FCP 120fps footage shows black

Getting another system just for updates doesn't fit in everyone's budget when the business is solely running by the owner.

This shouldn't be acceptable and needs to be addressed asap, right now I literally cannot work because of this.

You don't need 2 computers etc. to test new versions of macOS or roll back to an earlier version.

Create a new volume on your boot drive with Disk Utility, install an earlier version of macOS on that and use it for FCP.

Once you have the installer the whole process takes less than half an hour.

How to download macOS - Apple Support

Alternatively check out the free version of DaVinci Resolve.

Ian R. Brown wrote:

You don't need 2 computers etc. to test new versions of macOS or roll back to an earlier version.

Create a new volume on your boot drive with Disk Utility, install an earlier version of macOS on that and use it for FCP.

Once you have the installer the whole process takes less than half an hour.

You don't need to have multiple computers, but it makes like so much better. There is more here than simply a buggy update. There are many reasons why one might want another computer. Fire. Theft. Accident. Mechanical failure. Applying an update. 😄

Also, Apple doesn't really support multiple boot partitions. Yes, yes, yes. I know Apple has published support documents describing how to do it. That doesn't mean it is going to work or that it is a good idea. I mean, after all, Apple explicitly supports 120fps in Final Cut Pro. That doesn't mean it works, now does it?

Trying to use multiple boot partitions is problematic in so many ways. Those problems go away with a new computer. True, it costs money and time, but both can be budgeted and controlled. A problem that entirely goes away just by spending some money is a solved problem. People's time is worth money too, isn't it? Without good management, that will likely end up costing much more in the long run.

a temporary fix - use handbrake en encode the footage to h265 10bit, that will work. its painfully slow though.

this is my settings that seems like the video didn't lose any quality. prepare to proxy though.

This is pretty standard behaviour with Apple updates. If you have any critical functionality, especially involving 3rd party products, you need to have a "burner" or testing system where you apply those latest updates. Then, when (not if) it breaks, you can continue to use your production system until the problem gets fixed. Don't upgrade your production system until you have absolute confidence that the version you have been testing will meet your requirements.

This likely means double the hardware and software costs. It won't cost you that much in time, but it will require extra effort to apply updates and test on a regular basis.

RothVideos wrote:

Getting another system just for updates doesn't fit in everyone's budget when the business is solely running by the owner.

If you can't afford a testing system, then you also can't afford those "free" system updates.

This shouldn't be acceptable

It's been acceptable for at least a decade. As Apple ramps up the update schedule and frequency, its products grow ever more popular. Why is that?

needs to be addressed asap, right now I literally cannot work because of this.

It may, or may not, be fixed in two months. The only "asap" updates that Apple provides are "security" updates. Those only exist due to intense pressure from competitors who hack Apple products and then publish the results in mass media. You're never going to read about 120fps video input on CNN.

This is just another variation on the bank loan problem. If you owe $1000 to the bank and can't pay, that's your problem. If you owe $1,000,000,000 and can't pay, that's the bank's problem. If the latest Apple update bricked 400 million iPhones, that problem would get fixed "asap". But sole proprietors using 3rd party video products? That's no one's priority except yours.

This is a user-to-user support forum. I can't fix Apple's products. I can't make Apple fix them. I can't speed up the update cycle. Literally the only thing I can do is give you suggestions on how to better deal with the problem. Unfortunately, right now, you've got a problem. Apple's big developer conference is in two weeks. If this were November, then you would have a good chance of getting an update by January or February. But late May? Apple's only going to be concerned with macOS 14 for the next few months. Well, not really. Apple's only going to be concerned with iOS 17 for the next few months. Then they'll throw a few crumbs to the Mac. They might fix this bug. They might make it worse.

At this point, you have 3 options:

1) Live with it. Don't use those camera settings. Use an older/other computer to change the encoding. Whatever you have to do.

2) Roll back to Monterey. I don't know if you'll be able to roll back to an earlier version of Ventura or not. Maybe check your local snapshots. Maybe Time Machine? I just don't know. But I can guarantee that if your computer runs Monterey, you can roll back to it. Hopefully the same bug doesn't exist in the most recent version of Monterey or you'll likely have the same roll back problem.

3) Bite the bullet and get that testing system now. If you buy a new machine right now, it won't have version 13.4 on it. You'll be able to configure it in a day or so and get back to work. Your old computer is now your testing system. At some point, you might be able to swap them if your new system isn't as good as the 13.4 one.

you can do that with the terminal, it lets you download a bunch of os versions, you do need though to create a bootable drive, format the Mac entirely and install from that. I don't think I want to do it but it is a solution.

https://lifehacker.com/how-to-download-and-install-older-macos-versions-with-t-1839671161

This Ventura 13.4 bug on Apple Silicon affects entire timelines which have already been edited, if you try to re-export that to make a slight change. If you have 499 clips of various codecs in an existing timeline, and that timeline also contains a *single* 120 fps 10-bit 4:2:2 XAVC-S clip, it can mess up the entire exported timeline. It can also make it impossible to export the timeline -- FCP may say it's done but there is no error and no file on disk. If you don't know exactly what has happened it can waste a lot of time.

As Tom said, the cameras that make these 10-bit 4:2:2 XAVC-S (H264) clips can also record in 10-bit 4:2:2 XAVC-HS (HEVC) which is generally better anyway. It is more broadly compatible since 10-bit 4:2:2 HEVC is part of the spec, not a proprietary vendor-specific extension. Video acceleration on newer machines often works better on HEVC than XAVC-S, plus HEVC produces better quality at the same encoding bit rate. That doesn't help XAVC-S clips that are already recorded but for any subsequent shooting the cameras can usually be switched to XAVC-HS HEVC.

Having multiple computers is the ideal solution as you can have them open simultaneously and don't have to spend a couple of minutes booting from one volume to another but for many people a second computer (especially a Mac) is not an option.

Ian R. Brown wrote:

Having multiple computers is the ideal solution as you can have them open simultaneously and don't have to spend a couple of minutes booting from one volume to another but for many people a second computer (especially a Mac) is not an option.

Most of the people reporting this problem are saying they are professionals who need this for their business. In that case, there are different expectations.

For consumers, the only option is rolling back to a previous version of the operating system and kicking the auto-upgrade habit. Or just not using this functionality for a couple of months, applying one more update, and then kicking the auto-upgrade habit. Of course, there is absolutely no guarantee that this hypothetical August upgrade isn't going to break something else. That's the point - always keep the user running after the next fix.

I realize that no one wants to hear that. They want Apple to FIX THIS NOW! That simply isn't going to happen. It's like yoga. They are going to have to sit with the discomfort, aware of the bug, without judgement. It's a two-month long pigeon pose.

This exactly.

The issue is having of hundreds of hours of footage that has been captured in the past and projects that have already been in production. Happened to me yesterday. Client needed changes made to a project from last year, opened it and all clips shot in that format were now black with only audio. This is a major issue for professionals that needs fixed immediately.

Has anyone seen this on other footage besides Sony 100 fps & 120 fps XAVC-S 10-bit 4:2:2? I have also seen it on DJI 5k 10-bit 4:2:0 at 23.98 and 29.97 fps. We don't want to end up with a fix that is specific only to Sony XAVC-S if the problem is broader than that.

> professionals

<nag>Professionals should turn off automatic updates. And finish projects before updating. And test the workflow before updating. And have a backup system or plan if all else fails.</nag>

The point Matti was making is that manure happens and professionals or any experienced person should be aware of that and have backups.

Only a complete novice will leave automatic updates on and everyone should keep a backup copy of FCP for this very reason.

It has been known since before the inception of computers that anything new has to be treated with caution and you always need to provide yourself with the ability to revert to an earlier version of whatever is being updated.

If you have an Adobe account, the best way - in my opinion, to convert your 120FPS XAVC files is to use Adobe Media Encoder. I converted them all to Apple ProRes (you can choose the compression) and unlike Handbrake for Mac, you can choose the destination of the export. It runs pretty smooth and rather quick (I’m running a loaded up Mac Studio). Imported to FCP no problem and was able to slow down to 20% on a 23.98 Timeline with no issues. Until they fix things, I will be using this method on any clips I need to shoot in 120FPS (which is only stuff I need to slow down that much). I use Atomos Ninja Vs on all my Sony Cine Cameras to capture ProRes up to 60FPS.