DaVinci Resolve Dual Timeline Not Showing? Fix It

How do I load a second timeline into the Source Viewer?

To show a second timeline in the Edit page’s Source Viewer, right-click its timeline item in the Media Pool and choose Open in Timeline with Source Viewer. The source timeline should appear separately from the active timeline, with its own tab and viewer focus.

This is the step people often miss when they say “the dual timeline is not showing.” A stacked timeline view organizes timeline tabs. It doesn’t mean every timeline in the project is automatically open in the Source Viewer.

Try these checks if the menu item is missing or the second timeline does not appear:

1. Confirm that the item is a timeline. In the Media Pool, select a timeline rather than a video clip, bin, or folder. If your project has only one timeline, create or import the timeline you intend to compare.
2. Use the Media Pool context menu. Right-click the timeline item and look for Open in Timeline with Source Viewer. Blackmagic’s Resolve 20 guide documents this command for loading a timeline into the Source Viewer.
3. Check the Source Viewer’s timeline selector. If a source timeline is already loaded, use the dropdown at the top of the Source Viewer to select another one. The official guide documents both this dropdown and the right-click method.
4. Check which viewer has focus. Clicking the source timeline tab or the Source Viewer changes focus. The guide also documents Q as a way to switch between Source and Timeline Viewers.
5. Look for the blue source indicator. Blackmagic documents the source timeline’s tab and playhead turning blue. That visual cue identifies the read-only source timeline; it does not mean the timeline is disabled or corrupted.

When the source timeline appears, test it without altering your active edit. Click a clip in the source timeline and confirm that the Source Viewer displays it. Then switch to the active timeline and confirm that the Timeline Viewer shows that edit. The two viewers serve different roles.

On the Edit page, a second timeline must be loaded into the Source Viewer; stacked tabs alone aren’t the whole setup.

There’s also a version-specific shortcut worth knowing. Resolve 20.1’s New Features Guide documents a way to right-click an already-open timeline tab and choose Load Timeline to Source Viewer. If you’ve already opened the timeline as a tab, this can be a more direct route than returning to the Media Pool. If that menu item isn’t present in your installed version, use the Media Pool command documented for Resolve 20 instead.

What does “read-only source timeline” mean?

The source timeline is a reference for selecting and transferring material, not the timeline you directly change in place. Blackmagic says that standard cut and copy operations can be performed from the read-only source timeline to the actual timeline, and that you can drag from the Source Timeline Viewer into the Timeline Viewer to make an edit.

So, if the source timeline appears but you can’t trim a source clip as if it were the active edit, that may be expected. The intended workflow is to take material from the source and place it into the destination timeline. Don’t treat the blue tab as a sign of a display failure.

This distinction is useful when comparing alternate edits. Keep the current cut in the Timeline Viewer, load the alternate timeline in the Source Viewer, and copy or drag selected material into the active edit only when you mean to change it. That leaves the source version available as a reference.

A source timeline is also not the same as a locked track in the active edit. A locked destination track is a property of the edit you’re changing. The read-only state belongs to the source-timeline workflow. If you expect to edit the source directly, check which viewer is active and whether the timeline you clicked is the blue source tab.

How can I compare two edits without changing the wrong timeline?

Use the Source Viewer as the reference and the Timeline Viewer as the destination. Before copying anything, identify which tab is blue and which timeline the active viewer is showing. This simple pause helps prevent edits from landing in the version you meant to preserve.

Here’s a worked example, not a report of a test. Say you have a timeline called Interview v1 and a second timeline called Interview selects. You want to compare the opening and bring one shorter answer into v1.

1. On the Edit page, enable Display Stacked Timelines.
2. Open Interview v1 as the editable timeline in the Timeline Viewer.
3. In the Media Pool, right-click Interview selects and choose Open in Timeline with Source Viewer.
4. Click the source tab or Source Viewer and locate the answer you want. Confirm that the Source Viewer is showing the selects timeline, not a source clip.
5. Use the source timeline’s playhead and clip boundaries to identify the passage. The source timeline is read-only, so treat it as the material you’re taking from.
6. Click or focus the destination timeline and place the copied or dragged passage where it belongs.
7. Play the surrounding edit in the Timeline Viewer. Confirm that the new passage is in the intended position and that the source timeline remains unchanged.

If you only want a visual comparison, stop after checking the two viewers. You don’t have to copy anything. If you do need to transfer a clip, make the destination timeline active before the edit and verify the result immediately. Undo is available for a mistaken edit, but checking the active viewer first is safer than relying on undo later.

The same approach works for comparing a clean assembly with a version that has effects, alternate music, or a different ending. Give the timelines distinct names before loading them. Names such as Cut A, Cut B, and Client notes are easier to distinguish than several tabs called Timeline 1.

Before transferring material, confirm the source timeline and the destination timeline by name and viewer, not by tab position alone.

Why is the Cut page dual timeline not showing?

The Cut page’s two timeline views show the entire program and a magnified working area together. If you expected that arrangement but see only one timeline, first switch to the Cut page and inspect its layout before changing settings on the Edit page.

Blackmagic describes the Cut page’s dual timeline this way: “The upper timeline shows you the entire program while the lower timeline shows you a zoomed in area of where you're working.” That is the vendor’s description of the Cut page feature. It differs from the Edit page method for loading two timelines into separate viewers.

Work through these checks:

1. Confirm the page. Click Cut, not Edit. The Cut page and Edit page are separate editing workspaces. Their timelines look and behave differently.
2. Check whether the timeline panel has been resized. If the timeline area is too short, parts of the layout may be difficult to see. Expand the panel or close another panel that is taking space.
3. Look for the overview and detail relationship. The Cut page’s two timelines don’t mean that two project timelines have been loaded. They represent different scales of the same edit.
4. Check whether the interface layout has been changed. A layout adjustment can hide or reduce parts of a workspace. Restore the relevant panel before assuming that the project’s timeline is missing.
5. Switch to Edit and verify the project timeline. If the timeline exists on the Edit page, the problem is probably the Cut page layout or page expectation, not deleted timeline data.

The Cut page’s overview helps you navigate across the whole program while the lower timeline shows the working area in more detail. Blackmagic says both timelines are functional for moving and trimming clips. If you’re expecting a second independent edit, that isn’t what the Cut page’s dual view represents.

If you want a more basic page comparison before changing your workflow, use the existing guide to Cut page vs. Edit page differences. The distinction helps explain why an instruction for one page may not match the controls on the other.

Why do I see one viewer instead of two?

A viewer problem and a timeline problem are not always the same problem. On the Edit page, the Source Viewer can show a source clip or source timeline, while the Timeline Viewer shows the active edit. Showing two viewers does not by itself guarantee that two timelines are loaded.

First decide what is missing:

• One viewer is visible, but the timeline tabs are present. Look for the viewer layout control or a workspace layout setting. The timeline tabs may be working even if the viewer arrangement isn’t what you expected.
• Two viewers are visible, but the Source Viewer shows a clip. That is a source clip, not a second timeline. Right-click a timeline in the Media Pool and choose Open in Timeline with Source Viewer.
• Two viewers are visible, but both seem to show the same edit. Click a timeline tab, then click the Source Viewer or Timeline Viewer. Check which viewer has focus and whether a source timeline is actually loaded.
• No Source Viewer is visible. Check the Edit page viewer layout. Don’t reset the whole workspace until you’ve confirmed that the viewer is hidden rather than the source timeline itself being absent.

The Resolve 20 guide explains that viewer focus changes depending on the selected timeline tab. It also says you can click the appropriate viewer or press Q to switch between the Source and Timeline Viewers. That gives you a non-destructive way to test focus before rearranging the workspace.

The word “dual” causes confusion here because people use it for both the two Cut page timeline scales and two Edit page viewers. Think of them as separate questions: “Can I see both timeline scales?” and “Can I compare a source timeline with my active edit?” A viewer arrangement can be wrong while timeline tabs are fine, and a source timeline can be unloaded while both viewers are visible.

Two viewers don’t prove that two timelines are loaded, and two timeline views don’t always mean two separate edits.

Why are my timeline tabs missing after enabling stacked timelines?

If Display Stacked Timelines is enabled but tabs aren’t visible, check the timeline panel’s height and the open workspace panels before changing project data. The stacked view controls how the timelines are displayed, but a compressed or rearranged interface can make tabs hard to find.

Follow this order:

1. Check the correct page. Stacked timelines are the Edit page workflow described in Blackmagic’s Resolve 20 guide. If you’re on Cut, switch to Edit to follow those steps.
2. Reopen Timeline View Options. Confirm that Display Stacked Timelines remains selected. If the checkbox is off, select it and check again.
3. Expand the timeline area. Drag the divider above the timeline if the area is compressed. The amount of visible interface space depends on your display and workspace arrangement.
4. Temporarily close panels that occupy space. If the Media Pool, Effects Library, Inspector, or another panel is open, hide one temporarily and check whether the timeline tabs become visible.
5. Look for a tab dropdown or overflow control. If several timelines are open and horizontal space is limited, the interface may not display every tab at once. Check any tab-list control rather than assuming the other timelines vanished.
6. Check the Media Pool. Confirm the timeline still exists there. If it does, reopen it in the Source Viewer or active timeline as needed.
7. Only then consider resetting a workspace layout. A reset can undo other layout choices, so use it after checking the specific timeline view and panel size.

These are practical interface checks, not a claim that Blackmagic documents every possible monitor or workspace state as a cause. A missing tab may reflect limited screen room or the wrong page, while a missing timeline object is a separate project-organization issue.

If the tabs appear but scrolling or zooming is the actual problem, that’s a different fix from restoring dual timelines. The guide to DaVinci Resolve timeline won’t scroll or zoom covers that symptom.

What if Resolve 21 puts copied clips on the wrong tracks?

First confirm which timeline is the source and which is the destination. If the source timeline appears correctly but a copied or dragged clip lands on an unexpected track, check the destination track selection and the active timeline before changing the layout.

Resolve 21’s New Features Guide says you can use Destination Track selectors in Source Timelines to limit tracks when using dual timeline editing. In plain terms, those selectors help control which destination tracks are available for the operation. They don’t load the source timeline or decide which viewer is active.

Try this sequence:

1. Click the destination timeline tab and confirm the Timeline Viewer shows the edit you intend to change.
2. Check the destination track selectors for the tracks you want the operation to target.
3. If you’re moving material from the source timeline, re-check the source timeline’s name and the clip or range you selected.
4. Perform one small transfer, then inspect the destination timeline before repeating the operation.
5. If the result lands on an unwanted track, undo once and adjust the destination selection before trying again.

This matters most when the edit has several video and audio tracks. A source timeline may contain more tracks than the destination needs. You might want picture without its original music, or dialogue without reference audio. Limiting the intended destination tracks can help avoid transferring material to tracks you didn’t mean to use.

Keep the source and destination roles separate in your head. The source timeline is the read-only reference. Destination Track selectors affect where an edit can go. Display Stacked Timelines controls the timeline presentation. Each control solves a different part of the workflow.

How do I tell whether a timeline is missing or only hidden?

A hidden timeline view and a missing timeline item are different problems. Before rebuilding anything, check whether the timeline remains in the Media Pool and whether another page can open it.

Use this diagnostic:

Don’t delete or recreate a timeline just because it isn’t visible in the viewer. A workspace is how Resolve presents project objects; changing the view doesn’t establish that the underlying timeline was deleted. Confirm that the timeline item exists first.

If it’s listed, you have a concrete next step: load it in the right place. If it isn’t listed, move from interface troubleshooting to project recovery or timeline organization. This post is about restoring the display, not recovering a deleted edit.

One useful distinction: a timeline can be open without being the timeline currently shown in the Source Viewer. Conversely, it can be loaded in a viewer while its tab is difficult to see because the timeline panel is short. Check both the Media Pool and the viewers before deciding that the timeline itself has disappeared.

Does the Edit page dual-timeline fix differ in DaVinci Resolve 21?

For the core display setup, Resolve 21 retains the Edit page method documented in Resolve 20: enable Display Stacked Timelines, then open a timeline in the Source Viewer. Resolve 21 adds a documented Destination Track selector option for Source Timelines.

The version context matters because the Edit page dual-timeline workflow first appeared in Resolve 20, while Blackmagic’s Support Center lists Resolve 21.1 as the current manual in October 2026. The Resolve 21 New Features Guide says Destination Track selectors can limit the tracks used when editing from Source Timelines. That’s a workflow refinement, not a replacement for the stacked-timeline view.

If you’re following an older tutorial, its instructions may use different names or show a different panel arrangement. Follow the function names in your installed version where possible. If Display Stacked Timelines is absent, confirm that you’re on the Edit page and that the tutorial describes the Edit page source-timeline feature, not the Cut page dual timeline.

The Blackmagic Support Center is the place to check the current manual and version-specific documentation. Use the manual for your installed release when a label or menu item differs. Don’t infer that a feature was removed just because a tutorial image looks different.

Should I reset the workspace or reinstall DaVinci Resolve?

Resetting the workspace should be a later step, after checking the page, stacked-timeline option, source timeline, viewer focus, and panel size. Reinstalling Resolve is not a sensible first response to a hidden timeline view.

A careful escalation path helps protect your existing project and other interface preferences:

1. Check the page and feature. Cut page overview and detail are not Edit page source and destination timelines.
2. Check the relevant option. On Edit, confirm Display Stacked Timelines.
3. Load the source timeline. Use the Media Pool’s Open in Timeline with Source Viewer command, or the tab context-menu option if it’s available in your version.
4. Check panel space and focus. Expand the timeline, inspect open panels, and click the correct viewer.
5. Save the project. If you plan to reset or substantially change the workspace, save first.
6. Use a workspace reset only if the layout remains broken. It can remove custom panel arrangements, so it’s more disruptive than toggling one view setting.
7. Consider application repair only if other symptoms point beyond the layout. One missing timeline view isn’t enough evidence to blame the installation.

A workspace reset is easy to overuse when following a tutorial. It may make a panel visible again, but it can also discard custom layouts you rely on. If you know which panel or option changed, restore that specific state instead.

The same caution applies to changing projects or installing another version. The documented instructions for this workflow are interface steps: turn on stacked timeline display and load a source timeline. Start there. If unrelated interface elements are also missing, or Resolve behaves abnormally across multiple projects, broaden the investigation rather than treating the dual timeline as an isolated feature failure.

What should I check if the dual timeline still will not appear?

If the dual timeline still doesn’t appear, write down the page, version, visible viewer arrangement, and whether the timeline exists in the Media Pool. That small symptom record helps distinguish a layout mismatch from a source-timeline loading issue.

Use this final checklist:

• Page: Cut or Edit?
• Feature expected: Cut page overview plus magnified work area, or Edit page source timeline plus active timeline?
• Edit setting: Is Display Stacked Timelines enabled?
• Source state: Is a timeline actually loaded through Open in Timeline with Source Viewer?
• Viewer focus: Does clicking the tab or pressing Q switch the active viewer?
• Panel size: Is the timeline area expanded enough to show the tabs and both viewers?
• Project item: Does the timeline still appear in the Media Pool?
• Destination: If transferred material is going to an unexpected track, are the intended Destination Track selectors enabled?
• Version: Are you following instructions for Resolve 20 or later, or a tutorial from a different interface version?

Keep the result of each check simple. For example: “Edit page, stacked timelines checked, source timeline visible in Media Pool, but Source Viewer remains empty.” That’s much more useful than “dual timeline broken,” because it identifies the step that failed.

If you want on-screen help finding a control whose location differs from the tutorial, TryUncle is a desktop companion for Mac and Windows. You can ask a question about the Resolve screen in front of you, and Uncle can guide you toward the relevant control while you make the changes.

For most cases, the fix isn’t a reinstall: identify the page, enable the matching timeline view, and load the source timeline if you’re on Edit. Start with that sequence, and only reset the workspace if those specific checks fail.