Rendering 5.1 session to QT video - channels dropping?

[peter5992]

Good evening everyone:

Quick question: I bounced a 5.1 session to a Quicktime movie with stereo sound. When listening back to the movie tonight, apparently several channels dropped out. Notably, the center channel and what appears to be the rear surrounds.

What's the trick, should I first remix to stereo and then bounce to Quicktime?

I didn't really pay attention to the routing for stereo in the Quicktime bouncing options, when I auditioned the render it sounded fine (but then again I realize I may been listening to the surround mix of which only two channels were being bounced to the Quicktime video).

Thanks!

[Meads]

In order to achieve correct playback after the bounce you'd have to route the discrete tracks within Quicktime correctly, and even then you cannot be sure, that it's working properly (from my experience).
If you want a QT with 5.1 audio, I'd advise you to create an AC3 stream of your 5.1 mix, and paste this to your movie in Quicktime Pro (using Perian).

When I'm bouncing to Quicktime in PT, I always make a stereo downmix first. That's the only way to create a properly working video file, that you don't have to worry about, when you send it to clients or whatever.

Edit:
BTW, thanks to the Downmixer plugin that comes with PT10 you don't even have to make a stereo mixdown anymore. Just insert the Downmixer on the 5.1-track you want to bounce, load a preset, route the track to a stereo output and go.

[peter5992]

Great -- many thanks!

[peter5992]

Hm ... silly question perhaps but where can I find this Downmixer plugin?

Only multichannel plugins I can find are EQ, Dynamics and soundfield; for the multi mono there's a few more but none is the Downmixer. This is on an HDX system, PT 10.3.3, mac pro, latest OS.

I can figure out how to set up a session to mix it down to stereo, just curious.

[Meads]

It's right there with "Sound Field".

[peter5992]

Thanks Meads!

Could it be that this particular plugin somehow wasn't installed? The computer / studio at which I mixed this session is at the Academy of Art University (I am a graduate student), I am back home now and can't doublecheck until tomorrow but I am pretty sure that it wasn't in the menu.

I have the Complete Production Toolkit at home which includes surround tracks, and I can see it right there.

[Meads]

It's being installed along with the other plugins that come with PT.
Maybe someone deleted it from the plugins folder?

[peter5992]

Originally Posted by Meads

It's being installed along with the other plugins that come with PT.
Maybe someone deleted it from the plugins folder?

Possibly --- I'll report it to the lab techs and let them sort it out (they also still need to upgrade to 10.3.4 by the way).