Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

General questions or discussion about HandBrake, Video and/or audio transcoding, trends etc.
dynaflash
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by dynaflash »

just use defaults
nightstrm
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by nightstrm »

cactus33 wrote:So Universal takes longer to encode but makes file more compatible across Apple devices.

Since I am only watching my files on a 52" LCD HDTV and have plenty of storage space I should be using Apple TV settings.. not.. Universial. Correct?
How are we supposed to answer this for you? Only you know how you are using your files now, and may use them in the future.
I'm currently using AppleTV setting + deinterlace + decomb toggled to "default". Every is using decomb but no one is explaining if they have it set to "default" or "custom".
I agree with dynaflash, use the default setting unless you know what you're doing. To that end, a handy guide is available in the wiki.
iRock
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by iRock »

Ok I already know that this has been said a lot of times in this thread: "there is no a definitive or best group of settings to encode".

Alright, but my task should be as easy as it sounds: I just wanna transform my DVD into a M4V file and watch it as if I was playing the DVD! Damn, just the same video quality, same sound quality, I just wanna see the same DVD but without the disc.

I used the "universal settings" (constant quality: 59%) but when it finished (after 3 hours), I watched notable differences between the movie been played in my Mac with the DVD application and the final M4V file in QuickTime. The original DVD is about 8 GB and the final file about 4 (regarding the video quality, I also noted that there is a group of small lines in the M4V file). How can I encode my musical DVD obtaining the exactly same quality from the original source?

Thanks. ;)
nightstrm
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by nightstrm »

iRock wrote:Ok I already know that this has been said a lot of times in this thread: "there is no a definitive or best group of settings to encode".

Alright, but my task should be as easy as it sounds: I just wanna transform my DVD into a M4V file and watch it as if I was playing the DVD! Damn, just the same video quality, same sound quality, I just wanna see the same DVD but without the disc.

I used the "universal settings" (constant quality: 59%) but when it finished (after 3 hours), I watched notable differences between the movie been played in my Mac with the DVD application and the final M4V file in QuickTime. The original DVD is about 8 GB and the final file about 4 (regarding the video quality, I also noted that there is a group of small lines in the M4V file). How can I encode my musical DVD obtaining the exactly same quality from the original source?

Thanks. ;)
It won't happen. You can't get the exact same quality since you're transcoding an already lossy-compressed MPEG2 to another lossy format, MPEG4. If you want it the same, don't use Handbrake, just use something like RipIt or MacTheRipper and keep the MPEG2 images.
iRock
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by iRock »

nightstrm wrote:
iRock wrote:Ok I already know that this has been said a lot of times in this thread: "there is no a definitive or best group of settings to encode".

Alright, but my task should be as easy as it sounds: I just wanna transform my DVD into a M4V file and watch it as if I was playing the DVD! Damn, just the same video quality, same sound quality, I just wanna see the same DVD but without the disc.

I used the "universal settings" (constant quality: 59%) but when it finished (after 3 hours), I watched notable differences between the movie been played in my Mac with the DVD application and the final M4V file in QuickTime. The original DVD is about 8 GB and the final file about 4 (regarding the video quality, I also noted that there is a group of small lines in the M4V file). How can I encode my musical DVD obtaining the exactly same quality from the original source?

Thanks. ;)
It won't happen. You can't get the exact same quality since you're transcoding an already lossy-compressed MPEG2 to another lossy format, MPEG4. If you want it the same, don't use Handbrake, just use something like RipIt or MacTheRipper and keep the MPEG2 images.
Thanks for your help, but the thing is I need to add the file to my iTunes Library and watch it from there. Not sure if I can use a MPEG2 image for that purpose.

Second, RipIt is just TOO simple and I can't configure subtitles, chapters or whatever. And in the other hand, MacTheRipper produces a VIDEO_TS folder. The thing is I need just a video file to see in iTunes with the same quality of the source (in this case my original DVD9), not images or folders.

Cheers.
nathug
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by nathug »

iRock wrote:Ok I already know that this has been said a lot of times in this thread: "there is no a definitive or best group of settings to encode".

Alright, but my task should be as easy as it sounds: I just wanna transform my DVD into a M4V file and watch it as if I was playing the DVD! Damn, just the same video quality, same sound quality, I just wanna see the same DVD but without the disc.

I used the "universal settings" (constant quality: 59%) but when it finished (after 3 hours), I watched notable differences between the movie been played in my Mac with the DVD application and the final M4V file in QuickTime. The original DVD is about 8 GB and the final file about 4 (regarding the video quality, I also noted that there is a group of small lines in the M4V file). How can I encode my musical DVD obtaining the exactly same quality from the original source?

Thanks. ;)
First off, what are you trying to encode that ends up at 4gb on the Universal setting? This seems a little big if you ask me.

Nate
iRock
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by iRock »

nathug wrote:First off, what are you trying to encode that ends up at 4gb on the Universal setting? This seems a little big if you ask me.

Nate
It's a musical DVD, a David Gilmour's concert. It weights about 8 GB (that includes menus, subtitles, maybe extras and all the stuff, I mean, this is all the disc, the complete and original source). What I try to encode is just the main title, what includes about 2-3 hours of footage.

And yep, I used the universal setting.
nightstrm
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by nightstrm »

If it's the concert DVD I have, I can definitely see it producing a 4GB+ file... lower the CQ value. Concerts are hard to encode using CQ... I'd almost recommend using ABR for them.

Like I said, the output quality will never be exactly the same as the source when going from MPEG2 -> MPEG4.
iRock
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by iRock »

nightstrm wrote:If it's the concert DVD I have, I can definitely see it producing a 4GB+ file... lower the CQ value. Concerts are hard to encode using CQ... I'd almost recommend using ABR for them.

Like I said, the output quality will never be exactly the same as the source when going from MPEG2 -> MPEG4.
What does CQ mean? And ABR? By the way, the concert DVD is 'Remember that Night'.

Regarding your last line, so there is no absolutely way to add the DVD to my iTunes Library with the same quality as the source? (at this time I don't care the format or the used software, just -as I said- a file to see in iTunes with the same quality as the source). :(
nathug
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by nathug »

iRock wrote:
nathug wrote:First off, what are you trying to encode that ends up at 4gb on the Universal setting? This seems a little big if you ask me.

Nate
It's a musical DVD, a David Gilmour's concert. It weights about 8 GB (that includes menus, subtitles, maybe extras and all the stuff, I mean, this is all the disc, the complete and original source). What I try to encode is just the main title, what includes about 2-3 hours of footage.

And yep, I used the universal setting.
Are you trying to keep all 3 of the Audio Tracks, as the disc has DTS, AC3 and PCM audio. This could be why your file size is so big. Why not post the log file for the encode?

Nate
iRock
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by iRock »

nathug wrote:
iRock wrote:
nathug wrote:First off, what are you trying to encode that ends up at 4gb on the Universal setting? This seems a little big if you ask me.

Nate
It's a musical DVD, a David Gilmour's concert. It weights about 8 GB (that includes menus, subtitles, maybe extras and all the stuff, I mean, this is all the disc, the complete and original source). What I try to encode is just the main title, what includes about 2-3 hours of footage.

And yep, I used the universal setting.
Are you trying to keep all 3 of the Audio Tracks, as the disc has DTS, AC3 and PCM audio. This could be why your file size is so big. Why not post the log file for the encode?

Nate
Ok. I'll do the task one more time and I'll review the audio settings the next time, but note that actually the file size it's not my main problem. I want a file with the maximum video quality as possible, I mean, as the same quality as the source.
mithrandir
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by mithrandir »

iRock wrote:I want a file with the maximum video quality as possible, I mean, as the same quality as the source.
As nightstrm says above, fulfilling your requirement is not possible because MPEG-4 H.264 is a lossy format. "Same quality" is not possible because this codec cannot generate perfect copies (aka lossless).

That said, H.264 can be used to create files that are "perceptually transparent". 59% is a general-purpose, try-it-and-see-what-you-think CQ percentage but I agree that this number is not high enough if you want to be fooled into thinking you are watching the original source. For that you should try 62%. The 3% CQ difference may not seem like much but this will lower the quantizer by about 1.5 and increase video bitrate by about 30%, enough for a perceptual difference.

Of course the Apple presets aren't ideal because they don't use features like CABAC or PsyRDO. This is no fault of the presets themselves but they must bow to the rather limited abilities of the Apple video player (QuickTime). If you could playback your files with something more robust like VideoLAN, you could instead use the "Constant Quality Rate" preset and get high quality output out-of-the-box.
dynaflash
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by dynaflash »

mithrandir wrote:Of course the Apple presets aren't ideal because they don't use features like CABAC or PsyRDO. This is no fault of the presets themselves but they must bow to the rather limited abilities of the Apple video player (QuickTime). If you could playback your files with something more robust like VideoLAN, you could instead use the "Constant Quality Rate" preset and get high quality output out-of-the-box.
er, huh ?
The quicktime preset in fact uses both. The device presets do not use cabac (ipod and atv) cause they are not officially endorsed by apple however the atv plays back cabac encodes just fine. Note: even the device presets use psyrdo.
Dj_AmTraX
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by Dj_AmTraX »

Thank you for the info. One question to all. Why do you want Subtitles & Compression?
jzietman
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by jzietman »

Dj_AmTraX wrote:Thank you for the info. One question to all. Why do you want Subtitles & Compression?
Because compression can make files smaller at negligible quality loss and subtitles are lovely when a movie isn't in a language you understand.
iRock
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by iRock »

mithrandir wrote:As nightstrm says above, fulfilling your requirement is not possible because MPEG-4 H.264 is a lossy format. "Same quality" is not possible because this codec cannot generate perfect copies (aka lossless).
Yeah, I got it. But there is any possibility to encode the DVD to another format maybe using some other software? As I said before, my priority is not to get a MP4 file, or using the H264 codec. At this time I want just a video file with the same quality as the source.

Another idea that I get just a minute ago: using just HB, encoding to another format (like AVI maybe, here you have to illustrate me about is that a lossy format or not) and then changing the extension with QuickTime to .MOV, I can finally get a file with similar quality as the source and add it to iTunes. Could it work?
mithrandir wrote:That said, H.264 can be used to create files that are "perceptually transparent". 59% is a general-purpose, try-it-and-see-what-you-think CQ percentage but I agree that this number is not high enough if you want to be fooled into thinking you are watching the original source. For that you should try 62%. The 3% CQ difference may not seem like much but this will lower the quantizer by about 1.5 and increase video bitrate by about 30%, enough for a perceptual difference.
Ok. But first I will try what I said before, depending on what you say. Then, I'll try to encode one more time using the universal setting, but changing the CQ to 62% (and deleting one of the audio tracks).
Dj_AmTraX
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by Dj_AmTraX »

iRock wrote: Another idea that I get just a minute ago: using just HB, encoding to another format (like AVI maybe, here you have to illustrate me about is that a lossy format or not) and then changing the extension with QuickTime to .MOV, I can finally get a file with similar quality as the source and add it to iTunes. Could it work?
So you are suggesting to use HB to convert to AVI then import the file to OuickTime Pro and "save as" .Mov and drag it into iTunes? Will it be iPhone/iPod Touch compatiable?
TedJ
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by TedJ »

Dj_AmTraX wrote:
iRock wrote: Another idea that I get just a minute ago: using just HB, encoding to another format (like AVI maybe, here you have to illustrate me about is that a lossy format or not) and then changing the extension with QuickTime to .MOV, I can finally get a file with similar quality as the source and add it to iTunes. Could it work?
So you are suggesting to use HB to convert to AVI then import the file to OuickTime Pro and "save as" .Mov and drag it into iTunes? Will it be iPhone/iPod Touch compatiable?
Either that, or he's suggesting renaming the file to .mov, which obviously won't work. AVI is a container format as opposed to a video codec and renaming it won't allow iTunes to import it.

If iRock's priorities are transparent quality AND iTunes compatibility then H264 in MP4 is his only real option.
dynaflash
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by dynaflash »

Why does it seem like this train has gone off its tracks ? Next post better be about someones "Best Settings".
Lets try to stick to the topic.
madbullram
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by madbullram »

ecdltf
I liked your settings and I tried your settings but the problem is estimated time to complete is 11 hours. Is this the usual time? I am trying to encode a Serenity 8 GB DVD. I have a Dell Intel Core Duo T7250 Laptop with 2 GB RAM running Vista.
mithrandir
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by mithrandir »

dynaflash wrote:
mithrandir wrote:Of course the Apple presets aren't ideal because they don't use features like CABAC or PsyRDO. This is no fault of the presets themselves but they must bow to the rather limited abilities of the Apple video player (QuickTime). If you could playback your files with something more robust like VideoLAN, you could instead use the "Constant Quality Rate" preset and get high quality output out-of-the-box.
er, huh ?
The quicktime preset in fact uses both. The device presets do not use cabac (ipod and atv) cause they are not officially endorsed by apple however the atv plays back cabac encodes just fine. Note: even the device presets use psyrdo.
I'm having a senior moment. QuickTime preset does use CABAC, Universal (which iRock apparently was using) does not. And yes, all use psyrdo because that kicks in automatically when subme >= 6.
dynaflash
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Re: Post Your "Best Settings" here and Why.

Post by dynaflash »

dynaflash wrote:Why does it seem like this train has gone off its tracks ? Next post better be about someones "Best Settings".
Lets try to stick to the topic.
Okee Dokee, this thread is completely polluted and anyone coming here to find best settings would be lost. It has completely lost its usefullness.

... Locking this nightmare.
Locked