mts file to FCP?

Hello,
I recently bought a Panasonic HDC-TM700 video camera. Does anyone know the best and simplest way to convert the .mts files to something FCP can open without any loss of quality.
I was shooting at 50 fps. HA1920.

My computer and FCP are a bit old but still do the business.
Power PC, memory 2.5gb.
OS 10.4.11
FCP HD 4.5

I saw this recommended on a forum last year, is it still good.
Aunsoft MTS/M2TS Converter for Mac.


Any help much appreciated.

I'll use Clipwrap. Comes with a free trial to let you test if it works for you and doesn't indulge in spam tactics like the software you mentioned.

[www.divergentmedia.com]

I'm not sure if FCP supports 1080p50.



www.strypesinpost.com

Hi Strypes,

Thanks for the help. I just emailed the guy at Clipwrap who was most helpful.
The software works with my specs but doesn't do framerate conversions.
I don't think I can bring this into FCP 4.5 at 50 fps.

Does this mean upgrading.

cheers

No, but once you've ripped it you can use QT pro to convert to whatever frame rate you need.

All the best,

Tom

Thanks Tom,

Using Quicktime could be a way round this for me.

Would I lose any quality though and what would give me the best results to bring into FCP4.5, there is a choice in QT Export for either QT Movie or mpeg2, mpeg 4 or .avi file.

Cheers

> Would I lose any quality though and what would give me the best results to
> bring into FCP4.5, there is a choice in QT Export for either QT Movie or
> mpeg2, mpeg 4 or .avi file.

You will lose quality because you'll be transcoding more times using more steps.

Also, you don't seem to understand video formats too well. The options you've outlined above are two lossy delivery formats (MPEG-2, MPEG-4), one antiquated PC format not compatible with Final Cut Pro (AVI), or a broad wrapper format (QuickTime movie) that doesn't tell you anything about the settings you're using at all.

First things first: You're using a pretty old editing system. Final Cut Pro 4.5 can only handle one HD codec: DVCPro HD. And I'm not sure it has all the flavours of DVCPro HD available, either. If you really need to edit on that system, you need to look up what HD formats will work on it. Chances are you'll need to use DVCPro HD.

If you had only updated to at least FCP5 at some point, you would have had access to more formats such as Apple Intermediate Codec, or better yet, FCP6 with ProRes 422 and ProRes 422 HQ. At this point, it's not easy to find a way to upgrade your system to the highest PowerPC version available (FCP6).

If you're serious about shooting with an AVCHD camera, I suggest you look into buying a system that can handle it. And this is not a good time to be buying a system, with the whole FCPX debacle going on, uncertainty in the Avid and Adobe camps, and with FCP7 an end-of-life product. You can still buy FCP7, but you still have to deal with the whole Snow Leopard vs. Lion issue. I managed to sneak by the OS issue by ordering an FCP7-equipped MacBook Pro and still being able to get Snow Leopard with it, but that was two months ago. But if you suspect you'll still find FCP7 useful for some time and want to buy it, you need to move soon; it will not be available indefinitely, and the longer you wait, the poorer the investment is, since Apple has no intention of continuing to support and develop FCP7.


www.derekmok.com

Hello Derekmok.

You're correct, my knowledge of video formats is on the lite side but I'm always happy to learn.

I noticed on the Clipwrap site what the conversion program doesn't actually transcode, i quote;

"How long does it take to re-wrap a file?
While wrapping a file, ClipWrap doesn't alter the video data in any way and the speed of conversion is nearly as fast as a file copy.
Does ClipWrap maintain the original timecode?
Yes. The original video data of the camera acquired clip remains intact. ClipWrap simply places this video data within a QuickTime container so it can be read natively in any QuickTime-compatible application.
Does ClipWrap transcode the footage?
Not by default. In addition to re-wrapping, ClipWrap 1.1 now also supports transcoding. You can transcode your HDV footage into Apple ProRes, Apple Intermediate Codec, DVCProHD, or Avid's DNxHD. You can also down convert to DV."

As I am restricted somewhat by costs, I think maybe the best thing for me would be to get hold of FCP6 with ProRes 422 to ensure I don't lose any quality as I wouldn't then need to use QT.

Cheers again everyone

ptptpt Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I noticed on the Clipwrap site what the conversion
> program doesn't actually transcode

Clipwrap will either rewrap or transcode.

Like you I'm working on an old PPC G5, but running FCP6. To bring in AVCHD .mts files I transcode them to Prores 422 with Clipwrap. This is a process that takes some time - like 5x as long - ie one hour of footage takes 5 hours to transcode. .m2t files, on the other hand only need to be rewrapped. And Clipwrap does this at 5x normal speed - ie one hour of footage will rewrap in about 12 minutes.

The Clipwrap manual explains all this.

Good luck !

Mike

I have the same Panasonic camera and Clipwrap failed to convert approximately 2% of its .mts files. Clipwrap's developers attributed this to a combination of quirks in the camera and limitations in QuickTime which Clipwrap uses to decode the .mts files. Happily, the problem appears to have been solved in the just-released version 2.4.3. It will no longer be necessary to use slow VoltaicHD to convert the Panasonic clips that Clipwrap can't.

Dennis Couzin
Berlin, Germany

ClipWrap seconded! Rewrap and transcode in one step, including generating PCM audio at 48K. Simple, and faster on newer hardware.

- Loren

Today's FCP 7 keytip:
Summon your Video Scopes with Option - 9 !

Your Final Cut Studio KeyGuide? Power Pack
with FCP7 KeyGuide --
now available at KeyGuide Central.
www.neotrondesign.com

But ChipWrap's codecs limitation discussed last month isn't solved in new version 2.4.3.

Dennis Couzin
Berlin, Germany

Limitations... Not sure how many guys in practice use uncompressed..



www.strypesinpost.com

> Not sure how many guys in practice use uncompressed.

I tried convincing one producer to use ProRes (4444, I think?) rather than Uncompressed 10-bit HD for a job involving an FX artist overseas...got turned down three times. Of course, they ended up having to go my way anyway after the Uncompressed raw clips failed to upload after days of repeated attempts (not to mention hoarding the office's internet bandwidth). Luckily I had uploaded the ProRes versions first as a contingency, so we still met the deadline. But it seems Uncompressed is still very much non-negotiable for some people.


www.derekmok.com

For graphics. I'll use animation or png sequences usually.. But for actual footage, usually RED would be offline/online, with final master in ProRes HQ, as with all other masters.

I have yet to see a long form project aside from features, finished in uncompressed...



www.strypesinpost.com

I think uncompressed is largely a tool for heavy iron and light deadlines ;-)

- Loren

Today's FCP keytip:
Set a motion effect keyframe instantly with Control-K!

Your Final Cut Studio KeyGuide? Power Pack.
Now available at KeyGuide Central.
www.neotrondesign.com

We recently had a Beta SP tape digitized and chose 10-bit uncompressed 4:2:2 over ProRes HQ 4:2:2. I like ProRes HQ and doubt I could have seen a difference between it and the uncompressed. ProRes would have saved 240GB of disk space for this 50 minute video. The reason for choosing the uncompressed codec in this case was its archival value.

ProRes is almost exclusively an Apple codec and I don't trust Apple's actions even four years into the future. "v210", 10-bit uncompressed 4:2:2, is also an Apple developed (or perfected) codec, but so simple and transparent that it will be readable for a long long time. The most junior programmer can open a v210 file and convert it to whatever is needed.

Archival value could be someone's reason for transcoding .mts files to an uncompressed codec. Note that ClipWrap doesn't exclude just the uncompressed codecs from its encoding options. It excludes most of the codec choices offered by FCP or Compressor. It would be trivial for ClipWrap to undo this dumbdown of their cute program.

Dennis Couzin
Berlin, Germany

pending any other advice and admittedly i haven't read through the other recommendations, but i used the Aunsoft MTS/M2TS Converter for Mac and it converted my 6.3hrs of mts files to accurately, quickly and with no problems at all for editing in FCP.

Bluey,

Aunsoft Converter is spamware.


www.derekmok.com

Whatever the label it was cheap, it worked, and quickly converted all my mts files into ProRes422 with . . . no problems what so ever, for the documentary/art film i cut in FCP. I'm not promoting the software, just forwarding my experience with it - which is as stated.

Granted my project wasn't finished at Industrial Light and Magic, but hey.

Bluey,