Anything wrong with MP4 as proxy files?

ingvarai wrote on 7/13/2009, 6:10 PM
I have written my own extension for Vegas, it batch renders original footages to proxy files, replaces the originla media with the proxy files. I can then switch back and forth between proxy mode and full mode at any time, by pressing a button.

Now I am experimenting with various proxy file formats. I have tried MP4 and the file size is almost 1/100 of the corresponding AVI using Lagarith. For example, an original MTS AVCHD is 42 Mb, in MP4 is it 9 Mb, in AVI using Lagarith it is approx 850 Mb.
For the MP4 I use 4000 Mbs average and 10 000 Mbs max. I maintain the 1920x1080 aspect ratio, and upper first, interlaced (PAL).

My purpose is to be able to work fast in Vegas, being productive and with the MP4 files everything runs smoothly, also after applying effects to the clips. When my movie is assembled, and all looks fine, I switch back to the normal mode and fine tune effects etc. before I do the final render.

Have I overlooked something? Is there a penalty - some kind of punishment here, a "too good to be true" hiding somewhere?

ingvarai

Comments

MPM wrote on 7/14/2009, 12:21 PM
Sounds good to me, but the question on my mind, is what it would offer that I don't get using AviSynth & VFAPI now? If it's 64 bit, then yeah I could see it filling a big hole. The videohelp.com/doom9.org crowd should love it too.
JohnnyRoy wrote on 7/14/2009, 1:18 PM
> Have I overlooked something? Is there a penalty - some kind of punishment here, a "too good to be true" hiding somewhere?

This is exactly what our VASST GearShift product has been doing since 2005 starting with Vegas 6 so nothing new here. We use DV proxies because the whole idea of a proxy is that it is light-weight and MPEG4 uses more CPU heavy weight compression when compared to DV but if you get good frame rates with mp4 then there is nothing wrong with using that.

~jr
ingvarai wrote on 7/14/2009, 2:44 PM
is what it would offer that I don't get using AviSynth & VFAPI now?
I dont' know! I have not tried AviSynth. All I know is that it works precisely the way I want, inside Vegas, since I wrote it myself :-)

It can use absolutely any format and render template available for the proxy files, all settings are stored on a per project basis, and default folders are created automatically, with the Vegas project file being in the root folder. All in all - it saves me a lot of time, a whole bunch of time, and editing AVCHD in Vegas has become real fun.

This way I store the original footages on USB drives, and work on the fast on-borad drives. Actually - my question was about MP4, not the concept of using proxy files for AVCHD.

If it's 64 bit, then yeah I could see it filling a big hole
Hm.. it loads fine in both Vegas9 32 and Vegas9 64.

The videohelp.com/doom9.org crowd should love it too.
I will perhas publish this Extension for those who are interested. I want to test it more first.
ingvarai wrote on 7/14/2009, 2:48 PM
Hi Johnny,
MPEG4 uses more CPU heavy weight compression when compared to DV but if you get good frame rates with mp4 then there is nothing wrong with using that.
Ok, thanks. This is the kind of response I was after. On my Quad Core, mp4 plays back very smooth, even when overlaying several tracks that partially overlap, and even when some of them have FXs added to them. I can adjust this using various Mbs settings in my custom MP4 render template.

ingvarai
ingvarai wrote on 7/15/2009, 5:15 PM
For what it is worth, I think I will go for MXF files as my proxy format.
MP4 was tempting, but I have had problems loading many MP4 files at the same time, and other issues with my home grown Vegas plug-in, problems I think are caused by MP4.

MXF seems to be the right thing.

ingvarai