avi to mp4 10 times as big ?? I need to upload to YouTube

[JytteC]

So I have a raw video file from my trail camera. It is 1080p avi 179MB.
I imported it into VSDC free video editor. Then export it to get an mp4 to upload to Youtube. I used coded H.264/AVC at original res and frame rate, 100%, and end up with a file of 1124MB. That's pretty crazy (would take me over 2 hours to upload).
Why does it get this big?

I tried adjusting the quality, but I have to adjust it so much that the video gets bad, or I have to resize it, which I don't want to.

Now, I had to send the camera back, it was cheap and useless. Today I'm getting a Browning Recon Force Advantage, and I've seen the good quality video it takes. I do believe that one makes mp4 files.

But, the question still remains. I need to take my raw video, no matter what format, into VSDC to cut clips or combine them. So I have to export them again, and the files exported get huge. I need to end up with files that I can upload to YouTube without spending hours to do so.

I do not want to resize, but upload at 1080p, and I would like to keep it at best quality possible. I've seen quality video (at 1080p) on Youtube, where the files when i click on it to download is only in the 10-50MB range. I know YouTube compresses again (when I uploaded a 103MB file, it ended up being 18MB). I'm trying to find out how on earth these people managed to get such good quality uploaded and still have reasonable file sizes.

Any advice? I find it hard to find any specific and/or useful information on the web.

And no, if it takes the pro version to get this done, I have no problem upgrading. But I don't know that it would make any difference?

Any help would be much appreciated

[jagabo]

size = bitrate * running_time

So use a lower bitrate to get smaller files. If your encoder is using quality based encoding, specify a lower quality.

[smrpix]

You haven't indicated that you're editing the video in any way.

If you're not, just upload the original file.
Or if it's simple edits, the YouTube editor may be sufficient.

[JytteC]

Wow, you guys are quick LOL thank you.

The one file I've been experimenting with has not been edited in any way, but that was just an experiment. Usually I'll end up with lots of empty frames, so I do need to cut out parts of files and combine others.

I tried using a lower bit rate (which also lowers the quality) but I still end up with large files in the 600MB range, and that's just a 60 sec video. Any longer would get huge again.

[jagabo]

I tried using a lower bit rate (which also lowers the quality) but I still end up with large files in the 600MB range, and that's just a 60 sec video. Any longer would get huge again.

As was pointed out, the relationship between size and bitrate is linear. For a given running time, if you want a file 1/2 the size use 1/2 the bitrate. If you want 1/10 the size use 1/10 the bitrate. If you have a 600MB file with a running time of 60 seconds the file is 60 MB/s, or 480 Mb/s (ignoring the audio and container overhead, which is typically pretty small).

[JytteC]

Camera arrived, and I'm taking some test video right now. It does in fact make mp4 files, and I'll have to see what kind of video I get and how I might adjust bit rate.
Thanks for answering.

[davexnet]

Camera arrived, and I'm taking some test video right now. It does in fact make mp4 files, and I'll have to see what kind of video I get and how I might adjust bit rate.
Thanks for answering.

Please post some camera samples if you get a chance

[JytteC]

I left it out 1,5 hours, and ended up with 51 videos (most of them 60 sec). I am uploading 3 of these test shots on Youtube, and will link them here as well. I will be uploading raw video from camera (mp4) for now, then I'll see what happen in VSDC later. I'm absolutely loving the quality of the Browning already

[davexnet]

I left it out 1,5 hours, and ended up with 51 videos (most of them 60 sec). I am uploading 3 of these test shots on Youtube, and will link them here as well. I will be uploading raw video from camera (mp4) for now, then I'll see what happen in VSDC later. I'm absolutely loving the quality of the Browning already

Unfortunately Youtube has already re-encoded your video - not so good if the intention is to check out the camera itself.
Please post some sample(s) direct from the camera, if possible. Post them right here in the forum.
Use the upload files/manage attachments button.

[JytteC]

My problem is not with the video of the camera. My problem was what happens once I edit and export with VSDC. I have not had a chance to do that yet with the new videos.
The old ones were avi, and when exporting them to mp4, they became 10 times the size, and that is a problem. Don't know yet what will happen with these that are already mp4.
I will be back as soon as I've tried it.

[manono]

My problem was what happens once I edit and export with VSDC.

davexnet isn't asking for YouTube samples or the output from VSDC. He's asking for original untouched samples straight from the camera. You can just cut (shorten) them and upload here. 10-15 seconds might be enough.

[JytteC]

If I was to shorten them, they would already be edited and exported from VSDC. Sure I could upload a raw file here, but my problem is with exporting files from VSDC.

[smrpix]

For the third time, please upload an original camera avi so we can see what you're dealing with -- and make recommendations for a VSCD output profile.. Thanks.

[JytteC]

I hear you, and I've been trying, but it's not happening. It just sits there 'sending request...'
So I uploaded the raw video, 95MB, to my own website: http://cotn.christrup.net/COTN/Forum/IMG_0048.MP4

I also tried VSDC. Imported the file, did not change a thing, went to export, using these setting:

[Attachment 48708 - Click to enlarge]
if the attach does not work, image is here: http://cotn.christrup.net/COTN/Forum/Vsdc1.jpg

after export I ended up with a 1.184MB file ! That's crazy, isn't it?

[davexnet]

Thanks very much for posting your sample.
Somewhere you have to set the CRF value .... perhaps the configure button in your image above.

Why don't you post the mediainfo (text view) of your output, the encoder setting should be in there, may help
diagnose the problem

[JytteC]

This ?

[Attachment 48710 - Click to enlarge]

[JytteC]

and this was in the configure button:

[Attachment 48711 - Click to enlarge]

[JytteC]

I really appreciate you taking the time to try and help, thank you.

[jagabo]

That image shows you are encoding with a constant quantizer with a quality setting of 100. So of course you're getting really large files. You're telling it to use whatever bit rate is necessary to achieve "100 percent" quality. That's probably a constant quantizer of 1 or 2. Your source video is about 18 Mb/s, the output video is 160 Mb.s.

Use a lower quality setting (or higher quaintizer) to get smaller files. Or change your encoder mode to use bitrate encoding with a specified bitrate if you want a specific file size.

<edit>
I see the later image shows a quantizer of 1 is being used.
</edit>

[davexnet]

Yes, except the "encoding settings" is cut off in the image.
But the settings box shows your "quality" is set to 1 by the look of it, this gives highest bitrate, biggest file size and best quality.
Isn't this what you wanted?
Otherwise put the quality slider to 18. What other options are there in the "rate control" tab?

[JytteC]

encoding settings: : cabac=0 / ref=1 / deblock=1:0:0 / analyse=0x1:0x111 / me=hex / subme=5 / psy=1 / psy_rd=1.00:0.00 / mixed_ref=0 / me_range=16 / chroma_me=1 / trellis=0 / 8x8dct=0 / cqm=0 / deadzone=21,11 / fast_pskip=1 / chroma_qp_offset=0 / threads=12 / lookahead_threads=3 / sliced_threads=0 / nr=0 / decimate=1 / interlaced=0 / bluray_compat=0 / constrained_intra=0 / bframes=0 / weightp=2 / keyint=250 / keyint_min=25 / scenecut=40 / intra_refresh=0 / rc=cqp / mbtree=0 / qp=1 / ip_ratio=1.40 / aq=0

greek to me

Yes I want a quality file, but I'm at a loss to understand (I am a newbie) why an mp4 file that I export to 'same' mp4 file gets 10 times bigger.
Yes, I know I can fiddle the bitrate to make a smaller file, which I wouldn't even need if I can upload a raw file. But, more times than not I don't want to upload the 20 or 60 sec I happen to get. I need to put them together, or cut empty stuff out. Like I'd want a 2-4 minute video. And if the 'base' value is 1184MB for 60 sec, I'd have to go way down to get something uploadable.

Now that I have new quality video to start with, I will experiment again to see how low I can go and still get something decent. BUT, how on earth am I gonna get there if I have to go real low with a stating point that high? My old file I tested with was at 179MB raw, and I had to go to 720p at 70% just to get to 200MB.

I was wondering how these people, with great quality video at not so high MB, managed?
Am I just too stupid to figure out the right settings? Or is VSDC the wrong software? Should I upgrade to pro?
I have no idea how to get there, and that's why I'm posting.

[JytteC]

I read somewhere (can't find it now) that the best compression mode is 'supersampling interpolation'. I checked it out in VSDC:

[Attachment 48717 - Click to enlarge]

I cannot chose 'supersampling' unless I upgrade to pro, which I'd do if I thought it would help me. But, I'm NOT resizing, I will always upload at 1080p (as raw), so...?

[_Al_]

I was wondering how these people, with great quality video at not so high MB, managed?

davexnet is talking to you
he says to set 18 , that seams like good compromise and also there is more selections beside "single pass", that is important too. If there is something like constant quality, constant rate factor, that'd be the way to go, but most likely that single pass means constant rate factor encoding

[JytteC]

There is a video on Youtube, beautiful birds, fantastic quality, it's 1018p, 3:24 lenght, download says 74MB (so he must have uploaded at least double that).
When I open that in 1080p it will buffer a bit and then run just fine (we have lousy internet here in Germany)

My new test video on Youtube is 1018p, 1:01 length, download says 39MB, I uploaded 95MB.
When I open that in 1080p it will buffer and buffer endlessly before I can run it.

I don't understand that.

[jagabo]

encoding settings: : cabac=0 / ref=1 / deblock=1:0:0 / analyse=0x1:0x111 / me=hex / subme=5 / psy=1 / psy_rd=1.00:0.00 / mixed_ref=0 / me_range=16 / chroma_me=1 / trellis=0 / 8x8dct=0 / cqm=0 / deadzone=21,11 / fast_pskip=1 / chroma_qp_offset=0 / threads=12 / lookahead_threads=3 / sliced_threads=0 / nr=0 / decimate=1 / interlaced=0 / bluray_compat=0 / constrained_intra=0 / bframes=0 / weightp=2 / keyint=250 / keyint_min=25 / scenecut=40 / intra_refresh=0 / rc=cqp / mbtree=0 / qp=1 / ip_ratio=1.40 / aq=0

rc=cqp and qp=1 indicate a constant quantizer of 1 was used.

I'm at a loss to understand (I am a newbie) why an mp4 file that I export to 'same' mp4 file gets 10 times bigger.

You are decompressing the source video and compressing it again with x264. The new encoder knows nothing about what codec or settings were used on the original video. All it sees is uncompressed video frames. By using a constant quantizer of 1 you are telling it you don't care how big the file turns out, just save at the best possible quality.

[JytteC]

Yes, it is as 'constant quantizer (QP)'
I guess I'll just have to experiment some more and see what gets me decent quality.

[JytteC]

jagabo, ok that makes sense.

[JytteC]

So, in the end it's experimenting, and then a matter of how long I can stand to upload? I just don't understand why the relatively small file at 95MB is buffering so badly, and the larger file is not.
It does me little good to upload files so big people don't want to sit and wait for it to buffer, and running at say 480 takes down the quality a lot.

[jagabo]

I read somewhere (can't find it now) that the best compression mode is 'supersampling interpolation'.

That has nothing to do with compression. It's how filters like rotation, scaling, etc. are handled -- for example you get smoother edges when rotating an object.

[jagabo]

Yes, it is as 'constant quantizer (QP)'
I guess I'll just have to experiment some more and see what gets me decent quality.

As was suggested earlier, at a quantizer of 18 and slow processing settings you will be hard pressed to tell the difference between the source and the new video.

If you have the option use CRF mode, not QP mode.