Alternatives to Cineform? Stand alone program. at DVinfo.net

Dave Morgan · October 27th, 2015, 03:17 PM

I liked how I could use Cineform Pro or Premium to convert HDV and AVCHD files to one format, or convert interlaced footage to 30p or 24p. Now that its not for sale, I see it as dead. They say its built into premiere but I don't see it doing the same thing as a stand alone program. I have a neo scene lic but that does not work for everything I need.

What are other options to convert footage into a file good for editing?

HD link was great.

Christopher Young · October 27th, 2015, 07:34 PM

If you want to stay with Cineform Adobe Media Encoder CC 2015 as a stand alone program. Sadly one has to subscribe to it but as of yet I haven't found a buy it outright solution for Cineform output.

Free Media Encoder CC | Download free Adobe Media Encoder CC trial

It will accept a multitude of input file formats including the newest Sony XAVC codecs and can batch convert them to Cineform RGB 12-bit with Alpha or Cineform 4:2:2 YUV 10-bit. You can also encode to new video dimensions, e.g. 1080 to 720 etc. Options for interlace if required, field order, frame rate, aspect ratio etc are all there. Bit rate settings can go anywhere from Low, Medium, High to Film Scan 1 and Film Scan 2. You can embed overlays such as logos, burnt in TC window or text.

If you want Cineform output I think it;s probably the best option out there at the moment. Plus don't forget it has a wide range of other output options from most broadcast formats all the way down to the humble DVD plus a host of H.264 presets to meet most delivery requirements. You can also create your own presets and save them if required.

Another good point is that Media Encoder also uses Adobe's Mercury Engine and makes use of your CUDA card should it find one installed that meets the required spec. Faster Cineform rendering being the result as it utilizes the Mercury engine. Also faster H.264 rendering which uses the CUDA engine.

The one proviso is that the Cineform output files have a .MOV extension. If you want them as .AVI just do a batch re-wrap using the free 'AnotherGUI' v0.1.8.2 using its 'Copy codecs into AVI container' option. On a reasonable PC this happens very quickly as it is just a re-wrap to another container without the video / audio essence being touched or re-encoded in any way.

With GoPro's increasing castration of Cineform's functionality I'm finding this is the best alternative to create Cineform files from a stand alone interface. BTW. It is also best to clean out any late version GoPro Studio software because each version that was released emasculated the Cineform functionality even further.

If you are on a Window's box hunt on the net and look for GoPro Studio v1.3.0.162 or earlier and install that and this will allow most media players to access the Cineform codec for playback.

Chris Young
CYV Productions
Sydney

October 27th, 2015, 03:17 PM	#1
Dave Morgan Major Player Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 293	Alternatives to Cineform? Stand alone program. I liked how I could use Cineform Pro or Premium to convert HDV and AVCHD files to one format, or convert interlaced footage to 30p or 24p. Now that its not for sale, I see it as dead. They say its built into premiere but I don't see it doing the same thing as a stand alone program. I have a neo scene lic but that does not work for everything I need. What are other options to convert footage into a file good for editing? HD link was great.

October 27th, 2015, 07:34 PM	#2
Christopher Young Trustee Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 1,527	Re: Alternatives to Cineform? Stand alone program. If you want to stay with Cineform Adobe Media Encoder CC 2015 as a stand alone program. Sadly one has to subscribe to it but as of yet I haven't found a buy it outright solution for Cineform output. Free Media Encoder CC \| Download free Adobe Media Encoder CC trial It will accept a multitude of input file formats including the newest Sony XAVC codecs and can batch convert them to Cineform RGB 12-bit with Alpha or Cineform 4:2:2 YUV 10-bit. You can also encode to new video dimensions, e.g. 1080 to 720 etc. Options for interlace if required, field order, frame rate, aspect ratio etc are all there. Bit rate settings can go anywhere from Low, Medium, High to Film Scan 1 and Film Scan 2. You can embed overlays such as logos, burnt in TC window or text. If you want Cineform output I think it;s probably the best option out there at the moment. Plus don't forget it has a wide range of other output options from most broadcast formats all the way down to the humble DVD plus a host of H.264 presets to meet most delivery requirements. You can also create your own presets and save them if required. Another good point is that Media Encoder also uses Adobe's Mercury Engine and makes use of your CUDA card should it find one installed that meets the required spec. Faster Cineform rendering being the result as it utilizes the Mercury engine. Also faster H.264 rendering which uses the CUDA engine. The one proviso is that the Cineform output files have a .MOV extension. If you want them as .AVI just do a batch re-wrap using the free 'AnotherGUI' v0.1.8.2 using its 'Copy codecs into AVI container' option. On a reasonable PC this happens very quickly as it is just a re-wrap to another container without the video / audio essence being touched or re-encoded in any way. With GoPro's increasing castration of Cineform's functionality I'm finding this is the best alternative to create Cineform files from a stand alone interface. BTW. It is also best to clean out any late version GoPro Studio software because each version that was released emasculated the Cineform functionality even further. If you are on a Window's box hunt on the net and look for GoPro Studio v1.3.0.162 or earlier and install that and this will allow most media players to access the Cineform codec for playback. Chris Young CYV Productions Sydney