Apple Final Cut Pro 7 - Manual (Page 321)

Each time a timecode break occurs, Final Cut Pro continues to move the In point later
until there is enough continuous timecode to accommodate the In point in addition to
the duration of the pre-roll. This ensures that you will be able to recapture the clip again
later.
Reset Timecode Breaks
Reset timecode breaks are handled differently. Since a reset timecode break results in
the timecode at the point of the break being reset to 00:00:00:00, the reel name is
incremented along with the clip name. This makes later media management much easier.
The reel number identifies which part of a tape a particular group of clips came from. For
example, if a tape with the reel name 004 is captured and a reset timecode break occurs,
the reel name for all clips captured after the timecode break is incremented with an
uppercase letter, in this case 004-B. If another reset timecode break occurs, the reel
number is incremented to 004-C, and so on.
First timecode break
Reel 004-B Reel 004 Reel 004-C
Second timecode break
00:00:00:00 00:10:33:12 00:00:00:00 00:32:10:18 00:00:00:00 00:48:04:20
Timecode Gaps
When long gaps are detected with no timecode at all, Final Cut Pro stops capturing, saving
the media before the timecode gap as a single media file with its Out point set at the last
frame before the gap. If you performed a Capture Now operation, Final Cut Pro continues
playing through to the end of the tape, searching for more recorded video. If more video
is found, the reel name is incremented—as with a reset timecode break—and capture
continues.
Reel 012
Desert Scene-005
Reel 012-B
Desert Scene-006
10-second gap
Note: If you’re experiencing excessive timecode breaks and don’t know why, try cleaning
your camcorder or deck’s video heads. For more suggestions about how to find the causes
of timecode breaks and dropped frames during capture, see
“Solving Problems.”
321 Chapter 20 Advanced Topics in Capturing Tape-Based Media