Q: Best export settings Final Cut Express 4

Once in this high quality export if someone wants to edit them is this gonna be ok. Bring back into FCE and edit?

Not if you export to PNG.  FCE is designed to work with QuickTime/DV and QuickTime/Apple Intermediate Codec video.  Period.  (Note: FCE works natively with QT/DV video; and FCE transcodes HDV and AVCHD video to QuickTime/AIC during capture; so FCE is always working with either QT/DV or QT/AIC material.)

SInce you imported via a Canopus ADVC, you already have DV footage.  My recommendation is to export to QuickTime Movie (self-contained).  This will export the full quality of your DV footage and will be readily usable for archiving as well as editing in the future.

If you export via QuickTime Conversion you will be forcing all your video to be recompressed (PNG or otherwise).  And I don't buy the argument that PNG video will be editable, much less in the future.  It is uncommon to use PNG video.  Notice too that even in the article it only talks about using the PNG video to further encode video or create DVDs.  Plus the "any other," whatever that means.

What is the best method of export for transfer to iDVD?

Export to QuickTime Movie.  If you export to a self-contained QT Movie, you can use the same file for both your archive and for iDVD.  Another option would be to export to QuickTime Movie (not self-contained, i.e. a refererence movie) and use that in iDVD  (saves time & disk space) however a reference movie will not work for archive purposes.

I noticed your comment about importing your VHS stuff using a Canopus device into FCE4. I am about to archive my VHS tapes and have a Canopus ADVC300. I also have FCE4 and would like to know how you did it. I was under the impression that I needed FC Pro to use with the Canopus. Any info on settings, etc. would be a tremendous help and time-saver.

The Canopus ADVC devices work perfectly fine with Final Cut Express.  Just connect it via FW to your Mac same as you would a miniDV camcorder.

You will have to use Capture Now and manually start/stop your VCR in order to capture the video from you VCR.  Set your VCR to a point about 30 seconds before the segment you want to capture; pause the video.  Then start Capture Now; then start your VCR rolling.   When you reach the end of what you want to capture, ESC from Capture Now; then stop your VCR.

Regarding the ADVC, these are the settings I use, and they have always worked:

• Audio mode = 48KHz
• Locked audio = Locked
• Video format = NTSC
• NTSC setup level (IRE) = ON (7.5 IRE)

Regarding FCE, I suggest using the DV NTSC DV Converter easy setup and create a new sequence before capturing.

Great! Thanks for the info. I'll give it a shot tomorrow.

Hi MartinR

Got it working with one problem. I don't hear any audio when importing, either before or during Capture Now. I noticed that in System Settings>Scratch Disks, the Audio Capture box is checked but grayed out. The other three (Video Capture, Video Render and Audio Render) are live and can be checked or unchecked. When I import into FCE and play the file I hear the audio. I exported from FCE as an mov and hear the audio. Is this normal or is there something I've overlooked in the setup? I'm using DV-NTSC in Easy Setup.

Just got a little stranger. Imported a new clip - same problem, but now I'm not getting any audio in playback of timeline, even for the first clip. Exported the second clip as an mov, played it and I could hear the audio. ?????

More Info. Searched and found that "if you're capturing via Firewire, the audio is non-selectable because it transfers with the video as a single data stream."  In FCPro you can access Audio/Video Settings>Device Control Presets and select "Firewire NTSC." Don't have that capability in FCE, however the problem is a Firewire problem. So I simply moved my Firewire plug to a different Firewire port and half the problem went away. I still have no audeo while capturing, but once the file is imported into FCE timeline, the audio is there.

I still have no audeo while capturing,

You will never hear audio during capture.  FCE does not play the audio through the speakers/headphone while you are capturing.  This is normal.