P2 MXF Spanned Clips

[PaulDetroit]

Hi, everyone. This is my first time joining a forum so bear with me if I seem ignorant of the rules and etiquette.

I've been using the Panasonic AG-HVX200. I record to P2 cards, then immediately transfer the card contents onto a 500 GB external hard drive. I preserve all the file structures when I copy the contents. Later, I connect the hard drive to my machine with USB, and combine files and import the clips using P2 Select. By in large this works great. I love that Edius combines all the data into a new .MXF clip. However, the way P2 Select imports spanned clips leaves something to be desired. What I want to happen is for P2 Select to join the two clips and make a new .MXF clip. Right now it knows that the clip is spanned, but it simply refers back to the original files. So this is what I want to happen:

Let's say there's a spanned clip. The first part is named 026JSV in the file folders. The second part is named 001WGI. I want P2 Select to combine the files and import, and create a new .MXF clip that incorporates both original clips. Let's say it's named P2_026JSV.MXF.

Does this make sense? Is this even an option or will I have to make do without it? Partly the reason I'm concerned is that I need to make an AAF and I feel that it will be confusing to incorporate the combined clips as well as the original clips.

Sorry for the long post...

[GrassValley_BH]

I suspect it probably has something to do with source card identification within the MXF itself but I'm not certain...

[PaulDetroit]

Possibly. Maybe it's because I'm transferring from a hard drive and not the original cards.

However, have you seen spanned clips become new .MXF files? Edius is recognizing that the clips are spanned so that isn't the problem. I just wish to make a "Combined file" from a spanned clip.

[THoff]

Try deselecting the "Combine" option in P2 Select and just use "Copy and Import".

[PaulDetroit]

That doesn't do it. All that does is make a "CONTENTS" folder in the copy destination and places the separate parts of the spanned clip in there. I use this because it ends up working fine in Edius. Edius thinks it's one single clip and there are no problems. I just wish it would actually combine them into one file.

[THoff]

P2 clips are limited to 4GB segments, you can't create a single file for a long clip inside MXF containers.

[PaulDetroit]

The 4 GB constraint shouldn't make a difference with clips that span cards. If the clip starts toward the end of one P2 card and then rolls off to the next card, the whole clip would be less than 4 GB.

[GrassValley_KH]

But in terms of file import - the combine+import operation still obeys the 4GB filesize constraint.

[PaulDetroit]

It still shouldn't matter. Let's say I had two P2 cards in the camera. I'm shooting on the first one and have 30 seconds free space. The second card is full. When I'm shooting continuously, that clip will "roll off" onto the second card. Let's say I record an additional 30 seconds on that card and then stop recording. The total clip would be a minute.

P2 Select would then have to reassemble a spanned clip that was only a minute long. The resulting clip should only be 1 GB.

[PaulDetroit]

Sorry, I meant to say that the "second card is empty."

[hvx_germanboy]

I have the same doubts about the AAF export and spanned clips..as i just wrote in a nother post, i havent tryed using AE with native mxf (as i have to get CS3 first), but when i compare the appearence of spanned clips when relinking clips (after a external drive has changed drive-letter for example..), i would say it would be pretty much the same in AE when using AAF.

The only "solution" i see for you is Exporting the parts that were spanned clips (they are all greyish) and put it on the timeline again to make sure that you wount loose those clips.

I can say in general, that the two spanned clips are mostly working like that in Edius: 1st clip is indeed the first part. Second clip (appearing with a different icon in the window, same starting TC, different Ending TC than the 1st clip..) is the complete one, the one i always imoprt...

If you do have hundreds of spanned clips, its no fun for sure...using bigger cards (16GB, 32 and upcoming 64...) gives us less spanned clips, but still it happens...
I dont think there is a solution in Edius...and i also doubt it will change...i allready reported the problem with the disappearing spanned clips when you are trying to restore a timeline...that must have been before the 4.5 update...