Best Offline Codec (Motion JPEG vs AIC)? at DVinfo.net

Christopher Drews · July 19th, 2009, 02:12 AM

I'm cutting more and more on my MSI Wind*. This of course necessitates using off-line codecs. I have used Motion JPEG in the past but recently had a look at AIC.

Does anyone have any thoughts about lean HD codecs for offline editing?
Also, what data rate?

-C

*OSx86 - 10.5.7 running FCP 6.0.6.

Andy Mees · July 19th, 2009, 11:37 PM

How about Apple's own OfflineRT HD preset (PhotoJPEG @ 35%) ?

And how about telling us more about your MSI Wind hackintosh (if such discussion is allowed here) ... I'd love to know more about the specs and implementation, and how you rate the edit experience with the screensize available (is it a 10" screen?).

Cheers
Andy

Christopher Drews · July 20th, 2009, 02:33 AM

Indeed.

The Why:
I wanted something mobile to edit with. Walter Murch is big fan of standing up and changing location (if possible) to help with editing. The 6 hours of battery life, the cheap cost, the OSx86 challenge, all appealed to me.

The Setup:
I purchased the u100-451US for just under 300 USD. It came with Windows XP, 1 GB of RAM and a stock wireless card that was incompatible natively with OSX.

The Tweaks:
As soon as the Wind arrived I open the case, installed another 1 GB of ram, changed the wireless card (dell 1510) and upgraded the battery (9 cell).
I upgraded the bios, installed retail 10.5.4 via the "cybergreg" method and installed FCP.

The Issues:
Quartz Extreme is required for FCP. It truly isn't supported with integrated - know that getting in. You have to trick it by getting OSx86 Tools. Don't expect to use Motion or Color - I myself just installed Compressor, Cinema Tools and FCP. STP would of worked but I hate that app.

The Screen size is not ideal for editing. The wind is 1024x600 - FCP doesn't like this resolution and gives you a warning when launched (you can ignore it).

Playback isn't great with the stock 5400 rpm drive. An upgrade would allow for 1080i.

So those are the major things. All in all, I am hugely happy with the portability of my mobile editor. FCP hums right along with the Atom processor and I've been pleased with cuts only performance.

Hope this helps Andy.
If you decide to go this route, let me know and I can give you some links, pointers and vendors.

-C

Andy Mees · July 20th, 2009, 06:01 AM

Thanks Christopher (and apologies to all for skewing the thread OT). It just so happened that I found myself looking at an MSI Wind just a couple of days a go with a mind to doing something like this. I have the brochure sitting in front of me right now ... over here I'd be looking at spending about 400 US for the U100 which would include 2GB RAM + DVD RW external. Hmmm, interesting proposition but I'll admit I'm as yet undecided. Thanks for taking a moment to post those details, gives me something concrete to mull over.

We now return you to your scheduled thread ...

Cheers
Andy

Mike Barber · July 20th, 2009, 07:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Christopher Drews

Does anyone have any thoughts about lean HD codecs for offline editing?

I am using Photo-JPEG at half the original framesize and Quality set to 70% for offline. For more mobile setups, you can go even smaller for portability while still retaining a decent amount of visual quality.

Experiment with a clip that's a few seconds in length to find what works best for you.

Christopher Drews · July 20th, 2009, 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Barber

I am using Photo-JPEG at half the original framesize and Quality set to 70% for offline. For more mobile setups, you can go even smaller for portability while still retaining a decent amount of visual quality.

Experiment with a clip that's a few seconds in length to find what works best for you.

Thanks Mike - I just realized that my Pro-Res source files (SD, 23.98, Not HQ) playback fine on my Wind. Wow - wasn't expecting that - no offline needed.

-C

July 19th, 2009, 02:12 AM	#1
Christopher Drews Major Player Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 628	Best Offline Codec (Motion JPEG vs AIC)? I'm cutting more and more on my MSI Wind. This of course necessitates using off-line codecs. I have used Motion JPEG in the past but recently had a look at AIC. Does anyone have any thoughts about lean HD codecs for offline editing? Also, what data rate? -C OSx86 - 10.5.7 running FCP 6.0.6.

July 19th, 2009, 11:37 PM	#2
Andy Mees Major Player Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Posts: 645	How about Apple's own OfflineRT HD preset (PhotoJPEG @ 35%) ? And how about telling us more about your MSI Wind hackintosh (if such discussion is allowed here) ... I'd love to know more about the specs and implementation, and how you rate the edit experience with the screensize available (is it a 10" screen?). Cheers Andy

July 20th, 2009, 02:33 AM	#3
Christopher Drews Major Player Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 628	Indeed. The Why: I wanted something mobile to edit with. Walter Murch is big fan of standing up and changing location (if possible) to help with editing. The 6 hours of battery life, the cheap cost, the OSx86 challenge, all appealed to me. The Setup: I purchased the u100-451US for just under 300 USD. It came with Windows XP, 1 GB of RAM and a stock wireless card that was incompatible natively with OSX. The Tweaks: As soon as the Wind arrived I open the case, installed another 1 GB of ram, changed the wireless card (dell 1510) and upgraded the battery (9 cell). I upgraded the bios, installed retail 10.5.4 via the "cybergreg" method and installed FCP. The Issues: Quartz Extreme is required for FCP. It truly isn't supported with integrated - know that getting in. You have to trick it by getting OSx86 Tools. Don't expect to use Motion or Color - I myself just installed Compressor, Cinema Tools and FCP. STP would of worked but I hate that app. The Screen size is not ideal for editing. The wind is 1024x600 - FCP doesn't like this resolution and gives you a warning when launched (you can ignore it). Playback isn't great with the stock 5400 rpm drive. An upgrade would allow for 1080i. So those are the major things. All in all, I am hugely happy with the portability of my mobile editor. FCP hums right along with the Atom processor and I've been pleased with cuts only performance. Hope this helps Andy. If you decide to go this route, let me know and I can give you some links, pointers and vendors. -C

July 20th, 2009, 06:01 AM	#4
Andy Mees Major Player Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Posts: 645	Thanks Christopher (and apologies to all for skewing the thread OT). It just so happened that I found myself looking at an MSI Wind just a couple of days a go with a mind to doing something like this. I have the brochure sitting in front of me right now ... over here I'd be looking at spending about 400 US for the U100 which would include 2GB RAM + DVD RW external. Hmmm, interesting proposition but I'll admit I'm as yet undecided. Thanks for taking a moment to post those details, gives me something concrete to mull over. We now return you to your scheduled thread ... Cheers Andy