Getting Quality MPEG Files

[thanser]

I know this is probably an over-discussed, ambiguous topic, but I'd like to get some feedback.

I have to digitize and compress video for Macromedia Director presentations, distributed on CD-ROM. I used Pinnacle DV500 and Premiere 6.5, captyuring in a Pinnacle DV format, 720x480. I make my edits, clean it up a little, and then output to one of two ways. I can export a Windows AVI, no codec, and use TMPGEnc, or export a QuickTime, no codec, and then do my MPEG conversion from QuickTime, using a Heuris MPEG export engine.

First of all, the Heuris module offers either the "default" setting, or 2X CD-ROM setting. Which is better, yielding a higher bitrate? 2X is pretty slow, and older technology.

Next, the TMPGEnc VCD default setting is for 352x240, which is perfect for my Director movies I create. But should I rely on this default setting? How does it compare to either of the Heuris export settings? How does this default setting compare to a Heuris 2X CD-ROM setting?

I've had some comments from clients about my MPEG movies not looking too well. Of course, I'm being handed cheap quality VHS tapes, one of which was actually recorded at EP, not SP. I wonder how much of the quality issue is due to the poor quality source tapes...?

My resulting MPEG files are soft, blurry. Not pixelated, but lacking in sharpness.

Should I do my "resize" (from full-res to 352x240) BEFORE I compress to MPEG, or does it matter?

Any comments? Guidelines for quality MPEG files? The roadmap to MPEG happiness?

Thanks!

[PyRoMaNiA]

You could try using a sharpening filter to make your results a bit less soft.

[Gazorgan]

352x240 MPEG1 is natively supported by Windows and OS 9+ as I recall. If you can play the movie in a window/box instead of full screen, that helps a lot. Also, anything from VHS tape needs noise filtering, guaranteed. You can do noise filtering, and some sharpening to clean them up a bit.