SMPTE timecode input

Forum|Forum|4 years ago
October 6, 2021
2 replies
1813 views

I cannot figure out how to display my smpte timecode on my video in primere pro. I have an external timecode generator that feeds into both my cameras and my audio. This is the only way for the audio to be synced with the video. I've tried several different things to display timecode in my video but none of the options have displayed the timecode from the timecode generator. I know it worked because the correct timecode from the generator appears on videos in final cut pro. How can I get the timecode to display in primiere pro?

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thepixelsmith

Community Expert

Do you mean physically display? You want to see it as an overlay when the clip is on the timeline?

If you want to video the timecode on the clips in the Timeline panel you can turn on overlays. Click on the wrench at the bottom right of the Program monitor and choose Overlays (it's at the bottom of the list). In the upper left corner of the panel you will now see the timecode for the clips on each track. You can set how the overlays display in the Overlay Settings in the same menu.

There is also an effect in Effects > Obsolete called Timecode that can display timecode on video clips. It was a way of burning in timecode.

But if you wanted to sync up Video and Audio clips you used your timecode generator on, why not just use the Synchronize command in the timeline. It can sync the A/V clips based on their media timecode. You could also use the Merge Clip command from the Project panel to create a new clip in the same fashion.

B

Brandt5E29Author

Participant

I don't necessarily need it to be physically displayed on the video, but that would be ok too because I just need this time as a reference so I need to be able to obtain it somewhere. I use premiere to look at videos that are for the sole purpose of reviewing animal behavior for scientific research. The video itself won't need to look a certain way, I just need to be able to see the timecode I had the cameras reading when they recorded the video. The audio system I use is an ultrasonic program and to analyze my audio I have to use that specified program. The audio has the timecode that is being generated for my videos. So in order to be able to consult what is going on ultrasonically during a ceratin animal behavior I need the timecode from the video so I can go into my other softward program and find that exact time. Hopefully this makes sense, I know this is not what people typically use premiere for 🙂

In terms of the overalys I have tried that as well as trying to add a transparent layer with timecode, all of which do display the timecode on my video but all of them start my timecode at 00:00:00 even when use media source is selected. Additionally, the frame rate seems to be limited to 60fps which I recorded in 120fps so the timecode doesn't even displace the time correctly outside of it not being the timecode input by the timecode generator.