5.8 Editing Audio in the Storyboard

5.8 Editing Audio in the Storyboard

The Storyboard window does not allow direct editing for audio tracks on the storyboard. But audio will still be edited in an indirect way when you edit the video portion of the media file. When working with audio there are two basic cases to consider: audio incorporated within the media file as a stream or audio linked to a video file as an external wave files (this is especially important when working with files captured by an Incite system).

Audio Stream

When audio is integrated as an actual stream of the media file, audio playback will be heard on the storyboard normally. Any editing decisions you make to the video storyclip will affect the duration of the audio as well.

External Wave Files

In some cases (i.e. working with files captured by Incite) you will have a video file and up to 4 linked audio WAV files. As you create In and Out points for the video file, Incite Media Assistant will use this information for the linked audio tracks as well. For example, when an IML file is generated and imported into an Incite system, all five tracks will be imported and not just the single layer of video. Likewise, when making movies from an Incite Media Assistant storyboard, external audio files will be included in the movie as long as the proper audio option is set in the Audio tab of the Make AVI Movie or Make QT Movie window. For more, see 3.4 The Converter Window: Audio Format and Audio Parameters (AVI & QT Only).

Playing External Wave Files

Incite Media Assistant, as an off-line logging tool, allows one output channel of audio at a time. You can choose which channel you wish to use, but you can never hear more than this single selected channel. To hear external Wave files in the storyboard, The Play External Wave Files option must be activated. In addition, make sure the Play in Storyboard option is also activated. For more see External Wave Files.

Tips & Notes

As Incite Media Assistant is using software codecs only (and not specially designed hardware) to generate video playback, there is a limitation when playing external wave files in the storyboard. Playback might hesitate for an instant when loading the external wave file between clips (i.e. each cut point). The smoothness of audio playback will depend on the speed of your computer. On some systems and laptops you may wish to deactivate the Play External files command.

If Incite and Incite Media Assistant are installed on the same system, note that they cannot make simultaneous use of DigiSuite for audio playback. We recommend that you install a sound card and that it is configured as the preferred device under Control Panel/Multimedia (Audio tab). If not, you can easily disable Incite's use of the hardware using Incite's Disable Audio command (letting Incite Media Assistant access the hardware without having to close Incite).

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