using ulead and capturing directly to mpeg-2?

[DigitalGreg]

okay, is there anything wrong with using a ulead product and capturing from mini-dv and letting it simultaneously convert to mpeg-2? for example, is not true mpeg-2 or is there some loss of quality or anything?

[EricB]

There is a setup function that allows you to change the quality level ( I think 1 - 15) based on the speed and capability of your system. On my 1gHz P3 with 384M RAM, I can only run at the lowest setting without sending frames to the buffer. With the buffer, it takes time to transcode after you stop capturing, and it can also fill the buffer and stop capturing.

That being said, I find the Ulead product fun to use but if you are doing a serious conversion (quality conscious) then using TMPGenc is much better. To my eyes, the Ulead conversion almost looks like there is a layer of film or haze over the whole frame.

[DigitalGreg]

that being the case, a quality issue, is it better to import using the Ulead DV drivers and then convert it as one of the final steps toward burning the DVD?

[DigitalGreg]

I should note that I took my mini-dv master of a previous video and just imported it in DV-avi format, then outputted it DVD using DVD Workshop, and to me the quality seemed crystal clear. The audio wasn't so great though.

[EricB]

Yes, definitely bring in as DV then encode to mpeg2 as a final step. This is far better quality than the on-the-fly version. Even better would be to encode with TMPGenc or CinemaCraft

[DigitalGreg]

Yes, definitely bring in as DV then encode to mpeg2 as a final step. This is far better quality than the on-the-fly version. Even better would be to encode with TMPGenc or CinemaCraft

Thank you, I'll have to look at both of those. Which is better in your opinion?

[EricB]

Well I like TMPGenc because I use it the most. To me, it is very straightforward to set up. Others say that CinemaCraft is faster and maybe better quality. Do some searching here and you can find just about any opinion you'd like!