resizing methods

[kintantee]

Please stop me if I have the wrong idea here -

when ripping a dvd, in the end, I wanna view it at full screen. So what's better to do:

1) Use a large resolution (by large, I mean something like 720x304) so there's less "distance" to stretch when going full screen or

2) Use a small resolution so there are more bits per frame and the picture is sharper before blowing. And since the picture was very sharp to begin with, there won't be much blurring when blowing up.

I realize that there are some cases that one is better than the other, but is one of these two methods generally better than the other? Let me know what you think...

[manono]

Hi and welcome to the forums-

I'd say it depends on the file size you're aiming for. If you don't mind using as many CDs as it takes to get good quality, then of course 720x304 will be better. On the other hand, to use an extreme example, I don't know too many 2 hour movies that will look good at 720x304 on 1 CD.

So, to answer the question, do a compressibility test on your material before determining what resolution to use for a given file size. Me, I don't mind going down to 544*xxx on wide screen material. Doom9 has said that his minimum horizontal resolution is 576. For many it's 640. And for a few it's 720 or even 800. People that always go for 1 CD often have to go to 512 or even lower. With time and experimentation, you'll learn what looks good to you. But do the compress test.

[mustaneekeri]

I will usually go for more Bits per Frame.
I like my video without blocks & artefacts, smaller resolution is bearable.

[kintantee]

Maybe my eye isn't good, but I really don't notice a difference when I encode a movie at high and low resolutions (keeping everything else the same). What should I be looking for? Is there much of a difference between the high and low resolutions when viewed at full screen?

[manono]

Hi-

Is there much of a difference between the high and low resolutions when viewed at full screen?.

Yes, of course there is. Do a test and prove it to yourself with an extreme example. Do a portion of a movie, say a chapter, at 720x304, and then another at a quarter the resolution, say 360x152 or something like that. Do them both at Quant 2 (maximum quality). Then full screen them both and I think you'll be able to tell the difference.

[kintantee]

Does the size of the desktop matter when viewing a movie at full screen? Let's say I have a movie at 720x304 - would it look better at fullscreen when my desktop resolution is 1024x768 rather than 1600x1200? I figure the movie is "stretched" less when going to full screen at a lower desktop resolution.

[theReal]

I always watch movies that are 640xNNN or below with a 640x480 desktop resolution, it improves the quality even if the encode is quite good. For many 720xNNN encodes, a 640x480 desktop resolution doesn't hurt either because it will cover up much artefacts and stuff.

I'd say for everything above 576xNNN, there's not too much difference in looks, but anything below that, you'll notice increasing blurriness. I never use resolutions below 512xNNN - it's the limit for my taste. However, always use an appropriate bitrate - do a compress test and stay above 50% (above 60% for really good quality).
And if you can't achieve 50% at 512xNNN, then use more CD's!