Playback of HD 4:2:2 on HD300?

[pendragonsound]

This was a feature added to the HD200 in the recent past (the HD100 could only do SD 4:2:2), and is often essential for those of us who find Blu-ray bit rates on the anemic side However not all chipsets support the profile required and I'd be thankful to anyone who could address this potential support.

[stanger89]

Where are you getting 4:2:2 HD, and what does color sampling have to do with bitrate?

[MCE-Refugee]

Originally Posted by stanger89

Where are you getting 4:2:2 HD, and what does color sampling have to do with bitrate?

The 50Mbps MPEG2 CODEC used by the new Canon HF100/105/300/305 camcorders has 4:2:2 colour sampling.

[bcjenkins]

If you can link to a demo file, I will test.

B

[stanger89]

If the HD200 can do it and the HD300 can't, I'd bet it's a bug.

[pendragonsound]

Originally Posted by stanger89

Where are you getting 4:2:2 HD, and what does color sampling have to do with bitrate?

Color sampling is not directly tied to bitrate, however when you want higher bitrates you probably want better color sampling. The most readily available source for such material is unencrypted feeds and distributions on C-band and Ku-band. One does need the right equipment, but if you want 75 Mbps HD video and studio-grade audio, that is the bargain. Not all of this material is 4:2:2, but that is the trend.

[pendragonsound]

Originally Posted by bcjenkins

If you can link to a demo file, I will test.

Thanks! Most of my 4:2:2 files are 50+ GB, but I found a short clip and posted it at:

http://www.mediafire.com/?sog8heuzd0optjo

This is only around 35 Mbps, which should be easier to push through a 10/100 spigot. The audio is most likely Dolby E, which means you probably won't hear anything. The video plays fine on a HD200, but not on a HD100.

[bcjenkins]

Can't seem to download it.

B

[pendragonsound]

That's odd. I checked it with Safari on Mac OS X, IE on Windows and Firefox on both. Everything worked fine, although the link above leads to a page where you have to hit a button. If you're doing a wget or similar on Linux, you might try a more direct link (just tested it on Gentoo):

http://download1006.mediafire.com/oo...jo/422_test.ts

[bcjenkins]

This content did not play on the HD300. I will file a bug report.

B

[Fuzzy]

I think I'd rather have 40Mbps H.264 than 50Mbps MPEG2. The only reason those cameras use MPEG2 is because real-time H.264 compression was still WAY too expensive. I'd wager you'll start seeing more MPEG4 based cameras now that real-time encoding in silicon is a lot cheaper.

[pendragonsound]

Originally Posted by bcjenkins

This content did not play on the HD300. I will file a bug report.

Thanks for checking. I guess I'll have to hold onto a couple of HD200s for the time being.

Originally Posted by Fuzzy

I think I'd rather have 40Mbps H.264 than 50Mbps MPEG2.

Perhaps if they're both 4:2:0. Currently 4:2:2 is rather uncommon in H.264.

[bcjenkins]

Originally Posted by pendragonsound

Thanks for checking. I guess I'll have to hold onto a couple of HD200s for the time being.

They already acknowledged the report and will look into it.

B

[impro]

Originally Posted by MCE-Refugee

The 50Mbps MPEG2 CODEC used by the new Canon HF100/105/300/305 camcorders has 4:2:2 colour sampling.

With a risk to hijack the forum:
What made you purchase a camcorder with a fixed lens?

[bcjenkins]

This is now fixed with the 7.0.17 and released version of firmware on the HD300. Tested and confirmed on the Linux server. I had to reindex my existing content in the detailed setup -> advanced menu

B

[MCE-Refugee]

Originally Posted by impro

With a risk to hijack the forum:
What made you purchase a camcorder with a fixed lens?

Most camcorders have a fixed lens. Apart from one or two new introductions having interchangeable lenses like an SLR stills camera does is the preserve of very high end professional equipment. The XF300/305 has an 18x zoom lens & for every other camcorder that I know of that has a fixed lens that lens is a zoom.

Originally Posted by Fuzzy

I think I'd rather have 40Mbps H.264 than 50Mbps MPEG2.

Not if you want to edit the footage you wouldn't. H.264 is a final output medium like a PDF not an editing medium like a Word document.

[gplasky]

Originally Posted by MCE-Refugee

Not if you want to edit the footage you wouldn't. H.264 is a final output medium like a PDF not an editing medium like a Word document.

Not any more. Videoredo and many other programs edit h.264 as easily as mpeg2. And almost all the new more portable digital video cameras are outputting h.264.

Gerry

[pendragonsound]

Originally Posted by gplasky

Not any more. Videoredo and many other programs edit h.264 as easily as mpeg2.

VideoReDo certainly claims this capability. Unfortunately it doesn't work on a variety of H.264 source material, resulting in freezes, stuttering and artifacts at or near the edit points. The developers have been aware of these problems since the product's pseudo-release in January, and have indicated several times that the problems involved are complex. They have also indicated the streams in question are standards compliant. Solutions have been promised, but nothing has yet resulted.

There are people editing H.264 successfully with VRD, but apparently only on specifically formatted source material. It's safe to conclude that for the moment, VRD does not encompass the full H.264 standard.

bcjenkins - Thanks for the 4:2:2 update! That will be music to a number of ears.

[gplasky]

I threw VideoRedo out there because most are familar with it. I didn't want to have to list the other software such as Adobe CS5 Production Premium, Apple's Final Edit Pro, Sony's Vegas, etc. I didn't say it would be cheap buth.264 video editing programs are out there. I don't believe there is a single solution that can edit all types of h.264 but in combination they are all covered.

Gerry

[Fuzzy]

Programs like CS5 PP should be able to handle any H.264 that is out there, as even if it doesn't have a direct plugin for your specific format, if you've for a DirectShow or QuickTime decoder for it, it will bring it in using that.