thanks jetdv! too bad mac isn't like SF where we can insert just about any format right into the timeline!

Hello! I rendered an mpeg 2 file using the dvd ntsc template and unchecked the "include audio" tab so that there would be no audio stream, but the macintosh was still unable to open it into final cut pro. They said I need to render it without multiplexing. I assume that means with separate audio and video streams. I can't find any settings that say separate streams or anything like that.

All I want to do is import my mpegs into final cut pro. Anyone know how I need to render so that I can do this? I already have the audio rendered to aiff. Thanks in advance for your help.

What are you trying to do in Final Cut Pro that you can't do in Vegas? If you are trying to edit the MPEG2 files, created in Vegas, in FCP then you probably will have problems. You should always try to use an uncompressed or lossless compressed format for editing, MGEP2 is neither. I think you should be able to render to a NTSC DV avi file in Vegas and be able to work with it in FCP. You should also be able to play any MPEG2 file, within valid specs, created in Vegas on any Mac with an MPEG2 decoder.

FCP works with Quicktime .mov files. Try rendering to a .mov file and see if it can open that file.

My situation is this: I have these beautiful mpegs that I can't use 'cause the people who are mastering my dvd project are using DVD Studio Pro and it will not read (or is unable to use) my mpeg2 files. I rendered them with the DVD NTSC setting. The reason I wanted to be able to put them into FCP is that we were thinking if I render the audio as aiff and then render the mpeg2 video portion as a separate stream (without multiplexing as they called it) then we would be able to put it into FCP on their machine and render it as an mpeg2 and then DVD Studio Pro would be able to read/accept the files.

Has anyone else used VV3c main concept mpeg2 files in DVD Studio Pro? If so, what settings did you use to render the mpeg's so that DSP could use them?

when you render the mpeg files, go to mpeg>custom>system and check "save as separate elementary streams". DVDSP will definitely open those (I tried it, no probs). Make sure you send the authoring people both the .m2v (video) and the .mpa (audio).

I'm in dvd studio pro hell! I rendered separate vid/audio files by using the dvd video stream template listed under mpeg2. I transfered the audio to aiff and they converted it to ac3 and that works fine. For the vid, I clicked on custom (mpeg2/separate video stream) and changed the vbr setting to 6,500,00 for max, 5,500,000 for ave, and 196,000 for min to keep the file within standard dvd limits.

I am getting a really bad stuttering/jumpy result in spots when we play the m2v file on an ntsc monitor from the Mac hard drive and from the dvd they made me. It looks great on the computer monitor though. They said I have an interlacing problem, but here's where I'm confused. I did a test with a friend, who has dvdit, months ago where we used mpeg2's, created from the same avi files that I'm using to make the m2v's, and imported them into dvdit and made a test dvd and it played great on my tv. There was no jumpiness at all. So, why would the m2v files have interlacing problems, but not the mpeg2's that I made? Should I try deinterlacing the m2v's? I'm using lower field first for the field order and all the other stock settings with the exception of the vbr that they asked me to change. We had the same problem with the stock vbr settings. Thoughts?

I have VV3c, p3 1 ghz with 512 ram, win 2000.

They have dual proc. Mac with OS 9.2.2 with DVD Studio Pro version 1.1 with no updates instauled if that helps.