Outputting or Converting to .mov

[George Dean]

If you are using VP15 or VP16 you can use the Magix Intermediate render format. If on a previous version I would suggest to download and install Avid’s codec and use the DNXHD (1080) or DNxHR (4K), these will render to a mov container. When you install the Avid codec the render formats will show up in the Quick Time render folder (you may need to install QuickTimePlayer 7.6 or 7.7). Probably be best to check with your client first to see if they will accept the Avid DNx.

Best Regards……George

[Francois Pénzes]

Hi Jay

First off, a .MOV is just a container.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QuickTime

In my case, when a customer asks for a .MOV, I ask for complete specs on what type of file he/she needs. If they are unsure, I usually ask for the end use of the file and go from there.

Fortunately Vegas has a good variety of video format options. Get some more details and get back to us.

Cheers !

PC Win 10 Pro 64-bit 16gb Intel® Core™i7-2600k Quad Core 3.40GHz
Cameras: Canon XF305 + Canon XH-A1
Blackmagic HyperDeck Studio Mini
Vegas Pro 16, User since Vegas 3.0

\’\’When the cutting stops, the editing begins…\’\’

[Jay Mitchell]

Client wants a h.264 HD .mov

I am using Vegas Pro 15

I get that .mov is just a container. They are a Mac based company. So, they want .mov

Will the Magix Intermediary Render a .mov?

[Jay Mitchell]

Will the Magix Intermediary Format play on a MAC, FCP etc…?
What is the extension?

[George Dean]

Hi Jay, as Francois points out .mov is a container and does not specify the format. When I read your first post I jumped to a conclusion I should not have thinking you wanted ProRes.

The MAGIX Intermediate render format will produce an .mov container, however it will be formatted as ProRes. This may actually be better for your client, but I would recommend, since they have asked for an h.264 (as you posted above) to ask them if they prefer ProRes and what level 4:2:2 LT, 4:2:2, 4:2:2 HQ, 4:4:4, 4:4:4 XQ, as Vegas Pro 15/16 will render them all. Most of them are probably overkill in quality, so it is better to ask the client I think so they get what they prefer.

As far as producing a h.264.mov, I don’t think you can get that out of Vegas. You can render out an MPEG4 in the mp4 container and probably just change the extension name to ‘mov’, and players will probably play it, but it will not be a true Quicktime file.

Hope I haven’t made this more confusing than it has to be, maybe Francois has a better, easier, quicker way.

Also, I would suggest, whatever you and your client decide is best for you, send them a short test file so they can feed it into their NLE and approve it. Most likely they are using Final Cut, which I know very, very little about.

Best Regards……George

[Jay Mitchell]

George – thank you for the replay

I need to give them a clean demo video of the project.
They specified the h.264 .mov

I am assuming that they are MAC users. FCP etc…

So, with all of your expertise, what would you suggest I give them that will be clean and play on their MACs.

I’m not a techie, so most of what you previously said about the output qualities is over my head.

I am in crunch time, having had to rebuild the lost work from yesterday.

[George Dean]

Jay, I’m going to let you down on this, other than my previous suggestion to contact them and ask in ProRes will do. If so use the 1080 4:2:2 Magix Intermediate render format. It is not an h.264, but I would think if they are using FCP, they would prefer that as it runs smoother.

I have managed to avoid Apple products every since they came on the market, so I really do not know what will for sure run on a Mac. You could send John Refrano (is a long time member here) a message as he is a Mac pro and I’m sure he could help you if he is available (actually John is a pro about Windows also).

Best Regards……George

[Guillaume Jeffrey]

I would suggest that you render your AVC mp4 file from Vegas then use ffmpeg to rewrap it to mov.
You can use the following command
Ffmpeg -i yourfilename.mp4 -c:v copy -c:a copy yourfilename.mov
No transoding involved, very fast and no quality loss.

[George Dean]

Thank You Guillaume for providing the ffmpeg command line, simple and effective, I hope this helps Mitchell meet his deadline.

Best Regards……George

[Jay Mitchell]

I rendered the 3 minute project to the MAGIX Intermediary 422 1080p and it produced a 3GB .mov file. I uploaded that to the client as I was at the deadline. The rendered video looked great. But ,much too large of a file.

I then rendered a h.264 mp4 file and it produced a file of 300MB and also looked great.

Before reading your posts today, I was thinking that I should have found a way to convert the mp4 file to a mov.

I am not familiar with how to change the command lines as you described. Is there any way that you could produce a tutorial on that procedure? Or, write a set of step-by-step procedures for me to see how it’s done.

Thanks,

Jay