Converting Mpeg or Mpeg2 to dv-avi (PC).

[George Tyndall]

AVI is a container, there are many different types of AVI. DV-AVI is Digital Video and what Premiere Elements works with best, in particular DV-AVI type 2.

Paul, I always shoot with the HDV setting using my Canon HV30, and when I upload the clips with HDVSplit, they are all m2t. Subsequently, when I "Get" the clips from folder onto my PRE7 Timeline using the Project Preset HDV 1080i 30, they continue to be m2t (1440x1080i). No red line appears (no rendering is needed) because, as I understand it, m2t is the "native format" for Hi Def editing.

Please confirm that, when you write what I quoted above, you are referring striclty to SD, not HD, projects.

Thanks!

[Paul LS]

Hi George, yes Premiere Elements handles HDV MPEG2 (.m2t) natively. My comment was with regard to SD.

[joannestuart]

Thanks everyone, I used the converter in PE and it converts fine. The quality looks bad on PE but as some one mentioned once it saved out of PE for video or on line it looks great. My next issue though is the quality on U-tube is pretty bad once you convert to utube settings, or flash. Obviously uploading as a dv_avi is way too big. I will have a play around with different settings but I find the Utube presets in PE make the video so small. If any one has any better presets or the best file to convert to for Utube please let me know.

[Steve Grisetti]

YouTube is always a moving target, Joanne. As soon as someone figures out the best settings for posting, YouTube changes their specs again.

Remember that what you put up there isn't what's displayed. YouTube will reprocess it, compress it and spit it out as low quality Flash.

So about the best you can do is output a WMV file from your project and then load it to the site manually. It's never going to look as good on the site as it does on your computer, but that's just the nature of the site.

Other sites, like Vimeo, will let you post at much higher quality.

And Muvipix itself, of course, has its own FREE (and ad-free) Gallery where you can post your videos and then display them at full WMV or MOV quality! We won't reprocess it one iota!

[RJ Johnston]

If you upload to youtube a 640x480 clip or bigger, you will get a high-quality version that people can view, as well as the standard version. People will have a choice of selecting the SQ or HQ versions. Sometimes you have to wait quite a while before the high-quality version becomes available after uploading to youtube. The standard quality version will be available first. I believe you can go as low as 480x360 to have a high-quality version. Below that and you only get a standard quality version.

[Shrimpfarmer]

Make sure you're using the DVD project preset and then load the timeline with your MPEGs or VOBs. Then just go to File/Export/Movie. With those project presets, you don't even have to reverse the field dominance! The AVI the program outputs will work flawlessly in a standard DV editing project.

At least that's been my experience. And you know how they say Your mileage may vary. But it's definitely worth trying out.

Ooops, bit confused on this one. Is the DVD project preset you refer to a project preset you choose at the start of the project? Only I don't seem to have that project preset in my list of options.

Ken

[Paul LS]

Use the "Hard Disk, Flash Memory Camcorder" project preset... this one has Upper Field First for the field order which matches that of MPEG files.