Does ffmpeg do as good a job of encoding as other software?
 

i see that most of the new CMS's have server side encoding/transcoding as a feature, for a paysite can ffmpeg match the quality of using encoding software that comes with video editing software(Final Cut, Premiere, Vegas etc) or stand alone encoding software like Cleaner or Squeeze?

if ffmpeg can match quality of encoding software like Sorensen Squeeze is there a front end script to use ffmpeg for those of us too wimpy to use command line?

thanks

A server side script like ffmpeg will never be able to match the quality and flexibility of a dedicated video encoding app like Videocharge or Sorenson, although it may come close enough for your purposes. For one, ffmpeg may not use the latest codecs or latest versions of the codecs. For example, with Flash the preferred codec is On2VP6. I am not sure if ffmpeg takes advantage of that, or if it can do mp4 either. But more importantly, if you know what you are doing, when you manually do video encoding, you can tweak the output with a custom bitrate, constant or variable and take advantage of special filters to make the encoded video look better. I personally often use a slight sharpness & brightness and contrast filter on my videos to make them look a little more pleasing to the eye. As far as I am concerned, if you have original masters and high quality footage, you should do the encoding yourself on your own workstations. The only reason to use ffmpeg is if you have hundreds or thousands of pre-existing encoded vids on your server already that you don't have the source tapes for and you want to convert them from one end user format to another without downloading them and re-uploading.

Jim is the man, saved me typing all that out. Great for tube sites, I prefer local encoding for member sites.


Hey Jim, sidebar here. On2VP6 is a great codec, but it can't be steamed via php script, or at least that's what I have figured out. Is there a codec that is comparable quality that can be streamed?

On2VP6 can be streamed via xmoov script, we do it right now. Also h264 mp4 can be streamed via psstream which i am migrating towards.

I prefer doing my encoding on my desktop because of the great apps that I can cut and encode, if you are doing it server side you need the absolute best parameters to get it how you want and if you are a noob at that its gonna be tough.

I usally download members area full vids, then cut it down to a 1-2 min clip, usally a good part in the video, the encode it with adobe media encoder or video charge, always have better results.

how do you do it with xmoov? I tried forever and couldn't get it to work.. you must have been doing some post meta injection magic on it or something. The h263 I use does't need any post creation injection which is what I'm stuck with now.

Yeah we do meta data injection, but it only takes a couple seconds per clip. We integrated it with our cms.

If you want "good enough for government work" then ffmpeg is fine.

If you want cutting edge quality you need real codecs and a good app like Sorenson, Apple Compressor, or Episode Pro.

Out of the box? No.
With the right codecs and scripts? Absolutely - I mean hey - you think youtube employs some dude to sit there all day and encode the HQ videos that come along? ;)

Good info on this subject is scarce, but here's a good start - this script is pretty decent.
http://blog.massanti.com/2008/09/26/...ipt-mac-linux/

thanks for the informative replies. i'm hoping to build a custom CMS and deciding whether I should go for server side encoding or just skip it as a feature. i have seen some paysites that use a CMS that does their encoding/transcoding and wasn't impressed with the video quality.

Thanks for this interesting link :thumbsup

We use Sothink FLV Encoder and it is alot more reliable and much faster than ffmpeg. It costs $600 to have it installed on your server though.

:2 cents:

Good info here...

:thumbsup