Youtube Upload, increase quality/control (HQ hack obsolete)

[jfharper]

How do you know if YT reconverts your flv? Does it:
A) Not show "(processing, please wait)"
B) tell you it is reencoding
c) other

[Captain Satellite]

How do you know if YT reconverts your flv? Does it:
A) Not show "(processing, please wait)"
B) tell you it is reencoding
c) other

d) "&^%$! It still looks like sh*t!"

[jfharper]

bummer, avanti is no longer available...

[reez]

ok....im amazed. i try my butt off to get my vids HQ and im also trying to get it OVER 10mins...but i really don't understand what it is you're TALKING ABOUT..im VERY NEW AT ALL THIS STUFF, but is it like this?
convert a vid with no more than 350bitrate with any converter and use hex editor to change the duration?

i try to understand it, but i just don't
like what do you mean by

"Begin by puting,
mencoder / ffmpeg and your source video in a working folder."

and

"Get your audio to uncompressed .wav
FFmpeg would be fine for 2 channel audio,
for multichannel you'd need external downmixing
Code:
ffmpeg -i test.mkv -vn -acodec pcm_s16le audio.wav

probably better to just use mplayer, straight to 2 channel
Code:
mplayer test.mkv -ao pcm:fast -vc null -vo null"

i would really like to figure out how to do it...if i just get some help with these few things.

[45tripp]

How do you know if YT reconverts your flv? Does it:

it doesn't take as much time to go live,
it looks/sounds as intended,
and to be sure, download it and see it's of identical size to the upload

bummer, avanti is no longer available...

It will be soon

ok....im amazed. i try my butt off to get my vids HQ and im also trying to get it OVER 10mins...

one or the other

convert a vid with no more than 350bitrate with any converter and use hex editor to change the duration?

no.
if it's under 350k you don't have to hex.
if it goes over 350k you have to cheat by hexing so that it appears to be under 350k.

i try to understand it, but i just don't
like what do you mean by
"Begin by puting,
mencoder / ffmpeg and your source video in a working folder."

I'm providing example commandlines for the specific tools.
If you can't handle using a commandline utility just use an ffmpeg gui like:
Avanti or WinFF

gl

[ricardouk]

Automen has been updated and we can do all sort of thing, select resizers,crop,bitrate among other things

Thanks to the author

[sexiesadie909]

OK, so I'm starting at step 1 and already I'm stuck. I was able to download the "MediaInfo" program.
And I've been trying to get the Mplayer/mencoder program, but it won't work?? I went to the link..
http://tirnanog.fate.jp/mirror/mplayer/ and I had to download and install some weird 7 zip program.
So then i went back and downloaded the first file in the list(not even sure wich file is for me??? i have WinXP):
mplayer2007.12.03.7z 03-Dec-2007 18:18 4.2M

I navigated to the file from within the 7 zip program, right-clicked and extracted to my chosen folder.
I went to that folder, figuring i would be now installing the program. I saw mplayer.exe and mencoder.exe
I clicked on each but both give me and error about a missing .dll file. So i figured files were missing from the 7zip file? So i tried the:
mplayer2007.12.03.Pent-M.7z 03-Dec-2007 17:15 4.3M

Went thru the whole process again, only to have the exact same thing happen.
Help???
Thanks

[sexiesadie909]

OK, so I managed to download and install mencoder from the other site...
http://www2.mplayerhq.hu/design7/dload.html
(I chose the "MPlayer 1.0rc2 Windows" one)

But in order for me to get rid of the pixel blocks, I have to set the vbitrate to be at LEAST 1500 or higher.
But doing this, mencoder generates an flv that has like a 1600bit rate wich is not able to be brought down below
a reported 350rate via the Hex editor.

Also, mencoder creates an flv with black strips across the top and bottom....

I am starting with a 3min 41sec 720 x 480 29.97fps Microsoft DV AVI file with a Pixel Aspect Ratio of: D1/DV NTSC (0.9) DeInterlaced ....exported from my timeline in Adobe Premiere 6.5.

I came to realize 45trip, must've already started with a 4:3 ratio, and thusly did not include a switch for that in his command code he put there. So, I included it in my command to look as follows...

mencoder 2007xmasTEST4.avi -o 2007xmastest5_1500rate25fps4to3.flv -lavcopts aspect=4/3 -ofps 25 -af resample=44100:0:1 -srate 44100 -sws 9 -vf scale=480:-3,expand=480:360 -of lavf -ovc lavc -lavcopts vcodec=flv:vpass=1:vbitrate=1500:trell:v4mv:mv0:mb d=2:cbp:aic:cmp=3ubcmp=3 -oac mp3lame -lameopts abr:br=128

But mencoder still generates an flv with the strips at the top and bottom and with the 4:3 switch in that code, it makes the file size be 41.9MB! So something is wrong. Maybe i put the switch in the wrong place?

Also, as you see i stuck in the 25fps swtich, hoping that would lower the bitrate, but it didn't help.

So these are my 2 issues. I do not know if getting mencoder to resize properly to the 480x360 will fix my pixel block issue(having to make the bitrate be so high at 1500). I figured I would try some adjustments in Avisynth, thinking I could create a file with the proper 4:3 ratio to load into mencoder and also maybe sort the pixel block issue. So I downloaded Avisynth from here....

http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=57023&package_id=72557&release_id=366702

There are two there, a zip and an exe. I downloaded both. I peeked into the zip and saw a bunch of files, but did nothing with them. The exe, I clicked on it and I went thru the install process. But went I went to open it, there is no exe file?

Lastly, I am using SUPER, in order to play back the generated flv's to check the quality.That is where I see
any flv's below 1500bitrate have the pixel blocks. So I know for sure I'm starting with poor quality, even before
I upload to YouTube. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[reez]

mmmmm 1 stupid question. if i use Winff Gui, does it NOT use your highly recommended mencoder and use something else?...because when it encodes i dont see anything like mencoder in the command box...thanks again for helping

[Tab]

I'm having some trouble with the hex editing part. My duration string is only nine characters long, and I haven't been able to modify it with any success. I used FFMPEG rather than mencoder to encode, so maybe I'll try out mencoder and see if that helps at all.

[Timmychuck]

Here is a Christmas video I uploaded to YouTube. Very good quality
Hope you like. I use Ultra Flash Video FLV Converter software


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkrTrHkkGAQ&feature=related

[Captain Satellite]

Timmychuck, GREAT quality but I'm on high speed and it's freezing every few seconds. Got a link for that converter software?

[45tripp]

I used FFMPEG rather than mencoder to encode,

makes no difference to what you're doing.
you've marked 18 digits,
it's only 16, ie the "05" at the end is not part of what you want to change.
And you only really need to change the first 4 digits.
look at the guide pics again.
use a diff hex editor.

Any input would be greatly appreciated

A 1500k bitrate is ridiculous

I came to realize 45trip, must've already started with a 4:3 ratio, and thusly did not include a switch for that in his command code he put there.

no.
mplayer doesn't always detect aspect ratio (or detect it correctly),
DV is such a case.
Don't autoscale, resize directly:

 -vf scale=480:360

it makes the file size be 41.9MB!
Also, as you see i stuck in the 25fps swtich, hoping that would lower the bitrate, but it didn't help.

the only thing that will lower bitrate is a lower bitrate,
change "vbitrate=1500"

Avisynth
The exe, I clicked on it and I went thru the install process. But went I went to open it, there is no exe file?

there's no exe,
once installed you can work with avisynth scripts.
they're simple enough, you create simple text files, write simple arguments and save with an .avs extension.
the .avs file acts as your video.
look it up.

gl

[Timmychuck]

Captain Satellite, Thanks for your comment.

Want you to know , doing videos this way do take time to load.
So let the video load first by pausing it ,then play.

Heres the link you wanted

http://www.aone-soft.com/flash_video_flv_converter.htm

[cordlessmart]

I have been following this thread and have a question.

Is there a formula for figuring out what I should set the bit rate to vs the length of the video or guess?


Wondering if a brilliant programmer will adopt these tactics to a Encoder program that has all the formulas figured out in the program. If you have the info it should be easy to adopt to any encoding program already out there.

For example.. If I have a video thats 640*480 thats 5 min and the size is ? then what would I set the bit rate to in order to get the maximum quality knowing that the limit is 10 min as the standard encoder that google converts it too. It seem im just guessing here, I did see the hex conversions for the hex editor but im trying to figure out whare to start.. Is there a math formula that I can plug into a spreadsheet then fill in the gapes like ok I have 604 * 480 at 5min plug that in to a formula and get out what the settings would be for YT .. ?

As stated in previous posts it would be easier to break this into (2) parts.. How to encode a flash movie for its peak performance. and (2) then how to hex edit so YT takes that great quality and uses it..

Thanks

[firesun]

it is good, but I prefer to put flv files on my own website.

[45tripp]

Is there a formula for figuring out what I should set the bit rate to vs the length of the video or guess?

If you're refering to quality,
bit rate and length have nothing to do with each other.
If you're refering to the size-bitrate-length relationship,
I'll quote this from the videohelp calculator page:

Manually calculate the bitrate
The basic bitrate formula is

(Size - (Audio x Length )) / Length = Video bitrate

L = Lenght of the whole movie in seconds
S = Size you like to use in KB (note 700 MB x 1024° = 716 800 KB)
A = Audio bitrate in KB/s (note 224 kbit/s = 224 / 8° = 28 KB/s)
V = Video bitrate in KB/s, to get kbit/s multiply with 8°.

°8 bit = 1 byte.
°1024 = 1 kilo in the computer world.

Example
90 minutes video, L = 90 x 60 = 5 400 seconds
700 MB CD but be sure that if fits use a bit lower like 695 MB, S = 695 x 1024 = 711 680 KB
Audio bitrate, A = 224 kbit/s / 8 = 28 KB/s

(711 680 - (5400 x 28) ) / 5400 = 104 KB/s x 8° = 830 kbit/s.

I did see the hex conversions for the hex editor but im trying to figure out whare to start..

hex editing is where you end.
it's only the cheat.
You take a 2 min clip with a high bitrate and you edit it to appear like it's say 5 mins so apparent bitrate
falls under 350k.
You can do the math and calculate the exact length you have to hex to so X bitrate falls under 350k,
but you can also just use trial and error.

Is there a math formula that I can plug into a spreadsheet then fill in the gapes like ok I have 604 * 480 at 5min plug that in to a formula and get out what the settings would be for YT .. ?

No.
At least it won't always be reliable.

Final quality is dependent on the quality of your original and it's compressibility.
Different sources can be very different.
Peak performance is aquired by flying manually.

A mathematical indicator of quality is "bits/pixel-frame".
I certainly don't use it.
But you could use it to calculate target resolution, based on a selected bitrate (i.e you select it),
useful enough if you have a target bitrate and just want to change resolution based on that.

If you're aiming for steady quality, and set resolutions, it's easier to let the encoder do the work and
encode with a constant quant setting.

As stated in previous posts it would be easier to break this into (2) parts.. How to encode a flash movie for its peak performance. and (2) then how to hex edit so YT takes that great quality and uses it..

As answered previously, the guide is already clearly divided in sections.
It's not going to change.
Also, peak performance is relative. I've shown the best tools to use, and outlined the best methods.
I don't plan on doing more.


For youtube I think the aim should be to get the best you can out of a 400-500k bitrate.
I want it streamable.
And with the cheat you increase apparent length by about 40%, which is ok.


gl

[speeder]

ok...this guy didn't used hex X_X how did he get so nice quality on his uploadings
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Nsw_JjOxAk

[ricardouk]

that video has been "hexified", i dont know if the correct bitrate is displayed if you download the flv or the "hexefied" bitarate.

on my 521k connection the videos that follow the 350 bitrate, playback from begining to end without stopping once, that video stops and plays, stops again and plays and so on, so i bet 99% its "hexefied".

i dont understand the fixation with "hexefying" the videos, ruins the viewing experience as a large percentage of global net connections are still under 1 meg, i gave up viewing that video after 20 seconds and five stops for chaching, another detail for the "hexefying" masters is that a lot of isp GLOBALLY have monthly restrictions on net traffic or have to pay extra, so putting 5 minutes videos that are 100 megas in size not such a good idea.

my videos altough not cristal clear look fine if i contain the bitrate under 350
http://youtube.com/watch?v=gwGcCEW0wII (audio+video bitrate =302k)

most people still use small screens so making your videos "HD" and "heavy" will only "benefit" a "small" percentage.

[hcl404]

To those still wondering why your videos lag/buffer so much:
Youtube has a bandwidth limit of 150kbps or so. On occasion it might spike up to 400-500kbps but don't count on that to happen all the time. Now obviously if you upload a high enough bitrate video it will require more than the 150kbps limit Youtube places for buffer-free playback. I have a 6mbps with Comcast BTW. Maybe the limit is different for other people.

Anyway here is a test video that I've tried using this guide. I use an older of Xvid4PSP for this since it happens to use mencoder for flv output.
480x272, 512kbps video/128kbps audio
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoRPaN5u51s

[MrE]

Excellent guide!

Using tips here I was able to visibly improve some home videos I was trying to share with family and friends on Youtube.

Reading the first post, the technique did seem a little complicated. (scripts and command lines, etc).

I'm newbie at editing/converting/transcoding and had been using MediaCoder to convert my videos. Thought I'd be in for lots of reading on how to use the other programs, but luckily MediaCoder is just another gui for MEncoder and ffmpeg, so I was able to use the same settings, etc that you listed to convert my camcorder videos to flv, then used the Hex editor and MediaInfo to change duration, and it all worked great.

Thanks again!

[reez]

k so i guess there IS a way to DAMN YT 10min limit to HELL...but now we need a tutorial on HOW to do so....for noobs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AeV7Dg_pY1k

i have been able to upload past 10 but it still displays 10 on the player, this guy has been able to make it DISPLAY 25

[anthony111]

can someone give me the settings of mencoder for youtube

[45tripp]

Happy New Year!

first,
Avanti 0.22 has been released.
I'll update the first post with the new link.
https://forum.videohelp.com/topic343287.html

ok...this guy didn't used hex X_X how did he get so nice quality on his uploadings
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Nsw_JjOxAk

that's a pretty old upload,
could have been under a different set of rules.

i dont understand the fixation with "hexefying" the videos, ruins the viewing experience as a large percentage of global net connections are still under 1 meg, i gave up viewing that video after 20 seconds and five stops for chaching, another detail for the "hexefying" masters is that a lot of isp GLOBALLY have monthly restrictions on net traffic or have to pay extra, so putting 5 minutes videos that are 100 megas in size not such a good idea.

I mostly agree with Ricardo.
I'm part of the internet underprivileged.
Streamability is important.
I did show the full capabillity of the cheat, but that doesn't mean I endorse heavy cheating.
This is still youtube...
I do like the idea of cheating enough to get a satisfactory result though.
I think the aim should be under 500k.

i have been able to upload past 10 but it still displays 10 on the player, this guy has been able to make it DISPLAY 25

interesting,
i don't have any idea how though.
you'll have to ask the uploader.

can someone give me the settings of mencoder for youtube

already in the guide,
read it again.

gl

[ricardouk]

To the youtube poster:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwGcCEW0wII
"How the hell is this under 350kbps?! The video looks way too clear"

judging by your comment it seems you read my comment above, yes the video has a bitrate under 350k, all i did was use the correct tools:

avisynth script:

directshowsource("")
lanczosresize(320,240)

then "fed" the script to Automen, selecting no resizing, 22050/48k for audio, 2 pass conversion.

at 340/350k one minute of flv is about 2.4 megs, download the video from youtube and do the maths.

Even if a file gets Hexefied it possibe to "see" its bitrate looking at the size of the video.

My point: its possible to have good quality videos at 350k

[ricardouk]

I find Automen better than Avanti when converting to FLV, with the exact same settings Avanti produces more ringing "effect"

http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?p=1018336

[Daostrasz]

I just wanted to say thanks for the excellent guide

My World of Warcraft videos have always looked really crappy after going through the youtube blender, now my latest one doesn't look too bad at all:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=LNN0f5_Vlzg

27.7MB - 400kbps - 480x360 - 8 mins 13s. 344kbps after being hexed to 10 mins 59s.

Youtube passed it through and I'm well happy

I have my mencoder.conf looking like:

vf=scale=480:360
sws=9
of=lavf=1
#
ovc=lavc=1
lavcopts=vcodec=flv
lavcopts=vbitrate=400
lavcopts=mbd=2
lavcopts=v4mv=1
lavcopts=mv0=1
lavcopts=cbp=1
lavcopts=aic=1
lavcopts=cmp=3
lavcopts=subcmp=3
lavcopts=trell=1
#
oac=mp3lame=1
lameopts=abr=1
lameopts=br=48
lameopts=mode=3
af=resample=22050

If you have any suggestions on how to squeeze a little more quality out of youtube I'd be grateful

[micel]

Amazing what you guys have figured out! How'd this even come about?

How long would you say this process takes and is there a lot of trial and error?

[virtona]

I have tried this method with success. In fact it's easy when you use a video compression tool like Sony Vegas or
Sorenson Squeeze.

Btw, the maximum hexadecimal duration value that youtube accepts is 84A7 EFFF FFFF FFFF

[45tripp]

Amazing what you guys have figured out! How'd this even come about?

the genral youtube discussion is linked to at the beginning of the guide.

How long would you say this process takes and is there a lot of trial and error?

encoding takes as long as encoding takes...
the hex edit is a matter of 2 minutes.

In fact it's easy when you use a video compression tool like Sony Vegas or Sorenson Squeeze.

exactly.
you can use your own encoder tools.
I outlined my method, because it's mine and because it uses freeware and provides good quality.
other encoding options are available and the principles still stand.

Btw, the maximum hexadecimal duration value that youtube accepts is 84A7 EFFF FFFF FFFF

ok


tripp