Choosing ffmpeg/mpeg2enc, Decode with mplayer/quicktime

[zerodefect]

I was wondering if one of the more advanced users here would share with me the right times to choose ffmpeg over mpeg2ec and vice versa. Also what the benefits of using decode with mplayer or with quicktime will be. I know that some features are only available with one option or the other, but was wondering if someone could summarize the differences.

[alph]

To get things started...

-ffmpeg is better quality than mpeg2enc
-ffmpeg is quite a bit faster
-mpeg2enc is constant bitrate therefore more compatible with standalone players. (if you are distributing DVDs this is the choice)
-decode with quicktime decodes .mov properly and does auto letterboxing.
-decode with mplayer works with subtitles
-decode with ffmpeg is faster than decode with quicktime when encoding with ffmpeg (turn off decode with quicktime to decode with ffmpeg)
-decode with ffmpeg (turn off both quicktime and mpplayer) when using mpeg2enc does not work properly with most files, in my experience.

Alph

[zerodefect]

Thanks for the summary. It helps to see a quick comparision. A lot of friends of mine just use their PS2 for a DVD player. I know that the PS2 seems to be fairly picky with some discs. What are others experiences with the PS2 and other inexpensive DVD players?

[thoughton]

To get things started...

-ffmpeg is better quality than mpeg2enc
-ffmpeg is at far faster
-mpeg2enc is constant bitrate therefore more compatible with standalone players. (if you are distributing DVDs this is the choice)
-decode with quicktime decodes .mov properly and does auto letterboxing.
-decode with mplayer works with subtitles
-decode with ffmpeg is faster than decode with quicktime when encoding with ffmpeg (turn off decode with quicktime to decode with ffmpeg)
-decode with ffmpeg (turn off both quicktime and mpplayer) when using mpeg2enc does not work properly with most files, in my experience.

Alph

Very nice summary!

[promoter]

Nice list, alph. My 2 cents (assuming we're talking about ffmpegX):

-Decode with QuickTime. QuickTime handles frame rate changes better, and keeps the video & sound in sync better when the source file is a strangely authored. I often see it in .AVIs.

-ffmpeg respects the "Letterbox" parameters in the "Filters" tab. If "Decode with QuickTime" is checked, auto-letterboxing is applied.

The latter can be useful when creating a DVD for viewing on a TV, and the source file has sub-titles that are burned in vs. using a separate .SRT file. Sometimes, the sub-titles will fall into the overscan area and appear off-screen. For these files, after choosing the "ffmpeg DVD" preset, I go to the "Video" tab and change the resolution to 640 x 440. Then, I go to the "Filters" tab and set the letterbox parameters to "20 20 40 40". If "Decode with QuickTime" is not checked, this results in a standard 720 x 480 output (640+40+40 x 440+20+20). The letterboxing falls into the overscan area, and all the sub-titles are on-screen. It's a kludge, but it suits my purposes.

[thehand]

I'm trying to get more quality of the DVD presets. how do I get a higher bit rate than 4000 from DVD ffmpeg or DVD mpeg2enc preferably ffmpeg the faster of the two

[thehand]

I'm trying to get more quality of the DVD presets. how do I get a higher bit rate than 4000 from DVD ffmpeg or DVD mpeg2enc preferably ffmpeg the faster of the two

with Mpeg Streamclip use export to DV from the file menu; you can crop the bad edges out. I used the Pro 25 default. the process is a couple minutes over realtime.

this next step you can use the mpeg-ts preset in ffmpegx instead of using DVD ffmpeg or mpeg2enc(inconsisten results, unsatisfactory quality). the mpeg-ts encode takes about half real time (fast, very good).

demux the ts file with the demux to M2v and AC3 from the file menu in Mpeg Streamclip file menu. this process is also fast (faster than half realtime)

the m2v file is accepted by DVDSP. hurray!!! but the quality still not good enough for me. for 42 minutes of footage at the 4000 kbps ceiling the DVD would only be half full. I want the whole thing.

Enter Compressor 2

take the dv file from the first step in Mpeg Streamclip to Compressor 2.
I chose the fastest 60min regular (I mean 4:3 aspect ratio). 60 minutes to get the higher bitrate and manually set to the max (7.7 target/9 max from default setting 7 target/8 max).

what? am I dreaming? how can anything not third party for video encoding take less than twice realtime? amazingly this step is a little longer than half realtime.

so I got my quality and don't have to wait all day.