Apple Final Cut Pro 7 - Manual (Page 1716)

If you want to export your movie in a format that is not natively supported by Final Cut Pro,
such as a QuickTime movie file with a video codec used for the web, you should use the
Export Using QuickTime Conversion command instead. If you are exporting with the same
settings as your sequence, or if you want to convert to some other video format commonly
supported by Final Cut Pro, you should use the Export QuickTime Movie command.
The Export Using QuickTime Conversion Command
Unlike the Export QuickTime Movie command, which only exports to a QuickTime movie
file, the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command allows you to export to almost
any file format QuickTime supports, using any video and audio codec supported by that
format. Everything is customizable: image dimensions, frame rate, audio sample rate,
video codec, audio codec, and so on.
Note: Because QuickTime has extensive support for most codecs and file formats, there
may be a lot of options for some formats.
While the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command may seem advantageous, there
are times when the Export QuickTime Movie command may be better. For example,
Export Using QuickTime Conversion always recompresses your media, even if you select
the same codec, and in 8-bit only. The Export QuickTime Movie command has an option
for not recompressing frames, reducing unnecessary artifacts when exporting to the same
video codec. It is also 8-bit only. Use Export QuickTime Movie for the best quality with
10-bit codecs.
1716 Chapter 103 Learning About QuickTime