Xiii – Apple Final Cut Express HD User Manual
Page 1071
Appendix D
Solving Common Problems
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XIII
The audio is not in sync with the video, or you’re experiencing dropped frames in
your video.
Many audio sync issues stem from dropped frames on capture or output. Nearly all
dropped frames are caused by either incorrectly configured hardware or incorrect
preference settings. The leading causes of dropped frames are the following:
 If you’re using external speakers connected to a camcorder, and external video is set
to All Frames, the video displayed on your computer’s monitor (from the Viewer or
Canvas) will not be in sync with the audio. The audio will instead be in sync with the
video that is displayed on the NTSC or PAL monitor that’s connected to the same
output device.
 If your clip or sequence is zoomed while open in the Viewer or displayed in the
Canvas, this can cause frames to be dropped. Choose Fit to Window from the View
pop-up menu in the Canvas or Viewer.
 The computer display is set to a low refresh rate. The refresh rate in the Displays pane
of System Preferences should always be set to 75 hertz (Hz) or greater. (This is not
applicable to flat-panel displays.)
 The Canvas and Viewer windows are overlapped by other windows; they should
not be.
 Reduce the number of tracks in the Real-time Audio Mixing field in the General tab
of the User Preferences window. If more audio tracks are specified to be mixed in real
time than your computer can handle, this can cause dropped frames. Reducing the
number of tracks will result in your having to render your sequence, but will result in
improved playback.
 Incorrect versions of Mac OS X and QuickTime can be another cause of dropped
frames. Check the Final Cut Express HD website for the version of system software
you should use.
 The hard disk drive you’re capturing to is inadequate for capturing video. This could
be caused by slow hard drives, incompatible drivers, or configuration issues. For more
information, see “