|
|
As Abbamania is back, I decided that I wanted to create a slide show to accompany one of my favourite of their earlier songs ("Move On" from "The Album"), using a series of black and white photographs, fading into colour and finishing with a few images from their forthcoming "Voyage" project. I knew that PD18 has a option for making slide shows, but not being too familiar with its features, I decided to use a program I purchased years ago called "ProShow Gold", which has an option to sync the added slides to the audio track. All went well until I came to produce the show, but when I came to listen to the outputted video file, I found that there was a noticeable click at the start and end of the show and no matter what I tried , I couldn't eliminate the problem. Then I had a idea to bring PD18 to my aid, as I knew from recent use of the normal video editing part of the program that I could finely control the audio, so I inputted the output file from ProShow Gold, found the troublesome parts of the audio and set the audio to zero at those points. Problem solved.
So, my main point about mentioning all this is to ask whether PD18 also has a feature to sychronise a number of images to an audio track. If it does, I can just use PD18 for any future projects of this nature.
|
|
|
Quote
The Help website is the quickest way to find answers about specific features. See the note highlighted in yellow at the bottom of this page.
Thanks for that - I've added a bookmark to Chrome for future reference. The audio fade could be very useful sometimes, rather than adding fades using the Pip Designer function. I still can't find any reference to removing all transitions though, so it may be that that particular feature isn't available.
|
|
|
|
Is there a way to add or remove transitions from all video clips, without having the do it individually? The reason I ask is that I find that if I make certain changes to the video clips, if I leave the transitions in place, I can end up with gaps between the clips, which only show up in storyboard view, or in timeline view if I remove the transitions after finishing the editing.
|
|
|
|
Thanks Guys. I've applied the hotfix, but I got around the problem in the meantime by re-ripping the problem DVD to mpg but specifying stereo for the sound format. It still sounds fine to me through my Sennheiser TV headphones (although I haven't compared the two side by side), but it's good to know there's another option if needed.
|
|
|
Quote
One can also edit a copy of the pds file and simple change file names in the file, video1.m4v to video2.mpg. One can preserve all cuts with no redo in such case.
Jeff
Sorry Jeff but I don't know how to do that. Could you provide some step-by-step instructions for me?
I'll look into the other issue after dinner.
Many thanks.
|
|
|
Quote
Try this: Rename the myvideo.mpg to booby.mpg. Import it to the Media room of the library. Click and drag the booby.mpg to the timeline over the myvideo.m4v clip and release. Select Replace. That should do it.
Thanks for the suggestion. However, it wouldn't work in my situation because I had trimmed the original video clip. I did find however, that if I removed the original clip with the option to leave a gap and then inserted the new clip using the trim to fit option, I could then retrim the new clip using the in and out position I had previously noted down. Unfortunately and for some unknown reason, PowerDirector 18 does not play any sound associated with the new clip. I can play the clip using VLC Media Player and also play it in AVS Video Editor, so I don't know why it won't play in PowerDirector.
|
|
|
|
Is it possible to replace a video clip in a project with a video clip that has the same name but a diifferent type? For instance, if I had a better quality video clip of myvideo.m4v, could I replace it with myvideo.mpg? I haven't been able to find a way to do it so far, so if it is possible, can anyone advise me how to do it please?
|
|
|
Hi Forum Members
Earlier today, I posted the following message on the support forum for my router, but I'd be interested in receiving any initial thoughts from members of this forum while I am waiting for a response to my other post.
This is what I've said on the other forum:-
"I’d like to run a problem I have past the
experts on this forum if I may, just to eliminate (or not) my router as
being a possible cause.
I have an ASUS RT-AX88U, wall-mounted at the top of the stairs,
supplying streaming content from my Synology DiskStation 220+ to two
televisions via Amazon Fire TV sticks. The DiskStation is connected to
the router via an Ethernet cable and the televisions via Wi-Fi on
channel 44. One TV is in the adjacent bedroom and one in the lounge
below. Both Fire TV Sticks report the signal strength as being very good
and the quality as being good (lounge TV) and very good (bedroom TV).
The router is running on Merlin firmware version 3.2.6. The problem I
have started getting recently is that the picture on the TV's is showing
blockinginess, particularly noticeable in the darker parts of the
picture. This happens on both TV’s and also when watching on my laptops,
although it’s a little less noticeable on the computer screens. I have
tried the following to attempt to eliminate the problem, but apart from
turning down the brightness on the TV’s, nothing has made any
difference. The problem is apparent on both video compilations I have
made using PowerDirector 18 and also on unedited content downloaded from
youtube. My next step, if this can be confirmed that this is not a
router issue, will probably be to post a message on the Cyberlink forum.
This is what I have tried so far:-
Disabling all Trend features.
Turning off QoS.
Temporarily disabling Skynet.
Rebooting the router.
Re-producing my video compilations using
different output file types (mpg, mp4, etc), bitrates and video
definitions (1280 x 720 and 1920 x 1080).
Using an alternative video editor (AVS).
Disabling Kaspersky Internet Security while video rendering.
Using an alternative streaming app (Plex, rather than Kodi).
Any comments/suggestions would really be appreciated."
|
|
|
Quote
I assume you were doing that with the Audio Editor tool, and that you've clicked Apply several times and even left the tool and gone back to the main timeline.
As long as the project hasn't been closed, you should be able to click on Undo (or use the Ctrl+Z keys to go back up to 50 steps. If you made more than 50 changes or have already closed the project, you're left with a couple choices.
One way is to simply drag the same clip from the media library onto the timeline. If you've trimmed the original clip, you'll need to match the starting & ending edges and select both clips and use the Sync by Audio tool so you can get everything perfectly aligned and then you can delete the modified clip and replace it with the unmodified version.
The other way is to go back to one of the autosaved versions of your project from before you started playing around with the audio. You can check how often the auto saves were made and see all the temporary projects from this screen:
I've wondered this myself, but having just read your third paragraph and also the relevant part of the help file, I still cannot understand the process. Would you mind explaining it in more detail? I'm particularly confused by what you mean by "match the starting & ending edges" and also by where to drag the replacement clip to, i.e., does it go before, after or on top of the existing clip on the timeline? In addition, what does PowerDirector actually do when the sync button is pressed?
|
|
|
|
I've been having some difficult problems when making changes to video clips I've already trimmed and added to the timeline. I've ended up in a siuation where fragments of a clip are being shown and heard on the monitor screen, but there is no sign of the clip fragment on the timeline. I've even dragged the video clips immediately adjacent onto the video channel below (to see if there was anything hidden underneath), leaving a gap on the main timeline and the phantom clip still plays when the cursor is on the blank portion of the main video channel. Switching to storyboard view then shows one or more blank clips which cannot be deleted. It's so frustrating because when it happens, it takes me a long time to try to fathom out how to resolve the issue. Has anyone else experienced this problem and if so, how did you resolve it?
|
|
|
Quote
Not the original video clip, the audio in the timeline has been replaced with a WAV file which has the modification you performed with the equalizer. Editing in AudioDirector is kind of a in the moment thing, once taken back to PD, modifications are reflected in the audio but lost to a further edit.
You don't need a backup copy of the video clip as the original audio of the clip was never modified. However, one cannot simply restore the audio to original either, you need to simply replace the clip in the timeline with the media library clip and retrim if necessary.
Jeff
Thanks Jeff.
|
|
|
I re-opened a short project I made a few weeks ago as I wanted to make some minor tweeks to the audio from the settings I used last time I produced the project. However, when I re-opened the audio editor from within PDR, I noticed that the sliders where all in the mid position. So based on that, I have two questions - 1) Has the original video clip itself had its audio component modified by PDR and 2) If the answer to question one is yes, is there a way to restore the original audio settings, other than using a backed-up copy of the original video clip (if there is one of course) to replace the modified clip?
Using my other video editing software (AVS Video Editor), I can easily restore the original settings, as the sliders remain where I last positioned them (see uploaded screenshot), so all I have to do is move them to the new positions or back to zero if I want to restore the audio back to its original state.
|
|
|
|
I'm cautiously optimistic that I've found the answer to this at last. It seems to be the option to "Enable Intel Quick Sync Video". I tried various options yesterday evening, including DVD+R and DVD-R Verbatim discs, but all ended up as coasters until I switched off the above option. After that, I was able to make two DVD's without any blocking/pixelating or whatever the correct terminology is.
|
|
|
Quote
There are many. In the Title Designer, make sure you click on the Advanced button then you'll see the available effects/animations. Fade is one of them.
You can also drag a fade transition onto the title on the timeline, or click on the Keyframe tool and set the opacity at 0 at the start and end of the title with 100 in between.
Can you explain the adding/adjusting keyframes process a bit more as I can't fathom out how to use it? Also, does it affect the video only or can it be used to simultaneously fade in/out the audio? My workaround to date has been to create a few seconds of video with my camera lens cover on and use that in conjunction with the fade transition.
|
|
|
Quote
Looks like you have your answer on size difference and it was as described. PD18 using PCM audio at 1536kbps while your other is using basic MPEG audio at 224kbps. Video differences rather negligible at 6012kbps and 6200kpbs.
So the burned size differs between the two by 20% because of the audio encoding utilized.
Jeff
OK, thanks for that. What difference would I expect to notice between the two audio variations? If so, have you any recommendations which option to choose? Neither option in PD18 seems to make any difference about the size of the output to the DVD though (see below).
|
|
|
Quote
Here's the PD18 VOB info:
General
CompleteName : D:\VIDEO_TS\VTS_01_1.VOB
Format/String : MPEG-PS
FileSize/String : 1 024 MiB
Duration/String : 18 min 35 s
OverallBitRate_Mode/String : Variable
OverallBitRate/String : 7 701 kb/s
Video
ID/String : 224 (0xE0)
Format/String : MPEG Video
Format_Version : Version 2
Format_Profile : Main@Main
Format_Settings : BVOP
Format_Settings_BVOP/String : Yes
Format_Settings_Matrix/String : Default
Format_Settings_GOP : M=3, N=15
Format_Settings_PictureStructure : Frame
Duration/String : 18 min 35 s
BitRate_Mode/String : Variable
BitRate/String : 6 012 kb/s
BitRate_Maximum/String : 8 300 kb/s
Width/String : 720 pixels
Height/String : 576 pixels
DisplayAspectRatio/String : 16:9
FrameRate/String : 25.000 FPS
Standard : PAL
ColorSpace : YUV
ChromaSubsampling/String : 4:2:0
BitDepth/String : 8 bits
ScanType/String : Interlaced
ScanOrder/String : Top Field First
Compression_Mode/String : Lossy
Bits-(Pixel*Frame) : 0.580
TimeCode_FirstFrame : 00:00:00:00
TimeCode_Source : Group of pictures header
Gop_OpenClosed/String : Open
StreamSize/String : 799 MiB (78%)
Audio
ID/String : 189 (0xBD)-160 (0xA0)
Format/String : PCM
Format_Settings : Big / Signed
MuxingMode : DVD-Video
Duration/String : 18 min 34 s
BitRate_Mode/String : Constant
BitRate/String : 1 536 kb/s
Channel(s)/String : 2 channels
SamplingRate/String : 48.0 kHz
BitDepth/String : 16 bits
StreamSize/String : 204 MiB (20%)
Menu
And now for the AVS VOB info:
General
Complete name : D:\VIDEO_TS\VTS_01_1.VOB
Format : MPEG-PS
File size : 1 024 MiB
Duration : 21 min 51 s
Overall bit rate mode : Constant
Overall bit rate : 6 547 kb/s
Video
ID : 224 (0xE0)
Format : MPEG Video
Format version : Version 2
Format profile : Main@Main
Format settings : BVOP
Format settings, BVOP : Yes
Format settings, Matrix : Default
Format settings, GOP : M=3, N=15
Duration : 21 min 51 s
Bit rate mode : Constant
Bit rate : 6 200 kb/s
Width : 720 pixels
Height : 576 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 16:9
Frame rate : 25.000 FPS
Standard : PAL
Color space : YUV
Chroma subsampling : 4:2:0
Bit depth : 8 bits
Scan type : Progressive
Compression mode : Lossy
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.598
Time code of first frame : 00:00:00:00
Time code source : Group of pictures header
GOP, Open/Closed : Open
Stream size : 968 MiB (95%)
Audio
ID : 192 (0xC0)
Format : MPEG Audio
Format version : Version 1
Format profile : Layer 2
Duration : 21 min 51 s
Bit rate mode : Constant
Bit rate : 224 kb/s
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Sampling rate : 48.0 kHz
Frame rate : 41.667 FPS (1152 SPF)
Compression mode : Lossy
Stream size : 35.0 MiB (3%)
Menu
|
|
|
Quote
Thank you for the screenshots. The PD18 dvd is 18.9% larger than the AVS dvd. That is probably because of the uncompressed (LPCM) audio on the PD18 created disc. You can do a File explorer/Properties/Detail on the VTS_01_1.VOB on each to find out both the video, audio, and total bitrate for each.
Glad that you are not seeing any problems with the PD18 creation now. Use Mediainfo(freeware) to see more details with the .VOB files. It is possible that the frame rates of the two DVDs are different and the one created with the AVS is closer to the frame rate of the original files used. You would be able to determine that with the right utilities like with mediainfo.
EDIT: Jeff answered first while I was still typing.
Here's the PD18 VOB info:
General
CompleteName : D:\VIDEO_TS\VTS_01_1.VOB
Format/String : MPEG-PS
FileSize/String : 1 024 MiB
Duration/String : 18 min 35 s
OverallBitRate_Mode/String : Variable
OverallBitRate/String : 7 701 kb/s
Video
ID/String : 224 (0xE0)
Format/String : MPEG Video
Format_Version : Version 2
Format_Profile : Main@Main
Format_Settings : BVOP
Format_Settings_BVOP/String : Yes
Format_Settings_Matrix/String : Default
Format_Settings_GOP : M=3, N=15
Format_Settings_PictureStructure : Frame
Duration/String : 18 min 35 s
BitRate_Mode/String : Variable
BitRate/String : 6 012 kb/s
BitRate_Maximum/String : 8 300 kb/s
Width/String : 720 pixels
Height/String : 576 pixels
DisplayAspectRatio/String : 16:9
FrameRate/String : 25.000 FPS
Standard : PAL
ColorSpace : YUV
ChromaSubsampling/String : 4:2:0
BitDepth/String : 8 bits
ScanType/String : Interlaced
ScanOrder/String : Top Field First
Compression_Mode/String : Lossy
Bits-(Pixel*Frame) : 0.580
TimeCode_FirstFrame : 00:00:00:00
TimeCode_Source : Group of pictures header
Gop_OpenClosed/String : Open
StreamSize/String : 799 MiB (78%)
Audio
ID/String : 189 (0xBD)-160 (0xA0)
Format/String : PCM
Format_Settings : Big / Signed
MuxingMode : DVD-Video
Duration/String : 18 min 34 s
BitRate_Mode/String : Constant
BitRate/String : 1 536 kb/s
Channel(s)/String : 2 channels
SamplingRate/String : 48.0 kHz
BitDepth/String : 16 bits
StreamSize/String : 204 MiB (20%)
Menu
|
|
|
Quote
Not really, concerning PD burn capability and/or most burning utilities, it will default to the rated speed of the disc in use. If you use 16x it will default to 16x and allow you to select slower burns. If a 8x disc, it will default to 8x and allow slower. PD never defaults to some whatever MAX rate, it always reads the inner hub coding on the disc and offers rated speed (default) or manually slower options. Using a slower speed on a quality disc often will not change anything.
As tomasc points out, seeing encoding specifics in the two files could shed some insight, however, there are substantially better MPEG2 encoders available than what PD provides so OP quality observation may/may not be abnormal.
Jeff
I've not been able to reproduce the problem since the weekend. The only real difference I am currently noticing between DVD's burnt using AVS and PD18 is that the latter requires substantially more disc space.
|
|
|
Quote
BrianE - Are you willing to share, say the VTS_01_1.VOB file created with the AVS Video Editor and the one created by PD18 from the same files... Would like to check to see the difference. One Drive or Google Drive may be used and you can make the file shareable to users willing to check and test them.
I'll give it a go, but it may take me a day or two to organise this.
|
|
|
I tried another experiment today - I used an MPEG4 file instead of an MPEG2, but I still got the same poor quality video when burnt to DVD. PD18 also requires almost double the disc space that AVS Video Editor uses and the end result is so much worse. I cannot understand this - Powerdirector has been around for a long time, so why am I getting inferior results?
The settings I am currently using are shown in the uploaded image.
|
