The Compression Thread, Stop the madness! Options

[dick fitzwell]

POST 4000 YEAHHHHHHHHH



Ok, probably 2 out of 3 threads in here are the same questions about compression for this or that and its pretty much ruined this forum, so hopefully this thread will put an end to all this crap and we can get back to talking about ramp slomos and serial numbers

if you have anything to ask about compression FUCKING POST IN HERE, or even better read through the thread as its probably been answered

ok so, where to start....

compressing is taking your full quality clip, and lessening the filesize, therefore making it lower quality. you can generally compress your clips straight out of your editing program, but this is also generally not the best method as other programs can do a better job. so if you want to use another program youll have to first export your video in full quality.


exporting full quality



this is the basic form of exporting a clip, you export it as the same format you capture it and you do this when you want to take the clip to another program, have a clip youve made, exporting for your final vid or whatever.

PC users


PCs deal in AVI, the windows video format. standard firewire capturing will capture in dv avi, but you can export as this, or as uncompressed avi.
the latter will result in huge file sizes but will always retain quality, while dv avi will slightly reduce it if you have added any type of effect to the footage.

in premiere

file > export > movie

from then you can click on settings and either keep the standard dv avi option, or change it to microsoft (uncompressed) avi.

in vegas

for dv avi - file > render as > video for windows AVI

for uncompressed - file > render as > default template

in movie maker

choose 'save video to my computer' and when the export options come up choose other, then avi from the list

from final cut (mac)

macs use quicktime (mov) files. to export a full quality mov file choose file > export > quicktime movie. done

in after effects (pc)

Composition > add to render queue

click on render settings, use these settings



click on output module, and use these settings



click on format options there if you want to switch between dv and uncompressed

to choose where to save the file, click on output to and choose location and the name.
Click render and sit tight.


to keep these settings, click the dropdown button next to RS or OM and choose 'make template'. click edit and input the appropriate settings, then choose a name for your settings. up the top select 'movie default' and choose your new settings. these will now be the default for your clips.






exporting for web

this is the big one

as you should have noticed, the full quality avi /mov files are huuuuge, way to big to put online. so you need to compress them
as a rule of thumb files are compressed to mov, as you can get the best results using this format.


the way this is done is by exporting full quality as above, and using a 3rd party program to compress the files, as they are designed more for this and so can achieve better results. for example, premiere pro has the option to export as mov, but youre never gonna get it how you want.

so what to use...

mpeg streamclip

the most common one is mpeg streamclip, as its free. download this from www.squared5.com

here are some decent settings to compress to a mov file (thanks RileyH)



and some more settings from Kyle T



example footage - youtube
vimeo

quicktime pro

another cheap alternative, quicktime pro has an advantage of being able to cut clips down and drag them into others to export a number of clips as one. purchase from here for just $30

go to file > export and use the H.264 compression settings. here are some great ones

Keyframe Every: 150 for NTSC, 125 for PAL
then for quality either set it from medium or high anywere in between wont really matter depending on what file size you want.
Data Rate:Automatic
Size:320-240 if you want
De-Interlace source footage

sound settings-

Format:AAC
Channels: stereo l&r
Rate 32.000

QTP also has the ability to easily convert movs to avis, for users taking files from FCP into premiere or vegas.


sorenson squeeze

SS is the much more expensive option, but is seriously useful.

the most common settings used are the infamous 'super settings'. they give a great quality, small file size mov file. Super Settings are best used when youre going to host the file in its original mov state, rather than on a site that converts to flash

these settings can be downloaded from here (thanks to FellaFilmer) and imported into sorenson. to do that -

-unzip the file you downloaded
-in SS, under format and compression settings, click on quicktime
-click on the '+' icon underneath
-click import and select the xss file you just unzipped
-the settings will be imported. choose a name at the top, and hit OK. these will now become an option in the list of quicktime presets

alternatively, these settings can be manually inputted. use the same method as above, but instead of choosing import, enter all these settings.



NOTE - IF YOURE IN NTSC REGION, CHANGE THE FRAME RATE TO 30, IF YOURE IN PAL LAND MAKE IT 25


note - with any of these web compression settings, you may want to up the bitrate a little if you are planning to upload to a site that will convert your file to flash


Alot of sites, such as SP vids, convert to flash, so youre gonna want to have your vid a little higher quality than that. Heres some random settings i made that i use, feel free to try them and tweak them, just make sure to let me know your results!





youtube compression

youtube is a little different, as it is a pile of shit. the level of compression it puts on an uploaded clip is ridiculous, so you may want to compress it significantly less before uploading here. i'll leave this part open to contributions for the moment, but here are a few methods ive used.

Sorenson Squeeze - The Full Quality Mov Method

heres the SS settings i use for youtube uploading. this compression also gives you a very near full resolution mov file whilst still keeping a pretty good file size. input method is above



again note the framerate for your region
also set 'keyframe every' to 150 for NTSC, 125 for pal. just remember it as 5 times your regions framerate

id say this result is pretty decent as far as youtube vids go.example video


note - these are different from the first SS settings that were here when i made this thread. that actually gave a worse video with a larger file size!

the movie maker way!

i know right? i just finally got round to trying this. take your file into wmm, and simply save as 'best quality for playback on my computer. a very simple method that doesnt come out too bad at all considering. example video
the file size is also good, making a 3:10 video just 40 mb while still looking good. click

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
note - yes we know mikendo has some amazing youtube compression settings. hes not going to tell you what they are. give it up





compressing for DVD

video files need to be converted to MPEG2 before being burned to disc. BUT the files you take into your dvd program do not need to be mpeg2 files, as the program can convert them itself. so export as full quality avi or mov (as earlier) and take them to your program. that stops the files from needlessly being compressed twice. once they are in there higher end dvd programs such as encore will have transcode settings that you can tweak to get the best results. a full guide on using those are HERE



NOTE - this is pretty incomplete at the moment. if anyone can contribute some more decent settings, especially settings for youtube from any program, or some settings for mpeg2 files through FCPs compressor, or just any other good shit, get it to me somehow so i can get it in here. i really wana make this a complete thread for compressing to end all these repetitive threads

[ErickValentic]

Really usefull for everyone who always ask for good compression lol.

[HCampbell]

good stuff but for all of you out there with sorenson squeeze or quickttime or whatever here is another great link! I used the sorenson squeeze one( but making mine widescreen) it works great..

http://www.take247.com/article.php?id=4

[EricRyan]

I'm having some issues with compressor just like Charlie Hayes.

I've ran through the troubleshooting options on the apple site, but I'm still no closer to making it run. I've come to my last resort, I'm gonna reformat, and hope it pulls through. If that fucks up, I would just buy FCS 2.

Last night, I noticed leopard seemed to be the cause of this problem. Or that's the idea people from the mac forums were giving off. I also noticed FCS 2 might not be compatible with leopard.

Anybody have anymore information on this? Or what other program I could use to convert to mpeg2. I thought QT pro or even mpeg streamclip could be capable, but I can't get anywhere. I ended up wasting $20 on a component I already had, and that didn't even fucking work.

[Collin R]

the compression setting that Wes. had on here awhile ago for FCP worked the best for me.

from this thread.

[tmg93]

with mpeg streamclip.... do we always put the limit data rate to .23?

[MikeGugs]

I hate MIKENDO for not sharing his secret (its understandable though). Ive been working with sorenson squeeze and FC but cant get tht quality on youtube. Could he have made a flash file tht was amazing quality because supposedly youtube doesn't change flash files once their uploaded on?


----MIKE

[Chad Matthews]

Is there any way to compress a video in final cut? I plan on getting quicktime pro soon but I need a quick fix for now.

[dick fitzwell]

theres this from the main site, let me know if its any good

[SteveLaClair]

I'm having some issues with compressor just like Charlie Hayes.

I've ran through the troubleshooting options on the apple site, but I'm still no closer to making it run. I've come to my last resort, I'm gonna reformat, and hope it pulls through. If that fucks up, I would just buy FCS 2.

Last night, I noticed leopard seemed to be the cause of this problem. Or that's the idea people from the mac forums were giving off. I also noticed FCS 2 might not be compatible with leopard.

Anybody have anymore information on this? Or what other program I could use to convert to mpeg2. I thought QT pro or even mpeg streamclip could be capable, but I can't get anywhere. I ended up wasting $20 on a component I already had, and that didn't even fucking work.

Personally for smaller clips I've got way better results with qt conv in FCP than doing exports in compressor.

[Chad Matthews]

theres this from the main site, let me know if its any good

I thought I did it right but it turned out terrible... oh well.

[jrabb]

when i go to save after compressing on sorenson squeeze i can only save to .sqz, but that doesnt upload to like any site? so waht do i do?

[dick fitzwell]

haha thats saving your project. after youve added your compression settings to the clip press the 'squeeze it' button, then when its compressed look in the folder where your original clip is and your compressed file will be in there

[sanders608]

alright quick question, i use imovie to import my shit onto my comp, which would be a better choice for me to save my file as so it will have the best quality, the imovie like .m4something something, or save it as a fcp .xml?.. i just save the files in imovie so i can take them to finalcut, so which would be the best option?

[phillip]

with mpeg streamclip.... do we always put the limit data rate to .23?

no, it depends on what size/quality you want the file to be. for example if you make it 56 KB/s then it will be a very small file size but very bad quality, and if you make it 200 KB/s then the file will be larger, but the quality will be significantly better. it all depends on what you want for each video you are compressing.

[MikeGugs]

What about flash conversion any info on that?

[phillip]

What about flash conversion any info on that?

increase the bitrate as much as you can, while keeping the file small enough to be uploaded to whatever flash conversion site

[dick fitzwell]

that goes for any compression, thats the general idea of it

[TheD3]

using mpeg steamclip, if i have a 17 minute clip and need to compress it to under 100mb, what should i put the "limit data rate" to? also, i tried compressing the clip one time and it came out just white with no sound. any ideas on what i could've screwed up on?

[sanders608]

alright quick question, i use imovie to import my shit onto my comp, which would be a better choice for me to save my file as so it will have the best quality, the imovie like .m4something something, or save it as a fcp .xml?.. i just save the files in imovie so i can take them to finalcut, so which would be the best option?