[Alexander Kallas]

[Rafael Amador] “Please try this: Put a DV clip in a DV sequence, make some color grading and apply any of the Nattress Chroma rebuilding effects (Nicer or Chroma Smoothing?Sharpening). Then just change the sequence codec to 8 or 10b Unc. I swear that you will notice the difference.
“

Hi Rafael
As I said before, on the Mac yes, but on your delivery medium, no.
You cannot get real 422 or 444 from 411 material, these numbers refer to the way the material was captured, NOT manipulated.
Your manipulations are what alters the look of the digital data eg color correction, and you can see those changes better in 8-bit, but it’s not the transcoding.
Sure, uncompressed looks better on the Mac, eg a 45 minute NTSC DV file is about 10G
that same file in 8-bit uncompressed is about 50G ! ie much more detail, but get it off the Mac and……it’s 411 with nice manipulation, pushed to 420 for DVD.

Cheers
Alexander

[Alexander Kallas]

[Rafael Amador] “Why not? I shoot DV and I master in 8 or 10b Unc before to go to MPG2. The only way to get something decent from DV footage.
Rafael
“

DV is DV, you are just generating larger files when you go to 8 or 10 bit uncomp.
This WILL look better, but only on your Mac.
Do a test, go DV> m2v, and DV>8-bit>m2v,(same data rate for both tests) and look at the burnt results on the same DVD player,
I see no quality difference.
The only advantage may be when adding graphics before mpeg2 encoding, but it won’t
improve the picture itself.
What is your experience and rational?

Cheers
Alexander

[Alexander Kallas]

[Chang Dek] “Hi Rafael,
Thanks for your input. I have decided to not use the VTS files if I can help it, and I am working with NTSC DV files originals that I have found of the same DVD’s

I dont think I have the Natresse standards conversion application.
Can I edit NTSC and then export from FCP via Compressor into 10 bit uncompressed PAL DV or just PAL DV? Use those to build my DVD?
“

No point in going to 10-bit uncompressed if your final delivery is in mpeg2 for DVD.
Once converted, just edit all your media to completion in the DV Codec in your FCP timeline, then encode your assets to mpeg2. Use Compressor for this if using DVDSP.
(iDVD won’t take m2v files and does the encoding, but not with the control of Compressor)
Short answer, DVDSP and Compressor for better quality.

Cheers
Alexander

[Alexander Kallas]

[Chang Dek] ”
Thanks AK, what is optical flow? I dont see that as a setting in Compressor.
Will iDVD do all the NTSC to PAL conversions without having to convert in Compressor?”

No, and at some point you have to convert formats.

Standards Conversion With Frame Controls in Compressor 2

With the Frame Controls feature, you can convert video files between international television standards (such as PAL to NTSC or NTSC to PAL) at levels of quality that were previously only available through expensive hardware solutions.

To convert a file, add the source media file to the Batch window.
Open the Settings tab of the Presets window and find the appropriate target setting or create a custom setting.
( The Advanced Format Conversions settings group contains many common
settings for international television standards (such as DV NTSC or DVCPRO50 PAL).
Apply the setting to the source media file in the Batch window.
Click the Frame Controls tab in the Inspector.
Choose Custom from the Frame Controls pop-up menu.
Choosing Custom allows you to manually adjust all of the attributes in the Frame Controls pane.
Make changes to any of the controls in the Frame Controls pane. (See

[Alexander Kallas]

[Declan Boylan] “Right so it’s in FCP as Pal DV, so i’m looking for the best possible way (and quickest/cheapest) way of converting to NTSC. But also handles the framerate change the best. this is my major concern has there is alot of movement in the footage as it is people dancing…

1. Paste pal timeline into a new NTSC time and export to compressor?
2. Export pal project to compressor ntsc mpeg setting?
3. use Natress standards conversion..?
“

Hi Declan,
1. no
2. best (but you must use optical flow properties in the frame control tab)
3. quicker and simpler than 2. (but lower quality)

Cheers
Alexander

[Alexander Kallas]

Compressor, using optical flow

Cheers
Alexander

[Alexander Kallas]

I have this 5.1.4 updater, but it is 42mb, do you have a server I can upload to?
Otherwise give me an address, and I’ll mail it to you on disc.

Cheers
Alexander

[Alexander Kallas]

Use a Mac that has FCP5.1 installed, go to software update, and take 5.1.4 as a download only, and store/burn a copy for use anytime.

Cheers
Alexander

[Alexander Kallas]

When trying to boot from the install disc, there is no spinning wheel under the Apple logo.
The only escape is the power button,
then when it reboots, there is a momentary file logo with a question mark, before it finds the OS 10.3.8 start-up disc.

Cheers
Alexander

[Alexander Kallas]

[zrb123] “Are they the disks that came with the computer? If they came with another mac they may be a build of the OS specifically for the other computer. Or are the disks from a retail box of the OS.
“

The disks are from a retail box of the OS.

Cheers
Alexander