Please add read support for .M2T files

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Dilson Abraham

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Please add read support for .M2T files

PostSun Apr 15, 2018 8:59 pm

Would appreciate if read support can be added for .m2t files in DR 15.

I have not been able to import or deinterlace these clips up until DR 14.3. Hope that in DR 15 if read support can be added, it would be a great help for me and probably others, to import these old files and finish them off for once.

I have included links to a couple of sample files from my archive if these can be helpful in providing read support.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1s-Fa0mzImkQJ1JkDNMvzYc7EJJdzmzCZ
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1fM5xFIygDuFCItInc7HTJG0p7ymjNBDN
Last edited by Dilson Abraham on Mon Apr 16, 2018 4:20 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Bryan Worsley

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Re: Read support for .M2T files

PostMon Apr 16, 2018 3:33 am

My two cents in the other thread:

https://forum.blackmagicdesign.com/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=72269&p=403988#p403988

I know that's not what you are requesting, but best I can suggest as an 'as is' workaround to load your old files and 'finish them off'.
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Cary Knoop

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Re: Read support for .M2T files

PostMon Apr 16, 2018 3:59 am

As a workaround you could remux them to another container.
For instance mp4 or mov.

The concern against remuxing them to mov in the referenced topic is in my opinion not warranted.
Mov is just a container, it is not the same as the Quicktime application.
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Dilson Abraham

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Re: Read support for .M2T files

PostMon Apr 16, 2018 4:19 am

Thanks Bryan and Cary for your inputs.

I know there are workarounds available. I in fact own 'ffworks' and have tried converting it to ProRes, but wasn't that satisfied with the results. I ended up seeing more interlacing artifacts converting the original m2t files to ProRes progressive.

So if BMD could do a read only support, I presume their de-interlacer does a far superior job, hence was hoping if they could add this feature into DR 15.
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Bryan Worsley

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Re: Read support for .M2T files

PostMon Apr 16, 2018 4:35 am

Duplicate post
Last edited by Bryan Worsley on Mon Apr 16, 2018 5:33 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Bryan Worsley

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Re: Read support for .M2T files

PostMon Apr 16, 2018 4:46 am

Cary Knoop wrote:As a workaround you could remux them to another container.
For instance mp4 or mov.


Goodness me, you're right Cary. Tried remuxing one of those m2t files to mp4 and mov with ffmpeg and Resolve imported both. Interesting that Resolve reports the remuxed mov file as 'XDCAM EX 1080/50i' with mp2 audio and the mp4 file as 'MPEG2 Video' with AAC audio, even though the original mp2 audio (as confirmed by MediaInfo) was retained in both files.

So scratch the remuxing to mxf I mentioned in that other thread.

Dilson Abraham wrote:I know there are workarounds available. I in fact own 'ffworks' and have tried converting it to ProRes, but wasn't that satisfied with the results. I ended up seeing more interlacing artifacts converting the original m2t files to ProRes progressive.
So if BMD could do a read only support, I presume their de-interlacer does a far superior job, hence was hoping if they could add this feature into DR 15.


Heck, if you're well up on ffmpeg, just remux to mov and you are good to go.
Last edited by Bryan Worsley on Mon Apr 16, 2018 4:50 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Dilson Abraham

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Re: Please add read support for .M2T files

PostMon Apr 16, 2018 4:54 am

Sure Bryan, will give that another shot, when I get back home from work.
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Bryan Worsley

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Re: Read support for .M2T files

PostMon Apr 16, 2018 5:02 am

Bryan Worsley wrote:Interesting that Resolve reports the remuxed mov file as 'XDCAM EX 1080/50i' with mp2 audio and the mp4 file as 'MPEG2 Video' with AAC audio, even though the original mp2 audio (as confirmed by MediaInfo) was retained in both files.


Oh hang on. I should have maybe checked that Resolve actually plays the (mp2) audio track.....and it doesn't in either case.

Edit: But remux with the mp2 audio transcoded to PCM and it works fine:

Code: Select all
ffmpeg -i {Path}\Clip.m2t -vcodec copy -acodec pcm_s16le -ar 48000 -ac 2 {Path}\Clip_PCM.mov


Bryan Worsley wrote:Interesting that Resolve reports the remuxed mov file as 'XDCAM EX 1080/50i'...


In fact Resolve interprets it as XDCAM EX 1080/50i (35Mb/s VBR), which is the HQ variant, when really it's the SP (HDV) variant (Main@High 1440, 25Mb/s, CBR) according to MediaInfo.

https://documentation.apple.com/en/finalcutpro/professionalformatsandworkflows/index.html#chapter=8%26section=3%26tasks=true

But I guess that's no matter (I think ??) if it still reports the aspect ratio as anamorphic 1440 x 1080 ?

What camera were the clips recorded on out of interest ?
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Cary Knoop

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Re: Read support for .M2T files

PostMon Apr 16, 2018 2:12 pm

Dilson Abraham wrote:I in fact own 'ffworks' and have tried converting it to ProRes, but wasn't that satisfied with the results. I ended up seeing more interlacing artifacts converting the original m2t files to ProRes progressive.

There is no need to transcode it to ProRes or any other codec. To do a proper deinterlacing you should convert each field to a frame instead of merging two fields into a frame.

When you remux the source you do not transcode at all but simply change the wrapper, i.e change the m2t wrapper to .mov or .mp4. This way the quality remains the same.

There could be an audio incompatibility, some wrappers do not like certain audio formats so you might have the re-encode the audio stream.

Also Resolve tends not to like aac very much.
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Bryan Worsley

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Re: Read support for .M2T files

PostMon Apr 16, 2018 2:34 pm

Cary Knoop wrote:Also Resolve tends not to like aac very much.


Nor mp2, at all.

Cary Knoop wrote:When you remux the source you do not transcode at all but simply change the wrapper, i.e change the m2t wrapper to .mov or .mp4. This way the quality remains the same.

There could be an audio incompatibility, some wrappers do not like certain audio formats so you might have the re-encode the audio stream.


Yes, as I said:

Bryan Worsley wrote:... remux with the mp2 audio transcoded to PCM and it works fine:

Code: Select all
ffmpeg -i {Path}\Clip.m2t -vcodec copy -acodec pcm_s16le -ar 48000 -ac 2 {Path}\Clip_PCM.mov



But not mp4. AAC in that case, e.g.

Code: Select all
ffmpeg -i {Path}\Clip.m2t -vcodec copy -acodec aac -ab 320k -ar 48000 -ac 2 {Path}\Clip_aac.mp4

Or whatever AAC bitrate you prefer.
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Dilson Abraham

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Re: Please add read support for .M2T files

PostTue Apr 17, 2018 3:48 am

Thank you Bryan.

Managed to just create .MOV files from .M2T files out of 'ffworks' by using the video passthru option and the results are far better using the de-interlace option in DR 15, the de-interlaced footage is much cleaner now.
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Bryan Worsley

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Re: Please add read support for .M2T files

PostTue Apr 17, 2018 1:19 pm

You're welcome, but it was Cary's suggestion to remux to mov/mp4. I was laboring under the notion that MPEG2 files needed to be in mxf format.

Of course it would be nice if BMD added native m2t read support, as per your original request, but that would mean adding mp2 audio support also for HDV files like these. Personally I think the chances of that are pretty slim given that this is older technology....but you never know. Anyhow, I'm glad this provides a workable solution.

Can't say I work with interlaced material much these days, but when I do I prefer to deinterlace to 'double rate' (50p/60p) by external methods, although not usually ffmpeg.

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