Best Video Format, Bitrate & Resolution for X-Fi2

I recently got my X-Fi2 and I want to watch videos at full quality on the screen at the lowest possible file size to maintain plenty of room for other stuff like music or more films, so before I start converting films, would anyone recommend the best conversion settings to do this (highest bitrate before you start to notice no quality difference, same goes for resolution)

So far I haven't even been able to get Creative's converter to work. It crashes whenever I attempt to convert a file. (So, those of you who wonder why on earth we'd even think of not using Creative's software, well... without mincing words: It's pretty much crap at this point.)
After some tinkering and a few initial crashes (grrrr.....) I've managed to get Creative Centrale to successfully rip the main movie file off several DVDs in what appears to be a nice quality .mpg2 format.
I use Format Factory (a free video conversion app) to convert these 5 to 6 GB files to a managable size for the Zen X-Fi2.
So far, the format that seems to play the best and smoothest is an AVI file with MPEG4 compression using the DivX codec. (I'm not very audio/visually literate, so I hope I'm explaining this correctly...) Basically an .avi file with MPEG4(DivX) encoding.
Though the Zen X-Fi2 has a widescreen, it seems to default any 640x480 or 320x240 files (with no internal widescreen/anamorphic tags) to the center of the screen - like 4:3 television on a 6:9 set. That basically means any widescreen files saved in this format may end up having black empty space all the way around on the top, bottom, left, AND right.
So, saving the above (widescreen) ripped DVD files to a 480x272 size works out really well. (Or 640x364 if you want a little higher resolution for when you connect your player to a TV.) This ensure the movie will fill the screen from left to right and leave black bars only at the top and bottom for those big, theatrical widescreen movies. (2.35: ratio or whatever...)
I also noticed that the file size difference from the lower to higher resolution is almost neglible. (Did this with my Lord of the Rings Extended Edition DVDs.)
The first time I converted The Fellowship of the Ring (Disc ), I used a video bitrate transfer of 52 KB/s. The size of the file was about 460 MB. It worked, but there was a fair amount of "pixelly" video and artifacting. I tried again using 024 KB/s for the video stream transfer and the video looks really, really nice. The final size was close to 890 MB and 640x364 resolution. I tried one more time at that same bitrate, but lowered the resolution way down to 400x228 and the size was of the new file was still 840 MB. So, the video bitrate transfer has a much heavier influence on the size and quality than the choice of resolution.
So, my personal recommendations for nice quality videos on your Zen X-Fi2:
.avi file, encoded as MPEG4(DivX)
640x364 (or even 480x272) -- only about 40 or 50 MB of difference in file size here)
024 video bitrate transfer (768 or even 52 if you don't mind some artifacting and blockiness and would rather have smaller files)
24 fps
28 KB/s audio bitrate (for nice sound)
2 audio channels
All this from a guy who's just figuring this out as he goes along...

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Best video format to encode for playback on iBook G4 1.2GHz?

I have been scratching my head for a week on this. What is the best video format that is highest quality and will playback smoothly on my iBook g4 and my iPhone 4? It has 1.25GB of RAM and I upgraded the HD to a WD 250GB 5400 RPM IDE drive 2 years ago and it's running dual boot Leopard 10.5.8 and Tiger 10.4.11 (keeping Tiger for Classic Mode).
I have a very large HD video collection consisting of 720p HD DVDs and 1080p Bluray discs that I have already spent a year to convert to MKV and MP4 files for storage on my media server. They have all been ripped and encoded with H264 using Handbrake. The average 720p movie is about 4.5GB and the average 1080p movies run about 8GB. I have over 100 movies stored on my media server and they playback fine on all my computers. They work fine on all my Windows 7 systems, they even play fine on my G5 2.0GHz DC late 2005 Powermac with 8.5GB Ram and the NVidia 7800GT.
Most of my 720p files can be reduced in size and or quality to 1-2GB and are playable on my iPhone 4, iPad 2 and even my little Acer Aspire One netbook in m4v or mp4 format.
I know my iBook is out of date, but no matter what compression method I have tried, the only thing it can play is MPEG-2 encoded media. And it cannot handle any h264 video I make, even at 480p settings using the simple profile. Since MPEG-2 takes 4-8GB per movie, this is a huge waste of HD space. And if I encode my movies like the old iPod video size, it looks like crap in full screen. I really want to store about 20 movies on this iBook for playback when I travel since I have 2 extra batteries. I need to movies to playback on the iBook and be able to transfer them to my iPhone 4 or iPad at any time.
Is there any method for getting 480p to encode and playback well on this iBook without making it look like crap or using the old DivX avi standard? If I have to reduce all my movies for playback on the iBook, I don't want to go lower than 480p because I want the same conversions to work on my iPhone 4 as well with decent quality. It is redundant to keep making copies of each movie for each device. Anyone have any suggestions? I don't want to take my little netbook around with me because the screen is too small and there is no opticle drive.
If anyone has any ideas, please post which Handbrake profile or other that can work... or let me know if my iBook is just garbage now. Thanks!

I am not asking you how to rip a DVD. I am asking how to convert any video file for decent playback on my iBook or iPhone!
This feature is available in iTunes so you can convert your DVDs to iPod playable formats. But when iTunes or Handbrake (or even Apple Compressor) convert anything, even my own videos made with Final Cut and iMovie, they will play on any iDevice other than my iBook unless I use the lowest most terrible video format.
I am just trying to figure out the proper video format the iBook can play. I am not ripping the DVD's right now... did that years ago anyways (and half of the videos I want to convert I made with iMovie during my travels in China and Hong Kong... I am just trying to play movies I already own on an older iDevice... my iBook. Converting purchased videos and home made videos is in no way illegal.
You misunderstand what I am asking. I am not trying to break digital copyright. If this is breaking digital copyright, then why does iTunes allow me to convert the movies for my iPhone 4 in the first place? You are telling me if I didn't purchase the movie from Apple I cannot watch it on my iPhone and iBook? That is not right.
I just want to know what the proper video playback requirements are for the iBook hardware. Plain and simple. If it is illegal in any way to tell me how to do it, just tell me what video my iBook supports. Apple tells me what video my iPhone supports ie. 1280x720p @ 29fps.... blah blah blah. Seems so far the iBook can only play a DVD MPEG-2 stream and no advanced codecs like h263 or h264. I just want to know what format the iBook can handle.
I have exported movies from iTunes and of my time in Hong Kong from iMovie and I cannot get them to play on the iBook at all if they are even 480p. So I just need to know what the max video playback is. If it can only play 320x240 or something, it is completely useless. I remember years ago when I bought the iBook, it did play the sample h263 and h264 videos that Apple had on their website (some of them 480p-720p)... but today it seems it can't play anything but 320x240 or less without getting locked up. I know the HD video requirements are G5 or higher... but we are talking DVD size cannot play in h264 mp4 formats, only MPEG-2 formats. This makes no sense? So I need to know the exact maximum resolution, framerate and codec this iBook 1.2 GHz can handle.
Don't tell my watching movies on my iBook, even the ones I made is illegal.

Best Video format to use for Windows

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What is the best video format to use?

Flash video has no dependency on pre-installed players, so is often a good choice

Best video format to ask for

We have a supplier video taping an event and they've asked me what video format I would like to receive for editing. What should I ask for? Obviously 1920 x 1080 but what other specs should I include?

PR422 is enough for HD. HQ is for 2K and 4x4 is for cinema and transparency.

What is the best video format to stream my movies?

So I was just curious as or what the best video format would be to stream movies from my personal cloud to my device. The reason I ask is because I have the 32GB mode and alas I do not want to copy movies over only to delete them later. Plus I would have access to them on all my devices (PC, windows, and android....soon a Mac mini) currently I have them in the .avi format because it just would not make sense to have four different formats uploaded to ,my four terabyte personal cloud especially when I own hundreds of DVDs. Now I noticed that there is a bit of pixelation on my iPad Air when streaming, my upload speed is like 5mbps and download is close to 25mbps. I have several other devices communicating with my router, but they are inactive..so to say. The connection strength is strong (on my desk next to my bed. Speaking of streaming my movies how do I clear the actual cache (may not be called that on Apple). Thought it was on settings, but alas I was unable to find it.

As long as your video is transferred via Firewire into a DV AVI type 2 file (I don't know your camera) your edit footable is the best you can get
If what you want to create is a DVD, you already have Encore bundled with PrPro (I have the CS3 version of both)
Simply export as DV AVI and give that file to Encore... then tell Encore to use the AUTOMATIC setting when creating the DVD
Otherwise, work through all of the steps here http://ppro.wikia.com/wiki/Troubleshooting
If your problem isn't fixed, report back with the DETAILS asked for in the questions at the end of that link

What is the best video format/codec?

Greeting Video Producers
Please tell me what is the best video format/codec overall? And please list them from best to worse.
MPEG 4
MPEG 2
AVI
DVI
QUICKTIME MOV
WMV
THANK YOU

DVI isn't a format or codec; it is a digital signal protocol used for video display. DVI = Digital Video Interface.
Please define what "best" means in your context ... "best" for what?
WMV is one of the best in terms of viewer compatibility for web video, but it is not any good for DVD delivery.
MPEG-2 is one of the best for broadcast server-based playback and is required for DVD-Video delivery, but it is one of the worst for editing.
MPEG-4 is a more efficient codec than MPEG-2, but isn't as compatible for web delivery as WMV or Flash.
AVI is a container.
MOV is a container.
-DH

Best video format to export from final cut pro to encore

hi, i'm using final cut pro and no matter what format i export my video in, be it quicktime, mpeg2 or avi, there's still a slight degradation of picture quality when i import it into encore. mpeg2 by far suffers the least. but is there a best video format i can export from final cut to adobe so dat there's minimal loss in quality?

Sure, export it as an uncompressed AVI or QT file.

Please help i started my project video format 720HD resolution 12x720 rate 25p at last when i finish and burn to dvd the edges are cut off any one help please i am really in trouble

please help i started my project with video format 720HD, resolution 12x720, rate 25p. at last when i finish and burn to dvd the edges are cut off and my logo cut off the screeen aswell any one help please i am really in trouble. thanks

Sorry, but I don't know anything about that app.
I did go to their Web site and I see they have a support link. Perhaps you can get help there or in their forum.
If you are OK with a DVD with a basic menu, you could try the Share>DVD option in FCP.
Good luck.
Russ

What video format to export for Ipad Apps

Hi,
I am new in export flash to ipad. I tried to export my video as FLV for my ipad apps, it plays but its lagging or jerky.
I had tried other formats like mp4, f4v, m4v or mov it just doesn't play
Wonder if anyone knows what video format to export for my ipad apps?
Bruce
http://www.vmw.com.sg

[email protected], on an iPad, here's what I did to get the FLV loading and taking up (most) of the screen. You can't use the FLV Component skins so you have to use the UI Components as markc888 suggested below your comment. My only gripe with this solution is that I can't get the fullScreen button to make the video go full screen.
This is starts from a playVideo button on my stage.
playVideo.addEventListener(MouseEvent.CLICK, playVideoClick);
function playVideoClick(event:MouseEvent):void {
var flvPlayback:FLVPlayback = new FLVPlayback();
flvPlayback.x = 62;
flvPlayback.y = 62;
flvPlayback.width = 900;
flvPlayback.height = 506;
flvPlayback.fullScreenTakeOver = true;
flvPlayback.autoPlay = true;
flvPlayback.source = "yourMovie.flv";
flvPlayback.bufferTime = .1;
addChild(flvPlayback);
flvPlayback.playPauseButton = playPauseBtn_mc;
flvPlayback.stopButton = stopBtn_mc;
flvPlayback.seekBar = seekBar_mc;
var closeMovie:yourMovieClip = new yourMovieClip();
addChild(closeMovie);
closeMovie.x = 977;
closeMovie.y = 77;
closeMovie.addEventListener(MouseEvent.CLICK, closeMovieClick);
function closeMovie(event:MouseEvent):void {
flvPlayback.stop();
removeChild(flvPlayback);
removeChild(closePres);
Hope it helps...

Best video format

What is the best video format to use with iDVD (by best i mean the closest i can get to HD quality)

Hi
And if to be edited first
• do not use iMovie'08 or 09 or 11 - but -
• iMovie up to HD6 or FinalCut any version
as the last ones can handle interlaced video - first ones can not - they only deliver every second line over to iDVD.
DVD is as standard only SD-Video and can not do anything better whatever program used. So losing 50% of the picture is a great loss.
Yours Bengt W

Best video format for converting DVD to NAS for widely sharing

Summary: The article shows you with an easy workaround for
copying DVD to NAS for streaming by ripping DVD to NAS friendly video
format on Mac and Windows
I recently purchased a NAS to store all my music/photos etc on. I
can stream stuff to my iPhone/iPad using the NAS software. What I want
to do is rip all my DVDs (over 400) to my NAS, but I’m not sure which
format to do it in, to play nice with my Apple TV2, Xbox 360, iPhone,
iPad etc. I wanna get some advice as to what format to rip in and what
software to use?
Learn some tips from online, I got know that to copy dozens of DVD movies to NAS,
you need to get the content off the DVD disc as a protection-free and
easily readable element for NAS. In this case, at the first place
powerful third-party software for backup DVD to NAS is what you need.
There are many, many DVD ripping tools on the market. I’ve tired a pile of them.
Brorsoft DVD Ripper
is the best one I’ve tried yet. It is capable of ripping DVD to MP4,
AVI, MKV for NAS streaming with no quality loss; it also enables you to
copy DVD main movies for backup onto NAS in .vob format. And what I’ve
learned is that MP4 would be one best target format for it is fully
compatible with nearly all media devices including iPad, iPhone, PS3,
Apple TV, etc. If you are running on Mac OS X, turn to DVD Ripper for Mac. If you haven’t got the software, download it now and let’s start the conversion.
Ripping and copying DVDs to NAS
1. Launch the DVD ripping program for NAS devices . Then
click "Load DVD" to import the DVD files you want to convert. To select
the subtitles you like, simply click Subtitle and select the one you
prefer. P.S. Before start the conversion, you can choose to backup DVD mian movies.
2. Click Format bar and choose your desired format. To store
hundreds of DVD's on NAS, you can rip DVD to .mp4, or .avi, .mkv, etc
compressed format. And click Settings bar, you can adjust the level of
compression to suit the quality you want.
Tip: If you like, you can click “Settings” to change the
video encoder, resolution, frame rate, etc. as you wish. Keep in mind
the file size and video quality is based more on bitrate than resolution
which means bitrate higher results in big file size, and lower visible
quality loss, and vice versa.
3. Press the "Convert" button to start ripping DVD for NAS streaming.
After the conversion, click Open button to find the output files.
Make sure the wireless network connection is accessible among the NAS
and Apple TV, PS3, HD TV or other media players. Then just enjoy the
high quality DVD movies anywhere anytime.
[quote] movies-videos-convert-tips.overblog.com/2014/02/ripping-dvds-to-nas-how-to-copy-dvd-to-nas-for-streaming.html [/quote]

I've always found encoding with Handbrake and choosing the Apple TV2 preset is an excellent place to start and video encoded using that preset will work on my iPhone 4, 4S and iPad 2.
If the files encoded using that preset are too big for one's taste they can always encoded at a lower average bit rate rather than using the default 'Constant Quality' of 20.
Later on I'm sure the Handbrake group will have an AppleTV '3' preset supporting the 1080p format supported by the ATV3 and iPad '3' but using such a preset would not create a file usable on the iPad 2 or the iPhones.

Which is best video format for storage of video media files?

Greetings, good folk and happy holidays!
My question involves the conversion of physical video media, DVDs, video files, etc, and storage for use with multiple devices.
Like many of you, I have video in many formats and in multiple places... DVDs, Blu-Ray, AVIs, MP4s, etc. I want to convert them all to a usable format to use in conjunction with my Iphone, Apple TV, IPad, etc. and store in one place in an electronic "library." The problem is that there are countless formats they can be converted to, and not all formats look good on all devices. A video converted to Iphone format will be optimized for the smaller screen and may not look good on the iPad. And iPad converted video might not look good on larger TVs used with Apple TV.
Was wondering if you folks would have opinons as to the best codecs, format and specs to convert video to that would look good on any device from iPhone to an iPad to a TV with Apple TV.
I'm not expecting Blu-Ray quality sharpness with a universal format when used with Apple TV, but something reasonable without artifacts would look fine.
I'm using IM Too Video Converter Ultimate which has presets for many difference devices, but not sure which options will work best.
Anyone else dealing with this?
Thank you for your time.

MPEG-4
Make sure you don't infringe on any copyrights.

What is the best video format for 50+ year movie storage?

Objective: In what video format should I store my family movies on an external drive? I want these family movies to be viewable by future generations in 50 - 70 years, so what video format / type is recommended?
Background: I have an iMac, OS X 10.7.5. I use IMovie '11, version 9.0.8. My iMac has an internal DVD player and burner and iDVD is installed.
I have dozens of family movies (total 80+ hours) dating back nearly 70 years. All these films have been digitized and I have imported many of them into iMove as events, then I edit them with title pages, transitions, music, etc. When a "project" is completed (Between 1.5 - 2.0 hours or less) I share the project to iDVD where I burn it to a DVD. Within iMovie I save each of these projects (on the internal Mac HD, which consumes very little space) and on an external drive I save for each project:
- a disc image (DVD.img) whose size is about 4.5 GB
- a copy of the iMovie project, whose size is about 60 MB (the original project is in iMovie, in the Mac internal drive)
- the original digitized raw movies imported into iMovie as events and are formatted as .mov (these are large size at 8 GB - 20 GB each)
- the finalized and fully edited iDVD which is formatted as DVD.dvdproj (these are very large size at 20 - 24 GB each)
As you can see with all these disc images, projects, events and DVD projects stored on my external drive I am at nearly 1 TB of storage, on my way to 1.75 before I comple editing all movies.
While I manage pretty well the editing my movies within iMovie, and how to create an iDVD project and then burn a DVD, I have no understanding of the technical aspects of the multitude of different movie formats in the market nor of Quick Time and its format.
I am told that DVDs will only last 10 - 15 years and then begin to deteriorate. And iMovie '11 won't be arond 50 years from now. Nor will the current / recent versions of iDVD. Thus, for posterity:
1. In what format should I store my family movies on an external drive so they can be viewed by family members 50 - 70 years from now? (best chance for viewing, since we don't know what formats they will have then)
2. How do I convert from what I have (disc image, iMovie project, DVD project) to your recommended format?
Thank you,
HDP

There is no such format for movies or even Photographs. Frankly we can't guarantee the persistence of any format past the next 10 years, not to mind 50 - 70.
Codecs are being improved and created all the time, and this process will continue. In 50 years time we may still have .mov and .avi files, but the codecs that create the movies within will have changed.
One thing is reasonably sure: DVD will be as deader than floppy disks are now. Ditto Blue Ray. They're on the way out now, and in 10 years they'll be curiosities.
So, what's the solution:
Best I can suggest is to keep your movies on volatile media like Hard Disks (with back ups on other disks, or course). Progress will be evolutionary - as new formats come along there will be the option to migrate older data to these newer formats, and that's the trick. As always, when it comes to migration, the more data available the better the likely result, so keeping your movies in the least compressed versions possible seems a good approach.
That and a dollar will get you a cup of coffee someplaces, but nowhere fashionable.
Regards
TD

Best video format for mac and pc

Hello,
I recently embeded an mpeg video, flv, mp4, and swf video file to my web page. I then asked several pc users to go to my page and see if they could view the animation clips. They were were able to view all clips, but the mpeg and flv clips automatically downloaded to their computer. I don't want that to happen. The mp4 did not download, and it worked as well.
How do I stop this from happening? I ask becuase it seems flv is used by mac and pc users alike, and I think I may use said format.
What is the most widely used video format by both mac and pc users?
... should I just stick with mp4 since it worked without down loading?
rekh
code i used...
<iframe width="410"
height="357"
src="http://www.mysite.tv/myfolder/myfile.mp4"
frameborder="0"
allowfullscreen=""></iframe>

Colin has pointed you in the correct direction.
I'll bet you're using just plain text "links" to your files. That method by-passes the browser plug-in and can cause issues (especially on Windows).
You need solid html code that gives the browser plug-in all of the needed instructions.
Another thing that may have happened is that your fast start files have lost their fast start abilities. This happens with any fast start file that is then edited and uses a regular "save". Save As will restore the fast start feature (even in files that do not normally have it).
AVI is dead. Do not use it.
Many WMP formats (codecs) are not yet ported to the Mac OS so that delivery container should also be ruled out.
H.264 Video codec (default in most Tiger app exports) also requires the viewing machine (Mac or PC) have QuickTime version 7 installed.
Since not all machines can install QT version 7 (requires 10.3.9 or Win 2000 or XP) maybe you should rule it out, too.
So.
What are we left with?
Maybe QuickTime format using MPEG-4 Video codec and AAC audio?
They would only require QuickTime version 6 be installed. Since version 6 has been around for over 5 years it may be your best option.
But you're still going to get complaints from PC viewers.

HT3290 what is the best video format for iMovie?

I'm a basic newbe on imac compiuters. Although I like it the transition is a bit painful.
I download stuff from my (cheep) video cameras BUT after closing the oniginal window I can't find the vids OR pictures I just downloaded from the devices.
I am hsving a difficult time figuring out what is the BEST video promat to record in that can be used in imovie AND final cut pro.
I'd appreciate any assoistance at this point.
All tips appreciated,
:-) Cheers

iMovie is friendly with .mp4, .mov, .m4v etc video formats. Here this article about iMovie supported video formats may help you.

Best Video Format, Bitrate & Resolution for X-Fi2

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