MeGUI - Revision history

Manocheese: /* Clearing the queue */ Typo

2012-04-09T15:35:18Z

‎Clearing the queue: Typo

Ballofsnow: /* Software and Installation */

2009-02-12T01:24:39Z

‎Software and Installation

Ballofsnow: /* Software and Installation */ Nero 1.1.34.2 -----> 1.3.3.0

2009-02-12T00:52:23Z

‎Software and Installation: Nero 1.1.34.2 -----> 1.3.3.0

Ballofsnow: My pants are on fire.

2008-07-30T02:00:11Z

My pants are on fire.

Ballofsnow: /* Setting the video compression */ QT / X360 / PS3 / iPod profiles

2008-07-30T01:50:59Z

‎Setting the video compression: QT / X360 / PS3 / iPod profiles

Ballofsnow: /* Importing the AviSynth script */

2008-07-27T20:24:24Z

‎Importing the AviSynth script

Ballofsnow: /* Software and Installation */

2008-07-27T20:20:57Z

‎Software and Installation

Ballofsnow: forum link

2008-07-03T17:11:01Z

forum link

Manocheese: link to new forum

2008-07-02T18:37:28Z

link to new forum

Ballofsnow: Updated to reflect MeGUI 0.3.0.0

2008-01-05T20:24:12Z

Updated to reflect MeGUI 0.3.0.0

@@ Line 103: / Line 103: @@
 ==Clearing the queue==
-Sometimes, when you select all the files inthe queue and hit "Delete," you'll get a weird error message and you'll have to Ctrl+Alt+Del to get out of MeGUI. To avoid this, simply hit the "Clear" button.
+Sometimes, when you select all the files in the queue and hit "Delete," you'll get a weird error message and you'll have to Ctrl+Alt+Del to get out of MeGUI. To avoid this, simply hit the "Clear" button.
 <br>
 ==Checking your quality==

@@ Line 8: / Line 8: @@
 ==Software and Installation==
-* Download [http://www.x264.nl/ MeGUI]. Install the program and run it. You should get a message saying there are updates available. Click OK and let the program download everything it needs. You can also go to Options -> Update to access the autoupdate feature.
+<ol>
-* Download [[Media:SDA_x264_profiles.zip‎|SDA x264 profiles for MeGUI]] and extract to "C:\Program Files\megui\allprofiles\x264\". These are compatible with QuickTime, Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and iPod.
+<li>Download [http://www.x264.nl/ MeGUI]. Install the program and run it. You should get a message saying there are updates available. Click OK and let the program download everything it needs. You can also go to Options -> Update to access the autoupdate feature.
-* Download [http://www.nero.com/eng/down-ndaudio.php Nero Digital Audio]. If the page is gone, download version 1.3.3.0 [[Media:NeroDigitalAudio.zip|here]]. Extract the contents of the zip file to "C:\Program Files\megui\tools\neroaacenc\". It will probably have a "win32" folder; if so, copy all the contents of the win32 folder and put them in "C:\Program Files\megui\tools\neroaacenc\". If the neroaacenc folder does not exist, create it yourself.
+<li>Close MeGUI.
-In MeGUI, go to Options -> Settings -> Program Paths. Look for the entry with NeroAacEnc and click the browse icon to the right. Find neroaacenc.exe which should be in the "megui\tools\neroaacenc\" folder if you followed the instructions above. Verify that the paths for mp4box and x264 are also correct; don't worry about the rest. Save your settings.
+<li>Download [[Media:SDA_x264_profiles.zip‎|SDA x264 profiles for MeGUI]] and extract to "C:\Program Files\megui\allprofiles\x264\". These are compatible with QuickTime, Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and iPod.
 [[Image:meguipaths.png]]

@@ Line 14: / Line 14: @@
 * Download [[Media:SDA_x264_profiles.zip‎|SDA x264 profiles for MeGUI]] and extract to "C:\Program Files\megui\allprofiles\x264\". These are compatible with QuickTime, Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and iPod.
-* Download [http://www.nero.com/eng/down-ndaudio.php Nero Digital Audio]. If the page is gone, download version 1.1.34.2 [[Media:NeroDigitalAudio.zip|here]]. Extract the contents of the zip file to "C:\Program Files\megui\tools\neroaacenc\". It will probably have a "win32" folder; if so, copy all the contents of the win32 folder and put them in "C:\Program Files\megui\tools\neroaacenc\". If the neroaacenc folder does not exist, create it yourself.
+* Download [http://www.nero.com/eng/down-ndaudio.php Nero Digital Audio]. If the page is gone, download version 1.3.3.0 [[Media:NeroDigitalAudio.zip|here]]. Extract the contents of the zip file to "C:\Program Files\megui\tools\neroaacenc\". It will probably have a "win32" folder; if so, copy all the contents of the win32 folder and put them in "C:\Program Files\megui\tools\neroaacenc\". If the neroaacenc folder does not exist, create it yourself.
 In MeGUI, go to Options -> Settings -> Program Paths. Look for the entry with NeroAacEnc and click the browse icon to the right. Find neroaacenc.exe which should be in the "megui\tools\neroaacenc\" folder if you followed the instructions above. Verify that the paths for mp4box and x264 are also correct; don't worry about the rest. Save your settings.

@@ Line 3: / Line 3: @@
 Those who use VirtualDub(Mod) will have to get used to the fact that MeGUI does not accept simple avi input. [[AviSynth]] scripting is required before continuing with this guide.
-We will be using the H.264 video codec along with the AAC audio codec muxed inside an mp4 container. As of version 7.2 of QuickTime, the only setting that must be turned off to stay compatible is b-pyramid. Please double-check your work before submitting to save yourself and SDA time and bandwidth.
+We will be using the H.264 video codec along with the AAC audio codec muxed inside an mp4 container.
 <br>
@@ Line 65: / Line 65: @@
 * X-TREME quality - 320 kbps
-<font color="green"><b>Tip:</b> Use common sense when choosing the bitrate for the audio. If your DVD recorder uses 192 kbps AC3, then there's no need to go any higher, especially when considering that AAC is a newer, more advanced codec and can account for the lossy to lossy conversion. To check the audio bitrate of your DVD recorder, look at the filename of the ac3 file DGIndex gave you.</font>
+<font color="green"><b>Tip:</b> Use some sense when choosing the bitrate for the audio. If your DVD recorder uses 192 kbps AC3, then there's no need to go any higher, especially when considering that AAC is a newer, more advanced codec and can account for the lossy to lossy conversion. To check the audio bitrate of your DVD recorder, look at the filename of the ac3 file DGIndex gave you.</font>
 Go back to the input screen and look at the audio section. Choose AAC - Nero Digital as the codec, choose MP4-AAC as the extension, and then press the Config button. Use adaptive bitrate, and move the slider to select your bitrate. For AAC Profile, use Low Complexity (AAC-LC).
@@ Line 101: / Line 101: @@
 ==Checking your quality==
-Before you encode your actual speed run, you should make sure you're doing everything right. If you encode your speed run incorrectly, it will be a waste of time for you and SDA. Make 60 second test files for each quality and upload them to a site such as http://www.yousendit.com, then make a topic on the [http://speeddemosarchive.com/forum/index.php/board,5.0.html Tech Support forum] with links to the files so their quality can be verified. <b>Make sure to post the contents of your AviSynth script as well.</b> If you use YouSendIt, just enter your own e-mail as the recipient, since anyone can download it, whether or not you enter their e-mail there.
+Before you encode your actual speed run, you should make sure you're doing everything right. If you encode your speed run incorrectly, it will be a waste of time for you and SDA. Read the [http://speeddemosarchive.com/forum/index.php/topic,8532.0.html "how to post a video quality test"] topic in the [http://speeddemosarchive.com/forum/index.php/board,5.0.html Tech Support forum] and follow the instructions.
 <br>

@@ Line 34: / Line 34: @@
 ==Setting the video compression==
 Bitrate list:
@@ Line 42: / Line 44: @@
 * X-TREME quality - 10000 kbps
-===Main===
+All qualities will use the <font color=green>SDA_QT-Xbox360-PS3_LQHQIQXQ</font> profile, <u>except</u> for MQ which will use the <font color=green>SDA_iPod_MQ</font> profile.
-<ul>
+* At the input screen, click the dropdown menu for Encoder Settings and select the appropriate profile.
-<li>Mode - Turbo enabled automated 2-pass should be used. Turbo will make the first pass much faster with negligible quality loss. Look at the bitrate list above and choose the appropriate value for your encoding.
+* Click the config button
-<br>
+* In the Main tab, set the bitrate according to which quality you're encoding.
-<font color="green"><b>Tip:</b> If your game is not graphically complex, you can save some time by using Constant Quantizer mode and staying under the SDA bitrates. Starcraft, for example, is typically done with Constant Quantizer and bitrates usually do not go beyond 1300, well under the 2048 limit for HQ. 17 should be used for videos with 320x240 resolution, 19 for 640x480 or higher resolution. Notice that these values correspond to the minimum quantizer values below.</font>
+* Select the Advanced tab, set the minimum quantizer to 19 for videos with 640x480 or similar/higher resolution, and 17 for lower resolution.
-<li>Deblocking - It is recommended to leave the settings to 0/0. Use lower settings if video is too blurry, but you will risk seeing more blocks.
+Avoid changing any other settings, unless you know what you're doing, because you'll risk breaking compatibility.
-<li> Number of threads - This corresponds to the number of processing cores your computer has. Set it to 0 and it'll automatically choose the right value.
+<br>
 ==Setting the audio compression==

@@ Line 30: / Line 30: @@
 [[Image:Meguiinput.png]]
 <br>
 ==Setting the video compression==

@@ Line 86: / Line 86: @@
 <li>Macroblock options - All should be turned on.
-<li>Number of B-Frames - [http://speeddemosarchive.com/yabb/YaBB.pl?board=other;action=display;num=1171497558;start=0#8 I recommend 5], since it is rare that you'll see more than that in a row.
+<li>Number of B-Frames - [http://speeddemosarchive.com/forum/index.php/topic,5741.msg150967.html#msg150967 I recommend 5], since it is rare that you'll see more than that in a row.
 <li>Adaptive B-Frames - Should be turned on to let the encoder decide how many B-Frames to use in a row.

@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 You may need to install [http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=0856EACB-4362-4B0D-8EDD-AAB15C5E04F5&displaylang=en Microsoft .NET framework 2.0] in order for MeGUI to run.
-Download [http://www.x264.nl/ MeGUI]. Install the program and run it. You should get a message saying there are updates available. Click OK and let the program download everything it needs. You can also go to Tools -> Update to access the autoupdate feature.
+Download [http://www.x264.nl/ MeGUI]. Install the program and run it. You should get a message saying there are updates available. Click OK and let the program download everything it needs. You can also go to Options -> Update to access the autoupdate feature.
 Download [http://www.nero.com/eng/down-ndaudio.php Nero Digital Audio]. If the page is gone, download version 1.1.34.2 [[Media:NeroDigitalAudio.zip|here]]. Extract the contents of the zip file to "C:\Program Files\megui\tools\neroaacenc\". It will probably have a "win32" folder; if so, copy all the contents of the win32 folder and put them in "C:\Program Files\megui\tools\neroaacenc\". If the neroaacenc folder does not exist, create it yourself.
@@ Line 41: / Line 41: @@
 * X-TREME quality - 10000 kbps
-While still at the input screen , press the Config button for x264. I will briefly explain the settings.
+While still at the input screen, press the Config button for x264. I will briefly explain the settings.
 ===Main===
+<ul>
-Mode - Turbo enabled automated 2-pass should be used. Turbo will make the first pass much faster with negligible quality loss. Look at the bitrate list above and choose the appropriate value for your encoding.
+<li>Mode - Turbo enabled automated 2-pass should be used. Turbo will make the first pass much faster with negligible quality loss. Look at the bitrate list above and choose the appropriate value for your encoding.
+<br>
 <font color="green"><b>Tip:</b> If your game is not graphically complex, you can save some time by using Constant Quantizer mode and staying under the SDA bitrates. Starcraft, for example, is typically done with Constant Quantizer and bitrates usually do not go beyond 1300, well under the 2048 limit for HQ. 17 should be used for videos with 320x240 resolution, 19 for 640x480 or higher resolution. Notice that these values correspond to the minimum quantizer values below.</font>
-Deblocking - It is recommended to leave the settings to 0/0. Use lower settings if video is too blurry, but you will risk seeing more blocks.
+<li>Deblocking - It is recommended to leave the settings to 0/0. Use lower settings if video is too blurry, but you will risk seeing more blocks.
-Number of threads - This corresponds to the number of processing cores your computer has. Set it to 0 and it'll automatically choose the right value.
+<li> Number of threads - This corresponds to the number of processing cores your computer has. Set it to 0 and it'll automatically choose the right value.
-AVC profiles - High. QuickTime 7.2 or later can support this.
+<li>AVC profiles - High. QuickTime 7.2 or later can support this.
 ===Zones===
@@ Line 59: / Line 60: @@
 ===RC and ME (Rate Control and Motion Estimation)===
-Rate Control - I recommend leaving these settings alone, although VBV Maximum Bitrate can be useful. It ensures that encodes using variable bitrate won't go above the maximum specified bitrate.
+<ul>
-M.E. - These settings can make a large impact on the quality on your video, and it all depends on how much time you want to put into it. Chroma M.E. should be enabled. Range should be at least 8, I recommend 16. For the algorithm, go with either hexagon or multi hex. Do not use exhaustive, it takes way too long and has negligible results. Subpixel Refinement, go with at least #5.
+<li>M.E. - These settings can make a large impact on the quality on your video, and it all depends on how much time you want to put into it.
-Misc - Leave these on default.
+<li>Quant Options
 ===Advanced===
-Minimum Quantizer (aka: quality can't go beyond this point...) - 17 should be used for videos with 320x240 resolution, 19 for 640x480 or higher resolution. <font color="green">If you are getting undersized files, this is the minimum quantizer in effect, assuming you did everything else correctly.</font>
+<ul>
-Trellis - Should be turned off when using Constant Quantizer mode. Otherwise it depends on you, though #2 is probably not worth the extra time.
+<li>Macroblock options - All should be turned on.
-Number of reference frames - This is how far the encoder will check for similarities between frames. A value of 5 is recommended, use higher for more quality.
+<li>Number of B-Frames - [http://speeddemosarchive.com/yabb/YaBB.pl?board=other;action=display;num=1171497558;start=0#8 I recommend 5], since it is rare that you'll see more than that in a row.
-Mixed - enabled.
+<li>Adaptive B-Frames - Should be turned on to let the encoder decide how many B-Frames to use in a row.
-CABAC - Should definitely be turned on. It is one of the main reasons that H.264 is a superior codec.
+<li><b>B-Pyramid - OFF</b> - This will break QuickTime 7 compatibility if it is on.
-No Fast P-Skip - Helps to keep blocking low in scenes with gradients.
+<li>RDO, Weighted, Bidirectional - "Give me more quality at lower encoding speed". Turn them on, why not.
-Macroblock options - All should be turned on.
+<li>B-Frame mode - Auto. It will decide when to use spatial and when to use temporal.
+</ul>
-Number of B-Frames - [http://speeddemosarchive.com/yabb/YaBB.pl?board=other;action=display;num=1171497558;start=0#8 I recommend 5], since it is rare that you'll see more than that in a row.
-−
-Adaptive B-Frames - Should be turned on to let the encoder decide how many B-Frames to use in a row.
-−
-'''B-Pyramid - OFF'''. This will break QuickTime 7 compatibility if it is on.
-−
-RDO, Weighted, Bidirectional - "Give me more quality at lower encoding speed". Turn them on, why not.
-−
 B-Frame mode - Auto. It will decide when to use spatial and when to use temporal.
 <br>
 ==Setting the audio compression==
@@ Line 99: / Line 105: @@
 * High quality - 128 kbps
 * Insane quality - 320 kbps
 <font color="green"><b>Tip:</b> Use common sense when choosing the bitrate for the audio. If your DVD recorder uses 192 kbps AC3, then there's no need to go any higher, especially when considering that AAC is a newer, more advanced codec and can account for the lossy to lossy conversion. To check the audio bitrate of your DVD recorder, look at the filename of the ac3 file DGIndex gave you.</font>
-Go back to the input screen and look at the audio section. Choose ND AAC as the codec, choose MP4-AAC as the container, and then press the Config button. Use adaptive bitrate, and move the slider to select your bitrate. (Why they didn't just use an input box puzzles me.) For AAC Profile, use Low Complexity (AAC-LC).
+Go back to the input screen and look at the audio section. Choose AAC - Nero Digital as the codec, choose MP4-AAC as the extension, and then press the Config button. Use adaptive bitrate, and move the slider to select your bitrate. For AAC Profile, use Low Complexity (AAC-LC).
 [[Image:NDAAC_HQ.png]]
@@ Line 136: / Line 143: @@
 ==Checking your quality==
-Before you encode your actual speed run, you should make sure you're doing everything right. If you encode your speed run incorrectly, it will be a waste of time for you and SDA. Make 10-15 second test files for each quality and upload them to a site such as http://www.yousendit.com, then make a topic on the [http://speeddemosarchive.com/yabb/YaBB.pl?board=other Tech Support forum] with links to the files so their quality can be verified. Make sure to post the contents of your AviSynth script as well. If you use YouSendIt, just enter your own e-mail as the recipient, since anyone can download it, whether or not you enter their e-mail there.
+Before you encode your actual speed run, you should make sure you're doing everything right. If you encode your speed run incorrectly, it will be a waste of time for you and SDA. Make 60 second test files for each quality and upload them to a site such as http://www.yousendit.com, then make a topic on the [http://speeddemosarchive.com/yabb/YaBB.pl?board=other Tech Support forum] with links to the files so their quality can be verified. <b>Make sure to post the contents of your AviSynth script as well.</b> If you use YouSendIt, just enter your own e-mail as the recipient, since anyone can download it, whether or not you enter their e-mail there.
 <br>