When you burn to DVD the format will be 720x480. If you want better quality, go BlueRay. I went through the same thing. It's just like cutting a record, it doesn't matter how good the quality of the source sound is, it will sound like a record. CyberPowerPC | Win7HP-64 | AMD FX-8320 3.5 Ghz | 8GB Mem | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB | WEI 5.9


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Hi Mark - UK -

It's probably best to save yourself the disappointment and accept that that's how it is.

As Joe says (in other words), the drop in resolution from UHD to DVD is huge. You should expect that it's going to cause a massive drop in quality.

Here's what happens when you render a 3840x2160 video to 720x480 - then watch it on a 1920x1080 screen...



The screenshot wasn't shot on a GH4, but it was shot in 4K. Pans across the water in 4K look superb. In DVD format, they're putrid! There's a whole lot of downscaling then upscaling going on!

Then there's the bitrate. The GH4 might record 4K @ (say) 100MBps - then you're rendering to ~8MBps. EEK!

Cheers - Tony
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Hi Mark

I assume by your title that you are in the UK. Me too, and I have a GH4, and in my opinion it's a great camera for video giving superb results in 4K. However, I haven't had much success with 24p, but I am more than happy with 3840x2160 25p 100Mbps MP4 (LPCM).

To get the best TV experience you would need a 4K TV and as I don't yet have one of those, here's what I do. I purchased a Mede8ter 3d X1000 with wifi and connected it to my TV. On the Med8ter I am able to store all my films and watch in HD.

To get there I edit in PD13 and produce to MP4 1920x1080 and set the Mede8ter as the output folder and usually the file is transferred flawlessly for storage and viewing. Then when all is settled I render the PD13 file again, this time to another drive and rendered at 3840x2160 for storage and backup until I get a 4K TV. At the moment 4K media players are like hens teeth, but if you are serious about 4K then one would be good.

As a point of interest how do you find that PD13 edits with 4k, do you get any jumping on the timeline or do you need shadow files? Panny TM10, GH2, GH4,

Thanks for all your replies guys. I was hoping that I was doing something wrong...

Just one question re DVDs: how is it that a Hollywood film appears so much better on my TV than my 4K video shot and then burned to DVD via PD13? If it's all down to the max resolution constraints of a DVD, why is a Hollywood movie a lot sharper, or is it just in my mind? I have lots of data in the 4K stream that it appears, is simply discarded in the final burn.

And if the resolution is always limited to 720 x 480, why does PD13 give you so many options in the "produce" section when invariably, it always reverts back to 720 x 480? I know this is an ignorant question and there must be a simple answer!

Would I ultimately be better off installing a Blu - Ray burner in my PC tower and burning to that? I only spec'd the machine last year and didn't include one! Wish I had now!

So, whether I use PD13 or any other video editing / rendering / burning software, the results won't be any better than with PowerDirector?

@ Shadowman: Yes, I'm in the UK. When you say you "haven't had much success with 4K", what do you mean? I do get a touch of jumping occasionally on the timeline without implementing shadow files. Always in the same place but not throughout.

No, I said I hadn't had much success with 24p. As I understand it, 24p is more specifically for NTSC. And I think it is better suited to 60mhz rather than our 50mhz.

Someone, please correct me if I am wrong Panny TM10, GH2, GH4,

@Shadowman: Sorry, my apologies. Misread your reply.

I'd heard somewhere that 24P was the "frame rate of choice" for a more "film like" experience.

Now I'm really confused!

Hollywood film on dvd from the major studios always look better because they use expensive top notch filming equipment and the best film to dvd converters and editors not easily available or affordable to the average person. Compare that to those 2 movies on 1 dvd sold at the dollar stores. Big difference in quality is easily seen.

The Shadowman meant 50 and 60fps. 50 hz vs 60 hz power line frequency is why we have 25 and 30 fps for pal and ntsc.

Thank you tomasc.

Best results are achieved when the fps can divide equally into the hz for example 25fps x 2 = 50hz (UK) - and 30fps x 2 = 60hz (USA). 24fps does not multiply equally. Panny TM10, GH2, GH4,

Quote: Thanks for all your replies guys. I was hoping that I was doing something wrong...

Just one question re DVDs: how is it that a Hollywood film appears so much better on my TV than my 4K video shot and then burned to DVD via PD13? If it's all down to the max resolution constraints of a DVD, why is a Hollywood movie a lot sharper, or is it just in my mind? I have lots of data in the 4K stream that it appears, is simply discarded in the final burn.

And if the resolution is always limited to 720 x 480, why does PD13 give you so many options in the "produce" section when invariably, it always reverts back to 720 x 480? I know this is an ignorant question and there must be a simple answer!

Would I ultimately be better off installing a Blu - Ray burner in my PC tower and burning to that? I only spec'd the machine last year and didn't include one! Wish I had now!

So, whether I use PD13 or any other video editing / rendering / burning software, the results won't be any better than with PowerDirector?

One of the reasons Hollywood DVDs look so much better, is 1. Much better video equipment. 2. The maximum bitrate burned to a DVD. The maximum bitrate supported by standard DVD players is 9.8 Megabits per second for the video portion.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DVD-Video#Data_rate

Powerdirector by default has much lower bitrate for DVD creation (About 8 Mbps). It is possible to burn a DVD with a higher bitrate.

On the BluRay Burner, you can install a Bluray burner in your computer. It is very easy to do. Carl312: Windows 10 64-bit 8 GB RAM,AMD Phenom II X4 965 3.4 GHz,ATI Radeon HD 5770 1GB,240GB SSD,two 1TB HDs.

Hi Mark -

As an alternative to The Shadowman's playback option - http://forum.cyberlink.com/forum/posts/list/44443.page#230221 - here's what I do with my 4K video for home viewing. It's not a "better" alternative, just different.

Source material - Sony 4K Action cam & stills from various DSLRs. Playback - Sony 4K (actually UHD) TV.

After editing, produce to 4K format & transfer to portable hard drive. Plug drive into TV via USB port or through BR player (USB port) and play. Source, produced format and playback match, except that I don't produce to 100MBps because what I'm recording doesn't typically warrant it!

Cheers - Tony
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Hi Tony

My only slight argument with your method of playback is your continual need to "plug and play" so to speak. I actually render to my media player which is always connected to the TV by HDMI so I don't have to keep plugging USB cables in the back of the tele. This would be even simpler of course if I had a 4K TV and a 4K media player. The problem is that my media player only supports 1920x1080 so I have to render the 4k separately which is a nusiance.

Maybe one day I will get a 4k tv and player
Robert Panny TM10, GH2, GH4,

Quote: On the BluRay Burner, you can install a Bluray burner in your computer. It is very easy to do.

All you need to do is remove both sides of the machine, (in most cases) disconnect the cables from the DVD drive, remove 4 screws holding it into the frame, and reverse the process to install the Blu-Ray drive. .
.
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There are plenty of external USB Blue Ray Burners around.

Thanks for all your help and replies!
I will install a Blu-ray burner and report back.

But is part of the "problem" with DVD playback quality down to the encoding codec used? That is, a superior codec will yield superior results? I'm a complete novice when it comes to video editing but shouldn't a DVD authoring piece of software allow you to manipulate for example, the bitrate?

Quote: Thanks for all your help and replies!
I will install a Blu-ray burner and report back.

But is part of the "problem" with DVD playback quality down to the encoding codec used? That is, a superior codec will yield superior results? I'm a complete novice when it comes to video editing but shouldn't a DVD authoring piece of software allow you to manipulate for example, the bitrate?

If you use an external Disk burning software you can produce a High bitrate Mpeg-2 video, then using external burner software produce about 10 Megabit DVD Video disk.

In Powerdirector 12, I made a custom Mpeg-2 720x480/60i at 9.8Megabits Profile to use for making High bitrate DVD Videos. I use my Nero Burning ROM software to burn the DVD Video. Carl312: Windows 10 64-bit 8 GB RAM,AMD Phenom II X4 965 3.4 GHz,ATI Radeon HD 5770 1GB,240GB SSD,two 1TB HDs.

Being a complete novice perhaps my point is unfounded, but if quality of DVD playback is in part down to bit rate, then shouldn't it be down to the user to be able to easily select a bit rate in the software , ie PowerDirector itself rather than the software selecting a fixed default? After all, a DVD or blu-ray is just a storage medium.

Quote: After all, a DVD or blu-ray is just a storage medium.

I'd suggest, best thought of as defined standards although the media can also be used to burn data onto for storage purposes.

Hi Mark -

True - a DVD is just physical storage & has physical limits. A SL DVD is 4.7GB - DL is 8.5GB. Increased bitrate = increased file size. If you want the DVD to play in a DVD player, it has to conform to the standards or it won't play back properly.

You could put the video onto the DVD as a data disc. 4K @ 100MBps might get you about 7-8 minutes (rough estimate).

Other disc options are AVCHD DVD (max VBR ~16MBps) or BR (max VBR ~40MBps), both of which require a BR player or other device (e.g. PS3 or 4)

Commercial DVDs are pressed/stamped - not burned. They're manufactured differently & that may help to explain your earlier question.

The truth is that 4K video from the GH4 @ 50-100MBps and standard DVD formats are poles apart.

Cheers - Tony
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Thanks for all your help guys!