Encoding/Encoder Questions

[Ron B]

Going to need video encoder to help with varied formats with flexible output options. I use .AVI files from VirtualDubMod captures(none seem to work with Adobe Premiere6.0 or Ulead VideoStudio) that need to be converted to the best quality format so I can use them with these editing programs. Any suggestions on an AVI format that can go straight from VirtualDubMod to Premiere or VideoStudio? Also work with a lot of NTSC DV-AVI. Some ripped video from DVDs, mostly analog caps with VirtualDub.
Some of the video will wind up as 352 X 240 web video, so I need good quality MPEG 1 with decent file sizes and some will need to be the best quality MPEG 2 for DVDs. Quicktime rendering would be nice.
Of course I'm considering the low-cost encoder heavyweights; TMPGEnc, CCE Basic and ProCoder Express. Used TMPGEnc for years(especially for MPEG 1), if I can't find something better, I'll stick with it. ProCoder Express looks OK, I was wondering; is the ProCoder2 Trial version the same as ProCoder Express? The activation stuff is kind of scaring me off as well. CCE Basic, never tried it, don't know much about it.
The encoders that come with Ulead VideoStudio and MovieFactory don't do a bad job, I want to have more control over the encoding to see if the quality can be better. Plus, if the AVI format is not compatible with the software, not going anywhere.

[daamon]

For editing tools like Premiere (any variant) or Ulead VideoStudio: best use DV AVI. All the time, end of story.

Encoding to other formats: You're usually better off using tools specifically dedicated to the chosen format, rather than one that covers all - if such a tool exists.

I use CCE for MPEG2 for DVD and find it gives excellent results, and quicker than TMPGEnc - which I used for about 2 years beforehand.

I don't know about the ProCoder variants - is there a comparison list on their site? You may have to gather then info from there and compare manually...

[Ron B]

The DV-AVI is pretty easy to handle, not so much for the analog captures using VirtualDub. The MPEG encoder on the humble VideoStudio6 or MovieFactory is not that bad, most of the time the quality is good enough for "everyday" use, especially to crank out a quick DVD from the DV camera.
I'll get some files together and do a head to head runoff between CCE and TMPGEnc trial versions. All the negative things said about the customer service and validation for ProCoder are giving these two the edge right now.
Guess I never really tried it before, but I was surprised to find that none of the AVI codecs I have for VirtualDubMod will work with Premiere(including uncompressed and HuffyUV). Guess I've been spending too much time with DV.

[edDV]

The DV-AVI is pretty easy to handle, not so much for the analog captures using VirtualDub. The MPEG encoder on the humble VideoStudio6 or MovieFactory is not that bad, most of the time the quality is good enough for "everyday" use, especially to crank out a quick DVD from the DV camera.
I'll get some files together and do a head to head runoff between CCE and TMPGEnc trial versions. All the negative things said about the customer service and validation for ProCoder are giving these two the edge right now.
Guess I never really tried it before, but I was surprised to find that none of the AVI codecs I have for VirtualDubMod will work with Premiere(including uncompressed and HuffyUV). Guess I've been spending too much time with DV.

Mainly because you are using ancient versions of Premiere and Video Studio. Premiere 6 (c2000) was the first to support DirectShow for IEEE-1394, didn't support MPeg2 encoding and had many bugs. I don't remember about huffyuv. Version 6.5 supported both, was stable and is still very usable today.

One common format, other than DV, for Virtualdub and Premiere 6 is uncompressed RGB, just watch your levels if going to YCbCr MPeg2 DVD.

VideoStudio 8 was the first that was competent IMO. v9 and v10 are better yet. All of these deal well with VirtualDub using a variety of AVI and MPeg encodings.

[Ron B]

If you mean "am I trying to squeeze every penny out of Premiere 6.0" you are absolutely correct. Usually, I only use Premiere for longer sequences, more advanced editing features and the video processing features still work OK. Also to put a "bug" on videos that will go on the internet. Do all the editing and processing with Premiere, save as an AVI file, then use a good encoder. VideoStudio is used mostly for 352 X 240 MPEG 1 clips for web use. Quick editing, save as AVI, then use the encoder to shave file size while saving quality. Also does a good job to transfer DV to the computer, as you mentioned, Premiere 6.0 does not do that well with firewire.
You can check out some of the videos HERE and HERE. Lots of work can go into a two minute clip, especially if the video quality is not that good, or of course, bad lighting.