H.264 workflows for optical disc – Apple Compressor 3 User Manual
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• Average Bit Rate slider and field: Choose an average bit rate to use for the output video
with the slider, or enter a value directly. While the available range for a Blu-ray disc is
between 5 Mbps and 30 Mbps, typical video bit rates with H.264 might range from
7 Mbps to 15 Mbps, depending on your DVD bit budget and the nature of your source
media files. The available range for AVCHD discs is 5 Mbps to 15 Mbps.
• Maximum Bit Rate slider and field: Choose a maximum bit rate between 6 Mbps and
35 Mbps for a Blu-ray disc, or between 6 Mbps and 17 Mbps for an AVCHD disc. You
can also enter any number within these ranges into the accompanying field. The
Maximum Bit Rate setting cannot be lower than the Average Bit Rate setting. As a
general rule, set your maximum bit rate at least 1 Mbps higher than your average bit
rate, to allow for bit-rate variability in achieving the goal of constant quality.
• Multi-pass: Use this checkbox to turn on multi-pass encoding. Similar to two-pass
MPEG-2 encoding, multi-pass offers the best possible quality. For faster (single-pass)
encodes, turn this feature off by deselecting the checkbox. See
and
Job Segmenting and Two-Pass or Multi-Pass Encoding
for more
information.
H.264 Workflows for Optical Disc
The efficiency and quality of H.264 creates a number of options for optical disc producers:
• Video resolutions supported by SD DVDs are also supported by Blu-ray Disc. This means
that a Blu-ray disc can use an HD video resolution file for its main content, such as a
feature film, and then use SD video resolution files for additional features like trailers
and a “making of” documentary.
• The Create Blu-ray Disc job action includes the ability to burn an AVCHD disc using red
laser media. An AVCHD disc provides a way to play H.264 video in Blu-ray Disc players
that are compatible with the AVCHD format. See
for more
information.
Note: Blu-ray output options are available only on computers that have Final Cut Studio
installed.
• Because H.264 can deliver high definition (HD) video at standard definition (SD) bit
rates, you can get more HD content on a regular DVD-5 disc than you might expect
for an AVCHD disc.
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Chapter 14
Creating H.264 for Blu-ray Disc