Let’s start at the beginning and see if we can’t get you squared away.
1. Let’s start with a preset of WM9 HDTV 1080 60i 5.1 and change it to what we really want.
a. On the video tab, verify that the codec is Windows Media Video 9.
b. Change the frame width to 1280 and the Height to 720
c. Verify 29.97 if that is what you shot, and Square Pixels.
d. Scroll down and find the Average Video Bitrate and set it to 5,000 if you are playing off of a DVD-ROM or CD and maybe leave it at 8Mbps if playing it from a hard drive.
My guess is that you didn’t realize you have to scroll down in that panel.
2. I have a faster PC and it still takes a long time to render HDV and to encode it to a new file.
3. The file size changes according to the bit rate not the frame size. Please note that the smaller the frame size the lower you can make the bit rate and get the same quality.
4. Changing the frame size was explained in step 1.
5. Rendering takes more time for HDV than DV. Just a fact of life.
6. Cineform Aspect HD will allow you to try it for 15 days. But be warned. It is so good you will want to pay the money. Don’t try it if you can’t afford it. It will only make you sorry you ever heard of it.
Keep in mind that Aspect HD will make editing easier, and you won’t render as often. However, you still need to render and exporting files takes just as long.
Steven
https://www.stevengotz.com