Poor quality export in Resolve

Hi, this is my first post so I want to say hello to everyone

Resolve is a awesome piece of software
Unfortunetly I have a problem with exporting my footage.
Quality of exported footage is very bad - No matter of settings I choose in Resolve, the final output is poor (pixelated, blotchiness).


I want to point out, in resolve render tab I can't choose High Encoding Profile or/and Automatic Quality. In this way exporting crashes on the begining, after couple of secods


Source files are mp4/H.264
This are my settings:

Resolve


Encoder




I do some compare with other programs (Adobe Encoder, Handbrake) and only Encoder makes a acceptional quality.

Please take a look:
youtube.com/watch?v=tH5EaFTd4fg
(I guessing as a new user i can't send url's)


Maybe I do something wrong so I need advise how you guys deal with this.
What can I do to make export from Resolve as good as export from Encoder

I'm not surprised you are seeing pixelation and blockiness with it restricted to that low bitrate. You should at least render at the original bitrate of the footage. Try putting the Keyframes back to auto, and if you must restrict the bitrate make it something like 15000kbps, otherwise use the Automatic setting on Best..

I'm not surprised

Thanks for reply.
I choose low bitrate because I use it for archive files from my projects.

In Quality (bitrate) AUTO mode, export is the same low quality.

Can you tell my why in AD encoder at the same bitrate gives way better results?

Yes, as Charles said, your final rendered bitrate is very low for 1080p video. Your setting is 2 Megabits per second. You need at least 15 Mbps for decent quality HD video, and 20 Mbps is better. So your setting should be at least 15000 kbps, not the 2000 you selected.

Hope that helps!

YouTube also says your video is 2560x1440, so instead of being 1080 it is up-scaled 720. If you wanted to use this resolution you will need a higher bitrate. When I render UHD (3840x2160) for YT I do it at 80000Kbps.
These are my render settings which in this case is a widescreen UHD video. You can see the result of this render and upload here.

You need at least

you will need a higher bitrate

Thanks for advice but I want to clarify that I have knowledge about transcoding.
I want to know how its possible that Adobe Media Encoder can render good quality footage in 2mbps unlike Resolve in the same settings and file size?

DID YOU SAW MY VIDEO from first post?
youtube.com/watch?v=tH5EaFTd4fg

[Peter Chamberlain]

You need at least

you will need a higher bitrate

Thanks for advice but I want to clarify that I have knowledge about transcoding.
I want to know how its possible that Adobe Media Encoder can render good quality footage in 2mbps unlike Resolve in the same settings and file size?

DID YOU SAW MY VIDEO from first post?
youtube.com/watch?v=tH5EaFTd4fg

Are you using the Studio version?

Yes I saw your video. I also see that in your render settings you restrict Resolve to 2Mbps, but in Encoder you restrict it to a maximum bitrate of 10Mbps.

Are you using the Studio version?

I am using free version of Resolve.

but in Encoder you restrict

Exactly, but can I setup Resolve to VBR mode and 2pass encoding?

H.264 is normally VBR and you can activate multi-pass encoding, but maybe that's a Studio feature.

but maybe that's a Studio feature

Thanks, maybe Peter Chamberlain

Studio version

can tell something about it...

Maybe, but for sure it's free in ffmpeg.

You can also do very high quality encodes using Handbrake for free. Just send it a good intermediate that it likes (e.g. cineform filmscan mode)

Use the Nvidia H.264 encoder option. It's much better than the native encoder.

Use the Nvidia H.264 encoder option. It's much better than the native encoder.

That only works in the studio version and that's not what he's using.

Hi, im new, Ive the same problem. I try all the ways but nothing...
The quality its poor and get pixel, the tones are too diferents...
Thanks.

Ive the same problem.

Hi man, thank for information, i thougt only me who has this problem...

Did you find a solution?

Using the free version and I'm having the same issue. I've got footage sourced from a Sony A7 III shot in UHD mixed with some stock shots from POND5 on a 1080p timeline and 1080p output. Most of it looks good when playing back a render in an external player but during fades up or down to black (high rates of change between frames) on the Ponds 5 stuff I get noticeable compression distortion... it looks like the data rate isn't enough (blocks in the details) like the bitrate is down below 8,000 (in Premiere or Media Encoder). I've tried Quality: Automatic: Best and also restricting the bitrate 30,000 Kb/s just to be generous but the results are the same. I think Resolve's encoder (at least on the free version) just isn't' nearly as good as Premiere's.... my guess anyway. I would fault the POND5 footage (where applicable) but during timeline playback in Resolve these fades (of course being performed in real time) look great and have no such issues.

(Times passes) aaaannndd sorta answered my own question... I took an uncompressed QT render from Resolve into Adobe Media Encoder and output an MP4 at a CBR of 20 Mbps and all my problems went away. I will allow for the possibility that I am just not setting something right in my encoder settings in Resolve but 90% confident it's just the fact that under the free version the encoder is not stellar. This is frustrating after taking a risk and doing a professional project in Resolve. Of course, what do want for free... (EVERYTHING! Hahaha).

My verdict: Resolve's encoder is the fault... possibly mine for being cheap... haha.

Resolve's encoder is not really great. Actually, you don't need to export huge uncompressed files, mezzanine codecs will be fine (like Cineform, DNxHD/HR, or ProRes).
And then, use x264 in Handbrake for free and with the right settings, you'll get excellent quality without paying Adobe.

I'm not surprised you are seeing pixelation and blockiness with it restricted to that low bitrate. You should at least render at the original bitrate of the footage. Try putting the Keyframes back to auto, and if you must restrict the bitrate make it something like 15000kbps, otherwise use the Automatic setting on Best..

This was great advice. The automatic quality setting of "Best" only defaults to a bitrate of around 9000 some kbps for MP4 H.265 and topping out around 11000 some kbps for MOV H.265. When you adjust the bitrate restriction (I set the limit to 18000 kbps) it improves the image quality and clarity exponentially. The file size increased by a whopping 2 GB over the default "Best" but at least it wasn't a massive file. I knew something was drastically wrong and Resolve Delivery was underperforming when even the stock windows movie editor (sometimes used for casual instant videos) exports files at a total bitrate of 16000 some kbps if you choose its default highest quality setting.