Can I modify the Export to... iTunes settings for better audio quality and compression?

Question

I am working on some Music Videos to DJ at a party with, I notice that when I export them as .mov files with Final Cut HD Express, they have 320 kbps and 44.100 kHz in the audio compression settings. Once I export them in Quicktime 10.2, using the File / Export to... / iTunes drop down menu, the Second, (ipad, iphone 4, & AppleTV) setting (not using HD, so the Mac and PC tab is not an option.) The final exported file, that plays great in itunes, appletv, ipad, etc. has a reduced quality audio of Bit Rate of 159 kbps (instead of 320 kbps) and Sample Rate of 32.000 kHz (instead of 44.100 kHz). Is there anyway to change these preset settings somehow?
The Formats on the File / Export / menu are even less dinamic?
I also noticed that some of the Music videos I purchased from the itunes store some years ago, have a 256 Kbps and 44.100 kHz setting. Which is better quality than the ones exported from Quicktime 10.
I thought maybe with Quicktime 7 Pro, I could fine tune all the presets, but it got too complicated for me, might this be an option? What would the settings be?
Using Widescreen 853 x 480 at full quality .mov file.
thanks.

Answer 1

I am working on some Music Videos to DJ at a party with, I notice that when I export them as .mov files with Final Cut HD Express, they have 320 kbps and 44.100 kHz in the audio compression settings. Once I export them in Quicktime 10.2, using the File / Export to... / iTunes drop down menu, the Second, (ipad, iphone 4, & AppleTV) setting (not using HD, so the Mac and PC tab is not an option.) The final exported file, that plays great in itunes, appletv, ipad, etc. has a reduced quality audio of Bit Rate of 159 kbps (instead of 320 kbps) and Sample Rate of 32.000 kHz (instead of 44.100 kHz). Is there anyway to change these preset settings somehow?
Your question basically has too facets. The first is the quality of the source audio in terms of sampling rate and data rate. Under normal circumstances you don't want to export the audio using a sample rate or per channel data rate that is lower than your original source if you are trying to maintain the quality as high as possible and, on the other hand, you don't want to use settings greater than the source values since they increase the final file size without improving the quality of the audio.
The second is the workflow. Since you indicate you are using FCE HD for editing, then using QT X to re-export the data seems somewhat redundant. While it has been many, many years since I last used FCE HD, if I remember correctly, you have both "Export QT Movie" and "Export using QT Conversion" options. The first option takes the audio and video format in which you are editing and merely copies the edited data in that format to a new MOV file container. On the other hand, the second option allows you export the edited data format directly to a user selected compression format using user selected options (but does assume the user knows how to best use these options). These are, BTW, the same export options available in QT 7 Pro.
I thought maybe with Quicktime 7 Pro, I could fine tune all the presets, but it got too complicated for me, might this be an option? What would the settings be?
What is so difficult here? If the source is DVD stereo quality (usually 48.0 KHz @ 192 Kbps then set your output for stereo 48.0 KHz @ 192 Kbps. If you wish to save a bit of file space, the you can use 48.0 KHz @ 160 Kbps but that is normally as low as I go. As to setting combinations in QT 7 Pro, once you set the sampling rate, the application becomes cuntextually adaptive and will only allow you to select data rates that are "standards" compliant and non-compliant ones are automatically greyed out. Rendering quality settings are self-explanatory. These are the basics if you are using a preset option like the "Movie to MPEG-4" export option. If using more complex options like the "Movie to QT Movie" option, then you will need to also consider how you plan to use your file to select the correct encoding strategy. For instance, a constant bit rate is good for optical media from the standpoint of providing a constant flow of data to the player. Unfortunately, this is not very efficient since it forces the quality to vary as it maintains the constant data rate. A variable but contarined data rate is also good for optical media or fast start online files but allows the data rate to vary between user selected data rate excursions and thus provides improved quality over the constant data rate strategy. The variable data rate allows the user to target a specific level of audio quality and will then allow the data rate to vary as needed to maintain a constant level of quality. This option is better suited for playback on a computer since the bit rate can vary greatly in magnitude. The average setting allows the user to target a specific average target data rate but allows it fluctuate as the encoder applies predictor-corrector adjustments. This option, like the constant data rate option, is good for average complexity content when creating a target file of predictable size but can somtimes have problems towards the end of the file if the content suddenly becomes more complex than predicted.
Using Widescreen 853 x 480 at full quality .mov file.
I would rarely recommend using the full quality slider setting. This is more of a redundancy setting forcing the encoder to recycle through certain encoding routines in an effort to improve quality without increasing the data rate. You would like do better to increase the video data rate limit and decrease the quality slider to something in the 50 to 80% range. You also indicate the files are 853x480. Such files are frequently the result of anamorphic widescreen MPEG-2 or DV source files. If so, I would normally recommend retaining this anamorphic strategy by encoding the H.264 video at the same 720x480 matrix dimensions and allowing the player to properly display the files at their targeted aspect ratio. This strategy will either allow for slightly better quality at the current video data rate setting or allow the user to retain the current level of quality using a slightly lower data rate which, in turn, means a slightly smaller final file size.