Jeff Komar, an Application Specialist for Avid explains what can be done with the built-in Avid Video Engine—the same core engine as in Media Composer. With Pro Tools 11 you can now add, edit, and play a variety of HD video formats (such as QuickTime, XDCAM, and more) and Avid DNxHD sequences directly in the Pro Tools timeline—without transcoding. Plus, you can monitor the picture playback using video interfaces from Avid, AJA, and Blackmagic Design.

We have reported in the past how the video quality in Pro Tools 11 is not as good as Pro Tools 10 but there have been some interesting reports on the DUC over weekend that some of might not have seen. 

Brandon Howlett replied…

I don’t understand why the sync delay has changed but I’m seeing the same thing. Like my video monitor all of a sudden doesn’t have a delay anymore. I know it still does though.

Garnoil added….

Also, the DNxHD codec seems to offer a much tighter and stable audio to video sync than PT 10.

So the advice when using video content in Pro Tools 11 is to use the Avid DNxHD codec and also to recheck your sync delay settings.

If you haven’t heard of the Avid DNxHD codecit is around 4GB per reel at 1080P so about the same size of DV PAL while offering a vastly better quality. It’s about 1/5th in size compared to ProRes while having the same perceived quality.

You can download the Avid DNxHD36 from here as part of the LE Codecs bundle, and use the free MPEG Streamclip app for Mac or Windows from the guys at Squared 5 to convert incoming content, if you cannot persuade your video editor to output files in the Avid DNxHD format.

What have your experiences been lately with video playback quality in Pro Tools 11? What has worked and not worked for you?