dvd creation woes
 

Hello everyone,

I just completed editing a project. 1440 X 1080 60i in ppro cs3
exported to encore highest quality video for dvd creatoin.

As soon as the files enter encore...wham video quality is demolished. All settings are the same so I am not worried about that. I figured I would let adobe downconvert to DVD...from 1440 x 1080 to 720 x 480. I had the option to downconvert coming out of my xh-a1 but I let the software do the work...Is this my problem?

Has anyone else edited in hd, made a dvd in encore and was so nervous about the quality, thought about rebating the customer.

Cheers

Jay

PPro2 was widely derided for how badly it downscaled in Encore, but CS3 does the job quite nicely. I've even gone straight from the timeline into Encore, tweaked the settings a bit and come up with near-HD quality, sometimes using Cineform, sometimes not.

What are all your Encore settings, and for that matter, Premiere as well?

In CS3, problems get worst because or AME. The licensed MPEG encoder is horribled. stay away. Use other encoders.

Thanks for the replies.

Right now I am considering hopping over to cs4. I have considered the 3rd party app, but I just feel like I will eventually upgrade anyway. Will the media encoder in cs4 leave me just as disappointed?

If you are working with .h264 you will be dissapointed :-)

Your decision to upgrade to CS4 or add 3rd party tools will set you on a path that will not again cross the other, so choose carefully.

I have CS3 and use Debugmode frameserving to TMPGenc. Been doing that for almost a year and haven't even thought about upgrading to CS4 as it has nothing that I really need. If you go CS4, you'll lose the frameserving option. Major downer for me.

Hey Tripp,

I am curious about the whole debugmode thing. would you be so kind to briefly explain your workflow from premiere, through the plug-ins and over to Encore. You could send me details through e-mail if you'd prefer.

I am just feeling the crunch right now. gotta have this thing done by August 8th. The DVD has been mastered, just looks terrible.

By the way my OS is Vista 32bit if that helps...perhaps frameserver is or isn't compatible.

Cheers

Jay

Here's a theory...although it may suck up a bit of time.

Dump HDV timeline back to xh-a1 as HDV (this is where the time comes in, has to render before it can dump) Then downconvert to SD in camera on its way back into premiere.

I want to believe that downconverting in camera will look better than what my dvd turned out to be. Nothing pro about premiere "pro" when it comes to encoding.

thanks.

Jay

I have done comparison before showing Downconvert using NLE shows much nicer output than converting it within camera.

DV Lock and Downsizing Comparison - Canon HV20, HV30 & HV40 User Forum

This is comparing the output from Premiere Pro vs. downconvert in HV20.

Exported the project timeline back to tape...hdv.
downconverted in camera back into premiere.
did some minor stitching in a new SD project.
Applied sharpening effect...up to 15.
sent it over to encore
DVD=much sharper, with less artifacts.
It took a little while, but it really improved the DVD quality.
Now I don't have to provide a rebate for my client:)

It is an alternative for anyone who wants to manually clean up a DVD that AME can't handle.