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  1. Member
    Join Date
    May 2009
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    United States
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    Hi, I work with miniDV tapes on an almost every day basis and thus much of my time is spent capturing. I have always used Premiere (from Pro to CS4) and have never had any issues. I have no run into a problem: my new boss uses Macs and apparently FCP doesn't handle AVI.

    I have been capturing with premiere (avi), breaking down my tapes, and encoding to .mov where my boss would then edit that in FCP and encode/author to DVD, but there have been complaints of quality loss.

    Is there any way to capture straight to .mov? I know that constantly converting file types can only hurt quality loss and quality is our business.

    Thanks in advance!
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  2. I think you can on the MAC version but not the Windows version

    Another option is to losslessly convert instead of re-encoding, therefore keeping the same quality, (just re-wrap the container from DV-AVI=>MOV) using QTPro or MPEGStreamclip.
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  3. Member
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    Jan 2007
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    In its unmolested form, the DV video format that comes straight off miniDV tape is written to Windows-based PCs as DV-AVI, and to Macs as Raw DV (or something like that -- I'm not a Mac guy). All the reencoding steps are certainly going to degrade your image quality.

    Certainly, Premiere has an MOV preset, and it seems you could capture under it (I've never done this myself), but who knows how it will turn out.

    Your first priority is quality, and this may force you to step out of your comfort zone to accommodate the workflow of your dickhead boss.

    The way I see it, you have 2 choices: migrate to Mac and learn Final Cut Pro or tell your new boss to migrate to PC and learn Premiere.

    A possible third choice is to tell the boss that he can save money by not purchasing a Mac and FCP for you, but simply letting you do the job you were hired to do without his meddling. (Well, we can dream, can't we?)
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  4. Member
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    Thanks for the replies guys!

    I have tried using mpegstreamclip and gave up in a bout of frustration. I'm not sure if I was doing something wrong but it took a ridiculous amount of time to "rewrap" (almost as though it was doing a ridiculous quality render).

    I looked around the project settings when you first create a new one and came up with nothing. As much as I hate to say it, I will be going the way of Macs...as soon as I can afford one...

    Unfortunately for now, I will have to re-capture and break down 3 tapes with a borrowed Macbook resulting in several hours of time wasted . Thanks again!
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  5. It should only take a few seconds to re-wrap, if it's taking any longer, that suggests you are re-encoding or used wrong settings

    File=>Save As (drop down menu select MOV)

    You may need one of the plugins installed (QTPro or a specific version of QT alternative (Free), it's listed on the author's homepage)
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  6. Member Cornucopia's Avatar
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    Oct 2001
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    Deep in the Heart of Texas
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    Tell your boss, "FCP does accept AVI files". The problem is likely in the choice of codec (mainly video). Think Xvid, MP42, Camtasia, and other PC-centric codecs. Of course FCP is gonna have trouble with that. That's like having a fit when you give a PC an AVI with a AppleVideo, Pixlet, or Sorenson video codec in it!

    If you're putting out clean, contiguous, standard DV-AVI Type2 files that are less than 1, 2 or 4 GB in size (aha!!...), FCP will be a breeze opening them. It's only when you try to bend/break the rules. Use DVDate and other similar utilities if you need to convert from Type1 to Type2, etc.

    Good luck,
    Scott

    P.S., a good test to see if it'll open/play in FCP is to see if it'll open/play in Quicktime 1st. Yes QT-->Yes FCP. No QT-->Usually NO FCP.
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