Combining clips from different sources

[dexter44]

I have two main questions:

1) Is it possible to create a Movie file including clips from different sources, where one source is "Upper Field First" and the other "Lower"? On a more general level, must every clip used in creating the movie file have identical properties (i.e., audio, field order, etc..)?

2) In my use of SE8, I've typically taken my captured video and immediately converted audio to mpg2 format. But, I now wish to take video (mpg file) from another source, which includes audio in digital dolby. In SE8, it appears that video studio is able to work only with either mpeg2 or LPCM (sp?). When I try to load the dolby video clip into timeline, SE8 plays only the video.. no audio to be heard.
Any solutions to this??

Thanks in advance to those who, unlike me, truly know what they're doing.

[Ken Berry]

1) It is certainly possible to create a video using input with mixed field orders. However, whether it will be watchable is another matter. Making a single project video will have to use one or the other of the Field Orders i.e. either Lower Field First or Upper Field First (or Frame Based). However, if, say, your final video uses LFF, and you have UFF video included, this will not display correctly in the final video. The parts which are using the opposite to the final Field Order will at the very least appear very jerky.

In general, you should always try to use video with similar properties throught a project. However, this will not be so important with other properties than Field Order and, depending which ones you are using, the actual format of the video itself. It is probably not a good idea to mix DV/AVI, mpeg-2 and one or more of the more highly compressed mpeg-4 formats, let alone WMV.

Even using mpeg-4 or WMV alone appears to cause a lot of problems for a lot of people. So mixing them with other formats and then attempting to render the whole project into a single format is more than likely to compound the problems.

Other properties, such as bitrate and audio format, are commonly mixed and matched into a final single video. Be aware though that if you have video at a lower bitrate than other video in the project, and use a higher final bitrate, the lower bitrate parts will not improve in quality even though they will be 'upgraded' to the final bitrate. (It's a 'can't make a silk purse from a sow's ear' sort of thing!)

2) VS8 -- either full or SE versions -- was not originally designed to work with Dolby of any kind. Ulead in fact brought out a Dolby dual channel stereo plug-in which did in fact work with it, but it cost about US$30 at the time and is no longer available. And it did not, if I recall correctly, work with an SE version anyway.

Your alternative is of course to upgrade to a more recent version of Video Studio which works natively with Dolby.

You might alternatively want to try searching for the free AC-3 filter available on videohelp.com -- this will at least let you download the Dolby into VS8 SE. But once there, it will not output to Dolby. It's input only. You can only output it to LPCM or mpeg layer 2 audio.

[dexter44]

Ken,
Thanks for the response.
A couple of follow-ups to make sure I understand correctly.

To take the second issue first: Conclusion is that I either upgrade to VS10 (or 9), OR use the AC3filter. Not being able to encode to AC3 is not a problem.. .since I want to have it in LPCM or MPEG2 to be compatible with VS8se. So perhaps the filter should be first choice. (mistake?) Also, in using the filter, I'm assuming that I would run filter first, decoding the AC3 audio and re-encoding to either LPCM or MPEG2. Is it this "simple"?

Now for the first issue:
Hope I'm not coming across as overly dense, but...
Typically, I might work on more than one VSProject, and render more than one video (mpeg); and then later include both video's in the Burn segment, adding titles, etc..
Question: Are you saying that BOTH projects/video files must be have the same video properties (esp LFF or UFF)? Or did you say that video properties must be identical WITHIN EACH video file, but may be shared in the final, authored DVD that's burned??
(My clumsy wording only makes obvious my lack of experience in this area.)

Thanks again in advance!
Nick

[Ken Berry]

Re the AC-3 filter, I has been years since I used it. But my recollection is that you install it, and it operates in the background when you run VS8 and import a file with AC-3 audio on it. It allows you to hear the audio within VS8, but that is all. You then re-encode to LPCM or mpeg-2 out. Read the instructions which come with it, since it has changed since I last used it (more features).

As for the mixed properties, I had read your original question as applying to mixing Field Orders in a single *editing project* aimed at producing a single video file i.e. not a DVD.

If you produce individual video files which have different Field Orders and other properties, but are otherwise DVD-compatible, then yes, they can all be burned to a single DVD with no problem.

Make sure that 'Do not convert compliant mpeg files' is ticked in the second (Options) gearbox icon in the burning page bottom left. Then VS does not try to re-encode the files to all the same properties. It simply burns them as is. Since they are all DVD-compliant, a DVD player will play them with no trouble.

[roy wood]

If you have a DVD re-write disc laying around why not try it one way and then the other. You may find the result is acceptable to you.