Sony PXW-Z100 4K XAVC and Avid workflow – transcode PXW-Z100 4K XAVC to DNxHD for Avid systems


Summary: If you are shooting with a Sony PXW-Z100 4K Handheld XDCAM Camcorder, you may have troubles while importing the XAVC content to Avid systems like Avid Media Composer, Avid Symphony and Avid NewsCutter. In that case, you will need third party converter software to do format conversion before post production with Avid apps. This post demonstrates the detailed steps required to transcode PXW-Z100 4K XAVC to DNxHD for Avid systems.

Sony PXW-Z100Sony expanded its professional 4K camcorder line with the new PXW-Z100 4K Handheld XDCAM Camcorder. The PXW-Z100 uses XAVC format that first applied in Sony PMW-F55 4K camera to record 4K (4096×2160) content at 50p or 60p, and uses H.264 / MPEG-4 AVC compression for HD (1920×1080), QFHD (3840×2016) and 4K (4096×2160) footage. It is claimed that the XAVC format is ideal for those looking to implement a high-quality, secure and worry-free workflow. However, in reality, people often have troubles while loading PXW-Z100 4K XAVC media to Avid for post production. To make Sony PXW-Z100 4K XAVC and Avid workflow trouble-free and smooth, we would suggest that you convert PXW-Z100 4K XAVC to DNxHD, the best friendly editing codec of Avid applications. This requires third party converter software like HD Video Converter, which works excellently as a Sony PXW-Z100 4K XAVC Converter.

Download a free trial of Sony PXW-Z100 4K XAVC Converter
try windows versiontry mac version

Sony PXW-Z100 4K XAVC and Avid workflow – transcode PXW-Z100 4K XAVC to DNxHD for Avid systems

Follow these steps:
Step 1: Run HD Video Converter as a Sony PXW-Z100 4K XAVC Converter, then click ‘Add File’ icon to load Sony XAVC footage. You can load directly from your camcorder, or load from a card reader or from an achieved folder that contains your 4K XAVC media.

Step 2:Choose output format for Avid MC, Avid Symphony and Avid NewsCutter
From ‘Profile’ bar, select ‘Avid Media Composer’ > ‘Avid DNxHD (*.mov)’ as output format.

Step 3: Advanced settings (for advanced users)
If you are an advanced user, you can click ‘Settings’ button and go to ‘Profile Settings’ window to custom video and audio settings like resolution, video codec, bit rate, frame rate, audio codec, bit rate, sample rate and audio channel.

Step 4: When ready, click ‘Convert’ button to start converting Sony PXW-Z100 4K XAVC to DNxHD that is well compatible with your Avid NLE applications.

Step 5: When the conversion process finished, click ‘Open Folder’ button to get the generated DNxHD MOV files for using with Avids.
Tips: The Sony PXW-Z100 4K XAVC to Avid Converter is capable of processing batch conversion, so you can input loads of your 4K XAVC clips into it to do format conversion at a time. If you don’t want to wait for the entire format shifting process, you can tick off ‘Showdown computer when conversion completed’ and go away to do other things.

Also read
Open and edit Sony PMW-F55/F5 XAVC HD and 4K XAVC in FCP
Encoding Canon EOS C500 MXF for FCP and Avid on Mac Mavericks
How can I edit Sony FS700 4K/2K RAW AVCHD footage in iMovie and Avid?