PMW-EX 1 to DVD-SD question for Doug jensen.

[Daniel Goyette]

Following a reply from Vortex Media i have post my question here with Doug Jensen in the title and i am sorry since this look like double posting..

I would have prefer to edit a previous post but have not found a way to do it.

PMW EX 1 shooting done with the setting 1080i60 for broadcast compatibility.

XDCAM EX 18 minutes sequence take only (if my memory is accurate) 2H15 Minutes to encode for Blu-Ray.

The same sequence send to compressor ( Export using Compressor ) for a DVD SD using a preset of 90 Minutes 6.5 Mbs two pass best quality said 10 Hours.

Any help or link is more than welcome to get the best from that exellent camcorder with the use of Final Cut Studio 2.

If you got a great workflow please tell me about-it , i dont have a clue about this.

Mac Pro Dual 2.66 Ghz (2006) with 4 GB Ram ATI RADEON 3870 HD.


Thank-You Doug for an exellent tutorial , but i cant find how you Doug have been able to shoot this tutorial DVD on HD and how you have done the transcoding to DVD SD.

What are the Apple Compressor settings you use to do the editing and transcoding from HD to DVD SD , i have start to pull my hairs one by one ...

My transcoding have some visible picture degradation in area who should have none to appear.

This messageis mainly for Doug but it may be of general interrest on a future tutorial or many users of PMW-EX 1 using Final Cut Studio.

Have a nice day at VORTEX MEDIA.

[Doug Jensen]

Hi Daniel,

I'm glad that you liked the training DVD. At the time it was produced I didn’t go into more detail about my editing workflow because I assumed that everyone would find editing XDCAM EX footage pretty straight-forward after the importing was completed. The DVD was supposed to be about the camera, not editing.

However, I get asked about my workflow all the time, and it still surprises me because I didn't do anything special to produce the EX1 and EX3 DVDs. I just edited the video as simply and straight-forward as I would any other video. I didn't use any special tricks or extra rendering steps or anything. I just edited and rendered. I think that the following information has been posted here before, but in case anyone missed it, here are the steps I follow for Final Cut Pro to produce 2-3 standard-defintion DVDs for clients every month. Perhaps you can glean some tips from my workflow, but I don’t feel like I am doing anything special. I am NOT and FCP expert.


1) I shoot most footage HQ 1080 30P. This gives me a nice progressive look (without the jitters of 24P) at the maximum resolution.

2) I open a new Sequence in FCP and use the "DV NTSC 48Khz Anamorphic" preset. I never need to create an HD version of my project, so I don't need to waste time editing an HD version. Other people's needs might be totally different on this point.

3) I change the Field Dominance to "NONE"

4) If FCP asks if I want to change the Sequence settings when I add the first clip, I say NO.

5) I edit the entire program within that Sequence. I hit "Option+R" periodically to keep the timeline rendered whenever I have to look at the script, find a clip, go to lunch, etc. By the time I'm done editing, the whole thing is arleady rendered and I never had to wait one second for it.

6) When I'm done editing, I then Export a QuickTime movie of the Sequence. I choose "Current Settings" and I do NOT choose to "Make Movie Self-Contained".

7) I then take that QuickTime movie and bring it into Compressor.

8) I then choose the Compressor preset for “DVD Best Quality” and modify a few of the settings (such as bitrate), but nothing major. A bitrate or 6.5 to 7.5 looks pretty good and allows me to squeeze about 90 minutes on a disc.

9) After those files (both audio and video) are finished rendering, I bring them into DVD Studio Pro and author the DVD normally.

This is exactly how the EX1 and EX3 DVDs were produced, and it's the workflow we've been using with XDCAM HD (optical) for about four years.

I’m not saying this is the only workflow that will produce good results, I’m just saying it works great for me. I hope that helps. Good luck.

[Daniel Goyette]

Thank-You Doug for your quick reply since you are very busy , i see you on tutorials , interviews about XDCAM on internet in addition to managing your company Vortex Media.

I will try you workflow at least base on somes of your inputs , it give me a little inside view of how you doing you work and this can only help me.

My biggest problem is i MUST produce an identical DVD and BLU-RAY , so what i have do is get an XDCAM EX sequence timeline , drop my XDCAM EX clips in it , add a fee very basic titles , simple page peel transitions betwheen clips , render as XDCAM EX , send to Compressor and select MPEG 2 HD (Blu-Ray option selected of course ).

Send this to TOAST 10 , Blu-Ray option selected , select reencode to NEVER , and Toast multiplex and burn .... this get exellent Blu-Ray disc as good as the original files.

Now this is when my problem come : send the rendered XDCAM EX sequence to compressor, select a DVD preset for DVD SD (90 min , 6.2 Mbs) and just modify one thing i selected 16:9 but even if i keep 4:3 the end result is showing some artifacts , of course i send the files to TOAST 10 , DVD video option selected , select reencode to never , and Toast multiplex and burn.

My problem appear to be not in Toast who just multiplex and burn but in my workflow.

Maybe i must use another sequence (one for SD by example) so the screen size from HD 1920 X 1080 is reduce to SD size there instead of inside compressor.

I thing you got the picture Doug , one editing but maybe two sequence one HD the other SD.

Maybe i must edit the HD sequence , duplicate it , change the setting of the copy for an SD one and render for both.

After that i should export using Compressor one sequence HD with a preset HD in Compressor and the sequence SD with a preset SD in compressor.

What do you think .... do you know somebody who need to produce those simple but identical project for Blu-Ray and DVD.

[Daniel Goyette]

I cant explain it but this is what have done and please follow me :

I have redo the editing and only render at the end (one render only).

Export using Compressor with a preset for a DVD 90 min. with 16:9.

5 minutes have only take 40 minutes to transcode from HD to SD and give me the MPEG 2.

So 4 X 40 minutes would have take 160 minutes (2H40M) far les than the 10 hours before.

Toast 10 multiplex-it and burn-it and the result seem much better ......

Doug i will still need to try your way when time permit it , thank-you.

[Doug Jensen]

Hi Dan,

Because you are following a different workflow than I am, I can't confirm the rendering times you are experiencing without taking the time (which I do not have right now) to do some testing of my own. Also, I think your questions might be better asked at the FCP forum because I doubt the situation is unique for EX. I certainly do not consider myself an FCP expert.

I wish you luck sorting it out.

[Daniel Goyette]

Thank-you Doug i have found this workflow with great illustration at this website.

I will post it on its own too for easy search by other users of the PMW-EX1.

Outputting Standard Definition in FCP from the Sony XDCam EX1

Also i am posting the workflow for Compressor for using all the cores on Intel Mac Pro.

http://www.kenstone.net/fcp_homepage...s_stitzer.html