-
Poor DVD File Image Quality
It may be that I’ve been spoiled by using BluRay but I’m appalled at the image quality of the DVDs I’ve been producing.
I begin with 1080i AVCHD and then use Vegas Pro 9 to create an MPEG 2 PAL stream (I’m based in the UK) then transfer this to DVDA.
I am experiencing a moiré effect which must be linked to the compression as this is worse the more information is being shifted in the images: the picture is also less sharp than I would expect from a DVD by some margin.
I’d be very grateful for settings advice / tips.
Thanks!
-
3 Replies
-
Do you have a DVD player that will play back an NTSC disc? I’m curious because I’ve only seen DVD quality issues reported by PAL users and perhaps it’s something about the aspect conversion that makes PAL worse? I was going to say, try creating an NTSC DVD and see if that looks better? You might even want to try this on your PC.
Using NTSC: 1080 / 480 = 2.25. That means there is 2 and a quarter pixels of HD for every pixel of NTSC SD in the vertical conversion. Using PAL: 1080 / 576 = 1.875 which means there is some strange fractional pixel relationship for converting HD to PAL SD. This may have something to do with it. We are always told that the best conversion are when using even numbers (2x, 3x, etc). Maybe the 1.875 conversion for PAL creates more artifacts. (I’m just guessing here so let’s call it a “working theory” for now) 😉
~jr
http://www.johnrofrano.com
http://www.vasst.com -
Hi guys,
Just wondering if there were any replies to this post as I’m about to purchase 2 avchd cameras and use Vegas also.
It would be a little off putting if this was going to be an issue with Vegas alone.
Eitherways hope one of the many genius’s on here finds an answer and best of luck.Cheers
Steve
-
Hi John & Steve,
John: I tried that: you’re absolutely right: the problem is indeed a PAL issue.
I should stress that this isn’t a disk problem,- it occurs at the file stage.
As an example, where the camera pans slowly across an auditorium the edges of the clothing of people seated there appear crinkled or formed from curves.
Steve: I really like my AVCHD camera and think the format is a good one, especially with the convenience of SD cards (although I wish I could afford an up-market one). As to Vegas, I like that too, and am not about to give up on it: I’m going to try to shift to an intermediate format and then to DVD. I’m wondering whether the crossover from AVCHD to DVD compression isn’t problematic, although as John has shown it seems fine in NTSC.
Dave
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up