How to sync my dvx's timecode to my laptop

Tim Young

Tim Young

Active member
Hi guys - i'm sorry if this is an often covered topic. i searched awhile and couldn't find anything on it. i know that 2 dvxs can somehow use their firewire ports to sync up to each other, for multi camera shoots. is there a way to sync the time-of-day on my computer to the time on my dvx? i'm trying to use my apple laptop and the software boom recorder to record separate sound, and i'm trying to figure out how broadcast wav files work. my understanding is that it's possible to include time-of-day timecode in the wave file so that the waves can be linked up to footage shot at that time of day in final cut pro, eliminating the need to go back and sync everything manually. do i understand this right? if so, how do i sync the times on my dvx and macbook so i can do this? thanks!
 
you cant take tc out of the camera or jam the dvx to ext device
what you can do is to run the dvx in freerun mode
get external generator and run it to boom recorder
slate every hour or every time you change the battery
then syncronixze the shotes on time line between the slates

you can use smart slate be the master clock for boom recorder and be shown in the frame for visual sync if something goes wrong ( free run mode that could be time of day for easy finding the shotes)
very simple
 
What Oleg said about jamming Boom Recorder from a DVX/HVX - it cannot be done.

As far as using a TC slate (smart slate) goes, I have been saying for a while that it makes for a good backup, and now I have a situation where it has been invaluable.

The last shoot I was on did not have a scripty, and as a result I was calling the scenes and takes (don't ask why it fell on me...). Well, the AC that was operating the slate was not keeping up well, and there was all sorts of confusion on the slate. The editor called me to see if I could help straighten it out. We were able to use the TC on the slate to get the files aligned correctly. Without the TC on the slate, the poor editor would have had to listen to all of my files to try to find the match.

And, I also want to mention, the sound reports that Boom Recorder automatically generates also helped save the day. I could quickly and easily spot the discrepencies and show the editor how to resolve them via the report.

So, the message here is this. Slate every take. You don't "have to", but the time it takes is minimal compared to the time it might take to solve other problems down the road.

Phil
 
What they said...but BTW I believe it's only the HVX that has that "jam to other Pannys via firewire" feature. I could be wrong but I don't think I am.

Corrections accepted :)
 
thanks for the info, guys. my camera is a dvx100b. so i'm very new to this, as up to this point we've been going directly in to the camera for sound. i have a macbook and an m-audio firewire 410 firewire soundcard, though, and i've done some voiceovers with it using boom recorder and it sounds better and quieter to me than the on-camera sound, so i want to try it for separate sound. so what would i need to be able to do this? is the smart slate also the timecode generator or are they different? which one would you recommend i look at on a fairly tight budget? are there any good resources to read about how to do this (and how to go about lining up the broadcast waves in post)? again, thanks for the help guys.
 
you dont meed tc slate at all , hands claps are good as well if you can find tc generator
check the horita tc generators , you will be able run these without problem at 29.97 and later make conversion to 23,98 if you shot 24 , these are the cheapest portable i know .
another option is to look for hhb tc dat and use it as tc generator and back up recorder , you can find these offen quit chep on ebay .
another crazy option is to record tc in free run mod for 24 hourse and use it play back as continues tc sourse for your boom recorder ( that idia just came in so i never actually checked it:-=) ) .
check if you can run tc from cheap cf player , you will be fine with 128kb sample rate .
 
----- Original Message -----
From: "Take Vos" <take.vos@vosgames.nl>
Subject: Re: Fw: boom recorder and tc playback from another software.


> Hello>
> You will have to loop the output to the input externally through the audio
> interface with an audio cable. But don't clock the audio interface to that
> timecode or you get a clockinig feedback.
>
> Or if you are a programmer you could make a loopback device, that does the
> loop in software. Then you have to aggregate this loopback device with
> your normal audio interface for the other audio.
>
> Cheers,
> Take
>
>> From: "Oleg Kaizerman" <kaizero1@gmail.com>
i ask if i can feed the tc chanel directly from other software
>>> pb inside the same computer ,
>>> not form external device
>>> can you check it for me
>>>


as you see its possible ,
but i think that recording tc to some sort of mp player and pay it back ( inserting to your computer microphone input) , will be much easyer solution

 
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