Panasonic Mpeg Encoder question

[RockRock]

Anybody has the Panasonic Mpeg Encoder? How good is it when comparing to tmpgenc? worth to buy it?

[Truman]

http://forum.vcdhelp.com/viewtopic.php?t=70980

[goranlucic]

Hi,
Depends what do you want to do with it. If you want to make DVDs - DO NOT GO with Panasonic encoder. I tested it and I was highly dissapointed.

I find best TMPGEnc 2.54 + version. It beats my highest excepctation.
If you want to be honest (like me) you pay US$ 48 for licence if not, you get the crack from the web.

There are so many posts on this forum about encoders.
My opinion is that TMPGEnc is FAR FAR the best mpeg2 for DVD encoder.
However, the worst picture you also get from TMPGenc. That all depends from settings.

Regs

[Stinky]

Panasonic doesn't even do mpeg-2 ???

CCE is the best for MPEG-2
TMPGEnc is a close second and a better value for the money

Panasonic is great for MPEG-1
TMPGEnc is also great for MPEG-1 (but panasonic is a bit better)

problem with Panasonic is that it isn't flexible - so you have to frameserve to resize or do anything else

LSX is supposed to be very good also but I don't have that one installed

[UmDaMan]

What settings did you use in TMPGEnc? I have an AVI that I transfered from my Digital Camera (Sony TRV-330). The AVI when played with the media player doesn't look like Digital Quality. It is Pixelated. Is this Normal on a Transfer from Camcorder to PC using the IEEE1394 ? I tried converting to MPEG-2 then Author it onto a DVD, but the output is still pixelated. Seems like it took the attributes of the AVI (Pixelated Picture) during this Mpeg-2 Encoding. Are there any Special Settings in this TMPGEnc 2.54 to use for Top Quality? Do you have a Saved Layout that I could try out? Thanks! Just trying to get this DV stuff to work and look like original from the camcorder. Or is this not possible.

Thanks!

Hi,
Depends what do you want to do with it. If you want to make DVDs - DO NOT GO with Panasonic encoder. I tested it and I was highly dissapointed.

I find best TMPGEnc 2.54 + version. It beats my highest excepctation.
If you want to be honest (like me) you pay US$ 48 for licence if not, you get the crack from the web.

There are so many posts on this forum about encoders.
My opinion is that TMPGEnc is FAR FAR the best mpeg2 for DVD encoder.
However, the worst picture you also get from TMPGenc. That all depends from settings.

Regs

[goranlucic]

First, I made mistake about Panasonic. God knows what I was thinking about. Panasonic is only Mpeg-1. Sorry.

Movie source PAL DV tapes captured by either Adobe, Pinnacle or Video Factory (all of them produce avi file that works with TMPGEnc)
I create DVD compilant mpeg-2 file (PAL settings)

Video tab
- Size 720 x 576
- Constant Quality (quality set to 100 and min. bit rate 4000 kbits/sec, also enabled padding)
- Encode mode - Interlace
- DC - 10
- Motion search precision - Highest quality

Advanced tab
- Noise reduction - high quality mode (other values as default)
- Sharpen edge - Field base (leave other as-is)
- Deinterlace - Even-Odd field (field)

If you use analog tape (VHS) you also have to choose "Ghost reduction" and "Simple color correction"

GOP structure tab
- as-is NO CHANGES

Quantize matrix tab
- Use Floating pointDCT - true
- Soften Block noise - true with both values set to 25

Audio tab
- as-is NO CHANGES

System tab
- as-is NO CHANGES

MENU settings:
- Preview option - Do not display - according the manual this increase the performance
- Task priority - Both active and Inactive are set to High priority (I do not do anything with PC in the meantime)
- Environmental settings - "Do not use cache...." is set to false - I really do not know whether this helps but I do it like that.

With those settings I encode 1h movie in 35-40 h. So you should take the time. I also save all my MPEG-2 files on DVD as a back-up so I do not have to render it afteerwards.


New 2-VBR pass is at least as good as CQ, however it takes lot more time to be completed. If you still want to use VBR you have to enable cache over you HD. I got 30-50% improvements.

GL

[UmDaMan]

Goranlucic, thanks for the Info. I'll give those settings a wirl......

[jane_caldwell]

goranlucic: Just a quick question - Why are you de-interlacing your DV footage when DVD supports interlacing?

[goranlucic]

Because I got the very best reults with those settings. I know that deinterlacing should not make sense but at very end it produces the best mpeg2.
GL