Blackmagic Forum

Hello all,
By reading the release notes, it appeared that resolve can now export bwf for pro tools, including metadatas. I've just tested it, with sounds from a sounddevice, and all the metadatas are gone. Moreover, the audio clips are still renamed as the synched video clips.
I tried to assign a reel name to the source audio clips, but couldn't find a way to do it. It just works for video, not audio. So audio conform is still impossible...
What am I missing ? Does someone achieved to export a useable aaf for pro tools ? I mean that can be reconformed on the source audio clips ?
Thanks for your help !

I just tested DaVinci 16 beta 4 and aaf export, with protools delivery preset or avid preset still not working with metadata, even if it is announced otherwise for davinci 16. I tried with files from sounddevices and cantar aaton, but i got the same result. And still if you are dealing with synchrionised clips you get names after the video files and tracks, no way to reference to the original audio files. And with xml, aaf data or edl the situation is the same so it's not easy to round trip with others editing software. If you need metadata from original audio files my sound editor assistant discoverd it's possibile if you open an aaf data in avid and with edl manager you create and edl of your edited sequence and you compare with an edl of all your original sounds using Conformalizer (wich is quite expensive), using timestamp metadata is able to relink to the original audio files. But it's not an easy job and you have to get crazy to finds all the shift problems. But if you need metadata, working in a professional field, we needed to use this crazy method. Hope the soon it will work an easy solution directly from DaVinci, or an application like x2pro that works with davinci will come out!

Thanks for this smart idea. But in my opinion it's a way too heavy, expensive and approximative process to be seriously used in a professionnal environment. Blackmagic has to improve this feature. I think it's the main one that keeps editors away from editing in resolve. Many of them would like to "try" resolve in a real project, but they just can't because of that.
The other main features that maintain avid on top of the editing softwares, beside this AAF issues, are in my opinion :
- you can choose which tracks of an external polyphonic bwf sound you want to sync with your video clip (usually the mixes in channels 1 and 2), with the ability to call for all the tracks on demand if needed.
- you can always open a project in an older or newer version of the software without big issues.
- the flawless source/record timeline toggle, used 99% of the time by all the editors I know.
- the ease of backuping an entire project (but maybe resolve as a feature for that, I don't know, honestly).

It should be an inspiration for blackmagic, Resolve deserves it, as it's an amazing and versatile tool in many ways. Just a few (big) steps to perfection !

PieroLass wrote:I just tested DaVinci 16 beta 4 and aaf export, with protools delivery preset or avid preset still not working with metadata, even if it is announced otherwise for davinci 16. I tried with files from sounddevices and cantar aaton, but i got the same result. And still if you are dealing with synchrionised clips you get names after the video files and tracks, no way to reference to the original audio files. And with xml, aaf data or edl the situation is the same so it's not easy to round trip with others editing software. If you need metadata from original audio files my sound editor assistant discoverd it's possibile if you open an aaf data in avid and with edl manager you create and edl of your edited sequence and you compare with an edl of all your original sounds using Conformalizer (wich is quite expensive), using timestamp metadata is able to relink to the original audio files. But it's not an easy job and you have to get crazy to finds all the shift problems. But if you need metadata, working in a professional field, we needed to use this crazy method. Hope the soon it will work an easy solution directly from DaVinci, or an application like x2pro that works with davinci will come out!

Wow! I've been following your progress on the OMF/metadate issue. Because it's still the single issue that's holding me back to get people to use it. It sounds so "complicated", I'm just not trying to understand it...

I’m in same situation.
If really cannot output audio metadata,
I hope will be can break synced-audio&video files like conpound clips......

I add my voice for Blackmagic to move this up the priority list for the next beta.

I'm so keen on a working pathway to Pro Tools, I registered to make a plea....

Now I’m editing tv drama shows.
I synced wav&mxf files via timecode in media page.
I tried to make FCPXML and use X2Pro for make AAF.
90% clips failed,But few clips could export with source wav metadata.

I strongly hope to export AAF with source wav files metadata.

I add my voice! Please BM make it work!
It’s the only thing that keep my clients working on avid or premiere!
An easy way to send clean aaf to protools! The old fcp7 did it realy easy!
How can we convince people to move on resolve if they can’t semd the audio to edit and mic!

tamagen wrote:I’m in same situation.
If really cannot output audio metadata,
I hope will be can break synced-audio&video files like conpound clips......

When I was trying to figure it out, back in 15. There was a way to break sync and even show the original name, but still it wasn't able to get the original data, when I export the timeline as XMLs.

This is a super-frustrating bug. I tried 16b4 on a commercial and LOVED almost everything until it came time to export for ProTools. Had the same issues with metadata from source audio metadata referencing my original R3Ds that only had scratch tracks. Tried Avid AFF, tried ProTools export. Tried taking an XML to premiere and still had files missing the synced audio tracks. Eventually, I had to export each audio track as a wave individually and send that to my sound engineer.

Also noticed a weird bug when I was manually conforming my timeline to try to fix the above issue. When I would drag my source audio on top of the old no meta-data audio, the clip didn't really replace the old clip. It just laid over the top of it. I figured this out after replacing all my synced audio clips with the recorded source. Took an XML to premiere and it was still looking for the R3D scratch.I found that if you dragged the new clip down one track, the old track was still there. Had to manually delete every old non-metadata track and then add in the new source audio.

+1
Better export of audio is the only thing Resolve really needs to use it as a NLE.

+1(!)

please elimante that issue before going out of beta. BM is advertising the AAF funtion, so let it be true.

As long as this bug is existing, Resolve can't be considered as a serious production tool.

Can anyone try it on 16b6:

"• Improved naming behavior for synced audio clips when round-tripping to Pro Tools"

In 16b6 the synced audio-filename is exported when creating AAF with the Pro Tools option in Delivery Page.
But it is exported in the form of: A1-0001_OriginalFilename_A01.wav

Still no audio metadata or iXML metadata is exported.

It is also discussed in this post:
https://forum.blackmagicdesign.com/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=94617

Steinar Stalsberg wrote:In 16b6 the synced audio-filename is exported when creating AAF with the Pro Tools option in Delivery Page.
But it is exported in the form of: A1-0001_OriginalFilename_A01.wav

Still no audio metadata or iXML metadata is exported.

It is also discussed in this post:
https://forum.blackmagicdesign.com/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=94617

Can you PM a sample to me of the iXML metadata that you want to export from Resolve into other DAWs?

Has this issue been addressed? I've also tried this feature on 16.1.1 and I'm only getting it to work on raw wav files that haven't been synced exporting separate wav files. On the synced clips with the same audio it doesn't come out. No scene, take, tape or track label metadata on the synced clips (not appended) which use the same file.

In case you haven't read my other two post, I'm too lazy to type, so here were what I wrote:

I've finally got my hands on some shooting materials and managed to test exporting AAF. I only did this test with one synced shot and placing after it on the timeline the original polyphonic WAV file.

While DaVinci Resolve does recognise the metadata name of each track assigned by the audio recordist on set, regardless if it is synced or the original file. However, once exported as ProTools AAF and imported into ProTools what I found is this.

The only "metadata" left of the synced part is the original track name plus the extension added by DaVinci Resolve. The timecode has followed that of the video (MOV), and there is no information that was inputted by the sound recordist such as scene numbers, shot numbers, takes, track name (character or mic name).

While the original audio file part has managed to preserve all the metadata mentioned above minus the track names. It is there, but every track has the track name of the first channel of the polyphonic waves, and that is regardless if that first channel is in the timeline or not.

Lastly, I feel there is a lack of options for audio output, I think namely, I can't choose to export the whole audio file or what's in the edit but with handles. I think I can live without the OMF option, and I don't think anyone really cares if it's OMF or AAF as long as the audio export actually works properly.

So I guess there are two parts to the feature request:
1. Full metadata on export of aaf to the files.
2. More options on export of AAF.

Thanks Eric, yeah this exactly what I've found as well. I've had issues finding a good workflow for this in Resolve and Premiere. Premiere has gotten the closest and actually and puts the xml data in the files but slightly incorrectly. To get the iXML data to work I have to modify the interleave index in the xml tags to be 1 instead of it's original track allocation because it is now a mono file. This gets it working in Protools.

Resolve doesn't seem to have any iXML data or xml tags in the written out mono files. It just has the original description metadata (only on non sync wave export) and does not have the actual iXML xml tag information from the file.

1. Full metadata on export of aaf to the files.
2. More options on export of AAF.

this is the only feature I need since the fist moment I used davinci as an editing tool in a professional environment. As edinting software is perfect for me but the problem with metadata(expecially with synched clips) and aaf for pro tools make the decision to work on this software always a huge problem at the end of a work. I think professional editors need this badly.

Same here, mess coming out the other end of AFF, it seems.

I Just ran a test on 17b1 and it still seems to be the same situation. No metadata on the clips when opened in ProTools.

I start thinking it's not missing by chance but it's a decision by black magic. I keep writing on this forum since davinci 14 about this problem. When I edit movies or documentaries sound editors work on pro tools and they want the audio with metadata from the original audio file synched in davinci. But there is no way to send properly or find a easy working round trip. Synched clips make audio slave to the video clip and it'snt easy to go to avid and make an aaf audio. In pro tools there is no way to relink the original audio clips with an aaf from davinci. I have a solution but it's very tricky, using conformalizer, but I need to involve an audio guy and it takes days to solve the problem. I hope someone can write a software like x2pro, that solve the aaf problem for final cut x, that can work for davinci... Anyway if anyone has a reliable solution please share in this forum!!!!!

Running 17b1 and AAF export still doesn't retain any extra metadata (iXML). But ProTools AAF export from Resolve finally writes original audio Timecode even on manually synced clips i Resolve . This is good news because you can use the Field Guide Track function in ProTools to relink to original audio files based on timecode. So if not perfect, it means that the sound designer can use the orginal recorded media and just replace or extract the clips to get correct metadata this way.

It is still got bugs when rendering embedded-AAF from Resolve as you can see in the last 20 seconds of the video I have created to explain this workflow. And here is link to video showing the workflow: https://f.io/Tf2cH5WE

Thank you very much for the video and your discover! This is what I was hoping for danvinci since a long time. It gives hope to be able to use danvinci when you need to pass to sound deparment an aaf with audio metadata. I will test soon hoping that will work in a more complex situation like a feature or a long form documentary. It still need to have the support from audio editor but usually they want to work with the original file, so It could be a good workflow even for them. Hope this will not be the last improvement for the pro tools export but it's already a crucial step forward. Thanks again!

Small step in the right direction.

What's new in DaVinci Resolve 17.0 Public Beta 2
• Addressed an issue with AAF exports to ProTools.

very interesting, maybe it's the aaf embedded problem or maybe more...I'll test as soon as I can.
Finger crossed..

PieroLass wrote:What's new in DaVinci Resolve 17.0 Public Beta 2
• Addressed an issue with AAF exports to ProTools.

very interesting, maybe it's the aaf embedded problem or maybe more...I'll test as soon as I can.
Finger crossed..

Thank you for testing! I don't have files to test with right now. Do tell us the results!

Steinar Stalsberg wrote:Running 17b1 and AAF export still doesn't retain any extra metadata (iXML). But ProTools AAF export from Resolve finally writes original audio Timecode even on manually synced clips i Resolve . This is good news because you can use the Field Guide Track function in ProTools to relink to original audio files based on timecode. So if not perfect, it means that the sound designer can use the orginal recorded media and just replace or extract the clips to get correct metadata this way.

It is still got bugs when rendering embedded-AAF from Resolve as you can see in the last 20 seconds of the video I have created to explain this workflow. And here is link to video showing the workflow: https://f.io/Tf2cH5WE

Cool video and nicely explained. So at least there's a closer way to it.

PieroLass wrote:What's new in DaVinci Resolve 17.0 Public Beta 2
• Addressed an issue with AAF exports to ProTools.

very interesting, maybe it's the aaf embedded problem or maybe more...I'll test as soon as I can.
Finger crossed..

What did you found?

it's still the same old aaf...hope it will be better soon because the next movie I have to edit the production company asked me to work on avid, since they know about the pro tools problem, and since we have very little time we can't have any problem at the end of the editing. I hate avid but I can't promise everything will be all right with davinci...

PieroLass wrote:it's still the same old aaf...hope it will be better soon because the next movie I have to edit the production company asked me to work on avid, since they know about the pro tools problem, and since we have very little time we can't have any problem at the end of the editing. I hate avid but I can't promise everything will be all right with davinci...

I don't even know if they're having issues in doing so or just being head strong and refuse to do it. As we never hear from the team on this issue.

PieroLass wrote:it's still the same old aaf...hope it will be better soon because the next movie I have to edit the production company asked me to work on avid, since they know about the pro tools problem, and since we have very little time we can't have any problem at the end of the editing. I hate avid but I can't promise everything will be all right with davinci...

Yeah, I have no luck ether (ladest beta on Win10)

Just exported an aaf for the audio guy (no video, just audio) and he said ProTools can't parse it.
ProTools tried to open a 16bit session (my export should have 24bit though), than the "parsing error occured".