codec question

[kidspot]

I was getting ready to output my video to VHS. However I can't seem to get my 18 minute video under 2 GB using the MJPEG codec. . . am I missing something or this is this just too much for it to handle. I've tried every setting it offers from best quality to lowest. I finally cut the video in half and saved it as two 1.5 GB files.

I would appreciate any suggestions for combining them in one file under 2 GB for export to VHS (704x480 29.97fps)

Thanks for the help again

[fluggo99]

Good luck.

I think one thing you might should try is placing some sort of overlay over the entire project that doesn't really change the video, it just forces MSP to render every frame. The reason you would do this is that if you are creating a file that has all the same settings as the video in the timeline, and the video in the timeline has no modifications to it, MSP will simply copy the video data from one file to the other, no recompression. Without recompression, however, you can't get a smaller data rate.

Force MSP to render each frame (once again, place something like a color clip over the entire project in an overlay track and set its transparency (in the overlay box) to 100% for the whole time), and messing with the compression quality settings again should give you the results you want.

fluggo99

[This_Idiot]

Well making the output file a different resolution from the input files and/or the project would force recompression anyway without the need to put a neutral overlay on.

Kidspot, you didn't say what software you were using (and I can't remember offhand).

If you are using Ulead then you don't need to save to one giant file in order to output to video. Check out the Tips & Tricks section of the site for details of cutlist editing

[fluggo99]

Well, I just assumed that since 704x480 was what he was going for, changing the rez wasn't an option. Oh, well.

That's a neat trick, though. I guess I forgot it since I haven't had very much luck with it in the past. But if that's the case, why is anyone using AVI_IO for output?

[This_Idiot]

It's always interesting how two people can read different things into the same sentence isn't it ?

What you said was quite true, but using Ulead it wouldn't make any difference anyway since the cutlist isn't dependent on frame size or file size.

Folk forget that you can save a Ulead project without prejudice to file size, and sometimes this is the best solution. The downside is that every time you reload the project and hit the enter key to initiate cutlist, you have to re-render (sometimes tediously) all the transitions, sound effects etc all over again.

In most projects you'll find (or artifice) natural breakpoints at a convenient point close to the 2Gb mark. You can then render this footage to a file to keep for later while you carry on with the next part of the project. In this case, using AV_IO's multiple file playback would be a good option.

As always, it's horses for courses and doesn't take a huge change in approach (or need) to swing the balance one way or the other.

[kidspot]

Thanks for the help guys - I'm using MSP 5.2 I did not know about using the cutlist to output to tape. (it's time to read over the tips and tricks again I guess)

I do need to keep the resolution as high as possible.

Mahalo

[kidspot]

I tried using the cutlist to output to VHS, however when the preview finished it's rendering it said there was not enough disk space (it needed about 3 GB and I have 10 free) I was unable to run AVI_IO on my system - it says I do not have enough RAM, I have 256 mb RAM, so I'm guessing there is another problem with it. Any other ideas on how I can output two MJPEG files to tape without using the pause button and good timing? Or a way I could get the cutlist editor/preview working in MSP would be even better.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Aloha

[fluggo99]

The cutlist trick This_Idiot was describing requires that you have the preview options set to "Best," and all the other options the same as your video format. That's what you're doing, right? From what I saw of your video, very little rendering should take place at all.

Also, remember that you can either use cutlist by trying to play your entire original project in preview mode or you can render sections of it to <2GB files, piece them together in a new project, and then hit preview.