H.264 output

I have another PE11 question for folks.
I work with MPEG clips from digitized VHS 4:3 videotapes and edit them together to be played on both Youtube and for a live audience via digital projector.   I'm trying to FTP a file to a contact who wants the edited video in H.264 MP4 format.    The problem I'm having seems to be that none of my efforts are as clear as the edited MPEG2 version of the file.   For expediency, I've sent him an MPG before and he converted it down with some professional tool, but I'm sure PE11 can save us some time if I can get the correct settings without loss of quality.and create a smaller file.
What he uses is:
NTSC DV H.264 3MB/s
width 720, height 480, frame rate 29.97 field order: lower first, aspect D1/DV NTSC (0.9091)
Profile: Main (or High as an alternative)
Level:  3.1 (or higher)
Bit Rate Settings: VBR 2 Pass, target bit rate 3, max bitrate 6 Audio format: AAC, 48KHz, Stereo, High Quality, 192Kbps
Multiplexer: mp4 standard
So I've attempted this several ways using either AVCHD or Quicktime and altered the settngs to reproduce that.    Yet, they still look less crisp.- especially my titles.   Not sure if I should be using Standard DV or some 720P or higher format (and what frame rate, etc.).
Any suggestions? 

The Buddycat
Clarification timeout...
Have you said that your associate can take one of your .mpg files and turn it into a .mp4 file of the quality that you want with what you are calling professional tool and settings of
NTSC DV H.264 3MB/s
width 720, height 480, frame rate 29.97 field order: lower first, aspect D1/DV NTSC (0.9091)
Profile: Main (or High as an alternative)
Level:  3.1 (or higher)
Bit Rate Settings: VBR 2 Pass, target bit rate 3, max bitrate 6 Audio format: AAC, 48KHz, Stereo, High Quality, 192Kbps
Multiplexer: mp4 standard
All those settings are attainable via the Publish+Share/Computer/AVCHD/ with presets = MP4 - NTSC DV Standard.
At the top of your description, you typed a bitrate of 3 MB/s. That is 3 megabytes per second which equates into 24 megabits per second.
In the bitrate that you cite further down in the description, you write ...target bitrate 3, max bitrate 6.... but what units... megabytes or megabits? I am wondering if there is some confusion here as to the bitrate units. Reason for thinking that...
a. the default target bitrate just happens to be 3, but 3 Mbps (megabits per second) and the default maximum bitrate just happens to be 6 Mbps (megabits per secons). If we are talking megabytes instead of megabits, that translates into 0.375 megabits and 0.75 megabits respectively.
b. yet at the onset you say that your associate used 3 MB/s which reads out to me as 3 megabytes per second (24 megabits per second).
The units given in Premiere Elements export here are in Mbps which represents Mbps megabits per second. When the Profile = High and Level = 3.2, both the target and maximum bitrate have a range of from 0.19 Mbps to 25 Mbps.
Whatever the case, the bitrate setting may be a major factor in what you are able to attain. But, the key answers that we need at this time include:
a. Did your associate take one of your .mpg and turn it into a sharp acceptable .mp4 file for you?
b. This morning did bitrate increase get you to what your associate had achieved with your file?
Taking your Target and Maximum bitrates to the max (24 Mbps) here was just a rough way to gauge the impact of this factor. The level of the bitrate settings and the relative setting between Target and Maximum was to be evaluated once we knew if bitrate was a key player in this task.
Looking forward to your results.
Thanks.
ATR

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