What it does?
The Tentacle Timecode Tool is a simple program (for Windows only) that embeds timecode that has been recorded as audio timecode into the meta data of the video file.
When do you need it?
This process is only needed in case you are working with an editing software (NLE) that cannot read Audio Timecode directly from the audio track of the original file.
How to…
- Download the Timecode Tool here.
- Drag and drop the folder containing the video and/or audio files with audio timecode into the left main window of the Timecode Tool
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The Timecode Tool should automatically identify the audio timecode. In case the audio timecode isn"t displayed in the right column of the main window, please select:
- Edit > Read Audio TC
If the audio timecode is still not displayed, there is probably something wrong with the signal.
Try this:
- Change the settings of the reading algorithm
- Define the track from which the audio timecode should be read
If this doesn’t do the trick, the signal might be clipping and the software unfortunately cannot read it. There are several options to manually select settings to read timecode, if the auto detection doesn’t work.
Files of various recording devices may have the timecode information displayed differently in the Timecode Tool. Some have an additional file timecode that doesn’t necessarily correspond to the audio timecode recorded from the Tentacle. By embedding the audio timecode into the meta data the file timecode will be replaced by this newly generated timecode signal, so it matches the timecode from the other recording devices with Tentacles devices connected to them. If you have recorded the timecode from the Tentacle directly via a BNC connector into the file, you don’t need to embed the audio timecode by using the Timecode Tool. In this case you can directly synchronize your video and audio files in the editing software.
Mixed footage from various cameras and sound recorders can be imported together. But for a convenient workflow, it is recommended to keep the shooting days separated. This prevents duplicate timecode values in the same bin of your editing software.
- Please select your export file format from the menu
- You can either choose pass through or any desired codec from the list
- You can export your footage by either selecting specific files from the list or choosing Export All
- Please make sure, you can provide enough storage space on your hard drives
The Timecode Tool will not interfere with the original files but creates copies. Depending on the export format and the original file codec, it may take some time to create the copies. To preserve disk space and save time, we recommend to only select the files that need the audio timecode to be embedded.