smaller video files

[jhirst]

I have just got my first video capture card so that I can burn some home video from my DV camcorder. The software is really easy to use, Studio 8 from Pinnacle.
The problem is, is that the files that are created are massive! I was expecting to use a few cd-r's but in MPEG format I would be lucky to get 15 minutes onto a cd. In AVI format, which seems better quality, I would be lucky to get a couple of minutes.
Winzip does not seem to compress very much and I was wondering if anyone can tell me how to get more minutes into smalller mb.
Is there a better way to compress? etc.

[grasshopperbe]

I dont know Pinnacle studio , but can you set the codecs for video and audio somewhere? I have done some capturing with my tvcard, but this was with much simpler software, and ive worked with nero buring rom 6 video maker a bit.

divx codecs usually give a good quality to size ratio. for the audio codec i usually choose mp3. is there anything where you can select the codecs when you start capturing? with divx, you can select the number of Kb per second if i remember right.

mpeg and uncompressed avi's can become big indeed.

If you want to get a really good quality/ size ratio you might want to encode to realmedia. I think it can only be done with Realproducer though, and realplayer itself is kinda pretty bad. ( there's an alternative player called Real Alternative 1.2, i like it a more )

hope this can help somewhat

[jhirst]

there is the option to encode to realmedia or windows media player. i will try that tonight. will i lose any quality? cheers.

[RJ]

What do you want to do with the files ? Burn video just to be able to watch on the PC or do you want to play it in DVD players as well ?

The best would be anyway to get a DVD burner. VCD (MPEG-1, running time is the same as for audio) and SVCD (MPEG-2, up to about 45 minutes) just don't can't keep up with the quality, and DivX . .well, that'd just something for a PC.

Forget RealMedia and WMV.. . you won't overlook the loss in quality.

RJ

[jhirst]

I definitely want to keep as much quality as possible. Video of the new baby etc. It would be nice to be able to give people copies that they can play in their dvd players. Looks like I will have to splash out on a dvd burner. Would I use avi files then?

[RJ]

With these requirements you definitely need a DVD burner. They are quite cheap, you can get a NEC2510 for a little over $100. LiteOn 832 and LG4120 are $130 to $150. They are all good burners.
No you wouldn't use AVI files, you have to encode them to the DVD compliant MPEG-2 format. Studio's own encoder isn't really good, so if you want to keep the quality as good as possible, you should also buy ProCoder Express (it's somewhere about $70) for the MPEG encoding.
MPEG is a lossy codec. You will always lose quality. But with a good encoder like ProCoder Express you won't notice the difference.

RJ

[SonicVanguard]

One thing to add - capture and edit using the highest quality AVI setting you are willing to use (if you've got a DV camera, then AVI-DV is fine). Output your video using the same settings. Then and only then would you convert to a DVD-compliant MPEG-2 stream using ProCoder Express or TMPGEnc.

Don't edit in MPEG-2, you won't be happy with the results.

Dave.

[BassMaster4000]

I agree with sonic. I do a lot of video capturing for students at my school and if your camera is digital, than use microsoft DV AVI it is the most efficient uncompressed file format that will keep the video quality. Also, how are you connecting your camcorder to the computer? If you have a Digital Video camera, you shouldn't need a video capture card. If you have firewire, that is the best way to capture digital video.

Jason

[VideoQuasar]

Video will take up space, but don't fret it since you have the room. You have Pinnacle Studio 8 and you should use it!

Go to Setup (on top)... Capture Format.....(presets) MPEG and SVCD.....keep your first capture real simple and don't get to fancy right away and the program will burn you a video on CD for TV playback that will look good I can attest. As you get more comfortable with the program you will notice how easy it is to use, and it has it all, from your capture, editing, to your CD burn. You can always get a DVD burner when your comfortable with it. Pinnacle is just a little finicky as you don't want to click to many things all at once or the program will crash. Just go one step at a time and you will be delighted.

[jhirst]

The program is a piece of cake to use. Within minutes I was adding fades, text overlays, etc. The only thing I was concerned about is space. (Digital Camcorder by the way). I have created an AVI from the first tape (1 hour long) and it is huge (10 gb's or something). I have done a test comparing to the other types of recording and the quality is much better. I will invest in a DVD burner and a good conversion tool.

Thanks very much for the advice everyone

[RJ]

Well, it is normal that the AVI is huge. DV uses a data rate of 3.6 MB/s. You will always create the huge AVI file first, and then use a good encoder to convert it to MPEG-2 format.

The final AVI will also be big (the AVI with all the effects in it). What you can do is to capture in preview quality to edit the video, and when Studio outputs the final avi the scenes get captured again, but this time in full quality. That way the captured avi won't be as huge.

RJ

[reboot]

If possible, capture directly to mpeg 2.
I started the hard way as well, capping to avi, encoding, burning, sacrificing quality, and huge amounts of time.
Now I cap to mpeg2, 480x352 (known as Half D1), and burn directly to dvdr. It saves a TON of time, and is fully dvd compliant, will play on just about every dvd standalone player there is.

[SonicVanguard]

I guess I don't see capturing to MPEG-2 just to save time. My personal preference is quality - anything I've done in AVI-DV from start to finish looks better than anything I've done in MPEG-2 from start to finish. I want the best quality I can get (of course in the studio, but in my own personal projects as well) so I take the time to do it right. Capture and edit in AVI (or AVI-DV as the case seems to be), output to the same and convert to HQ MPEG-2 DVD-compliant stream.

Dave.

[jhirst]

I must admit that with the tests that I have done using the different formats (capturing directly) there seems to be quite a difference between quality, AVI being much better. Because these are videos of my baby girl I will go down the more expensive and time-consuming route of AVI, convert to MPEG-2. Thanks guys

[RJ]

Well, AVI is just an envelope file, not a video format. It can contain just about anything.
Therefore, when capturing, make sure you get "Full DV quality", that way you capture as a DV AVI, which is the unaltered original that is on tape.
Also when converting to MPEG-2, make sure you use the full resolution of 720x576. Anything less will be a noticeable loss in quality.
Also, the higher the bitrate, the better. But DVD is limited to 9.8mbps. I encode my videos with 8000 and they're good quality.

RJ

[reboot]

I cap to mpeg2 directly, to avoid further conversion from avi to mpeg. At a high bitrate (8k), the quality is as good (or better) than most avi formats, without the need for huge amounts of hard drive space for RAW avi.
I suppose if you're doing a LOT of capture, it would make sense to cap in avi using DV codecs (I like Panasonic or Canopus for this), then edit and encode only what you want.