[Michael Shick]

Ah, well, the Wikipedia entry on HDV must have bad info (no surprise). I think some early HDV cameras used 601, maybe that’s the issue.

My monitor is definitely not 100% calibrated, but what I’m talking about is a pretty huge difference in the appearance of the video on a variety of monitors and computers (this is all work for the web).

Oddly though, I’m noticing the same wash out with DVCPRO-HD content. Which defeats my earlier theory…

This is really puzzling. Maybe Quicktime always interprets the 6-1-6 nclc as a 2.2 gamma, and displays the video accordingly (just like FCP does), whereas it plays around when displaying in 1-1-1?

[Michael Shick]

Not sampling, but rather, the color space as defined by ITU Rec. 601. This gets defined in Quicktime containers by the “nclc” flag, 6-1-6 (what that stands for is beyond me).

Comparatively, the HD color space is ITU Rec. 709. Professional codecs will use this. It uses nclc flag 1-1-1 in the Quicktime container.

I realize that FCP is substantially QT, but there’s no denying that opening the exact same export in a FCP viewer gives me different gamma than opening it in QT, with or without the FCP compatibility setting. FCP must be better about ignoring/interpreting other color space data within the file.

So, I’m wondering if this bug, which most people complain about in the context of seemingly less professional video, is the result of weird pro-sumer formats that are using old color spaces (straight compatibility with SD TVs?), but at HD-resolutions

As to 8×8, it’s working well for me in QT, and the FFMPEG-based encoder my video host uses, but if I have to worry about compatibility I might remove it. Is there anything else I should be concerned about in terms of compatibility?

[Michael Shick]

Yeah, actually I played around some more and think I figured out what was going on. I believe the 8×8 flag was forcing an inappropriate nclc, and that was the real culprit. I found that the default 2-2-2 would always give a washed out look.

I think the gamma bug comes into play, in this case, because my source is HDV, which uses an SD color space, but has HD dimensions. I think Quicktime, in whatever way it is hooked up with FCP, is always forcing an HD color space on my material. I was able to resolve all my problems, and get really excellent output, using x264, and forcing the SD color space. YMMV, but I’m really happy to have a working solution.

[Michael Shick]

That’s a great suggestion Colin, thanks.

Just to clarify, because the JVC already has full control over the image internally, I’m actually better off with a component connection vs. MXO + DVI? Is that because part of the appeal of the MXO is giving calibration control in software for monitors that lack it?

-m

[Michael Shick]

Thanks Shane.

The thing is, I already have a broadcast monitor (the JVC mentioned with DVI-D input), but I don’t think I’m feeding it the right signal to actually get the benefit of it.

I’ve been investigating more, and the Matrox MXO is really looking like the best solution. I’d be curious if anyone has paired this with a screen like the JVC DT-V24L1. Seems like it would work as well, if not better than the ACD.

I checked out the Blackmagic line, which seems like a decent option, though I’d be going to an analog component input to the JVC, rather than a digital link.