Tmpgenc vs CCE

[kevindanielbrown]

I've been using tmpgenc plus for a while now. It was kinda hard to learn but I love it now. It has so many options and the quality is great. I convert all my avis to mpeg2 for dvd burning and it's been great. I've heard alot about CCE and read that basically tmpgenc and CCE are the most popular ones. But I've never tried CCE, so let me here it: which one do you like better and why? Pros and cons etc. Thanks

P.S. The only thing I've really heard is that CCE is faster but quality is my main concern.

[reboot]

Neither. I'll take Canopus Procoder or Mainconcept Mpeg Encoder over both of those.
Tmpgenc is far from the best, it's simply the most talked about.

[winifreid]

CCE is faster.

[jimmalenko]

I voted TMPGEnc - only because that's the one I know how to use.

I daresay that there's quite a lot of encoder comparison threads here already

[dipstick]

Niether, I like MainConcept Best.

Tmpgenc does good quality and is cheap, but it is also very slow.

CCE does good quality, but is very expensive produces mosquito noise and is a pain if all you do is DV-Camcorder footage. CCE only encodes @ TFF, so you either have to clip 1 scan line or send your Mpeg through Restream to change the Field order flag.

[DRP]

I voted TMPGEnc - only because that's the one I know how to use.

Same here. Also I've invested way too much time and effort in getting to know the various settings and functions of tentpeg and to get them to my liking. I'm afraid there would need to be some earth-shattering reason for me to change and go through all that again with another encoder.

I'm with the OP. Speed is of secondary importance to me as well. Just saying CCE is faster isn't a good enough reason to use it AFAIC. If I want tentpeg to go faster I'll buy a better computer before I'll go through the 3 month long learning process again

[FulciLives]

I've used both TMPGEnc Plus and CCE but I mostly use CCE now-a-days because:

1.) CCE is much faster
2.) CCE looks as good if not better and allows for more than a 2 pass VBR. I often do 3 - 5 passes.
3.) CCE uses the YUV/YUY2 colorspace. This is good. TMPGEnc Plus uses the RGB colorspace. That is bad.

I still use TMPGEnc Plus sometimes but mostly so I can answer questions for other people. I'll load it up and look at the settings to remind myself of this thing that thing etc.

I have used the Mainconcept MPEG encoder but I never liked it nor could I get a good "handle" on the various settings.

I've never used Procoder.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[wwjd]

CCE Basic - fast and does a great job!

[DRP]

I've used both TMPGEnc Plus and CCE but I mostly use CCE now-a-days because:

1.) CCE is much faster
2.) CCE looks as good if not better and allows for more than a 2 pass VBR. I often do 3 - 5 passes.

Would there be any truth to the theory that the reason why CCE is much faster than tentpeg is because its analysing passes aren't as comprehensive as tentpeg's? Also the reason why it needs to offer multiple pass options instead of just the 2-pass option in tentpeg?

Perhaps also that by the time you have increased the number of CCE passes to accomplish the same depth of analysis as a tentpeg 2-pass that the whole process takes appoximately the same amount of time as if you had just done it with tentpeg in the first place?

These are serious questions. I'm not trying to poke holes in your POV. I've never used CCE at all, so I don't say these things with any personal experience whatsoever, but they are the sort of things I've read from other people when comparing these two encoders to try and determine which is 'best'.

With your experience of using both, I'd be interested to hear your comments on the above.

[adam]

CCE's speed is due to the way it is programmed. It uses a MUCH faster programming language than TMPGenc. The fact that it can skip colorspace conversions with a YUV source helps alot too. TMPGenc is simply one of the slowest encoders on the market. Its great quality, but plenty of other encoders offer comparable quality at a much faster encoding speed. Like MainConcept, CCE is just damn fast. As for quality, its totaly subjective but I don't think anyone can reasonably say that CCE compromises quality for speed.

As for multiple passes, it truly makes little difference beyond the first few passes. In actuality, I think the difference between a 2-pass and a 20-pass encode is negligable.

Pass for pass, I prefer CCE to TMPGenc with most sources. The fact that it encodes about 4X faster is just a bonus.

CCE offers trial versions for several of the available versions. Pit it against TMPGenc and judge for yourself.

[lumis]

tmpgenc = fair results, slow, easy to use
cce = great results, fast, complicated
mcme = good results, quick, simple to use

i like mcme, i open my file, set the output type & location, set the bitrate, set it to 2passes and convert.

i dont really use it that much anymore, as i capture all video on my dvd recorder and then edit it on the PC.. but if i were still doing video capture, i might use it to convert the video.. i do use it for s/vcds' & mp4's that i convert to dvd spec.

[redwudz]

I like CCE for quality and TMPGEnc for convenience. CCE isn't really 'user friendly' while TMPGEnc is, especially for novices. I use CCE with other programs to manage it, while TMPGEnc is more of a stand alone application. CCE is definitely better quality, IMO, and arguably faster. I like them both, and even use Mainconcept for fastest conversion from DV to DVD.

The quality and speed of any of those encoders is really dependant on settings and filtering done.

[proxyx99]

Mainconcept and Procoder. Never had patience for TMGEnc slowness and CCE unnecessary complexity. I use MPEG Tools in TMPGEnc from time to time, that's about it.

[reboot]

I don't think tmpgenc is "user friendly" at all, unless you simply stick to the wizard, there are too many options a beginner can mess up.
Mainconcept is slightly better, and Canopus Procoder is even easier to use.
At $59 for Procoder Express, you can't go wrong.

[Grimey]

I choose TMPGEnc, becasue i've never used CCE, because i've never had a problem with TMPGEnc.

[DRP]

Only thing I don't like about tentpeg is the macroblocking you tend to get on solid colour backgrounds in PAL encodes like on door frames/walls etc. over people's shoulders when they're speaking to camera.

At first I thought this was just a replication of some macroblocks in the source files I was converting but it isn't. The macroblocks are created by tentpeg. Not so sure that it happens with NTSC but being in PAL-land my preference is for PAL.

I've tried many things to get rid of it but without success so far. I think it is a genuine limitation of tentpeg itself unless anyone has any ideas what might be causing it? I somehow doubt that the other encoders have this same problem.

[Abond]

Completely OT
I am using FreeEnc, and HC. Very rare TMPG for mpeg1 (but not VCD).

[thor300]

CCE Basic, cheap and simple, easy to use, no suspicious half-ok filters. The greatest for DV footage, it just cant be done easier, drag'n'drop files and start. For other things i combine CCE with AviSynth. Occasionally i use QuEnc also.

[Gurm]

The thing with TMPGEnc is that they have needed to do a COMPLETE engine rewrite for a long time now - and haven't. I can see why they don't - too much legacy code, too many third-party plugins, too many thousands of users who like it the way it is.

But there's only so much you can tweak and optimize a badly written engine in a slow language. After a while, you just have to rewrite it efficiently in a fast language. *shrug*

[tdan]

I really liked the CCE Basic trial, but for someone on a budget who really needed to get a low cost AC3 encoder as well (BeSweet kinda blew for AC3), I was out of luck for anyone other than TMPGEnc.

It's a shame that CinemaCraft can't come up with a decent license for a 2 channel AC3 encoder to go along with CCE Basic.

Dan

[adam]

Gurm, Hori said he plans to have TMPGeng completely rewritten in a more efficient programming language so that it can compete better in the speed department. But I'm not going to hold my breath for the reasons you just mentioned.

[sanjayk]

I voted for TMPGEnc. I have tried MainConcept also. Its sure is fater than TMPGEnc but at least I have experienced lot of audio problem with MC. SOmetimes audio is present sometimes not when encoding the SAME file. Sure TMPGEnc needs a complete revamp in terms of GUI and encoding engine. But I am sticking to it for the time being.

[Cole]

Like Jimmalenko I have voted for TMPGEnc as it is the only encoder I know how to use it and am happy with it.

However, that doesn't mean that I may not ever try another program at some stage. From what I have read above I am tempted to give CCE a look.

[VCDHunter]

From what I have read above I am tempted to give CCE a look.

Do it. I did last night and set it up to encode a 1 1/2 hr Xvid > Mpeg2 DVD 2 pass VBR and it blew TMPGenc into a cocked hat. Not that confusing to use either. I normally use TMPGenc but I am going to start looking at CCE now.

[LSchafroth]

None of the above.

LS

[winifreid]

CCE is faster than tmpgenc when doing the same thing. Obviously if you try 4 asses in CCE and 1 in tmpgenc, it will not finish first. CCE isn't really intuative. I had to read several guides before I could even do a basic encode, whereas I encoded with tmpgenc as soon as I installed it. But once you get the hang of CCE it is pretty easy and nearly twice as fast. I haven't really noticed any quality differences, but I have a small TV.

[adam]

Folks, the question limits itself to people who have actually tried both and prefer one or the other. If you haven't used one of the encoders than don't vote. Don't pick one just because its the only one you recognize.

[kevindanielbrown]

Folks, the question limits itself to people who have actually tried both and prefer one or the other. If you haven't used one of the encoders than don't vote. Don't pick one just because its the only one you recognize.

Thanks for pointing that out. I was just about to say that too. I thought those that voted would understand that in order to pick one over the other you actually have to try them both but some people amaze me with there interpretations.

Also please no more responses like "neither one." The question is out of TMPGenc and CCE, which one is better? Not, out of all the encoders which is your favorite... I know some of you are still thinking "but these are not the best encoders", that's fine but I never claimed that these were the best. They are the only ones I'm currently interested in.

Also, as I stated in my first post I don't really care about speed. I am only concerend with quality.

[winifreid]

Then just compare them yourself. You will find most people will say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. CCE creates a different output from tmpgenc that some people prefer, others don't. It isn't that one has better visual quality than the other, just different.

[reboot]

For quality, get Avisynth with CCE. (the bonus is the speed)
There, I made a choice