Best DVD source?

[cdeemer]

So you finish a project. In PE you have a zillion clips, lots of tracks, etc. Is it better to burn a DVD here or to export the whole shebang as a single AVI, then import that into a new project and burn from there? Or does it matter? I always have both because I always export the final edit to double-check everything (get better image than when in PE). So I have 2 ways to burn a DVD, which way to go? Thanks.

[Paul LS]

I only export as a single DV-AVI and burn that if I have issues with burns failing when I try to burn from the original timeline.

[Bob]

Charles,

You can certainly burn a DVD either way. But, if you have already exported to avi, you will save some processing time if you import that to a new project and burn from that. Burning from your original project requires that all the effects, transitions, tracks, etc. be processed and then encoded. Burning from your exported avi, you will have only one simple track to encode.

My prefered workflow is to divide the movie into a series of sub-projects where the heavy work with multiple layers, effects transitions etc. are done. Those sub-projects are exported and then combined by importing into a master project. Only minimal work is done in the master project (any necessary transitions between the imported segments, for example) and the dvd is burned from the master project.

[Chuck Engels]

I have also done the same as Bob when using Premiere Elements to burn DVDs.
Now that I use Encore DVD for that purpose I still export the AVI files from all of my sub projects and combine them in a single Encore project.

[cdeemer]

I'm trying to burn a DVD in PE but am getting no sound. Have done this many times before with no problem. Don't know where to begin trouble-shooting this. Help. (Tried 2 ways: from orig timeline and from exported avi).

[Chuck Engels]

If you play the exported AVI in Media Player do you hear the audio?
Do you hear the audio if you play the timeline in the project?

[Chuck Engels]

I see you started a new topic Charles, let's deal with this problem there rather than here.