Blurry output when rendering MTS to MP4

Klaas-Wijchman wrote on 4/1/2020, 7:21 AM

Blurry output when rendering MTS to MP4

Windows 10, Movie Studio 16 Platinum

Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 Super, Nvidia Studio driver version 26.21.14.4219.

Input: Panasonic MTS file, looks very sharp on screen, no blurry parts, 1920x1080x25fps

Problem:

When I render this file as-is, so even without any editing changes in MS16, the resulting MP4 file is blurry, especially in moving parts.

However, when I first convert said MTS file into MP4 using Handbrake, and use this MP4 file to render in MS16, then the resulting MP4 file looks as good as the original MTS file, no blurs at all.

What I already tried:

I read https://www.vegascreativesoftware.info/us/forum/faq-why-does-my-rendered-video-look-bad-troubleshooting-quality--103361/ and ‘played around’ with those suggestions.

In MS16, in Options - Preferences - Video I defined GPU acceleration to use the Nvidia card.

I used rendering formats MAGIX AVC/AAC MP4 and also Sony AVC/MVC and used the pre-defined template Internet HD 1080p 25fps (NVIDIA NVENC), but also the one without NVIDIA (that is for the MAGIX format, for Sony I used the 1920x1080 template).

Also tried various other templates, just to see whether they would result in better output.

I made many tests with various different settings in those templates, both with and without the GPU acceleration, but I haven’t found a combination of settings where the direct MTS to MP4 rendering gets a good quality output.

Resume:

MTS --> MP4 (MS16) is blurry

MTS --> MP4 (Handbrake) --> MP4 (MS16) is perfect

Any thoughts ?

Thanks !!

File Properties:

General

Name: 00121.MTS

Folder: E:\FOTOS\Test

Type: MPEG-2 Transport Stream

Size: 83,66 MB (85.665.792 bytes)

Created: Mittwoch, 1. April 2020, 11:19:20

Modified: Dienstag, 21. Januar 2020, 15:41:43

Accessed: Mittwoch, 1. April 2020, 11:19:21

Attributes: Archive

Streams

Video: 00:00:40,360, 25,000 fps interlaced, 1920x1080x12, AVC

Audio: 00:00:40,360, 48.000 Hz; Stereo, Dolby AC-3

ACID information

ACID chunk: no

Stretch chunk: no

Stretch list: no

Stretch info2: no

Beat markers: no

Detected beats: no

Other metadata

Regions/markers: no

Command markers: no

Media manager

Media tags: no

Plug-In

Name: compoundplug.dll

Folder: Q:\MyPrograms\Video\Vegas Movie Studio 16\FileIO Plug-Ins\compoundplug

Format: MPEG-2 Transport Stream

Version: Version 16.0 (Build 175)

Company: MAGIX Computer Products Intl. Co.

MediaInfo:

Back to post

Comments

Klaas-Wijchman wrote on 4/5/2020, 4:24 AM

@3POINT, that's where my problems started, when I used the 1080p25 template. I wasn't satisfied with the output, therefore I tried the interlaced method in the hope I could then use that output in Handbrake, but the 1080p25 template together with the format change into 'Upper field first' created the error message.

Anyway, I think I now have quite a good video.

@Musicvid, do you refer to the Decomb function within Handbrake, or is this a stand-alone program that does an even better job than the one in HB ?

3POINT wrote on 4/5/2020, 6:27 AM

@Klaas-Wijchman Since your output should be progressive for internet upload, there is no need to change the 1080p25 rendertemplate. Nevertheless the quality of that progressive output is hardly depending on the deinterlace setting in your project settings. In VMS you have three options, none, blend or interpolate. Just experiment with the three settings and compare and understand the difference.

Musicvid wrote on 4/5/2020, 8:40 AM

Musicvid, do you refer to the Decomb function within Handbrake, or is this a stand-alone program that does an even better job than the one in HB

Decomb is Handbrake's proprietary deinterlacing algorithm that is accessed via the drop-down menu. It is not a separate utility.

Suggest you familiarize yourself with the program and follow the excellent documentation they provide.

Musicvid wrote on 4/5/2020, 10:15 AM

@Klaas-Wijchman

I feel I should point out that Project Properties are automatically set when you load the first file in a project. Twiddling with field order, etc. isn't advisable. In 18 years, i have never had to change upper/lower in the project, and only once in the Media; Vegas simply gets it right.

Klaas-Wijchman wrote on 4/6/2020, 2:59 AM

@3POINT and @Musicvid I wasn't going to change the template from progressive to Interlaced, but due to the fact that this particular video looked bad when rendered as per default progressive, I had the idea to change to interlace and then get it back to progressive in Handbrake.

@Musicvid Thanks for your suggestion to look a bit (no, a lot) more into the manual !

Thank you both !

3POINT wrote on 4/6/2020, 5:49 AM

@3POINT and @Musicvid I wasn't going to change the template from progressive to Interlaced, but due to the fact that this particular video looked bad when rendered as per default progressive.

That's why I pointed you also in the direction that the deinterlace method setting in the project settings is also influencing the output quality of the progressive render. Just test the three different types and see the difference. It goes from "bad" to "not so bad" and "acceptable".

Klaas-Wijchman wrote on 4/6/2020, 8:58 AM

@3POINT, Thank you, and sorry I didn't mention it explicitly, but I did some tests with the 3 values you mentioned, and indeed, there are real visible differences between the three outputs.

Thanks again !

Jeff-Steen wrote on 5/26/2020, 6:42 PM

Hopefully I'm not too late to get a response. I too have the same problem of rendering in MS15 MTS from my Panasonic HC-V770 video camera to MP4. I'm in the USA and shoot 1080/60p now which MTS> MP4 is ok. I have footage shot previously at 1080/30i that I can't figure out the right settings for in MS.

I like the idea by 3Point has about rendering your MTS project to MTS, then using Handbrake to convert to MP4. I like the fact that it will keep the project in a less compressed file type, incase in the future you will need to convert to a different file type. I may do this to my old DV video. My DV to MP4 had major interlacing problems, too. DV to MPEG was not so bad.

Klaas- can you summarize the settings that you use to convert your interlaced MTS video to MP4 please? Also, thank you for asking the question. I've been having the same problem for a few years and did not know where to look.

I don't know if computer specs are needed, but I'm running Win 7 Pro with i7-4770. I have Movie Studio Platinum 15. I started off on Vegas Pro in 2004-5, my brother in law still works and sister worked at a tv news station, so I was introduced to the software. I've downgraded to the light MS version around MS11. Obviously I don't use it everyday. I shoot a lot of railroad train videos which are fast moving and almost the whole picture in the frame is moving, I know that's heck on compressed video.

Thanks in advance

Jeff

Musicvid wrote on 5/26/2020, 8:35 PM

@Jeff-Steen

That is not the "same problem."

You have different files, so please start your own thread, thanks, with the required information.

https://www.vegascreativesoftware.info/us/forum/faq-how-to-post-mediainfo-and-vegas-pro-file-properties--104561/

Klaas-Wijchman wrote on 5/28/2020, 5:38 AM

@Jeff-Steen

>Klaas- can you summarize the settings that you use to convert your interlaced MTS video to MP4 please?

I'm sorry to say that I don't exactly remember, but all-in-all it was the suggestions of 3Point and Musicvid that I used: use the format MAGIX AVC/AAC MP4 and within that the template Internet HD 720p 25fps (I downsized from original 1920x1080 to 1280x720), encode mode 'NV Encoder', Field order 'None (progressive scan). That's about it.

However, as I mentioned somewhere in this thread, the blurry output only showed in Firefox, not in IE-Edge.

To get a non-blurry video in Firefox I used the Movie Studio rendering output as input for Handbrake, and the output then also showed a smooth video in Firefox. The type of video was kinda similar of the fast train-videos you make: this was a video of skaters on ice, skating towards me, so then you also have quite some speed to capture.

Another thing I then did (Kudos to 3Point) was to change my camera settings, so that it directly makes MP4 videos instead of MTS. Up till now I'm very satidfied with the MP4 output.

Hope this helps a bit...

EricLNZ wrote on 5/28/2020, 6:10 AM

@Jeff-Steen If your source material is interlaced and you have movement it's best to have Project Properties Deinterlace Method on "Interpolate Fields". The default setting of "Blend Fields" will give blurred edges to any movement.

Jeff-Steen wrote on 5/28/2020, 7:44 PM

Thank you all.

Musicvid is right, I don't have the same problem exactly. I am getting blurry video with interlacing when I try to convert from interlaced video to progressive. The bigger problem that I have is that I have interlaced video shot over the years on different cameras, so I will need to fiddle with the settings to get the best possible. I have a huge amount of old DV video that I need to convert to MP4.

One of the problems that I have had was video taken on a Panasonic camera shot in HA 1080/60i mode. Vegas/ MS wants to bring it in as 29.97 fps when it's actually 59.94 fps.

Thanks, I will avoid the "Blend Fields" option.