encoding with x264vfw - profiles and levels

[alexVS]

I encode video with x264vfw from TMPGEnc
x264vfw is biulded into k-lite codec pack
Mediainfo shows that the result is:

Video #0
Codec : AVC
Codec/Family : AVC
Codec/Info : MPEG-4 AVC
Codec profile : High@L5.1
Codec settings, CABAC : Yes
PlayTime : 4mn 41s
Bit rate : 1617 Kbps
Width : 704 pixels
Height : 448 pixels
Display Aspect ratio : 1.571
Frame rate : 50.000 fps
Chroma : 4:2:0
Interlacement : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.103
StreamSize : 54.3 MiB
Encoded date : UTC 2009-04-25 14:13:00
Tagged date : UTC 2009-04-25 14:13:02
BitRate_Max : 2406512

How can I encode video as level 3.0? x264vfw window hasn't any profile/level settings :(

[alexVS]

As far as I understand it must be 3.0 to be played on most software and hardware players (including Sony PS3)

[LoRd_MuldeR]

As far as I understand it must be 3.0 to be played on most software and hardware players (including Sony PS3)

Nope. Software players usually do not have any restrictions on Profiles and Levels (as long as DXVA isn't involved).

Hardware players do have Level, Profile and VBV restrictions, but these depend on the individual player...

How can I encode video as level 3.0? x264vfw window hasn't any profile/level settings

The same way you'd do it with any other front-end: Choose you settings accordingly to the desired Profile/Level.
And note that the Level also depends on other properties of the video, such as resolution and framerate!

Read "Annex A" for details:
http://www.neuron2.net/library/avc/T-REC-H[1].264-200711-I!!PDF-E.pdf

Or see the Wikipedia article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H.264/MPEG-4_AVC#Profiles

[Dark Shikari]

I encode video with x264vfwk-lite codec packx264vfw window hasn't any profile/level settings :(How can I encode video as level 3.0? Stop using broken pieces of crap and use a real encoder?

[MasterNobody]

Dark Shikari
Again? May be you could simply ignore (and skip) any mention of x264vfw. As I said in IRC I prefer to be silent about it anywhere you can see. And I don't want to argue with somebody or promote it. But also I don't like to see such posts full of hatred (mostly groundless). Please don't fall on everybody who mention (there can be reasons / limitations why they use it and not CLI).

alexVS
For level choosing there is "AVC level" option on main tab (but for real compliance with it you must also choose appropriate VBV / refs settings). And the chosen profile depends from using profiled specific options (for example, using of "Adaptive DCT" or non-flat "Quant matrices" will cause using of High profile).

[Dark Shikari]

Dark Shikari
Again? May be you could simply ignore (and skip) any mention of x264vfw. As I said in IRC I prefer to be silent about it anywhere you can see. And I don't want to argue with somebody or promote it. But also I don't like to see such posts full of hatred (mostly groundless). Please don't fall on everybody who mention (there can be reasons / limitations why they use it and not CLI).You said that x264vfw doesn't allow you to set the level... in which case what you are doing is impossible in it.

What other kind of answer do you want? Do you want me to lie to you or something?

[MasterNobody]

You said that x264vfw doesn't allow you to set the level... in which case what you are doing is impossible in it.

What other kind of answer do you want? Do you want me to lie to you or something?
I want you read more careful and be more tolerant. I said exactly the opposite (x264vfw support mostly all options of CLI, with exception of conteiner specific and such as --seek --frames --qpfile):
http://i42.tinypic.com/344beoi.png

P.S. That was my last post in this thread. Silent mode: ON.

[Dark Shikari]

I want you read more careful and be more tolerant. I said exactly the opposite (x264vfw support mostly all options of CLI, with exception of conteiner specific and such as --seek --frames --qpfile):I was assuming that the poster was correct... apparently I should be less trusting ;)

My comment was particularly about the K-Lite "codec pack"; if he is going to use x264vfw, he should use the latest version, not some bastardized hack included in a codec pack.

[clsid]

A direct quote from the K-Lite readme:
We do NOT recommend using the VFW system to encode H.264 video. Putting H.264 video in the AVI container is not a good idea. It is better to use a CLI based solution, such as MeGUI, that can put the video inside the MP4 or Matroska containers.
Also, it includes the very latest version of MasterNobody's x264VFW, only in the Mega variant, and just because of user demand.

Trying to educate people that VFW outdated, is well, pretty much pointless. People will continue their favorite video editing apps.

[Sharktooth]

...and will continue to have problems.

[Gromozeka]

Sharktooth
...and will continue to have problems.
I compress video 2 year's with bugmaster's x264vfw builds and not have problems.
You say not truth

[ChronoCross]

Sharktooth

I compress video 2 year's with bugmaster's x264vfw builds and not have problems.
You say not truth

Depends on what you mean by not problematic. I don't think I would consider anything you encode to be not problematic especially if you've put it in a bastard container like avi.

[Sharktooth]

Sharktooth

I compress video 2 year's with bugmaster's x264vfw builds and not have problems.
You say not truth
if loosing frames at start and/or at the end, if A/V synch is lost if you try to edit the file, if avi+h.264 is not supported by any hardware device... etc, are not problems from you, then i suppose you're the usual "gimme AVI at all costs" fanboy...

[clsid]

A recently saw a standalone bluray player that supports H.264 in AVI (and other containers), so hardware support definitely exists. Most software players also have no problems playing H.264 in AVI. MPC-HC doesn't like it in DXVA mode, but that is considered a fixable bug.

The fact that the compatibility issues are pretty moderate is the whole reason why these files still appear in the wild.

Don't get me wrong, I am also against H.264 in AVI, just giving some arguments why people still use it.

[Sharktooth]

well, as a matter of fact, ppl continue to use it coz of Vdub... also ppl still do not understand how to edit videos and what kind of streams are needed for editing (intra-frames only streams)... and do not understand that once lossy compressed, videos should not be edited (but still ppl download pirated stuff... so they want to edit that crap and look for help on how to do that...).
that said, there are simply no reasons to prefer AVI over much more flexible containers like MKV or MP4.

[LoRd_MuldeR]

After all you can easily remux your H.264 streams from AVI to MKV or MP4 (and even the other way around). It's not like you choose your container once and then are bound to it.

Therefore all this discussion about the "proper" container is kind of absurd...

[clsid]

Now that Avidemux slowly gets better and better, people will hopefully stop using VDub. Although I think Avidemux needs a better name to become more popular.

[Sagekilla]

IMO, Avidemux gives me the idea that it has to do with avi files of some sort. I'd have to agree that a new name would give a better image of what it actually is.

Up to the maintainers though ;)

[Forteen88]

IMO, Avidemux gives me the idea that it has to do with avi files of some sort. I'd have to agree that a new name would give a better image of what it actually is.

Up to the maintainers though ;)I agree, and it sounds like a plugin for AVISynth or VDub or something (because of 'Demux'). I'd name it something like 'VideoEditGnu'.

[clsid]

"Omni Video Editor"

(omni is Latin for every)

[Forteen88]

"Omni Video Editor"
(omni is Latin for every)Yeah, that's even clearer, because come to think of it, 'VideoEditGnu' could also be mistaken for a plugin for a video-editor (because of the 'Gnu' at the end).
EDIT: Avidemux sounds like it only can deal with AVI-files, as the title mentions it.. and as if the sole purpose with the program is to demux AVI-files :P

[Boolsheet]

I know this is going a bit off topic but I'd like to ask a question regarding this x264vfw discussion.

Why has no one come up with a pipe-the-data-to-x264.exe VfW codec?
Might not be a really fast and 'clean' solution but since most of the editors use the compression manager in some way, it would be a quick and dirty way to push data to x264 without intermediate files and container incompatibilities.

Sadly I only know the basics of C++ and the Windows API is still a big mystery to me. Still, I managed somehow to write some code with the help of the sources from different codecs (huffyuv/corePNG) that actually pipes the monochrome image data from VirtualDub to x264 and gives the avi file dummy zero length images (couldn't wrap my head around rgb to yv12 conversion yet). It works but the code is a 'learning by doing' product of a beginner, I have to clean it up first if someone really wants to see it. ;)

I don't want this to look like a request, just wanted to share the idea and hear some thoughts.

And as of my first post on this forum I have the inexplicable urge to express my respect to everyone in this community.
Thanks

[Dark Shikari]

I know this is going a bit off topic but I'd like to ask a question regarding this x264vfw discussion.

Why has no one come up with a pipe-the-data-to-x264.exe VfW codec?The problem with VfW has nothing to do with how the data gets to x264 once it comes out of VfW; if that was the problem, it would be easy to fix.

The problem is that VfW has a hard restriction on how frames go in and out. Specifically, for every frame that goes in, one has to come out before the next can go in (IIRC). Of course, with x264's lookahead size as large as 60+ frames, this can become rather a problem... :p

[squid_80]

Why has no one come up with a pipe-the-data-to-x264.exe VfW codec?

It's called avisynth.