ARISDA
BridgeTimecode, Work Time, Studio Clock for DaVinci Resolve

Not in the technical sense — ARISDA Bridge is not an OFX or Fusion plugin installed inside DaVinci Resolve. It's a standalone Windows companion app that connects to Resolve from the outside, via the DaVinci Scripting API, MIDI/MCU and LTC audio. In everyday use it behaves like one: install it, start it alongside Resolve, and it works automatically in the background — no plugin folder, no OFX registration, no project setup required.

The app operates at the absolute optimum of what the DaVinci API can deliver! To guarantee this performance permanently, please note: whenever DaVinci Resolve is closed and reopened, the app must be closed as well. The order is strict: start the app first, then DaVinci Resolve. When shutting down, quit the app first, then close DaVinci Resolve. Whenever Resolve is restarted, the app must always be fully closed and restarted too.

The DaVinci Scripting API has a performance behavior confirmed by Blackmagic Design (documented since 2019 in the official Blackmagic Design Forum, "Fundamental perf issue with Resolve scripting"): Connection setup can take anywhere from a few seconds to over a minute depending on system state, and individual timecode queries may respond with delay at times.

This is not caused by ARISDA Bridge but by Resolve's internal scripting engine. The Bridge was specifically designed to handle this robustly:

— An isolated background process ensures a slow API response never blocks the entire app
— SIM Mode displays a simulated, smooth timecode advance during playback, independent of API delays
— After a Stop, the exact value is applied immediately once the API responds

Settings like "Render Cache: None" or "Timeline Playback Resolution: Quarter" may help in some cases but do not guarantee consistent improvement, as the root cause lies within Resolve itself.

Source: Blackmagic Design Forum

This is a DaVinci Resolve architecture limitation: the very first playback after loading a project starts delayed because Resolve first initialises its playback engine internally (decoders, caches, audio). The app, however, reacts instantly to the play command — so it runs slightly ahead for a moment on the very first play. After the first stop, the API synchronises automatically and everything stays in sync from then on.

Recommendation (studio practice): after loading a project, do one short play/stop as a warm-up — from then on every playback is in sync from the first frame.

No. The Scripting API is only available in DaVinci Resolve Studio (full version). The free version does not support external control.

Tested and compatible with DaVinci Resolve Studio 21 on Windows 11 (as of V1.0, August 2026). Future DaVinci Resolve updates may affect functionality and are outside ARISDA's control. Check compatibility before major updates.

Yes. On the Edit Page via API + SIM engine — the API may drop individual frames. A cut jump during playback does not update TC immediately — only after a Stop. On the Fairlight Page via LTC audio — stable even during playback.

An audio clip on the timeline that carries a real SMPTE LTC signal. The Bridge reads the timecode directly from it — no detour via the API. Result: frame-accurate TC with highest priority, even during playback jumps — on Cut, Edit, Color and Deliver, just as reliably as natively on Fairlight.

Yes. The API reads TC directly from Resolve at Stop/Pause. After a jump, the SIM engine re-syncs automatically if the deviation exceeds 3 frames.

MIDI Loopbacks are virtual MIDI cables that connect Bridge and Resolve internally — without physical hardware. They are created once in Windows MIDI Settings and remain permanently (Retain = On).

Yes — this is essential. DaVinci Resolve lets you select only one MIDI input and one MIDI output at a time, not several. Both must be set to the Bridge's MIDI Loopback ports — if another MIDI device or app is already assigned there, the Bridge cannot connect.

Yes, via audio loopback: Windows "Stereo Mix" (often built into the sound driver, may need enabling under recording devices) records whatever is playing through the default output — no cable needed, but the LTC tone is audible while it runs. Cleaner: a virtual audio cable (e.g. the free "VB-Audio Virtual Cable"), to which DaVinci Resolve's LTC output is routed specifically — then the tone is never audible.

Yes, completely. Live mode (fullscreen 16:9) on any monitor shows the nixie timecode without any hardware. SDU2 and DLi are optional.

Yes, on any monitor you like — even a third or fourth one if DaVinci itself already spans two monitors. Live mode displays the nixie timecode as a 16:9 fullscreen — ideal as a simulated TC monitor. No SDU2, no DLi, no additional hardware needed — just an extra HDMI output.

Edit Page (via API + MIDI/MCU) and Fairlight Page (via LTC). With LTC Precision Mode, Cut, Color and Deliver are also supported. Only Fusion is not actively supported.

PAL: 24p, 25p, 50p, 50i. NTSC (29.97, 30, 60i) is not supported. The framerate is automatically detected from the DaVinci project.

Not directly with a genuine 50p LTC file — as a SMPTE standard, LTC is officially specified only up to 30fps (see above). The 25p LTC reference file can still be used sensibly on a 50p timeline, though: 50p is exactly double 25p, and every 25p source frame gets automatically duplicated (held) when up-converted to 50p anyway. The 25p LTC file therefore delivers spec-compliant timecode that holds once per frame pair — e.g. frame 1–1, then frame 2–2, and so on — giving frame-pair accuracy instead of true 50p single-frame resolution, entirely without the API/SIM engine and its limitations during jumps in playback.

The license applies to one PC. Transfer to another computer is not possible. No subscription — one-time payment.

Each new major version requires a separate purchase.

Clock mode runs completely independent of DaVinci Resolve. Three sub-modes: NTP clock (real time), stopwatch (start/stop/reset), countdown with DLi alarm at 00:00:00.

Bridge automatically tracks in the background how long you work on each Resolve project — phase-accurate per page (Edit, Color, Fairlight, Deliver). Only real work counts: Resolve must be in the foreground and the user active. Each project can be switched between "Active time" (default) and "Total time" (also counts research/idle while the project is open).

In work-time mode you create clients and assign hourly, half-day or day rates. Each working day can be set individually (hours / ½ day / 1 day). Statistics show the per-project breakdown as pie, share or bar charts — and the invoice is generated directly from the app as a PDF.

No. All working times, project names, client data, rates and invoices are stored exclusively in a local file on your own computer. Bridge makes no network connection to any server to send this data — no cloud sync, no tracking, no sharing with third parties. The data belongs to you alone.

ARISDA Bridge runs entirely in German, English, Spanish, French or Italian — including all help texts. For work-time tracking it goes further: the invoice language is set individually per client, independent of your own app language. If you work in German but a client is based in France, that client automatically gets their invoice in French — with the correct tax rate — it noticeably simplifies bookkeeping with clients abroad.

By email: ···. Please include version number (V1.0), Windows version and DaVinci Resolve version.