larry long Posted March 25, 2007 Report Share Posted March 25, 2007 Just a question about playback. I would like to put together a playback system with my macbook. I've looked at the Digi 03 rack with pro tools but how do you get TC out of the damned thing? Why is there such a lack of TC in and outs on everything except our recorders? LL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Wexler Posted March 25, 2007 Report Share Posted March 25, 2007 The Digidesign 003, and the 002 before it, has v.xx ProTools LE bundled with it. As you may already know, ProTools software will not even launch unless a Digidesign qualified piece of hardware (like the 002, 003, etc.) is connected. The problem you may be referring to is that fact that ProTools LE does not technically support smpte timecode. TC feature can be added, at great expense, via software from Digidesign (I don't remember the product name). If you need to TC music playback, and this would apply to ANY software/hardware setup not just Digi, you can always RECORD smpte TC as audio (which is what it is) onto the right channel with program on the left. Then, you will be able to output both program AND timecode. Regards, Jeff Wexler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jimg Posted March 27, 2007 Report Share Posted March 27, 2007 Hi, Larry. I just put Pro Tools LE on my Powerbook and if you are like me, use the laptop for other things as well and use FileVault to encrypt your user data, here's what I had to do to get it to work: Create a new user with administrative privileges and don't enable FileVault. Install Pro Tools while logged in as that user. Restart the computer and log in as the new user to complete the registration and verification proceedure. After that, Pro Tools should work in either user account. At least it does so on my Powerbook running 10.4.9. FileVault evidently preempts a sucessful installation by using a file or folder name Pro Tools wants to use when it is launched. I'm sure somebody here knows the exact cause. The folks at Digidesign don't get that folks in our end of the business don't normally run a dedicated Pro Tools system, but their support team gave me good information about how to get the system up and running once I read the email carefully. The great thing about Pro Tools (or any other good software solution) as a playback platform is the speed finding the cues needed for each scene, how easy it is to adjust a cue once found and how simple re-setting for the next take is. Even I can hit the space bar..... I had used Audacity for playback in the past and was pleased, but considered the flexibility Pro Tools offered around on-the-fly editing before I made the decision to go with the MBox Pro system. Most music houses can make the playback tracks as Jeff outlined in his post or you can dub them yourself (program on one track and timecode on another) but they can also often make a session with a mono mix on a track, vocals only on a second track (a big help for lip sync), a thumper track on a third track and timecode on a fourth track. Just my 2 cents... Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old school Posted March 27, 2007 Report Share Posted March 27, 2007 Hey Larry, greetings. When I do playback that is in need of timecode, I use my Mbox and PT le on my laptop, (g 4) running 10.4.8. In LA, many commercial houses get their playback tracks prepped at SSI, who will deliever them to you on cd, dvd, or a email file on their site, or all of the above. I have also made my own tracks. The regular set up is progarm on track 1 and timecode on track2. Play it out the Mbox and feed it how ever you need it and you are gold. I also use pro tools for most all playback just for the timeline and waveforms for cueing ease and looping a section or song. I run a Pro Tools 002 system in my home studio and I like it alot, but it seems to me to be overkill for playback on the set. My .02cents. CrewC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Popp Posted December 5, 2007 Report Share Posted December 5, 2007 I use Pro Tools LE for playback all the time, and when I prepare my files, I play out of a CD player (stereo) into a 744T to make the BWF File that I import into Pro Tools. Since I have 4 tracks available to me, I record as followed: A - Left Channel B - Right Channel C - Left and Right Summed D - Timecode out fed into this channel When I do the playback, I output the Left and Right channel to the speakers and use an additional output (i.e. Output channel for timecode. ---- The one question I have for the group is if there is any way to slow down or speed up the file if people want half speed playback, etc...without doing any time compression/expansion? I know that an HD rig has the ability to do this easily, but is there for an LE system? --- Also, the plugin for Pro Tools you are talking about is the DV Toolkit. It allows you to include a timecode "timeline" in the session as well. It doesn't help you with playback though, since you need to record timecode as audio anyways... BTW, Pro Tools 7.4 does work with leopard, even knowing it is not technically compatible with it yet. I have used it all day on a mac book pro without any issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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