Better encoder than TMPGEnc

[dazza555]

Hi all, I've been using TMPGEnc to encode my video files for DVD-lab since I purchased it. I've come across a few threads similar to what I want to know but none really answer it.

Is there an all round better encoder that converts various video formats to DVD-lab compliant formats? By better I mean faster, more reliable, better quality (If possible, I'm pretty happy with the currant quality) and more options but still user friendly (aspect ratios, filters, etc).

Perhaps a list stating pros and cons of various encoders could be compiled here? Also I don't really care about the audio output of my encoder, I like to use avidemux2 for that, and TMPGEnc isn't good at audio anyway.

I'm not only looking for recommendations but also encoders to steer clear of, ones that you think are really poorly built and don't do what they should. Feel free to list payware, shareware or freeware. I just want some honest opinions.

To start off I'll list TMPGEnc:
Pros: Good quality, encodes various formats, offers plenty of preset formats.

Cons: Very slow, not good with audio, dosen't accuretly predict output size (sometimes off by 500mb), doesn't offer any video filters.

[guns1inger]

Personally, I always feed my encoders via avisynth scripts, so input format really isn't an issue.

All the majors do a good job. Tmpgenc's major failing is that it still works in the RGB colour space, and is incredibly slow. Otherwise it is a good quality encoder. I have not used tmpgenc express, which I believe is substantially faster. You also need to check your version of tmpgenc, because the versions I used to use (up to 2.5.xx) all had quite a suite of filters, albeit slow, like the encoder.

The other main players are :

Mainconcept - good quality, although the default settings tend to be soft. Reasonably fast.

CCE - The speed king. The fastest by far in most situations. High quality, and usually fast enough to allow you to add the extra pass if necessary. No built-in filters of any note. Comes in two main flavours : SP (Expensive, very configurable) and Basic (Cheap, less configurable)

ProCoder - Arguably higher quality than CCE, although not quite as fast. Hugely configurable, has a range of filters built-in, and can output many formats as well as mpeg2. Moderate cost.

HCEnc - One of the newest of the free encoders. Only accepts avs and d2v input (Avisynth or DGIndex frameserved video). Good quality, especially at low bitrates. Slower than CCE, faster than tmpgenc. And it's free. Still being optimised and improved, but very good as it stands.

As I said at the outset, I use avisynth to feed my encoders, so being able to deal with a range of input formats is not an issue, neither is having lots of filters. I use ProCoder and CCE for most of my work. I also do all my audio encoding seperately, so the audio capabilities are not important to me.

It should also be noted that these are my opinions based on my use of these encoders. Others have differing or similar opinions. Each encoder has it's quirks, either in how it is configured, or in it's output. You need to test them to see if they satisfy your particular needs.

[Soopafresh]

That's exactly my opinion of the above products. HC Hank is soon to be releasing an update that supports HD resolution. Nice...

dazza555 - "faster, more reliable, better quality" --> pick two of the three. The biggest movement forward however, is learning a little Avisynth. Once you begin implementing some of the sharpeners, de-interlacers, and noise reduction technologies, perhaps 3 of the 3 can be had....

[thymej]

Does anyone use FFMPEG anymore, I don't see many post about it. Its fast if not faster then CCE.

[Soopafresh]

ConvertXtoDVD uses ffmpeg as the engine to encode.

[SCDVD]

CCE - The speed king. The fastest by far in most situations. High quality, and usually fast enough to allow you to add the extra pass if necessary. No built-in filters of any note. Comes in two main flavours : SP (Expensive, very configurable) and Basic (Cheap, less configurable)

How do CCE SP and CCE Basic compare as far as the encoding quality itself? $60 versus $2,000 is a huge difference. A pro can make good use of the configurability that SP provides. But what about the encoding engine itself?

[guns1inger]

The encoding engine is essentially the same, so quality at the same settings will be identical. It is the configurability of the SP version that pushes the cost up. Aside from some basic filtering, you can change the quantization matrix or create your own, tell the encode where you chapter points are for setting I-frames and several other settings designed for, and mostly only used by, pro users.

With the exception of speed, for most uses HCEnc is now pretty damn close to CCE in most respects, and it won't cost you a thing.

[ntscuser]

On my opinion nothing is "better" than TMPGEnc when it's configured correctly. There are occasions when I use other encoders but it's for reasons of convenience rather than technical quality.