- Posts: 3
- Joined: Mon Jun 05, 2017 10:01 pm
I recorded a Christmas band concert the other day with 3 cameras. I put the ProRes422LT file recorded on the HyperDeck in the computer for a bit of touch-up editing when I found for the last 20 minutes of the file, the video went black while audio and timecode continued (there had been no indication of a recording error during the concert). Fortunately I had separate video recorded on each camera on SD cards so I was able to edit the last 20 minutes of the concert. Another anomaly: any clip above the black video on the FCPX timeline had opacity issues: if I lowered the opacity below 100% it went to black as if I had lowered the opacity to 0%. So the faulty black clip was somehow "infecting" the files above it.
According to BDM support it is a known issue (see response below), though I was unable to find a similar topic on the forum (I'm new here).
My questions: how long has this been an issue? How often does this happen? Do y'all think it is a software or hardware issue?
It was the 5th time I had used the HyperDeck unit (previous videos were of a 20-minute demo, a 3-hour grad, a 1-hour concert, and a 1.5 hour concert all with no blackouts). I was recording on a couple of SanDisk Extreme Pro 128GB SD cards that had only been used with the unit, always formatted before the show. I updated the HyperDeck unit to the latest firmware when I got it last May.
The workaround suggested by support is to go back and watch recorded video, and power cycle the HyperDeck if there is any black video. Assuming there was time to actually do this in a live mix setting, with no power switch on the unit, power cycling is a pain (it is installed with an ATEM TVS HD switcher and monitor in a rack mount case). I prefer not to turn off the power bar as the switcher goes back to some default settings.
So yeah, it's a major confidence-shaker, if not an outright deal-breaker! The whole point of a live mix is NOT having to edit much afterwards.
Anyway, here is the reply from BMD Support:
Hi Kevin,
Thank you for contacting us. Yes, we have heard of similar reports and our engineers are looking into it. We have reproduce the issue in-house and are working on a solution. If all goes well we plan to implement the fix on the next HyperDeck update release, if not soon after. I wish I had an immediate solution for you but I'm afraid the only thing you can do is wait until the next HyperDeck update
As feedback, we have seen this issue arise more often with the AVID DNx codecs, so if you can stick to capturing in ProRes as the issue is a lot less common in ProRes. Our testing shows that power cycling the HyperDeck "fixes" the issue until it arises again after a few more recordings. What you may want to do while we work on fixing this is playback the file right after it was recorded to see if it's fine. Normally when the issue arises the HyperDeck only plays back the audio and timecode while the video is just black. If/when this happens power cycle the unit and continue recording.
I hope this information is helpful.
Best regards,
Veronica Salas
Technical Support Representative
Blackmagic Design Inc.
According to BDM support it is a known issue (see response below), though I was unable to find a similar topic on the forum (I'm new here).
My questions: how long has this been an issue? How often does this happen? Do y'all think it is a software or hardware issue?
It was the 5th time I had used the HyperDeck unit (previous videos were of a 20-minute demo, a 3-hour grad, a 1-hour concert, and a 1.5 hour concert all with no blackouts). I was recording on a couple of SanDisk Extreme Pro 128GB SD cards that had only been used with the unit, always formatted before the show. I updated the HyperDeck unit to the latest firmware when I got it last May.
The workaround suggested by support is to go back and watch recorded video, and power cycle the HyperDeck if there is any black video. Assuming there was time to actually do this in a live mix setting, with no power switch on the unit, power cycling is a pain (it is installed with an ATEM TVS HD switcher and monitor in a rack mount case). I prefer not to turn off the power bar as the switcher goes back to some default settings.
So yeah, it's a major confidence-shaker, if not an outright deal-breaker! The whole point of a live mix is NOT having to edit much afterwards.
Anyway, here is the reply from BMD Support:
Hi Kevin,
Thank you for contacting us. Yes, we have heard of similar reports and our engineers are looking into it. We have reproduce the issue in-house and are working on a solution. If all goes well we plan to implement the fix on the next HyperDeck update release, if not soon after. I wish I had an immediate solution for you but I'm afraid the only thing you can do is wait until the next HyperDeck update
As feedback, we have seen this issue arise more often with the AVID DNx codecs, so if you can stick to capturing in ProRes as the issue is a lot less common in ProRes. Our testing shows that power cycling the HyperDeck "fixes" the issue until it arises again after a few more recordings. What you may want to do while we work on fixing this is playback the file right after it was recorded to see if it's fine. Normally when the issue arises the HyperDeck only plays back the audio and timecode while the video is just black. If/when this happens power cycle the unit and continue recording.
I hope this information is helpful.
Best regards,
Veronica Salas
Technical Support Representative
Blackmagic Design Inc.