"I got some footage with my new Sony FS5M2. It creates very nice 4K videos, I can encode footage with XAVC (MPEG-4 AVC/H.264) codec and save the files in MXF container format. But, Final Cut Pro which for some reason has some difficulty with them. Any insight is greatly appreciated. - ET Black"
A few days ago Sony announced the FS5M2 (FS5 II), an update to Sony's little FS7 brother. "Grab and shoot" Super 35 handheld camcorder with stunning new creative look, 4K 120fps HFR and HDR, " Mount lens system, Variable ND Filter, 4K/2K RAW and XAVC recording. HLG (Hyper Log Gamma) enables both an HDR (high dynamic range) and SDR (standard dynamic range) in-camera workflow for flexibility in post and delivery. Newly tuned picture tone settings provide improved image control. As you know, it is not cheap.
The reason that you can't edit Sony FS5M2 .mxf files in Final Cut Pro (FCP X, FCP 7, FCP 6) is simple. MXF format isn't FCP friendly but XAVC codec is not natively supported by FCP - the XAVC (MPEG-4 AVC/H.264) encoded contents are highly compressed, for delivery only not editing. So, to solve these problems, what you need is a Mac 4K Video Converter tool to convert the XAVC files to ProRes for FCP X, FCP 7 and FCP 6. There are many kinds of Mac mxf video converter software on market. One highly recommended program is Acrok Video Converter Ultimate. With it, you can convert Sony FS5M2/FS5 II 4K XAVC recordings to any video format (MP4, M4V, AVI, WMV, MKV, FLV, MOV, etc) any editing software (Final Cut Pro, iMovie, Premiere Pro, Sony Vegas Pro, Windows Movie Maker, Avid Media Composer, FCE, etc) with few clicks.
The way around it is to convert the Sony FS5M2 files to Apple ProRes codec on mac. Acrok program supports converting all XAVC, XAVC S, H.265/HEVC, Blu-ray, DVD files to Apple ProRes 422 and ProRes 4444 so that you can easily import the 4K XAVC recordings to Final Cut Pro X, Final Cut Pro 6, Final Cut Pro 7 for editing on Mac. This will help you import the file correctly and saving the rendering time.
Free download Sony PXW-FS5M2 to FCP X Converter
How to Convert and Import Sony PXW-FS5M2 4K XAVC to Final Cut Pro?
1
Add 4K files to the program
Install and launch the Sony XAVC Video Converter. Click "Add Files" icon to import Sony PXW-FS5M2 recordings for converting.
2
Choose output format
Click on the "Format" bar and choose a FCP best editable format. Select Final Cut Pro > Apple ProRes 422 (*.mov) as the output format for editing Sony FS5M2(FS5 II) in Final Cut Pro.
Tip 1: For Avid Media Composer users. Choose "Editing Software" > " Avid DNxHD Video(*.mov)" as output format for editing 4K XAVC video in Avid with natively supported video codec; To convert Sony PXW-FS5M2 .mxf for editing in Premiere Pro CC, choose "Adobe Premiere/Sony Vegas MOV (AVC) (*.mov)" in "Editing Software" category. If you downloaded some 4K H.265 movies and want to play them on your portable devices such as iPad, iPhone, Android smartphone/tablet, or play them on your smart tv, this 4K conversion software can help you convert the H.265/HEVC files to any format as you needs.
Tip 2: Acrok 4K Video Converter has offered powerful customization feature, you can adjust the video and audio parameter by clicking "Settings". Click "Edit", you can trim, crop the Sony PXW-FS5M2/FS5 II video on Mac. For getting 3D videos, this XAVC (.mxf) to Final Cut Pro Converter can add 3D effect onto you downloaded or recorded videos.
3
Start Converting
As soon as all things are finished, please click "Convert" button to start the Sony PXW-FS5M2 4K video conversion on your PC. Once the conversion process shows 100%, please click "Open" button to locate the converted files, then you can easily import the converted footage into Final Cut Pro (FCP X, FCP 7, FCP 6) with smooth workflow.That's all. Please feel free to contact our Live Help any time for any question you might have.