SOS..! OMF/digiTranslator, Fades & Nuendo

[halipino]

Hello, I am having major difficulties exporting my pro tools sessions via OMF/digiTranslator .
I am working with an excellent engineer who only uses "Nuendo" and after discussing the best way to bring my files over to his system, OMF was the chosen method.
After investing the $495 for the license we tested 'for hours' exporting the pro tools session and importing the OMF files into Nuendo without any success in seeing the pro tools session 100% complete.

The closest we came to was the pro tools session appeared in Nuendo without the "Fades "..!
It seems that the engineer is now forced to redraw all the fades in Nuendo.

We tried consolidating my tracks in pro tools before exporting to OMF but the "BIG PROBLEM" with this method was upon importing the session back into Nuendo was that all the "File Names" had been changed (i.e. a track that would have been called Cello1_1.wav was now labeled something like WEGfgh44fHTHujt66WHsjkulx4.wav) which rendered the process quite useless in that the engineer could 're-link' the files into the session via 'File>Import" but the adverse side effect was that we could not figure out which track was which without wasting time listening very closely to each track and double checking on the pro tools session.!

I am running an older Dual 500 mac with 640MB RAM, Jaguar 10.2.8, pro tools 6.1.2 & Digi OO2 control surface.
I do not know if I was running on a faster computer or upgrades software would make a difference but any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated!

Dan

[Eric Klinger]

Before switching to ProTools, I was a big Nuendo user... I had some nice success (ProTools 6.4 though) consolidating tracks, and then in the "Audio Regions List", those consolodated tracks should be highlighted... from the Regions List menu choose "Export Selected as Files" (or something to that nature), choose your file formats and samp. rate etc and it should go (I hope)... not sure the procedure with 6.1, but hopefully it's the same. I haven't had naming problems so far doing this.

Eric

[halipino]

Eric, thank you so much for helping me out!
On one hand I am happy there is a solution on the other I am extremely frustrated that I spent $495 for the DigiTranslator which I can not use effectively!!! That is quite a lot of money for a failed experiment..!

99% of the session did import to the Nuendo system except for “numerous” fades which would take a very long time to sit around and recreate! Consolidating the tracks then exporting them within the regions list seems acceptable.

I wonder if Digi would refund my money on this software.
I know in most cases software companies will not refund your money unless there is a very special circumstance and I believe this instance could warrant that! (Perhaps this is another topic all together?)

Thanks again,

Dan

[TVPostSound]

This is what Digi will ask you first:
Why didnt you use the 30 day demo option before purchasing it???

[halipino]

Hi DIAFXMX,
Alas, just like a kid in a candy store...
When I first installed all the software I went ahead and installed “everything” available on the CD’s and not having a clue what 99% of what to do with all the plug-ins they all expired within their 30 days; 8 months later I found out what the digitranslator/OMF was used for and of course my trial was ‘long gone’.

I had talked on 2 different occasions with Digidesign Presale/Tech Support guys and neither explained to me the pitfalls and incongruence between importing your pro tools sessions in another app such as Nuendo. The fades are not encapsulated in the OMF file and after researching this anomaly on the “answer base” it did say this:


********************************************
An (OMF) exported Pro Tools 5.1.3 fade shows up as a region when importing the same OMFI (for testing purposes). Therefore, it seems to me that the Pro Tools initiated (digitrans) won't export the fades?
This is a known issue when you export to OMF "referring to source" media, then reimport the OMF into Pro Tools. The issue is that in the OMF export, fades are treated as ordinary files (that's why you get a region called "Fade" on import.)

This is an advantage when transferring the OMF to a program that does not understand the Pro Tools fade format. However it produces this side effect when reimporting the file in to Pro Tools.


ID:6995 Created:12/19/2001
********************************************

I do not find this an “advantage” as there are numerous fades in every session!
If I could forsee the advantage of keeping the digitranslator then it would not be that big of a deal and when necessary I could have it in the toolkit at the ready...

Regarding this point, what really is the "advantage" of the digitranslator?


Thanks,
Dan

[brinaddison]

I too found Digitranslator 2.0 to be unusable for video work (audio post) and consolidating and exporting the audio was the only way around the problem.

Solution.... Call Digi, complain and get your money back for this LEMON! I've heard lots of stories like this regarding Digitranslator. IMO the free OMF tool in OS9 worked way better but had limitations.............but it was FREE?????

[MunchieLad]

this might help.
I've had many problems working with omf and fades. i've never done an export for nuendo, but i did have the following problem (and solution):

I exported a session (with about 3000 fades) from PT5.1 for import into 6.7 in a larger studio. i decided to import it into my mbox(6.4) just to test it i found that almost all of the fades were either popping missing or linked to the wrong soundfile. i started to manually delete each fade to remake it, thinking this was the only way to fix it. but on one fADE i made a mistake and hit undo, ti my suprise the once-corrupt fade was now fine. so i did a "select all" told pt to "delete all fades" from the edit menu i believe, then hit undo. all fades were then fine...??? whats up with that? it's the strangest thing. hope this helps...OMF sucks. its not just digitranslator.

[halipino]

Hi Munchie,
Unbelievable..!
I followed your recipe and much to my amazement the fades have recreated themselves..!
Although this is still within pro tools, I will need to take this over to my engineer’s studio and see how this imports into Nuendo.

It is at least worth a try, if this idea of yours does not work I will seek reimbursement on this digitranslator license unless I can be enlightened on the virtues of digitranslator/OMF, perhaps it works well with Avid compatibility?

[MunchieLad]

wow! great! i feel vindicated.
no one believes me until they try it themselves.
i hope it works for you in nuendo

[halipino]

If this works, you my friend should earn a special place in "pro tools" folklore with what will be known as the "infamous MunchieLad hack". Perhaps even Digi will have to pay "you" for the rights to improve their software! LOL

Check back in a few days and I will repost on the success/failure of taking this "omf" to the engineers Nuendo studio!
Dan