Hi, we're exporting from Premier Pro 2.0 to Encore using the Adobe Media Encoder. Here's our setting...

- MPEG2-DVD
- NTSC, 720X480, 29.97 drop frame
- 48 khx, 16 bit, PCM
- VBR 2-Pass

We're exporting the timeline to this. But I'm not sure on the BEST Bitrate settings.

Here's what we have now...

1. Minimum Bitate: 1.5
2. Target Bitrate: 7.0
3. Maximum Bitate: 9.0

The problem is, I don't know if these are the best settings. Any help?

Please tell us the settings for your source video

We're filming with a SONY A1U HDV camcorder on SONY DV tapes. We import the footage into Adobe Premier Pro and when we export we export using the setting I first mentioned. Is that what your talking about?

Well there are two ways you can import/export to encore.

The first method is to do File -> Export -> Movie and try to mess with the settings. It will be the quickest way to export to encore.

The second is to take the high quality preset for 4x3 and then to change the aspect to 16x9.

Basically you want to set everything to the highest possible if this is for a master disc. Now the higher you set it to the less you can fit on the DVD so if the project is long you might have to dumb down the bit rate a bit.

It depends on the duration of the movie.

At an hour or less, it is just fine to use a CBR or 8Mbps which is about the maximum some DVD players can tolerate. Higher than that and you are risking playback problems.

If you are going longer than an hour, I suggest using the DV AVI method described above and let Encore make it the highest possible data rate.

I believe that 4,7,8 is about the minimum and maximum you should consider. Nine os too high and 1.5 is way too low unless there are a lot of stills and the video is way too long for a single layer DVD.

Don't exceed 8Mbps (especially with PCM audio).

Thanks everyone. I have the Dobly Digtal plugin to my audio is at 192kbs.

The video is 25 minutes long so I put my Min, Target, and Maximum all at 9.0 because it could handle it and it came out nice.

I exported it to MPEG2-DVD and burned at 2X via Adobe Encore.

The problem is my 1.5 hour DVD's. I suppose the best way is to simply decrease the Target bitrate correct?

Target and max, yes.

sorry, but what is the point of doing 2-pass vbr if target,min and max values are the same?
wouldn't cbr encoding achieve, in this case, the same exact quality and take less time to encode?

Jon... It would achieve the same result. CBR might be somewhat quicker to render as AME wouldn't have to analyze the video for the appropriate bit rate for VBR encoding.