Better Video Quality

[marotti]

Hello,

I've tried several of the suggested players and encoders, as well as several different encoding techniques on the original video clips, but am still unimpressed :-(

The file: 100.asf that came with the Palm TX is the minimum quality that I would like to shoot for as I am showing samples of my video production capabilities, but the tools that I am using so far are not getting me the results :-(

I've used the tools that came with the TX, but they crush the file size down, and leave a clip that is blotchy and fuzzy. I have used the Core player to play other formats that I create from within Adobe Premiere and AfterEffects, but still not GREAT. I have tried PocketDVD but it seems flaky and the quality is no better than when I use SuperC a free encoder.

So What's the big secret??

How did they make the file 100.asf that came with the TX?

Why don't they just tell us how?

I could sell a bunch of these to my clients with their videos if I could figure this one out???

Thanks for your support!!

[khertan]

TCPMP and DivX with PocketEncoder ...

[_Em]

Try using the FFMpeg and mencoder encoders -- I'm generally very pleased with the quality from both. Make sure to set your data rate to around 800kbps, NTSC-Film framerate (~23fps), and resolution to somewhere in the ballpark of 320x480. For good quality encodes I generally do two or three pass encoding (using XviD). It takes a while, but gives you close-to-DVD-quality video. You might also want to try encoding to MP4 ahd H.264. Of course, you'll need the H.264 codec for TCPMP to play the last one ;)

[marotti]

Hello,

So far PocketDivxEncoder has worked best for me :-)

AM

[Sjweise]

I use fairUse Wizard to convert dvd video into mpeg4 Xvid video files and view them with TCPMP. There is an amazing amount of information about encoding video over at Brighthand.com. However, it was critical prior to TCPMP because the only media player we had was MMPlayer and it needed properly encoded video while TCPMP now can play just about anything and the only benefit to proper encoding now is file size.

[marotti]

Hello,

Well I am having some issues with playback smoothness. I am showing videos that I produce so I want them crisp and sharp as they were produced, but when I drive the quality up, I get that stuttering.

I am getting closer, but still not perfect.

BTW I am using a Palm TX (nice big screen) and a 2 Gb SD card.

Thanks!

[Sjweise]

marotti, what media player are you using? I use TCPMP and have never had any playback issues.

[MleB]

I've just recently gone to a Mac (yes, well....) and I'm finding the open source Handbrake works well.

Based on user experiences elsewhere for the TX and the software, I've more or less settled on -

15 fps
Target size: 232 MB
Video: 200 kbps
Audio: 96 kbps
2 pass
Picture setting: 320 x 240

It will want to save in AAC and while TCPMP no longer has that codec, it can still be found 'out there' for download. The whole process on a 2 hr movie take about a half hour on my base MacBook. A finished file will be around 250 MB.

Is it digital DVD quality playback? Well, no. But its pretty darn good for the TX screen and its limited horsepower and I've not experienced any stuttering...

[Nekkutta]

For DVD quality playback(as close as I can get on a TX) in TCPMP I use FairUse wizard to copy the movie to, say, a 800~900MB xvid avi, then I use AutoGK and do 2 pass transcoding to 320x480 450MB xvid avi, take in mind that is for a 90~100 minute movie. an easy math problem to figure out the size of the video is this: minutes*(<7&>4)=megabytes

Hope that helps

Nekkutta

[marotti]

Hello Everyone, Great Feedback :-)

Sjweise, I'm using TCPMP as well.

Everyone, I am using a corporate production as a test and it is only 30 seconds long. At between 4.5Mb and 5.5Mb I get the best picture quality with reasonable playback stability. I am probably pushing it with such large files for such a short piece. When I come down from 29.97 FPS to 15 FPS, I THINK I see some improvement.

Using ProcoderExpress I get fairly good results but it requires a lot of tweaking.

VirtualDub seems to give me the very best results, and pretty easily.

Here is a guide that was very helpful to me:

http://drhaisook.wordpress.com/2006/02/11/making-videos-for-palm/

I am still looking for improvements though.


Ah... to find the perfect setting... That's what life is all about :-)

[papitopaul]

The first place I look when I have questions like this is http://www.videohelp.com/ tools, forums, guides, FAQ, etc.

[Haisook]

Here is a guide that was very helpful to me:

http://drhaisook.wordpress.com/2006/02/11/making-videos-for-palm/
Hi there,

I'm Haisook, the author of the guide mentioned above.
I've just added a bunch of screenshots to make the guide even more useful.

Thanks.

[marotti]

Thank You :)

[marotti]

Hi there,

I'm Haisook, the author of the guide mentioned above.
I've just added a bunch of screenshots to make the guide even more useful.

Thanks.

BTW Excellent, very helpful.

Comment: I have a newer version of VD and it doesn't have the streams tab like the one you show; but it has an Audio Tab, which gets you where you want to be.


Question: With the above settings I get a very slight stuttering and some of my backgrounds have banding, like the color depth is too shallow. Not severe, but is there any way to get it to play more smoothly, and get rid of the banding?

I know the two are probably mutually exclusive, but what settings are best to experiment with?

Thanks Again :)

[JAmerican]

TCPMP and DivX with PocketEncoder ...

Took the words right out of my mouth.

http://www.jamerican.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=71

JAmerican

[Haisook]

BTW Excellent, very helpful.

Comment: I have a newer version of VD and it doesn't have the streams tab like the one you show; but it has an Audio Tab, which gets you where you want to be.

Question: With the above settings I get a very slight stuttering and some of my backgrounds have banding, like the color depth is too shallow. Not severe, but is there any way to get it to play more smoothly, and get rid of the banding?

I know the two are probably mutually exclusive, but what settings are best to experiment with?
Well, the version I have is VirtualDubMod 1.5.10.1 -- I think I need to add that - and your hint - in the guide to avoid confusion. Thanks.

As to the stuttering, I don't get any (running 15 fps) except occasionally when toggling pause/play pretty fast, or when fast-forwarding. The playback is generally smooth. I even use a T|E2, which is supposed to be fairly slower than your TX. Have you been runnning something in the background? Do you launch TCPMP via a 3rd party launcher? Try to launch it from Palm's native Applications menu.

As to the color depth, it's related to the display quality of the handheld itself; 16.7 million colors versus 65 thousand. You get the idea.
Another cause might be the Target Quantizer value; lower it for better results, but you get bigger sizes.

Hope this helps.