VS 11+ Slow Rendering (DVD burning)

tt2ride · Post by **tt2ride** » Fri Jul 18, 2008 8:55 am

Hi,

I have finally able to create many VS projects. When it is time to create the DVD, it takes too long to render and create.

Specs:
-AMD 64 X2 2Ghz with 2GB Ram
-Win XP SP2
-Pictures are located on local drive
-AVCHD files (Sony HDR-SR11 m2ts files are located on external USB 2.0 drive
-Project size is 2.3GB and 34 min long (consist of 6 individual photoslides and video VS project files)
-I used all motion menu.

After 5 hours, the progress was only less than 20%. Then, I decided to move all the video files to local drive and re-create all the video VS projects. Now (I am still waiting....) 1:43 min later it is about 42% done. I made some progress in speed but still it is taking too long.

Questions:
-Is this normal for the size of my project? If not, what is the acceptable timeframe?
-Anything else I can do to improve the speed?
-Should I start doing everthing in my local HDD?
-Will a new Quad computer help improve the speed?
-Anything else I need to check to update?

Not sure if this is a software (VS+) or hardware problem.

Thanks for your help.

Post by **Ken Berry** » Fri Jul 18, 2008 10:29 am

I am afraid you are just learning the wondrously awful demands made by AVCHD video on computer resources. I am not particularly au fait with AMD processors, but I suspect that yours is simply not up to the job of editing AVCHD video. Moreover, if you are simply using VS11+, then you need to realise that it is only VS11.5+ which can handle AVCHD properly. For that, you need to install the 6 November 2007 update patch and the 8 November Power Pack which is free to registered users of VS11+. These can both be found on the Ulead.com website (Download > Updates).

Moreover, it seems to me that you are following a workflow which is guaranteed to stretch things out, particularly when it comes to AVCHD. You don't say what model your camera is, but you may need to consult its Manual to see whether you can downconvert the AVCHD mpeg-4 to DVD compatible standard definition mpeg-2 as part of the 'capture' (i.e. transfer) process of getting video from the camera to your computer.

If not, and you have transferred your AVCHD to your computer, and your aim is to produce a standard definition DVD, then you need to convert the AVCHD to standard definition mpeg-2 pretty quickly (Share > Create Video File > DVD). Given the demanding nature of AVCHD, and the possible resource constraints of your particular computer, it might indeed be better to have the AVCHD on an internal hard disk on your computer, rather than an external hard disk.

Your computer should be able to complete the conversion process, but be warned, it will still take some time to complete. You will see from my System button that I use a Quad. But even with that, I find that conversions of AVCHD take up to around 4 times real time i.e. a 10 minute AVCHD clip will take around 40 minutes to convert. It will be even longer for a non Quad machine such as yours.

Once you have your new standard definition mpeg-2, it should be relatively easy and quick to edit it. I am not clear whether by 'photoslides' you mean slideshows made up of still images, or actual images made from photo slides i.e. small transparencies. Nor is it clear whether these are supposed to be separate projects or all just one single project including the video segment.

If the latter, then put the photos and video in the main Editor timeline in the order you want them. Then select Share > Create Video File > DVD. This will produce a new DVD-compatible mpeg-2 of the entire project.

Note also that after you produce your new mpeg-2, you go to File > New Project. Don't worry about giving your new project a name. The objective is just to clear the timeline of your current project.

Once that is done, you select Share > Create Disc > DVD. The burning module will open. Use the Add Media button at the top to insert your new mpeg-2 in the burning timeline. Then go to the middle of the three icons in the bottom left of the burning screen. There is a little box beside the words 'Do not convert compliant mpeg files'. Make sure that box is ticked (it usually is by default). That way, your already compliant mpeg file will not be re-encoded. Then build your menus and burn.

Following all the foregoing steps, the burning process should now be quite short.

tt2ride · Post by **tt2ride** » Fri Jul 18, 2008 3:14 pm

Ken,

Thanks for the details! I left the computer running over night and this morning, I received the "unspecidied error".

I have to do all this again...

I separated all the pictures and videos into their own project (no mixing). So, I will try following your instructions to (Share > Create Video File > DVD) all AVCHD projects into Mpeg-2 first.

Since I am already able to handle AVCHD files with my VS11+, what will the 6 November 2007 update patch and the 8 November Power Pack offer?

Thanks again.

Post by **Ken Berry** » Fri Jul 18, 2008 9:36 pm

Perhaps I should have said that VS11.5+ will allow you to handle them *properly*!!!

tt2ride · Post by **tt2ride** » Tue Jul 22, 2008 6:52 am

Hi Ken,

Thanks for all your suggestions and tips. I actually have VS 11.5+ and got all the patches as suggested. I also built a new computer over the weekend hoping to finish all my projects faster.

New computer specs:
-Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300
-Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS3L
-4GB DDR2
-1TB Seagate 32MB cache SATA (all SATA)
-Nvidia Geforce 8500GT
-WIN XP SP3

I thought this new and faster computer will render all the *.VS projects without having to convert to *.avi (photoslide shows + AVCHD). Altogether I have 12 VS projects and about 3.7GB in size (~ 45min in length). Yet I was getting error.

So, my last method was to follow your instructions to convert all AVCHD files to file (*.avi). Then, I created a new project with Share > Create Video File > DVD and pull in all the 12 *.VS (photo only) and *.AVI (video only) projects. I ticked the 'Do not convert compliant mpeg files'. It finally finished after about 60 minutes for the very first time. I watched the DVD right away and came to find out all the video projects have no audio. The pictureslide show (*.VS) projects were not converted and they are fine with audio.
After all those time spent, there is no audio!

I played all the *.avi files created from VS11.5+ and can confirm there is audio.

Can you please help point out what went wrong that I missed the audio in the DVD creation part?

Thanks.

Tom

Post by **Ken Berry** » Tue Jul 22, 2008 8:54 am

Sorry but I am now totally confused. Nowhere did I suggest you convert the AVCHD to .avi files. I said they had to be converted to DVD-compatible mpeg-2 which is a totally different format. So you convert each of the AVCHD files or project to a single mpeg-2 by selecting Share > Create Video File > DVD. You can do the same thing with your photo slideshows.

Then when you have all these new mpeg-2 files, you choose File > New Project. Don't worry about a name for the new project -- the objective is just to clear the timeline. Then you select Share > Create Disc > DVD (note that this is different from Share > Create Video File.) The burning module opens and you insert the mpeg-2 files, NOT the .vsp project files in the burning timeline in the order you want. Build your menus and burn.

tt2ride · Post by **tt2ride** » Tue Jul 22, 2008 3:31 pm

Hi Ken,

Sorry. I know what I did wrong. I choose Share>Create Video File>DV instead of DVD. The menu has a lot of selections and I was confused. I will try it again. Now I know how to create mpeg-2 files.

FYI. I tried pulling in 5 long clips of *.m2ts (Sony HDR-SR11) with 3.9GB and 1H 6Min long to Share>Create Disc>DVD. Surprisingly, it rendered and produced the DVD successfully!

But I cannot do the same with shorter multiple *.m2ts clips. Is it because it is more complicated with transitions and effects?

Thanks again Ken.

Post by **Ken Berry** » Tue Jul 22, 2008 9:57 pm

I would have thought it would work just the same. But I personally would first render my project consisting of the .m2ts files into DVD-compatible mpeg-2s in the Editor module as I already suggested above: Share > Create Video File > DVD. And once that was done, you go to File > New Project. Don't worry about giving your new project a name. The objective is just to clear the timeline of your current project.

Once that is done, you select Share > Create Disc > DVD. The burning module will open. Use the Add Media button at the top to insert your new mpeg-2 in the burning timeline. Then go to the middle of the three icons in the bottom left of the burning screen. There is a little box beside the words 'Do not convert compliant mpeg files'. Make sure that box is ticked (it usually is by default). That way, your already compliant mpeg file will not be re-encoded. Then build your menus and burn.

tt2ride · Post by **tt2ride** » Thu Jul 24, 2008 12:56 am

Update...

I gave it a shot with my new Core 2 Quad Q9300 computer and I was able to render and burn successfully 12 projects (mixture of photos and *.m2ts files) without conversion to mpeg-2. The total size was 3.8GB and about 47min long. It took about 3 hours to render and burn to disc. I celebrated when I saw the message Project is completed and DVD disc ejected. I saved the project for future editing and hopefully I can repeat this.

Thanks Ken for all your help!