Problem editing transcriptions: split & merge buttons don't work. Edit speakers, buggy.

[TheOtherMartinTaylor]

Premiere Pro V23.0.0 - Build 63

iMac Retina 5K, i9, 64gb, 580X 8gb

Monterey v12.6

Transcribing sequences works like magic and is pretty accurate but I have to edit them. The split and merge buttons do nothing anymore. They used to work fine. Sometimes rebooting the machine temporarily solves the issue but they always stop working after a short time.

Also, editing speakers to change the names themselves or to change who a block is attributed to stops working usually after the first edit after restarting Premiere. After closing and restarting Premiere I can usually then edit who said what and what the speaker names are but being able to do so only lasts for one or two edits before I have to restart Premiere again.
Working in corporate video transcripts is an essential part of our process. I love the feature but currently dread having to edit transcripts in Premiere as getting corrections made is so inefficient.

[TheOtherMartinTaylor]

I forgot to mention that the editing speakers issue was an issue before I updated to v23. One of the reasons I moved to v23 so quickly was in the hope that this bug had been addressed. The split and merge issue was not as dramatically broken in my previous version.

[Ishan Y]

Hey TheOtherMartinTaylor,

Sorry for the issue, and thanks for explaining it in such detail. It would help us if you could create a screen recording of the problem. We can forward it to the product team to take a look. Was this project started in an earlier version of Premiere Pro? If so, could you reset your preferences, clear the Media Cache, create a new project, and let us know if you're still experiencing the issue with the split and merge buttons?

Thanks,

Ishan

[TheOtherMartinTaylor]

This project did get updated from a previous version of Premiere, probably a few versions back and has been updated - I use the same template I've been using for years to start every new project. I did reset my preferences and clear my media cache. I also switched machines to my MacBook Pro i5 opening the same project. It has the same issue. I'll record the issue and then try a new project from scratch later in the week. 

[TheOtherMartinTaylor]

I recorded myself causing this issue. You'll see in the screen recording that I reset my preferences (twice) and cleared my media cache. I created a new project. imported a clip and created a sequence from it. I successfully transcribed the sequence. Immediately after I was able to split blocks of text and rename speakers but very quickly I could no longer split/merge text or rename or assign speakers. At the end of the clip I display my Premiere and MacBook versions.

Here's the screen recording: https://youtu.be/f2SqHQ50VVQ

Here's the source clip if you want to try and reproduce the error: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ofxkl0jrvf6glv7/What%27s%20new%20and%20next%20for%20Oracle%20Fusion%20Appl...

I have reproduced this on two machines running 12.6 but I was having issues like this even before the upgrade to 2023. Let me know if I can provide any more information. It would be great to get this fixed - as I said, I use transcriptions all the time but this kind of issues make it painful to use.

[TheOtherMartinTaylor]

I forgot to mention that at no time am I prevented from editing the actual text within the text blocks.

[TheOtherMartinTaylor]

I found a way around the split/merge and edit speakers not working: if the features stop working if I change workspaces from "captions" to "editing" and then back to "captions" and select the transcript tab in the text panel, as long as I don't do anything else before I hit the split/merge or edit speaker actions the actions work. It's still really annoying but at least it's a workaround.

[Stan Jones]

Martin, thanks for the detailed info. BTW, I would also try resetting the captions workspace. I don't think it will fix this, however.

I used mine own sequences, and your file. I am on Win10. I could not replicate. I wish I could! There are more reports of the speaker info issue than split/merge, but something appears to be going on.

Let's see what @Ishan Y has to say.

Stan

[Ishan Y]

Thanks, Stan. I haven't been able to reproduce the issue on my end either. But this seems like an issue with the app. I have notified the engineering team about this with all the information shared in this thread. 

@TheOtherMartinTaylor Thanks for taking the time to create the video explaining the issue. This helps us a lot. We will make sure to keep everyone updated on this issue. Here are two UserVoice threads where people affected by similar issues can upvote and share information for the product team: https://adobe-video.uservoice.com/forums/911233-premiere-pro/suggestions/45887926-working-with-capti....

https://adobe-video.uservoice.com/forums/911233-premiere-pro/suggestions/45740221-edit-speakers-does....

[combat films]

Another workaround I found is to just save the project and then it will allow you to make the needed changes. The only issue is the moment you hit play and the cursor starts moving it stops responding again and requires re-saving the project. Might be a bit faster than switching workspaces unless you have keybinds for that.

[combat films]

Found another one if you use two monitors for Premiere Pro. If you switch from the Transcript window to the timeline it refreshes it and you can make changes until you hit play again.

[amarl29279880]

I have the same issue. Splitting/merging lines & Editing speaker names is broken.

[andreif4137391]

Same here. Merge captions button stopped working after last update, 23.0.0.
All the lines in the pop up block Add captions after, etc. are inactive.

[hayleyt20252473]

https://community.adobe.com/t5/premiere-pro-discussions/transcription-broken-on-v23-pcm-export-error... Have the same issues, can confirm!

[alisona40277749]

I am having the same exact issues! Merge/split only works once or twice before I have to restart the app. I'm also experiencing a lot of issues when trying to change the speaker.

[DigitalDaveWDM]

MBP MacOS 12.6, PP v23 Build 63

Can confirm all the buttons, they do nothing, Split, Merge, even switch Speaker have no effect nor do they error, trying to use them as keyboard shortcuts also does not work.

[jr-komoot]

same for me on MacOS 13, PP v23 build 63. It works if it's the first thing i do after opening the project, but as soon as i change some text it stops working

[DG800]

I've been having issues with the "split/merge" in the drop down menu for awhile. I "bypassed" the issue in the prior version by creating keyboard shortcuts, but now in v23 my keyboard shortcut will work once and then I have to click on a different tab, then click back into the transcript tab to keep editing. 

[Stan Jones]

DG800,

What Operating System? It is an odd problem, and I hope they get it fixed soon.

Stan

[STORY Inc]

Yes, having a similar problem with Text Transcript's Split Segment. Works for a few changes and then locks up. 

Premiere Build 23.1.0 (Build86) ~ Mac Studio M1 Max 64GB ~ Venutra 13.2.

[STORY Inc]

Best solution seems to be clicking on the project sequence to unfreeze the split segment. 

I click above video track and below the timeline to avoid moving the playhead.

[cflnest]

MBP M1 Max MacOS 12.6, PP v23 Build 86

I’m finding that the split/merge buttons only work intermittently for me. After performing their functions once or twice, the buttons stop working. I have to save/quit/restart Premiere to restore their function. In looking at the user forums and bug reports, I see that this bug has remained unfixed for well over a year on both platforms. A major problem for anyone who uses captions frequently!

[STORY Inc]

I found clicking on the project sequence unfreezes the split/merge fucntion.

Clicking above video track and below the timeline avoids moving the playhead.

[andreif4137391]

It’s a shame really that Adobe does not bother fixing the bug. --
Andrei Filippov

[AseretLH]

Hello! I have a similar issue. I worked on a transcript a week ago and everything was fine. Today I opend the same project and suddenly I can't merge segments anymore. The button doesn't become active. Splitting segments still works and I don't have any issues with naming of speakers. I tried the workarounds mentioned here and in other posts, but so far nothing changed. Any further tips? (Version 23.5.0 Build 56 / macOS 12.5.1) Thx!