Sorenson Pro 3 codec
 

Cleaner Newbie question: Is Sorenson Video 3 Pro Codec included with Cleaner 6 ?? I see a Codec named Sorenson Video 3 compressor - is it the same as the Pro Codec or do I have to buy this seperately?

If so what is the difference between the Video 3 and the Video 3 Pro codec - in quality?

Bjørn,
I just traversed this matter myself last week. The Sorenson 3 standard codec is included with Quicktime 6, but the Sorenson Video 3.1 Pro (SV3.1Pro) codec is not. Nor is it included with Cleaner 6. In fact, it's rather expensive, selling for $299 on Sorenson's site. Previous owners of SV2 Pro can upgrade for $199.

If you rely heavily on good compression SV3.1Pro is probably one of those unavoidable expenses. It's variable bit-rate (now in a single pass) stands alone among competitors.

Sorenson vs Discreet
 

Ken:

I bought Sorenson Squeeze after reading nice things about it, and needing something I could figure out. I've been digesting the manuals but also reading about Discreet Cleaner and thinking: why didn't I buy discreet cleaner, since it can compress for DVD etc. And what does this piece of info I just read mean when it says Sorenson can only output to 320 x 240 size? And my son always makes the screen full size and says, what's with the poor resolution? The quality is better than that? And I say, shrink the screen down, and he says, why?

I'm a good girl and I do a lot of homework, but I'm not getting it (of course I am a beginner in terms of actual production, versus creative development). Should I have both Squeeze and Discreet Cleaner?? Did I make an error buying Sorenson (I was thinking so, but now I don't think so...) And what can I Read/study/digest to understand how to manipulate settings (I read a lot about settings I didn't understand on the thread about Alex Taylor's short. I love, love, love this site but I get high anxiety after reading it for two minutes and realizing how much I DO NOT KNOW!)

I uploaded a 4 minute piece to my website, and it takes a long time time to download (over DSL) and I've paid no attention to manual settings. I used Sorenson's progressive LARGE (I have figured out the dif b/t streaming/progressive). My file is 32 MB. Is there a point of diminishing returns where a larger file doesn't mean beter quality?

Please feel free to bounce me off to a relevant thread or book (preferably one with lots of brightly colored pictures and short words that rhyme :)


Thanks for any insight,

Diane

I have no direct experience with Squeeze, but it's my impression that it's a bit of a "lite" version of Sorensen's other products. I don't know its limitations. I've always used Cleaner as my primary tool for compression. It basically facilitates the use of codecs such as Sorensen and Windows Media.

Re: your slow download time, it sounds like you've not created your file to stream (ie. to play while it's downloading).

I'm sure no expert at compression, but Ben Waggoner is. He has a very good instructive book on compression: "Compression for Great Digital Video". Relevent, current content well worth the money if you need to understand digital video compression.

BTW, take a look at out Lady X series, linked below. These are all Quicktime wrappers around Sorensen 3 compressions set for streaming. They are offered at their native frame reates (30fps or 25fps) and are cropped to 320x180.

Well I hope its not the lite version, since I paid $500 for it...

I HAVE visited the Lady X site. I love the Lady X concept. The last episodes from Finland are incredibly beautiful. I haven't seen a lot of the previous Lady X episodes, tho. Do you have a few favorites?

I compressed my videos as "progressive" (vs the "streaming" option) which I read meant non-streaming. But they DO play while downloading IF you push the play button.

I've ordered B Waggoners book on your recommendation. Thanks for the link!

I am a digital production newbie but an experienced creative writer. I'm not too far away from you, in St. Louis.

Diane

Diane,

32Mb for a four-minute piece at 320x240 is fairly heavy. The Lady X episodes average 6 to 7 minutes and are usually around the low 30 range.

So when you say "heavy" I assume you mean unacceptably or unnecessarily long download times for its size. I will do what I have been doing: experiment and learn from the outcomes. Ready, Fire, Aim.

Thanks for the info on the Lady X stuff. Useful

Diane

Sorenson Squeeze 3.5 or Cleaner 5
 

I currently use Cleaner 5 for compression.

I want to get the Sorenson Pro 3 codec. I have downloaded the trial version of Sorenson Squeeze 3.5, and it seems to do a good and fast job (faster than Cleaner 5 does).

As one can't download just the codec to try out, If I buy Sorenson Squeeze 3.5(which comes with the Sorenson Pro 3 codec) and load it on my computer, will I automatically be able to load the Sorenson 3 Pro codec into Cleaner also, or would I have to purchase a separate codec, in order to compare the render times and quality between the two apps?