Compression for HD delivery at DVinfo.net
DV Info Net

Go Back   DV Info Net > Cross-Platform Post Production Solutions > Distribution Center

Distribution Center
PC or Mac, how to take your video to DVD or the Internet.

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old January 12th, 2007, 11:26 AM   #1
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 52
Compression for HD delivery

Hi guys,

I am a bit concerned with my ability to deliver/playback HD footage.

Right now, most of my delivery is DVD (easy as I just convert to SD) and web.

For web, the sweet-spot for me is to compress to a pretty low res file and use H.264 which gives really really nice results for small file sizes.

However, I am reaching the point where I might need to deliver full HD-sized files for some short films.

I tried encoding H.264 at 1920x1080 (although for some reason, FCE reports it as 1880x1060 or something odd). I chose a bitrate of 10,000 bps (average) and high quality.

OK, so I get an 88M file for my 1.5 min movie (not wretched) but when I try to play it back on a dual 2.0G Mac G5 with a 24" LCD, I dont think I have the horsepower to actually play it at full frame rate -- the footage looks very jerky and disorienting.

When I play back the smaller files, they look great.

So does anyone have any suggestions on how to encode for great playback on machines with reasonable CPU power? (Or maybe I am just doing something wrong with the encoding)
Nick Ambrose is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 12th, 2007, 01:40 PM   #2
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: St. Petersburg, FL
Posts: 85
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nick Ambrose
I tried encoding H.264 at 1920x1080 (although for some reason, FCE reports it as 1880x1060 or something odd). I chose a bitrate of 10,000 bps (average) and high quality.
At that bitrate, the filesizes will be way too large for online distribution. Try ~3000k to ~4000k for 1920x1080 distribution.

If you check sites like Apple, that's what they're encoding their 1920x1080 downloads at. See http://www.apple.com/quicktime/guide/hd/
__________________
Robert M Yannetta, Loud Orange Cat Productions
http://LoudOrangeCat.com
Rob Yannetta is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 12th, 2007, 02:54 PM   #3
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 52
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rob Yannetta
At that bitrate, the filesizes will be way too large for online distribution. Try ~3000k to ~4000k for 1920x1080 distribution.

If you check sites like Apple, that's what they're encoding their 1920x1080 downloads at. See http://www.apple.com/quicktime/guide/hd/
Hmmm, I will give that a try and see if it reduces my CPU requirements any.

I am still a bit baffled by the 1880x1060 weirdness from FCE, but then I am used to having to take a Phd everytime I want to export something that actually looks right.
Nick Ambrose is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 12th, 2007, 04:16 PM   #4
Major Player
 
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: chattanooga, tn
Posts: 721
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nick Ambrose
I am still a bit baffled by the 1880x1060 weirdness from FCE
This is just a guess because I normally work with neither HD material nor Final Cut, but maybe the encoding process exports to a slightly more narrow resolution (maybe with a slightly widened PAR to compensate) in order to squeeze out a little extra bandwidth for bit rate purposes?
__________________
-->jarrod whaley.
www.oakstreetfilms.com
Jarrod Whaley is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 12th, 2007, 06:28 PM   #5
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 52
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jarrod Whaley
This is just a guess because I normally work with neither HD material nor Final Cut, but maybe the encoding process exports to a slightly more narrow resolution (maybe with a slightly widened PAR to compensate) in order to squeeze out a little extra bandwidth for bit rate purposes?
Hmmm, possibly.
I "found" some more options.

Apparently I have 1920x1080 HD and 1920x1080 HD "16:9"

It is the 16:9 that gives the odd resolution, the regular HD is OK (but not encoded yet, so I will see)

Trying it now with 4500Kbps and key frames set to "auto", but it takes 60 mins to encode just 1.5 mins :(
Nick Ambrose is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 12th, 2007, 06:55 PM   #6
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 52
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nick Ambrose
Hmmm, possibly.
I "found" some more options.

Apparently I have 1920x1080 HD and 1920x1080 HD "16:9"

It is the 16:9 that gives the odd resolution, the regular HD is OK (but not encoded yet, so I will see)

Trying it now with 4500Kbps and key frames set to "auto", but it takes 60 mins to encode just 1.5 mins :(
Darn -- replying to myself here.
I think my mac is just too slow to play H.264 at those resolutions :(
Nick Ambrose is offline   Reply
Reply

DV Info Net refers all where-to-buy and where-to-rent questions exclusively to these trusted full line dealers and rental houses...

B&H Photo Video
(866) 521-7381
New York, NY USA

Scan Computers Int. Ltd.
+44 0871-472-4747
Bolton, Lancashire UK


DV Info Net also encourages you to support local businesses and buy from an authorized dealer in your neighborhood.
  You are here: DV Info Net > Cross-Platform Post Production Solutions > Distribution Center

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

 



All times are GMT -6. The time now is 06:33 AM.


DV Info Net -- Real Names, Real People, Real Info!
1998-2024 The Digital Video Information Network