Mercalli - The video analysis must be executed again

[mrbios]

SOLUTION when a newly rendered video displays the text message::
"Video effect proDAD Mercalli: The video analysis must be executed again."

I confirmed the hypothesis stated earlier in this topic that this one solution by itself should resolve the problem whenever it comes up: So once you are on the Share tab click the box"Same as Project Settings" then render the file.

My testing showed that this is NOT always necessary and depends on the source file being stabilized and what has been chosen for the output settings. But when it happens clicking the box will fix the problem. You might need to deal with the files you want to stabilize first by exporting them to a new file then combine them with the rest of the project.

Test Info: Mercalli v2.0 Plugin VS X9.
I had only ONE short 30 second clip shot on a generic GoPro - Akaso v50 Elite $120 in 2019 on Amazon (the camera has very poor stabilization). Video was shot in MOV AVC encoding and AAC compression 1080p @ 60fps aka FHD and exported the same except that I changed the bit rate to 5000

Properties box shows:
NTSC non-drop frame (30 fps)
MPEG-4 Files
24 bits, 1920 x 1080, 60.034 fps
Frame-based
H.264 High Profile Video: 32919 Kbps
48000 Hz, 16 Bit, Mono
MPEG AAC Audio: 96 Kbps
Mercalli Plugin by proDAD is used by many video editing programs.

My own personal notes & explanation for using this Plugin in VideoStudio:

My Setup for the test:
I opened VS X9 and put only this 1080p60 video file on the timeline and drag & dropped and accepted default settings of Mercalli, clicked OK, and waited for the dialog box analyzing to complete.

Part I:
verify that the plugin is installed on your computer - if it is then proDAD Mercalli will appear in the list of effects under FX. If it is not there then you must install the plugin Mercalli_x64.exe. Note proDAD makes several effects and each is a separate exe install file.

Part II:
1 To apply click on the FX clip Mercalli and drag & drop on top of the video clip you want to apply it to.
2. You *must click "Customize Filter" and configure how you want the clip stabilized including an option for rolling shutter.
While the plugin could include some basic default stabilizing settings it does not so you must always double click the clip you are applying this FX on the click "Customize Filter" and at a minimum click OK and wait for the analysis dialog box to complete. If you skip these steps the clip will be branded with a watermark or message that says:

"Video effect proDAD Mercalli: The video analysis must be executed again."

Part III:
NOTE: If you save / share / export the video and it has the message then the plugin was not able to process the output file do to a combability issue. For example the video is FHD 1080@30fps with a bit rate that is "to low" for the plugin. Solution: click "Same as Project Settings" on the share or export window but if you have clips with different frame rates you might need to process just only the clips that are of the same frame rate then bring the exported "processed" files into a new project and edit and render as usual.

In theory this should not happen because the program should apply Mercalli's stabilization to video the video clip then be able to save / export the final result to any format.... but the newly rendered file had the message "Video effect proDAD Mercalli: The video analysis must be executed again." until I clicked on "Same as Project Settings" then it worked. I think the problem is that the effect is ONLY applied in one step during rendering process and it so the target bit rate etc matters.

One Solution would be a two step process: 1. Apply Mercalli and export "Same as Project Settings" then take that output file and put it in a new timeline and select the desired final format.

Part IV: Final thoughts -- Don't waste time trying to stabilize in Post with VS or other programs.
The Mercalli plugin is included with VS for free took probably many hours of experimenting and help from this forum to figure out. In limited testing I'm not happy with the stabilized the quality of the video. My brother uses Final Cut Pro (FCP) on an M1 mac mini and he said has not have good results and prefers a camera with good stabilization (even if is digital IS like GoPro HyperSmooth or OSMO RockSteady). He also uses iPhone 12 Pro Max with IS turned on AND a phone gimbal and says there is no real replacement for physical stabilization.


Curse of 3rd party plugins:
*VideoStudio 2022 and up.... Never assume that a newer version of VS will solve these problems because often the same version of a plugin is used for many years and that is why you run into the same problems even with "the latest version" of the program thinking "this must have been solved by now".

Also, other programs like Sony Vegas, FCP, etc use 3rd party plugins and sometimes even the exact same plugins! This is the nature of editing digital files - many vendors products can be applied to a single file. GoPro & Insta360 both sometimes require preprocessing with their desktop software before you can bring the file into your favorite video editor. Just when you think you have mastered VS or another editor you open a plugin and will need to spend time to learn it and it's quirks.

[tletter]

Don't waste time trying to stabilize in Post with VS or other programs.

This is certainly not a conclusion that is supported by my experience. Mercalli can make even production stabilized clips appear more stable when the correct camera and parameters in Mercalli are selected.

... there is no real replacement for physical stabilization.

In an ideal world, however, in the real world physical stabilization is not always possible, and even when possible, it is not always effective. Stabilization in post-production can help, but if you don't like the results, then try changing the camera and adjusting its parameters in Mercalli.

tletter
https://www.youtube.com/user/tletter

[mrbios]

Don't waste time trying to stabilize in Post with VS or other programs.

This is certainly not a conclusion that is supported by my experience. Mercalli can make even production stabilized clips appear more stable when the correct camera and parameters in Mercalli as selected.

... there is no real replacement for physical stabilization.

In an ideal world, however, in the real world physical stabilization is not always possible, and even when possible it is not always effective. Stabilization in post-production can help, but if you don't like the results, then try changing the camera and adjusting its parameters in Mercalli.

tletter
https://www.youtube.com/user/tletter

Both great points and I hope I can figure it out more because it was a lot of up front work to get things to work without errors and I was trying to figure out if it is worth spending more time learning what the settings in Mercalli do. Maybe you have some tips or a guide? I mostly looking to stabilize that generic gopro.

I'm probably going to get either the DJI OSMO Action Cam or Insta360 One R or both when the chip shortage ends. Was just hoping to get the Akaso good enough to use a second camera or have it pointed at the ground or me etc.

[lata]

Mrbios
First thanks for running tests and providing the info…
A couple of points here…
First you appear to be using CVS X9 which is quite old, 5 years old, things have changed over the years.
For VS 2021 the Prodad plugins have been replaced with newer versions, Mercalli Pro Dad 5.0
Then your video sample appears to be using a variable frame rate of 60.034 fps.
We are aware that video studio does not cope well with some variable frame rates, I assume Mercalli will be the same.

As for VS 2021 it was unfortunately released with a Mercalli issue where multiple use caused the previous clips to be analysed again, that issue has as far as I know been fixed with the latest service pack.
And for 2022 who knows what Corel will change, but I would have thought there will be no change to the prodad plugins, just have to wait for that.

Post Updated
I have tested Mercalli and unfortunately can say there is a problem with analysing again
I have passed my comments on to the Corel Dev Team

A little confused as I had thought this issue had been fixed.

[davefoc]

Thank you to Mrbios. I screwed with this problem for several hours today. The closest I got to a solution was to change the output file to 30fps which seemed to work except that YouTube spit up on the results. When I clicked the "Same as Project Settings" checkbox stuff instantly worked.