Compressor 3 Tutorial

"Compressors' New Interface"

I just took a glance at this, but it looks like another good article over at kenstone.net. Not only does it go over some basic things about getting around the new version of Compressor, but it looks like it does a good job of talking about how to encode for DVD's.

I had a lot of trouble with variable bit rate encoding with Compressor 2, so I've been just sticking with constant bit rate. But once I upgrade I'm going to have to figure out the average vs. max bit rates for variable bit rate encoding. Some stuff on that in the article, plus it will help you figure out the normalize setting for your audio.

[via Studio Daily Blog]

XDCAM EX Codec

I tracked down some more info about the codec used for the new Sony XDCAM PMW-EX1 camcorder. As you can see from the table above, there are two general recording codecs. The HQ model has a higher maximum bit rate that is variable and also includes different resolutions--either 1920x1080 or 1280x720. The SP mode is basically the same codec as HDV 1080 line variation that Sony uses in the Z1 and V1. It is a constant bit-rate at 25mb/s at a resolution of 1440x1080. The advantage of working in this mode is that the signal is compatible with gear that knows HDV, like FCP or an HDV deck. So that while shooting, you could record to a Sony HDV deck or you could record with capture now in FCP through firewire out on the camera.

Interestingly, the SP mode has the same limitations on variable frame rate as other Sony camcorders, like the V1. That is, you can record 24p (or really 23.98p) but it it recorded with pulldown into a regular 60i (29.97interlaced) signal. So to edit that in native 24 fps, you need to remove the pulldown, which is tricky to do (especially so if you want to keep your timecode.) It looks like the HQ mode handles real variable frame-rate, recording the signal in the frame-rate that you set and not trying to squeeze (or stretch) it into 30 interlaced fps. All XDCAM EX media files have a MP4 (MPEG-4) wrapper.

No DV or DVCam recording. The bad thing about that is that you could have squeezed a lot more video on the expensive SxS cards with support for standard definition recording. Prices are around $500 for 8GB and $900 for 16GB now. With 16GB of memory you get as little as 50 min. in HQ mode, and exactly 70 min. in SP mode.

We are still waiting for a direct interface for importing from the memory cards into FCP. I'm not sure if there is any support right now for the files on the memory card and FCP yet, but hopefully Apple is working on getting a good solution soon.

Here's a direct quote from the rather large PDF that I got this info from:

The SP mode supports 1440 x 1080 resolution at 25 Mb/s,
which provides compatibility with HDV 1080i products.
Footage recorded in the SP mode can be seamlessly
integrated into HDV-compatible editing systems by
connecting the camcorder via the i.LINKTM* (HDV)
interface. It can also be recorded on XDCAM HD's optical
disc through the use of the supplied Clip Browser software.

More Sony Camera Goodness

Update: More info is rolling out about these cameras, including official annoucements from Sony for the new HDV mini and the HDV Full. They don't have official names yet even, but I'm copying these names from this awesome webpage that covers just about every piece of HD gear that would be of interest to the prosumer markert called Frank's Thoughts on HDV. I'd also recommend this analysis of the new Sony HDV gear at IEBA blog.

Sony is promising some HDV cameras with interchangable lens in 2008. HD for Indies has a short post about it and a YouTube video from the IBC conference (where I got the images.) The posts only mentions a handycam model, but the video shows a shoulder-mount HDV camera too with interchangable lens. Seems like Sony is finally taking HDV seriously as a pro format. I haven't seen anything official from Sony on this yet. Interesting that these cameras have a 1/3" sensors, but the XDCAM EX has 1/2" sensors but a fixed lens (of course, there are some XDCAM HD cameras with interchangable lenses that cost over $10k.)

New Sony Memory Card Prosumer Camera

Sony looks like it has a great new camera on its hands for the prosumer market. The PMW-EX1 records to solid state memory--a new format called SxS Pro. Unlike P2, it looks like there will be multiple manufacturers, which means lower prices in the long run. The EX1 should be selling in November for around $7,500 with two 8GB memory cards included.

For editors, very confusing what this means right now. The recording format is based on the XDCAM format, which is recorded on blu-ray optical discs. But EX1 tweaks the formats--different file wrappper and the option for higher resolution, a full 1920x1080. The new XDCAM EX format is not fully supported by Final Cut, but there might be some native support if you shoot in the right way with this camera--not sure. Also the camera has a firewire port on it that says HDV. The camera doesn't record in HDV but can it transcode? Lots of questions.

This camera looks like a giant step up from the Z1 in just about every way. If you want the low-down there are already a few articles on the web from folks who have been testing pre-production models. Here's a good overview from FreshDV of what info is out there about the EX1. Here are two in-depth articles, one from Nigel Cooper and another from Simon Wyndham. There are so many interesting new features on this camera, it's worth getting a broad overview.

I'm still not sold on the tapeless workflow, but this looks a great camera. I'm just worried about backup for this footage. Sony offers a unit that transfers from the SxS Pro cards to Sony's XDCAM discs (with some drawbacks as Simon Wyndham points out.) Otherwise, it's archive like you do computer data--either optical disc burning or stacking up hard drives on your shelf.

Random Thoughts on New iPod Lineup

Go to Apple if you want the basics on the new iPod lineup and to oggle the goods. Here's some reactions that I've had to the new gear.

I'm glad that the new iPod Touch has WiFi. I'd like to see Apple do more with it. Granted, the Safari mobile browser is awesome and trumps any other lame WiFi application that any other portable media player has tried. I was hoping for live MP3 streams, i.e., internet radio over WiFi. Too much of a battery drain, maybe? I've heard a complaint about how quickly WiFi drains the iPhone battery.

Also I was hoping for podcast downloading over WiFi. For me, I try to download Democracy Now every morning before I go into work, but sometimes they're late or, or even more rare, I leave early. If I could download over WiFi then I could get the podcast at work and still listen to the news on the way home.

The only thing that can be downloaded on the iPod Touch over WiFi is music through the Store--which means that except for one song a week, you gotta pay. Instead of working on their partnership with Starbuck's, I wish Apple was opening up downloads of free podcasts.

iPod Touch has the same YouTube application that the iPhone has. I played around with YouTube on an iPhone at the Apple Store. I found Mosaic on it, but the interface was too tiny for me to figure out which date it was. Also WiFi doesn't seem as good a platform for spending downtime browsing the web or YouTube as high-speed cellular is--if you are in an area with WiFi then mostly likely you can get on a computer. I had my hopes for city-wide WiFi in San Francisco, but that's collapsed now after EarthLink pulled out. It sounds like the Starbuck's deal only allows you to browse the iTunes Store, not the web or YouTube.

I guess it's too much to ask to be able to be able to share songs with other iPod's and computers over WiFi--the record labels would freak out about that. "Hey buddy have you heard this song? No? Well then I'll just zap it to you over WiFi!" I hope someone comes up with a hack to do that. Even better, transfers from an iPod to your friend's computer--"Hey buddy, can I get all of the music in your iPod?" (Although with a sync cable and software, you can already do that without WiFi.) I'm guessing that the iPod Touch runs on OS X, like the iPhone. Seems like there's already a big group of folks hacking into the iPhone, and I hope to see some similar work done on the iPod Touch.

I also really want to see Flash on the iPhone, iPod Touch. Apple shows the New York Times homepage on their demo--oh, ignore the blank spot in the lower-left corner please. That's just where The NYT streams Flash videos. What's the holdup? Is Flash video too processer-intensive? Do Adobe and Apple have to reach some agreement?

Big price drops on the iPhone. Get a 4GB iPhone on clearance for $299, while supplies last. In the future, it's only the 8GB iPhone for $399.

Capture More Than One Source at Once

This looks like an interesting new product. It's called MovieRecorderDV. I got the details on this press release. It says it will capture multiple streams of DV video at once and cites an example of using a laptop to capture multiple sources. I can see it as a mini control-room-like setup in the field. Although I have some doubts about how many video streams could be handled on a single firewire bus, especially if you are trying to capture the video on that same firewire bus. Seems like you would need to record either to the internal drive or have another bus (either firewire or SATA) on an ExpressCard setup for a laptop. It's a bit pricey--around $900.

Another interesting application would be as a central recorder for a setup like Mosaic, where we are recording a bunch of stuff off-air. Instead of buying DVD-Recorders with hard drives, a central Mac could record multiple feeds at once. Softron has a product called DV Recorder, but I'm not sure if it's the same product. DV Recorder is programmable.

Or if you are a really productive editor, you can be capturing from multiple deck while at the same time, you are editing in FCP. How's that for multi-tasking.

There's also Movie Recorder for working with non-DV sources of video, like uncompressed SD. Another $900 for this too. How about some HDV support?