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Old 15th June 2002, 05:50   #4  |  Link
markrb
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Join Date: Oct 2001
Posts: 3,589
I always use Sharpen now. Usually around a .4 setting. When doing a direct compare when using it and not I always find the encode with Sharpen to be much closer to the original DVD video. The one without sharpen has to my eyes what appears to be a haze across the screen. Almost as if the glass has a light fog on it. When using sharpen that fog disappears and the images are clearer. The edges etc.. are the same. It's hard to state what it actually seems to do better then what I said about the haze.
I have done over 150 test encodes with all kinds of options. What the higher number Bicubic does and what Sharpen does are two different things. I have made test encodes with very high Bicubic settings and it does not even slightly affect the haze. Even a lower number Sharpen will remove at least part of this haze.

I will be making a couple short test encodes very shortly that I will let you download. Originally I was only going to show the difference between an Image Quality Priority setting of 17 and one of 24, but now I will also do one with and without Sharpen. Even when I get these files ready I highly recomend you do some tests of your own. Don't take mine or Bachs word for it. Try it and decide for yourself. For me until I have tested a better way I will always use Sharpen and an Image Quality Priority setting of 22 to 25.

I really believe that 6 Pass VBR is severe overkill. At most I have only done 5 pass and I doubt it's really any better then 4 pass. So if I had to choose between 6 pass VBR and Sharpen I would always pick Sharpen. Rememeber that the guys at CCE say that it reaches it's theorectical limit between 3 and 4 passes.

Mark
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Last edited by markrb; 15th June 2002 at 06:32.
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