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DVD Resolution
I am trying to burn the best quality DVD I can. My video/asset which I put into my DVD Pro Software is DVCPRO HD 1080i60 made on the FCP compressor. I am using an IMAC to burn my DVD. I understand that I cannot burn a HD Video with the equipment I have (an IMAC) but can anyone give me some guidance on how I can burn a DVD with the best possible output given the high quality of my original video. On the Track in DVD Studio Pro the is a “resolution” of 720 x 480i can I increase the quality of that resolution and then the output quality of my DVD?
I am using the build & format setting. I would appreciate any support I can get.
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17 Replies
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DVD is 720 x 480 – period.
The primary way to achieve the best possible picture on a DVD is to encode the video to the highest bit rate possible for the amount of material that will fit on a disc.
Steve Brame
creative illusions Productions -
Thank you for your help. By saying to encode the video to the highest bit rate possible for the amount of material that will fit on a disc do you mean that the DVDPRO HD 1080i which I have it encoded in will be okay and will play alright? I was reading the threads and someone said to use compressor and compress to ProResHd which I found in my compressor settings but I wasn’t sure what it was/is and if it will give me a better quality output that the 1080i which I already have. My video is just 15 minutes long. Thank you again, I really appreciate your help.
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Only MPEG2 can be used to encode video for the DVD. You will have to transcode your existing media to MPEG2. I do not use Compressor, so I can’t guide you with it’s specific operation, but it sounds like you need assistance with understanding the DVD specification itself first. The only format for the DVD spec is MPEG2, and the only resolution is 720×480. The bit rate is the speed at which the data on the DVD may be read by whatever machine is playing the DVD. The higher this rate, the higher the quality, but do NOT expect even the absolute highest quality on a DVD to even resemble the original HD footage. If you have this expectation, you will never be happy. DVD is not HD, it is SD.
There are a multitude of training videos on YouTube and others for creating DVD’s with Compressor, as well as all other apps.
Steve Brame
creative illusions Productions -
I’m starting to get a grasp of how it is done, thanks to your response and the threads, you can tell I’m a “learner”. I’ve burned DVDs with the video input in DVDPRO HD 1080i for school projects which I had to hand them out, they look alright and function okay in “my” computer but I am thinking that probably no one else can see them in their equipment but they probably have not said anything to me about it. Thank you I will input in Mpeg 2 like you told me.
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Yep…if you burned a DVDPRO HD 1080i to a DVD disc, you were simply copying that file to the disc, and it would not play on a set top DVD player.
Steve Brame
creative illusions Productions -
For the record, there are half d1 resolutions which are supported as well.
704×480
352×480
352×240 -
True, they are supported, but when the source is 1080i, and the OP wishes to maintain the highest resolution possible, these are not a factor and may only serve to confuse.
Steve Brame
creative illusions Productions -
Actually whats confusing is when you indicated 720×480 is the ONLY resolution supported by the spec. Here’s a good run down.
But yes….almost all discs are 720×480 or 720 x 576
NTSC (NTSC Film)
Video:
Up to 9.8 Mbps* (9800 kbps*) MPEG2 video
Up to 1.856 Mbps (1856 kbps) MPEG1 video
720 x 480 pixels MPEG2 (Called Full-D1)
704 x 480 pixels MPEG2
352 x 480 pixels MPEG2 (Called Half-D1, same as the CVD Standard)
352 x 240 pixels MPEG2
352 x 240 pixels MPEG1 (Same as the VCD Standard)
29,97 fps*
23,976 fps with 3:2 pulldown = 29,97 playback fps (NTSC Film, this is only supported by MPEG2 video)
16:9 Anamorphic (only supported by 720×480)PAL
Video:
Up to 9.8 Mbps* (9800 kbps*) MPEG2 video
Up to 1.856 Mbps (1856 kbps) MPEG1 video
720 x 576 pixels MPEG2 (Called Full-D1)
704 x 576 pixels MPEG2
352 x 576 pixels MPEG2 (Called Half-D1, same as the CVD Standard)
352 x 288 pixels MPEG2
352 x 288 pixels MPEG1 (Same as the VCD Standard)
25 fps*
16:9 Anamorphic (only supported by 720×576) -
Sorry, didn’t mean to confuse. I was speaking strictly to and in the context that the OP was presenting. When transcoding from 1080 to DVD with 15 minutes of footage, and the highest resolution possible is desired, the lower resolutions don’t make sense. In fact, the lower resolutions are rarely, if ever, utilized in a final production scenario. They are used more with direct to disc recording devices and certain lower end camcorders.
Steve Brame
creative illusions Productions -
You fellows are really confusing poor old Sue now. You’ve gone right away from Steve’s original very kind and helpful early advice.
Sue, to get your required MPEG 2 file for burning a DVD you need to use some good encoding software. I’m not sure that Compressor is as good as one called BitVice, if you can find someone who has it you should give it a go. In that you can choose the appropriate bit rate and there are sliders which indicate what the size of the file will be so you can see whether or not it will fit on the disc. I often make 15 minute DVD’s and use a rate of about 7 because any higher than that may cause playback problems on some players. I’m getting very good DVD picture quality from my original 1920 X 1080i HD material. However, if you want ‘HD’ quality, why not produce Blu-Ray discs? The difference is amazing and all you need is a Blu-Ray burner and Titanium Toast version 10 or 11 and it’s very straightforward to do. I don’t know whether people are getting Blu-Ray players in your area. Here in London they are now widespread and together with an HD TV screen (these are now very common) your stuff will be shown to its best advantage.
Michael Slowe
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