I've been doing a series of test's with regard to what sort of files give the best quality MPEG2 files in TMPEnc, and the workarounds for the 2/4gig limit. I've posted my results with examples of screencaptures on some web space at www.garethhorne.co.uk
Type 1 avi's produced good quality MPEGs but under windows 98 are limited to 18 mins by way of the FAT32 file system. Avisynth can be used to string these type 1's together in a seamless manner, but the MPEG produced this way is noticably poorer, the whites become off white and I get a noticable banding or contouring in areas that should be a steady graduation.
I then compared type 2 AVI's using the mainconcept codec and captured using AVI_IO with and without avisynth (which is my usual method for preparing video for SVCDs and mini DVDs) I can detect no difference whatsoever. Looking at the MPEG's on the TV they look identical. I know it seems strange to take a finished project produced as a type 1 avi by MSP6.0VE, export it back to the camcorder, then recapture it AGAIN using AVI_IO and the mainconcept codec, feed this into TMPEnc using avisynth to get optimum quality but my tests seem to show this is the case. The difference is not huge but it is signifficant and it is more obvious when comparing files on a tv, rather than looking at captures on a tv screen.
I know! I know! someones bound to tell me to upgrade to windows 2000 to get around the 4gig limit! given the amount of stuff on this PC at the moment I don't fancy trying to get it all working again under a new OS, so I'm stuck with these workarounds.
Hope thats some use to someone
Gareth
[This message has been edited by Gareth Horne (edited 08 February 2001).]
I have read that the MC Codec doesn`t clamp (alter) the lumanance on output were some, type 1? codec do.
The link to it http://www.adamwilt.com/DV-FAQ-editing.html#CodecProblems
there is a new ver 2.03 beta download on the Mainconcept site.
MP.
Following on from yesterdays post Just a note to say it apears the differece is not actually between type 1 and type 2 codecs, but between microsoft and non microsoft codecs. Apparently some people have been using microsoft's type 2 codec and are getting the same sort of problems I have recorded with type 1's.
I've updated the above site to reflect this, hovever my main conclusion still stands, the Mainconcept DV codec, in conjunction with avisynth, AVI_IO, and TMPEnc beta 12a gives an MPEG2 file virtually indistinguishable from the original camcorder source at DVD data rates (8000kbs) and very acceptable at SVCD rates (2600kbs). The quality is significantly better than MPEG2 using either microsoft type 1 or type 2 avi's.
Gareth
[This message has been edited by Gareth Horne (edited 10 February 2001).]
I have been using this modified avisynth premiere plugin from this site with good results.
http://www.videotools.net/
MP.
Final (I think!) results of my tests are now up at http://www.garethhorne.co.uk and it appears that the culprit for the poor quality MPEGs is the DirectShowSource script in Avisynth. It does not matter what codec is used, this script always gives a poor MPEG.
Switch to the UnalignedSplice (which only works with the Mainconcept codec I tested) and the problem disapears, see the above site for details.
Gareth
[This message has been edited by Gareth Horne (edited 13 February 2001).]