I recently had a choice between using a Fast Forward or a Profile. i asked the EIC which he would prefer and he said Profile, because it was already hooked up. I was prepared to use either so I went to work on the Profile. My MO with the profile is to record all the clips in VDR panel mode. then restripe the clips in the order in which I want to use them so that when I make a group of clips out of them they have continuous time code throughout. Then I change the panel to BVW mode and load the group of clips (doing the same on all other channels). This way the profile looks just like a Fast Forward to the Lance controller, but you have 4 channels instead of 2! The Lance controller is the key to getting the channels to stay locked.

[quote="TJPerkins"]Wow...one of those proverbial tidbits of knowledge I could have used a couple of years ago (I'm on a Thunder nowadays). Just out of curiosity, what do you do if you have to grab a key and fill separately (say, off of one tape source)?[/quote] Then you say oops I am screwed :) Seriously that is the limitation, once you lock them together they stay together. You can't record a key and then a fill. In theory that would be two seperate clips. I guess you could maybe unlock the channels record the fill to channel 1 and key to channel two, but once you lock them together I am sure they would be off slightly unless you did a great job with timecode and such, more trouble than that would be worth I think. Steve great explanation, that was tough from memory. Unger, yes you need two tape machines to accomplish this and the fill and key need to be layed off so they match. I have done this when MSNBC goes on the road with stuff, we playback our profile or Thunder channel in house and lay the animations off to digibeta with matching timecode. Once in the truck I gang the machines using a DNF (tape op dnf) and play them back into FFV or profile. I have also done sports and stuff where I can never see something this organized taking place very much. I am lucky to get a machine and a space to get at a FFV to record the elements (anyone ever been on GC RED? the FFV is on the floor !!) I have also used profiles in trucks before without the channels ganged and have never had a problem. Is it a lance controller? Are you using odetics or BVW? on the profile. Could there be drop, non drop differences between channels, does the controller care about drop non drop? Sorry these I have no answers to. "What was that" is a classic we have a director who uses that one a lot. It is painful to hear coming from anyone directed at you. Bill

I'm glad this topic sparked some interest, and useful knowledge as well...but now that I've realized this combined profile set up takes 2 tape sources to record (fill and key at the exact same times)...I'm also realizing that this will never happen on a remote that I do. The tapes nor the time to execute this will be available. So I'm back to my original problem...the profile tends to slip and there is nothing I can do about it. So the next time I hear "What was that!?" I'll take my hands off the switcher, turn to the audience, and give a breif tutorial on the profile PDR and what needs to happen to prevent black from wiping to my replay ME. I've always wanted to do that. :)

Wow...one of those proverbial tidbits of knowledge I could have used a couple of years ago (I'm on a Thunder nowadays). Just out of curiosity, what do you do if you have to grab a key and fill separately (say, off of one tape source)?

Bill, if I can add to your description: The idea is that you're assigning two (or more) video codecs to one VDR panel. There's a setup menu which lets you define which audio and video codecs are assigned to each VDR panel (or channel, if you prefer). This same menu is where you define how many audio channels each VDR panel uses. Basically, there are 4 video in BNCs and 4 video out BNCs (and four monitor out BNCs) on the Profile, and on the PAC (the audio chassis) there are sixteen XLR ins and sixteen XLR outs. The menu Bill and I are describing is where these ins and outs are assigned to VDR panels for control. I've used it before, and as long as the video and key are sent into the Profile simultaneously, everything works very well. -Steve

[quote="Carl Johansson"]Bill, I am curious, how do you lock two profilechannels internally? Is it possible to do on an old PDR200?[/quote] I am pretty sure you can do it on any profile. I belive we either use 200's or 400's. Won't be in front of a profile till Monday but I will take stab. Really been a while so may have to fish through menus. There is a setup menu where normally it may say JPEG (or MPEG) 1,2,3,4 and there is like a chart that goes across that lets you assign which port control which channel. I think you can assign lets say port 1 to control channel 1 and 2. These may be so incorrect b/c I don't remember menus but it is doable we have used our profiles this way for 8 years. You then using either VDR panel or controller (lance, etc) just talk to one port or one VDR panel. When you record a clip it will record to both channels at the same time. So as long as you input fill and key together all will be good. If for some reason they are off a little you will not be able to correct any fill/key problems. But if you use a device that plays fill and key together you should have no problems, AVI files, or we even have used an edit controller with 2 D5 decks to synchro them. A thunder would obviously also work. I have never had a problem with fill key stuff (unless graphics op messed up record some how). We use everythign in odetics clip mode, and talk to switcher using a Buf Tek Spot panel. I will get real setup on Monday when I am in front of a profile. Bill

Bill, I am curious, how do you lock two profilechannels internally? Is it possible to do on an old PDR200?

How do you lock them together?

[quote="Unger"]Just wondering if all profiles slip?...I've only run into them a few times now but have struggled each time with the damn thing slipping and having those famous words shot at me... "WHAT WAS THAT!?" Any solutuions or tips? Thanks[/quote] I assume you mean slipping between fill and key, or do you mean overall day to day inpoints are different points of the animation. If it is Fill and Key if you don't use the key channel for anythign other than keys, you could lock the channels together in the profile and they will never slip. In theory you end up talking to one channel which within the profile talks to the key channel directly Bill

We're using a DNF controller and shot box with our Profile...if I forget to put the VID PANEL back to PB after having it in EE for importing a clip, slippage happens. Generally on our stuff it's a matter of frames, but I hear you about the "WHAT WAS THAT?" Kory Hartin