Sound Devices PIX 250i - Manual (Page 41)

PIX 250i User Guide
35
Sync
hr
onization & T
imecode
Sync Reference
The following table lists the available sources for sync reference.
Signal Connection OSD
HDMI video HDMI input Sync: HDMI
SDI video SDI input Sync: SDI
Genlock SYNC IN Sync: VidRef
Internal None Sync: Int
By default, the currently referenced synchronization source is always displayed on the OSD pre-
ceded by Sync:. When valid signal is present at the selected source, the OSD label will be displayed
in white text. When no valid signal is present at the selected source, the OSD label will flash and the
text will be red.
Video Playback Synchronization
Setup Menu option [Timecode/Sync - Sync Ref - Video Playback].
The PIX 250i’s sync source is always the incoming video signal when stopped and while recording.
This is to ensure that the PIX 250i is always in sync with the incoming video source. During Playback
of QuickTime files, the PIX 250i can reference its own Internal clock, Video Input (SDI/HDMI), or
Genlock signal at the SYNC IN BNC.
When [Timecode/Sync - Sync Ref - Video Playback] is set to Video Ref (Sync In), and no valid signal
is present at the SYNC IN connector when playback is initiated, a warning dialog will appear on the
LCD.
When [Timecode/Sync - Sync Ref - Video Playback] is set to Video Input (SDI/HDMI), and the play-
back file’s resolution and rate are different than the Video Input, the PIX 250i will automatically use
its Internal clock. The OSD label will flash red during playback to indicate that the sync source is not
present.
Timecode Reader
The PIX 250i includes a timecode reader which can accept incoming SMPTE timecode. The
PIX 250i can read timecode from embedded SDI/HDMI or linear timecode fed into the
TC IN BNC connector. The timecode reader is enabled whenever the Setup Menu option
[Timecode/Sync - Timecode Mode] is set to any Ext TC mode which indicates that it will read exter-
nal timecode.
Timecode Reader operation is useful for simple cases where the PIX 250i’s timecode follows the
camera timecode. The timecode of the PIX 250i’s file will match exactly with the camera’s file with
zero-drift since the PIX 250i is always synchronized with video input during recording ( See “Video
Playback Synchronization”, page 35 ).
In situations where a consistent offset is observed between PIX 250i files and other produc-
tion recordings, the PIX 250i can offset the timecode stamp on each file. The Setup Menu option
[Timecode/Sync - File Start TC Offset] allows for adjustment of the frame offset from -10 to +10 in
increments of 1 frame. This setting does not affect timecode on the PIX 250i’s outputs.
For shoots involving more than one camera or an audio recorder, using the PIX 250i’s Timecode Gen-
erator can be more beneficial than using the Timecode Reader to achieve good heads and tails sync
between all recordings.