PremierePro + encode MPEG = rubbish results...
Discussion
I must be doing something wrong, but the results i'm getting when trying to encode an MPEG from Premiere Pro are terrible.
The original clip is an mpeg which looks fine when played.
I import this to Premiere, mess around a bit and want to encode an MPEG back out.
But any panning in the video shows up horizontal lines and the motion looks all blurred.
I have set the encoder to its highest settings (i think) but it still looks rubbish.
Anyone out there know anything about this sort of stuff?
I need to output an MPEG as I will be using my DVD camera to record on to disc and it needs to be MPEG to do this.
Any help will be gratelly appreciated.
Thanks
Simon
The original clip is an mpeg which looks fine when played.
I import this to Premiere, mess around a bit and want to encode an MPEG back out.
But any panning in the video shows up horizontal lines and the motion looks all blurred.
I have set the encoder to its highest settings (i think) but it still looks rubbish.
Anyone out there know anything about this sort of stuff?
I need to output an MPEG as I will be using my DVD camera to record on to disc and it needs to be MPEG to do this.
Any help will be gratelly appreciated.
Thanks
Simon
You get better results with Premier Pro by saving to AVI first and then using the resultant AVI file to encode to MPEG...
...That being said, you are never going to get good results by importing an MPEG file into Premier and then editing. The reason why is because MPEG is already a compressed file and editing a compressed file can produce marginal results at best.
A better bet would be to, somehow, capture the video stream with Premier (via 1394, a capture device, etc) into a brand new AVI and then have your editing session.
The results will be much better.
If you could post a few more details of (1)where you got your MPEG and (2)what more, specifically, you are trying to accomplish, I could offer some further suggestions...
ErnestM
...That being said, you are never going to get good results by importing an MPEG file into Premier and then editing. The reason why is because MPEG is already a compressed file and editing a compressed file can produce marginal results at best.
A better bet would be to, somehow, capture the video stream with Premier (via 1394, a capture device, etc) into a brand new AVI and then have your editing session.
The results will be much better.
If you could post a few more details of (1)where you got your MPEG and (2)what more, specifically, you are trying to accomplish, I could offer some further suggestions...
ErnestM
Hi ErnestM,
The MPEG's are coming from my Sony DVD Handycam, I use the PIXELA software supplied with the camera to get the MPEG, then import to Premiere Pro, stich some clips together, add some sound, then I want to use the camera to burn the results to a DVD, this requires the video to be in MPEG format.
I have tried loading the capture module in Premiere but it says that no devices are connected...
Thanks for your help, I understand what your saying about MPEG now, seems I do need to import differently, just not sure how...
The MPEG's are coming from my Sony DVD Handycam, I use the PIXELA software supplied with the camera to get the MPEG, then import to Premiere Pro, stich some clips together, add some sound, then I want to use the camera to burn the results to a DVD, this requires the video to be in MPEG format.
I have tried loading the capture module in Premiere but it says that no devices are connected...
Thanks for your help, I understand what your saying about MPEG now, seems I do need to import differently, just not sure how...
Since your camera does not have a 1394 (firewire) port, you are going to need something like the Dazzle DVC150:
Premier should recognise this device and capture the video in AVI. My brother in law uses Pinnacle Studio 10 and this device to capture his videos.
I would highly recommend getting a good quality S-video for use between your camera and this device. The picture will look orders of magnitude better.
Bottom line - the included Sony software is just about useless for using Premier. You are going to have to use a capture device and put your camera in "VCR mode" to stream your video into your PC for editing.
Also - I wouldn't use your camera to burn your DVD. Premier's built in ability to create a DVD is much better - OR - you could go for Adobe Encore which does an even better job...
Post back if you need additional help.
ErnestM
Edited to Add:
If you could find a 1394 (firewire) based video capture device (I think Dazzle make them as well), you could hook your AV out to that and then use the firewire port to your PC to capture the video through Premier. I have never seen a 1394 capture device that Premier could NOT use...
>> Edited by ErnestM on Wednesday 21st December 14:07
Premier should recognise this device and capture the video in AVI. My brother in law uses Pinnacle Studio 10 and this device to capture his videos.
I would highly recommend getting a good quality S-video for use between your camera and this device. The picture will look orders of magnitude better.
Bottom line - the included Sony software is just about useless for using Premier. You are going to have to use a capture device and put your camera in "VCR mode" to stream your video into your PC for editing.
Also - I wouldn't use your camera to burn your DVD. Premier's built in ability to create a DVD is much better - OR - you could go for Adobe Encore which does an even better job...
Post back if you need additional help.
ErnestM
Edited to Add:
If you could find a 1394 (firewire) based video capture device (I think Dazzle make them as well), you could hook your AV out to that and then use the firewire port to your PC to capture the video through Premier. I have never seen a 1394 capture device that Premier could NOT use...
>> Edited by ErnestM on Wednesday 21st December 14:07
just that little bit to late for the christmas list as well....bugger.
Ok, so this magic device will let me plug in my camcorder, and I set Premiere up to record the input from this gadget (i love a gadget!)
Is AVI better than MPEG then, less compression?
Then I should be able to edit the clips, then use Premiere's DVD output to burn straight to my DVD drive....sounds good to me, better than those silly little discs the camera uses.
Many thanks for your help, good to know it wasnt something I was doing wrong, and gives me the perfect reason to buy another gadget!
I'll look into the firewire capture device too, guessing that would be cheaper and just as good quality??
Merry Christmas
Simon
>> Edited by fazz81 on Wednesday 21st December 14:52
Ok, so this magic device will let me plug in my camcorder, and I set Premiere up to record the input from this gadget (i love a gadget!)
Is AVI better than MPEG then, less compression?
Then I should be able to edit the clips, then use Premiere's DVD output to burn straight to my DVD drive....sounds good to me, better than those silly little discs the camera uses.
Many thanks for your help, good to know it wasnt something I was doing wrong, and gives me the perfect reason to buy another gadget!
I'll look into the firewire capture device too, guessing that would be cheaper and just as good quality??
Merry Christmas
Simon
>> Edited by fazz81 on Wednesday 21st December 14:52
MPEG (being a compressed format) will always leave artifacts if you try to edit with it. It is a fantastic format for streaming from, say, DVD to a television because it allows you to get your stream just right for the intended output.
To edit, however, you need something that is a bit less compressed. AVI is your answer (specifically, type 2 DV-AVI because it acually splits the video and audio).
Whenever I creat a video, I always create everything in AVI and then transcode for the intended use. For the web I use MS media encoder and for DVD's I use Adobe Encore.
It is also worth noting here that, if you would like better sound, invest in activating the Minnetonka Dolby software that comes with Premier. It will give you Dolby Digital stream capability that is much better (and much smaller when considering file size) than PCM. PCM is ok, but takes up a lot of space and cannot give you the right 5.1 surround that DD will.
Like I said, if you get stuck, post back. You also may want to post questions in the PHOTO and VIDEO forum on PH as there are a lot of knowledgable folk over there...
ErnestM
To edit, however, you need something that is a bit less compressed. AVI is your answer (specifically, type 2 DV-AVI because it acually splits the video and audio).
Whenever I creat a video, I always create everything in AVI and then transcode for the intended use. For the web I use MS media encoder and for DVD's I use Adobe Encore.
It is also worth noting here that, if you would like better sound, invest in activating the Minnetonka Dolby software that comes with Premier. It will give you Dolby Digital stream capability that is much better (and much smaller when considering file size) than PCM. PCM is ok, but takes up a lot of space and cannot give you the right 5.1 surround that DD will.
Like I said, if you get stuck, post back. You also may want to post questions in the PHOTO and VIDEO forum on PH as there are a lot of knowledgable folk over there...
ErnestM
Not familiar with that camera but Im guessing its using MPEG-4 for compression. Several friends of mine have had problems editing MPEG-4 video streams using a variety of editing tools. Best solution is to run it through something like virtualdub www.virtualdub.org to convert it to an AVI which you can then edit and mess around with without any quality problems. When you have your final cut output it as an MPEG again. Personally I would do the editing and the final save as AVI as it gives smaller files and doesnt suffer the quality problems you can get with MPEG.
Of course I have the high ground here as my Sony Digital vid cam has a firewire port as does my PC so I just stream direct into lossless DV, edit then write down to AVI.
Good luck !
Of course I have the high ground here as my Sony Digital vid cam has a firewire port as does my PC so I just stream direct into lossless DV, edit then write down to AVI.
Good luck !
Not sure if its using MPEG-2 or 4.
I did try virtual dub to convert to a AVI, but it seems to suffer the same ill effects.
Think I will try streaming straight from the camera to a capture device, as I asume this bypasses any need for encoding to MPEG of any kind.
Thanks for your help, giving me a clearer picture all the time, and know i need to steer clear of MPEG.
Cheers
Simon
I did try virtual dub to convert to a AVI, but it seems to suffer the same ill effects.
Think I will try streaming straight from the camera to a capture device, as I asume this bypasses any need for encoding to MPEG of any kind.
Thanks for your help, giving me a clearer picture all the time, and know i need to steer clear of MPEG.
Cheers
Simon
No - the files on the DVD are still MPEG2 (VOB, TS, etc). When you play it to the PC (either through firewire - 1394 or through a gadget like the dazzle) then that gadget allows you to capture the video via a different file type (DV-AVI).
DVD based camcorders are the worst for editing purposes.
Curiously, the new Sony HD cameras (I have both the HDR-FX1 and it's little brother the HDR-HC1) also use MPEG compression when recording onto MiniDV tapes. The difference here is the internal workings of the cameras. The cameras have excellent encode/decode chips built into them that allow you to capture in full HD (720p/1080i, etc) but still allow you to stream through firewire to a standard DV-AVI for capture purposes (you can also stream to full HD AVI if you use the proper software). Bottom line, MPEG just allows you to squeeze more video into a limited space. The bad thing about DVD being that limited space is because of the DVD standard. As the high definition DVD becomes standardised, a revisit to DVD cams may be in order.
For now, though, going through an analogue to digital capture device (firewire based is preferrable) is the way to get your DVD cam footage into the PC
ErnestM
>> Edited by ErnestM on Thursday 22 December 11:15
DVD based camcorders are the worst for editing purposes.
Curiously, the new Sony HD cameras (I have both the HDR-FX1 and it's little brother the HDR-HC1) also use MPEG compression when recording onto MiniDV tapes. The difference here is the internal workings of the cameras. The cameras have excellent encode/decode chips built into them that allow you to capture in full HD (720p/1080i, etc) but still allow you to stream through firewire to a standard DV-AVI for capture purposes (you can also stream to full HD AVI if you use the proper software). Bottom line, MPEG just allows you to squeeze more video into a limited space. The bad thing about DVD being that limited space is because of the DVD standard. As the high definition DVD becomes standardised, a revisit to DVD cams may be in order.
For now, though, going through an analogue to digital capture device (firewire based is preferrable) is the way to get your DVD cam footage into the PC
ErnestM
>> Edited by ErnestM on Thursday 22 December 11:15
havent read all the posts here but render the MPG without both interlaced fields.. try it & see the difference (sorry cant be more specific at not at my PC). Also look into ticking the 'scale' option (think its in the pre render tasks in teh MPG dialogue) so to match the resultant resolution (in 384 288)
anyhow try with just a single field 1st.. render out a 10 sec bit that was bad & see if it looks better. Will have a far greater difference than upping the data rate etc
Ed
anyhow try with just a single field 1st.. render out a 10 sec bit that was bad & see if it looks better. Will have a far greater difference than upping the data rate etc
Ed
Gassing Station | Computers, Gadgets & Stuff | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff