466
in one step 448
subclips 353
subclips during digitizing 189
tone media 172
Creating a project 38
Crossfading audio 550
Custom bin view, defined 243
Custom countdown display 619
Custom Sift command (Bin menu) 237
Custom sift dialog box 237
Custom Time option (Digital Cut Tool) 623
Customizing
bin views 243
the Composer window 327
the manual user interface (MUI) 369
the Timeline 399
Trim mode 454
Cut, copy, paste in the Timeline 426
Cutaways, marking with locators 355
Cutting See Editing, specific edit modes
Cutting text in the script window 300
Cycle Picture/Sound button 437

D
D1 VTR
calibrating input from 176
digitizing from 174
683

recording to 603
DAE (Digidesign Audio Engine) 535
DAT See Digital audiotape
Deck Configuration settings
adjusting 135
deleting elements in 140
Deck Controller
in Digital Cut Tool 617
Deck Controller Tool, using 91
Deck Preferences 141
Deck Selection pop-up menu 145
Deck Settings
for configuring decks 138
Deck settings
for assemble-edit recording 616
Decks, configuring 135
Decompose feature 207
Defaults for settings, restoring 70
Defining settings 63
Delay edit (Overlap edit) 448
Delete Clips dialog box 236
Delete dialog box (script integration) 304, 312
Delete Media Files dialog box 274
Delete Take command (Script menu) 311
Deleting
See also Creating, Editing
add edits (match frames) 446
bin columns 246
bins 58
clips and sequences 235
deck configurations 140
media files
in bins 235
with Media Tool 273
page and scene numbers in the script
window 304
script marks 321
segments, in Segment mode 423
settings 70
slates in the script window 311
takes in the script window 312

text in the script window 301
tracks 444
unreferenced clips 275
Desktop, Composer elements on 25
Dialog boxes
add dissolve 550
Add Scene or Page 302
Audio Mixdown 554
Audio Settings 224, 486
Autosync 556
Batch Digitize 202
Change scene or page 303
Consolidate 277
custom sift 237
Delete (script integration) 304, 312
Delete Clips 236
Delete Media Files 274
Display Bin Selector 226
Display Media Selector 272
Find 362
Font 297
Group clips 583
Headings 245
Margin 297
Modify 127
Project selection 35
Read Audio Timecode 222
Relink 283
Selct Files to Import 118
Select a Bin 54, 374
Select Files to Import 217
View Name (bin) 249
view name (Timeline) 405
Dialog, in the lined script 289
Digidesign audio interface
Digidesign AudioSuite Plug-Ins
Digidesign hardware
See also Audio
Video Slave Driver
pulldown switch settings 133

684

on-the-fly 193, 194
preparing for
Audio Tool setup 163 to 173
Compression tool setup 143
deck selection 145
Digidesign hardware settings 133
Digitize Tool setup 144
hardware considerations 132
resolution selection 148
settings selection 134
source track selection 147
tape selection 145
targeting bins 149
targeting drives 150
video input 174 to 184
video levels, adjusting by eye 184
setting only Mark IN 193, 193
sources for 134
to multiple media files 152
to the Timeline 199
using timecode-of-day 198
with Avid Media Reader 188
workflow, multicamera 576
Dipping audio 552
Diskette, saving work on 42
Display Bin Selector dialog box 226
Display Media Selector dialog box 272
Displaying
clip information in the Timeline 404
Safe Title overlays 96
sync breaks 559
take numbers in slates 313
Displays 334
Dissolves
audio 549
DLT for backup 42
Drive Filtering Based on Resolution option 134
Drive, saving work on 43
Drives for transferring media 666
Dual-image play during trims 464
Dual-rolling trim 464

Digital audio scrub
adjusting parameters for 484
compared to smooth audio scrub 482
using 484
Digital audiotape (DAT), digitizing from 133
Digital bars and tone, preparing 264
Digital Betacam VTR
calibrating input from 176
digitizing from 174
recording to 603
Digital Cut command (Output menu) 621
Digital Cut Tool
Deck Controller in 617
Digital cuts
previewing 617
Record to Tape options 623
recording 621
Digital scale (Audio Tool), defined 165
Digitize across timecode breaks option 135
Digitize command (Tools menu) 121
Digitize Tool
logging with 121
resizing 201
resolution, choosing 148
setting up 144
subclip status in 189
Digitize Video to Multiple Files option 134
Digitizing
See also Autodigitizing, Batch digitizing,
Redigitizing
across control track breaks 202
across timecode breaks 196, 201
adding comments (annotating) during 190
adding locators during 190
and logging at the same time 191 to 196
bars and tone 264
defined 186
from a mark IN to a mark OUT 191
from a non-Avid-controlled deck 197
methods for 577
multicamera material 577
685

Dupe detection 449
Duplicate command (Edit menu) 69, 234, 246
Duplicating
bin columns 246
clips and sequences 234
settings 69
Duration, tracking 331

copying to clipboard 389
extending 467
Extract 388
Extract/Splice-in (Segment mode) 422
instant rough cut procedure 381
Lift 388
Lift/Overwrite (Segment mode) 422
on-the-fly cutting (multicamera) 598
overlap 448
Overwrite 384
Replace 385
selective cutting (multicamera) 597
Splice-in 383
undoing or redoing 382
EDL (edit decision list)
creating 624
described 624
transfer, assigning port for 105
Effects
Audio EQ, removing 525
nesting, defined 435
types of 434
Eight-channel audio input 157
Eject command (File menu) 34
End key 347
Energy Plot in Timeline 488
Enlarge Frame command (Edit menu) 259, 308
Enlarging and reducing frames in the bin 259
Enlarging tracks in the Timeline 402
Entering
Source/Record mode 373
Trim mode 457
EQ effect
adjusting while playing 533
applying 520
removing 525
templates for 528
Errors, viewing log of in the Console 102
Events in an EDL, defined 624
Exchanging material 627 to 666
Exiting Trim mode 459

E
Edit controller, with VTR play emulation 624
Edit decision list
See EDL
Editcam clips
acquiring 210
compatibility 210
Editcam file format
importing 215
Editcam files 210
Editcam master clips
copying 211
Editing
See also Edits, Creating, Deleting, specific
edit modes
adding new tracks during 443
deleting tracks during 444
effects 434
in Heads (and Tails) view 432
multicamera material 572 to 600
new sequence 373
Sync Point Editing 567
to avoid sync breaks 558
with film track 429
with the script window 322
Edits
See also Editing, Creating, Deleting, specific
edit modes
adding (match-framing) 445
backtiming 447
combination cutting (multicamera) 600
686

OMF to Pro Tools 651
procedure for 631
reasons for 628
with Media Composer QuickTime codec

Exporting
shot log files 130
Exporting files
OMF to Pro Tools 651
preparing for 629
preparing for OMF export 642
procedure for 631
reasons for 628
with Media Composer QuickTime codec
described 655
from third-party application 662
guidelines for 655
installing 656
procedure for 657
settings for 659
Extend button 467
Extending an edit 467
External drive See Media drive
Extract edits 388
Extract/Splice-in button 422

from third-party application 662
guidelines for 655
procedure for 657
settings for 659
importing
guidelines for 213
limiting size 213
mixed resolutions 214
procedure for 216
Fill Sorted command (Bin menu) 260
Fill Window command (Bin menu) 260
Filler
adding during a trim 473
adding to a sequence 377
Film
options, choosing 39
preferences, setting 39
Film bin view, defined 243
Film Composer folder 25
Film projects
nesting in folders 39
Film track, editing with 429
Find Bin button 364
in the script window 322
Find command (Edit menu) 305, 362
Find dialog box 362
Find Frame button 365
Find procedures 362
Find Script button 321
Finding
bins
from a monitor 364
from the script window 322
related media files 281
clip names, with Find command 362
script from marked takes 321

F
Fader, connecting to a system 514
Fading audio 550
Fast Forward button 344
Fast menus
Bin 230
Locators window 358
Media Tool 271
Fetch
using to transfer OMF files 667
FieldPak
Editcam media 210
File managment 270
File Transfer Protocol (FTP) 667
File Type pop-up menu (Select Files to Import
dialog box) 217
Files
exporting
687

text in the script window 305
Finding frames
with the Find command 362
with the Find Frame button 365
with timecode offset 360
Focusing the Timeline 412
Folders
creating 39
deleting 27
managing 52
Font dialog box 297
Font in bins, changing 231
Fonts in the script window, changing 297
Footage
clearing marks from 352
loading into monitors 339, 339, 342
marking and subcataloging 350 to 357
relocating 360
viewing and playing 326 to 350
Format elements, preparing 264 to 268
Four- to eight-channel audio board system
adjusting output on 610
adjusting trim level settings 170
Four-frame display
described 420
suppressing 421
Frame by frame movement in the Timeline 414
Frame mode (bin display)
defined 228
in Media Tool 271
using 257 to 260
Frame Mode button 257
Frame offset 361
Frame size, changing 259
Frame-accurate recording 614
Frames
displaying matching footage for 569
exporting 628
finding
with the Match Frame button 569
with the Match Frame function 363

with timecode offset 360
identifying a clip, changing 260
rearranging
in Frame mode 259
in Script mode 262
tidying up 260
Frequencies (audio), adjusting 518
FTP 667
Full-monitor multicamera display 586
Full-Screen mode
loading footage 342
Full-screen monitor
loading footage into 338
Full-screen Timeline 426

G
Ganging
footage in monitors 568
multiple tracks in the Audio Mix Tool 498
Gathering format elements 264 to 268
General settings, defined 64
Genlock options (Video Output Tool) 606
Go To Capture Mode command (Bin menu) 142
Going to scene or page numbers 305
Goto Page command (Script menu) 305
Goto Scene (Script menu) 305
Graphics file types
importing 215
Grid 96
aligning frames 260
Grid button 96
Group clips
consolidating 278
creating 583
Group Clips command (Bin menu) 583
Group Clips dialog box, options 583
Grouping procedures 583

688

displaying Memory 84
displaying Profile 76
displaying Usage 77
Information Display menu

H
Hard recording See Manual recording
Hardware command (Tools menu) 103
Hardware Tool
displaying 85
using 103
Headings command (Bin menu) 245
Headings dialog box 245
Heads (and Tails) View, in the Timeline 432
Hiding
bin columns 245
slate frames 309
High shelf in Audio EQ Tool 520
Home command (Windows menu) 429
Home key 347

331
Input button (Audio Tool) 171
Input Source pop-up menu (Audio Setup
display) 162
Insert-edit recording 614
Interface settings, defined 64

J
J-K-L keys (Three-Button Play) 346
Jogging See Stepping

Ignoring volume and pan settings 498
Import command 118
Import dialog box 217
Importing
a script 294
Editcam clips 210
shot log files 118
statistics files 81
test patterns 265
Importing files
before you begin 213
guidelines 213
in mixed resolution projects 214
procedure for 216
IN and OUT marks 351
In/Out buttons (Audio Tool), defined 164
Indicating off-screen dialog 315
Infinite Hold option (Audio Tool) 168
Info display in Project window 76
Info Display window
displaying Hardware 85

K-AShare 667
Keyboard
using to control playback 346

L
Launching the application 32
Leader
creating 266
for managing sync breaks 563
L-edit (Overlap edit) 448
Left Arrow key 347
Left Margin command (Script menu) 296
Lift/Overwrite button 422
Lifting material 388
Line Selector slider (waveform monitor) 180
Linecut option, for multicam editing 593
Lined script, described 288
Linking clips to script 306
Load Filler command (Monitor menus) 377
689

Loading
filler 377
footage 339, 339
takes from the script window 314, 320
Locators
adding during digitizing 190
adding while editing 356
copying from source clips 378
finding frames with 362
for managing sync breaks 565
using 355
Lock Bin Selection command (Clip menu) 238
Lock Tracks command (Clip menu) 443
Locking
bin items 238
tracks 442
Logging
and digitizing at the same time 191 to 196
bypassing by autodigitizing 196
directly into a bin
with a non-Avid-controlled deck 124
with an Avid-controlled deck 121
guidelines for 109
multicamera material 577
preroll 110, 110
procedures for 109 to 126, 577
Logging errors to the console 102
Logs See Shot Log files
Longitudinal timecode See LTC
Low shelf in Audio EQ Tool 519
LTC (longitudinal timecode)
decoding with Media Reader 188
reading the User Bits in 223
Luminance settings
adjusting for video output 604
table of 606

Macintosh computer
turning off 45
Making subclips 353
Managing
bins 52
folders 52
media files 270 to 286
Manual recording 614
Manual User Interface See MUI
Mapping
menu commands 98
user-selectable buttons 96
Margin dialog box 297
Mark and park editing 386
Marking
clips 352
entire segment 352
IN and OUT points 351, 352
segments in Segment mode 424
with locators 355
Marks
clearing 352
IN and OUT points 351
phantom 386
Master clips
consolidating 276
copying 235
deleting 235
duplicating 234
locating from subclip 364
locking 238
moving 234
redigitizing 205, 206
relinking 282
selecting 233
sifting 236
Master shot, in the lined script 289
Match Frame function
for multicamera editing 597
690

using 363, 569
Matchback
options 39
Match-framing (Adding edits) 445
Matching a frame 363
Media Composer folder 31
Media Conversion Tool 29
Media drive
ejecting 33
mounting 33
targeting 149
Media File Manager, converting from 29
Media files
backing up 280
consolidating
defined 276
procedure 277
converting 29
deleting
in bins 235
in the Media Tool 273
unreferenced 275
Editcam 210
finding related 281
managing 270 to 286
manipulating with Media Tool 270
multiple, digitizing to 152
relinking 282
transferring 666
unlinking 286
Media Inbox 666
Media Reader
assigning port for 105
defined 188
Media relatives
selecting in the bin 240
Media Tool
basic features of 271
opening 272
Media Tool command (Tools menu) 272
Media Tool Fast menu 271

MediaLog for Macintosh, transferring bins with

113
MediaLog for PC
operating system requirements 114
transferring bins with 114
MediaShare icons, ejecting and mounting 33
Memory See RAM
Menu commands
Add Comments (Monitor menus) 393
Align Selected to Grid (Bin menu) 260
Audio Data (Timeline Fast menu) 487
Audio EQ (Tools menu) 518
Audio Mix (Tools menu) 490
Audio Mixdown (Special menu) 553
Audio Tool (Tools menu) 163
Autosync (Bin menu) 556
Batch Digitize (Clip menu) 202, 209
Calculator (Tools menu) 100
Calibrate (Peak Hold pop-up menu) 170
Center Pan (Clip menu) 225
Check Decks (Deck Selection pop-up menu)

145
Clear (Edit menu) 235, 246, 274
Clear Monitor (Monitor menus) 341
Clipboard Contents (Monitor menu) 390
Color (Script menu) 316
Compression (Tools menu) 143
Console (Tools menu) 102, 173
Consolidate (Clip menu) 277
Custom Sift (Bin menu) 237
Delete Take (Script menu) 311
Digital Cut (Output menu) 621
Digitize Tool (Tools menu) 121
Duplicate (Edit menu) 69, 234, 246
Eject (File menu) 34
Enlarge Frame (Edit menu) 259, 308
Fill Sorted (Bin menu) 260
Fill Window (Bin menu) 260
Find (Edit menu) 305, 362
Go To Capture mode (Bin menu) 142
Goto Page (Script menu) 305
691

Goto Scene (Script menu) 305
Group Clips (Bin menu) 583
Hardware (Tools menu) 103
Headings (Bin menu) 245
Home (Windows menu) 429
Import (File menu) 118
Left Margin (Script menu) 296
Load Filler (Monitor menus) 377
Lock Bin Selection (Clip menu) 238
Lock Tracks (Clip menu) 443
mapping 98, 98
Media Tool (Tools menu) 272
Modify (Clip menu) 127
Mount All (File menu) 34
New Audio Track (Clip menu) 376, 443
New Bin (File menu) 54
New Deck Controller (Tools menu) 91
New Script (File menu) 294
New Video or Picture Track (Clip menu) 376
New Video Track (Clip menu) 443
Open Bin (File menu) 54
Page Setup (File menu) 263
Play Calibration Tone (Peak Hold pop-up
menu) 609
Print (File menu) 263
Print Timeline (File menu) 453
Read Audio Timecode (Special menu) 222
Redo (Edit menu) 383
Reduce Frame (Edit menu) 259, 308
Relink (Clip menu) 283
Remove Pan/Vols (Audio Mix Fast menu)

Set Calibration Tone (Peak Hold pop-up
menu) 609
Set Color (Edit menu) 258
Set Font (Edit menu) 231, 297
Set Level (Audio Mix Tool) 497
Set Pan (Audio Mix Fast menu) 497
Set Reference Level (Peak Hold pop-up
menu) 166
Show All Takes (Script menu) 309
Show Every Frame (Timeline Fast menu)

430
Show Frames (Script menu) 309
Show Track (Timeline Fast menu) 430
Sync Breaks (Timeline Fast menu) 560
Tidy Up Columns (Bin menu) 245, 260
Undo (Edit menu) 383
Unlock Bin Selection (Clip menu) 239
Unlock Tracks (Clip menu) 443
Video Input Tool (Tools menu) 174
Video Output Tool (Tools menu) 174, 602
View Type (Timeline Fast menu) 432
VTR Emulation (Special menu) 625
Zoom Back (Timeline Fast menu) 411
Zoom In (Timeline Fast menu) 411
Meters See Volume meters
Methods for transferring media between
systems 664
MFM to MSM conversion 29
MII video See Videotape
Mixed resolutions 214
Mixing down audio 553
Modify command (Clip menu) 127
Modify dialog box 127
Modifying
clip information 126
settings 67
Monitor icons 437
Monitor menus, using 340
Monitoring audio/video tracks 437
Monitors
clearing clips from 341

497
Restore Default Patch (Special menu) 441
Reverse Selection (Bin menu) 275
Select All Tracks (Edit menu) 437
Select Media Relatives (Bin menu) 240
Select Offline Items (Bin menu) 239
Select Sources (Bin menu) 241
Select Unreferenced Clips (Bin menu) 241
Serial Ports (Tools menu) 105, 625
Set Bin Display (Bin menu) 226
692

digitizing workflow for 576
grouping 583
managing audio in 575, 575
modes of 585
production paths 574
Quad menus 596
Quad Split menu 595
Quad Split mode 587
selective cutting in 597
switching angles 592
tape classification 573
techniques 591
workflow options 597
Multicamera linecut option 593
Multicamera mode, described 589
Multigroup clips, creating 585
Multilevel sorting of columns 257
Multiple media files, digitizing to 152
Multiple tracks, working with 434 to 449

displaying the Clip Information window

332
ganging footage in 568
loading footage into 339, 339
loading multiple clips and sequences into

339
viewing in 336
Mono option (audio) 554
Motion effects, defined 434
Motion mode indicator in the Timeline 414
Mount All command (File menu) 34
Mounting disk drives 33
Mouse Jog button 349
Mouse shuttle button 349
Mouse, stepping and shuttling with 349
Movement in Timeline, controlling 414
Moving
bin columns 244
Clip Information window 233
clips and sequences 234
frames in the bin 259
projects between systems 28
script marks 320
slates in the script window 310
tracks in the Timeline 403
user profiles between systems 28
Moving settings
between settings files 71
between systems 74
Moving through clips 344
MSM format 29
MSM to AudioVision conversion 29
MUI (Manual User Interface)
customizing 369
default editing buttons 368
using 366
MUI controller, specifying 107
Multicamera editing
combination cutting in 600
cutting on-the-fly in 598
developing a production model for 572

N
Nested effects, defined 435
Nesting
effects 435
film projects 39
projects in folders 39
New Audio Track command (Clip menu) 376,

443
New Bin command (File menu) 54
New Deck Controller command (Tools menu)

91
New Script command (File menu) 294
New sequence, setting up 373
New User button (Project Selection dialog box)

36
New Video Track command (Clip menu) 376,

443
NTSC (National Television Systems
Committee) video
693

B-Y Gain, adjusting 608
edit format 39
luminance values 606
PICT resolution 621
R-Y Gain, adjusting 608
waveform values 181
NTSC Has Setup option 134

box) 237
Orphans See Offline items
Output
See also Digital cuts, EDL, Playback
calibrating for video 602
options 601
preparing for 601
Output Options button (Audio Tool), defined

Overlap edits 448, 466, 467
Overwrite edits 384

164

Offline editing
detecting color-frame shifts during 451
detecting duplicate frames during 449
Offline items, selecting in the bin 239
Off-screen button (script window) 315
Off-screen dialog
in the lined script 289
indicating in the script window 315
Off-screen indicators (script integration)
adding to takes 315
described 291
OMF Interchange files
described 640
exporting to AudioVision
compatibility issues 643
guidelines for 644
exporting to Pro Tools
guidelines for 649
procedure for 651
importing 215
methods for exporting 641
preparing to export 642
web site 641
One/Two Disk Mode button 150
One-step overlap cuts 448
Open Bin command (File menu) 54
Opening a project 35, 41
Opening bins 57
Opening the Project window 48
Operator pop-up menu (Custom Sift dialog

P
Padlock icon in Track Selector panel 442
Page and scene numbers (script window)
adding 302
changing 303
deleting 304
searching for 305
Page Setup command (File menu) 263
PAL (Phase Alternating Line) video
B-Y Gain, adjusting 608
edit format 39
luminance values 606
PICT resolution 621
R-Y Gain, adjusting 608
waveform values 181
Pan adjustment
ignoring 498
See also Audio Mix Tool
Parametric midrange in Audio EQ Tool 520
Pasting in the Timeline 426
Patching tracks 441
Pause button 344
Peak Hold option (Audio Tool) 167
Peak Hold pop-up menu (Audio Tool), defined

164
Phantom marks, using 386

694

using control track for 156
Preset buttons 176
Previewing digital cuts 617
Print command (File menu) 263
Print Timeline command (File menu) 453
Printing
bins 262
statistics 78
the Timeline 453
Pro Tools
transferring OMF files to
guidelines for 649
procedure for 651
Production paths for multicamera editing 574
Profile 76
Project Selection dialog box 35
Project settings, defined 62
Project window
bins display 48
closing 48
Info display, using 76
opening 48
Settings display, using 62
Projects
closing 42
converting 29
creating new 38
deleting 27
moving between systems 28
nesting in folders 39
opening 35, 41
relinking media files for 285
saving 42
selecting 38, 40
transferring 639, 664 to 666
Projects folder
See Composer Projects folder
Pull list
generating 39
Pulldown switch (Video Slave Driver) 133

PICT files
importing for custom countdown 621
importing for test pattern 605
of bars, importing 265
Picture tracks, monitoring 437
Play button 344
Play button (script window) 314
Play Calibration Tone command (Peak Hold
pop-up menu) 609
Playback
improving 394
loop, starting 394
loop, trim during 466
with audio scrub 482
Playback, controlling
with buttons 344
with position bars and indicator 343
with the keyboard 346
with the mouse 349
Playing
takes from the script window 314
Pop-up monitor
loading into 339
viewing in 337
Position bar 343, 408
Position indicator
in the Timeline 408
using 343
Postroll in trim mode playback loop 464
Precompute media files
deleting 275
Preparing
sequences for export 629
sequences for OMF export 642
shot log files
with MediaLog 112
with text editors 117
to digitize 132 to 184
Preroll
in Trim mode playback loop 464
logging 110
695

Reducing tracks in the Timeline 402
Relink command (Clip menu) 283
Relink dialog box 283
Relinking
See also Unlinking
consolidated clips 284
media files and clips 282
moved projects 285
to selected clips 284
Remove Pan/Vols command (Audio Mix Fast
menu) 497
Removing
add edits (match frames) 446
color indicators (script window) 316
off-screen indicators (script window) 315
text from the script window 301
Renaming bins 56
Renaming settings 69
Replace edits 385
Replacing Timeline and bin views 405
Reset Peak button (Audio Tool), defined 164
Resizing
slates in the script window 308
the Audio Tool 165
Resizing the Digitize Tool 201
Resolution pop-up menu (Digitize Tool) 148
Resolutions, mixed 214
Restore Default Patch command (Special menu)

Q
Quad menus 596
Quad Split display 587
Quad Split menu 595
QuickTime file format
and Media Composer codec 655
QuickTime file type
importing 215
Quitting the Avid Composer application 44

R
RAM
displaying
requirements for 83
Read Audio Timecode command (Special
menu) 222
Read Audio Timecode dialog box 222
Real time response, for Audio Gain Automation

502
Rearranging clips
in Frame mode bin display 259
in Script mode bin display 262
Record Deck Time option (Digital Cut Tool) 623
Record monitor, viewing in 336
Recording
digital cuts 621
to the Timeline 199
types of 614
Redigitizing
See also Digitizing, Batch digitizing
master clips and subclips 206
sequences
procedure 206
using decompose 207
Redo command (Edit menu) 383
Reduce Frame command (Edit menu) 259, 308
Reducing and enlarging
frames in the bin 259

441
Restoring
default settings 70
files from backup 43
Retrieve files 60
Reveal File command (File menu) 281
Reverse Match Frame 570
Reverse Selection command (Bin menu) 275
Review Transition button 458
Reviewing
trim edits 463
Rewind button 344
Right Arrow key 347
696

deleting 321
described 291, 316
moving 320
using for playback 320
using to find script 321
Script mode (bin display)
defined 229
in Media Tool 271
using 261
Script Mode button 261
Script window
adding color indicators to 316
adding page and scene numbers in 302
adding takes in 312
adjusting margins in 296
adjusting take lines in 314
changing font in 297
changing scene or page numbers in 303
cutting, copying, and pasting text in 300
deleting slates in 311
deleting takes in 312
displaying Clip Information from 295
displaying take numbers in 313
editing with 322
finding bins from 322
hiding slate frames in 309
indicating off-screen dialog in 315
linking clips to 306
loading takes from 314
moving slates in 310
navigating in 296
opening, closing, saving 295
playing takes from 314
removing text in 301
resizing slates in 308
screening and marking in 318
searching through 302 to 306
selecting slates in 308
selecting text in 298
splicing a range of script from 324

Rollers See Trim mode
Rough cut, creating in one step 381
Rubber-banding See Audio Gain Automation
R-Y gain adjustment 608

S
S/PDIF (Sony Phillips Digital Interface Format),
defined 163
Sample Plot in the Timeline 488
Save As command (Timeline View pop-up
menu) 404
Save Bin command (File menu) 59
Saving
bins 42, 59
custom bin views 248
projects 42
Timeline views 404
SC phase (hue), adjusting 607
Scanning for tapes 122
Scene and page numbers (script window)
adding 302
changing 303
deleting 304
searching for 305
Script box, in Script mode 262
Script integration
See also Scripts, Script window, Slates, Script
marks, Takes, Off-screen indicators,
Color indicators
described 290
elements of 291
for video projects 292
importing a script for 294
lining conventions in 288
workflow 291, 322
Script Mark button 318
Script marks
adding 317
adding during automatic screening 318
697

slates in the script window 308
sources in the bin 240
text in the script window 298
tracks
for audio scrub 483
for digitizing 147
in the Timeline 436
transitions for trimming 457
trim sides 460
unreferenced clips in the bin 241
Sequence Time option (Digital Cut Tool) 623
Sequences
adding comments 392
adding tracks to 376
consolidating 276
copying 235
deleting 235
duplicating 234
exporting 628
finding original bin for 364
making the first edit in 379
marking INs and OUTs in 351
moving 234
output options for 601
playback loop in 394
playback performance tips 394
playing 393
redigitizing
procedure 206, 208
saving two versions for 206
using Decompose 207
selecting 233
setting up 373
sifting 236
Serial digital
input 174
input, calibrating 176
output 603
Serial Ports command (Tools menu) 105, 625
Serial Ports Tool, specifying a controller in 105
Set Bin Display command (Bin menu) 226

Scripts
importing into script windows 294
linking clips to 306
Scroll bar/position bar in the Timeline 408
Scrubbing (audio) 482 to 486
Searching
for page and scene numbers in the script
window 305
in the script window 302 to 306
Segment effects, defined 434
Segment mode 416 to 426
deleting segments in 423
editing from a bin in 425
extracting/splicing in 422
four-frame display
described 420
suppressing 421
lifting/overwriting in 422
marking segments in 424
workflow 416
Segments
cutting, copying, and pasting 426
deleting 423
marking 352, 424
selecting 417
Select a Bin dialog box 54, 374
Select All Tracks command (Edit menu) 437
Select Files to Import dialog box 118, 217
Select Media Relatives command (Bin menu)

240
Select Offline Items command (Bin menu) 239
Select Sources command (Bin menu) 241
Select Tape dialog box 122
Select Unreferenced Clips command (Bin menu)

241
Selecting
clips and sequences 233
media relatives in the bin 240
offline items in the bin 239
projects 38
segments in the Timeline 417
698

with MediaLog 112
Shot logs See Shot log files
Show All Takes command (Script menu) 309
Show Every Frame command (Timeline Fast
menu) 430
Show Frames command (Script menu) 309
Show Track submenu (Timeline Fast menu) 430
Showing bin columns 245
Shutting down the system 44
Shuttling
with J-K-L keys 346
with the mouse 349
with the MUI 366
Sifting clips and sequences 236
Single mark editing 386
Single Mark Editing option (Composer settings)

Set Calibration Tone command (Peak Hold popup menu) 609
Set Color command (Edit menu) 258
Set Font command (Edit menu) 231, 297
Set Level commands (Audio Mix Fast menu)

497
Set Pan commands (Audio Mix Fast menu) 497
Set Reference Level command (Peak Hold popup menu) 166
Setting
audio pan defaults 224
the bin display 226
Settings
basic 63
bin 64
default, restoring 70
defining 63
deleting 70
displaying 62 to 74
duplicating 69
general 64
global export 627
global import 215
interface 64
location of 32
modifying 67
moving between settings files 71
moving between systems 74
multiple, working with 68
overview of 62
renaming 69
site
defined 62
using 75
Shot log files
Avid Log file specifications 117
converting with Avid Log Exchange 114
exporting 130
importing 118
preparing
text editors for 117

386
Single track monitoring 439
Single-field step 348
Site settings
defined 62
using 75
Slash icon in Track Selector panel 442
Slates (script integration)
creating 307
deleting 311
described 291
hiding frames in 309
moving 310
resizing 308
selecting 308
showing one take in 309
Slipping and sliding shots
in Source/Record mode 472
in Trim mode 468
Small Trim mode 455
toggling with Big Trim mode 459
Smooth audio scrub
compared to digital scrub 482
performing 483

699

Statistics folder 78
Steenbeck controller
assigning port for 105
specifying 106
Stepping
by single-field 348
with buttons 345
with J-K-L keys 346
with mouse 349
Storage
devices for transferring media 666
guidelines for multicamera 579
Storyboard
worksheet 268
Storyboard editing
from the script window 324
Striping record tapes 614
Subclip button 354
Subclip status (Digitize Tool) 189
Subclipping on-the-fly 189
Subclips
consolidating 276
copying 235
creating 353
creating during digitizing 189
deleting 235
duplicating 234
handle 353
locating master clip from 364
moving 234
redigitizing 205, 206
selecting 233
sifting 236
Supporting Files folder, defined 32
Switching multicamera shots 592
Sync
See also Genlock options
autosyncing 555
ganging footage in monitors 568
maintaining
with Add Edit 566

SMPTE
bars 606
SMPTE timecode, formats for entering 360
Snapping to transitions in Timeline 414
Solo track monitoring 439
Sony/Phillips Digital Interface Format (S/
PDIF), defined 163
Sorting
clips 257
columns, multilevel 257
Source clips
finding with Match Frame 571
Source frames, finding 365
Source material
displaying in Timeline 413
loading into monitors 339
Source monitor, viewing in 336
Source/Record mode
customizing window settings 327
entering 373
first edits in 372 to 393
slipping shots in 472
Source/Record toggle button (Timeline) 413
Source/Record window
changing background color 328
customizing settings 328
Sources, selecting in the bin 240
SPE
See Sync Point Editing
Splice-in edit 383
Splicing a range of script 324
Split edit (Overlap edit) 467
Spreadsheet, for reporting statistics 82
Statistics
displaying usage 77
file structure and layout 79
imported into a spreadsheet 82
printing 78
sample file 79
viewing 77
Statistics bin view, defined 243
700

with leader 563
with locators 565
with sync lock 562
maintaining during trim 473
pop-up menu (Audio Setup display) 162
sync-locked tracks, trimming with 474
using Match Frame 569
Sync breaks
displaying 559
fixing 561
Sync Breaks command (Timeline Fast menu)

Test patterns
See Also Bars and tone
importing 265
importing new 605
video 605
Text editors for Avid logs 117
Text in the script window
changing font of 297
cutting, copying and pasting 300
linking clips to 306
removing 301
searching through 302 to 306
selecting 298
Text mode (bin display)
defined 228
in Media Tool 271
using 242 to 257
Text Mode button 242
Text search
in the script window 305
Text, adding in Script mode 262
Three-button play (J-K-L keys) 346
Three-point editing, with phantom marks 386
Tidy Up Columns command (Bin menu) 245,

560
Sync Point Editing (SPE) 567
Sync-locked tracks 562
Sync-locking tracks in the Timeline 443
System information displayed 102

T
Takes (script integration)
adding 312
adjusting lines in 314
applying color indicators to 316
applying off-screen indicators to 315
changing representative frame for 313
deleting 312
described 291
displaying numbers for 313
loading 314
loading from script marks 320
playing 314
removing color indicators from 316
removing off-screen indicators from 315
showing one per slate 309
Tape deck See Videotape deck
Tape drive, backing up on 42
Tape name, finding 122
Tapes See Videotape, Audiotape
Target bin, choosing 149
Target Drive pop-up menu 150

260
Tidying up
columns in a bin 244
frames in a bin 260
Timecode
breaks in, digitizing across 196, 201
display options 334
displayed 331
finding frames with 360
setting muliple displays 335
SMPTE standard, formats for entering 360
timecode-of-day, digitizing with 198
Timecode option
displaying tracking information 335
Timecode window 334
Timeline
See also Segment mode
701

working with multiple tracks in 434 to 449
zooming in and out of 411
Timeline Settings window
accessing 408
Timeline View pop-up menu 404
Time-remaining display (Digitize Tool) 151
Tips
logging 109
playback performance 394, 394
storage 579
Tone
creating media for 172
recording to tape 615
Tools
Audio 163
Audio EQ 518
Audio Mix 490
Calculator 100
Compression 143
Console 103
Deck Controller 91
Digitize 144
Hardware 103
Serial Ports 105
Video Input 174
Video Output 602
Tools menu, using 89
Track Selector panel
user preferences for 377
using 435 to 443
Tracking color frame shifts 451
Tracking information, displaying 329 to 332
Tracks
adding 376, 443
audio, mixing down 553
deleting
in Segment mode 444
with Media Tool 273
enlarging and reducing 402
ganging in the Audio Mix Tool 498
locking 442

adding new tracks 443
changing background color in 403
controlling movement in 414
creating a view 404
customizing 401
deleting tracks in 444
digitizing to 199
displaying detail in 409, 410
dupe detection in 449
editing with film track 429
Fast menu 401
finding clip text in 362
first edit displayed in 380
focusing 412
full-screen view 426
Heads (and Tails) view 432
IN to OUT highlighting in 415
locking tracks in 442
monitoring tracks in 437
motion mode indicator 414
nesting 435
patching tracks 441
position indicator 408
printing 453
recording to 199
removing add edits in 446
resizing 427
saving 404
scale bar 410
scroll bar/position bar 408
segment mode editing in 414
setting the scroll option 408
source material, displaying 413
Track Selector panel 435 to 443
using 398
view
customizing 399
examples of 399
replacing 405
restoring default 407
viewing in 338
702

managing sync in 562
monitoring 437
moving in the Timeline 403
number supported 434
patching 441
preferences for creating and enabling 377
selecting 436
for digitizing 147
selecting for audio scrub 483
sync-locked, trimming with 474
sync-locking 443
Transferring a video sequence to AudioVision

sides, selecting 460
slip and slide
procedures 468
with sync-locked tracks 474
Trim mode
basic procedures in 457 to 464
Big Trim mode
toggling with Small Trim mode 459
customizing 456
defined 454
entering 457
exiting 459
Play Transition Loop parameters in 464
selecting
several transitions in 460
single transitions in 457
trim sides in 460
Small Trim mode
toggling with Big Trim mode 459
using Transition Corner Display 476
Trim pots, adjusting 170
Trimming See Trim mode, Trim
Trimming two heads or tails 461
Turning off the system 45
Turnover points in Audio EQ Tool 519
Two-channel audio board systems
adjusting audio input levels 171
adjusting output on 612
set input level in 169
Two-channel board systems
slot number, in Audio Setup display 162

645
Transferring bins
with MediaLog for Macintosh 113
with MediaLog for PC 114
Transferring files 639, 666 to 666
OMF to AudioVision
compatibility issues 643
guidelines for 644
OMF to Pro Tools
guidelines for 649
procedure for 651
Transferring media
between systems
compatibility requirements 664
methods for 664
procedure for 665
storage devices for 666
with AvidNet 666
Transition Effects, defined 434
Transitions
audio, fine-tuning 549
selecting for trimming 457
selecting several for trimming 460
Trim
adding filler during 473
during a playback loop 466
edits, reviewing 463
maintaining sync during 473
on-the-fly 465

U
U-matic 3/4-inch videotape See Videotape
Unattended batch digitizing
See also Batch digitizing, Digitizing,
Redigitizing
setting up for 201
Undo command (Edit menu) 383
703

Undoing and redoing edits 382
UNIX systems, and file transfer 667
Unlinking media files 286
Unlock Bin Selection command (Clip menu)

Fast Forward 344
Find Bin 364
Find Frame 365
Find Script 321
Go to Next Edit 458
Go to Previous Edit 458
jog 345
Lift 388
Lift/Overwrite (Segment mode) 422
Make Subclip 353
mapping 96, 97
Mark Clip 352
Mark IN 351
Mark OUT 351
Match Frame 363
Mouse Jog 349
Mouse Shuttle 349
Mute 489
Pause 344
Play 344
Play Loop 463
Replace 385
Review Transition 458
Rewind button 344
Script Mark 318
Slip Left, Right 472
Splice 380
Stop 344
Trim A-side 460
Trim B-side 460
Trim mode 457
Utilities folder 25

239
Unlock Tracks command (Clip menu) 443
Unreferenced clips
deleting 275
selecting in the bin 241
Usage
displaying 77
User
identifying 36
selecting another 66
selecting existing 37
setting up 36
User Bits in LTC, reading 223
User profile
adding 28
creating new 26, 36
deleting 27
moving between systems 28
User settings
defined 62
opening a project with 41
selecting a user from 66
User-selectable buttons
See also Buttons
See also Buttons
Add Dissolve 550
Add Edit 445, 549
Add Locator 356
Clear IN 352
Clear Marks 352
Clear OUT 352
Copy to Clipboard 389
Cycle/Picture Sound 437
Cycling Trim Sides 460
Extend 467
Extract 388
Extract/Splice-in (Segment mode) 422

V
Vantage text editor 118
Variable-speed play See Playback
Vectorscope
monitor, substitute for 605, 607
using 181
704

Avid-controlled, logging with 121
non-Avid-controlled, logging with 124
View
Heads and Tails, in the Timeline 432
View Name dialog box (bin) 249
View name dialog box (Timeline) 405
View Type command (Timeline Fast menu) 432
View, Timeline
customizing 399
replacing 405
saving 404
Viewing in monitors 336
VITC (vertical interval timecode)
decoding with Media Reader 188
Volume
adjusting while playing an effect 499
Volume adjustments
ignoring 498
in Audio Mix Tool 492
Volume meters
in the Audio Tool, defined 165
in the Timeline 503
VTR Emulation command (Special menu) 625
VTR Emulation pop-up menu 625
VTR play emulation 624
VTR See Videotape deck
VU (volume unit) scale (Audio Tool), defined

Vertical interval timecode See VITC
VHS tape, digitizing from 614
Video
advanced, calibrating 604
input
calibration 177
preparing for 174 to 184
leader
creating 266
using to maintain sync 563
levels, adjusting by eye 184
number of tracks supported 434
output, calibrating 602, 608
test patterns 605
tracks, monitoring 437
Video Input pop-up menu (Video Input tool)

178
Video Input Tool
Line Selector slider 180
saving settings 182
vectorscope 181
waveform monitor 179
Video Input Tool command (Tools menu) 174
Video mixdown 629
Video Output Tool
less options display 602
more options display 604
Video Output Tool command (Tools menu) 602
Video Slave Driver See Digidesign hardware
Video solo feature 439
Videotape
classification schemes for multicamera
editing 573
digitizing bars and tone from 265
naming guidelines 111
preparing for output 614
recording digital cut to 621
recording to 614
striping requirements 614
supported formats 175
Videotape deck

165

W
Waveform monitor
calibrating input with 179
calibrating output with 605
Waveform plots (audio) 487
Wide screen (16 x 9) display option 329
Wide-screen format (16 x 9) 133
Window zoom box 338
With outpoint set option 135

705

X
Xinet K-AShare 667

Z
Zoom Back command (Timeline Fast menu) 411
Zoom box 338
Zoom In command (Timeline Fast menu) 411

706

Source Exif Data:

File Type                       : PDF
File Type Extension             : pdf
MIME Type                       : application/pdf
PDF Version                     : 1.2
Linearized                      : Yes
Create Date                     : 1998:02:05 14:08:35
Producer                        : Acrobat Distiller 3.0 for Power Macintosh
Author                          : 
Title                           : Media Composer User's Guide
Creator                         : FrameMaker 5.1
Modify Date                     : 1998:02:10 21:27:52
Page Count                      : 706
Page Mode                       : UseOutlines

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Avid Media Composer User's Guide 7.0 User’s MC Ug

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