Hardware encoding vs. software encoding

[Christopher2222]

I have the colossus 2 which I am learning hardware encodes ts streams at H.264 MPEG2.

Is it better to capture at a higher rate say 9Mbits/sec or even higher (which I think is a bit ridiculous) and then software encode down to 5Mbits/sec ? Or just encode straight to 5Mb/s on the immediate capture. Will better results be achieved capturing higher and then software encoding lower? I would be using Video Redo which after having doing extensive research a few years ago have found it to be a superfast video editing software. Handbrake is a distant second (only because I'm unfamiliar with it) but that's another discussion.

[sneaker]

Yes, live encoding with high bitrate (if possible much higher than 9 Mbit/s - choose the maximum possible) and then encode with software is usually better.

But - why don't you simply test it?

[pandy]

Acquisition with bitrate high as possible and later quality focus transcoding.

[Christopher2222]

But - why don't you simply test it?

I suppose I could.