Video type and resouces

flashlight wrote on 2/3/2003, 11:19 AM

What video file type requires the least amout of processor resources to play?

I need to record a Voice-over to a video on a laptop and the frame rate drops when I add in the video. It is an HP Pavilion, Athlon XP 1800, with XP, and 256 mg of RAM. I am going to throw some more RAM in, but I am wondering what video file type requires the least amount of processor to play back. I would have thought NTSC DV but the file size is large. What about wmv.? The video is about 14 minutes.

The VO Tallent will be watching the video for timing, I would like the playback to be as smooth as possible. I have the preview on "Draft" as well since the crispness of the video isn't extremely important.

Thanks,
Al

Comments

musicvid10 wrote on 2/3/2003, 11:38 AM

Of the common codecs, I think Microsoft Video 1 uses the fewest resources. It's not a popular choice because of it's age and limitations. But you could render a reference video in MS Video 1, record your voiceover, then replace the reference with a better quality rendering.
HTH

*Appended: I just ran a little test with this codec, and was able to display a full size preview without any drops on my machine, which is similar to yours. If you just want to use the reference video to record voiceovers, it may be more convenient to do this in the "Prerender Video" option.
HTHA

Hy_Hardwon wrote on 2/3/2003, 11:41 AM

Hi Al,

Draft is good, a small window and a WMV should be helpful.

Also, using the loop feature to record "takes" in the ADR fashion will help greatly.

hy bye

Chienworks wrote on 2/3/2003, 12:25 PM

Most codecs also let you specify a reduced frame rate. Since it's only a reference video, even 10fps would probably be sufficient for timing. This would be only 1/3 as many frames to be displayed.

flashlight wrote on 2/3/2003, 12:44 PM

Thanks everyone. I will try these options.

Al