Importing 24PA into FCP from a Firestore

[phx_falcon_a]

So, my big questions to all of you who have the FS- How have you liked it? Is it working how you thought? Or is all of this turing out to be a bigger trouble then you had anticipated? Would you recommend this product? (I tend to do a lot of long format productions- recording of events and the like. I would love to switch to a tapeless system, but I am concerned with the workflow and reliability. Thanks for your input.

To me the jury is still somewhat out. All I've done with the FS so far is do test footage of readings for an indie production. There have been lots of issues we were unsure of, some with the FS. In the end we've decided to shoot 24p normal and record to the FS set to QT 24p. I've imported test footage into FCP and have been able to work with it fine. I like the capability to set the DVX to tapeless and have the FS start/stopped by the red record button on the camera, though it took some experimenting to get it to work right the first time. You can also record to the FS and to tape simultaneously, creating a backup in realtime, which I like. I'm still a bit nervous about running into file import problems with the 24p footage into FCP once we get into heavy filming. I think I've got all the issues worked, but it has been an extended education. I will say I was not impressed with the FS tech support. I called and left voicemail, no response. I sent e-mail and it took over a week for them to respond, and when they did, their initial response was very weak. It took another week to get a coherent response.

I didn't pay for this unit, so I'm not married to it. Like I said, the jury's still out for me. I hope as we get more experience with it we'll gain more confidence and come to like it more and more.

 

[235 Studios]

I like the capability to set the DVX to tapeless and have the FS start/stopped by the red record button on the camera, though it took some experimenting to get it to work right the first time. You can also record to the FS and to tape simultaneously, creating a backup in realtime, which I like. I'm still a bit nervous about running into file import problems with the 24p footage into FCP once we get into heavy filming.

Thanks for the input.

So here is a question for you- if you use the start/stop button on the camera to control the FS when also recording to tape, then what is the benifit of FS? (Besides not having to import footage.) I ask because if you have to change tapes, then that means that you are not recording on the FS. I usually shoot with a mulitcam setup, and I have to cordinate the timing of the camera so that they do not run out of tape at the same time. It would be nice to use tape while using the FS, but if you control it via the camera, then I will still have to cordinate the camera, as I'll lose the time for the tape change even with the FS. Correct?