Why does my auto sync fail in DaVinci Resolve?

Usually the clips do not share clear sound: a camera with no sound, a clip recorded while the recorder was off, or a quiet or noisy track. For syncing by audio in the Cut page, Blackmagic's manual asks for at least a portion of the same audio, recorded clearly enough to analyze.

How do I automatically sync audio and video in DaVinci Resolve?

For one camera, select the camera clip and the recorder file in the Media Pool, right-click, choose Auto Sync Audio and set Synchronize Using to Waveform. For several cameras, choose Create New Multicam Clip Using Selected Clips and set Angle Sync to Sound.

Why isn't my audio matching the waveform in DaVinci Resolve?

Check which channel Resolve compares. Blackmagic's manual says Auto picks the channels it finds most suited, and Mix compares the mixdown of all channels. Mix helps when one channel is silent for long stretches.

Why does my multicam clip have an angle for every clip?

Usually the clips from one camera do not share a Camera #, or Detect clips from same camera was off. Set the same Camera # for every clip of each camera in the Metadata Editor. Then create the multicam clip again with Detect clips from same camera turned on.

Can CamHeard give DaVinci Resolve a synced timeline?

Yes. Choose Export, then DaVinci Resolve, and save the file. In Resolve, File > Import > Timeline… opens it, and the media links itself. Clips that had nothing to sync with go to the end of the timeline.

DaVinci Resolve Auto Sync Audio not working: causes and fixes

Published October 18, 2026

In DaVinci Resolve, Auto Sync Audio usually fails because the clips do not share clear sound. A camera with no sound, a clip recorded while the recorder was off, or a quiet or noisy track leaves nothing to match. In a multicam clip, the other common problem is missing Camera # metadata: every clip becomes its own angle.

Below is a table of symptoms, causes and fixes. Then come the steps for one camera and for several. Facts about Resolve come from Blackmagic's DaVinci Resolve 21 Reference Manual. Tips from the Blackmagic forum and Reddit are marked as common advice. The last part is for shoots with dozens of clips.

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Symptoms, causes and fixes

Symptom	Why	What to do
Auto Sync Audio does not sync a clip	Blackmagic's manual, for syncing by audio in the Cut page: each clip must have at least a portion of the same audio, recorded clearly enough to analyze.	Check that the camera recorded sound at that moment and that the recorder was running. A clip with no shared sound has to be synced by hand.
The clip has sound but still will not match	Common advice: the camera track is quiet, noisy or far from the action, or the compared channel is silent. Blackmagic's manual: with Auto, Resolve picks the channels it finds most suited, and Mix compares the mixdown of all channels.	Switch the channel from Auto to Mix, or to the channel with clear sound in both files. Or trim both clips to a short stretch with the same clear sound, such as a clap. Sync, then extend them back.
Auto Align Clips leaves some clips where they were	Blackmagic's manual: you can select only one clip per track, and all of them align to the clip on the lowest-numbered track. Clips with no overlapping timecode or audio waveform are not moved.	Select one clip per track. Put the clip that overlaps all the others, usually the recorder, on the lowest track.
The multicam clip has an angle for every clip	Common advice: clips from one camera do not share the same Camera # metadata, so each one becomes its own angle.	Set the same Camera # for every clip of one camera before you create the multicam clip. Then let Resolve detect clips from the same camera by it.
Timecode sync puts clips in the wrong place	Blackmagic's manual: syncing by timecode needs a common timecode in all clips.	Sync by Waveform instead, unless every device ran on one jammed timecode.
Waveform sync takes very long	Blackmagic's manual: organizing clips by scene can make waveform syncing go faster, because fewer files are compared at once.	Sync scene by scene, in smaller batches.

The rows marked Blackmagic's manual come from the DaVinci Resolve 21 Reference Manual, chapters Syncing Audio and Video, Fast Editing in the Cut Page, Modifying Clips in the Timeline and Multicam Editing. Common advice comes from the Blackmagic forum and r/davinciresolve.

Sync by sound in Resolve, step by step

One camera and a recorder. This is the most common case. Use Auto Sync Audio in the Media Pool.

In the Media Pool, select the camera clip and the recorder file.
Right-click and choose Auto Sync Audio. Set Synchronize Using to Waveform and press Sync.
To keep the camera sound next to the recorder sound, turn on Retain embedded audio before you press Sync.
Play the synced clip through before you cut.

Several cameras and a recorder. Use a multicam clip.

On the Media page, select the clips of one camera, open the Metadata Editor and set Camera # to A. Repeat with B, C and so on for each camera and for the recorder.
In the Media Pool, select all camera clips and recorder files.
Right-click and choose Create New Multicam Clip Using Selected Clips.
Set Angle Sync to Sound. Let Resolve detect clips from the same camera by their Camera # metadata.
Click Create, put the multicam clip on a timeline and play it through before you cut.

When the sound will not match. Mark the sync point by hand. Set an In point or a marker on the clap in every clip, then pick In, Out or Marker for Angle Sync.

When there are dozens of clips

Everything above works on a selection you prepare. Each camera needs its Camera #, each sync a channel that heard the moment, and each result a check. With a few clips that is quick. With dozens of files from several cameras and recorders, the preparation grows with every file.

With CamHeard there are no labels to set and no selection to build. It is an app for macOS and Windows that syncs cameras and recorders by sound. DaVinci Resolve gets a ready timeline.

Copy the shoot as usual: one folder for the shoot, with a folder for each camera and each recorder inside.
Drag the shoot folder onto the CamHeard window and press Sync.
Choose Export, then DaVinci Resolve, and save CamHeard_sync_DR.xml.
In Resolve, choose File > Import > Timeline… and pick that file. The media links itself, and the timeline appears in the Media Pool under the file's name.

Better not to mix files from different cameras or recorders in one folder. With a folder per device, devices that were recording at the same time land on separate tracks.

CamHeard timeline after sync: 8 cameras and a recorder, 215 files

One real shoot in CamHeard: 215 files, 8 cameras and a recorder, 8.9 hours of footage.

On the Resolve timeline, each camera gets one stereo audio track, the way Resolve likes it. The recorder sits on the lower tracks, below all the camera sound, one track per channel. Clips that had nothing to sync with go to the end of the timeline, so no file is lost. Your files on disk are not changed.

Worth knowing. If the recorder has three or more channels, all of its tracks hear the first channel after the import. Select the recorder clips on each track, open Clip Attributes and set Source Channel to 2, 3 and so on. CamHeard reminds you right after the export.

DaVinci Resolve 21 does not open some old camcorder files, such as MPEG-2 .mpg, and one such file can stop the whole timeline from building. So CamHeard leaves them out of the file for Resolve. The Matching timecode option does not apply to Resolve either, and the app says so if it was on.

CamHeard 0.4.35 synced the shoot in the picture above in about a minute on a MacBook Pro with M3 Max. The more you shot, the longer it takes.

CamHeard runs on macOS 15 or later with Apple silicon, and on Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit. The first 14 days are the full app, with no card and no account. After that, projects up to 20 clips stay free. A licence costs $15 a month, $144 a year or $249 for life.

Frequently asked questions

Why does my auto sync fail in DaVinci Resolve?: Usually the clips do not share clear sound: a camera with no sound, a clip recorded while the recorder was off, or a quiet or noisy track. For syncing by audio in the Cut page, Blackmagic's manual asks for at least a portion of the same audio, recorded clearly enough to analyze.
How do I automatically sync audio and video in DaVinci Resolve?: For one camera, select the camera clip and the recorder file in the Media Pool, right-click, choose Auto Sync Audio and set Synchronize Using to Waveform. For several cameras, choose Create New Multicam Clip Using Selected Clips and set Angle Sync to Sound.
Why isn't my audio matching the waveform in DaVinci Resolve?: Check which channel Resolve compares. Blackmagic's manual says Auto picks the channels it finds most suited, and Mix compares the mixdown of all channels. Mix helps when one channel is silent for long stretches.
Why does my multicam clip have an angle for every clip?: Usually the clips from one camera do not share a Camera #, or Detect clips from same camera was off. Set the same Camera # for every clip of each camera in the Metadata Editor. Then create the multicam clip again with Detect clips from same camera turned on.
Can CamHeard give DaVinci Resolve a synced timeline?: Yes. Choose Export, then DaVinci Resolve, and save the file. In Resolve, File > Import > Timeline… opens it, and the media links itself. Clips that had nothing to sync with go to the end of the timeline.

Try it on your last shoot. Your own footage is the most honest test. The first 14 days are the full app, no card, no account.