MPEG2 vs. AVC-Intra

[Mark Williams]

Anyone know of any comparisons between Canon's 50Mbps MPEG-2 4:2:2 and Panasonic's AVC-Intra 50 and 100? At this high a bitrate are the differences minimal?

 

[cowpunk52]

Anyone know of any comparisons between Canon's 50Mbps MPEG-2 4:2:2 and Panasonic's AVC-Intra 50 and 100? At this high a bitrate are the differences minimal?

Panny's avc-intra 100 should outperform the xf codec in the grading suite when heavy adjustments are made thanks to it being 10 bit. Otherwise the differences are definitely minimal. Avc-intra 50 is another story, and the xf codec should best it due to more efficient coding at the same bitrate (50Mbps).I've used avc 50 and been very disappointed in the results. Avc 100 is really great, however. And of course, xf codec is excellent as well. However, i have never done a side by side comparison between the 3 codecs, so keep that in mind.

 

[f64manray]

Panny's avc-intra 100 should outperform the xf codec in the grading suite when heavy adjustments are made thanks to it being 10 bit. Otherwise the differences are definitely minimal. Avc-intra 50 is another story, and the xf codec should best it due to more efficient coding at the same bitrate (50Mbps).I've used avc 50 and been very disappointed in the results. Avc 100 is really great, however. And of course, xf codec is excellent as well. However, i have never done a side by side comparison between the 3 codecs, so keep that in mind.

Would you happen to know if the xf codec of the C300 is compatible with FCPX?

 

[cowpunk52]

Would you happen to know if the xf codec of the C300 is compatible with FCPX?

Currently, no, it is not - but Canon does plan on releasing an update in January that will fix that. There are, however, some "unofficial workarounds" that Canon UK has suggested to use until then:

"1. First, import the MXF files into Final Cut Pro 7. QuickTime movies will be produced, which can then be imported into FCP X. This is Canon's preferred solution as it is simple and many FCP X users will probably also own FCP 7.

2. An alternative using Apple tools is Compressor 4, available from the Apple App Store. The 'MXF Import for OS X' plug-in from Calibrated Software is also required. Details are here. (note that Canon MXF is not officially supported, but we have been advised that it does work).

3. Use the Aunsoft Video Converter, also available from the Apple App Store. This will transcode MXF files to ProRes422 QuickTime movies, which can then be imported into FCP X."

 

[f64manray]

Currently, no, it is not - but Canon does plan on releasing an update in January that will fix that. There are, however, some "unofficial workarounds" that Canon UK has suggested to use until then:

"1. First, import the MXF files into Final Cut Pro 7. QuickTime movies will be produced, which can then be imported into FCP X. This is Canon's preferred solution as it is simple and many FCP X users will probably also own FCP 7.

2. An alternative using Apple tools is Compressor 4, available from the Apple App Store. The 'MXF Import for OS X' plug-in from Calibrated Software is also required. Details are here. (note that Canon MXF is not officially supported, but we have been advised that it does work).

3. Use the Aunsoft Video Converter, also available from the Apple App Store. This will transcode MXF files to ProRes422 QuickTime movies, which can then be imported into FCP X."

Thanks, man! You're like a fountain of knowledge or something. So much for FCPX being more user friendly. You say Canon will release an update in Jan 2012. I would think this would be more of a FCPX issue of Apple updating their software. Will this be just a plug in that FCPX users will download from Canon and install in FCPX? I thought this was a standard codec that's been around quite awhile used in all the pro Canon video cameras. I'm a bit surprised that FCPX doesn't support it.

Is CS5.5 currently compatible with the MXF codec of the C300?

Sorry, didn't mean to jack this thread!

 

[8string]

The mxf format is supported in Adobe 5.5 and Vegas out of the box (not sure about AVID, but assume so). Also FCP 7 supports it natively. It's just FCPx.