User Defined frame size

[markl951]

Why is it that you can't activate the user defined frame size when trying to define a custom movie template or edit an existing one on the fly during a file save operation?

Template Options_MPEG.jpg (39.38 KiB) Viewed 20565 times

Is it a limitation of the Ulead MPEG.Now Encoder? If so it there a way to make VS (X4 in my case) see other MPEG encoders? I recall that this feature worked back in the day when VS11 was new.

I have a few video clips that are quicktime.mov at 852x480, 1.4Mbps. I converted them to MPEG (same frame size) using another program so they would be easier to edit in my VS project. Now I can't save my project back to MPEG at the same frame size. When I create video file using "Same as First Video Clip" VS crashes. I've sent the dump file to Corel but no response back.

I tried searching the forum first but haven't found a suitable answer.

Thanks for any advice or help.

-mark

[Kingston]

I don't know why you would get an error, but it might be that 852 isn't divisible by 16. Try converting the MOV to MPEG-2 with dimensions at 864x480 instead of 852x480.

[Ron P.]

The various codecs that are used with video must meet standards. Part of those standards are the Frame sizes used. If you notice that VS now uses the MPEG-2 codec for NTSC and PAL DVD. So the standards require that the frame sizes allowed are:

• 720 × 480, 704 × 480, 352 × 480, 352 × 240 pixel (NTSC)
• 720 × 576, 704 × 576, 352 × 576, 352 × 288 pixel (PAL)

If you look at the options provided in the drop-down menu, you should see the above frame sizes. So if you're wanting to use MPEG-2 with VS, you need to select one of those frame sizes. The other video formats are not intended for DVD, and can not be used when producing a DVD, so they will allow just about any frame size.

If the end result is to be some other format like MOV, try sticking with it, but when you render your video file, use the Custom route, and try some different codec settings by pressing the Options button. Quicktime MOV allows the User Defined frame size. There's several video codecs provided for you to choose from if you're having problems with one, for example Sorenson video, Sorenson video 3.

[markl951]

Thanks Ron. I would agree that you have to stick to the standard but the fact remains that for my installation there seems to be no way to activate the user defined frame size for anything related to the MPEG encoder.

When saving a project, if I select "HDV 720p - 30p (for PC)" from the built in movie templates it will create a file with these non-editable properties.

MPEG files
24 bits, 1280 x 720, 29.97 fps
Frame-based
(MPEG-2), 16:9
Video data rate: 18300 kbps
Audio data rate: 384 kbps
MPEG audio layer 2, 48 KHz, Stereo

Those properties don't fit the MPEG standard you mentioned? I guess I was looking to create a variation on that with the 852x480 frame size. I'm not interested in creating a DVD so that's not the issue. Saving the project back to a .mov or .mp4 is where I was going. I've played with the quicktime .mov encoder without much success. MPEG-4 seems to work better but again there's no ability to create a custom frame size. It remains grayed out.

[Ron P.]

Right, Corel has limited the MPEG encoder to MPEG-2, which would use either the SD DVD spec frame sizes or HD spec frame sizes.

[Ken Berry]

if I select "HDV 720p - 30p (for PC)" from the built in movie templates it will create a file with these non-editable properties.

That is correct, and it is not just Video Studio or Corel which sets this. HDV 720p is, by international standard, 1280 x 720... and there's nothing you can do about it!

[Kingston]

I didn't have time last night to experiment with frame sizes, but this morning I used a video converter to create 852x480 and 854x480 and 864x480 MPEG-2 videos. In Corel VS, I used "Same as First Video Clip"trying to create a video from each of the converted videos. Both the 852x480 and 854x480 videos crashed VS. The 864x480 made it through okay, smart rendered.

The project settings were based on the 720x480 MPEG-2 preset.

[markl951]

The 864x480 made it through okay, smart rendered.

The project settings were based on the 720x480 MPEG-2 preset.

Well that's interesting. I'll give that a try sometime now that you've done all the experimentation...

I ended up rendering the project to uncompressed .avi at 852x480 and then used another program to covert it to MPEG-4. It wasn't very efficient but it worked.

My freinds and I all use the same HD 720p video camera. It creates video at 3,996Kbps, 1280x720(16:9), 29.97fps using the AVC(Main@L4.1) codec which is basically Apple Quicktime (.mov). VS doesn't seem to work well with these files so I convert them to HDV 720p - 30p (for PC), do my editing and then render the project in those same setting. Works great and I can convert the finished product back to slower bit rates to save disk space or back to other formats like MP4.

852x480 comes from using Quicktime's "export for desktop" feature. It takes the original 3,996Kbps 720p video and cuts the frame size in half and lowers the bit rate to ~1.4Kbps. These file version are smaller and easier to share over the internet. I was trying to render a VS project using several of these file versions when I ran into trouble...

Thanks for all the help and input guys.