Recommended settings for non-HD sources?

[DNL]

Hello,

I have a few questions regarding the x264 codec and which settings to use for non-HD sources.

When I'm using the recommended settings suggested in most guides it takes about 4 hours for an encode to complete. Compared with the XviD codec it's roughly 2-3 hours longer than usual. Apperently the recommended settings are for HD sources such as HD-DVD and BluRay, not normal DVDs. This made me wonder, what's the best settings for x264 when encoding a "normal" source, ensuring both maximum possible quality AND speed?

Feel free to share both settings and thoughts related to the subject.

Thanks in advance.

Best regards,
DNL

PS. Here's my current settings:
--pass 1 --bitrate x --stats ".stats" --bframes 3 --b-pyramid --ipratio 1.5 --pbratio 1.5 --vbv-init 1 --qcomp 0.5 --aq-mode 0 --merange 15 --threads auto --progress --no-psnr --no-ssim --subme 1 --no-dct-decimate --partitions none --me dia --output NUL --output NUL
--pass 2 --bitrate x --stats ".stats" --ref 5 --mixed-refs --bframes 3 --b-pyramid --b-rdo --bime --weightb --subme 7 --partitions none --8x8dct --ipratio 1.5 --pbratio 1.5 --vbv-init 1 --qcomp 0.5 --trellis 1 --aq-mode 0 --no-fast-pskip --me umh --merange 15 --threads auto --progress --no-psnr --no-ssim --output x.MKV

[Irakli]

Well, I'm not x264 expert (just ordinary user), but I would suggest using --crf mode (constant quality encoding) which will save time by eliminating need for 2-pass encoding. Here is command line example:

--crf 18 --ref 5 --mixed-refs --bframes 5 --b-pyramid --b-rdo --bime --weightb --subme 7 --trellis 1 --partitions p8x8,b8x8,i4x4,i8x8 --8x8dct --me umh --threads auto --thread-input --progress --no-psnr --no-ssim --output file.MKV

--crf 18 is generally considered to be 'transparent' (indistinguishable from the original). However, you can use --crf 20 or even --crf 22 to lower the filesize.

One thought about your command line: it is in general not a very good idea to disable partitions as that way you loose much of the x264's efficiency benefit. IMO, if you want faster encoding it's better to lower --subme to 6 but leave partitions to --partitions p8x8,b8x8,i4x4,i8x8.

[Blue_MiSfit]

Yeah never set subme to anything less than 5. It's not much faster (even at 1) and looks _awful_.

I always use 6, as this is a decent RDO.

[Dark Shikari]

--ipratio 1.5 --pbratio 1.5Here's where it gets stupid. Leave pbratio and ipratio on default. Overly high pbratio is one of the biggest reasons why Xvid has serious quality issues in B-frames.--vbv-init 1 --qcomp 0.5 --aq-mode 0Remove these, they range from meaningless (vbv-init does nothing with VBV off) to stupid (why turn off AQ?).--merange 15Huh? Why 15? Default is 16, no good reason to touch it, not like it does anything on DIA anyways.--output NUL --output NULDon't need to repeat it twice...
--b-rdo --subme 7And you wonder why encoding is slow!
--partitions noneWhy the hell are you using such slow options with this?! Leave partitions on default.
--ipratio 1.5 --pbratio 1.5 --vbv-init 1 --qcomp 0.5 --aq-mode 0Again, stupid.
--no-fast-pskip --me umhAnd you wonder why its slow, etc, etc, etc.

[audyovydeo]

aq

hello DS - just barging in.
Why would not using AQ be stupid ? I am not very familiar with it, but so far I use it only on black&white footage. I thought it was a partial solution to a non-universal problem, or have I missed something ?


cheers
audyovydeo

DNL,
heres my basic set for SD

--crf 18 --level 3.1 --ref 4 --mixed-refs --bframes 16 --b-pyramid --bime --weightb --subme 5 --trellis 1 --partitions p8x8,b8x8,i4x4,i8x8 --8x8dct --me umh --threads auto --direct auto

I use subme 7 and me esa only to encode presidents addressing the nation from their desk. Anything with more movement I give is lower settings.

cheers
a/v

[Dark Shikari]

hello DS - just barging in.
Why would not using AQ be stupid ? I am not very familiar with it, but so far I use it only on black&white footage. I thought it was a partial solution to a non-universal problem, or have I missed something ?I have not found a single source yet that I would not want to use AQ on. The problem of lower-detail blocks being quantized more harshly is pretty universal.

[akupenguin]

Apperently the recommended settings are for HD sources such as HD-DVD and BluRay, not normal DVDs.
No, there really isn't any difference between SD and HD settings, other than perhaps merange.

[DNL]

Thank you all for your replies :)

Dark Shikari:
I'm using StaxRip along with x264 which means some of the "default" settings haven't been changed by me, at least I don't think so.

I'll try to change some of the settings and see how it affects the result.

Best regards,
DNL

[Adub]

What!!?? Staxrip gave you those settings? Wait, is it a included profile, or one you made your self?