(Zi6) I've never had a program lock up so much...

Jay Boy wrote on 12/27/2008, 8:25 AM
I've used Vegas for years, but recently I'm doubting it's abilities. I have never been so frustrated in my life when trying to edit (and I love doing this). I recently purchased a Kodak Zi6 as a "Danger Cam". I've become real familiar with Vegas (Not Responding) & locking up or simply shutting down. It's bad enough that I have to rename ALL of my files from *.mov to *.mp4 to even get Vegas to recognize the audio. It's ridiculous!!! I've hit the forums across the board and no one seems to be having any issues with other editors. It makes me doubt my allegiance to Sony Vegas. I really hope there is going to be a fix for this rather then a bunch of lip service. Once again, it's just frustrating that others are working fine but Vegas is crapping out. I've got footage sitting in limbo. On the other hand, Vegas works smooth as silk when editing footage from my Canon HV20! Is all hope lost?

Comments

Grazie wrote on 12/27/2008, 8:46 AM
Hi JB. as this is a lock-up, and that may have to do with your hardware, it might help others if you filled out your Specifications?

Cheers

Grazie
CorTed wrote on 12/27/2008, 8:50 AM
The fact it runs smooth with the HV20 tells me there may be something with the data coming from the Kodak files.
Is the latest quicktime installed?

Ted
[r]Evolution wrote on 12/27/2008, 11:10 AM
I hope you can find a way to get things going smoothly. I feel your frustration... but I would NOT consider this to be a VEGAS problem.

For whatever reason, maybe Vegas doesn't like the files created by the Kodak Zi6.
Maybe its files are not 'standard'. Maybe it is still too new of a camera to have support by NLE's.
Can other NLE's ingest & edit its files?

The other problems you are having (sans the Kodak Zi6) sound isolated. Noone else has mentioned these problems which leads me to believe that it has to do with YOUR Hardware/Software. You said you've been working w/ Vegas for years... maybe it's time for a new Workstation? If you have another computer handy, install the trial and see if it's any better with your Kodak Zi6 files. Take your Zi6 to someone else and capture a small clip to see if it works.
...Just trying to determine if it's your setup or what.

I notice that the Kodak Zi6 comes with its own software.
Maybe you'll need to capture from the Kodak Zi6 using the Kodak software then output a 'legal' file from there that Vegas can read & edit. Maybe Vegas can read the files captured with Kodak software without a re-render?

- I almost always only edit using .mov files so I know Vegas can edit .mov's without renaming them.
- I can't recall the last time I had a lockup w/ Vegas and I've been using it (not exclusively)since Sonic Foundry Vegas Video v2.
johnmeyer wrote on 12/27/2008, 11:44 AM
Make sure to send tech support an email (link at the top of this page). Sony seldom reads anything in this forum, or if they do, they ignore it. They are pretty good (at least they were the last time I tried) at answering tech support email.
baysidebas wrote on 12/28/2008, 6:02 AM
"- I can't recall the last time I had a lockup w/ Vegas and I've been using it (not exclusively)since Sonic Foundry Vegas Video v2."

Ditto. Only in my case it has become exclusive.
JohnnyRoy wrote on 12/28/2008, 8:33 AM
Sounds like the issue is with the Kodak Zi6 and not Vegas. I edit MOV files all the time without renaming. Many cheap video cameras write non-standard file formats that don't work with some NLE's. You may just have to transcode the video into a more editor friendly format. Some cameras like the Aiptek GO-HD simply need to have their file rewritten by Quicktime Pro to make it compliant with no transcoding needed.

~jr
xstr8guy@sbcglobal.net wrote on 12/28/2008, 9:20 AM
My guess is that sounds like it is a problem with your computer. Update every driver fory our installed hardware and then reinstall Vegas.

I have Vegas running on 2 newer Vista 64 bit machines and 1 older machine (as well as a laptop with XP). My older Vista machine was giving me headaches with instability until I updated the standard drivers that Vista installed on my machine during the OS install. Now everything is running much more stable.
Jay Boy wrote on 1/22/2009, 4:45 AM
Thanks to everyone for the quick responses! It's NOT a gear prob, but a Vegas not getting along well with the Zi6 prob. I can load up tons (I mean tons!!!) of footage from my HD Canon HV20 and edit for days with layers of Magic Bullet effects and what not without a hitch. I've been reading about lock up & crashes with Vegas & the Kodak Zi6 all around the web. It REALLY sucks!!!
Jay Boy wrote on 1/22/2009, 4:46 AM
Yep! Latest versions are installed. I'm reading about this problem on a lot of forums.
Jay Boy wrote on 1/22/2009, 4:50 AM
NOT A HARDWARE PROBLEM! I'm reading about this with other users of Vegas. Vegas and the Zi6 files aren't fond of each other. If I open a command prompt and rename the *.mov files to *.mp4 file I then get the audio working. This does not mean that Vegas will choose to work properly. It's hit or miss with Vegas & the Zi6.
Jay Boy wrote on 1/22/2009, 4:51 AM
Thanks for the help!!!!
Jay Boy wrote on 1/22/2009, 4:53 AM
Yep... It's a Zi6 & Vegas thing. I've found a lot of people trying to work through this same issue. Thanks for the response!!
John_Cline wrote on 1/22/2009, 12:14 PM
Quicktime is, and always has been, a buggy mess. Simply renaming the MOV files to MP4 files doesn't necessarily change them into real MP4 files. Try this:

Open the .MOV in Quicktime
Go to "File" > "Export."
Select "Movie to MPEG4" and hit the "Options" button.
Just under "File Format" (which should be MP4) select the video stream and then select "Pass Through" as the vdeo format.

Now select the audio stream
Select "AAC-LC (Music) for the audio format,
64kbps mono or 128Kbps stereo
48k output sample rate and "Best" encoding quality.

Then save the file, it will only take a minute or so to convert the file. This will create an .MP4 file which will load into Vegas and will also play just fine on a PlayStation3.