Batch syncing audio and video using timecode

[Guest]

I'm having an impossible time locating what I thought was a very basic feature.

I have two cameras and one set of audio files, all containing synced SMPTE timecode.

How do I sync them all up?

Here's the audio, here's the video. Sync them for me using the timecode. Pretty straightforward right?

The "merge clips" function only lets me sync one video clip at a time to one audio clip. At this rate, it will take me hours to select each file individually. Is there seriously not a batch function?

[excited_Genie16B8]

Not that I know of.  It's one at a time.

[Guest]

Premiere Pro: the choice of editors with 36 hour days.

Thanks anyway Jim. Feature request on the way.

[dougbeatty]

Is this being addressed in the next point release? I'm amazed at how fast Premiere keeps up with R3D color science and ignores such a basic auto-match feature for audio.

[excited_Genie16B8]

Adobe doesn't normally say what new features they're working on until just before release.

Do let them know what would like to see, though.  The more popular a request, the more likely it is to be implemented.

https://www.adobe.com/cfusion/mmform/index.cfm?name=wishform

[Dragonspear]

Ugh! I've got the same issue. I believe there should be a simple feature to do this. I'm no big programmer, but it seems to me that it's just a matter of telling a clip to align itself to the proper position on a timeline based on the medias existing timecode. PPro already shows the start/end time of the media timecode in the project panel...soooo...It seems reasonable to think that a simple simple IF/THEN script to do this would be easy to implement!

Thank you in advance to Adobe for addressing this much needed feature!

Here's what I sent Adobe in the feature request:

*******Enhancement / FMR*********

Brief title for your desired feature: Audio/Video Sync feature

How would you like the feature to work?

TIMELINE SYNC - Allow users to select a batch of audio and/or video clips and have them placed on the TIMELINE relative to their SMPTE Timecode embeded in the file. In the case where multiple clips occupy the same, or overlap, the same time on a timeline, move the overlapping clip to a new A/V track to allow all clips to remain at full length.

Why is this feature important to you? As far as I know there is no way to sync multiple files at once, much less sync them to the timeline itself. When you do a multicam shoot and have SMPTE on all footage it should be as simple to sync as drag and drop! Currently users are required to do it one file at a time and sync to a clip vs. a timeline. Additionally, allow users to sync all footage based on clip timecode or media timecode (much like the existing timecode effect)

Thank you in advance!

[Guest]

Hi, have you tried using the "create Multicamera sequence function"? Yes I know it's not technically multicam, but see a multicam sequence as a container for multiple streams of video and audio. You can edit without turning on Multicamera mode. I sync up my dual system sound interviews that way, but I usually use the audio sync function. Timecode sync works the same way.

[Dragonspear]

Not a bad work-around method Strypesinpost, you've just given me one more tool for my belt. Thanks! For those curious, though, this method is still quite considerably more cumbersome than a straight up import and align function that keeps things to minimal tracks.

The downside to the method strypesinpost mentions is that it creates a seperate A/V track on your timeline for every single clip. I have one camera that shot for a full uninterrupted 30 min., so that was an easy track to move/edit on the timeline...but my other SMPTE synched tracks (although they are on the correct spot/time in the timeline, they are on their individual track...and I have about 60 of them, so moving them around or getting them on the same timeline track for easier editing is a royal pain.

It's the difference between working with timeline 1 and timeline 2...I prefer 2 Adobe ;D

[1]

[2]

By the way...here's the answer I received from Adobe regarding my feature request...

"We have much improved syncing in Premiere Pro CC

Cheers

Dave"

Really Dave? Really? ...And just what are those tantelizing new sync featuers that will pursuade me to update?...

[Kevin-Monahan]

Dragonspear,

Dave is the Engineering Manager of Premiere Pro. We can't be specific about new features until they're officially announced nearer to the release date. In other words, stay tuned!

Thanks,
Kevin

[Dragonspear]

Excellent, thank you Kevin. My ears are tuned!

[deucebigalow4]

I did some digging and found a workaround for FCP7

SequenceLiner

1. Create a bin for each camera and for the audio.

2. Create a target sequence with settings that match your source.

3. Highlight the bins and the target sequence and kick out an FCP XML

Sequence liner ingests this XML and matches the clips based on time code and then updates your target sequence.

At this point you could try kicking out a new XML of the target sequence and loading it into Premiere, wait for Adobe to tell you about updates when they feel ready, or ditch Premiere altogether and hop onto Final Cut.

[Dragonspear]

Ha! This is helpful as well. Just so happens I have access to both. Even though I find PPro far more versitile, I'll keep this in mind for my next massive multi-cam shoot. Thank you deucebigalow4.

[Guest]

What I meant was not to check "single output sequence" and create multicam seqs in the project panel.

That will create multicam seqs by timecode.

But if you need a single output sequence, you can use timeline tricks to flatten that 100-ish layer comp.

http://www.digitalrebellion.com/promedia/

Be careful of using sequence liner.

http://www.lafcpug.org/phorum/read.php?1,277831,277878

[Dragonspear]

Thanks again. The promedia stuff looks quite helpful. ...just wish it wasn't $100. Maybe Adobe will take a cue from some other software developers who are making tools like this to work with Adobe products.  This kind of functionality would be even better if it was native within the program.  I like the flatten/collapse layers function!

[Guest]

What I actually did in FCP7 to do a timecode based stringout was to make a multicam sequence per camera angle, then did a match frame and replace. But I ran an Automator script which repeated the commands 8 times (there was a bug on the 9th loop in 10.6.8), ran a command to open another 3 of the same Automator script.

What you can do, is to make multicam sequences by timecode, uncheck the KEM roll button, and then drag all the multicam sequences into a new sequence to unnest them. That's almost similar to a timecode based stringout except that you don't have the massive gaps between them. This beats programming an Automator script and finding the bug when it goes all crazy on the 9th loop (and you can do something similar in Premiere).

[Guest]

And yes, do make a feature request for what you need. Not everyone works with multicam, but those that do, really need certain functions. And it's important that Adobe hears them.

[producerjeph]

The solution is actually pretty easy. Multiclip sequence, unclick put in to single timeline and make sure the name convention block is empty at the top and bam, you got TC synced files, faster than Plural eyes and accurate. It nets it into a bunch of sequences. you can then drag them into a timeline, edit, whatever, and if you have to upres, just replace the original files. its thaattt simple.

[Dragonspear]

What version of Pro are you using?

[producerjeph]

CC

I was dumped a tonne of footage, and was scratching my head, wondering why there isn't an auto sync to TC function in Premeire. But I remembered the Multicam, and how it matches to TC and can do multi-timelines or just one.

you can even open up the sub clips and edit those pieces.

I just managed to sync 9 days in an hour and except a frsme off here and there, its pretty spot on.

[Dragonspear]

That explains it. There is a similar way in CS6 (what I have ) , but sounds

like CC is easier.

[Anthony Kwong kwcnasa]

It's 2016, any update?

Any improvement on Adobe CC or CS6 yet?

[jtjefferson]

It's 2017 by now and STILL it doesnt work!!!
This also explains why bigger companys still use Avid. If Adobe wants to get new customers they should include such a basic feature.

[Kevin-Monahan]

Hello JTJefferson,

Sorry for the frustration. It would be a welcome feature for sure. Please file a feature request for that feature here.

Here's some added info. It appears that many people use the third party plug-in, PluralEyes, for this feature. You can try a trial at RedGiant and see if works for you. You also might try this workaround using multicamera sequences espoused by Jarle Leirpol.

Please let me know if any of these things would work for you while we work on this feature request. If others have the same request, kindly make that here.

Regards,
Kevin

[jtjefferson]

just tried Plural eyes and that doesnt work as needed. It just trys to sync the Audio from both video and audio recorder.

I'm working on Reds (Epic, Raven and Weapon Helium) scratch Audio is not available or unusable. The Multicam workflow doesnt fit my workflow. I filled the form for the feature and really hope it'll be available sometime.

Till then avid -.-

[Kevin-Monahan]

Thank you for your candid feedback, JT Jefferson. All the best.

Regards,
Kevin

[SonicN2O]

Is this still not a feature? When high-level productions use timecode slates and edit with premiere, how do they get their footage synced? Shouldn't it at least be a feature in Prelude?