I really would like to purchase Final Cut Pro X but I would like to check one thing. I need to know if Final Cut Pro X will import .MTS AVCHD files. These were recorded on a Panasonic 1080p Camcorder. I also have 1080i footage. I understand the methods of importing into Final Cut but I don't know if FC will work with these files. I would like to import then edit and then output to bluray.
Many thanks in advance.
Steven
Mac OS X (10.6.7)
Hi,again.
To sum it up:
When working with AVCHD you have two options.
1. You can import directly from the SD Card — go to import from camera for that.
2. You can copy the full — with all folders, exactly everything that is on the card — contents of the SD card to a folder on your hard drive an archive it that way. If you want to import an archived SD card later on you can go to import from camera and then go for the open archive button, then point to the folder where you keep the back up of that specific card.
It is not possible to import .mts files on their own.
AVCHD on Final Cut needs camera data that is included in the other folders of the SD card.
That's why it's called "Import from camera", even if you only insert the card directly.
If you only backed up the .mts files and that's all you have you will have to convert them outside of Final Cut beforehand. I recommend to make the best of the situation and just download the free tool called "Handbrake".
With Handbrake simply convert the .mts files to mp4 with the same bitrate. You won't lose that much quality. It's really no big deal.
So, if your camera records with AVCHD 17 Mbit for example, convert to mp4 with 17 Mbits. And then import to Final Cut.
In the future be more careful of what you do: read the documentation before you delete something and try to keep a full backup of your cards. I always have a card backup in the project folder, because AVCHD doesn't need that much space anyway.
Hope that helps.
I can do it with ffmpeg completely for free but it is not the point. The point is that FCPX does not seem to support H.264 Level 4.2 and higher natively (this is actually correction to my previous post). To work with 1080/60p you have to convert to ProRes.
I tried Handbrake and was not happy with the results. Yes, it does take MTS files and converts them to MP4s, but there was a loss in quality.
I have been experimenting with my camera settings because I have found that some MTS files easily import into FCPX, while others do not. It turns out, 60i (interlaced) formatted video imports just fine for me, but if I change to 60p (progressive scan) formatting for my videos, FCPX does not recognize them from my camera.
This is a major drag because the video quality difference for interaced to progresive scan formatting is HUGE, and sticking with 60i means I'm stuck with a lower quality video.
I would love to hear from anyone who knows how to get FCPX to import progressie scan formatted MTS files.
Tom Wolsky wrote:
b) do what's advertised (i.e. support avchd 60p natively)Where did you see that?
The FCPX Tech spec page on Apple web site claims the native editing support for AVCHD format and the camera I have problems with is in the Apple supported cameras list. Nowhere there are any footnotes or fine print about 60p not supported.
Actually it is not the point. The point is (and I already wrote here about it) that FCPX has problems with 60p regardless of the format. MenuMeters show substantial system CPU usage when playing 60p and the responsiveness slows down to a crawl. The resolution does not matter, I had it both at 1080 and 720. As soon as you drop the frame rate to 30 or 24 it starts flying again. It looks like a video driver issue.
re: "Even the native FCPX "Optimize Media" conversion makes them gigantic and eats up hard drive space so quickly"
When converting most h264 files to proress 422 I typically show about a 8x size difference. My 2011 iMac can now process the H264 files directly with no stuttering so I've recovered hundreds of gigs of drive space by simply deleting the optimized prores media and now I just work with the 264 unless there is some specific issue.
My workflow now involves connecting my Sony camera, selecting what I want to import and importing only what I need. I then copy the entire "private" folder to my hd so I have all the originals and go from there. Sweet. BTW...I use an SD card in my camera and use it exclusively instead of the internal flash and FCP sees it just fine...
Good point. I've learned something! Actually, Clipwrap sometimes looks weird after rewraping but I tried a free util called Remux that seems to work better. The nice thing about Turbo is that I can edit the lead and tail of my videos without having to go to FCP.
Not sure it ever did. I can import OK from my AVCHD camcorder, but FCPX grays out the actual imported files. I long ago invested in a Turbo264HD USB device which handles MTS files very well. Apple apparently is never going to solve this issue.
Hi Dick,
I might not fully understand the situation, but are you trying to import individual mts files into fcpx?
I noticed the change as well where OSX groups the MTS files into a private folder with the same structure as your card and/or camcorder hard drive.
For individual files, clipwrap is the way to go. I learned the hard way, but copying all the mts files into different folders for the 1st bit. oopsy.
Cheers,
Keebler
GeorgePap wrote:
From my research any program that will be used for converting the m2ts file to readable mac format will have an effect in video quality.
Some programs, perhaps. You could always download a trial copy of Clipwrap and see whether the research is correct,
Russ
Your AVCHD files should be accessible from the BDMV folder if you first right click on AVCHD Content and choose Show Package Contents.Depending on how complete the card structure is, you may have to do this at a couple of levels.Then copy the mts files from STREAM to a folder on your HD where Motion can see them.
What Tom said…the situation has changed quite a bit over the course of this thread and much of the information in it simply doesn't apply in recent OS and app versions.
Russ
You can import single .mts clips.
What happens if you plug the Panasonic directly into the computer?
Would you mind downloading clip wrap and trying it?
As I already mentioned earlier, Clipwrap rewrap is not currently working in all cases. Converting to ProRes works though.
Dick W, you mean you could import in AVCHD? I can actually import the AVCHD. Its the output that's less than desireable.
If you have the camera folder structure, which you should do, you can access the movies in the import function. Going to iMovie is unfortunately the worst way to access them.
Import of AVCHD .MTS files
