Matrox Electronic Systems RT-X2 User Manual

Matrox RT.X2

User Guide

May 27, 2008

v

Y10979-301-0360

Trademarks

Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd. ....................................... Matrox®, Axio™, DigiSuite™, EZ-MXF™, Flex CPU™, Flex GPU™,

Mx.tools™, RT.X2™

®

Adobe Systems Inc.......................................................... Adobe

Apple Computer, Inc. ....................................................... Apple

Autodesk, Inc. ................................................................. Autodesk

eyeon Software Inc. ........................................................ Fusion®

International Business Machines Corpora tion .................. IBM

Microsoft Corporation ...................................................... Microsoft®, ActiveMovie®, DirectShow®, DirectX®, Windows®,

NewTek, Inc .................................................................... LightWave 3D

Panasonic (Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.)..................Panasonic®, DVCPRO™, DVCPRO50™, DVCPRO HD™

PCI-SIG ........................................................................... PCI-SIG

RealNetworks, Inc. .......................................................... RealNetworks

Sony Corporation ............................................................ Sony

Victor Company of Japan, Limited (JVC) .......................... JVC™, D-9™, HDV™

All other nationally and internationally recognized trademarks and tradenames are hereby acknowledged.

, After Effects®, Encore®, Flash®, Photoshop®, Premiere®,

Clip Notes™, Soundbooth™

®

, FireWire™

®

, 3ds Max®, Combustion

®

®

, VGA

Windows Media

®

®

,Windows Vista

®

®

, PCI Express®, PCIe®, PCI-X®, PCI™

®

, RealMedia™

, XDCAM®, Blu-Ray Disc™, DVCAM™, HDV™, XDCAM EX™

®

®

Copyright © 2008 Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd. • All rights reserved.

Disclaimer Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd. reserves the right to make changes in specifications at any time and without notice. The in-

formation provided by this document is believed to be accurate and reliable. However, no responsibility is assumed by Matrox Electronic
Systems Ltd. for its use; nor for any infringements of patents or other rights of third parties resulting from its use. No license is granted
under any patents or patent rights of Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd.
Unauthorized recording or use of broadcast television programming, video tape, or other copyrighted material may violate copyright laws.
Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd. assumes no responsibility for the illegal duplication, use, or other acts that infringe on the rights of copyright
owners.

Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd.
1055 St. Regis Blvd., Dorval, Quebec, Canada H9P 2T4
Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone] World Wide Web: www.matrox.com

Contents

Chapter 1

Introducing Matrox RT.X2

Welcome to Matrox RT.X2 ...............................................................2

Matrox RT.X2 SD key features ...............................................................2

Matrox RT.X2 and RT.X2 LE key features ..............................................2

About this manual ............................................................................ 3

Style conventions...................................................................................3

How video formats are expressed ........................................................4

Other documentation .......................................................................4

Chapter 2

Working with .mxf, .mp4, and .avi Files

Working with native .mxf files in Adobe Premiere Pro

and After Effects.............................................................................6

Steps for using .mxf files in your projects ..............................................6

Working with native XDCAM EX (.mp4) files in

Adobe Premiere Pro.......................................................................7

Displaying information for clips in Windows Explorer ......................8

Thumbnails preview ...............................................................................8

Additional file details in Windows XP ......................................................8

Creating Matrox EZ-MXF files for playback with

VFW applications............................................................................9

Panasonic P2 folder structure.............................................................. 10

Creating Matrox EZ-HDV AVI files for playback of

large HDV clips with VFW applications..........................................11

Converting a 32-bit .tga sequence to an .avi file with alpha ......... 12

Chapter 3

Defining Your Adobe Premiere Pro Settings

A note about running other programs with Adobe Premiere Pro.. 16

Setting your system’s volume levels ............................................. 16

For Windows Vista ............................................................................... 16

For Windows XP ...................................................................................17

Loading project presets................................................................. 18

Setting up your scratch disks ........................................................ 19

ii

Displaying warnings in Adobe Premiere Pro’s Events panel..........19

Mixing interlaced and progressive clips in a project......................19

Mixing SD and HD clips in a project .............................................. 20

Defining your General settings .......................................................21

Selecting options for accelerated Premiere Pro effects....................... 24

Specifying your video output settings .................................................. 25

Selecting your DV-1394 output settings ............................................... 27

Defining your Video Rendering settings ........................................ 27

Defining your Capture settings...................................................... 28

Specifying your video capture settings ................................................ 28

Specifying your audio capture settings ................................................ 31

Notes about capturing to Matrox .m2v files ........................................ 34

Capturing HDV material on Matrox RT.X2 SD ............................... 35

Exporting to a Matrox .avi file........................................................ 36

Selecting your MPEG-2 I-frame settings....................................... 39

Selecting your MPEG-2 IBP settings ..............................................41

Exporting using Matrox Media Encoder ........................................ 43

Exporting using Matrox Clip Notes................................................ 44

Setting up Matrox DV/HDV device control .................................... 44

Exporting your sequence to tape .................................................. 45

Preparing your tapes for recording...................................................... 45

Avoiding missing frames when exporting to DV tape .......................... 45

Exporting to DV tape using DV-1394 device control ............................ 46

Creating an SD project in 16:9 format ........................................... 47

Chapter 4

Setting Up Realtime Effects with Adobe Premiere Pro

Available effects ............................................................................ 50

How to apply a Matrox video effect in Adobe Premiere Pro..........51

How to apply a Matrox video transition in Adobe Premiere Pro ....51

Transforming your clip................................................................... 52

Using the transform controls ...............................................................52

Transforming a clip in the Program Monitor......................................... 54

Contents

Cropping your clip..........................................................................55

Using Select Crop ................................................................................56

Applying a mask to your effect ...................................................... 57

Using Select Mask ...............................................................................58

Creating a primary color correction...............................................59

Using Split View ................................................................................... 61

Working with Split View in the Program Monitor .................................. 61

Using RGB curves................................................................................63

Adjusting tonal range ...........................................................................65

Using the color balance graph .............................................................66

Performing an auto balance ................................................................69

Matching colors between two clips ..................................................... 70

Using the luma mapping graph............................................................72

Creating a secondary color correction..........................................74

Using the selective key graph .............................................................. 79

Creating a color pass effect ................................................................84

Creating a 3D DVE effect ...............................................................85

Creating a 4-corner pin effect .......................................................88

Creating a blur/soft focus effect....................................................90

Overview of the chroma key effects.............................................. 91

Creating a chroma key or chroma key shadow effect ..................92

Using the chroma key graph to modify key colors and

perform an auto key ...........................................................................95

Creating a cube effect ...................................................................98

Creating a crystallize effect .......................................................... 101

Creating a garbage matte effect ................................................. 103

Creating an impressionist effect.................................................. 105

Creating a lens flare effect .......................................................... 108

Overview of the luma key effect ................................................... 110

Creating a luma key effect.............................................................111

Using the luma key graph ................................................................... 112

Creating a mask effect ................................................................. 114

Creating a mask blur effect .......................................................... 116

iii

Contents

iv

Creating a mask mosaic effect .................................................... 118

Creating a move & scale effect....................................................120

Creating an old movie effect ........................................................122

Creating a page curl effect ..........................................................126

Creating a pan & scan effect .......................................................128

Creating a ripple effect.................................................................130

Creating a shadow effect .............................................................132

Creating a shine effect .................................................................134

Creating a sphere effect ..............................................................138

Creating a surface finish effect ....................................................140

Creating a track matte effect.......................................................143

Creating a twirl effect...................................................................145

Creating a wipe transition ............................................................146

Using the Matrox chroma clamper effect ....................................148

Selecting your speed control method ..........................................148

About Adobe Premiere Pro’s fixed effects...................................148

Matrox RT.X2 realtime guidelines ................................................149

Supported graphics formats .............................................................. 150

Limitations ......................................................................................... 150

Chapter 5

Using Matrox RT.X2 with Video for Windows Programs

Overview.......................................................................................152

Using VFW programs without the RT.X2 hardware......................152

Before you start rendering ...........................................................153

Selecting color space conversion options ......................................... 154

Rendering material to a Matrox VFW .avi file...............................156

Configuring the Matrox MPEG-2 I-frame codecs ...............................157

Chapter 6

Using the Matrox WYSIWYG Plug-ins

Overview.......................................................................................160

Configuring the Matrox WYSIWYG Control Panel.........................160

Contents

Required steps to use the WYSIWYG plug-ins ............................ 162

Adobe After Effects ........................................................................... 162

Adobe Photoshop.............................................................................. 162

Autodesk 3ds Max............................................................................. 162

Autodesk Combustion ....................................................................... 162

eyeon Fusion ..................................................................................... 162

NewTek LightWave 3D ...................................................................... 163

Chapter 7

Monitoring Your Matrox RT.X2 System

Using X.info to display RT.X2 information .................................... 166

Monitoring your Adobe Premiere Pro memory usage........................ 166

Displaying system information ........................................................... 166

Displaying hardware information........................................................ 168

Monitoring your RT.X2 card’s operating temperatures ...................... 169

Enabling and disabling the Matrox hardware-accelerated effects

in Adobe Premiere Pro ..................................................................... 169

Error notification ................................................................................ 169

Appendix A

Understanding Standard and Advanced Pulldown

Overview ...................................................................................... 172

Standard 2:3 pulldown ................................................................. 172

Matrox RT.X2 implementation of standard reverse pulldown .............173

Advanced 2:3:3:2 pulldown ......................................................... 173

Matrox RT.X2 implementation of advanced reverse pulldown ............174

v

Appendix B

Matrox RT.X2 Workflows

Overview ...................................................................................... 176

Working with SD “24P” material .................................................. 176

486p @ 23.98 fps workflow example .................................................. 177

Working with HD projects ............................................................ 178

1440 × 1080i/p workflow example.........................................................179

720p workflow example..................................................................... 180

Capturing HDV and SD material to edit in SD on Matrox RT.X2 ... 181

Contents

vi

Capturing HDV and SD material on Matrox RT.X2 SD ..................182

Using the Matrox MPEG-2 I-frame HD codec ..............................183

MPEG-2 I-frame HD codec workflow example for offline editing....... 183

MPEG-2 I-frame HD codec workflow example for online editing....... 185

Using Matrox RT.X2 to edit Matrox Axio offline HD projects........186

Supported video compression formats ........................................ 187

Supported master output formats................................................188

Appendix C

Matrox RT.X2 Customer Support

Getting the most support .............................................................190

Registration ....................................................................................... 190

Keep up to date with our web site .................................................... 190

Contacting us .................................................................................... 190

Appendix D

Matrox RT.X2 Glossary

Glossary of terms .........................................................................192

Index ..................................................................................... 205

Contents

Chapter

1

Introducing Matrox RT.X2

This chapter outlines some of
the features of the Matrox
RT.X2 product line, and
describes the available Matrox
RT.X2 documentation.

2

Welcome to Matrox RT.X2

Matrox RT.X2 products let you get maximum productivity from Adobe Premiere
Pro, and are ideal for corporate communicators, event videographers, project
studios, educational facilities, and digital filmmakers. Matrox RT.X2 SD is for
users who want to deliver in SD only, while Matrox RT.X2 and RT.X2 LE give
you the flexibility to edit, view, and output HDV and SD material.

Matrox RT.X2 SD key features

The following are key features of Matrox RT.X2 SD:

• Realtime multi-layer editing of video, graphics, and effects.

• Realtime Matrox Flex CPU effects, including color correction, speed
changes, chroma/luma keying, and many more.

• Realtime and accelerated Matrox Flex GPU effects, including 3D DVEs,
blur/glow/soft focus, shine, and many more.

• Native DV/DVCAM, DVCPRO, and MPEG-2 4:2:2 I-frame SD editing.

• Realtime downscaling of HDV 1080i/p clips in an SD project.

• Realtime mixed-format multi-camera editing in an SD project.

• Realtime playback of 32-bit MPEG-2 I-frame SD .avi files with alpha.

• Accelerated media encoding, including export to DVD, Flash Video, and
Adobe Clip Notes.

• WYSIWYG plug-ins for many popular compositing and animation
programs, such as Adobe After Effects, Adobe Photoshop, and Autodesk
Combustion.

• DV-1394, composite, S-Video, and SD analog component video input and
output.

Matrox RT.X2 and RT.X2 LE key features

The following are key features of Matrox RT.X2 and RT.X2 LE:

• Realtime, mixed-format, multi-layer workflows that combine HD and SD
material from analog and digital sources.

• Realtime Matrox Flex CPU effects, including color correction, speed
changes, chroma/luma keying, and many more.

• Realtime and accelerated Matrox Flex GPU effects, including 3D DVEs,
blur/glow/soft focus, shine, and many more.

• Native HDV and MPEG-2 4:2:2 I-frame HD editing.

• Native DV/DVCAM, DVCPRO, and MPEG-2 4:2:2 I-frame SD editing.

• Realtime playback of 32-bit MPEG-2 I-frame .avi files with alpha.

Chapter 1, Introducing Matrox RT.X2

• Native .mxf file support for Panasonic P2 (SD and 720p formats) in Adobe
Premiere Pro and After Effects.

• Matrox EZ-MXF utility for native .mxf file support in Video for Windows
(.avi file) applications.

• Realtime mixed-format multi-camera editing.

• Realtime high-quality hardware downconverting for SD output of an HD
project.

• Accelerated media encoding, including export to DVD, Flash Video, and
Adobe Clip Notes.

• WYSIWYG plug-ins for many popular compositing and animation
programs, including Adobe After Effects, Adobe Photoshop, and Autodesk
Combustion.

• DV-1394, composite, S-Video, and SD/HD analog component video input
and output.

• Full-resolution DVI output for previewing the video output on a DVI
monitor that accepts digital input, such as an inexpensive digital flat-panel
display. (Not supported on RT.X2 LE.)

About this manual

This manual explains how to use Matrox RT.X2 with the provided Matrox
software, including how to use your RT.X2 system with Adobe Premiere Pro.

3

¦NoteThroughout the Matrox RT.X2 documentation, the term “RT.X2” refers

to RT.X2, RT.X2 LE, and RT.X2 SD, unless indicated otherwise.

Style conventions

The following style conventions are used in this manual:

• When an operation is different between Windows Vista and Windows XP,
the operating system is displayed in brackets after the operation. For
example, right-click

• The names of files, directory paths, and manuals appear in italics. For
example:

$ The data is stored in the sample.wav file.

$ The file is located in your C:\Windows\System directory.

$ Please refer to your Matrox RT.X2 Installation Manual.

• Menus and commands that you need to choose are displayed in the form

Menu > Command. For example, File > Save means click File in the

menu bar, then click

• The names of keys are displayed in small capital bold letters, such as the

CTRL key.

Computer (Vista) or My Computer (XP).

Save in the menu that appears.

About this manual

4

• A plus (+) sign is used to indicate combinations of keys and/or mouse
operations. For example:

$ CTRL+C means to hold down the CTRL key while pressing the C key.

$ SHIFT+click means to hold down the SHIFT key while you click an item

with the mouse.

How video formats are expressed

With the exception of NTSC and PAL, all SD and HD video formats are
expressed in the Matrox RT.X2 documentation and dialog boxes as follows:

VRp or i @ n fps

Where:

• VR is the vertical resolution. For 1440×1080 video, however, both the
horizontal and vertical resolutions are specified.

• p or i represents either progressive or interlaced video.

• @ n fps is the frame rate in frames per second.

Here are some examples:

• 486p @ 23.98 fps Represents 720× 486 progressive video at 23.98 frames
per second.

• 720p @ 59.94 fps Represents 1280×720 progressive video at 59.94
frames per second.

• 1440x1080i @ 29.97 fps Represents 1440×1080 interlaced video at 29.97
frames per second. This format is used for HDV 1080i material.

• 1080i @ 29.97 fps Represents full-size 1920×1080 interlaced video at

29.97 frames per second.

Other documentation

In addition to this user guide, the following Matrox RT.X2 documents are
available:

• Matrox RT.X2 Quick Installation Guide Provides brief installation
instructions to help you quickly set up your Matrox RT.X2 system.

• Matrox RT.X2 Installation Manual Provides detailed instructions for
installing your Matrox RT.X2 hardware and software, including how to
connect your external devices to the RT.X2 breakout box.

• Matrox RT.X2 Release Notes Provides any important last-minute
information and operational limitations.

Chapter 1, Introducing Matrox RT.X2

Chapter

Working with .mxf, .mp4, and .avi Files

This chapter shows you how to
work with .mxf, .mp4, and .avi
files on Matrox RT.X2.

2

6

Working with native .mxf files in Adobe Premiere Pro and After Effects

¦NoteMatrox RT.X2 SD does not support working with .mxf files.

Matrox RT.X2 supports the MXF file format, which allows you to use .mxf files
that are created with the Panasonic P2 camera (in SD and 720p formats) directly
in Adobe Premiere Pro and After Effects without having to convert the files to the
traditional AVI file format.

¡ Important When using a Panasonic P2 camera to shoot material at 486p @

23.98 fps for use with Matrox RT.X2, you must set the camera to Advanced mode
(486/24pA).

Steps for using .mxf files in your projects

1 Connect your Panasonic P2 device to your Matrox RT.X2 computer as per

your device’s instructions.

¦NoteIf you have a PCMCIA card reader in your computer, you can use it

to load your P2 memory card for use with Matrox RT.X2. However, the device
must show up in Windows as a drive.

2 You can either edit directly from the P2 device or from the computer’s hard

drive. If you choose to edit your .mxf clips from the computer, copy the
Panasonic P2 folder structure to your computer’s hard drive. For information
regarding the Panasonic P2 folder structure, see “Panasonic P2 folder

structure” on page 10.

3 Import the native .mxf files into Adobe Premiere Pro’s Project panel like any

other file. To help you select your shots you can enable thumbnail view, and
add details for your .mxf files in Windows Explorer, or Premiere Pro’s

Import or Get Properties dialog box. For more information on displaying

.mxf file information, see “Displaying information for clips in Windows

Explorer” on page 8.

4 Edit your project with the native .mxf files from the Project panel, applying

effects, and mixing the .mxf files with other clips as you see fit.

5 Add Adobe After Effects compositing with a simple copy and paste or

import the .mxf files into After Effects and edit them as you see fit.

¦NoteMatrox RT.X2 does not support exporting to an .mxf file.

Chapter 2, Working with .mxf, .mp4, and .avi Files

Working with native XDCAM EX (.mp4) files in Adobe Premiere Pro

¦NoteMatrox RT.X2 SD does not support XDCAM EX files.

Matrox RT.X2 supports realtime playback of Sony XDCAM EX 1080i/p and
720p .mp4 files in Adobe Premiere Pro. Both 1080i/p HQ-mode (1920× 1080)
and 1080i/p SP-mode (1440×1080) clips are supported in your 1080i/p projects,
and will be automatically scaled to your project’s frame size as needed. For
example, when you import XDCAM EX 1080i @ 29.97 fps HQ-mode
(1920× 1080) clips to a 1440×1080i @ 29.97 fps project, the clips are
automatically downscaled to 1440×1080. Realtime downscaling of XDCAM EX
1080i/p SP-mode clips in SD projects is also supported as explained in “Mixing

SD and HD clips in a project” on page 20.

¦NoteInstead of importing XDCAM EX clips directly to your Adobe Premiere

Pro projects, you should copy the clips from your XDCAM EX device to your
computer’s hard drive.

7

Working with native XDCAM EX (.mp4) files in Adobe Premiere Pro

8

Displaying information for clips in Windows Explorer

Matrox RT.X2 extends the functionality of Windows Explorer by allowing you to
easily view and manage your .mxf and .avi files by providing thumbnail previews
(Vista and XP) and additional file details (XP only).

¦NoteYou can view thumbnails and additional details for .mxf and .avi files in

any application where you can choose the thumbnails or details view, such as
Adobe Premiere Pro’s

Thumbnails preview

Matrox RT.X2 allows you to view thumbnails of .mxf and .avi files in Windows
Explorer. The thumbnail will display the first frame of the clip. Without Matrox
RT.X2, only the default Windows icon would appear. In a folder containing .mxf
or .avi files, enable the thumbnails view as follows:

Import dialog box.

• In Windows Vista, choose

Large Icons, except Small Icons.

¦NoteIn Windows Explorer, ensure that Always show icon, never

thumbnails

• In Windows XP, choose

is cleared in Organize > Folder and Search Options > View.

View > Tiles or any of the icon options, such as

View > Thumbnails.

Additional file details in Windows XP

On a Windows XP system, Matrox RT.X2 lets you add additional details for .mxf
and .avi files in Windows Explorer.

°To add clip details in Windows Explorer:

1 Start Windows Explorer, and ensure that the details view is selected for the

appropriate folder by choosing

View > Details.

Chapter 2, Working with .mxf, .mp4, and .avi Files

2 Choose View > Choose Details.

3 In the Choose Details dialog box, select the check boxes corresponding to

the desired “Matrox” or “Matrox P2” details. Detail names followed by
“Matrox P2” are specific to Panasonic P2 files (for example, User Clip
Name, Shooter, Shooting Location, and Scene No.).

4 Click OK.

5 To apply the change to all folders, choose Tools > Folder Options >

View > Apply to All Folders

.

9

Creating Matrox EZ-MXF files for playback with VFW applications

¦NoteThe Matrox EZ-MXF utility is not available on RT.X2 SD because

Matrox RT.X2 SD does not support .mxf files.

Many animation, compositing, and motion graphics applications used by video
editors read Video for Windows (VFW) .avi files, but these applications are not
designed to read .mxf files. The Matrox EZ-MXF utility creates a very small
reference .avi file, along with the associated mono .wav files, from an .mxf file
without modifying the contents of your original .mxf file or its metadata. Your
VFW application plays the created .avi and .wav files, which reference the
original .mxf file.

Remarks

• Windows Media Player does not support .mxf files. You can therefore use the
Matrox EZ-MXF utility to create reference .avi and .wav files for your .mxf
files that you want to play back using Windows Media Player.

Creating Matrox EZ-MXF files for playback with VFW applications

10

•For .mxf files that have a frame size of 1440×1080, the created reference .avi
files will have a frame size of 1920×1080 and a 1.333 pixel aspect ratio. To
display these .avi files correctly in Adobe After Effects or Adobe Premiere
Pro, you’ll need to use the

Interpret Footage command to change the pixel

aspect ratio to 1.0.

You can configure Matrox EZ-MXF to create only video files, only audio files, or
both types of files. By default, Matrox EZ-MXF is set to create both video and
audio files.

°To create Matrox EZ-MXF files:

1 In Windows Explorer, right-click the desired .mxf file (or selected files), and

choose

2 In the Configure Matrox EZ-MXF AVI dialog box, specify the type of files

you want to create (video and/or audio), and click

¦NoteThe file type settings will remain in effect until you change them.

Matrox EZ-MXF AVI > Configure.

OK.

3 Right-click the desired .mxf file (or selected files), and choose Matrox

EZ-MXF AVI > Create

. The reference .avi and .wav files are created as per

the folder structure for Panasonic P2 as explained in the next section.

¡ Important Once the Matrox EZ-MXF files are created, do not change the

location or name of the referenced .mxf files or your VFW program won’t be
able to locate your .mxf material. If this occurs, Matrox RT.X2 will display
an appropriate error message.

Panasonic P2 folder structure

Panasonic P2 files are organized in a specific folder structure as follows:

Chapter 2, Working with .mxf, .mp4, and .avi Files

When you select an .mxf file in the VIDEO folder, Matrox EZ-MXF looks for any
associated audio .mxf files in the AUDIO folder, and creates the reference .avi and
associated .wav files in the VIDEO folder. For example, if you select the file
00001A.mxf from the VIDEO folder, the reference .avi file (00001A.avi) and all
associated audio files, such as 00001A00.Mono.wav and 00001A01.Mono.wav,
will be created in the VIDEO folder. For more information on the P2 naming
convention and folder structure, see your Panasonic P2 documentation.

¦NoteIf you select an audio .mxf file from the AUDIO folder, only the mono

.wav file will be created, and it will be in the AUDIO folder.

Creating Matrox EZ-HDV AVI files for playback of large HDV clips with VFW applications

The file size limit for playing back HDV .avi files in VFW applications is 2 GB.
For example, when you play back a large HDV .avi file in Adobe After Effects,
the clip stops playing at the 2-GB point. To overcome this limitation, you can use
the Matrox EZ-HDV AVI utility to create small .avi files, and the associated
mono .wav files, that reference your large HDV clips. These reference HDV .avi
and .wav files will play back completely in your VFW application.

¦NoteFor HDV clips that have a frame size of 1440× 1080, the created

reference HDV .avi files will have a frame size of 1920× 1080 and a 1.333 pixel
aspect ratio. To display these files correctly in Adobe After Effects or Adobe
Premiere Pro, you’ll need to use the
pixel aspect ratio to 1.0.

You can configure Matrox EZ-HDV AVI to create only video files, only audio
files, or both types of files. By default, Matrox EZ-HDV AVI is set to create both
video and audio files.

Interpret Footage command to change the

11

°To create Matrox EZ-HDV AVI files:

1 In Windows Explorer, right-click the desired HDV .avi file (or selected

files), and choose

2 In the Configure Matrox EZ-HDV AVI dialog box, specify the type of files

you want to create (video and/or audio), and click

Creating Matrox EZ-HDV AVI files for playback of large HDV clips with VFW

Matrox EZ-HDV AVI > Configure.

OK. The created reference

12

files will be named Filename_Ref.avi, Filename_Ref.Mono1.wav, and
Filename_Ref.Mon2.wav. For example, if you’re creating both video and
audio files for a file named Demo.avi, your reference files will be named
Demo_Ref.avi, Demo_Ref.Mono1.wav, and Demo_Ref.Mono2.wav (only
mono reference .wav files can be created for stereo HDV clips).

¦NoteThe file type settings will remain in effect until you change them.

3 Right-click the desired HDV .avi file (or selected files), and choose Matrox

EZ-HDV AVI > Create

the same folder as your source .avi files.

¡ Important Once the Matrox EZ-HDV AVI files are created, do not change the

location or name of the referenced HDV .avi files or your VFW program won’t
be able to locate your original HDV clips. If this occurs, Matr
display an appropriate error message.

. Your reference .avi and .wav files will be created in

ox RT.X2 will

Converting a 32-bit .tga sequence to an .avi file with alpha

Matrox RT.X2 allows you to create a single .avi file with alpha from a 32-bit .tga
sequence. The created .avi file will contain the alpha-key information, which
means that when you place the file on the timeline in Adobe Premiere Pro, the
clip will be automatically keyed. Having only one file simplifies management
and makes it easier to include the composition in your final edit.

¦NoteYou can convert 32-bit uncompressed or RLE-compressed .tga files to an

.avi file with alpha.

When selecting only one .tga file, the program automatically detects other files
with the same base name in the same folder (for example, demo001.tga,
demo002.tga, etc.), and uses these files to create the .avi file. When multiple .tga
files are selected, only the selected files will be taken to build the .avi file. The

.avi file will be created with the following naming convention:

Base Name_Compressor_Output Format.avi

For example, if the base name for your converted .tga sequence is demo, the
compressor is

NTSC 4:3, the created .avi file will be named

demo_MPEG-2_I-frame_NTSC_4_3.avi.

You can create HD and SD .avi files with alpha in Matrox MPEG-2 I-frame
format. On Matrox RT.X2 SD, however, only the SD files are supported.

Chapter 2, Working with .mxf, .mp4, and .avi Files

Matrox MPEG-2 I-frame+ Alpha, and the output format is

°To create an .avi file with alpha from a .tga sequence:

1 In Windows Explorer, right-click the selected .tga file(s), choose Matrox

AVI + Alpha

format, such as

> Select Format, and then click the desired .avi output video

1440x1080i @ 29.97 fps.

¦NoteFormats that are not supported by your Matrox RT.X2 hardware are

identified with an asterisk (*) in the list. If you create an .avi file using an
unsupported format, it will not play back in real time on your Matrox RT.X2
system.

2 Right-click the selected .tga file(s), and choose Matrox AVI + Alpha >

Configure

.

¦NoteOnce set, the output format and configuration settings apply to all

subsequent .tga sequences that you convert to .avi files. However, if you select
a 1440× 1080i/p output format, the compressor for the .tga to .avi conversion
will automatically be set to

Matrox MPEG-2 I-frame HD + Alpha.

13

3 From the Compressor list, select the compression format you want for your

.avi file.

¦NoteAlthough the Matrox uncompressed formats are available, you cannot

play back uncompressed clips in real time on your Matrox RT.X2 system.

$ Matrox MPEG-2 I-frame + Alpha Renders video to MPEG-2

intra-frame format with alpha using the 4:2:2 Profile @ Main Level at a
selected data rate (SD resolution only).

$ Matrox MPEG-2 I-frame HD + Alpha Renders video to MPEG-2

intra-frame format with alpha using the 4:2:2 Profile @ High Level at a
selected data rate (HD resolution only).

Converting a 32-bit .tga sequence to an .avi file with alpha

14

4 Click the Configure button to specify various options for the MPEG-2

I-frame compression. The configuration options are the same as when you
capture or export video using Adobe Premiere Pro (see “Selecting your

MPEG-2 I-frame settings” on page 39).

5 Under Destination Folder, either select Same folder as TGA, or click

Browse to specify where the .avi file will be created. Select Overwrite
existing file

if you want to overwrite any .avi file with the same name in the

specified folder.

6 Right-click the selected .tga file(s), and choose Matrox AVI + Alpha >

Convert to AVI

.

Chapter 2, Working with .mxf, .mp4, and .avi Files

Chapter

Defining Your Adobe Premiere Pro

3

Settings

This chapter explains how to
define various settings for
using Matrox RT.X2 with Adobe
Premiere Pro. This includes
specifying your project and
export settings.

16

A note about running other programs with Adobe Premiere Pro

For the best performance, you shouldn’t run any other programs at the same time
as Adobe Premiere Pro. If you choose to do so, however, make sure that you start
Adobe Premiere Pro and open your Matrox RT.X2 project before starting the
other programs. Otherwise, Adobe Premiere Pro may fail to start. If this happens,
quit all programs and then restart Adobe Premiere Pro.

¥Tip When Adobe Premiere Pro is running, you can monitor your Adobe

Premiere Pro memory usage. To do this, hold your mouse pointer over the
Matrox X.info ( ) icon. For details on using Matrox X.info, see Chapter 7,

“Monitoring Your Matrox RT.X2 System.”

Setting your system’s volume levels

To properly capture and play back audio in Adobe Premiere Pro, make sure
you’ve set appropriate recording and playback volume levels for your system as
follows:

For Windows Vista

1 Right-click the speaker icon on the Windows taskbar and choose Playback

Devices

¥Tip If you don’t see the speaker icon, right-click the Windows taskbar and

choose
click

2 From the list of available devices, double-click the device that you want to

use with your Matrox RT.X2 system.

3 Click the Levels tab, and for each of the controls (Line-in, Microphone,

etc.) make sure the volume slider is at an appropriate level, such as at
midpoint. As well, make sure that each control is not muted.

¦NoteIf you have an active audio stream connected to an input on your audio

card via the RT.X2 breakout box, you must mute the input to avoid hearing
the audio when you’re not working in Premiere Pro.

.

Properties, click the Notification Area tab, select Vo lu me , and

OK.

4 Click OK, and click the Recording tab.

5 From the list of available devices, double-click the device (input) that you

want to use as the audio source, such as
system.

6 Click the Levels tab, and make sure the volume slider is at an appropriate

level, such as at midpoint.

Chapter 3, Defining Your Adobe Premiere Pro Settings

Line-in, with your Matrox RT.X2

7 Repeat steps 5 and 6 for every audio input source that you intend to use with

your Matrox RT.X2 system. For example, if you intend on recording audio
from a microphone, set the volume levels for the

8 Click OK.

9 Click OK to close the dialog box.

Microphone input.

For Windows XP

1 Double-click the speaker icon on the Windows taskbar.

¥Tip If you don’t see the speaker icon on your Windows taskbar, run

Sounds and Audio Devices from the Windows Control Panel, select Place
volume icon in the taskbar

2 Choose Options > Properties.

3 From the Mixer device list, make sure that the audio device you want to use

with your Matrox RT.X2 system is selected.

4 Select the Playback option, then select all check boxes in the list. Click OK.

5 For each of the controls (Line-in, Wave , etc.), make sure the Vol um e sliders

are at an appropriate level, such as at half-level. As well, clear all the
check boxes.

¦NoteIf you have an active audio stream connected to an input on your audio

card via the RT.X2 breakout box, you must mute the input to avoid hearing
the audio when you’re not working in Premiere Pro.

, then click OK.

Mute

17

6 Choose Options > Properties.

7 Select the Recording option, then select all check boxes in the list. Click

OK.

8 For each of the controls (Line-in, Microphone, etc.), make sure the

Vol ume sliders are at an appropriate level, such as at half-level. As well, if

available, clear all the

9 Close the dialog box.

Mute check boxes.

Setting your system’s volume levels

18

Loading project presets

The Matrox realtime plug-in for Adobe Premiere Pro includes project presets that
you can load to immediately apply appropriate Matrox RT.X2 settings. For more
information about using the Matrox project presets for working with different
types of projects, see Appendix B, “Matrox RT.X2 Workflows.”

°To load a Matrox project preset:

1 Start Adobe Premiere Pro and click the New Project icon. The New

Project

2 From the appropriate Matrox folder (Matrox - SD to create an SD project,

or
type of project you want to create. For example, if you want to create an
NTSC project in which you’ll capture clips to DV/DVCAM format and work
in a standard 4:3 editing environment, expand the
folders under

Remarks

$ Matrox RT.X2 SD supports creating SD projects only. Therefore, the

$ Matrox HD presets are provided for capturing HDV material. Make sure

3 From the Location list, select where you want to save the project on your

A/V drive.

4 In the Name box, specify a name for your project.

5 Click OK to apply the settings.

dialog box appears.

Matrox - HD to create an HD project), select the preset that matches the

Matrox - SD, then select the DV preset.

Matrox HD presets are not available on RT.X2 SD.

you select the appropriate preset for your HDV footage, such as the

1440x1080i 29.97 fps HDV

1080/60i format, or the
footage was shot in Sony 1080/50i format. On RT.X2 SD, you can capture
HDV material in an SD project as explained in “Capturing HDV material

on Matrox RT.X2 SD” on page 35.

NTSC and Standard

Matrox

preset if your footage was shot in Sony

Matrox 1440x1080i 25 fps HDV preset if your

Chapter 3, Defining Your Adobe Premiere Pro Settings

Setting up your scratch disks

When specifying the location of your scratch disks in Adobe Premiere Pro, make
sure you follow the recommendations in your Adobe Premiere Pro User Guide.
For example, always store your video and audio files on an A/V drive.

°To specify your scratch disks:

1 Choose Edit > Preferences > Scratch Disks.

2 Under Scratch Disks, select an appropriate A/V drive letter for each scratch

disk type.

¥Tip To enhance performance, store your media cache files on a drive

separate from your video files.

3 Click OK to save your preferences.

¡ Important Make sure that you specify the same scratch disk settings for all

your projects. This will help shorten the amount of time it takes to open new or
existing projects.

Displaying warnings in Adobe Premiere Pro’s Events panel

Matrox RT.X2 uses Adobe Premiere Pro’s Events panel to issue certain error
messages and warnings. To display these, choose
information about using the
documentation.

Events panel, see your Adobe Premiere Pro

Window > Events. For more

19

Mixing interlaced and progressive clips in a project

When editing on Matrox RT.X2, you can mix interlaced and progressive clips in
the same project, as long as the clips have the same frame size and frame rate.
Both the interlaced and progressive clips will play back in real time. For example,
when working in an NTSC project you can import NTSC clips as well as 486p @

29.97 fps clips, and 1440×1080p @ 29.97 fps clips to which you’ve applied
realtime scaling as explained in “Mixing SD and HD clips in a project” on
page 20.

You should be aware, however, that when you apply effects to clips that have a
scanning mode (progressive or interlaced) that doesn’t match your project, some
undesirable artifacts may appear in your clips.

Setting up your scratch disks

20

Mixing SD and HD clips in a project

Matrox RT.X2 supports realtime playback of SD clips in an HD project, and HD
clips in an SD project. To do this, however, the clips must be scaled to your
project’s frame size. If you want the scaling to be performed when you import the
clips into your project, choose

Default scale to frame size. This option does not affect clips that have already

been imported into your project. To scale individual clips in a sequence,
right-click the clip in the

Because you can also mix interlaced and progressive clips that have the same
frame size and frame rate in a project, when you apply realtime scaling to a clip it
will play back in real time even if the clip’s scanning mode (interlaced or
progressive) doesn’t match your project.

Depending on your project’s video format, realtime scaling of clips is supported
as shown in the following table:

Project video format Supported realtime scaling of clips

NTSC Downscale 1440 ×1080i/p @ 29.97 fps

PAL Downscale 1440 ×1080i/p @ 25 fps

486p @ 23.98 fps Downscale 1440 ×1080p @ 23.98 fps

486p @ 29.97 fps Downscale 1440 ×1080i/p @ 29.97 fps

576p @ 25 fps Downscale1440 ×1080i/p @ 25 fps

1440 × 1080i @ 25 fps Upscale PAL and 576p @ 25 fps

1440 × 1080i @ 29.97 fps Upscale NTSC and 486p @ 29.97 fps

1440 × 1080p @ 23.98 fps Upscale 486p @ 23.98 fps

1440 × 1080p @ 25 fps Upscale PAL and 576p @ 25 fps

1440 × 1080p @ 29.97 fps Upscale NTSC and 486p @ 29.97 fps

Edit > Preferences > General and select

Timeline panel and choose Scale to Frame Size.

Remarks

Realtime scaling is not supported for the following:

$ Matrox offline HD clips.

$ Matrox .avi files with alpha.

$ Sony XDCAM EX 1080p @ 23.98 fps SP-mode (1440×1080) .mp4 files

in an SD project.

$ Sony XDCAM EX 1080i/p HQ-mode (1920× 1080) .mp4 files in an SD

project.

Chapter 3, Defining Your Adobe Premiere Pro Settings

Defining your General settings

The Matrox Playback Settings dialog box has several pages that you can use to
specify various settings for editing in Adobe Premiere Pro on Matrox RT.X2.
When you select a Matrox project preset, such as
editing mode is automatically set for your project, and many settings are
optimized for editing on Matrox RT.X2.

°To specify your General settings on Matrox RT.X2:

1 Choose Project > Project Settings > General and click the Playback

Settings

2 Click the General tab.

button.

DV Standard, a Matrox

21

3 Under Scrubbing Mode, select Frame, 1st Field, or 2nd Field to indicate

whether you want to display frames or only one field when you scrub a
sequence in the

Timeline panel. For example, you may want to scrub the

first or second field to eliminate the flickering that can be seen in your
picture when you pause while scrubbing interlaced video. Scrubbing fields
can also be used to check for any dropped fields that may have occurred in
your video during a telecine process.

¦NoteIf you choose to scrub fields when working with progressive scan

video, you won’t normally see a difference between scrubbing the first or
second field.

Defining your General settings

22

4 Under Video Luma Level, select the type of processing that you want to be

applied to luminance levels in your video when rendering and previewing
video in a sequence:

$ Broadcast Processes video using the standard legal range of luminance

levels for broadcast video. Any super black or super white luminance levels
(that is, levels that fall below the standard black level or exceed the standard
white level) are clipped.

$ Post Production Processes video for post production. Any super black

or super white luminance levels in your video are retained.

5 Under Error Reporting, select Report dropped frames on playback if

you want to be warned each time frames are dropped when you play back
video from the

Timeline panel. Otherwise, clear this option.

¦NoteOnce playback of the sequence has stopped, a red bar will appear over

segments of the sequence that have dropped frames (even if you don’t choose
to report dropped frames).

6 Under Frame Hold, select Enable Frame Hold if you want to use Adobe

Premiere Pro’s Frame Hold to freeze on a particular frame of a clip in a
sequence. When you do this, any Frame Hold effects applied to your clips
will require rendering. If you’ve selected

Enable Frame Hold and

encounter repeated frames when playing back nested sequences or clips with
negative speed changes, or you find that segments are identified with a red
bar that don’t actually require rendering, you can clear this option. When
you do this, however, any Frame Hold effects you’ve applied will be ignored.

7 Under Premiere Pro Accelerated Effects, you can select various options

for your realtime/accelerated Premiere Pro effects. For example, you can
choose to disable certain features and specify how you want your Motion
effects to be processed. For details, see “Selecting options for accelerated

Premiere Pro effects” on page 24.

8 Under Realtime Indicator Threshold, drag the slider to set the threshold at

which Matrox RT.X2 determines that a segment in the

Timeline panel is

realtime. Drag to the left to set a lower (safer) threshold, or to the right to set
a higher (more aggressive) threshold. For example, if you find that Matrox
RT.X2 does not identify any segments as being non-realtime (that is, with a
red bar) and you have dropped frames when you export your project to tape,
you can set a safer threshold to force more segments to require rendering and
avoid having dropped frames. Alternately, if you find that some segments are
identified with a red bar but they don’t have dropped frames, you can set a
more aggressive threshold.

9 Under Audio Conform/Waveform File Creation, indicate whether or not

you want audio conform and .pek (waveform) files to be created when you
import clips to your project:

Chapter 3, Defining Your Adobe Premiere Pro Settings