IMovie 10 and DV Video Quality

Does anyone know how iMovie handles DV? Previous versions used Single Field Processing, which threw away every other line of the video. This resulted in very degraded video quality upon export, especially if exporting to a DVD.
I doubt very seriously that this was fixed in the new iMovie, but it’s worth asking.

Some additional info.
A 1920x1080 black and white test image was created. The image consists of 120x120 pixel squares. The first two squares in each direction contain 60 black and 60 white lines, i.e. lines with a width of one pixel. The next two squares contain 30 black and 30 white lines, i.e. lines with a width of two pixels. The source image is located here: http://i.imgur.com/AFkrw6L.png
This image was copied 200 times into a numbered sequence. The image sequence was made into a short movie using QuickTime Pro 7. Two versions of that movie were exported: a 25p and a 50i (interlaced) version. Both short movies were imported in iMovie 9.0.9 and iMovie 10.0.1. A text effect was added to add some movement to the movies. The movies were exported to 1080p format via the Share option in iMovie. iMovie 9 exports to .mov files, iMovie 10 exports to .mp4 files.
What can be seen from these 4 exported movies? Both iMovie 9 and iMovie 10 handle progressive video without dropping lines. The full resolution is preserved. iMovie 10 also handles interlaced video without dropping lines. But iMovie 9 (=iMovie '11) and older (since iMovie '8) do not handle interlaced video correctly. Half of the horizontal lines are discarded ("single-field processing"). Also in the horizontal direction resolution is lost; each pair of two horizontal pixels is averaged. Thus a scaled down resolution of 960x540 pixels is used for processing interlaced video in iMovie 9 (and older). This can be seen in the iMovie 9.0.9 50i Test movie. The upper left square is white; the black lines are discarded! The second square is gray; horizontally each pair of two pixels is averaged.

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New 27 iMAC keeps crashing iMovie and freezing videos on YouTube & Quicktime

We just got a new Sept 2013 iMac three days ago, purchased refurbished from the Apple Store online. The whole point of the purchase was to be able to use iMovie to thoroughly edit videos for our YouTube channel, use garage band, lots of internet surfing and video watching etc. We spent the extra dollars to get what we thought was the most improved version of the iMac with all the souped up specs in order to avoid any hassle and headaches from a lack of performance. Here's what we have:
3.4GHz quad-core Intel Core i7
27-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit display with IPS technology; 2560-by-1440 resolution
8GB (two 4GB) of 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM
1TB hard drive (We have only used 80 GBs of it so far, so plenty of space left)
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 775M graphics processor with 2GB of GDDR5 memory
720p Camera & Mic
OS X 10.9
We're feeling a bit duped now as this seems to have turned out to just be a big expensive piece of junk. Here are our problems:
- Firstly, thank goodness that we had our own Logitech HD camera/mic left over from our PC because the "HD camera" built in to the iMac is worse in quality than my old blackberry curve. Grainy, lack luster, mic has sharp and distant sound, really really bad and false advertisement.
- In the middle of using iMovie (iMac came preinstalled with the newest one, i think its 10?), it will stop responding properly or will crash and close, we wont even have any other programs running.
- When opening Quicktime to record a new video, in the middle of a recording or while the recording window is idle, it will start glitching - flashing between live footage and a freeze frame repeatedly. The only way to stop it is to quit out Quicktime and open again and try to record quickly, or in some cases we have to completely restart the iMac, which then still randomly in the middle of a recording or idle window it will continue to flash and glitch. (You can view an example here in the last minute of one of our videos, we tried to make it work and kept the take since we were doing our outro music dance, but it totally ***** when this happens randomly during our content portion and we have to redo recording. http://youtu.be/MAJzaEShJGw?t=4m34s )
- When watching YouTube videos, the computer takes a while to respond to a command, like if we click on a certain part of the video, it will not load it until we press the pause/play button a few times and wait. Also at the beginning of a video it will start glitching and freezing again, similar to how we explained above in the quicktime, but faster.
If you are familiar with what could be the problem or have any advice, PLEASE HELP, we are concerned that after dropping so much money within just 3 days of use, this iMac is not performing flawlessly in the areas that we most needed and want to know if these issues are common and fixable or if its a defect that would require we send this thing back immediately. We did not get apple care and would hate to have wasted money that we really dont have on a glitchy crashing huge piece of junk.
Want to mention a few other pros and cons unrelated to our issues, for those who may be considering buying one too:
PROS:
- The Magic mouse is really great, particularly because of the scrolling and zooming gestures. (Though sometimes i accidentaly swipe in a browser and go back to a previous page losing any information that was input on the page i was originally on, for example, i had to retype this whole apple imac inquiry because i swiped backwards by mistake and the whole form cleared! annoying, wish the horizontal swipe navigated between tabs instead of going through the page view history.)
- When the imovie is not crashing, after watching some tutorials and making a few vids, its a really greatly improved program from the '09 version we used to use. I import and edit videos much faster now, and footage does not freeze or take time to load while im dragging and dropping, it is immediately responsive.
- Love using the Talk to text function (like Siri) by pressing "fn" twice. Use this to write long emails and papers with ease. Would like to see a "Speak" read back option that allows for text to be selected and read back (like Siri on iPad)
CONS:
- The text is SO small everywhere and there is no option to exactly set text size across the whole system, only option given is to set a different resolution which lessens the quality of the screen with pixelation, and some programs give you the option to set custom sized text in their individual preferences.
- Sometimes in both iMovie & Garageband, simple automated functionality will stop working, for example in iMove, when certain screens or images are dragged and dropped to the work area by the activity bar (i dont know what else to call it, the line that rolls across during playback or stays put when pressing spacebar) usually, that screen or image will click into place to align with the activity bar and will highlight the bar yellow to further communicate that alignment before you drop it, but after extended use in a session, that snapping into alignment when adding items stops working. Or sometimes you can drag and drop the ends of a title screen to adjust/trim the clip, but after extended time that too stops responding and does not let the cursor turn into that arrow that allows you to trim or extend, until after many frustrated clicks or a quit and restart.
- When sharing/exporting a video from iMovie, i would recommend unchecking the add to theatre option because it significantly extends the amount of time needed to complete the action and i found out the theatre is just like a video stream of your movies to be shared on icloud for easy access from your other devices (similar to the icloud photostream connected to iPhoto). It takes the time to make the video readily availabe in various sizes on the Mac server for easy access, which means it takes forever for your video to be exported to where you actually want it. This is not something we need and is not worth the wait time. (For example, last ime we left the theatre box checked, the progress status of the video was estimated to be completed in 351 minutes, and then 20 minutes later that somehow inclreased to 385 minutes, then duddenly it was done, so i think this add to theatre option also cause the progress status updates to go berzerk.)

Given the maximum RAM that model can use is 32GB, and the earlier release of that 27" mid-2013 iMac is nearly the same in most regards, you may note the listing of this slightly older iMac 27" is here in an Apple support document...
•iMac: How to remove or install memory:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1423
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1423#1
The images of where the RAM chips are located, behind a metal plate, should be similar in your iMac and the mid-2013 iMac 27" shown in images on that page. Note there are several models discussed.
You could take the computer to a certified Apple service facility (retail store, or specialist reseller) and pay them to do this, and buy the RAM from them, and you will pay for this at a retail level. If they do it, you'd want to be assured the computer did all the things you sought to cure by upgrading RAM, correctly without fault. Like run tests and stuff.... Or there's no reason to not go ahead (after confirming from Apple) that you could buy quality RAM and do this job yourself, citing the Apple page link I'd posted above.
Contact Apple Support:
http://www.apple.com/support/contact/
You'd have to obtain the correct RAM (as indicated in my earlier post, citing MacTracker) of suitable quality for use in a Macintosh computer, and the recommendation for a DIY is to get the kit from 'Other World Computing' OWC online at their site. You can talk to knowledgable sales staff at OWC about what you have and what you need, and to help they may ask for the product serial number.
This is OWC and they have the spec RAM required for your iMac 27" model; double-check info:
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/memory/iMac/2012_27/DDR3L
Since yours is an Apple Refurbished model it will have a different number series. Unlike those in a retail store, because Apple does that to tell what ones they refurbished; refurbs I bought online were like that.
With questions during the first three months, you can get 'support' under the initial 90-day span of ownership of the new (and certified) Apple refurbs bought online; the other part of that is 'service' for 1 year. Call a nearest retail Apple Store, to set a genius appointment; or go online, and start the process of reporting your issue, while you still have some kind of warranty on the device. They can diagnose the issues you cite and tell you if you can upgrade the RAM (as you likely can) then you can buy and install the RAM yourself and probably pay less than 1/2 the retail rate, if you get some from OWC. A diagnosis is free if the Genius looks into it, but you'd need to set an appointment & lug the iMac to their store; protected from weather/shock.
If you want to extend the complementary service to three years (less the included 90-days) and add two years of AppleCare service, that is an affordable option of about $170. For a total of three years coverage.
{If you had a 21.5-inch iMac the RAM would require a service department visit where they use a different method to install the RAM upgrade. Those are built differently than the 27-inch iMac.}
There is a bit of detailed important information in the Apple link on how to upgrade the iMac RAM. There is a certain amount of RAM installed already and these chips would likely be removed if you get matching sets of new RAM to upgrade the capacity. And no matter what some say, there is a reason why they can be upgraded with more. Even with Mavericks OS X 10.9.x and its 'memory compression' etc, it would gladly accept all the RAM upgrade chips it could swallow. (Behind metal screen, mid-bottom iMac 27")
You may need to consider questions about applications that use system resources separate from those about whatever issues your iMac seems to exhibit. There may be some other cause of the video and iMovie symptoms, but more RAM won't hurt given the beast you bought can use 32GB and it has 8.
And if it seems too much to handle, you have 14 days from date of
purchase to take it back. Contact them ahead of then, if you do.
Hopefully this helps.
Good luck & happy computing!

Exporting To GarageBand and Final Video Quality

I need to export a Keynote slideshow to Garageband to add a soundtrack and I need to have the best quality video possible. Does it matter what size slide I start with when creating the presentation?
I would create the slideshow in iPhoto or iDVD for better video quality, but I need to add titles, graphics, etc to some of the slides.

because it is rendered, i have clicked on "sequence -> render audio" and nothign happens, it just plays through like it would once it has finished rendring.
like i said, it plays fine in playback, most of the time, just not after it has been exported

Freezing at Sign On and Diminished Video Quality

I'm having trouble with iChat. First, I seem to be getting a lot of freezing at sign-on. I can occasionally see the face of the person I'm connecting with - but then I get an error drop down window from Apple asking if I want to send a report. When I am able to connect, the video quality is terribly distorted.
I have iChat version 5.0. I have set my bandwidth at 200 kbps. I'm running Snow Leopard and use AirPort.
I seemed to have had a decent connect last week, but it has gotten steadily worse in the past few days. Does anyone have any fixes they can recommend? Thanks!

Hi,
Manually go to your Home Folder/Library/Preferences as Spotlight does not report on this folder.
Also delete com.apple.iChat.AIM.plist if it is an AIM/Apple Login
Or the one with Jabber in it if a Jabber Buddy list is the problem.
Do not delete this with the one mention by Carolyn as that will cause the Start Up Screens to Appear again.
8:36 PM Tuesday; September 8, 2009

EX60 and Voice/Video quality measurements

Does the EX60 provide any means of generating a real time MOS and/or R-Factor and/or PESQ or any other objective measurement of voice and video quality. I am willing to turn extra debugs on, parse and mine logs and even setup two VC points to perform a dedicated test call.

Ji Jan Pieter, thanks for the response,
You can bypass the router and connect your Ethernet cable to your modem.
No, I can't, since my router is a TrendNet TWE-435BRM, as mentioned in my first post, which is also the modem.
The Ethernet cable that connects the Mac to the router needs to send/recieve data full-duplex, like the ISDN line that connects to the modem. The modem will translate the ISDN signal to ADSL and pass it through to the Ethernet full-duplex. When there is any device on the network that has been manually set, it will convert to half-duplex and data traffic will not travel the speed it could when all devices had been left to auto-sense the connection, the default setting. This is called a Duplex mismatch and might cause these problems, it is however a common problem.
I checked the connection between my iMac and the router and it doesn't seem to be the problem. I get Internet full speed (+/- 5M download, +/- .4M upload).
Maybe it's a problem with my ISP, maybe it's a problem with iChat. Hence my question about how I can test the router. In fact, I've tried setting my iMac as a DMZ PC on the network but it didn't make any difference. I still get my parents video scrambled and bad audio (after restarting both the router and the Macs on both ends). That pretty much eliminates the router. I think iChat probably works... No error messages, no firewall warnings. It lives me with my ISP. I don't have much control over that.

IMovie and my videos

i'm new at iMovies and is not really cler to me where my videos goes after importing in iMovie, and if it converts in a different format that original one
so should i backup my original video file (shot with a camcoder)?
an other question is, that when i preview clips moving the mouse over it is a little slow, probabli because are HD clips, would it be better using Final Cut Expres? if later on i woult upgrade at Final Cut Expres could i keep all my projects and videos that i have in iMovie?

I found out

IMovie 09' poor video quality on DVD

I'm using the latest updated iMovie 09, and using iDVD to burn the final project.
The picture quality is not very good on the finished DVD.
Here is what I did:
Compose and edit 7 short projects in iMovie 09, send to Media Browser (as "large" files), export to iDVD, add theme and titles, and burn.
When I view the completed project on the screen before burning, it looks GREAT! .. but when the DVD is played it is not crisp/sharp. I'm very disappointed in the final results.
The imported media was both video and digital pictures.
What is going wrong? .. any ideas .. how about it Steve Mulins or anyone else...
I'm desperate !!!
Chuck
Chico, CA

The problem is NOT iDVD 09 (or iDVD 08).
There is a significant regresssion in quality of the image between iMovie 06 and 09.
I did a compare one day using the same clip burned to DVD from iMovie 06 and from iMovie 09.
The iMovie 06 clip looked like it came from the DV camera directly and the iMovie 09 clip looked worse. The difference is the single field processing used by iMovie 09 and the fact that it throws out every other horizontal line.
If your primary workflow is editing DV clips and making DVDs, iMovie '06 is better suited. Your movie will arrive at iDVD in DV format, which is an ideal match for making a DVD: same resolution, same pixels aspect ratio, and original quality. If you share your movie from iMovie '08 / 09, it gets re-rendered at 640x480 or less, and then iDVD upscales it back to 720x480. The end result is obviously not as good.
iMovie 06 and iDVD 08/09 is a "lossless" combination.

IMovie and Importing video AVCHD from the Canon High-Definition HG10

iMovie 08 does not let me import high definition video (AVCHD) from the Canon HG10 camcorder. Could you let me know how I can do this or what program can do it? iMovie 08 and the Mac do not recognize the high definition video (AVCHD). Thanks for your assistance. Best, Joe

Your camera is on the supported list, and if you will search these forums, you will see that many people are using it.
iMovie recognizes AVCHD, but only from a supported and connected camcorder.
If you prefer not to import from your camcorder, you can buy a program called Voltaic. It takes about 12x realtime to convert AVCHD to an editable format. You can import directly from your camera much quicker.

IMove and Canon Video Cam

i just bought the new Canon Vixia HF200. it is Mac Compatible and i have imported the still photos from the flash drive. When i started to import the video into iMovie, all seemed well.
at one point, i wanted to start the import part over again because a few clips didn't import. iMovie stopped recognizing the cam. i have tried zapped pram, repaired permissions, trashed plists, updated all software. no go...iMovie still refuses to see the cam, it sees only my build in iSight.
i can still import photos with no problem...but iMovie just doesn't see the cam.
i am doing this on my MacBook Pro. Any ideas?

Greetings, Gil!
Here's my initial ideas for your consideration.
I expect that you have already checked to see if anything from this link helps you:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1317
I see you have reset PRAM, but have you tried resetting SMC/PMU? That, and other troubleshooting tips related to your inbuilt iSight may merit a look at:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2090
The other Apple Article I looked at about your problem is:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=iMovie/7.0/en/10331.html
The thing that caught my eye there is that you might be experiencing a conflict with DVD Player (or some other app?). Try connecting the camera, quitting any extraneous apps like DVD Player that might open, and then launch iMovie.
If that does not help, you might restart your Mac and try again with NOTHING but the HF200 connected.
If the problem persists, and if the only problem you experience is with iMovie, you might reinstall iMovie to see if that cures your problem.
If everything fails, we might want to brainstorm this via iChat
and then post the fix here for benefit of others with a similar problem.
Will watch for your status update...
EZ Jim
G5 DP 1.8GHz w/Mac OS X (10.5.7) PowerBook 1.67GHz (10.4.11) iBookSE 366MHz (10.3.9) External iSight

I exported a project to QuickTime and the video quality is a bit shimmery, and grainy.

Did I do too much color correcting (too much saturation)? Or might it have something to do with the Broadcast filter? Or might it have something to do with what CODEC I used? I'm stumped.

What is the format/codec of the clips you are using? That would help us figure out what easy setup would best match.
Also, don't copy/paste the old sequence into the new sequence. Select all the clips in the old sequence and copy/paste them into the new sequence. (There is a difference.)
If you have 1280x720 clips, then it would appear you shot 720p video. The corresponding easy setup would be HDV Apple Intermediate Codec 720p30 (North America) or 720p25 (Europe).

QuickTime, iMovie, and JVC Video miscommunication

I've been uploading footage from my JVC Everio WS camera to my external hard drive. From there, I drag the footage into an iMovie project. From there, I edit and create magic. However, I've run into the problem of QuickTime no longer recognizing my film files and iMovie not importing the footage into projects.
When I try to open the .TOD files with QuickTime, which has worked up until now, I get the message "The movie contains an incorrect duration." I don't need to open the files in QuickTime to make movies, but when I try to drag them into iMovie projects, I get "The file could not be imported: The file “Brains/Volumes/Outside Brain/My Film Projects/Raw Footage/Hiroshima/succeed.TOD” can’t be imported; QuickTime couldn’t parse it: -2014"
I clearly have no idea what to do, especially considering that this hasn't been a problem until, seemingly, overnight. Any help will be greatly appreciated. I thought it had something to do with QuickTime v7.4, but I don't know how it could. Please, help!
Peaces,
.DAN

It does have something to do with the new QT update, and all you have to do is go to this link http://www.macfixit.com/article.php?story=20080208085017788 and follow the directions for downloading Pacifist, followed by replacing the new QT with version 7.3.1. It works like a charm. After you do all of this, you will be able to import your .tod files from a folder on your computer to iMovie HD.
Trust me, this works. I've been searching all over the internet for a solution to this problem, and finally found this solution. I was able to import my movie files without converting them with ease, just as I had always done before. Good luck!

Poor Audio and Video Quality

Using IDVD to burn iMovie containing pictures and music and am getting very poor quality audio and video. The video is very low resolution, lacking clarity and definition, and the audio comes out really flat with over-saturated vocals that is unpleasant to listen to.
The content was made from iMovie 11, importing photos from iPhoto and iTunes music.
I exported the movie via Share->Export Movie-> HD 1080P
In iDVD 7.1.2 I imported the movie (actually several) into a slideshow menu item.
I used the iDVD encoding preferences set at 'Best Performance' and 'Professional Quality' with no difference between the two
Then to ensure it wasn't the DVD disk causing the problem, I used the 'Save as Disc Image', and validated the file image saved to disk had the same quality issues as the burned DVD.
Then to eliminate the iMovie as the problem, ran a test and used an iPhoto slideshow in place of the iMovie, and it also has the same low quality issues.
I have observed that using the iDVD viewing capabilities, the A/V quality is fine. Its after the burn to disk the problem occurs.
At this point I'm not sure what to try. I'm viewing the DVD on my 50" widescreen TV using Sony DVD player.
A year or so back I did similar steps and the DVD came out fine... the sound quality was excellent and the video quality while not outstanding, was reasonable.
Any ideas -- I'm really stumped.

Hi
In iMovie'11 - I do (not use Share to iDVD)
• Share to Media Browser - AND AS Large - NOT HD ! (result will not be better but rather WORSE)
• In iDVD I import from Media button and Movie tab.
Yours Bengt W

Isight video quality?

can you improve this/and or the settings of isight so it looks better?
I've had a little play around with isight but whenever I bring it up through imovie it just looks really bad, the light doesn't get picked up well at all and it just looks like I'm using a pretty naff camera. Was just wondering if this could be fixed/changed at all as I know that looking on YouTube people use their isight and the video quality looks really good
I have a late 2008 aluminum Macbook if that helps.
Thanks

Lights.
And more lights.
Daylight is best (gives natural colors).

IMovie'08 low export quality

Hi!
I have recorded a video on my Canon A630 photocam. Of course it's not pro videocam, but video quality in 640x480 is quite good. I imported this movie into iPhoto (it actually just copies AVI files from cam to hdd) an previewed it in iPhoto. Quality was good.
Then I created a new project in iMovie with this video, trimed it a bit. And exported to iTunes in 640x480 res. When I opened in iTunes I was very surprised by such a low quality: video became lighter, colors were washed out, there were more compression artifacts! Compare it yourself: http://idisk.mac.com/hardwarrior/Public/Pictures/Skitch/Skitch-20081229-142253.j pg right is from iMovie and left one is from cam. Is there a way to increase encoding quality in iMovie'08?

Hi,I am new to iMac and need help. I have HD 1080i tape camera, I have recorded some water polo games and have been importing that to iMovie. No problem there. Created project, actually no editing as I needed it all, no transitions,no music added . I had a preview and quality was perfect. I clicked share- Media bowser , Large . I have opened iDVD and created DVD using existing Theme-revolution.
I have burned DVD. I have done this for 3-4 recorded games and DVD video quality was excellent.
I have not done any changes to setting either to my iMac or video Camera since, however now when I am doing the same with a new recorded game and go through same steps quality of video is very poor. You can not see players faces everything is blurred.
Also for 40min of video it takes 110 minutes of burning time.

Comparing video quality of AVCHD BluRay discs using Final Cut Pro Share vs Compressor

Up front, I will admit to being a newbie when it comes to using Final Cut Studio 3 and would appreciate some feedback from the Apple forum experts.
I have spent a lot of time trying to determine how to achieve an optimum group of Compressor 3.5.2 settings so that the playback video quality of an AVCHD BluRay disc is equal to or better than one created by using the simpler auto settings of FCPro Share, version 7.0.2.
When using Compressor’s auto/default maximum settings, I experienced the same error message reported in:
Error MessageDuring Creation of Blu-ray Disc in FCP and Compressor 3.5
https://discussions.apple.com/message/12073794#12073794
I have since made some Compressor AVCHD Discs with smaller bit rate settings and compared video quality with a single FCP Share AVCHD disc. Both seem to be equal in providing a very good video when viewed on my new Panasonic DMP BDT 310 BluRay player. However, the Compressor AVCHD discs show some motion artifacts not present with the FCPro Share version, especially when scrolling text or when objects are moving through the field of view, and visible artifacts are seen from a stationary chain link fence and other lattice work in the background of the video sample.
My sample video used for the comparisons between Compressor and FCP Share discs is a 21 minute duration home movie, originally captured from a mini DV, Canon HV30 1080i camcorder using ProRes HQ encoding(1440x1080), and dragged into FC Pro 7.0.2 timeline where 10 chapter markers have been inserted.
To create an AVCHD disc using FCPro Share, Markers are used to set the IN and OUT points, Select IN to OUT from the timeline, pull down File Menu Share, Select Create BluRay from options in pop out Share pane, and designate output device along with picture files for Background, Logo, and Title options. When these are completed, click on Export. My 21-minute video required almost two hours for encoding including about 10 minutes for burning. This accomplished on an iMac 3.06 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo.
To prepare this same 21-minute video for use with Compressor, I again Select IN to Out from the FCPro timeline, but this time use File Export as a QuickTime Self Contained movie including Chapter markers. Then Open Compressor, choose Create BluRay from Template pane, right click on the down arrow in the Batch window and load the QT self contained movie file. From there I went to the Inspector window and tried various combinations of bit rate settings along with Frame Encoder options such as Better or Best motion parameter controls.
I have tried the following combinations of Bit rate settings along with varying Frame Encoder controls and burned an AVCHD disc for each example:
Example A
Compressor set to 6 Mbps Average and 8Mbps Maximum, Frame Encoder settings OFF. Approximately 4 hours to encode although the time remaining estimator indicated a larger value of ~7 hours; not an accurate estimator at all.
Example B
Compressor set to 6 Mbps Average and 8Mbps Maximum, Frame Encoder settings ON, using “Better (Linear Filter) and Better (Motionadaptive)” settings. Approximately 4 hours to encode, not the 13 hours that were estimated.
Conclusion: Comparing A & B Compressor versions, Disc B showed some improvements in reducing motion artifacts over Disc A.
Example C
Compressor set to 13 Mbps Average and 15 Mbps Maximum, Frame Encoder settings ON, using “Better (Linear Filter) and Better (Motion adaptive)” settings. Multipass checked. DeInterlace was checked. Unknown hours to encode; about 8 hours done overnight..
Conclusion: Disc C showed some minor improvements reducing motion artifacts over Disc B
Example D
Compressor Auto settings,i.e., 15 Mbps Average and 17 Mbps Maximum, Frame Encoder settings ON, using “Better (Linear Filter) and Better (Motion adaptive)” settings. Multipass checked. Approximately 12 hours to encode, done overnight. Inserted disc next morning after the overnight encoding was completed, and a few minutes later an error message pane appeared that the maximum bit rate had been exceeded. This message was consistent with the Apple posted thread referenced above. Unfortunately the long overnight encoding was wasted.
It seemed to me that the best Compressor settings for suppressing the motion artifacts were displayed by the disc burned in Example C, i.e., 13/15 Ave/Max Mbps with“Better” Motion settings in the Frame Encoder.
However, when this disc was compared to the AVCHD Disc burned using the FCPro Share, the latter still seemed much better. I do not know what the auto bit rate values are as set in FC Pro, but for me, the quality is quite good AND the motion artifacts are significantly reduced, especially evident with the scrolling text.
Sorry about this long post, but I thought the detail would be necessary for the experts, and maybe helpful to others trying to get started in this BluRay arena. Did I misuse Compressor? I think the sample video exported as a self contained QT movie was the right thing to do? Not sure where I went wrong.
Thanks in advance for Feedback and Recommendations. For now, I’m going to stay with the simpler process using Final Cut Pro Share function.
BoBo

Thank You, Brad, for responding; glad to hear I'm not the only one having similar Compressor issues.
You may have hit on something. Perhaps Compressor's use of H.264 encoding was the reason for my motion artifacts? And perhaps Final Cut Pro Share retains the 1440x1080 quality as it burns the AVCHD BluRay disc?
I had Toast 10 for less than 30 days a couple of years ago, and was lucky to get a refund.
What version of Toast do you have? Wondering if new Toast 11 has improved previous bugs, especially upgrading its Chapter text, pictures, music. I would go back to Toast if it came close to mirroring DVD Studio Pro, or even iDVD capabilities.
Thanks,
BoBo

IMovie 10 and DV Video Quality

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