mpeg encoding quality issues (newbie)

[Clement]

Hey all. It's me, Clement, back with some more questions I can't figure out.

1) I'm having problems encoding mpegs, both 1 and 2. I can encode mpegs that make VCDs and SVCDs, but the quality isn't what I've seen friends achieve on their Windows machines using a program called "tmpeg" or something like that.. (This isn't bitching...just the way it is.) From what I gather, the programs that I'm using (like Missing Media Tools and FFmpegx) aren't real programs, just interfaces that feed commands to unix programs I don't understand.
Anyways, what I want to know is: how is "Tmpeg" (or whatever it is) handling the mpegs differently from how my computer is handling them? Can I make my computer encode in the same way as the Windows boxes are doing? Is there a way that I can compensate for this by feeding different settings to the programs I'm using? I've fiddled with all the settings that MMT and FFmpegX provide and I still can't get my mpegs to look as good as I know they can.
Any advice here would be welcome. It's driving me crazy.

2) This one's a bit off topic. I'm currently running a Powerbook 400mhz G4 with 62MB of RAM. It's painfully slow, but I can't affort the $2000 or so to get a new PowerMac. Are there any worthwhile options (new or used) that would let me upgrade SIGNIFICANTLY for $1000-1500.

Thanks for all the help guys (& girls as the case may be). I love reading this form. I always learn here.

Till later,
Clement

[galactica]

I dont see much of a horrible encoding process between say a SVCD on PC vs one on my mac.

perhaps you are just not using the correct settings?!?

anyone else feel the same way? or have anything to say on the subject?

per your upgrade.....
1. get more memory!!!!!!! How the heck can you run 10.2 on 62 megs of memory! I thought 128 was the minimum!

ive been looking around and you can get a nice 15" titanium 867 for a little over 1000 on ebay. Thats a significant upgrade to yours.

Then, id suggest taking your comptuer apart, and selling the parts individually on ebay, you will make a decent amount and drop the price of your new G4 powerbook.

[Clement]

Hey Galactica,

Thanks for the tips. Re: the memory issue, apparently I can't add or type. I've got 640MB of RAM. 62 would be kind of scary. I added wrong, and was trying to type 620, but left off the zero: oh, well. The next step, I suppose, would be going up to 1GB of RAM which, I think, would be the maximum. My instincts tell me that this wouldn't be worth it, but I could be wrong. What's your opinion here?

Re: the encoding issue. Since my DVD player doesn't play SVCDs, I'm more thinking of the VCDs I make, which, though watchable, aren't nearly as good as the ones the ones my friend has produced.
I've been using the default VCD settings in FFmpegX. The only changes I've made to these defaults are 1) I've checked the "encode using mplayer" rather than "quicktime" since that seems to give slightly better results, though I'm not sure exactly what it means. I thought ffmpegx was doing the encoding, not quicktime or mplayer. 2) For most films, I've unchecked the "letterbox" option because it isn't applicable for the source I'm using.
Those are the only modifications I've made to the standard settings.

Are these settings correct? If not, is there a place I could go to find the optimal settings for VCD encoding? I've tried the FFmpegX manual website, but it (not surprisingly) suggests the default settings. Though the question of VCDs has become somewhat moot since I've bought a DVD burner, I'd still like to know how to encode them correctly, both to save money on less than A-list material, and as a sort of self-tutorial to enhance my own understanding of exactly how encoding works.

Thanks,
Clement

[galactica]

to be honest, i never have really done VCD just becaue I compare them to VHS, which just means their quality SUCKS no matter who (mac / pc) is making them

in all reality though, with high enough k/sec you can have a nice 10 disk vcd but thats just unrealistic.

My dvd player does all types, so i like to stay with mpeg2, and that said I like to do dvd since I can run the k/sec up and still only have 1 disk.

sorry, i know this isnt telling you much, but you can make a nicer looking vcd in my mind by adding a 3rd disk to the set (thus increasing the overall k/sec for the video component)

memory, yea i was hoping it was a typo. i cant remember the last time i saw a mac with only 62-64 megs of memory
but honestly, consider parting out your G4 and selling them individually on ebay. You can make a killing this way.
Then take what you make and get a better one. like I said, 867 on ebay for around 1000 ish.
also, if you live close to a www.craigslist.org city, look into that. NYC especailly sells mac's for really cheap on this classified site.

[AntnyMD]

anyone else feel the same way? or have anything to say on the subject?

I must say I agree that TMPEGEnc encodes to MPEG1 much better than anything available for the Mac. From standard VCDs of source material with moderate motion, to XVCD at up to 1.7Mbps, the MPEG1 encoding is excellent. NTSC Film VCDs are also quite good. I once made an NTSC Film XVCD of the movie Go, using variable bitrate MPEG1 and mono audio at 96kbps, and I fit the entire film on one CD -- a run time of 103 minutes.

However, one program is not enough reason to switch back to the dark side.

[the future]

However, one program is not enough reason to switch back to the dark side.

...especially as VCD/SVCD are just sooo 2001.