Standard definition NTSC DVD spec

As I remember the DVD spec for NTSC, the players recognize 24p, but not 30p. Can someone confirm this? What I suspect this means is that a standard DVD player will just interpret the 30p as 60i and send it to the display as interlaced fields. While for 24p, the player will record it as such and then play it out to the display as progressive frames.
Thanks,
John

Thanks James. I wonder if it's because I have QuickTime Pro v 7.0.2 on the G5. I have QT Pro 7.0.3 on the iMac that lost the ability to export to MPEG2 via QuickTime conversion when I updated FCP to 5.0.4 (from 5.0.3).
Regardless, I was having great success exporting this way, from HDV right to NTSC standard definition MPEG2. Looked great, no problems.
I'm still running FCP 5.0.3 and QT 7.0.2 on the G5, and am afraid I'll lose the QT conversion MPEG2 option if I upgrade!...
PowerMac G5 Dual 2.5 GHz Mac OS X (10.4.3) 2.5 GB Ram
PowerMac G5 Dual 2.5 GHz Mac OS X (10.4.3) 2.5 GB Ram

Similar Messages

Acvhd to standard definition DVD vs. Standard definition to DVD

Hi,
If I shoot with a good acvhd camera and then make a standard definition DVD, how would the quality of the DVD compare to shooting with a good mini DV camera such as a Canon GL2 and making a standard definition DVD?
Thanks

IMO the GL2 to DVD will look better.
If you burn to Blue ray the AVCHD footage will knock it's socks off.
Blue ray however is not as universally excepted as DVD at the minute.
Al

Hi I just updated from Snow Leopard to Mountain Lion. I write DVD's using Final Cut Pro, creating a DVD that plays HD and Standard Definition on one disk. My problem is when I used load the disk on my G5 it would ask if you want High Definition or Standar

Hi I just updated from Snow Leopard to Mountain Lion.
I write DVD's using Final Cut Pro, creating a DVD that plays HD and Standard Definition on one disk.
My problem is when I used load the disk on my G5 it would ask if you want High Definition or Standard Definition, now it just defaults to Standard Definition.(I'm using Apple's DVD Player)
Can I fix this problem?

Addendum: I read on a post here (http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=420169) about removing some kext files in order to trick OSX into thinking that there were no FireWire ports.
I followed the instructions and removed from /System/Library/Extensions/ the following files:
IOFireWireSerialBusProtocolTransport.kext
IOFireWireAVC.kext
IOFireWireFamily.kext
IOFireWireIP.kext
IOFireWireSBP2.kext
I restarted and BAM...Snow Leopard booted crazy fast and the mouse and keyboard worked instantly.
The System Profiler says "No FireWire ports were found."
So this tells me that the FW port is probably the culprit and is messing up the installation.
So how do I hack the Mountain Lion installer and tell it to ignore the FW port, which is obviously quite dead? Or is there something I can do to the Base system that is similar?

Help creating NTSC DVD

Hi all, I'm trying to make a NTSC DVD and I need some advice.
My media was shot as 1920 x 1080 (16 x 9) PAL and I have converted the footage to NTSC using Compressor which has created a default 720 x 480 clip at 29.97 fps.
Is this the standard NTSC format for DVD?
I have created a NTSC iDVD project and have dropped the NTSC media into it and clicked preview.
The footage looks as though it is 4x3 instead of 16x9 - what have I done wrong?
Do I need to change the dimensions of my NTSC media so it will play as 16x9?
Thanks

Thanks, no I've tried dropping the PAL footage directly into a NTSC iDVD project and I don't think there is a conversion happening - maybe someone can confirm this?
Here are the specs from Compressor - what are my other options for 1920x1080 PAL to NTSC footage for DVD?
File Extension: mov
Estimated size: 13.12 GB/hour of source
Audio Encoder
    16-bit Integer (Big Endian), Stereo (L R), 48.000 kHz
Video Encoder
    Format: QT
    Width: 720
    Height: 480
    Pixel aspect ratio: NTSC CCIR 601/DV (16:9)
    Crop: None
    Padding: None
    Frame rate: 29.97
    Frame Controls On:
        Retiming: (Best) High quality Motion Compensated
        Resize Filter: Linear Filter
        Deinterlace Filter: Better (Motion Adaptive)
        Adaptive Details: On
        Antialias: 0
        Detail Level: 0
        Field Output: Same as Source
    Codec Type: DV/DVCPRO - NTSC
    Multi-pass: Off, frame reorder: Off
    Scan Mode: Interlaced
Aspect Ratio: 16:9
    Pixel depth: 24
    Spatial quality: 99
    Min. Spatial quality: 50
    Temporal quality: 0
    Min. temporal quality: 50

PAL DV footage to NTSC DVD help wanted!

Hi there, apologies if this has been tackled elsewhere, but I couldn't locate it!
I have a finished PAL edit of around 90 minutes in FCP 4.5 that I have output to a PAL DVD via DVD SP 4/Compressor 2. Following this, the client has also asked for an identical NTSC DVD to send to the USA. Luckily I have the edit still loaded in FCP - therefore: This is the first time I have needed to do a standards conversion. Can anyone advise what the best method/workflow for creating this NTSC DVD is?
Many thanks in advance for your time, TP
PowerMac G5, Dual 1.8 ghz, 3GB Ram, 250 GB HD Mac OS X (10.4.6) FCP 4.5, DVD SP4, Motion, Toast 6 Titanium

You didn't understand what my last post said.
I said go from his PAL DV edit in FCP to a DV tape (DVCam preferrably). Then have the PAL DVCam tape transferred to another DVCam tape in NTSC.
PAL is better quality that NTSC so there will be some loss just because there is less resolution in NTSC than PAL, but keeping it on a DVCam tape is fine.
Then log the footage back into FCP with NTSC settings and then edit/export/author.
I said nothing about tranferring it to analog or VHS. I don't know where you got that one. He said his original footage was edited in DV.
And YES, if you take it to a "professional" dub house it will turn out better than most software conversions is what i meant. I have used Lightning Media in Hollywood for years and their stuff turns out great.

NTSC DVD doc for PAL Europe. Updated Advice on IF I need to convert & HOW?

I have read with interests several posts on playing NTSC, all region DVDs on PAL DVD players. I hope someone may have some updated advice for my situation. In brief, I would like to give out DVD copies to festival goers in France where my Doc will play in April. I thought to produce DVD-Rs on my Mac.
With a film acquired documentary(24fps), transferred to NTSC video (29.97 fps) sitting as both Avid and Final Cut Pro Media on my trusty G-4, I am now ready to export a Quicktime Movie and then encode to MPEG-2, and "author" a DVD in DVD Studio Pro.
Will an NTSC DVD now play on most DVD players and Televisions in Europe? (A contact stated their "players are bi-standard NTSC and PAL", but I'm still uncertain this means my DVD-R or replicated NTSC will play).
Should I make a PAL DVD?
IF I try a PAL DVD is it really as simple as exporting a Same as Source Quick Time Movie from Avid or FCP then using the QT MPEG-2 exporter and selecting "PAL" from within Quick Time? Then I just create a new Pal project in DVD Studio Pro?...... Even if it is that simple to create PAL from QT and my media, I don't see how my 24 fps/29.97 fps doc now magically becomes PAL 25 fps / 59.97 fps just because I converted it to MPEG-2.
Do you all recommend I try to make my own PAL DVD or should I just take my already authored NTSC DVDs and cross my fingers.
I really appreciate any newer thoughts on this topic. I'm an old pre-digital film guy so be kind.
Thanks, Rob
G-4 Quicksilver Mac OS X (10.3.9)

Yes, although the vast majority of newer European DVD players and TVs have no problems with NTSC DVDs, the only way to be sure (well, almost sure) is to burn a PAL DVD. You can't legislate for the fact, however, that not all DVD players can play all DVD-R authored disks, but that's a seperate problem!
I generally use After Effects for quick and dirty (but good quality) standards conversion. Whatever you do don't just try exporting your project via Quicktime using a PAL as this will only change the colour space and not the frame rate or frame size. If you use QT to change frame rate it will simply repeat every fifth frame to get to 30fps which will give you jerky motion.
Here's a step by step guide to doing the conversion in Compressor 2, using "optical flow" to interpolate to get the extra frames :
http://www.macworld.com/2006/02/secrets/marchcreate/index.php?pf=1

Why isn't my high definition video converting to standard definition?

What I'm describing here, I've successfully accomplished many, many times using Premiere Pro CS5 and now Premiere Pro CS6. Now, for the first time ever, it's not working and I'm completely baffled. (This is a high-end Windows 7 64-Bit machine with 16GB RAM running Premiere Pro CS6.)
Here's a basic summary of my workflow. Nothing out of the ordinary here.
1. I shoot my video using a high definition camcorder (the same one I've been working with for the past year or two.
2. I import my high definition video into a 1920x1080 sequence in Premiere Pro CS6.
3. I edit my sequence until I'm happy.
4. I enter and name my Encore chapter markers in the sequence.
5. I create my Encore project and import the sequence as a timeline and set up my menus and such.
6. I build my Encore project, first into a standard definition DVD image file (so I can later burn SD-DVDs) and then build it again into a high definition Blu-ray image file (so I can later burn Blu-rays).
The Blu-ray burn is turning out just fine.
But the video in the DVD burn is all black. I can jump around from chapter to chapter and I can hear the sound, but the video doesn't show up!
I tried this a couple times thinking that maybe Encore just messed up the SD-DVD creation process but I got the same result each time. When I preview the project in Encore, it all looks just right.
So I figured, okay, something's not working when I import the sequence.
I went back to Premiere Pro thinking I'd just export my 1920x1080 sequence into a widescreen standard definition AVI and create a new sequence just for the standard definition DVD.
The exported AVI is black as well!!
I don't get it. Why on earth won't my high definition video convert properly to standard definition?
The high definition sequence looks completely normal in Premiere Pro. What could I possibly be overlooking??
One final note. Just as another test, I copied and pasted the sequence in Premier Pro, truncated it to a couple minutes (the full sequence is 90 minutes long), and exported to a widescreen AVI again.
It just finished, I tried playing it back in Windows, and it, too, is all black, sound but no video.
Like I said, this is nothing new for me. I've done it countless times with other projects. I could really use some assistance with this one.

So I exported my completed high definition sequence to an MP4 and re-imported back into Premiere Pro. Right-clicked it and created a sequence from the clip. Then I imported my chapters from the old sequence into the new one.
I returned to Encore, modified my project to work off the newly created sequence (what a pain having to recreate all the scene links) and voila, it had no trouble making a DVD this time.
So I guess I'll get out of the bad habit of my old routine and create a sequence the "right" way from now on. Funny how we get used to doing something one way and stop thinking outside the box after a while.
Jim, I don't see how that's necessary. As long as I create an Encore project based on a good high definition sequence, I have never had to do anything other than have Encore build a standard definition DVD based on the high definition sequences. It has always done the conversion for me and produced really good DVDs. Once I create a DVD image that I'm satisfied with, I simply have Encore build a Blu-ray image using the exact same project, and that works perfectly as well. I suppose I may be missing something here but it all works and works well, so I don't see a reason to create two projects when one works well.
On a separate note, is it just me or doesn't everybody think it's high time that Adobe offer a feature to import markers from one sequence into another. I can do it automatically but I have to use a macro that I created separate and apart from Premiere Pro. For that matter, I think Encore should also offer a feature to remap all scene links to a new sequence instead of forcing me to fix them one by one myself.
Anyway, thanks to all of you for pointing me in the right direction!

Will PAL dvd player play my NTSC DVD-r?

I'm trying to figure out if I need to convert several NTSC dvd's into PAL format to send to a friend's mom in Israel (she's very sick and would like to see these soon).
Since I've never converted between these formats, I've been doing lots of research and keep getting more confused. I downloaded JES Deinterlacer (i think thats what its called) but I'm not sure I need it since I read the following on an imovie FAQ website:
"I have an NTSC project and want a PAL DVD.
The good news is: You can just send an NTSC disc. Any PAL set top DVD player capable of playing DVD-R discs can also play NTSC discs. All that is needed is a fairly new TV, built in the last 8-10 years or so."
Could this be true? Can I really just send the NTSC dvd's to her? I hate to waste time here...please help...
Thanks so much in advance.
Jenny

That´s right; NTSC DVDs will always work on PAL players when the player is compliant to the DVD specs. Those players do give out the regular NTSC signal and/or convert to PAL60. Some players can even convert to PAL50. The problem is the TV set.
My German TV is 14 years old and cannot handle PAL60 or NTSC; I would need one of those rare players that convert to PAL50 (usually with poor results).
But NTSC DVDs will always work on a PC (when it is an all-region DVD).

Switch NTSC DVD slideshow to PAL

Good morning,
my wife and I recently received a DVD Slideshow made on a PC in the NTSC format from our Wedding photographers.
My family lives in Europe and cannot watch NTSC format. Is there a way to make a copy of my slideshow but in the PAL format?
Thank you very very much.
P

Hi
Usually - NTSC-DVDs plays well in PAL players - but not the other way around.
So here is my notes on PAL to NTSC. Just think the other way around.
PAL to NTSC or NTSC to PAL
A. Copying commercial DVDs - No Not possibly at all - Not even legal to discuss.
B. Home made DVDs (DVDs without copy protection)
C. Movies from iMovie or FinalCut
• Save as full quality QuickTime .mov and convert this with JES_Deinterlacer (free on internet)
NTSC ---> PAL.
• Most often not necessary - Most stand alone PAL DVD-players playback NTSC
(if TV is old in BL/W)
PAL ---> NTSC.
• If played on Mac - not necessary AT ALL
• If on NTSC DVD-player - CONVERSION IS NEEDED - nearly no Stand alone NTSC-DVD-players
playback PAL at all.
To do this You need to convert the PAL DVD to streaming.DV or full quality QuickTime .mov
• I use Roxio Toast™ to do this (There are no free converter)
• JES_Deinterlacer (free on internet) to convert to NTSC
• Set up an NTSC project (29.97fps or 30) in iDVD and import then burn
I burn to
• Verbatim DVD-R
• Set down burn speed in iDVD to x1 or x4 recommended by many
• Secure a minimum of 25Gb free space on internal boot hard disk before burning (IMPORTANT)
PAL is 25 fps and an analog TV standard of 625 lines
NTSC is 29.97 fps and 520 lines
NTSC (29.97fps) 520 lines - about 640x480 pixels (square) 720x480 rectangular (narrow) pixels
PAL (25 fps) 625 lines - about 768x576 pixels (square) 720x576 rectangular (narrow) pixels
to use a photo 702x480 resp 576 then add 9 pixels on each side to add together as 720
If iDVD hangs on PAL or NTSC.
Bengt W wrote
Deleting iDVD pref. file - should return You into NTSC mode.
Yes iDVD can switch to PAL - BUT as You see with a rather lousy result.
a. Need to convert to PAL - most often not - Most PAL-player can playback NTSC
and on a fairly new TV in color. (old TV in Bl/W)
(Other way around - from PAL to NTSC most often a must - few NTSC-player can use PAL)
b. IF MUST - then use JES_Deinterlacer to do this conversion - so much better and free.
My list on this (or rather PAL --> NTSC - just think the other way around)
Allosaurus writes
Thank you SDMacuser. I dumped all the plist icons with no result, and was getting pretty plist off when it occurred to me to delete all the previous dvd.proj files. Bingo. That did the trick. So thank you for all your help and the additional information you provided.
Yours Bengt W

Possible to do a DL PAL / NTSC DVD?

Hi,
we just finishing our DVD which is a PAL project and just comes out to fit a single DVD. Is it possible to make a DualLayer DVD with a PAL project on the first half and a NTSC project on the second to increase the commercial sale possibilities for the USA and Japan? Would a standard DVD be able to choose between these two or does it has to work through a kind of universal Menue?
Best regards - Christoph

Christoph:
Would a standard DVD be able to choose between these two or does it has to work through a kind of universal Menue?
There is no way to include both standards PAL/NTSC material in the same disc/project.
Alberto

Best file format for iMovie when transferring standard 8 to DVD for use under iMovie.

I have some old Standard 8 cine film which I want transfered to DVD or CD so I can edit under iMovie.
What file format should I ask for i.e. .avi etc,
Should I get them onto DVD or CD.
Does anyone know a reliable transfer companies ?
I have Mac OS X 10.6.8 and iMovie 09 8.0.6 (821)
Many thanks for any help.

If you have 8MM film, I have found a company called Mymovietransfer.com or Debenham media that will convert the 8MM to 1080P in the format you specify. I chose Motion JPEG, and it worked great in iMovie. If you have Final Cut Pro, you can choose ProRes or Uncompressed instead.
When you get your film converted to DVD, it will be standard definition and lose some quality. If you prefer to go standard definition you are better off finding someone who will convert it to DV codec rather than a DVD, which is highly compressed MPEG2.
So my suggestion would ne to find a company that can convert it in the highest quality possible. You can then edit it in iMovie and share to YouTube, DVD, etc.
Here is a sample video of mine in 1080P from 8MM converted by Mymovietransfer.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9h8InMb0Ys
I have no affiliation with this company except as a satisfied customer.

PAL & NTSC DVDs--an Option?

I have an extensive collection of PAL & NTSC DVDs. The G5 has a (lower) empty optical drive slot. If I install another Superdrive will I be able to set it up to exclusively use this to play PAL regions 2 & 4 DVDs without locking the G5 permanently into this format i.e. use the first drive to still play NTSC Region 1 DVDs only? I understand that the manual says the the format choice can only be changed 5 times, but it is not clear to me if this statement applies only to the optical drives or the computer itself. I certainly do not want to make an irreversible choice for the G5!
Any help will be appreciated.

So... You are confusing video standard (format) with region codes here. The optical drives in Macs (most) are region code locked, meaning that they will only play disks from one region (and that region may be changed up to 5 times before the hardware gets stuck). It doesn't care what video format is on the disk from that region (NTSC or PAL), and it doesn't care about region-free disks (recordable DVDs, and commercial region-free disks).
On the Mac, the region locking is managed by firmware on the drive itself, so you can have one drive per region, if you like.
It might be more convenient to upgrade the firmware on the drive (depending on what model you have) to a region-free version of the firmware. As you may or may not be aware, the US is a WIPO signatory country and is prohibited from recognizing region codes as a form of copy protection or copyright control. Apple includes region code locks on their drives, ostensibly at the behest of their peers in the media industry, but it's perfectly OK for you to remove it (and, there are locales where region code locking is actually prohibited, but presumably if you bought your Mac there the locks are already absent). Be aware, however, that changing the firmware of the drive would void the warranty on the drive (not the whole Mac, just the DVD drive).
Another option might be to purchase an external region-free DVD drive.

Please recommend a tapeless camcorder to use with Apple iMovie5, standard definition 4:3.

I'm still using Apple iMovie5 and a Power PC to make standard definition 4:3
aspect ratio DVD's for industrial training purposes. Historically, I've used
miniDV camcorders to aquire the raw content. I want to go tapeless, but still keep
everything else the same. Any specific suggestions for camcorders that aquire in
SD 4:3 with files compatible with iMovie5 (like .mov files)?? In other words, I
need to replace the miniDV capture process and go with something that easily
imports into iMovie 5, std def, with 4:3. Help please!!!
Thanks! Also, I do not need a real high end camera. Something under $600 preferable.
<Edited by Host>

The nearest we can get to an answer about the very old iMovie 5 and what types of cameras and video types it supported is here:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2264#

NTSC DVD created with iMovie 6.0.3. Need to convert to PAL.

Is there a way to do this without starting over? Can I switch iMovie from NTSC to PAL? Can I take my iMovie NTSC project and copy it to a new iMovie window after switching the preferences to PAL? Would that keep chapters in place? Can Toast or something do this? I sure hate to totally start over.

Hi
Please Karsten
b) export your iMovie project; drag the resulting file into a new PAL IDVD project; iDVD will ask you to keep or change the standard
IS NO GOOD WAY at all - It works but resulting DVD is barely viewable ! (jumpy, un-sharp and really bad)
a) is an excellent choice as long as TV is fairly modern - else result will be Bl/W
My notes on this:
PAL to NTSC or NTSC to PAL
A. Copying commercial DVDs - No Not possibly at all - Not even legal to discuss.
B. Home made DVDs (DVDs without copy protection)
C. Movies from iMovie or FinalCut
• Save as full quality QuickTime .mov and convert this with JES_Deinterlacer (free on internet)
NTSC ---> PAL.
• Most often not necessary - Most stand alone PAL DVD-players playback NTSC
(if TV is old in BL/W)
PAL ---> NTSC.
• If played on Mac - not necessary AT ALL
• If on NTSC DVD-player - CONVERSION IS NEEDED - nearly no Stand alone NTSC-DVD-players
playback PAL at all.
To do this You need to convert the PAL DVD to streaming.DV or full quality QuickTime .mov
• I use Roxio Toast™ to do this (There are no free converter)
• JES_Deinterlacer (free on internet) to convert to NTSC
• Set up an NTSC project (29.97fps or 30) in iDVD and import then burn
I burn to
• Verbatim DVD-R
• Set down burn speed in iDVD to x1 or x4 recommended by many
• Secure a minimum of 25Gb free space on internal boot hard disk before burning (IMPORTANT)
PAL is 25 fps and an analog TV standard of 625 lines
NTSC is 29.97 fps and 520 lines
NTSC (29.97fps) 520 lines - about 640x480 pixels (square) 720x480 rectangular (narrow) pixels
PAL (25 fps) 625 lines - about 768x576 pixels (square) 720x576 rectangular (narrow) pixels
to use a photo 702x480 resp 576 then add 9 pixels on each side to add together as 720
If iDVD hangs on PAL or NTSC.
Bengt W wrote
Deleting iDVD pref. file - should return You into NTSC mode.
Yes iDVD can switch to PAL - BUT as You see with a rather lousy result.
a. Need to convert to PAL - most often not - Most PAL-player can playback NTSC
and on a fairly new TV in color. (old TV in Bl/W)
(Other way around - from PAL to NTSC most often a must - few NTSC-player can use PAL)
b. IF MUST - then use JES_Deinterlacer to do this conversion - so much better and free.
My list on this (or rather PAL --> NTSC - just think the other way around)
I have to send it overseas
That too can be a problem. As USA = NTSC = 29.97fps and EU = PAL = 25fps.
DO Not let iMovie or iDVD do this conversion from one to the other - Result will be Very
BAD
I save the movie as a full quality QuickTime .mov file then I use JES_Deinterlacer to do the conversion - then I cont. in iMovie or iDVD with project set accordingly.
JES_Deinterlacer is free on Internet and there are Pro applications but not that much better and costs are astronomical.
PAL-DVDs - don't play in US
NTSC-DVDs - usually plays well in EU
All plays well on a Mac - What ever.
Allosaurus writes
Thank you SDMacuser. I dumped all the plist icons with no result, and was getting pretty plist off when it occurred to me to delete all the previous dvd.proj files. Bingo. That did the trick. So thank you for all your help and the additional information you provided.
Yours Bengt W

Editing/Burning High-Definition (HD) DVDs on my MBP?

Hello all,
I'm considering upgrading my camcorder to HD. (purchasing a new one)...
I know this question could go in either iMovie or iDVD, but I figure I want to know about the DVD burner we have in our MBPs and thus here I am.
If I purchase a new camcorder that creates HD movies, could I import/edit/burn an HD dvd? Or would I need to purchase a Blue-Ray DVD burner for my PC?
Also, would iMovieHD be used to edit HD movies? Or is it just for Standard Definition (SD) movies?
And am I understanding correctly that I should NOT purchase a camcorder that has a hard drive... but just a regular Mini DV tape camcorder?
Thanks for helping out this camcorder newbie!
Ted

Tedology,
First, you will not be able to burn a Blueray or HD-DVD with your MBP alone; the drive will only handle standard DVDs. So, you would have to use an external burner. Thing is, I don't know if there are (yet) any Blueray or HD-DVD burners that can be used with your MBP.
iMovie HD does handle HD content very well, and has for quite some time now. After all, it is iMovie HD. Until now, the only "out" option has been to either send edited content back to the camera, or to use the H.264 codec to convert to Quicktime.
As another poster has already mentioned, any H.264 content could then be burned as a Quicktime file to a standard DVD, but that will seriously limit your playback options (we're talking about a data DVD, not a video DVD).
Perhaps someone will happen along who has first-hand knowledge concerning iMovie's compatibility with the current HD burners on the market. I see no reason why they wouldn't work with the MBP, but iMovie is going to have to include support for them. That, I just don't know about.
Yes, the best option in any case is to use a camera that records to mini-DV tape. HD recording cameras will work, but the camera already compresses the video for storage on the HD. This is a lossy process. Mini-DV will give the highest quality possible.
Scott

Standard definition NTSC DVD spec

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