MIMIQ – WHAT IT DOES, WHAT IT DOESN’T
If you’re working together in Avid Media Composer, please believe me: I understand. It’s hard.
So many things can go wrong, and when they do, pressures mount and tempers spike.
If you’re using Mimiq when things go wrong, your first instinct may be: “Let’s blame Mimiq. After all, it’s not an official Avid product. And, sure, it works… but how?”
Let me take away some of that stress.
First, I’ll confirm what Mimiq does. Then I’ll tell you what it doesn’t do.
Mimiq Swaps Out the Golden Idol for a Bag of Sand
In Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones is deep in the jungle searching for an artifact.
Then he finds it.
Indy knows he can’t just take it – that would be too easy! What does he do?
This is what Mimiq does – it swaps out any actively loaded NEXIS client with its own, effectively becoming the active NEXIS client.
With Mimiq 24.2, that means Media Composer will recognize a list of eligible shared volumes on the network, any Workspaces created from folders on capable storage, and now native NEXIS workspaces as Avid NEXIS Drives. In turn, you get Bin Locking (and Bin Refresh!) when working from an Avid Project shared from any of these Avid NEXIS Drives.
That’s it.
What Mimiq Doesn’t Do
Indy thought the swap was successful, but he still triggered those traps.
Was he successful?
Although he lost the artifact, he escaped to fight another day.
So it goes when working with Avid Media Composer – you will encounter troubles that are common to Media Composer, but uncommon to you. Mimiq doesn’t address or fix those troubles, so when you encounter them, you will lose time, but you’ll live to fight another day.
Knowing that, here’s a list of gotchas you’ll encounter, with or without Mimiq.
Errant Behavior
Playback is now much slower
Mimiq doesn’t intercept any input/output between your workstation and where you store your media.
You may need to confirm you’re using a qualified combination of Media Composer and your operating system, all Avid Requirements are in place on that workstation, and your network and shared storage are configured for maximum performance.
I’m getting permission errors
Mimiq doesn’t alter any permissions on any eligible volumes, whether they’re shared folders, Workspaces created from folders, or native NEXIS workspaces.
If Media Composer reports permissions-related errors, the best place to start is to give Read and Write privileges to any users who will access that share, then progressively restrict access as desired.
Media Composer keeps creating a 1 folder in my managed media folders
https://isaact.micro.blog/2024/06/12/on-renaming-avid.html
Opening Bins gets slower and slower
https://kb.avid.com/pkb/articles/en_US/Knowledge/en397171
Media Composer crashes when loading bins
https://kb.avid.com/pkb/articles/en_US/Knowledge/Media-Composer-crashes-when-loading-bins
There’s a .lck_conflicted file in my Avid Project folder
https://community.avid.com/forums/p/207593/925980.aspx
##Media Composer hangs/is stuck on “Configuring audio waveform cache”
Exceptions
sys_error, OSErr:-5000
https://kb.avid.com/pkb/articles/en_US/Knowledge/Exception-SYS-ERROR-OSErr-5000
SYS_ERROR, OSErr:-61
“Project Settings not saved due to an error.” or “File (Project Name).avp not found.”
https://avidtech.my.salesforce-sites.com/pkb/articles/en_US/error_message/en275137
ReadDomainWithMobs: failure opening domain on stream for bin
Structured Exception, ExceptionCode: 3221225477, ExceptionString: Access_Violation
- https://community.avid.com/forums/p/122419/881542.aspx
- https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/ie/en-US/e8bad4fa-b640-4a39-ad88-74afda3504de/possible-heap-corruption-detected-exception-code-3221225477?forum=winservergen
CONSISTENCY CHECK FAILURE or “Core consistency check failure"
This is a common error.
There are multiple possible causes, but the workaround is to apply a “Divide & Conquer” approach to your sequence so you can locate and remove the culprit(s).
https://avidtech.my.salesforce-sites.com/pkb/articles/en_US/Error_Message/Consistency-Check-Failure
https://kb.avid.com/pkb/articles/en_US/troubleshooting/Divide-and-Conquer
SFPlayConsumer::Execute TIMEOUT
This is a common error.
It means something is getting in the way of Media Composer performing as quickly as expected.
https://kb.avid.com/pkb/articles/en_US/Knowledge/en388455
Also, confirm all Avid Requirements are in place on that workstation.
It seems too good to be true, but Mimiq really delivers on doing one thing and one thing well. Revisit this guide when you trigger your next set of traps in Media Composer (without or without Mimiq), and, like Indy, you’ll live to fight another day.
FIND THOSE MISSING CLIPS USING THE TIMELINE INDEX IN FINAL CUT PRO
So you opened your Library and found some red alert icons in your Project. That means the underlying media or asset for a Clip is missing.
No sweat! Typically, you can just relink those Clips to their media and get to work.
But what if Final Cut Pro still shows you some red badges in your Project?
Here’s an oft forgotten Final Cut Pro feature: use the Timeline Index to quickly find those red badges and then decide what’s next.
How?
- Open your Project, then open the Timeline Index by clicking
Indexor pressShift-Command-2. - Click the
Searchbar or pressCommand-F. - Type
missing.
Final Cut Pro will show you a list of all missing Clips as they appear in your Project in chronological order.
With that list, you can click each item or press the Up Arrow or Down Arrow keys to fluidly jump between them in your Project’s timeline. As you resolve a missing item, it will disappear from the Timeline Index.
Missing some Motion Content (i.e. an Effect, Generator, Title, or Transition)? If it’s free Motion content, perhaps it just needs to be installed in the correct location. If it’s a purchased piece of Motion Content, you’ll likely need to install the vendor’s license manager app – such as MotionVFX or FxFactory – log into it, then reinstall what’s needed for that Library on your Mac.
The next time you see some red badges in your Project: don’t panic. Use the Timeline Index, search for those missing items, and you’ll be back to J and L cuts in no time. 👌🏽
DOES MIMIQ REALLY DO BIN LOCKING IN AVID MEDIA COMPOSER ON NEXIS STORAGE NOW?
With Mimiq Pro 24.2 and newer? Yes.
How easy is it?
Just mount your NEXIS workspaces along with any other eligible third-party volumes, launch Mimiq, then launch Media Composer. That’s it. 👌🏽
(Honestly, it took me longer to find this article’s cover image than to write this. 😁)
Enjoy all the Bin Locking (and Bin Refresh) on all the storage!
Read-Only Memory (https://readonlymemory.com) is publishing the definitive book on Wipeout, the iconic anti-gravity racing series for Playstation.
Can’t. Wait.
ON RENAMING AVID MEDIA COMPOSER’S MEDIA FOLDERS
There’s a scene from Mr. Mom where Jack Butler (Michael Keaton’s character) drops off his kids at school for the first time.
As he pulls into the parking lot, his kids bluntly declare, “You’re doing it wrong!”
Moments later, the crossing guard Annette (Miriam Flynn’s character) pulls him over, sweetly greets him, then tells him:
Consider me your Annette for a moment as we talk about renaming those special media folders Avid Media Composer uses.
“South to drop off, north to pick up.”
Annette told Jack, “We enter from the south and exit from the north,” to drop off the kids at school.
If you want to open a Clip and see and/or hear something in Media Composer, the right media files must be stored in the right folder for the right situation:
OMFs
- When Working Alone -
/OMFI MediaFiles/(N) - When Playing in a Band -
/OMFI MediaFiles/(Someones Computer)
MXFs (OP-Atom)
- When Working Alone -
/Avid MediaFiles/MXF/(N) - When Playing in a Band -
/Avid MediaFiles/MXF/(Someones Computer).(N)
MXFs (OP1a)
- When Working Alone -
/Avid MediaFiles/UME/(N) - When Playing in a Band -
/Avid MediaFiles/UME/(Someones Computer).(N)
I’ve written about this in Mimiq’s documentation, but now I’ll be more direct.
“You’re doing it wrong.”
Dailies Technicians, Assistant Editors, Media Managers… I implore you: please stop renaming these special folders.
Why?
Avid didn’t design Media Composer to allow humans to understand where your media will be stored for a specific Project (or in a specific Bin). That’s why you have Bins – you use Bins to organize your Clips, Clips are linked to media, and Media Composer was built to manage where to store the underlying media.
Also, renaming those folders after Media Composer generates the media index files (i.e. the PMR and MDB)? Yes, that works, but only when someone on the team continually (and fastidiously) renames additional incoming media folders using the same naming convention. But if you’re playing in a band and someone consolidates/transcodes something new to a shared volume with those renamed folders? Media Composer will create a new /1 folder, which will cause Media Composer to perform unpredictably. Most notably, someone will open a Clip with media they know is available on their shared storage only to be shown MEDIA OFFLINE.
Be Like Jack
Eventually, Jack got it.
In fact, he became so good at dropping off his kids, he became a crossing guard himself!
If renaming those special folders is a bad idea, what can you do?
- Let Media Composer store the media where it wants, then use MDVx to scan media folders to determine which media belongs with which project, then copy, move, or delete some media accordingly.
- If you must rename your folders, then rename the numbered folders based on something like a timestamp. For example:
- “../Avid MediaFiles/UME/Isaacs MacBook Pro.20240612” could mean this folder is full of dailies from the June 12, 2024 shoot.
- “../Avid MediaFiles/UME/Isaacs MacBook Pro.202406121337” could mean this folder is full of dailies from the June 12, 2024 shoot ingested at 1:37 (13:37) that day.
Further, if human-readable filenames are another layer in your breadcrumb trail, use EditReady to transcode your dailies. EditReady will use the filename of your source media in the resulting filenames of your transcoded media.
In the end, Jack didn’t just make the crossing guard pool. He and Annette ended up being good friends.
So as your Annette for this read, I sign off by asking: please… stop renaming those media folders.
(And remember: south to drop off, north to pick up. 😄)
THE IMPORTANCE OF COFFEE TIMES AND JAM SESSIONS
Well, today’s the day. PostLab 2.0 is now available in Early Access Release.
One massive innovation in PostLab 2.0 is Event Locking for Final Cut Pro. As a diehard fan of FCP (née FCP X) and PostLab Classic, I’m proud to share Co-Inventor honors for this feature alongside Jasper Siegers, PostLab’s creator.
But what sparked all of this?
Since Hedge is spread across multiple time zones, the leadership scheduled regular time slots so teammates could come in and hang out with each other. These occasions were simply known as Coffee.
The time slots shifted based on the team’s needs and daylight savings time, but Coffee typically happened over Zoom or Around at 10:00 and 3:00 (15:00) in your time zone.
Of course, I’m in the US (ET). But the rest of the team is six hours ahead of me in Europe (mostly The Netherlands) on Central European Time (CET).
A couple of years ago, I was in a 3:00P ET Coffee when – 🛎️ 🛎️ – Jasper stopped by.
When it became clear we would be the only ones in that Coffee, he started telling me about some of the foundational work he was doing on PostLab 2.0.
I asked, “Since it’s so early, can we dream the impossible dream for a sec? I know we can do locking on a Library level, but what if we could do locking on Events in a Library?”
Based on Jasper’s vantage point, he didn’t think that was possible.
Then I threw out to him, “Well… what if we did this…?”
Jasper thought about it, tried it, and that seemed to work!
Then I said, “OK… if that’s true, what if we tried…?”
Jasper tried that, and that seemed to work too!
For Reasons, I cannot disclose the actual contents of that conversation.
But in my mind? It felt a lot like this:
Conventional Wisdom says, “Remote teams don’t work. You just can’t get those organic hallway/watercooler/coffee moments like you can in a real office.”
What do you think?
Jasper was up at 9:00P his time. That wasn’t typical.
I was the only person at 3:00P Coffee that day in the US. Also not typical.
What started as a typical Coffee slot morphed into a jam session (maybe one hour or so because we got carried away 😄), which led to an industry-first – true collaboration for Final Cut Pro with Event Locking.
I celebrate this phase of PostLab 2.0’s release with Jasper, Simon, Tim, Taco, Freek, Paul, and the rest of the Hedge team. It’s a monumental achievement.
Learn more about PostLab 2.0 on Hedge’s blog: https://blog.hedge.video/postlab-faqs/
CAN YOU EDIT FROM AVID MEDIA COMPOSER MEDIA (MXFS) IN OTHER VIDEO EDITING APPS?
Yes, but you have to plan for it or know if those MXFs could be useful in your favorite editing app.
MXFs come in two varieties: OP-Atom and OP1a.
OP-Atom MXFs are the individual video and audio streams Media Composer then combines into one Clip inside a Bin.
If you use something like IINA or VLC to open an OP-Atom MXF:
- If that MXF contains a video stream, you’ll see video but won’t hear any audio.
- Conversely, if that MXF contains an audio stream, you’ll hear the audio recorded on that channel, but you won’t see any video.
Other video editing apps like Final Cut Pro and Premiere Pro can play OP-Atom MXFs, but unlike Media Composer, those apps can’t combine OP-Atom MXFs and present them to you as one single Clip in their UI.
Enter OP1a MXFs.
Where you can liken OP-Atom MXFs to (yes) individual atoms – one MXF file equals one stream of video or audio – an OP1a MXF is All Inclusive. OP1a MXFs contain all the video and audio you recorded in one file. And yes, you can open OP1a MXFs in capable video player apps like IINA or VLC, and they’ll open just as you would expect when opening other media files, like MOVs and MP4s.
But is that really true?
Here’s a set of OP1a MXFs.
I transcoded one set of files to DNxHD (1920x1080 at 25 fps) and another to DNxHR (3840x2160 at 23.98 fps) using Hedge’s EditReady and this workflow article I wrote for EditReady.
Here’s Final Cut Pro 10.7.1, which can decode DNxHD and DNxHR MXFs.
I imported these OP1a MXFs into an Event, inserted them into a new Project, and – boom – I’m cutting with OP1a MXF media. That’s it. 👌🏽
You can follow the same steps in Premiere Pro and get the same results.
But you might say, “OK I hear ya Hot Sauce, but… why?”
We’re in an era when video editors expect interoperability. Projects like OpenTimelineIO (OTIO) are getting closer and closer to becoming a new standard for getting work in and out of your favorite video editor. Avid themselves are now publicly showing how Media Composer may support OTIO.
But how Media Composer generates and uses media – special files that must be placed in special folders – has always been a hurdle.
Using OP1a MXFs from Media Composer, you can take one step further toward working on the same set of media in whatever editing or finishing app you wish.
And if you think OP1a MXFs aren’t intended for editorial, you might check out these resources:
Made by TAIYAKI (https://www.youtube.com/@tnozaki4372).
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Also see the Making Of…, just phenomenal.
🍿
USING MIMIQ - BUT HOW DO YOU REALLY KNOW…?
Here’s something Avid Media Composer teams often ask me:
“OK… Mimiq says I’m supposed to have Bin Locking on these volumes, but how do I really know?”
The key is Media Composer recognizing a volume as an Avid NEXIS Drive.
But will Media Composer just… tell you which volumes are Avid NEXIS Drives? Yes indeed:
- macOS -
Avid Media Composer > About Avid Media Composer > Hardware > Avid NEXIS Drives - Windows -
Help > About Avid Media Composer > Hardware > Avid NEXIS Drives
Don’t believe the UI? You can double down on your skepticism using Media Composer’s Console with this command:
DumpVolumes
The result is a list of volumes Media Composer can see, plus this handy bit of info: the filesystem of each volume.
When you see:
- macOS -
fileSys: FILE_SYS_AVIDFS - Windows -
fileSys: FILE_SYS_AVIDFOS
That’s how you really know – you have Bin Locking (and now refreshing locked Bins!), thanks to Mimiq. 👌🏽
Hello! My contract with the amazing team at Hedge has come to an end, so it’s time I hang out my #OpenToWork shingle.
Do you know someone who could use someone like me?
- Workflow Architect / Strategist
- Solutions Consultant
- Technical Writer
Let’s talk! 🙂
Feel free to DM me, or: hey@isaact.co
It’s hard to talk about Formula 1 without spoiling a race. But today was another race where I have to say:
I really enjoy Formula 1.
#MonacoGP
Phil Rosenthal and his family and team are good people. Thoroughly enjoy their show.
Been a massive fan of Carrtoons for so long. Their Tiny Desk is just… so right.
Congratulations, Ben, Joanna, et al. I still remember seeing y’all at The Rosendale Street Festival back in 2013.
(Seriously, who can help them get on The Tonight Show?)
Right on.
I’m at an outdoor market with one soundtrack, but the beer garden across the street has its own.
I’m enjoying this accidental house remix of The Temptations.
I read bringing Moonlighting to streaming was tricky due to sorting out music rights.
This scene from S02:E06 (Knowing Her) originally aired with a legendary Isley Brothers track…
…but they replaced it with a Wesley Bright track. You know… it works! (And it’s better!)
📺
I just discovered Jason Allard’s YouTube channel.
Not only are his subjects up my alley, this piece on the now defunct Rocky Point Amusement Park is well written, well executed, and lots of fun.
There’s expediency versus expeditiousness, but how about use versus utilize?
Example:
You use a bat to play baseball, but someone may utilize a bat for self-defense.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/is-utilize-a-word-worth-using
Sometimes I think my little corner of the social media sphere is too quiet.
Then I get wind of a video that was made about a certain software’s lack of updates and the creator released it anyway after the team addressed those core concerns, and now I’m OK with being in my little quiet place again.
ISAAC T.’S POST-NAB 2024 HIGHLIGHTS
I’m fresh off the NAB boat.
First, a big Thank You to everyone who stopped by the Hedge booth this year. 🙏🏽
PostLab 2.0? We showed it, and we think you’ll agree with Michael: you’ll love it.
Mimiq with Bin Refresh and NEXIS co-existence? We showed it, and message received: we’ll take it out of the oven as soon as it’s ready.
Then there’s Arctic. If you’re at NAB you might feel like you’re in the minority as a Final Cut Pro user. Don’t believe the hype. Your response to Arctic proves what we knew all along: FCP’s alive and well.
I would’ve written something more comprehensive in years past, but you can read or see what Hedge unveiled at NAB this year from some more choice places.
Provideo Coalition
Ripple Training
▶️ (Scrub to 3:09)
Larry Jordan
Joey /// VP Land
CineD
Article – https://www.cined.com/hedge-offshoot-and-canister-updates-postlab-2-0-explained/
And if you want the nitty gritty, from the Hedge Blog: Press Release: Improve your creative workflow with Hedge at NAB 2024
PostLab 2.0 demo media provided by:
- Footage: EditStock
- 3D: Joseph Terronez (Artstation, Instagram: @joseph.terronez)
As for non-Hedge news, I think there’s one company you should keep an eye on – MTI Film: https://mtifilm.com. I heard about MTI while watching this year’s Pre-NAB Editors Lounge.
If you want to see a proper application of AI in action, MTI are doing it with their DRS Nova restoration platform. After the demo, my jaw was on the floor. They had a modest booth in 2024, but I think you’ll see a slightly larger booth from them next year.
Shout out to Shahrzad, Edwin, and Brian for showing me some amazing work.
Restaurant Recommendations
La Vecindad - legit Mexican food. The restaurant’s theme took the team by surprise until Colin and I showed them where it came from. 😄
Arawan Thai Bistro - they ask if you want it spicy from one to ten. I asked for a nine. It was a nine. 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Yukon Pizza - six different pies, zero disappointment.
See you at IBC! 🇳🇱
SUPPORT A NICE BUSINESS - RETRO ISLAND GAMING
I stumbled upon this vlog for a new shop in Long Island - Retro Island Gaming:
They’re putting a lot of care into their brick and mortar location and their webstore feels quite nice. They even have a Quality Standards article so you can buy with confidence.
I don’t know these people, but I want to support people like them.
(And if they’re reading this, store those DS titles in some sort of three-ring binder; you’ll be re-sorting those bins daily.)
👾🎮🕹️
STORMY VS. SPOOKY
I heard this song Stormy used on a TV show recently.
I was instantly back in my CRX – no-A/C, windows down, bobbin' my head.
Then I thought, “This song sounds a lot like that other song Spooky, doesn’t it?”
TIL: same group, same chord progression. I ain’t even mad tho.
Also, the group’s name is Classics IV. I thought that was the title of a compilation.
Do I know anyone who worked for AlphaTauri (https://alphatauri.com)?
If AlphaTauri published a look book (or even brand guidelines) for their work during the 2022 and 2023 F1 seasons, I would absolutely buy it. Extraordinary design work.
Algoriddim’s djay – now with Apple Music… 🔥🔥🔥
(Wouldn’t mind trying this with a Vision Pro.)
MY (RE-)DEFINITION OF SUMMER MADNESS
I listened to this QLS episode recently featuring George Brown of Kool & the Gang.
Wow, what an education.
For years, I thought Jeff Townes (AKA DJ Jazzy Jeff) sampled Roy Ayers' Everybody Loves the Sunshine for Summertime.
Nope.
That would be Kool & the Gang’s Summer Madness.
Oh yeah, did you know Kool & the Gang is the Number 1 sampled band of all time?
Figure 1. ⤵️
And that’s why Will Smith ends their seminal track:
And this is the Fresh Prince’s new definition of summer maaaadness.
🎤🫳🏽