TMPGEnc frameserving from Premiere

[BrianP]

I tried to do frameserving from Premiere and got an error ("Illegal stream format"). But after looking on the TMPGEnc website for clues, I noticed it says that Type1-DV format is not supported.

Now, doesn't Premiere use Type1? So how is it at all possible to use TMPGEnc frameserving? Or am I completely confused?!

note: I use a DVRaptor and Premiere 6.0

[Dr Mordrid]

I don't have a problem using Premiere6 and the RT-2000.

Dr. Mordrid

[BrianP]

Slight progress... I realized I was trying to load the .avs file from File>Open Project instead of from Video Source. Duh.

Also, I downloaded the newest avisynth.dll and plugin from videotools.net.

However it still isn't working quite right. Once I select the .avs file a box comes up that says:

There is nothing to serve
Are audio/video servers taken?
[OK]

Click OK and the same box comes up again. Clicking OK again, it goes away and I can proceed with encoding.

However, no audio is recognized. I can select the stream for audio and video and it changes the output file to a .mpg, but no audio shows up. Checking the server box in Premiere, it says the audio is in fact being served.

In addition, in my 12 second test click, there are about 4 seconds towards the beginning that come up with a black frame. Not sure what's going on there either.

Note that importing the same clip the direct way (NOT by frame serving) encounters none of these problems.

I've spent a good chunk of the evening on this and am ready to give up. Are there any other encoders that output the timeline, or is TMPGEnc worth the hassle?

[Dr Mordrid]

What versions of the software do you have?

Yes, TMPGEnc is worth the effort.

Dr. Mordrid

[BrianP]

I have:
--beta 12J of TMPGEnc, plus VFAPI plugin
--beta 4 of avisynth.dll (including registry stuff, downloaded from videotools.net)
--latest avisynth.dll Premiere plugin (again from videotools.net, it says "Video Server" in the dropdown list instead of "link to avisynth beta")
--Premiere 6.01

One thing I haven't tried is switching back to the dll and plugin that was in the zip you sent me (now that I know to add the frameserve.avs file using Video Source...my original goof).

[Dr Mordrid]

I've had better luck with avisynth 1.0beta 36.

Dr. Mordrid

[BrianP]

I got it to work. I had to turn off Direct Show in TMPGenc. Here are specific instructions for reference:

http://www.horizon.nl/~michel/guides/lockupsTMPGenc12b/lockups_TMPGEnc_12b.htm

Now, any pointers on using TMPGenc?

[Dr Mordrid]

The presets work pretty good for VCD/SVCD/DVD.

If you're using a DV source then you should go to Options/Environment/General tab and select to use 4:4:4 emulation. Also useful if a DV source generates block atrifacts is to use the "Soften Block Noise" settings on the Settings/Quantize Matrix tab.

If your video has fast motion (sports, kids or water in motion) set the Motion Search Precision to a slower setting.

I usually use automatic CQ_VBR as the bitrate control, but 2-pass VBR is also useful with problem sources. With 2-pass VBR I usually set the average bitrate to a value that is about 65-75% of the maximum bitrate.

There are a lot of filters you can use on the Settings/Advanced tab. Check the box and doubleclick the filters name to get the control dialog. These run from Basic or Custom Color Correction, Noise Reduction and Source Range. Source Range lets you encode just part of an *.avi to MPEG. There are also 3:2 pulldown and inverse telecine filters.

Dr. Mordrid