Do you encode audio and video separately?

[sync]

Some encoding guides I've seen encode separately and some don't. I haven't read anything that indicates why, or under what circumstances, it should be done separately. So I'm wondering if anyone has any ideas on the subject.

[bb]

I do separately because I can use the converters I like (BeSweet). If you convert in a single step, e.g. using VirtualDub, you can use ACM codecs only.

bb

[sync]

Do the popular video encoders only do video or is it that they don't do as good a job on audio as an audio-specific encoder?

I can't figure out what role VirtualDub plays in this. Are you using it for framserving?

[AudioVideoMaster]

I encode my DV audio and video separatly if the final product will be going to DVD. Many of the DVD authoring softwares only allow importing of elementary (separate) audio and video files. (ie: .m2v , .ac3 , .mpa , etc.) Then when the DVD is compiled the authoring software multiplexes them back together for the finished product.

[bb]

Originally posted by sync
Do the popular video encoders only do video or is it that they don't do as good a job on audio as an audio-specific encoder?
There are specialized external programs which do a (much) better job. E.g. CCE's internal audio routines are crap. TMPGEnc was the same, but it has improved much in the latest versions.
I can't figure out what role VirtualDub plays in this. Are you using it for framserving?
No, not for frameserving (I use AviSynth for that part), but for encoding - if my target format is e.g. DivX. Sometimes I use it for cutting and resizing purposes when targetting for MPEG-2 formats (with other proggies helping me to get my AviSynth script).

bb