The one thing that's really bugging me: How do I get good mp4 video out of Vegas. I can edit just fine, but rendering and exporting almost always trips me up.

The biggest problem seems to be that the framerate seems to be very low - as if the timeline is only 15fps or so.

How do you get good video out of Vegas? Should I try exporting to Mpeg2 and using a third-party utility to do the conversion?

Edit: The timeline IS only 15fps! No wonder! I don't know what setting I have in there that's causing it to export to 15FPS though.

real simple, I use vegas to render into mpg 4 at 3 mbps progressive, I shoot with a V1, 1080i and capture with cineform which deinterlaces and I edit progressive. I use mpeg4 at 3 mbps cbr, and wmv hdv at 3 mbps,

http://www.vimeo.com/1358671 is a wmv clip

http://www.hughmobley.com/arboretum.html is a mpeg 4

take a look

The main settings recommended by Vimeo:
1. H.264 - use the MainConcept AVC/AAC or Sony AVC encoder in Vegas
2. 1280x720 - set as a Custom Frame Size
3. 3000-5000 kbits/sec - bit rate in Vegas will show as 3,000,000-5,000,000 bps
4. AAC 128kpbs stereo - 48,000 Hz, 128,000 bps

Personally, I like to use 2-pass VBR it takes a little longer, but I like the results, plus the files are smaller than CBR.