is there a clip length restriction in fcp7?

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Level 1

17 points

is there a clip length restriction in fcp7?

i've been given 2 edited shows that just need some basic re-editing (fades & deletions). they are both 2 hr shows, so the clips are long. they are 24 fps 1280x720 h.264 files. i realize editing h.264 isn't recommended however compressor tells me it would take approx 24 hrs to convert them into prores files so i'm hoping to be able to "edit" in h.264 just to save time.

anyway they appear to import and play fine in fcp (as h.264 files), however the video (audio continues) on both clips freezes at almost exactly the same time - approx 1 hr 27 min on both clips. is there some time limit on clip length (during import) that i'm not aware of? they both play completely in quicktime. i've never seen anything like this before.

i'm open to any workarounds anyone may have. thanks.

Mac Pro, Mac OS X (10.6.8), final cut pro 7.03 w/aja kona3

Posted on Feb 3, 2015 7:24 PM

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Answer 1

qbuleck

Level 1

0 points

Feb 3, 2015 7:35 PM in response to methenyhead

I have never heard about such a limit, the longest clips I have work with was about 4 hours with no issues. However FCP really doesn't like H.264 and that is probably the point. Just like with mp3s on a timeline which cause really strange behaviors of FCP - it may be similar case. But answering Your question - never heard about clip length limitations (the only thing about limitations I know is FAT32 but it's file size limit caused by filesystem not by FCP).

Regards

Qba

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Answer 2

Shane Ross

Level 8

43,110 points

Feb 4, 2015 10:16 AM in response to methenyhead

Sorry, in FCP the footage needs to be ProRes. H.264 just brings up too many issues.

If you want to edit without transcoding, you need to look to other editing apps. I know FCX can do this...sure, it prefers ProRes, but it can deal with H.264 far better than FCP 7. And Adobe Premiere is designed to work with formats natively, even H.264.

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Answer 3

methenyhead Author

Level 1

17 points

Feb 4, 2015 2:04 PM in response to Shane Ross

my attempts at converting to prores have failed using compressor 3.5. the files are 24 fps 1280x720 h.264. i have tried it with keeping the resolution & frame rate and trying to convert to 29.97 fps. doing test conversions on short segments, it works fine until about 30 min or so into the clip. after that compressor fails. this happens on both clips. yet as mentioned above, both clips play all the way through in quicktime. pretty baffling and frustrating. any ideas?

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Answer 4

Shane Ross

Level 8

43,110 points

Feb 4, 2015 2:10 PM in response to methenyhead

Hmmm...already edited shows? Then they must have a higher resolution master to work from, no? h.264 is a delivery format, not a mastering one. They want you to make the changes to a highly compressed format? That you'll be compressing again, and then again? They must have a master that you can work on.

Barring that...if the H.264 is what you have...You can try MPEG STREAMCLIP to convert. It's free. DO NOT change the frame rate.

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