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martinv2012
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Audio Out of Sync - Why and How to Correct

Jun 30, 2012 11:45 AM

I nested two 90 minute clips from 2 separate cameras which were both shot in AVCHD. I am using Premiere CS 5.5 . As a former FCP editor, whenever audio went out of sync, a message in FCP came up immediately and told you the audio was out of sync and it was an easy fix. How come Premiere is minus such an important feature?

 

I shoot stage productions where there may be music but no dialogue so chercking sync becomes rather difficult. After finishing a 2 hour video, I found the audio was out of sync in the nested sequences. Is there any way to auto resync the audio automatically?

 

Seems to me that Premiere Pro is a sub Pro App if simple audio sync is so hard to maintain in nested sequences. Makes nesting a sequence a waste of time if you have to redo the edit as a reslut of audio out of sync.

 
Replies
  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jun 30, 2012 12:58 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    >problem everyone runs into

     

    I edit AVCHD and do not have that problem

     

    Do be aware (in case you are not... ignore if you are) that the "approved" way to get AVCHD from camera to hard drive is to copy the entire folder, not just the files

     

    Read http://forums.adobe.com/thread/1015001?tstart=0 for more information

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jun 30, 2012 3:06 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    >you Adobe guys

     

    Not me... I'm just another user trying to help on this user to user forum... Adobe employees are identified with either Employee or Staff next to their name... where you and I have the word Member

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jun 30, 2012 3:32 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    Well Adobe does have the better "project" ( product) bcause your beloved FCP is no longer a  product.

     

    Nothing stopping you continuing to use your original FCP7 though!

     

    As regards your issue (and assumeably you are on a Mac)...why not see if other Mac users confirm "Adobes dirty little secret" before you go on the "fcp is perfect why cant PPRO also be so" rant.

     

    In the interest of more information...what have you done about trouble shooting this your self?

     

    Have you tried a sequence without nesting anything?

     

    Is it OOS in the sequence and the export?

     

    BTW: Generally an OOS indicator comes up when you unlink audio / video.  

    In your edit are you using the linked audio or an external recorded piece?  (You mabe experiencing device drift)

     

    For the record - on a PC with AVCHD...I do not experience your issue.

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jun 30, 2012 3:46 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    Prior to working in Multicam mode did you check to see if the audio video was in synch?

     
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    Jun 30, 2012 4:14 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    Ignoring your condescending "listen shooternz"  and the lecturing analogy...but trying to help you at the same time.

     

    Somehow you have established that it goes out of synch in the nest

     

    You did not say if the original time lines  were fine past 1/3 before you nested them. (ie did you check near the end)

     

    How have you eliminated Multicam (and maybe the way you use it) from the OOS issue?

     

    If you create and then playback  either edit as a nest ( before multicam) ..do both streams maintain synch?

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jun 30, 2012 5:01 PM   in reply to martinv2012
    My complaint is that Premiere does not have a safe guard to alert you when audio goes out of sync.

     

     

    Actually, it does.  You'll see a +/- time indicator on both the audio and video portion of clips that are out of sync.

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jun 30, 2012 5:29 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    Yes the original timeline is fine up to about 1/3 into the video

     

    So you are actually saying that original edit sequence goes out of synch after 1/3.

     

    (ie. 1 camera with continuous single stream of  video/ audio is OOS. after 1/3 progress and assumeably the other camera is doing exactly the same thing)

     

    That means the multicam nest will be out as well.

     

    What camera, what codec, what project setings?

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jun 30, 2012 7:34 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    1080i  ...not a progressive project setting? Did you match the project to the source footage?  (How?)

     

    Have you actually confirmed (to us forum readers) that the original sequence from either or both cameras is in synch all the way thru?

     

    Was it a continuous camera roll on each camera or have you edited it from stop start source footage?

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jul 1, 2012 1:46 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    Its always interesting when some one has an issue and others dont chime in and say ....."me too"., "me too"...me as well"

     

    Maybe they will do this yet... but mean time you are on your own.  (hmmmm) 

    Your rants arent helping anyone trouble shoot this with you.

     

    Now...it is possible that you have run into a spanned clips known issue due to the long recording time.  I am not sure where that is at the moment.  Do a search.

     

    How much OOS is the footage at the end of each camera anyway?

     

    Tell us what happens if you swap  the audio from one camera to the other in the timeline?  Try to establish consistency in the recording against the video.

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jul 1, 2012 4:51 PM   in reply to martinv2012
    How about it Adobe Techs - can anyone deduce why nested audio goes out of sync without warning?

     

    Well...they never have for me.  Your situation is certainly not the norm.

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jul 1, 2012 9:04 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    martinv2012 wrote:

     

    The audio and video was in sync, that is why the first 1/3 of the edit was fine. It was nesting that caused the sync issue.

     

    Listen shooternz, I expect video editing software to work correctly 100% of the time. I am not a software engineer and should not have to trouble shoot the app. If you bought a TV set would you expect it to work 100% of the time? You wouldn't try to open the set and fix it. I paid for video editing software and I expect it to work correctly 100% of the time.

     

    I edited with FCP for many years, and thought it was a great piece of software, but the idea that it was 100% bug free is utterly ridiculous!

     

    When you say that the audio doesn't show as being out of sync, are you looking at the nested sequence in your cut timeline, or WITHIN the nested sequence? Because if you move something within the nest you have to look inside it to see it, the nest itself won't show whether audio is in or out of sync.

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jul 1, 2012 9:29 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    I am more and more convinced that unfamiliarity with PPRO (understandeable as a new user)  and general editing experience is playing a part in  your issue.

     

     

    This here below  makes no sense and remains unanswered no matter what I ask...or suggest!

     

    The audio and video was in sync, that is why the first 1/3 of the edit was fine. It was nesting that caused the sync issue.

    Example

     

    Tell us what happens if you swap  the audio from one camera to the other in the timeline?  Try to establish consistency in the recording against the video.

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jul 2, 2012 9:10 AM   in reply to martinv2012

    what puzzles me Jim, is that Premiere did not give me a warning

     

    That's because what you're seeing is not normal program operation.  It's a glitch in your system, or with your media, or with your sequence, or with your project.

     

    When things go out of sync in a normal fashion, PP does give you the indicator

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jul 4, 2012 1:00 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    I edit multicam constantly in Premiere using AVCHD files and haven't ever experinced the issue you desribe. Very Interesting

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Jul 4, 2012 1:40 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    After reading this entire post, I still don't see the answer from martinv2012 about the original sequence.

     

    Is the original sequence in sync all the way through? Meaning, if you go to the last 10 seconds of the original sequence, is the audio in sync or out.

     

    If you are here to ask for help on an issue, please give the information asked for.

     

    Also, (this is really starting to bug me) stop comparing PPro to FCP! Premier is not perfect, I can admit that since I've been using it for the last 6 years. However, I can also say that Final Cut Pro is not perfect either, since I used it for 4 years.

     

    If you think FCP was/is the superior product, why are you here? Go back to what you like. Otherwise, ask your questions to find the answers to what you don't understand, and realize that Premier Pro is NOT FCP and accept the differences.

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Oct 4, 2012 5:28 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    I've had issues with nested comps before.

     

    Im not sure if this is a bug in PPRO or not, but I have had this problem occur on and off.  After some troubleshooting, I found a workaround that worked for me in my specific situation.

    It seems when you NEST audio files not linked to video files (it may happen even if they are linked, but I have not tried it), PPRO will replace your clips with the nested composition but will offset the time.  Let me give you an example to illustrate.

     

    Say I have have audio clips that start at 10 seconds into my sequence and I nest them.  PPRO will nest them and show me the nested comp starting at 10 seconds, but it will really not play there, it starts to play exactly 10 seconds later.  Solution? Drag my nested composition back to 0 in the timeline.  Again this worked for me and it may be a work around.

     

    If Im doing something incorrectly, please someone point it out.

     

    Thanks.

     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    Oct 31, 2012 12:30 PM   in reply to martinv2012

    Hey Martin,

     

    I totally agree with you that the software should just work, independent of someone's system!  I just started a small corporate documentary project and found your post while trying to figure out how to solve this mysterious sync problem.  I don't have any nested sequences; just multiple clips of talking heads, some of which have literally randomly out-of-sync audio/video.

     

    Finding no solution in the software for troubleshooting this problem, I have resorted to manually un-linking the audio and video of clips, manually sync-ing the video to the audio by eye, and then re-linking them.  This was the first time I saw the +/- indicator Mr Jim Simon spoke of, because it's now showing me how out-of-sync I have MANUALLY made them, which is not the problem!  I KNOW how out of sync they are, NOW...!

     

    Sorry to sound like I'm shouting, I'm just frustrated that I've had to spend so much time futzing with this when I could have been further along in the project by now.  Martin, I just wanted to say that it is not your system and your problem is not unique.

     

    -Paul

     
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