HELP! Capture problem AGAIN never solved

My camera im using is the Sony Hc1-E model, and the footage i recorded was done in DV format, so i have it set to DV format during playback. I have Capture settings set to NTSC Basic fire-wire 48 KHZ using the easy setup, the is the most obvious to me since Sony is Jap, and NTSC is for Asia products.


I manage to get a preview in the log and capture window, when i press Capture now, the black capture window appears, I press play on the cam corder, and for 3 seconds the footage is captured before encountering this error


"Capture encountered a problem reading the data on your source tape. This could be due to a problem with the tape. Capture has been aborted and your clip has been saved"

Now u guys told me to get my capture settings right.. NOw i am tellin you.. I HAVE TRIED EVERY SINGLE OPTION UNDER EASY SETUP, and I STILL encounter the same thing. I've tried DVC pro yadayda... Pal firewire etc etc all the way to MPeg and uncompressed footage.. Nothin works. I think my capture settings are fine. Its the freakin error that impedes capture.

I have tried other tapes, even new ones, so it cannot be the tapes. WTF!?

Now i can capture my footage in 3 second bursts! COOL! Am i gonna do that for the remaining 190 minutes?!?!

Pls help~!

Also one more query.. looks like FCP SUX for capturing. So i'll have to use I movie to capture.. then transfer it to FCP. Will i lose picture quality if i do this? Also, how the hell do i remove the automatic "Black strips" which cover the top and bottom of the clips in I movie... how the heck do i turn that option off?

im gonna try capturing the same tape on a diff camera. Wish me luck.


Also one more thing i forgot to mention. LOL.. when i had a tape done in HDV 1080 i format done on my Hc1-E. I seemed to have no problems capturing it [once i Easy Setupped it to one of the 1080i selections].. So wtf... does that mean FCp is only Hi-def-friendly?!

nope. tried my other cameras, no use. Same thing.

*Face silouetted at the moon SCREAMING*

GARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!

Have you tried capturing the footage with the camera set as an uncontrollable device and assigning the time code to the clip after you have it in your bin?

RSD

Whoa. Hang on. Count to ten there real sssslllloowww.

First off, if your rig is in good shape, your software is installed properly and your gear is connected properly with good cables, then you shouldn't be having any problems whatsoever. However, it's not just a matter of plug and play but rather of getting the setup right, understanding exactly what you're trying to do, and what steps to take to get you there. What you're asking is pretty basic stuff, and is covered in the manuall quite clearly. Have you been through the sections on logging and capturing yet, step by step? What part of that don't you get?

Otherwise, a couple more questions:

1. So you shot with the HC1-E. How exactly is the camera connected to your Mac?

2. What do you want to capture and edit in? DV? HDV?

3. Why are you using Capture Now and not Firewire?

4. What system settings are you using i.e. what device are you capturing to? Internal drive? External drive? If external, what type and what connections?

5. What version of FCP are you using and on what machine and with what OS version?

Clay

I think you may be missing some basic knowledge about the capturing process.

> My camera im using is the Sony Hc1-E model, and the footage i recorded
> was done in DV format, so i have it set to DV format during playback. I have
> Capture settings set to NTSC Basic fire-wire 48 KHZ using the easy setup,
> the is the most obvious to me since Sony is Jap, and NTSC is for Asia
> products.

The brand of a camera -- and that brand's location of origin -- has nothing to do with what format it's on. Who shot the footage? When in doubt, ask the shooter. It's not easy to confuse formats anyway -- playing back PAL footage on an NTSC device will not give you anything even close to a usable result.

> "Capture encountered a problem reading the data on your source tape. This
> could be due to a problem with the tape. Capture has been aborted and your
> clip has been saved"

This is often due to a dirty head or other mechanical problems on the camera that had produced the footage. Or distress to the tape after it's been used. In my observation, this problem is almost unfixable. The footage was shot on regular 29.97fps DV, right? Try redubbing the tape DV to DV over FireWire to a new tape, writing a new timecode and new data.

> Now u guys told me to get my capture settings right.. Now i am tellin you.. I
> HAVE TRIED EVERY SINGLE OPTION UNDER EASY SETUP

Find the right setting and just stick with it. If you shot on DV on a Sony camera, then use a DV NTSC setup. I don't recommend relying solely on Easy Setup because you need to know what settings you used, rather than let the application reset everything without your knowledge. Go into Audio/Video Settings and look at the actual settings, learn what you're using, and remember it. Don't just go down the list of Easy Setups blindly -- you may create more problems than you solve.

> I have tried other tapes, even new ones, so it cannot be the tapes. WTF!?

Just because one tape of footage works doesn't mean another will. The same camera shooting on the same day using the same brand of tape stock could produce one tape that plays back fine, and another that doesn't.

> Also one more query.. looks like FCP SUX for capturing. So i'll have to use I
> movie to capture.. then transfer it to FCP. Will i lose picture quality

Well, everybody who runs FCP has to capture at one point or another, and most of us do it every day with no problems, so I think you're jumping to conclusions here. Get somebody with good FCP experience to walk you through logging and capturing. Once you have more experience, these issues won't seem so mystifying.

having any problems whatsoever. However, it's not just a matter of plug and play but rather of getting the setup right, understanding exactly what you're trying to do, and what steps to take to get you there. What you're asking is pretty basic stuff, and is covered in the manuall quite clearly. Have you been through the sections on logging and capturing yet, step by step? What part of that don't you get?

Hi Clay. What i am trying to do, is to capture footage from my tape into FCP so that i can edit it. I know how to do it: Put the tape into the camera, plug in a firewire cable to the G5 and connect it to the Camera. Get "setup" right, go to file, log and capture, and either log clips and batch capture it or capture the entire tape by pressing "capture now". I am not that dumb. Im just getting a stupid error.

Otherwise, a couple more questions:

1. So you shot with the HC1-E. How exactly is the camera connected to your Mac?

Via this grey fire-wire cable, it goes into the lower-most socket at the front of the mac, the one with the funny Y symbol, 1394 firewire port i think it's called.

2. What do you want to capture and edit in? DV? HDV?

DV. I shot the footage in DV, and the camera will only allow me to play it back in DV, so i can capture it into FCp only in DV.

3. Why are you using Capture Now and not Firewire?

*stiffmeister* WTF?? There's only a few ways to capture footage isn't there? 1. Capture clip, (capturing 1 single clip), 2. Capture now (just leave the thing running and FCP records the entire thing as it runs. 3. Batch capture (where u log multiple clips, and FCP automatically records what u select).

ALL these methods involve connecting your camera to your G5 with a firewire cable.

4. What system settings are you using i.e. what device are you capturing to? Internal drive? External drive? If external, what type and what connections?

Im capturing to a 2nd internal drive on my G5. System settings? Ok let's see what i can find. voila:

Scratch disc tab:

Video capture, Audio capture, Video render and Audio render are all checked for my 2nd internal SATA drive.

I have never tampered with waveform cache, thumbnail cche or the autosave vault.

Minimum allowable free space on scratch disks 2047 mb (default)
Limit capture/export file segment size to 2000 mb (box unchecked)
Limit capture Now to 65 minutes (box checked)

Search folders tab:

Empty

Memory & cache tab:

Memory usage
Application 100% (1827 MB)
Still Cache 37% (620 MB)

Thumbnail cache
Disk 8192 K
RAM 800 K

Playback Control
RT unlimited
Video Quality Dynamic
Frame Rate Dynamic
Pulldown pattern 2:3:2:3 (whatever that is)
Gamma correction Approximate
Frame offset 4

(All boxes on the right are checked)

Record
Use playback settings

External Editors tab:

Still image files : None
Video files: None
Audio Files: Macintosh HD Soundtrack pro.app

Effect Handling:
All effects handled by FCP

I doubt any of this will help? But these are my system settings.


5. What version of FCP are you using and on what machine and with what OS version?

I have FCP version 5.0.1 On my leet Power G5 Quad Core.
OS X version 10.4.2


With this infomation, can u help fix my problem?

Hi Derek. Well, i shot the footage. I've been fiddling around with my HC1E, and i can't find any settin for "format" other than "DV" or "HDV", there is nothing else, nothin like NTSC or PAL or anything like that. So it is quite primitive.


> "Capture encountered a problem reading the data on your source tape. This
> could be due to a problem with the tape. Capture has been aborted and your
> clip has been saved"

This is often due to a dirty head or other mechanical problems on the camera that had produced the footage. Or distress to the tape after it's been used. In my observation, this problem is almost unfixable. The footage was shot on regular 29.97fps DV, right? Try redubbing the tape DV to DV over FireWire to a new tape, writing a new timecode and new data.

Hey Derek, it can't be mechanical problems of the Cam corder, coz I just managed to capture HDV footage today from a tape I shot last year. But i can't capture other DV stuff, including some random test footage i just shot today. Furthermore, all the tapes playback fine on the camcorder and the tape head is clean.


"
Find the right setting and just stick with it. If you shot on DV on a Sony camera, then use a DV NTSC setup. I don't recommend relying solely on Easy Setup because you need to know what settings you used, rather than let the application reset everything without your knowledge. Go into Audio/Video Settings and look at the actual settings, learn what you're using, and remember it. Don't just go down the list of Easy Setups blindly -- you may create more problems than you solve."

Well.. hmmm. I can't remember the time when it worked properly.. last year?? LOLZ.. so i have no idea which settings i used. I think everything started getting screwed up after i captured some HDV footage, eversince i've been having this probleM./


Im situated in Singapore, it's hard to find local people willing to help out with FCP issues, it's nearly non-existent here. Most ppl don't respond or they tell u to shut up. The UK group i had back home along with this LAFCPUG is a much more friendly atmosphere. But i'll try.

Thanks Derek.

im considering reinstalling FCP.

Hey guys, is there procedure for completely Re-setting FCP to default settings when u 1st install it?


sorry for being a pain. Hope someone can help.

DV is about the simplest of formats to capture and edit. The question here is whether or not the data on the tape is good?

If you put the tape in the camera and set it to VCR mode, can it play back correctly, in camera? If, so, then is you problem - timecode breaks which may be causing your copy of FCP to choke?

I see that you have a Quad G5 with FCP 5.01 - so this version of FCP should know about the camera. There is no "reset" of the software, as such.

When you open Log and Capture - does the bottom of the window say VCR OK! ??. If it does, it thinks the tape mechanism is connected correctly. You should then be able to click the PLAY button on that window and watch the frames go by.

Good to post all that info. It makes it a lot easier for people who are trying to help. All appears to be well, and from what you've described so far, it doesn't sound like FCP is the culprit here, so don't do a re-install just yet.

Can you absolutely rule out anything wrong with the camera or the tape?:

Does your tape play back in the camera properly?

Do you have the camera set to output DV and not HDV? I'm not familiar with the Hc1-E, but do know that you have to set the playback to DV in the iLink convert menus.

Clay

Have you tried using the BACK firewire port on the G5 yet?

You said you were using the front port. The front FW port has been reported to give some people problems.

deb

There is a "reset" of FCP available, and it's called "trash your preferences". Worth trying.

Scott

I had a similar problem, getting the same error message, and tried everything but nothing worked. I did all the suggestions above, checked settings, trashed preferences, tried other cameras & decks, replaced cables, took my deck in for maintenance, etc. I ended up capturing all my footage in small chunks and it was a very tedious process. The next project I worked on, everything worked fine. The best I can figure is that there was some sort of timecode problem on the tapes - the problem was in the camera recording process. Of course I used the same camera on my next project with the same brand of tapes and it worked fine. Bad electrons, I guess.

thanks clay and joe.

No it's not my camera. It can playback tapes PERFECTLY fine, no scratches or fuzzyiness.

When i connect my camera to my G5, the VCR selection reads Ok. I am able to play the camera in Final cut pro.


The only problem is that i get this error whenever i try and capture, it captures for 3 seconds and then stops with the error messages.

OMG TIM!! YOU ACTuALLY captured the footage in 3 second bursts!!

*Stifler*: HAHAAHAHAHAHAHA.
(*bites his words coz he might actually have to do that)

Okay deb.. gonna try the Posterior port.

Look guys. I think it's SERIOUSLY some FCP glitch. Deb it didn't work.. my G5's ass slot aint any better.

Coz get this:

I can capture stuff PERFECTlY in I movie. No PROBLEMS.

So why can't i do it in FCP!!??!!?

Coz if i import the clip from Imovie into FCP, i lose quality right?:

Alright After trashing my preferences.. things have gotten WEIRDER.

Right, i restored everything to default. Including this thing in the USer Preferences; the boxes called

"Abort ETT/PTV on dropped frames"
"Abort Capture on dropped frames"

were checked. So i tried capturing. Now the error i got was

"Dropped frames were detected during the last capture attempt"

And nothing was captured.

When i had those 2 boxes UNCHECKED.

Then i got the error message I mentioned at the top of this thread.

So what the hell!?? FCP preferences is all about choosing which Errors you prefer to get LOLZ


Why do i get dropped frames?

I shot this footage myself, and it runs smoothly for at least 35 minutes with no stops or breaks. So why do i still get dropped frames?

Wicked check this:

[beale.best.vwh.net]


sounds like FCP HD is the problem, which is what i got i thiNk.. Coz i bought the Final Cut studio entire pack;

> And nothing was captured.
> When i had those 2 boxes UNCHECKED.
> Then i got the error message I mentioned at the top of this thread.

FCP *is* sensitive to timecode breaks, but as I wrote several responses ago, the problem is most likely with those specific tapes. Some tapes, even shot by cameras that don't have this problem regularly, have sections of bad data that can't be read by FCP.

Did you try what I originally suggested -- dubbing the tape DV-to-DV and then capturing from the new master?

And Chaar, try not to rant. Though you may simply be mad at Final Cut Pro, or your own computer, it sometimes comes off as you yelling at other people who are basically volunteers spending time to try to help you figure out the issue. Try to chill.

Hey all.

A couple of thoughts. One: Rebuild your systems disc permissions. Applications/utilities/disk utilities. This should be done regularly

Second: In FCP general preferences have you unchecked the box that makes FCP abort capture on dropped frames?

Third: This is a camera thing. always use the same brand of tapes in your camera. No switching allowed.

Fourth: You can always pre-stripe your tapes next time.

Best
Chet Simmons
Las Vegas