Pinnacle Systems Pro Tools AVoption - 5.1 Instruction Manual

Pro Tools

AVoption & AVoption|XL Guide

Version 5.1 for Macintosh

Digidesign Inc.

3401-A Hillview Avenue

Palo Alto, CA 94304 USA

tel: 650·842·7900

fax: 650·842·7999

Technical Support (USA)

650·842·6699
650·856·4275

Product Information (USA)

650·842·6602
800·333·2137

Fax on Demand (USA)

1·888·USE·DIGI (873·3444)

International Offices

Visit the Digidesign Web site

for contact information.

World Wide Web

www.digidesign.com

Digidesign FTP Site

ftp.digidesign.com

Copyright

This User’s Guide is copyrighted ©2001 by Digidesign, a
division of Avid Technology, Inc. (hereafter “Digidesign”), with
all rights reserved. Under copyright laws, this manual may not
be duplicated in whole or in part without the written consent of
Digidesign.

DIGIDESIGN, AVID and PRO TOOLS are trademarks or
registered trademarks of Digidesign and/or Avid Technology,
Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective
owners.

All features and specifications subject to change without
notice.

PN 932708445-00 REV A 01/01

contents

Chapter 1. Introduction to Pro Tools AVoption and AVoption XL

AVoption Components

AVoption XL Components

FilmFrame

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Chapter 2. AVoption Hardware Overview

AVoption Hardware Capabilities

Required Hardware

Sync Hardware

Storage Hardware

Chapter 3. AVoption XL Hardware Overview

AVoption XL Hardware Capabilities

Required Hardware

Sync Hardware

Storage Hardware

Chapter 4. Installing AVoption

Installing a New AVoption System

Installing AVoption as an Upgrade

Installing AVoption Software

Installing AVoption Hardware

Installing the Digidesign SCSI 64 / ATTO EPCI-DC SCSI Accelerator Card

AVoption Video Connections

Configuring AVoption with a Single VGA Monitor

ABVB’s VGA Output

Using NTSC and PAL

Sample AVoption Setup Diagrams

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Contents

iii

Chapter 5. Installing AVoption XL

Installing a NewAVoption XL System

Installing AVoption XL as an Upgrade

Installing AVoption XL Software

Installing AVoption XL Hardware

Installing the ATTO EPCI-UL2D SCSI Accelerator

AVoption XL Video Connections

Meridien I/O Box

Using NTSC and PAL

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Chapter 6. Recording and Adding to the Movie Track

The Movie Track

Setting S-Video or Component Output

Movie Track Options

Recording Video

Exporting Files from Avid Programs

Adding Movie Files with AVoption and AVoption XL

Importing Movies (QuickTime)

Undo/Redo for Video Editing Commands

Performance Guidelines

Chapter 7. Playing and Editing the Movie Track

Movie Online

Movie Offline

Playback Viewing Options

Moving the Movie Track or Video Clips

Copying Video Clips

Clearing Selected Video Clips

Sync Points

Locking the Movie Track

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AVoption & AVoption XL Guide

iv

Appendix A. Slot Configurations for AVoption

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Appendix B. Slot Configurations for AVoption XL

Index

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Contents

v

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide

vi

chapter 1

Introduction to Pro Tools AVoption and
AVoption XL

AVoption and AVoption XL combine the power­ful audio post-production features of Pro Tools
with integrated support for the import, capture,
and playback of Avid video media.

AVoption Components

AVoption consists of software and two Avid
video cards that you install in a Pro Tools audio
system. The Digidesign audio hardware provides
digital audio recording, editing, mixing, and
processing. The Avid video hardware provides
video capture and import, full-screen video
playback on an external PAL or NTSC monitor,
video playback in an on-screen window, and
professional quality video compression.

AVoption Capabilities

AVoption lets you:

• Import and capture multiple NTSC or PAL
video clips to the Movie track.

• Play the Movie track with near sample-accu­rate precision against audio tracks in a
Pro Tools session.

• Spot or Slip the Movie track to a new time
code location, and spot audio to the video
track.

• Spot individual video clips to new locations in
the Movie track.

• View video edits and clip definitions in the
Movie track.

• View the Movie track as a series of picture
frames.

• Play video on an external NTSC or PAL moni­tor.

• Play video in a floating window on your com­puter monitor.

You can also:

• Import MFM (Media File Manager format) or
MSM (Media Stream Manager format) video
files created on Avid systems, such as Media
Composer, Xpress/Mac, and AudioVision into
the Movie Track of a Pro Tools session.

• Capture MSM format video media in the
Movie Track of a Pro Tools session, while re­cording audio simultaneously.

Chapter 1: Introduction to Pro Tools AVoption and AVoption XL

1

AVoption XL Components

AVoption XL consists of software, a PCI card
that you install in a Pro Tools audio system, and
an external I/O box that connects to the PCI
card. The Digidesign audio hardware provides
digital audio recording, editing, mixing, and
processing. The Avid video hardware provides
video capture and import, full-screen video
playback on an external PAL or NTSC monitor,
professional quality video compression, and the
capability to record and play back uncom­pressed video.

AVoption XL Capabilities

AVoption XL lets you:

• Import and capture multiple NTSC or PAL
video clips to the Movie track.

• Play the Movie Track with near sample-accu­rate precision against audio tracks in a
Pro Tools session.

• Spot or Slip the video track to a new time code
location, and spot audio to the video track.

• Spot individual video clips to new locations in
the Movie track.

• View video edits and clip definitions in the
Movie Track.

• View the Movie track as a series of picture
frames.

• Play video on an external NTSC or PAL moni­tor.

You can also:

• Import JFIF video media files from Meridien­based Avid systems (Mac or Windows) such as
Media Composer, Symphony, and Xpress into
the Movie Track of a Pro Tools session, while
recording audio simultaneously.

• Capture JFIF format video media in the Movie
Track of a Pro Tools session.

FilmFrame

The FilmFrame™ option enables 24 fps support
in AVoption. With FilmFrame installed and au­thorized, you can import and play back Avid
Film Composer media files. For more informa­tion on FilmFrame, contact your Digidesign
dealer or visit the Digidesign Web site.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide

2

chapter 2

AVoption Hardware Overview

AVoption hardware consists of two cards: an
Avid Broadcast Video Board (ABVB), and a Janus
Advanced JPEG Compression card. These cards
connect with a ribbon cable. The ABVB breakout
cable is also included.

AVoption Hardware Capabilities

AVoption hardware:

• Receives composite or component video sig­nal.

• Digitizes incoming video.

• Compresses digitized video using advanced
JPEG compression.

• Outputs composite and component video sig­nals.

• Connects to a second VGA monitor (optional)
for displaying the Movie window.

Avid Video Resolutions (AVR)

The ABVB captures and plays back video media
with JPEG compression technology, expressed
as Avid Video Resolution (AVR) levels, in the
MSM media format (Media Composer 7.x com­patible). AVoption can import both MSM video
and MFM video, which is generated by AudioVi­sion 4.x and Media Composer 6.x.

AVR levels dictate the amount of JPEG compres­sion, which determines image quality and stor­age requirements for digitized video.

The following resolutions are available:

• Single-field – AVR 2s, AVR 3s, AVR 4s, AVR 6s,
AVR 8s, AVR 9s

• Two-field – AVR 12, AVR 70, AVR 70B,
AVR 71, AVR 75, AVR 75B, AVR 77

Lower numbered AVR levels require less hard
drive space, but provide lower resolution than
higher numbered AVR levels.

The lowest resolution is AVR 2m. The maxi­mum resolution is AVR 77 and is considered to
be broadcast quality.

Chapter 2: AVoption Hardware Overview

3

JPEG Compression and Storage

JPEG compression varies according to the com­plexity of the footage. For example, a medium
shot of a talking head with a simple background
would compress more (using less disk space)
than a panning shot of a stadium full of people.

The following tables list the approximate
amount of video storage, in minutes per gi­gabyte, required for each AVR level.

Storage for AVR 2s – AVR 9s

AVR
level

AVR 2s 40–74 50–93

AVR 3s 32–57 40–71

AVR 4s 19–40 24–50

AVR 6s 11–33 14–41

30/25 FPS
Storage
(Minutes/GB)

24 FPS
Storage
(Minutes/GB)

Required Hardware

To install and use AVoption, you must first in­stall a currently supported version of
Pro Tools 24 or Pro Tools 24 MIX hardware.
Other hardware required for AVoption is listed
in this section, along with system requirements
for AVoption.

For an up-to-date list of Digidesign-quali­fied computers, video cards, SCSI accelera­tors, and hard drives, visit the Digidesign
Web site (www.digidesign.com/compato).

Supported Computers

• Power Macintosh 9500

• Power Macintosh 9600

• Power Macintosh G3 (Blue & White)

• Power Macintosh G4

AVR 8s 5–13 6–16

AVR 9s 3–6 4–7

Storage for AVR 12 and AVR 70 – AVR 77

AVR
level

AVR 12 18–34

AVR 70
AVR 70B

AVR 71 4–11

AVR 75
AVR 75B

AVR 77 2–6

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide

4

30/25 FPS
Storage
(Minutes/GB)

5–11

3–8

If you are using a Blue & White G3 or a G4, a
qualified expansion chassis is required.

Older G3 Macintosh systems (beige) are not sup­ported.

Minimum System Requirements

Minimum Pro Tools AVoption System Requirements

Item Minimum Requirement

Computer Power Macintosh 9500

Power Macintosh 9600
Power Macintosh G3 (Blue &
White)
Power Macintosh G4

Pro Tools audio
hardware

PCI Expansion
Chassis (Blue &
White G3)

Pro Tools 24
Pro Tools 24 MIX
Pro Tools 24 MIXplus

Magma 13–slot

Storage Hardware

SCSI Accelerators

To support the high transfer rates required by
AVoption audio and video, the ATTO Express
PCI Dual-Channel SCSI Accelerator (or other
AVoption-qualified SCSI accelerator) is required,
with audio drives connected to one channel and
video drives connected to the other channel.

SCSI Hard Drives

Using Two Hard Drives

SCSI accelerator ATTO ExpressPCI Dual-Channel

(Other SCSI accelerators may
be approved. Check the Digide­sign Web site for the latest
compatibility information.)

SCSI hard drives at least 2 approved SCSI hard

drives

Sync peripheral Universal Slave Driver (USD)

Sync Hardware

Synchronization Peripheral

AVoption requires a Universal Slave Driver
(USD).

Sync Source

For accurate synchronization during capture
and playback, Pro Tools and AVoption must
both be locked to video black burst.

For scenarios that do not require a high audio
track count or a very long video segment, use
two hard drives. In this scenario, one drive is
used to record, import, and play back audio
data, and the other is used to do the same for
video.

Using More Than Two Hard Drives

To get the highest possible performance from
your AVoption system, you can use more than
two hard drives. In this scenario, you can use up
to four hard drives for audio data and up to four
hard drives for video data.

Audio

AVoption can use multiple hard drives to
store audio data. You should allocate audio
tracks to different hard drives manually. “Round
robin” disk allocation is not recommended in a
system that includes video drives.

Video

AVoption can capture a contiguous video
track to multiple hard drives. This is useful if the
length of your video session exceeds the 2 GB
Mac OS file size limit, or the storage space avail­able on a single drive. For example, 50 minutes
of video material, using AVR 77 compression,
requires between 9 GB and 25 GB of storage

Chapter 2: AVoption Hardware Overview

5

space. To store this much video, you need be­tween one and three 9 GB hard drives. The
video is automatically split by AVoption into
several linked files of less than 2 GB on each
disk.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide

6

chapter 3

AVoption XL Hardware Overview

AVoption XL consists of two hardware compo­nents: a Meridien Digital Media Board that in­stalls in a PCI slot in your computer, and a Me­ridien I/O Box that connects to the card in your
computer. A Video I/O Board, installed in the
Meridien I/O Box, provides video inputs and
outputs from your computer to the rest of your
video equipment.

AVoption XL Hardware
Capabilities

AVoption XL hardware:

• Receives composite, component, S-video, or
(optional) SDI video signal.

• Digitizes incoming video.

• Compresses digitized video using advanced
JFIF compression.

• Outputs composite, component, S-video, and
(optional) SDI video signals.

• Captures and plays back uncompressed video.

JFIF Video Compression

The Meridien board captures and plays back
video media in JPEG File Interchange Format
(JFIF). JFIF compression levels provide variable
levels of compression for your video project, de­pending on the recording input selected. The
available JFIF resolutions are:

• Single field – 15:1s, 4:1s, 2:1s

• Two fields – 20:1, 10:1, 3:1, 2:1, 1:1 (uncom­pressed)

Higher JFIF compression ratios require less stor­age space but provide decreased video resolu­tion than lower compression ratios.

The lowest JFIF resolution is 15:1s. The maxi­mum resolution is 1:1 (uncompressed).

JFIF Compression and Storage

JFIF compression levels vary slightly, depending
on the video input selected.

1:1 (uncompressed) data storage levels are not
approximate. The amount of data required to
store 1:1 video is always the same, regardless of
the video input used.

Chapter 3: AVoption XL Hardware Over view

7

The following tables list the approximate
amount of video storage, in megabytes per sec­ond, required for each JFIF compression level.

Storage for Single-Field JFIF

JFIF
level

30/25 FPS
Storage
(MB/second)
(approximate)

Required Hardware

To install and use AVoption XL, you must first
install a currently supported version of
Pro Tools 24 or Pro Tools 24 MIX hardware.
Other hardware requirements and system re­quirements for AVoption XL are listed in this
section.

15:1s .7

4:1s 2.7

2:1s 5.5

Storage Required for Two-Field JFIF

JFIF
level

20:1 1.1

10:1 2.2

3:1 7.3

2:1 11

1:1 22

30/25 FPS
Storage
(MB/second)
(approximate,
except 1:1)

For an up-to-date list of Digidesign-quali­fied computers, video cards, SCSI accelera­tors, and hard drives, visit the Digidesign
Web site (www.digidesign.com/compato).

Supported CPU’s

• Power Macintosh 9600

• Power Macintosh G3 (Blue & White)

• Power Macintosh G4

Older G3 Macintosh systems (beige) are not sup­ported.

Minimum System Requirements

3:1 Video Compression or Higher

Minimum AVoption XL System Requirements

Item Minimum Requirement

CPU Power Macintosh 9600,

Blue & White G3, or G4

PCI Expansion
Chassis

Magma 13-Slot

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide

8

SCSI accelerator Qualified SCSI accelerator

(ATTO EPCI-DC or Digidesign
SCSI 64)

SCSI hard drives Qualified drives are required;

see the Digidesign Web site
for more information.

Sync peripheral Universal Slave Driver (USD)

2:1 Video Compression or 1:1 (Uncompressed)

Storage Hardware

Minimum AVoption XL System Requirements

Item Minimum Requirement

CPU Power Macintosh 9600,

Blue & White G3, or G4

PCI Expansion
Chassis

SCSI accelerator
(video)

SCSI accelerator
(audio)

SCSI hard drives Qualified drives are required;

Striped hard drives A 2-way stripe is required for

Sync peripheral Universal Slave Driver (USD)

Magma 13-Slot

Qualified SCSI accelerator
(ATTO EPCI-UL2D LVD Acceler­ator required for 2:1 or 1:1
video compression)

Qualified SCSI accelerator
(ATTO EPCI-DC or Digidesign
SCSI 64 required for 2:1 or
1:1 video compression)

see the Digidesign Web site
for more information.

2:1 compressed video.
A 4-way stripe is required for
uncompressed (1:1) video.

SCSI Accelerators

To support the high transfer rates required by
AVoption XL video, a qualified SCSI accelerator
is required, with audio drives connected to one
channel and video drives connected to the other
channel. For 2:1 compression or 1:1 uncom­pressed video, 2 SCSI accelerators are required.

SCSI Hardware and Drives with Video Compression Level 3:1 or Higher

If you are using 3:1 video compression or higher
at all times, then your system requires only a
single dual channel SCSI accelerator, the ATTO
EPCI-UL2D or EPCI-DC, or the Digidesign
SCSI 64, with audio drives connected to one
channel and video drives connected to another.

Using Two Hard Drives

For scenarios that do not require a high audio
track count or a very long video segment, you
may use two hard drives.

Sync Hardware

Synchronization Peripheral

AVoption XL requires a Universal Slave Driver
(USD).

Sync Source

For accurate synchronization during capture
and playback, a house sync source or black burst
generator is required.

In this scenario, one drive is used to record, im­port, and play back audio data, and the other is
used to do the same for video.

Using More Than Two Hard Drives

To get the highest possible performance from
your AVoption XL system, you can use more
than two hard drives. In this scenario, you can
use many striped hard drives for audio and
video data. Striped volumes appear to
AVoption XL as a single volume.

Chapter 3: AVoption XL Hardware Over view

9

Audio

AVoption XL can store audio data to mul­tiple hard drives. You should allocate audio
tracks to different hard drives manually. “Round
robin” disk allocation is not recommended in a
system that includes video drives.

Both of these options are covered in detail in the

Pro Tools Reference Guide

Video

AVoption XL can capture a contiguous
video track to multiple hard disks. This is useful
if the length of your video session exceeds the
storage space available on a single drive. For ex­ample, 26 minutes of video material, using 3:1
compression, requires approximately 11.1 GB of
storage space. To store this much video, you
need two 9 GB hard drives.

.

SCSI Hardware and Drives with Video Compression Level 2:1 or 1:1

If you are using 2:1 or 1:1 video compression,
your system requires two SCSI accelerators: the
ATTO EPCI-UL2D LVD accelerator, and the
ATTO EPCI-DC or Digidesign SCSI 64. In this
scenario, video drives are connected to the
EPCI-UL2D, and audio drives are connected to
the EPCI-DC or SCSI 64. Or, two EPCI-DC’s may
be used for this scenario.

2-way striped drives should be connected in
pairs to the EPCI-UL2D accelerator, with 1 drive
connected to each channel.

4-way striped drives should be connected in
pairs to the EPCI-UL2D accelerator, with 2 or
more (in even amounts) drives connected to
each channel.

Pro Tools and AVoption XL do not support
striped audio drives.

Striped Drive Requirements

Striped

drives are configured so that multiple
hard drives behave as if they are one hard drive.
This makes higher data throughput possible. 4­way striped drives (4 drives acting as one) are re­quired when capturing, importing, or playing
uncompressed (1:1) video. 2-way striped drives
(2 drives acting as one) are required when cap­turing, importing, or playing 2:1 compressed
video.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide

10

chapter 4

Installing AVoption

This chapter discusses the installation of AVop­tion software and hardware.

Installing a New AVoption System

Installing AVoption as an Upgrade

If you have currently supported Pro Tools TDM
hardware installed in your system, then you can
install AVoption as an upgrade.

If you do not already have currently supported
Pro Tools TDM hardware installed, you must in­stall AVoption as a new system.

To install a new AVoption system:

1

Install Pro Tools software using the Pro Tools
Installer CD-ROM. The first time you launch
Pro Tools, you are prompted to enter your au­thorization code, which is included in your

TDM Software Installation Guide

2

Install AVoption software. See “Installing
AVoption Software” on page 12.

3

Install Pro Tools and AVoption hardware.

• Determine the proper PCI slots for your instal-

lation. See Appendix A, “Slot Configurations

for AVoption.”

• Install Pro Tools hardware using the instruc-

tions in the

• Install AVoption hardware. See “Installing

AVoption Hardware” on page 13.

TDM Installation Guide

.

.

You must have the latest version of
Pro Tools (included in the AVoption pack­age) installed before you install AVoption.

To install AVoption as an upgrade:

1 Install AVoption software. See “Installing

AVoption Software” on page 12.

2 Install AVoption hardware. Determine the

proper PCI slots for your installation using
Appendix A, “Slot Configurations for AVop­tion.” You may need to rearrange previously in­stalled Pro Tools hardware. To install AVoption
hardware, see “Installing AVoption Hardware”
on page 13.

Chapter 4: Installing AVoption

11

Installing AVoption Software

AVoption includes the following software:

• Pro Tools Installer CD-ROM

• AVoption Installer CD-ROM

• AVoption Authorizer diskette

The Pro Tools Installer CD-ROM is provided in
case you need to update your Pro Tools to the
latest version. AVoption requires Pro Tools 5.0
or later. Owners of Pro Tools versions earlier
than 5.0 will need to contact Customer Service
for upgrade information.

AVoption is copy protected with a key disk. Af­ter you install the software from CD-ROM, the
Authorizer diskette permits you to authorize
and use a single copy of AVoption.

To authorize or deauthorize AVoption:

1 Insert Authorizer diskette into floppy drive.

(Pro Tools should NOT be launched during this
process)

2 Click Authdeauthorizer in the pop-up win-

dow that appears.

3 Click Set-up Authorizer or Deauthorizer.

4 Choose Remove or Authorize (If you are re-

moving an application and a”?” appears over
the application icon, indicates that the diskette
you inserted is not the one you originally used
to authorize this application. You should see a
gold key icon. If you continue through the de­authorization process with a “?” will deautho­rize the application but not credit an
authorization back to the diskette for your next
installation.)

AVoption software is installed in a specific loca­tion in your System Folder, and should not be
moved or altered. The Authorizer diskette per­mits you to reclaim authorization from your
hard drive if you want to install AVoption on a
different hard drive, or if you want to re-initial­ize or format your drive.

To install AVoption software:

1 Insert the Pro Tools Installer CD-ROM in your

CD-ROM drive.

2 Follow the installation instructions to install

AVoption.

5 Select disk location and click Remove or Au-

thorize.

6 Quit.

Installing FilmFrame

FilmFrame is optional, and copy protected with
a key disk. If you purchase this option, you will
receive a FilmFrame Authorizer diskette that
permits you to authorize and use this option.

To authorize FilmFrame:

■ Insert the Authorizer diskette into your floppy

drive, and authorize FilmFrame.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide12

Installing AVoption Hardware

AVoption PCI Slot Configurations

To install your AVoption hardware, first deter­mine the PCI slots where you will install the
hardware. For detailed information, see
Appendix A, “Slot Configurations for AVop­tion.”

3 Remove the ABVB card from the antistatic

bag, being careful to handle it only by the edges.

Audio Hardware

Refer to the TDM Hardware Installation Guide for
audio hardware installation information. You
may be required to move hardware that is al­ready installed to new PCI slot locations in your
computer or expansion chassis, based on the in­formation in Appendix A, “Slot Configurations
for AVoption.”

Installing AVoption Video Hardware

To install AVoption video hardware:

1 Unplug and open your Macintosh computer

or your Magma expansion chassis according to
the instructions included with it.

2 Release any static electricity by touching the

power supply of the CPU, or another grounded
item.

ABV card and ribbon cable

4 Line up the ABVB card with the installation

slot, and slide the card gently into place so the
PCI connector is lined up with the PCI slot.

5 Press down firmly on the card with even pres-

sure. The connector should click into place in
the PCI slot.

PCI card alignment and installation

6 Repeat this process for the Janus Advanced

JPEG card, making sure that you place it in the
proper slot.

Chapter 4: Installing AVoption 13

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

ABVB card

Janus card

Ribbon cable

ABVB card and Janus Advanced JPEG card installed

7 Attach the ribbon cable from the ABVB board

to the connector on top of the Janus Advanced
JPEG card by aligning the cable end with the
connector, and gently pressing it onto the card
until it clicks into place.

8 Close the computer or expansion chassis.

Installing the Digidesign
SCSI 64 / ATTO EPCI-DC SCSI
Accelerator Card

Digidesign SCSI64 / ATTO EPCI-DC SCSI Accelerator

To install the ATTO ExpressPCI Dual-Channel SCSI
Accelerator:

1 Unplug and open your Macintosh computer

or expansion chassis according to the instruc­tions included with it.

2 Release any static electricity by touching the

power supply, or another grounded item.

3 Remove the ATTO card from the antistatic

bag, being careful to handle it only by the edges.

4 Line up the ATTO card with the installation

slot, and slide the card into place gently so the
PCI connector is aligned with the PCI slot.

5 Press down firmly on the card with even pres-

sure. The connector should click into place in
the PCI slot.

6 Fasten the card in place using the included

screw to attach the card bracket to the computer
mounting bracket.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide14

Flashing SCSI ROM with ATTO ExpressPro-Tools

ExpressPro-Tools is supplied with Pro Tools 5.1
and every ATTO SCSI card, and allows you to
flash the ROM on the SCSI card. Digidesign
strongly recommends that the firmware be set
on SCSI channels where audio storage is con­nected as follows:

1 Launch ExpressPro-Tools after booting your

system and mounting all drives.

2 Double-click Media Drive.

3 From the Sync Rate pop-up menu, select

“20 (10)” (20 MB/sec at 10 MHz).

4 Click “Apply to All” (sets the card for all drive

IDs on that bus).

5 Repeat if necessary for the other bus.

6 Quit ExpressPro-Tools.

7 Restart you computer.

These settings are optimized for the size and fre­quency of SCSI transactions demanded by
Pro Tools.

Pro Tools with No Interchange

In installations where Pro Tools will not be rou­tinely sharing projects with Avid Media Com­poser systems, ExpressPro-Tools from ATTO
(provided with Pro Tools 5.1) should be used to
initialize all audio and video drives. Both HFS
and HFS+ file systems are supported for audio
drives. Only HFS is supported for video drives
(HFS+ has not been fully tested with video
drives).

Avid to Pro Tools

For projects originating on an Avid Picture Au­thoring system, such as Media Composer, a sin­gle HFS drive initialized with either ADU 2.1 or
later is supported. This drive may contain video
or audio media files. Pro Tools with AVoption
supports playback of audio and video tracks
from a single drive, as long as track count does
not exceed one stream of AVR77 and a maxi­mum of eight audio tracks. When this drive is
used in a Pro Tools session, additional audio
tracks (beyond those imported from the Avid
workstation) should not be added, for band­width reasons.

Initializing Hard Drives

The following is hard drive initialization infor­mation for three different scenarios: Pro Tools
with no interchange, Avid to Pro Tools, and
Pro Tools to Avid.

Pro Tools and AVoption do not support
striped audio drives.

Drives initialized by Avid Drive Utility 2.1 or
later as 2-way or 4-way are supported in this sce­nario. It is recommended that drives be added to
the SCSI channel dedicated for video to balance
demands on the SCSI system. Note that
Pro Tools can recognize a maximum seven
drives per SCSI channel.

Chapter 4: Installing AVoption 15

Pro Tools to Avid

When a drive is being sent from a Pro Tools sys­tem to an Avid picture workstation, the drive
should be initialized as HFS using ExpressPro­Tools. When an Avid system is inheriting files
from Pro Tools, a “finder copy” of these files
may be necessary to transfer them from the
Pro Tools drive to an Avid/AU2 initialized drive.

If a drive is sent from a Pro Tools system to an
Avid workstation so that files can be consoli­dated and copied to that drive for use on
Pro Tools, the same procedure is required. The
drive should be initialized as HFS in ExpressPro­Tools before being mounted on the Avid work­station.

Media Management

It is recommend that you dedicate one SCSI
channel to audio drives and one SCSI channel to
video drives. Doing this will help you to keep
the data bandwidth balanced on your system
(and avoid the necessity of constantly moving
files around to consolidate bandwidth).

If your Pro Tools system is mounting an inter­change drive originated by an Avid picture
workstation, it is recommended that this inter­change drive be installed on the SCSI bus dedi­cated to video data.

If your Pro Tools system receives an ADU2 drive
with data from an Avid picture workstation, it
recommended that you do not record additional
audio files or tracks onto this drive.

AVoption Video Connections

The ABVB Video Cable

AVoption includes a cable that provides nine
coaxial video connections to connect video and
sync components of your system to the ABVB
card.

ABVB video connector cable

To connect the ABVB cable to the ABVB card:

1 Remove the ABVB cable from the protective

plastic bag.

2 Connect the single connector end to the

matching connector on the ABVB card.

3 Tighten the screws to lock the cable in place.

Video Connectors on the ABVB Cable

GL IN This “Gen Lock” connector is used to con­nect the ABVB card to an external reference
video (black burst) source.

CV OUT This connector provides Composite
Video out. You can use this output to connect
an NTSC or PAL video monitor for video view­ing. You can also connect this output to a com­posite input on your VTR.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide16

Many NTSC video monitors include outputs
that recreate a video input signal. You can
connect the CV OUT from the ABVB to an
NTSC monitor, then connect an output
from the monitor to your VTR to record
from AVoption.

Y OUT, B-Y OUT, R-Y OUT These connectors pro­vide Component (RGB) Video outputs. You can
use these to connect a video reference monitor
or VTR that has Component Video inputs.

CV IN This input is used to get Composite Video
from an external source into AVoption. Con­nect this to your video source.

This connector can also be used in a video loop
with the USD. The output of your VTR can be
connected to the Video In connector on the
USD, then the Video Out connector on the USD
can be connected to this CV IN cable. You might
use this connection to “window burn” with the
USD.

Y IN, B-Y IN, R-Y IN These inputs are used to get
Component Video signals from an external
source into AVoption.

To connect a BNC connector:

■ Slide the end of the BNC connector over the

matching BNC connection, and twist the BNC
connector clockwise until it locks into place.

To remove a BNC connector:

■ Grip the BNC connector you want to remove

and twist it counter-clockwise until it comes
loose.

USD Connections

The following illustrations show USD connec­tions. The Universal Slave Driver User’s Guide pro­vides more specific information about this pe­ripheral.

black burst

VIDEO REF

Serial cable

to Macintosh

MAC SERIAL

VTR out

IN

OUT

VIDEO

CV IN (ABVB)

USD video connections

85-264VAC, 47-63HZ, 115 W

9-PIN IN / ACC

9-PIN OUT

IN

OUT

SUPER CLOCK (256X)

to Slave Clock In
(audio interface)

USD connection to an audio interface

Connecting House Sync or
Black Burst

In most AVoption setups, three black burst or
“house sync” connections are required:

• To VIDEO REF in on the USD

• To a video input on your VTR (a video refer­ence input if available)

• To the GL IN connector from the ABVB cable

Read the documentation for your black burst
generator for more information.

BNC connector

Chapter 4: Installing AVoption 17

Connecting a VTR

A VTR can be used to provide video input and to
record video output from AVoption. In most sit­uations, there are three connections you need to
make:

• Connect a black burst or house sync output to
a video input on your VTR (preferably a refer­ence video input).

• Connect the ABVB cable’s CV IN and/or Com­ponent IN connectors to the corresponding
outputs on your VTR.

• Connect the ABVB cable’s CV OUT and/or
Component OUT connectors to the corre­sponding inputs on your VTR.

– or –

• Connect the ABVB cable’s CV OUT and/or
Component OUT connectors to the corre­sponding input on an NTSC or PAL video
monitor, then connect the outputs from this
monitor to corresponding inputs on your
VTR.

Connecting an External Video Reference Monitor

To connect an external NTSC or PAL video ref­erence monitor, use the ABVB cable’s Compos­ite or Component Video outputs.

Centralized Video Switching and Routing

Configuring AVoption with a
Single VGA Monitor

If you plan to run your Pro Tools AVoption sys­tem with only one VGA monitor, you will need
to connect it to the Macintosh video card and
designate it as the system startup monitor.

If the ABVB VGA output has defaulted to being
the system startup monitor, you will need to
perform the following procedure.

To set the VGA monitor as the startup monitor:

1 Connect your monitor temporarily to the

ABVB VGA output.

2 Choose Monitors & Sound Control Panel >

Identify Monitors.

3 Drag the Menu Bar across the top of the mon-

itor icon from the ABVB monitor icon to the
Macintosh monitor icon.

4 Drag the Macintosh icon from the middle of

the ABVB monitor icon to the Macintosh moni­tor icon.

5 Restart you computer, with your VGA moni-

tor connected to your Macintosh VGA output.
The monitor will now appear as the system star­tup monitor.

Note that the steps above may be necessary
when you first install AVoption, as well as after
any time you zap the P RAM of your computer.

Many professional facilities have centralized
video switching and routing systems. These sys­tems can be used to route AVoption’s inputs and
outputs to flexible input sources and output des­tinations.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide18

Set Color Depth to Millions

Since the VGA output on ABVB cannot be dis­abled, you will always see two monitors repre­sented in the Monitors & Sound Control Panel
(even if you have only one monitor connected
to the Macintosh). As a result, when launching
Pro Tools, you may receive the error message,
“Video engine requires ABVB monitor to be set
to millions of colors in order to load.”

To avoid this error message, set the Color Depth
to “Millions” in the Monitor Control Panel.

ABVB’s VGA Output

The ABVB card includes a VGA monitor output,
which can be used to drive a second VGA mon­itor. This second monitor is used to display the
Pro Tools Movie window (see “Window Play­back” on page 44), without taxing the resources
of the Macintosh PCI bus.

To reduce PCI bus traffic, and avoid system
performance errors, you should display only
the Movie window on the ABVB monitor.
Particularly problematic is placing win­dows partially on both monitors.

3 Drag the Macintosh icon in the middle of the

monitor icon to the correct monitor icon.

4 Next time you restart your computer, the new

monitor assignments will take effect.

Using NTSC and PAL

When switching between NTSC and PAL for­mats, settings must be changed in three places:

• In the Pro Tools Session Setup window, select
the correct frame rate (25, 29.97 DF or NDF).

• The USD must be set (and locked) to the re­spective format (PAL or NTSC).

• If you are going to capture video with AVop­tion, set the Movie Track to the respective for­mat (PAL or NTSC). This setting can be
modified when the Movie Track is armed for
record. The Pal/NTSC format pop-up panel is
available in the I/O panel on the Movie Track.

To see the Pal/NTSC format pop-up panel:

■ Select Display > Edit Window Shows > I/O

View.

Configuring Two Monitors

When using two VGA monitors with AVoption,
you must specify Macintosh monitor as the sys­tem startup monitor.

To the default monitor:

1 Choose Monitors & Sound Control Panel >

Identify Monitors.

2 Drag the Menu Bar across the top of the mon-

itor icon to the correct monitor icon.

Chapter 4: Installing AVoption 19

Sample AVoption Setup Diagrams

Macintosh
monitor

Macintosh
monitor

Video
monitor

Black Burst

generator

to a video
ref input

Macintosh
video card

ABVB VGA

connector

(optional)

Composite

or

CV OUT

GL IN (ABVB)

Component or CV OUT (ABVB)

Power
Macintosh
computer

MachineControl (serial)

DigiSerial port or other

CV In (ABVB)

Video In

Video out

ATTO card
Channel 1

ATTO card
Channel 2

Digi card

Audio Interface

Computer 1

(888/24)

Universal

Super Clock

Slave Driver

Video
drives

Audio
drives

Video deck

Sample ABVB video setup

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide20

Video Ref in

CV OUT (from ABVB)

External video monitor

Component video outputs (ABVB)

Video deck

CH-1 CH-2

ABVB cable

Black Burst generator

GL IN (ABVB)

to USD / VSD

to Ref Video input

on video deck

Video connections for component video, black burst, and external monitor

Video in panel

Video out panel

to Component Video

inputs (ABVB)

Chapter 4: Installing AVoption 21

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide22

chapter 5

Installing AVoption XL

This chapter discusses the installation of
AVoption XL software and hardware.

Installing a NewAVoption XL
System

Installing AVoption XL as an
Upgrade

If you have currently supported Pro Tools TDM
hardware installed in your system, then you can
install AVoption XL as an upgrade.

If you do not already have currently supported
Pro Tools hardware installed, you must install
AVoption XL as a new system.

To install a new AVoption XL system:

1 Install Pro Tools software using the Pro Tools

Installer CD-ROM. The first time you launch
Pro Tools, you are prompted to enter a authori­zation number, which is included in your TDM
Software Installation Guide.

2 Install AVoption XL software. See “Installing

AVoption XL Software” on page 24.

3 Install Pro Tools and AVoption XL hardware.

• Determine the proper PCI slots for your instal­lation. See Appendix B, “Slot Configurations
for AVoption XL.”

• Install Pro Tools hardware using the instruc­tions in your Pro Tools Hardware Installation
Guide.

• Install AVoption XL hardware. See “Installing
AVoption XL Hardware” on page 24.

You must have the latest version of
Pro Tools (included in the AVoption XL
package) installed before you install
AVoption XL.

To install AVoption XL as an upgrade:

1 Install AVoption XL software. See “Installing

AVoption XL Software” on page 24.

2 Install AVoption XL hardware. Determine the

proper PCI slots for your installation using
Appendix B, “Slot Configurations for
AVoption XL.” You may need to rearrange
Pro Tools or other cards that are already in­stalled. To install the AVoption XL hardware, see
“Installing AVoption XL Hardware” on page 24.

Chapter 5: Installing AVoption XL 23

Installing AVoption XL
Software

AVoption XL includes the following software:

• Pro Tools Installer CD-ROM

• AVoption XL Authorizer floppy disk

AVoption XL is copy protected with a key disk
system. After you install the software from CD­ROM, the Authorizer diskette permits you to au­thorize and use a single copy of AVoption XL.

AVoption XL software is installed in a specific
location in your System Folder, and should not
be moved or altered. The Authorizer diskette
permits you to reclaim authorization from your
hard drive if you want to install AVoption XL
on a different hard drive, or if you want to re­initialize or format your drive.

4 Choose Remove or Authorize (If you are re-

moving an application and a”?” appears over
the application icon, indicates that the diskette
you inserted is not the one you originally used
to authorize this application. You should see a
gold key icon. If you continue through the de­authorization process with a “?” will deautho­rize the application but not credit an
authorization back to the diskette for your next
installation.)

5 Select disk location and click Remove or Au-

thorize.

6 Quit.

Installing AVoption XL
Hardware

To install AVoption XL software:

1 Insert the Pro Tools Installer CD-ROM in your

CD-ROM drive.

2 Follow the installation instructions to install

AVoption XL.

To authorize or deauthorize AVoption XL:

1 Insert Authorizer diskette into floppy drive.

(Pro Tools should NOT be launched during this
process)

2 Click Authdeauthorizer in the pop-up win-

dow that appears.

3 Click Set-up Authorizer or Deauthorizer.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide24

AVoption XL PCI Slot
Configurations

To install your AVoption XL hardware, first de­termine the PCI slots where you will install the
hardware. For detailed information, see
Appendix B, “Slot Configurations for
AVoption XL.”

Audio Hardware

Refer to the TDM Hardware Installation Guide for
audio hardware installation information. You
may be required to move hardware that is al­ready installed to new PCI slot locations in your
computer or expansion chassis, based on the in­formation in Appendix B, “Slot Configurations
for AVoption XL.”

Installing AVoption XL Video
Hardware

To install AVoption XLvideo hardware:

1 Unplug and open your Magma Expansion

Chassis according to the instructions included
with it.

2 Release any static electricity by touching the

power supply of the chassis, or another
grounded item.

3 Remove the Digital Media Board from the

anti-static bag, being careful to handle it only by
the edges.

4 Line up the Digital Media Board with the in-

stallation slot, and slide the card into place gen­tly so the PCI connector is lined up with the PCI
slot.

5 Press down firmly on the card with even pres-

sure. The connector should click into place in
the PCI slot.

7 Attach the connector cable from the Digital

Media Board (connector labeled M) to the Com­puter connector on the Meridien I/O Box.

COMPONENT

COMPOSITE

IN

ININ

Y

R-Y B-Y

IN

S-VIDEO

COMPOSITE

REF

OUT

B-Y

Y

R-Y

OUT 1

OUT 2

SYSTEM

OUT

IN / OUT

S-VIDEO

OUT 3

MC

LTC

IN

OUT

OUT

Connecting the Digital Media Board to the Breakout Box

PCI card alignment and installation

6 Close the computer or expansion chassis.

Chapter 5: Installing AVoption XL 25

Installing the ATTO EPCI-UL2D SCSI Accelerator

ATTO UL2D LVD SCSI Accelerator

To install the ATTO EPCI-UL2D SCSI Accelerator :

1 Unplug and open your expansion chassis ac-

cording to the instructions included with it.

2 Release any static electricity by touching the

power supply, or another grounded item.

Flashing SCSI ROM with ATTO ExpressProTools

ExpressPro-Tools is supplied with Pro Tools 5.1
and every ATTO SCSI card, and allows you to
flash the ROM on the SCSI card. Digidesign
strongly recommends that the firmware be set
on SCSI channels where audio storage is con­nected as follows:

1 Launch ExpressPro-Tools after booting your

system and mounting all drives.

2 Double-click Media Drive.

3 From the Sync Rate pop-up menu, select

“20 (10)” (20 MB/sec at 10 MHz).

4 Click “Apply to All” (sets the card for all drive

IDs on that bus).

5 Repeat if necessary for the other bus.

6 Quit ExpressPro-Tools.

7 Restart you computer.

3 Remove the ATTO card from the antistatic

bag, being careful to handle it only by the edges.

4 Line up the ATTO card with the installation

slot, and slide the card into place gently so the
PCI connector is aligned with the PCI slot.

5 Press down firmly on the card with even pres-

sure. The connector should click into place in
the PCI slot.

6 Fasten the card in place using the included

screw to attach the card bracket to the computer
mounting bracket.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide26

These settings are optimized for the size and fre­quency of SCSI transactions demanded by
Pro Tools. You do not need to apply these set­tings to the second SCSI card if one is installed
for video media with AVoption XL.

Initializing Hard Drives

The following is hard drive initialization infor­mation for three different scenarios: Pro Tools
with no interchange, Avid to Pro Tools, and
Pro Tools to Avid.

Pro Tools and AVoption XL do not support
striped audio drives.

Pro Tools with No Interchange

Avid to Pro Tools

In installations where Pro Tools will not be rou­tinely sharing projects with Avid Media Com­poser systems, ExpressPro-Tools from ATTO
(provided with Pro Tools 5.1) should be used to
initialize all audio and video drives. Both HFS
and HFS+ file systems are supported for audio
drives. Only HFS is supported for video drives
(HFS+ has not been fully tested with video
drives).

Special Configuration Requirements

When you want compression levels of 2:1 or 1:1
(uncompressed), an additional ATTO UL2D or
EPCI-DC SCSI accelerator is required for video
storage. With the UL2D configuration, a 2-way
stripe set across both SCSI channels is required
for 2:1 capability, and a 4-way stripe across both
channels is required for 1:1 (uncompressed) ca­pability. It is not necessary to use this configura­tion if you want compression of 3:1 or higher, or
when an EPCI-DC SCSI accelerator is used for
video storage.

To install:

1 Connect the drives across the two UL2D SCSI

channels.

2 Select and create your stripe set using the

ATTO ExpressRAID software (optional from
ATTO).

3 Initialize all audio drives using ATTO Ex-

pressPro-Tools.

Do not use ExpressRAID to initialize your
audio drives. ExpressRAID is not supported
with audio drives.

For projects originating on an Avid Picture Au­thoring system, such as Media Composer, a sin­gle HFS drive initialized with either ADU 2.1 or
later is supported. This drive may contain video
or audio media files. Pro Tools with
AVoption XL supports playback of audio and
video tracks from a single drive, as long as track
count does not exceed one stream of video (at a
compression of 3:1 or higher) and a maximum
of eight audio tracks.

When this drive is used in a Pro Tools session,
additional audio tracks (beyond those imported
from the Avid workstation) should not be
added, for bandwidth reasons.

Drives initialized by Avid Drive Utility 2.1 or
later as 2-way or 4-way are supported in this sce­nario. It is recommended that drives be added to
the SCSI channel dedicated for video to balance
demands on the SCSI system. Note that
Pro Tools can only recognize a maximum seven
drives per SCSI channel.

Pro Tools to Avid

When a drive is being sent from a Pro Tools sys­tem to an Avid picture workstation, the drive
should be initialized as HFS using ExpressPro­Tools. When an Avid system is inheriting files
from Pro Tools, a “finder copy” of these files
may be necessary to transfer them from the
Pro Tools drive to an Avid/AU2 initialized drive.

If a drive is sent from a Pro Tools system to an
Avid workstation so that files can be consoli­dated and copied to that drive for use on
Pro Tools, the same procedure is required. The
drive should be initialized as HFS in ExpressPro­Tools before being mounted on the Avid work­station.

Chapter 5: Installing AVoption XL 27

Media Management

It is recommend that you dedicate one SCSI
channel to audio drives and one SCSI channel to
video drives. This configuration is adequate for
AVoption XL with compression levels of 3:1 or
higher.

If you want compression levels of 2:1 or 1:1 (un­compressed), an additional separate dual-chan­nel SCSI card is required for video drives. These
configurations require that striped drives are
split across the SCSI buses.

If your Pro Tools system is mounting an inter­change drive originated by an Avid picture
workstation, it is recommended that this inter­change drive be installed on the SCSI bus dedi­cated to video data.

If your Pro Tools system receives an ADU2 drive
with data from an Avid picture workstation, it
recommended that you do not record additional
audio files or tracks onto this drive.

AVoption XL Video
Connections

The following video I/O capabilities are avail­able with the Meridien I/O Box:

• Inputs for composite, component (Y, R-Y, B­Y), S-Video, and (optional) SDI.

• Outputs for composite, component (Y, R-Y, B­Y), S-Video, and (optional) SDI.

• Video Ref input to allow the video to be
locked to an external source such as house
sync or a black burst generator.

Note that only one video input source can be
used at a time. For more information, see “Re­cording Video” on page 37.

The Meridien I/O Box can only output from
either S-Video or Component outputs. You
must set this option in your Movie Track.
See “Setting S-Video or Component Output”
on page 36 for instructions.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide28

Meridien I/O Box

The following sections provide figures and tables that describe the function of the Meridien I/O Box
video I/O.

Meridien I/O Box Front Panel Indicators

The front panel of the Meridien I/O Box (see Figure 1) has six indicators and a power switch. When
you turn on the Meridien I/O Box, the indicators turn on and off as it goes through a power-on self­test (POST). After the POST, the POWER indicator remains lit.

Some indicators do not light, or do not indicate correctly, when used with AVoption XL (see illustra­tion). To determine this information, use the indicators on your USD, or your Session Setup window.

Sample rate
(44.1 or 48
is always lit)

Figure 1. Meridien I/O Box front panel

44.1 kHz

kHz

48

Video sync

Audio sync
(this does

not light)

AUDIO SYNC

VIDEO SYNC

Pull down
(this does not light)

PULL DOWN

POWER

Power indicator

O

l

Power switch

Chapter 5: Installing AVoption XL 29

Video I/O Connectors

1 2 3 4 5 6

IN

COMPONENT

IN

COMPOSITE

ININ

Y

R-Y B-Y

S-VIDEO

REF

COMPOSITE

OUT 1

B-Y

Y

R-Y

OUT 3

OUT 2

OUT 1

OUT

SERIAL DIGITAL

OUT

S-VIDEO

20 19 18 17 16 1521 13 12

7 8 9 10

OUT 3IN

OUT 2

SLAVE CLOCK

SYSTEM

IN / OUT

OUT

14

LTC

OUT

IN

Figure 2. Meridien I/O Box rear panel showing video connectors

Table 1. Video I/O Board Identifiers

Number Label Function

1 COMPONENT Y IN Video Y component input, BNC connector. Connects to ana-

log video output of decks.

2 COMPONENT R-Y IN Video R-Y component input, BNC connector. Connects to

analog video output of decks.

3 COMPONENT B-Y IN Video B-Y component input, BNC connector. Connects to

analog video output of decks.

11

4 COMPONENT Y OUT Video Y component (Betacam) output, BNC connector. Con-

nects to analog video input of decks.

5 COMPONENT R-Y OUT Video R-Y component (Betacam) output, BNC connector.

Connects to analog video input of decks.

6 COMPONENT B-Y OUT Video B-Y component (Betacam) output, BNC connector.

Connects to analog video input of decks.

7 SDI IN (optional) Serial digital input, BNC connector. Connects to a serial dig-

ital output from a digital video source.

8 SDI OUT1 (optional) Serial digital output number 1, BNC connector. Connects to

VTR input, a video monitor, or other serial digital device.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide30

Table 1. Video I/O Board Identifiers(Continued)

Number Label Function

9 SDI OUT2 (optional) Serial digital output number 2, BNC connector. Connects to

VTR input, a video monitor, or other serial digital device.

10 SDI OUT3 (optional) Serial digital output number 3, BNC connector. Connects to

VTR input, a video monitor, or other serial digital device.

11 SYSTEM Audio and video I/O connector from the system interface

board.

12 LTC OUT Sends LTC time code out (not used with AVoption XL).

13 LTC IN Brings LTC time code in (not used with AVoption XL).

14 SLAVE CLOCK OUT Clock output, BNC connector (not used with AVoption XL)

15 S-VIDEO OUT Super-video output, 4-pin connector. Connects to analog

video input of decks.

16 COMPOSITE OUT3 Composite video output, BNC connector. Connects to analog

video input of decks or monitor.

17 COMPOSITE OUT2 Composite video output, BNC connector. Connects to analog

video input of decks or monitor.

18 COMPOSITE OUT1 Composite video output, BNC connector. Connects to analog

video input of decks or monitor.

19 S-VIDEO IN Super-video input, 4-pin connector. Connects to analog video

output of decks.

20 COMPOSITE IN Composite video input, BNC connector. Connects to

analog video output of decks.

21 Video Reference (REF) Black burst or house sync input, BNC connector. Synchro-

nizes the system with the global clock source provided by the
house sync or black burst generator.

Chapter 5: Installing AVoption XL 31

USD Connections

Connecting a VTR

The following illustrations show USD connec­tions. The Universal Slave Driver User’s Guide pro­vides more specific information about this pe­ripheral.

Black Burst

VIDEO REF

Serial cable

to Macintosh

MAC SERIAL

VTR out

IN

OUT

VIDEO

to COMPOSITE VIDEO input

USD video connections

85-264VAC, 47-63HZ, 115 W

9-PIN IN / ACC

9-PIN OUT

IN

OUT

SUPER CLOCK (256X)

to Slave Clock In

(audio interface)

USD connection to an audio interface

Connecting House Sync or
Black Burst

In most AVoption XL setups, three black burst
or “house sync” connections are required:

• To VIDEO REF in on the USD

• To a video input on your VTR (a video refer­ence input if available)

• To the VIDEO REF connector on the Meridien
I/O Box

A VTR can be used to provide video input and to
record video output from AVoption XL. In most
situations, there are three connections you need
to make:

• Connect a black burst or house sync output to
a video input on your VTR (preferably a refer­ence video input).

• Connect the Meridien I/O Box Composite IN,
Component IN, S-Video IN, or SDI IN connec­tors to the corresponding output or outputs
on your VTR.

• Connect the Meridien I/O Box Composite
OUT, Component OUT, S-Video OUT, or SDI
OUT connectors to the corresponding inputs
on your VTR.

– or –

• Connect the Meridien I/O Box Composite
OUT or Component OUT connectors to the
corresponding input on an NTSC or PAL video
monitor, then connect the outputs from this
monitor to corresponding inputs on your
VTR.

The Meridien I/O Box can only output from
either S-Video or Component outputs (S­Video is a type of Component output and
you must choose which component output
you want you to use). You must set this op­tion in your Movie track. See “Setting S­Video or Component Output” on page 36
for instructions.

Read the documentation for your black burst
generator for more information.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide32

Connecting an External Video Reference Monitor

Connect an external NTSC or PAL video refer­ence monitor to a Composite, Component, S­Video, or SDI output.

Centralized Video Switching and Routing

Many professional facilities have centralized
video switching and routing systems. These sys­tems can be used to route AVoption XL’s inputs
and outputs to flexible input sources and output
destinations.

Using NTSC and PAL

When switching between NTSC and PAL for­mats, settings must be changed in three places:

• In the Pro Tools Session Setup window, select
the correct frame rate (25, 29.97 DF or NDF).

• The USD must be set (and locked) to the re­spective format (PAL or NTSC).

• If you are going to capture video with
AVoption XL, set the Movie Track to the re­spective format (PAL or NTSC). This setting
can be modified when the Movie Track is
armed for record. The Pal/NTSC format pop­up panel is available in the I/O panel on the
Movie Track.

To see the Pal/NTSC format pop-up panel:

■ Select Display > Edit Window Shows > I/O

View.

Chapter 5: Installing AVoption XL 33

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide34

chapter 6

Recording and Adding to the Movie Track

You can capture video files by actually recording
the video in through the inputs on your ABVB
connector cable (AVoption) or the inputs on
your Meridien I/O Box (AVoption XL). You can
also add files created in a compatible Avid video
editing and composition program, or previously
captured in Pro Tools.

The Movie Track

The Movie track holds the video clips you cap­ture or add into Pro Tools. A Pro Tools session
with AVoption or AVoption XL can only contain
one Movie track.

Track

options

Compression
level

1st video record drive

2nd video record drive

3rd video record drive

Approximate available
record time

Record

View
options

Track name

Track height

To select record drives or choose an AVR or com­pression ratio, select Display > Edit Window
Shows I/O view.

Track

options

Compression
level

1st video record drive

2nd video record drive

3rd video record drive

Approximate available
record time

Video format
to record

Meridien I/O Box
inputs to record
from

Video output
format

Record

View
options

Track name

Track height

Figure 4. Movie track controls (AVoption XL)

To create a new Movie track:

■ Choose Movie> New Movie Track.

Video format
to record

Figure 3. Movie track controls (AVoption)

ABVB inputs
to record from

The new, empty track appears in the Edit win­dow.

Chapter 6: Recording and Adding to the Movie Track 35

To name the Movie track:

1 Double-click the Track Name button to open

the Name and Comments dialog.

2 Type a name (and any optional comments),

then click OK.

To delete the Movie track:

1 Select the track by clicking the Track Name

button in the Edit window.

2 Choose File > Delete Selected Tracks.

To clear all video from the Movie track:

■ Choose Movie > Clear Movie Track.

You cannot change names of clips after they
have been added or recorded. When added, clips
retain the name they were given by the original
workstation (often an Avid editing system).
When recorded in Pro Tools, the clip name is
derived from the Movie track’s name. You can
change the clip name by renaming the Movie
track.

Setting S-Video or Component Output

To select component video outputs in
AVoption XL:

1 On the Movie track, click the Track options

pop-up. See Figure 4 on page 35.

2 Use the Video Output pop-up menu to select

the outputs you want to use: Component or S­Video.

Movie Track Options

The Movie track can be viewed in frames or in
blocks. Frames allow you to see an overview of
the actual video content in a session. Blocks al­low you to see where clips begin and end, and
the names of clips.

Frames

In Frames mode, video data is displayed as pic­tures in the Movie track. These pictures are com­puted based on the video image, and scale ac­cording to your track zoom and height settings.
They do not provide a frame-accurate reference,
but allow you to easily find a scene or sequence
in the Movie track.

(AVoption XL Only)

The Meridien I/O Box can output from either
the S-Video or Component outputs. Composite
out is always active regardless of whether S­video or component is selected. This choice
must be made in the software. Once the choice
is made in the software, it is then echoed in the
physical connections you use to output signals.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide36

Movie track in Frames mode

Frames do not display properly if you change
zoom settings during playback. Black frames are
drawn until playback is stopped. You should
stop playback before changing zoom settings if
you want to view frames.

Blocks

Blocks mode displays the Movie track as blocks
of compositional data. Blocks are outlined wher­ever clip boundaries exist. These block names
indicate both the boundaries for clips defined in

a video editing system and separate clips re­corded into Pro Tools. Names from the original
clips are retained, and new names are given to
newly recorded material. For example, two clips
edited together without any transitions or ef­fects, and named “House Ext” and “House Int,”
will appear as two blocks bordering each other
with those names.

Movie track in Blocks mode

In Blocks mode, you can place the cursor on the
Movie track, then press Tab to move to the next
video edit in the track.

4 Select the video input you are using by click-

ing the Record options button, then selecting
Video Input. You can select Component or
Composite input (AVoption and AVoption XL),
or S-Video or SDI (AVoption XL only).

5 Set the compression level for the video cap-

ture from the Compression Level pop-up menu.

To set the view for the Movie track:

■ On the Movie track, select Frames or Blocks

from the View Options pop-up menu.

Recording Video

You can record multiple video clips to multiple
locations on a single Movie track.

To set video recording options:

1 To record video, you will first need a Movie

track. You can use the existing one, or if neces­sary, create a new one.

2 Select a video format by clicking the Track op-

tions button (see Figure 3 and Figure 4), then se­lecting Video Format. You can select NTSC or
PAL format.

3 To select record drives or choose an AVR or

compression ratio, select Display > Edit Window
Shows I/O view.

Setting the Compression Level (AVoption)

Setting the Compression Level (AVoption XL)

6 Select the target hard drive volumes for the

video capture. Target volumes capture video in
order, from the first (top) to the last (bottom). In
the following illustration, Video-0 captures
video first, followed by Video-1, then Video-3.

Target Volumes for Video Capture

As you add or remove volumes from the track,
the available record time is updated to reflect
available disk space and compression settings.
The time displayed is approximate.

Chapter 6: Recording and Adding to the Movie Track 37

To record video:

1 Use your cursor to mark the point from where

you want to start recording, or to select a range
of time for the recording. You can make this se­lection on a Timebase Ruler or on a track. If you
make this selection on a track, make sure that
Edit and Timeline selections are linked.

2 Record enable the track by clicking the Record

Enable button.

3 Click the Record button in the Transport win-

dow to enable recording.

4 Start playing the video source.

5 Click Play in the Transport window to begin

recording.

6 Click Stop in the Transport window to stop re-

cording.

Note that if there are already clips on the
Movie track, and you record over them, the
overwritten material will be removed from
the Movie track (although it will still re­main intact in its original storage location).

You can Undo Capture Clip and restore the
original clips.

Refer to “Undo/Redo for
Video Editing Commands” on page 42 for
more information.

Command+period (.) will abort a clip cap­ture in progress and restore the Movie track
to the original clips.

Timebase Correction

Most professional video decks have built-in
timebase correction. To find out whether or not
your video deck has built-in timebase correc­tion, refer to the manufacturer’s documenta­tion.

AVoption XL requires that all sources be time­base corrected.

video from sources that are not timebase cor­rected. However, it is recommended that you
use timebase corrected sources whenever possi­ble.

If you are manually capturing video in AVop­tion that is not timebase corrected, start play­back of the video deck first to stabilize the sig­nal. If your configuration does not feature time­base correction, make sure that your sync
generator is connected to the external sync or
reference video input on your video deck, and
that the deck’s sync selector is set to “external
sync” or “reference video.”

AVoption allows you to capture

Capturing with Stationary Playhead

If you want to capture video with Scrolling Op­tions set to “Continuous Scrolling with Play­head,” AVoption should always be set to Blocks
mode (as opposed to Frames mode) to avoid per­formance errors.

MachineControl

You can use Digidesign’s MachineControl soft­ware to remotely control your external video
deck in sync with your Pro Tools capture. Ma­chineControl is optional software. Contact your
dealer for more information.

Blocks mode is recommended when recording
to the Movie track with MachineControl.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide38

Capturing and Approximate Time Left

The approximate record time left in the I/O
View of the Movie track is an estimate. AVop­tion and AVoption XL use variable compression
technologies, and record time varies based on
the density of the material you are recording.

Due to these variables, the approximate record
time left is intended to provide you a rough es­timate and may not be an accurate reflection of
your available record time.

The calculation of approximate record time left
is a conservative estimate based on the highest
data rate possible for that resolution. The ap­proximation may vary by several minutes.

Pro Tools uses the approximate record time left
value to allocate drive space before recording.
Because of variables inherent to this estimation
process, you may find that you have available
record time left after you thought you had filled
the drive.

The record time left is not approximate if you
are capturing video at a compression rate of 1:1
(uncompressed) in AVoption XL. Since this
video is uncompressed, it uses the same data
rate, regardless of the image.

Exporting Files from Avid Programs

If you already have a project that was created on
an Avid video authoring system, you can export
it to an OMF file so the material can be added
into your AVoption or AVoption XL system.
This exchange of data between systems is signif­icantly faster and easier than other methods,
such as laying-off to tape and re-digitizing. This
section uses a Media Composer project as an ex­ample.

export audio material from Pro Tools sessions to
OMF files for import into other systems. Refer to
your DigiTranslator documentation for more
details.

Multi-Streams and AVoption and
AVoption XL

While some Avid systems support two simulta­neous streams of real time video, AVoption and
AVoption XL support only one stream. For this
reason, it is necessary to make sure that all
multi-stream transitions and effects are ren­dered in the Avid sequence before you export.

If you add a sequence into Pro Tools that in­cludes multi-stream effects, AVoption will sub­stitute black frames in their place.

AVoption does not require the entire sequence
to be rendered into one continuous clip (often
referred to as a “video mixdown” in Avid).
AVoption and AVoption XL can add complex
single-stream sequences as multiple clips.

What to Export

When you export from your Avid software, you
have two choices. You can export the audio and
video from a project, or you can export the au­dio or video only.

Video and Audio

If your Media Composer project has video and
audio in it, export both the video and the audio
to the OMF file.

DigiTranslator

DigiTranslator is included with your AVoption
or AVoption XL package. Use DigiTranslator to
convert OMF files containing video and audio
into Pro Tools session files. You can also use it to

Video Only

If you have already started audio post produc­tion in Pro Tools and you want to replace the
Movie track with a more recent version, or your
Avid project has no audio in it, export the video

Chapter 6: Recording and Adding to the Movie Track 39

only. Then, if the video in your project changes,
you can export video only, then add that video
into AVoption or AVoption XL to stay current
with the project.

For more information, and specific workflows
for add and export, see the DigiTranslator Guide
(DigiTranslator is included in the AVoption and
AVoption XL packages).

Preparing for Export in Media Composer

To prepare a Media Composer project for OMF
export and use with AVoption or AVoption XL:

◆ Make sure all media for the project is online.

◆ Render all effects in advance. OMF export

does not automatically render effects during the
process, so if you want to see them, you must
render effects before you export.

• If using different drives to transport the
project, consolidate the project.

2 Choose File > Export.

Exporting from Media Composer

To export a file from Media Composer:

1 Select the material to export by doing one of

the following:

• To select specific tracks in a clip or sequence,
enable those tracks in the Track Selector
panel, and disable all others.

• To export part of a clip or sequence, mark IN
and OUT points to export the marked range
from a bin or monitor, and select Use Marks in
the Export Settings dialog box. If you mark an
IN and no OUT point, the system exports
from the IN mark to the end of the clip or se­quence.

• To export the entire clip or sequence, deselect
the options Use Enabled Tracks and Use Marks
in the Export Settings dialog box, and make
sure the topmost track in the project is moni­tored.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide40

Export File Type dialog in Media Composer

• Under Export File type, select OMFI composi­tion.

• If adding video and audio into an AVoption
session, select Standard-AIFC and Video and
Audio options.

• If adding video only into AVoption, select
Video Only.

• Usually, you should export an OMF file that
only refers to the audio and video files that al­ready exist on the hard drives. For this reason,
it is recommended that you do not export
With Media.

3 Set the Version to OMFI 2.0.

4 When you finish setting export options, click

OK.

5 Run DigiTranslator.

Adding Movie Files with
AVoption and AVoption XL

With the Add Movie command, you can import
several clips to a single Movie track, increasing
your editing capabilities.

If there are already clips on the Movie track and
you add over them, the overwritten material
will be removed from the Movie track. You can
undo and restore the original clips. Refer to
“Undo/Redo for Video Editing Commands” on
page 42 for more information.

Once you have OMF files for your project, you
are ready to add them. If your OMF file is Video
Only you can add it as the Movie track in AVop­tion or AVoption XL. If your OMF file has video
and audio, you can use OMF Tool to create a
Pro Tools session from the audio files, then add
the Movie track separately.

You can use DigiTranslator to translate
video and audio simultaneously. See your
DigiTranslator documentation for details.

To create a Pro Tools session with OMF Tool:

1 Launch OMF Tool, and choose

OMF Tool > Convert OMF to Pro Tools.

2 Select the OMF composition file.

3 Name the Pro Tools session, and choose

Pro Tools 4 as the version to save.

To open your session with AVoption or
AVoption XL:

1 Choose File > Open Session.

2 Find the Pro Tools session created by OMF

Tool, select it, and click Open.

To add a video into the Movie track:

1 With a session open, choose Movie > Add

Movie.

2 Select the OMF file created by the Video Only

or Video and Audio export, and click OK.

Importing Movies (QuickTime)

You can import a QuickTime movie to a Movie
track. When you import a movie, it clears the
Movie track of its contents and replaces it with
the imported movie. Importing is only recom­mended if you want to import a QuickTime
movie, since QuickTime movies take up the
whole Movie track and cannot be edited with
other clips. Adding movie clips is recommended
for editing multiple clips (that are not Quick­Time). See “Adding Movie Files with AVoption
and AVoption XL” on page 41.

For more information on QuickTime movies
and how to import them, see the Pro Tools Refer-
ence Guide.

4 Set all other options based on your session re-

quirements, and click Save when you are done.
The resulting file is a Pro Tools session. OMF
Tool ignores the video information.

Chapter 6: Recording and Adding to the Movie Track 41

Undo/Redo for Video Editing Commands

You can undo or redo the single most recent
video editing command, including Add Movie,
Clear Selection, Move Clip, Copy Clip, and Clip
Capture. If there are already video clips on the
Movie track, and you record or edit over them,
the overwritten material is removed from the
Movie track. You can undo the video editing
command and restore the original clips.

Undo/Redo works only for the single most re­cent video editing command. You cannot
undo/redo once a new video editing command
has been performed or the session has been
closed and reopened.

To undo the most recent video editing command:

• Choose Movie > Undo.

To redo the command, choose Movie > Redo.

If you have captured, added or moved a clip
onto a pre-existing clip and consequently trun­cated it, Undo will also restore the trimmed clip
to its original length.

These test configurations generally included
one drive for every 16 tracks of audio in addition
to separate storage devices for video. One way to
achieve higher track counts is to dedicate more
drives to the audio tracks.

On a supported configuration, you should be
able to easily achieve this performance baseline,
even with a high degree of edit density on each
track. The higher the edit density, the more
heavily taxed the storage system.

You may find better results than this baseline,
since Digidesign’s performance tests are de­signed to stress the storage subsystem more
heavily than the average “real world” usage. You
may be able to continuously record or play back
64 audio tracks and picture simultaneously.

Performance Guidelines

Virtually all testing for AVoption and
AVoption XL was done with:

• A baseline of 32 tracks (of 24–bit/48k audio).

• One stream of the highest resolution of video
data (record or playback) of which the prod­uct is capable (AVR77 for AVoption and 1:1—
or uncompressed—for AVoption XL).

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide42

chapter 7

Playing and Editing the Movie Track

Video plays back automatically when you play a
session that includes a Movie track. There are
several different options for viewing and syn­chronizing the video and audio tracks.

Movie Offline

If you temporarily do not want to view the
movie or have the movie frame location up­dated, you can take the movie offline.

Movie Online

When the movie is online, the Movie track plays
along with the audio session. The movie’s frame
location is updated every time you place your
cursor in a new location, and the Movie track is
scrubbed along with the audio tracks. The
Movie track is also updated whenever you drag
or nudge an audio region or an automation
breakpoint. The movie is online by default.

Online Edit and Selection Behavior

When Pro Tools is in Grid mode or set for Loop
Playback, and the movie is online, Pro Tools will
always place your cursor or Edit selection on le­gal frame boundaries. If you make a selection
that is outside of frame boundaries, or you place
your cursor outside a frame boundary, Pro Tools
will move your cursor to the nearest frame
boundary and play.

This is useful if you are working with audio and
do not need to see the video.

To put the movie online:

■ Select Movie > Movie Online.

To take the movie offline:

■ Deselect Movie > Movie Online.

The keyboard shortcut for Movie Online/Offline
is Shift+Command+J.

Chapter 7: Playing and Editing the Movie Track 43

Playback Viewing Options

Video can be viewed on a separate NTSC or PAL
video monitor. Video can also be viewed in an
on-screen window (AVoption only).

To connect a playback monitor:

■ Connect a composite output, the component

outputs, the S-Video output, or and SDI output
from the Meridien I/O Box to the proper input
or inputs on the back of your video monitor.

Using a Playback Monitor with AVoption

The ABVB video cable includes video outputs to
connect an NTSC or PAL video monitor. You
can connect a monitor that has component or
composite video inputs.

The video card will display full-screen video on
the playback monitor.

To connect a playback monitor:

■ Connect the composite output or the compo-

nent outputs from the ABVB cable to the proper
input or inputs on the back of your video mon­itor.

Using a Playback Monitor with
AVoption XL

The Meridien I/O Box includes video outputs to
connect an NTSC or PAL video monitor. You can
connect a monitor that has component, com­posite, S-Video, or SDI video inputs.

The video card will display full-screen video on
the playback monitor.

The Meridien I/O Box can only output from
either S-Video or Component outputs (com­posite out is always active). You must set
this option in your Movie track. See “Setting
S-Video or Component Output” on page 36
for instructions.

Window Playback

(AVoption Only)

Select Windows > Show Movie Window to view
the Movie track in a window on your computer
screen. This window will display the video in
real time. You can resize or move this window
around your screen when playback is stopped.

The Movie window will give you the best perfor­mance when it is displayed on a monitor con­nected to the ABVB VGA monitor output. With
a monitor connected to your Macintosh graph­ics accelerator, performance will not be optimal,
and may not work at all.

Movie window (AVoption)

You cannot view the video input signal in a
window. In order to view video input, you
must connect an external monitor to the
Composite or Component outputs of the
ABVB card.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide44

If the Movie window is partially blocked by an­other window on your screen, playback will
slow or “stutter” as your computer’s CPU at­tempts to display the video.

Movie window size and position are saved with
your session.

To show the Movie window:

■ Choose Windows > Show Movie Window.

Moving the Movie Track or Video Clips

You can use the Move Clip command to spot
the entire Movie track, or individual video clips,
to a new SMPTE frame location. When you
move the Movie track, the whole track or se­quence is moved to the new frame location you
specify. When you move a clip, it is moved to
the new location within the Movie track.

To resize the Movie window:

■ When playback is stopped, click the lower

right corner of the Movie window and drag to
shrink or enlarge the window.

Movie Aspect Ratio

(AVoption Only)

You can set the Movie window to automatically
snap to one of two window aspect ratios (4x3 or
16x9), or to allow unconstrained resizing.

By constraining the aspect ratio, you can see a
more accurate on-screen representation of the
final video. Use 4:3 for video destined for televi­sion, and use 16:9 for wide screen film-format
viewing.

To set the Movie window aspect ratio:

1 Choose Movie > Show Movie window.

2 Choose Movie > Movie Window Aspect Ratio.

3 Choose 4:3, 16:9, or unconstrained as the as-

pect ratio.

You cannot have multiple QuickTime clips on a
Movie track.

If you move a clip in which a sync point was pre­viously created, the sync point will maintain its
position within the clip. For more information
on understanding, creating, identifying and re­moving sync points, see the Pro Tools Reference

Guide.

Note that if there are already clips on the
Movie track, and you edit over them, the
overwritten material will be removed from
the Movie track.

and restore the original clips.

You can undo Move Clip

For more infor­mation, see “Undo/Redo for Video Editing
Commands” on page 42.

To spot the entire Movie track to a new frame
location:

1 Set the Main Timebase display to Time Code

using the pop-up menu.

2 Enable Spot mode by clicking the Spot button.

Chapter 7: Playing and Editing the Movie Track 45

3 Shift-click the Movie track with the Grabber

tool.

Copying Video Clips

4 In the Spot dialog that appears, specify a new

SMPTE frame number for the start of the Movie
track. In this dialog, you can press plus or minus
on the numeric keypad, enter a number, and
press the Enter key to add or subtract that num­ber of frames from the currently selected time
field.

5 Click OK when you are done.

To spot a video clip to a new frame location:

1 Set the Main Timebase display to Time Code

using the pop-up menu.

2 Enable Spot mode by clicking the Spot button.

3 Click the clip on the Movie track with the

Grabber tool.

4 In the Spot dialog, specify a new SMPTE frame

number for the start of the clip. In this dialog,
you can press plus or minus on the numeric key­pad, enter a number, and press the Enter key to
add or subtract that number of frames from the
currently selected time field.

5 Click OK when you are done.

You can copy video clips to a new SMPTE frame
location within the Movie track.

To copy a video clip to a new frame location:

1 Set the Main Timebase display to Time Code

using the pop-up menu.

2 Enable Spot mode by clicking the Spot button.

3 Option-click the clip on the Movie track with

the Grabber tool.

4 In the Spot dialog, specify a new SMPTE frame

number for the start of the clip. In this dialog,
you can press plus or minus on the numeric key­pad, enter a number, and press the Enter key to
add or subtract that number of frames from the
currently selected time field.

5 Click OK when you are done.

Clearing Selected Video Clips

You can clear material from the Movie track.

To clear selection:

1 Drag with the Selector in the Movie track to

select the material you want to clear. You can
also double-click to select an entire existing
video clip.

2 Choose Movie > Clear Selection.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide46

Sync Points

Locking the Movie Track

Sync points are used when a point within a re­gion must be aligned to the Grid or to a particu­lar SMPTE or bar and beat location. This capabil­ity is important editing music and sound effects
for video and film work.

Once you have a sync point identified, you can
spot edit the clip based on that sync point. For
more information on moving video clips, see
“Moving the Movie Track or Video Clips” on
page 45.

To identify a sync point:

1 Set the Edit mode to Spot mode.

2 With the Selector, click in the region at the

point where you want to define the sync point.

3 Choose Edit > Identify Sync Point. A small

down arrow appears at the bottom of the region,
indicating the location of the sync point.

To remove a sync point, select the entire region
with the sync point and choose Edit > Remove
Sync Point.

For more information on sync points, see the
Pro Tools Reference Guide.

Ifyou want to permanently associate your video
clips with a certain location on your Movie
track, you can lock it in place so it will not be
moved accidentally.

To lock the Movie track:

1 With the Grabber, select the Movie track.

2 Choose Edit > Lock Region/Unlock Region.

You can also lock the Movie track by triple­clicking in the Movie track (to select all
clips) and pressing Command+L.

When the Movie track is locked, a small lock
icon appears in the track, indicating that the
Movie track has been locked and cannot be
moved. If you attempt to move a locked region,
you will receive an error message.

Once a Movie track is locked, you cannot Add
video clips to it (without first unlocking it).

Locking the Movie track only prevents it from
being moved. Recording still affects the clips in
the Movie track.

Chapter 7: Playing and Editing the Movie Track 47

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide48

appendix a

Slot Configurations for AVoption

This appendix documents slot configurations for AVoption systems, with and without expansion
chassis.

9500/9600 without Expansion Chassis

Slot Card

CPU Slot 1 Macintosh Monitor card

CPU Slot 2 d24 or MIX Core card

CPU Slot 3 MIX Farm or DSP Farm cards (if any)

CPU Slot 4 SCSI HBA

CPU Slot 5 Janus Advanced JPEG card

CPU Slot 6 ABVB card

CPU speed of 300 MHz or higher recommended.

Appendix A: Slot Configurations for AVoption 49

9500/9600 with 13-Slot Expansion Chassis

Pro Tools Expansion Chassis (serial numbers lower than NB0600100C)
Magma PCI–13–RX–400V
SBS DD2, 240–2–2, or 240–2–201

Slot Card

CPU Slot 1 Empty

CPU Slot 2 Chassis Host card

CPU Slot 3 Macintosh Monitor card

CPU Slot 4 SCSI HBA

CPU Slot 5 Janus Advanced JPEG card

CPU Slot 6 ABVB card

Backplane Chassis Slot Chassis Controller card

Chassis Slot 1 d24 or MIX Core card

Chassis Slots 2–10 Additional Pro Tools cards (9 maximum)

Chassis Slots 10–13 Empty

CPU speed of 300 MHz or higher recommended.

Expansion chassis slots are numbered sequentially from left to right. These chassis require a
supplemental cooling fan kit.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide50

9500/9600 with 7-Slot Expansion Chassis

SBS DD22–1 or 2101–00–2 (with IBM Bridge Chips)

Slot Card

CPU Slot 1 Empty

CPU Slot 2 Chassis Host card

CPU Slot 3 Macintosh Monitor card

CPU Slot 4 SCSI HBA

CPU Slot 5 Janus Advanced JPEG card

CPU Slot 6 ABVB card

Backplane Chassis Slot Chassis Controller card

Chassis Slot 1 d24 or MIX Core card

Chassis Slots 2–7 Additional Pro Tools cards (6 maximum)

CPU speed of 300 MHz or higher recommended.

Expansion chassis slots are numbered sequentially from left to right. These chassis require a
supplemental cooling fan kit.

Appendix A: Slot Configurations for AVoption 51

Blue & White G3 with 13-Slot Expansion Chassis

Pro Tools Expansion Chassis (serial numbers lower than NB0600100C)
Magma PCI–13–RX–400V

Slot Card

CPU Slot 1 Chassis Host card

CPU Slot 2 Empty

CPU Slot 3 SCSI HBA

Backplane Chassis Slot Chassis Controller card

Chassis Slot 1 ABVB card

Chassis Slot 2 Janus Advanced JPEG card

Chassis Slot 3 d24 or MIX Core card

Chassis Slots 4–12 Additional Pro Tools cards (9 maximum)

Chassis Slot 13 Empty

Expansion chassis slots are numbered sequentially from left to right. These chassis require a
supplemental cooling fan kit.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide52

G4 with 13-Slot Expansion Chassis

Pro Tools Expansion Chassis (serial numbers lower than NB0600100C)
Magma model PCI–13–RX–400V

Slot Card

CPU Slot 1 SCSI HBA

CPU Slot 2 Chassis Host card

CPU Slot 3 Empty

Backplane Chassis Slot Chassis Controller card

Chassis Slot 1 ABVB card

Chassis Slot 2 Janus Advanced JPEG card

Chassis Slot 3 d24 or MIX Core card

Chassis Slots 4–12 Additional Pro Tools cards (9 maximum)

Chassis Slot 13 Empty

Expansion chassis slots are numbered sequentially from left to right. These chassis require a
supplemental cooling fan kit.

Appendix A: Slot Configurations for AVoption 53

G4 with 13-Slot Expansion Chassis

Pro Tools Expansion Chassis (serial numbers higher than NB0600100C)
Magma PCI–13R

Slot Card

CPU Slot 1 Chassis Host card

CPU Slot 2 Empty

CPU Slot 3 SCSI HBA (Audio)

Chassis Backplane Slot Chassis Controller card

Chassis Slot 1 d24 MIX or Core card

Chassis Slot 2–6 Additional Pro Tools cards (5 maximum)

Chassis Slot 7 ABVB card

Chassis Slot 8 Janus Advanced JPEG card

Chassis Slot 9 SCSI HBA (Video)

Chassis Slots 10–13 Empty

Expansion chassis slots are numbered sequentially from right to left. These chassis require a
supplemental cooling fan kit.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide54

appendix b

Slot Configurations for AVoption XL

This appendix documents slot configurations for AVoption XL systems, with and without expansion
chassis.

9500/9600 without Expansion Chassis

Slot Card

CPU Slot 1 Macintosh Monitor card

CPU Slot 2 d24 or MIX Core card

CPU Slot 3 MIX Farm or DSP Farm cards (if any)

CPU Slot 4 MIX Farm or DSP Farm cards (if any)

CPU Slot 5 SCSI HBA

CPU Slot 6 Avid Digital Video Board

CPU speed of 300 MHz or higher recommended. Supports 3:1 video compression or higher (no
2:1 or 1:1).

Appendix B: Slot Configurations for AVoption XL 55

9500/9600 with 13-Slot Expansion Chassis

Pro Tools Expansion Chassis (serial numbers lower than NB0600100C)
Magma model PCI–13–RX–400V

Slot Card

CPU Slot 1 Macintosh Monitor card

CPU Slot 2 Chassis Host card

CPU Slot 3 Empty

CPU Slot 4 SCSI HBA (Audio)

CPU Slot 5 Empty

CPU Slot 6 Empty

Backplane Chassis Slot Chassis Controller card

Chassis Slot 1 SCSI HBA (Video)

Chassis Slots 2–3 Empty

Chassis Slot 4 Avid Digital Video Board

Chassis Slot 5–7 Empty

Chassis Slot 8 d24 or MIX Core card

Chassis Slots 9–13 Additional Pro Tools cards (6 maximum)

CPU speed of 300 MHz or higher recommended.

Expansion chassis slots are numbered sequentially from left to right. These chassis require a
supplemental cooling fan kit.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide56

Blue & White G3 with 13-Slot Expansion Chassis

Pro Tools Expansion Chassis (serial numbers lower than NB0600100C)
Magma PCI–13–RX–400V
SBS DD2, 240–2–2, or 240–2–201

Slot Card

CPU Slot 1 Chassis Host card

CPU Slot 2 Empty

CPU Slot 3 SCSI HBA (Audio)

Backplane Chassis Slot Chassis Controller card

Chassis Slot 1 SCSI HBA (Video)

Chassis Slots 2–3 Empty

Chassis Slot 4 Avid Digital Video Board

Chassis Slots 5–7 Empty

Chassis Slot 8 d24 or MIX Core card

Chassis Slots 9–13 Additional Pro Tools cards (6 maximum)

Expansion chassis slots are numbered sequentially from right to left. These chassis require a
supplemental cooling fan kit.

Appendix B: Slot Configurations for AVoption XL 57

Blue & White G3 with 13-Slot Expansion Chassis

Pro Tools Expansion Chassis (serial numbers higher than NB0600100C)
Magma PCI–13R

Slot Card

CPU Slot 1 Chassis Host card

CPU Slot 2 Empty

CPU Slot 3 SCSI HBA (Audio)

Backplane Chassis Slot Chassis Controller card

Chassis Slot 1 d24 or MIX Core card

Chassis Slots 2–6 Additional Pro Tools cards (6 maximum)

Chassis Slot 7 Avid Digital Video Media Board

Chassis Slot 8 SCSI HBA (Video)

Chassis Slots 9–13 Empty

Expansion chassis slots are numbered sequentially from right to left. These chassis require a
supplemental cooling fan kit.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide58

G4 with 13-Slot Expansion Chassis

Pro Tools Expansion Chassis (serial numbers lower than NB0600100C)
Magma PCI–13–RX–400V

Slot Card

CPU Slot 1 SCSI HBA (Audio)

CPU Slot 2 Chassis Host card

CPU Slot 3 Empty

Backplane Chassis Slot Chassis Controller card

Chassis Slot 1 SCSI HBA (Video)

Chassis Slots 2–3 Empty

Chassis Slot 4 Avid Digital Video Board

Chassis Slots 5–7 Empty

Chassis Slot 8 d24 or MIX Core card

Chassis Slots 9–13 Additional Pro Tools cards (6 maximum)

Expansion chassis slots are numbered sequentially from right to left. These chassis require a
supplemental cooling fan kit.

Appendix B: Slot Configurations for AVoption XL 59

G4 with 13-Slot Expansion Chassis

Pro Tools Expansion Chassis (serial numbers higher than NB0600100C)
Magma PCI–13–RX–400V

Slot Card

CPU Slot 1 Chassis Host card

CPU Slot 2 Empty

CPU Slot 3 SCSI HBA (Audio)

Backplane Chassis Slot Chassis Controller card

Chassis Slot 1 d24 or MIX Core card

Chassis Slots 2–6 Additional Pro Tools cards (6 maximum)

Chassis Slot 7 Avid Digital Video Media Board

Chassis Slot 8 SCSI HBA (Video)

Chassis Slots 9–13 Empty

Expansion chassis slots are numbered sequentially from right to left. These chassis require a
supplemental cooling fan kit.

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide60

index

A

ABVB cable 16
ABVB card

cable connectors 16
installing for AVoption 13

ABVB output 18
ADU2 drive 16, 28
aspect ratio 45
ATTO EPCI-DC card

installing for AVoption 14

ATTO SCSI card 26
audio hardware

installing with AVoption 13
installing with AVoption XL 24

authorizing and deauthorizing

AVoption 12
AVoption XL 24
FilmFrame 12

available record time 37
AVoption

authorizing and deauthorizing 12
capabilities 1
compression (video) available 3
hardware capabilities 3
resolutions (video) available 3
setup illustration 20

AVoption XL

authorizing and deauthorizing 24
capabilities 2
hardware capabilities 7
installing a new system 23
striped drive requirements 10
video connectors 30

AVR 3

disk space used 4

B

black burst 9, 17

connecting to AVoption XL 32

Blocks view 36
BNC

connecting 17
removing 17

B-Y IN 17
B-Y OUT 17

C

centralized video

switching and routing for AVoption XL 33

compression 3

approximate storage space 4, 8
setting level 37
with JPEG 4

configuring

AVoption with a single VGA monitor 18
PCI slot configurations for AVoption 13

connecting

AVoption

a VTR 18
ABVB 16
BNC connector 17
NTSC monitor 18
PAL monitor 18
reference video monitor 18
USD 17

AVoption XL 33

a VTR 32
house sync 32
PAL monitor 33
reference video 33
Universal Slave Driver 32

USD 32
black burst 17
external playback monitor 44
house sync 17

Index 61

CV IN 17
CV OUT 16

G

GL IN 16

D

deauthorizing and authorizing

AVoption 12
AVoption XL 24

Digital Media card 25
DigiTranslator 39, 40
disk allocation 10

Round Robin 5

E

exporting

audio 40
entire clip or sequence 40
file type 40
files from Media Composer 40
from Media Composer 40
media online 40
OMFI Version 2.0 40
overview 39
part of a sequence 40
render effects in advance 40
selecting specific tracks 40
video 40
video and audio 39
video only 39
With Media 40

ExpressPro-Tools 26

flashing SCSI ROM 15

external playback monitor 44

connecting 44
NTSC 44
PAL 44

F

FilmFrame

authorizing for AVoption 12
installing for AVoption 12
overview 2

flashing

SCSI ROM with ATTO ExpressPro-Tools 15, 26

frame boundaries, adjusting to 43
Frames view for Movie track 36

H

hard drives

contiguous file capture on multiple 5
initializing for AVoption 15
initializing for AVoption XL 26, 27
Round Robin allocation for audio 5
selecting for video capture 37
space required for each AVR level 4
space required for each JFIF level 8
using more than two 5, 9
using two 5, 9
video for AVoption 5

house sync 5, 9, 17

connecting to AVoption XL 32

I

I/O Box, Meridien 29
illegal frame boundaries 43
Importing files

preparing 39

initializing

hard drives for AVoption 15
hard drives for AVoption XL 26, 27

installing

ABVB card for AVoption 13
authorizing AVoption 12
AVoption

ATTO EPCI-DC card 14
audio hardware 13
FilmFrame 12
new system 11
SCSI accelerator 14
software 12
upgrade 11
video hardware 13

AVoption XL

ATTO EPCI-UL2D card 26
audio hardware 24
authorizing 24
Digital Media card 25
Meridien I/O Box 25
new system 23
SCSI accelerator 26

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide62

software 24
upgrade 23
video hardware 25

Janus advanced JPEG card for AVoption 13

J

Janus advanced JPEG card

installing for AVoption 13

JFIF, disk space used 8
JPEG 4

compression and video storage 4

L

locking the Movie track 47

M

MachineControl 38
media management

AVoption

ADU2 drive 16
SCSI channel to video drives 16

AVoption XL

ADU2 drive 28
SCSI channel to video drives 28

Meridien I/O Box 25, 29
monitors

connecting NTSC 33
connecting PAL 33

Movie Offline, working with 43
Movie Online, working with 43
Movie track

clearing track 36
creating 35
deleting 36
Frames view 36
locking 47
naming 36
overview 35
viewing as blocks 36

Movie Window 44

aspect ratio 45
showing 45

N

NTSC 19, 33

connecting 18
switching between NTSC and PAL 33

NTSC and PAL

switching between 19
using 19

NTSC monitor 33

O

Offline Movie 43
Online Movie 43

P

PAL 19, 33

connecting 18
switching between NTSC and PAL 33

Pal and NTSC 19

switching between 19

performance guidelines

for AVoption and AVoption XL 42

performance with windowed playback 44
Preparing to Import Files 39

Q

QuickTime movies, importing 41

R

recording video 38

selecting target volumes 37
selecting video input 37
setting compression level 37
setting options 37

removing

BNC connector 17

render effects before exporting 40
resolution (video) 3
Round Robin 5, 10
routing and switching

centralized video for AVoption 18

R-Y IN 17
R-Y OUT 17

Index 63

S

sample AVoption setup

illustration 20

SCSI accelerators

for AVoption 5
for AVoption XL 9
installing for AVoption 14
installing for AVoption XL 26

SCSI channel 16
SCSI ROM

flashing with ATTO ExpressPro-Tools 15, 26

selecting target volumes for video capture 37
selecting video input 37
setting video recording options 37
show Movie Window 45
storage

using more than two hard drives 9
using two hard drives 9

striped drives 10
switching and routing

centralized video for AVoption 18
centralized video for AVoption XL 33

sync points, identifying 47
synchronization 9
synchronization peripheral 5
system requirements 5

U

Undo/Redo for Video Editing Commands 42
Universal Slave Driver 5

connecting 17, 32
required for AVoption XL 9

upgrading AVoption XL 23
USD 5, 9

connecting 17, 32

V

variable compression with JPEG 4
VGA monitor, configuring 18
video

AVoption

ABVB video cable 16
available video resolutions 3
Avid Video Resolution and compression 3
cables 16
captured to multiple hard drives 5

centralized video switching and routing 18
connecting ABVB video cable 16
connections 16
hard drives 5
installing hardware 13
JPEG 4
switching between NTSC and PAL 19
synchronization and black burst 5

AVoption XL

centralized video switching and routing 33
installing hardware 25
qualified and required SCSI accelerators 9
switching between NTSC and PAL 33

video and audio export 39
video cable

AVoption connectors 16

video clips

clearing selection 46
copying 46

video connectors

AVoption 16
AVoption XL 30
B-Y IN 17
B-Y OUT 17
CV IN 17
CV OUT 16
GL IN 16
R-Y IN 17
R-Y OUT 17
Y IN 17
Y OUT 17

video only export 39
video signal

centralized routing 18
selecting 37
viewing with external monitor 44

video storage

disk space used 4, 8

viewing blocks in the Movie track 36
viewing the Movie in a window 44
VTR

connecting 18
connecting to AVoption XL 32

W

window playback

of the Movie 44
performance 44

AVoption & AVoption XL Guide64

Y

Y IN 17
Y OUT 17

Index 65