I'm trying to bounce out a couple approval copies for a client on the web, but I'm running into some issues with BOTH Quicktime reference exports and Quicktime same as source exports.

I'm pretty sure this has something to do with RGB and/or 601 settings, but I've tried quite a few combinations and can't export a clean clip.

• Currently I'm working with a project set to:   ITU 601 (720x486)
• I've tried exporting with COLOR LEVELS at:  601/709  &  RGB   (same result)
• I've tried re-rendering all effects when the project was set to RGB and then Exported RGB (same color shift).

I thought this might be a Quicktime Reference issue, but it happens when I export same as source too.

Most of the content in the program is DV 25 411... But some (titles and some graphics) are at 2:1 MXF.

If someone wouldn't mind telling me where I'm going wrong, or what the process for clean exports is, I'd appreciate it!  Thanks!

You cannot mix DV and Meridian codecs or you get this exact issue.  Transcode the titles to DV and you'll be fine.

Thanks Todd... I'll try the transcode.

(I thought you could mix codecs in Avid!?)

Even easier really, is to just delete all the title media and re-create it at DV25.

The transcode worked like a charm... 

There were only a few clips in the program at 2:1... it caught all those, transcoded them and created a new sequence... So the export works now.

How would deleting/recreating be easier?  I can't imagine it being easier then that transcode.

Thanks again!

Maybe I wasn't clear... you can simply mark in and out on your whole sequence and select re-create title media... presto issue fixed.  And you can mix resolutions in Avid, but upon export, you need to be in the same color space, not mixing RGB and 601.  Export scan mix 1-1, 2-1, etc or DV25, DV50 but not both.  This only effects exports and not digicuts.

Oh, I gotcha... recreate the title media after setting titles to all be created at DV25...  Very good...

Todd Sanderson:

This only effects exports and not digicuts.

Right... because I didn't notice it in the playback on the NTSC monitor, nor in the Avid monitor.  So is this kinda a bug?  Shouldn't the export be able to correct for this?

No it's not a bug... it's a reality of mixed formats.  If you export Same as Source or QT Ref, then you get out what you put in... a mix of 601 and RGB color.  This causes color shifts, since they are... well... different colors...

The way to correct for this on export is to export using another codec... say Animation or 1-1.  By changing the format on export, Avid corrects the issue.  This of course takes longer.

I prefer the re-create option or the delete all pre-computes and then re-create option to transcoding because you are creating a DV25 title from a 2-1 title, which is not a crisp as a native DV25 title.  It also depends on the project size.  My boss recently offlined a 90 minute show.  It was laced with literally hundreds of DV25 titles.  All the footage was 1-1.  Rather than mess around, I simply deleted all the pre-computes (13gb!) in the whole project using the media tool and then re-created everything in the sequence.  This was also likely only a fraction of what was actually being used in the sequence after millions of title revisions, etc...

Thanks for the explanation.  That makes sense...

I almost tried exporting in the Animation codec... but I actually thought exporting as a non-reference Quicktime file would yeild the same result.  But thanks for clearing that up.