Transcoding Software?

What do you use to transcode files for use in Resolve?

Also, what output format should I use? I'd really prefer that each clip is self-contained. I don't like the idea of image sequences or multiple files for each clip. It just seems like a risky archiving situation.

I don't particularly like the idea of uncompressed files since many of the source files I'll be using are 2160/50p.

I have Resolve Studio 14 on Windows and am hoping there is a program available that will produce Resolve compatible files from pretty much any source.

I've tried a few free and shareware programs, but they all appear to encode to delivery formats only, have a really bad UI that means the software is time consuming to use, and/or have poor quality output. This may be a settings problem , but having an output that is visibly poorer quality than the original is unacceptable.

It doesn't have to be free, but hopefully not too expensive.

Resolve is one of the best transcoders there is.
What are your original camera files??

Resolve is one of the best transcoders there is.

Not if it won't recognise the files. But, even if it does, what is the procedure for converting dozens of files in one batch? Or do you mean simply letting Resolve's optimised media solve the problem?

What are your original camera files??

My main camera files don't seem to be a problem in Resolve 14 on Win10.

But I'm talking about pulling in files from diverse sources, so they could be anything. What prompted this post is I was just given a WEBM file to work with. Resolve won't recognise this at all. And in the past I've been given all manner of files to work with.

ffmpeg is hands down the best option in my opinion. However you need to be comfortable working in a command prompt. Also if you have some software development skills you can write batch scripts to parallel process as many files as your machine can handle.

when i was trans coding files in parallel, ffmpeg was a little over 40% faster than Resolve.

ffmpeg is hands down the best option in my opinion.

I tried ffmpeg quite some time ago, but found it painful to use. The main problem is not knowing what settings to use, and most of my experiments resulted in poor quality results.

I seem to remember that there have been several GUI wrappers written for it. I've tried at least one of those, but again, couldn't get acceptable results.

Do you have an example to produce a matching frame size and rate good quality file suitable for Resolve?

Resolve is one of the best transcoders there is.

Not if it won't recognise the files. But, even if it does, what is the procedure for converting dozens of files in one batch? Or do you mean simply letting Resolve's optimised media solve the problem?

On the Media page select any files or folders you want to transcode. Then select File/Media Management and use the transcode page. You can select what you want to transcode, at what level you want to maintain the folder hierarchy and define the codec and quality you want to use.

It is a nice feature but of course there could be a lot of improvements. Personally I would love to have a trim option, insertion of meta data and a command line interface.

For editing and coloring you can easily map the original and transcoded folder tree by using bins and the re-conform option for timelines.

The batch process is easy.
Put all the clips on a timeline.
Go to DELIVER and choose you output codec specs and file destination
Make sure you select "individual clips" and "source name"

This setting will output a separate clips for each sporce clip with the same timecode and file name as the originals.

As for WEBM files, they appear to be web delivery files not really suited to editing.

A quick google revealed this

http://download.cnet.com/Free-WEBM-to-M ... 84590.html

On the Media page select any files or folders you want to transcode. Then select File/Media Management and use the transcode page. You can select what you want to transcode, at what level you want to maintain the folder hierarchy and define the codec and quality you want to use.

Ah, thanks. That's good to know.

Do you have an example to produce a matching frame size and rate good quality file suitable for Resolve?

if your working with a standard resolutions and rates this would be a simple one, to transcode to DNxHR HQX!

Code: Select all

 ffmpeg -i "inputFilePath" -c:v dnxhd -profile:v dnxhr_hqx  "outputFilePath"

edit:

depending on your needs you could also switch "dnxhr_hqx" out for any of the following.

Code: Select all

dnxhr_444
dnxhr_hq
dnxhr_sq
dnxhr_lb


The batch process is easy.
Put all the clips on a timeline.
Go to DELIVER and choose you output codec specs and file destination
Make sure you select "individual clips" and "source name"

This setting will output a separate clips for each sporce clip with the same timecode and file name as the originals.

Thanks.

As for WEBM files, they appear to be web delivery files not really suited to editing.

Yes, that's why I want to transcode them. It's simply that I have been given all sorts of different files to work with in the past and will in the future. Premiere handled almost everything I threw at it, but Resolve is more fussy. I've been away from video for a few years and things have changed in the meantime. I don't like Adobe's subscription model for what I do and only recently discovered that Resolve is quite a capable NLE that is being improved at quite a fast rate.

A quick google revealed this

http://download.cnet.com/Free-WEBM-to-M ... 84590.html

There are a few programs that do this, but all the ones I've tried have the problems I mentioned in my first post. I've got sick of downloading and installing various programs only to find out they are not suitable, hence the reason for this thread. Also, I really don't want a different program for each format.

if your working with a standard resolutions and rates this would be a simple one, to transcode to DNxHR HQX!

Code: Select all

 ffmpeg -i "inputFilePath" -c:v dnxhd -profile:v dnxhr_hqx  "outputFilePath"

I just tried this and got "permission denied". The source and destination folders are fully accessible, so I'm wondering if the error message is a red herring.

I just created 2 folders (a1 and b1) in my H drive, copied 4 video files to a1 and ran this:

Code: Select all

>ffmpeg -i h:\a1 -c:v dnxhd -profile:v dnxhr_hqx  h:\b1
ffmpeg version N-59070-gecb21d2 Copyright (c) 2000-2013 the FFmpeg developers
  built on Dec 13 2013 22:06:23 with gcc 4.8.2 (GCC)
  configuration: --enable-gpl --enable-version3 --disable-w32threads --enable-avisynth --enable-bzlib --enable-fontconfig --enable-frei0r --enable-gnutls --enable-iconv --enable-libass --enable-libbluray --enable-libcaca --enable-libfreetype --enable-libgsm --enable-libilbc --enable-libmodplug --enable-libmp3lame --enable-libopencore-amrnb --enable-libopencore-amrwb --enable-libopenjpeg --enable-libopus --enable-librtmp --enable-libschroedinger --enable-libsoxr --enable-libspeex --enable-libtheora --enable-libtwolame --enable-libvidstab --enable-libvo-aacenc --enable-libvo-amrwbenc --enable-libvorbis --enable-libvpx --enable-libwavpack --enable-libx264 --enable-libxavs --enable-libxvid --enable-zlib
  libavutil      52. 58.100 / 52. 58.100
  libavcodec     55. 45.101 / 55. 45.101
  libavformat    55. 22.100 / 55. 22.100
  libavdevice    55.  5.102 / 55.  5.102
  libavfilter     3. 92.100 /  3. 92.100
  libswscale      2.  5.101 /  2.  5.101
  libswresample   0. 17.104 /  0. 17.104
  libpostproc    52.  3.100 / 52.  3.100
h:\a1: Permission denied


You can put all your clips into a timeline and transcode them into individual clips of the desired format.

For other transcoding needs you can use VLC (free) or Dali's Moustache by http://hdcinematics.com/Dali.html

if your working with a standard resolutions and rates this would be a simple one, to transcode to DNxHR HQX!

Code: Select all

 ffmpeg -i "inputFilePath" -c:v dnxhd -profile:v dnxhr_hqx  "outputFilePath"

I just tried this and got "permission denied". The source and destination folders are fully accessible, so I'm wondering if the error message is a red herring.

I just created 2 folders (a1 and b1) in my H drive, copied 4 video files to a1 and ran this:

Code: Select all

>ffmpeg -i h:\a1 -c:v dnxhd -profile:v dnxhr_hqx  h:\b1
ffmpeg version N-59070-gecb21d2 Copyright (c) 2000-2013 the FFmpeg developers
  built on Dec 13 2013 22:06:23 with gcc 4.8.2 (GCC)
  configuration: --enable-gpl --enable-version3 --disable-w32threads --enable-avisynth --enable-bzlib --enable-fontconfig --enable-frei0r --enable-gnutls --enable-iconv --enable-libass --enable-libbluray --enable-libcaca --enable-libfreetype --enable-libgsm --enable-libilbc --enable-libmodplug --enable-libmp3lame --enable-libopencore-amrnb --enable-libopencore-amrwb --enable-libopenjpeg --enable-libopus --enable-librtmp --enable-libschroedinger --enable-libsoxr --enable-libspeex --enable-libtheora --enable-libtwolame --enable-libvidstab --enable-libvo-aacenc --enable-libvo-amrwbenc --enable-libvorbis --enable-libvpx --enable-libwavpack --enable-libx264 --enable-libxavs --enable-libxvid --enable-zlib
  libavutil      52. 58.100 / 52. 58.100
  libavcodec     55. 45.101 / 55. 45.101
  libavformat    55. 22.100 / 55. 22.100
  libavdevice    55.  5.102 / 55.  5.102
  libavfilter     3. 92.100 /  3. 92.100
  libswscale      2.  5.101 /  2.  5.101
  libswresample   0. 17.104 /  0. 17.104
  libpostproc    52.  3.100 / 52.  3.100
h:\a1: Permission denied


If you want to transcode files in a folder (or subfolders) with ffmpeg you have to use a command line of program as you cannot select a folder. For instance in Windows you could use the FOR .. IN ... DO command.

You can put all your clips into a timeline and transcode them into individual clips of the desired format.

Not if Resolve can't load them.

For other transcoding needs you can use VLC (free)

I'm pretty sure I've tried VLC and had quality issues with it.

or Dali's Moustache by http://hdcinematics.com/Dali.html

This looks interesting, and not one I've found before. I'll give it a go.

If you want to transcode files in a folder (or subfolders) with ffmpeg you have to use a command line of program as you cannot select a folder. For instance in Windows you could use the FOR .. DO command.

I thought the error message might have been misleading me.

I just tried with a single file:

Code: Select all

ffmpeg -i h:\a1\DJI_0204-1.mp4 -c:v dnxhd -profile:v dnxhr_hqx  h:\b1\DJI_0204-1.mov
ffmpeg version N-59070-gecb21d2 Copyright (c) 2000-2013 the FFmpeg developers
  built on Dec 13 2013 22:06:23 with gcc 4.8.2 (GCC)
  configuration: --enable-gpl --enable-version3 --disable-w32threads --enable-avisynth --enable-bzlib --enable-fontconfig --enable-frei0r --enable-gnutls --enable-iconv --enable-libass --enable-libbluray --enable-libcaca --enable-libfreetype --enable-libgsm --enable-libilbc --enable-libmodplug --enable-libmp3lame --enable-libopencore-amrnb --enable-libopencore-amrwb --enable-libopenjpeg --enable-libopus --enable-librtmp --enable-libschroedinger --enable-libsoxr --enable-libspeex --enable-libtheora --enable-libtwolame --enable-libvidstab --enable-libvo-aacenc --enable-libvo-amrwbenc --enable-libvorbis --enable-libvpx --enable-libwavpack --enable-libx264 --enable-libxavs --enable-libxvid --enable-zlib
  libavutil      52. 58.100 / 52. 58.100
  libavcodec     55. 45.101 / 55. 45.101
  libavformat    55. 22.100 / 55. 22.100
  libavdevice    55.  5.102 / 55.  5.102
  libavfilter     3. 92.100 /  3. 92.100
  libswscale      2.  5.101 /  2.  5.101
  libswresample   0. 17.104 /  0. 17.104
  libpostproc    52.  3.100 / 52.  3.100
Input #0, mov,mp4,m4a,3gp,3g2,mj2, from 'h:\a1\DJI_0204-1.mp4':
  Metadata:
    major_brand     : isom
    minor_version   : 512
    compatible_brands: isomiso2avc1mp41
    encoder         : Lavf55.33.100
  Duration: 00:00:23.64, start: 0.040000, bitrate: 60044 kb/s
    Stream #0:0(und): Video: h264 (High) (avc1 / 0x31637661), yuv420p(tv, bt709), 3840x2160 [SAR 1:1 DAR 16:9], 60042 kb/s, 25 fps, 25 tbr, 12800 tbn, 50 tbc (default)
    Metadata:
      handler_name    : VideoHandler
[NULL @ 00000000067387a0] [Eval @ 000000000282b0d0] Undefined constant or missing '(' in 'dnxhr_hqx'
[NULL @ 00000000067387a0] Unable to parse option value "dnxhr_hqx"
[NULL @ 00000000067387a0] Error setting option profile to value dnxhr_hqx.
Output #0, mov, to 'h:\b1\DJI_0204-1.mov':
  Metadata:
    major_brand     : isom
    minor_version   : 512
    compatible_brands: isomiso2avc1mp41
    encoder         : Lavf55.33.100
    Stream #0:0(und): Video: dnxhd, yuv422p, 3840x2160 [SAR 1:1 DAR 16:9], q=2-1024, 200 kb/s, 90k tbn, 25 tbc (default)
    Metadata:
      handler_name    : VideoHandler
Stream mapping:
  Stream #0:0 -> #0:0 (h264 -> dnxhd)
Error while opening encoder for output stream #0:0 - maybe incorrect parameters such as bit_rate, rate, width or height


This sort of thing is why I gave up on ffmpeg the first time.

Dali's Moustache by http://hdcinematics.com/Dali.html

This looks interesting, and not one I've found before. I'll give it a go.

Okay, that didn't get off the ground. When I click the "Convert Media" button I just get an error message that suggests a programming error:

I want something that just works well without a lot of stuffing around.

dahli-error.jpg (41.51 KiB) Viewed 14944 times

Code: Select all

ffmpeg version N-59070-gecb21d2 Copyright (c) 2000-2013 the FFmpeg developers
  built on Dec 13 2013 22:06:23 with gcc 4.8.2 (GCC)


This sort of thing is why I gave up on ffmpeg the first time.

Your version of ffmpeg is to old to support dnxhr. dnxhr wasn't even announced by Avid till September 12, 2014.

Download a new version and give it another try. Make sure to get an official release and not a nightly build.
https://www.ffmpeg.org/download.html

Regarding Dali's Moustache you should contact the manufacturer about this message.
It works fine here, even if I prefer Kyno (Mac only).

Download a new version and give it another try.

Done. My test source file is H.264 3840 x 2160 25p from a current model Panasonic consumer camcorder.

Now I get "[dnxhd @ 0000024021e93380] pixel format is incompatible with DNxHR HQX profile"

Code: Select all

ffmpeg -i h:\a1\DJI_0204-1.mp4 -c:v dnxhd -profile:v dnxhr_hqx  h:\b1\DJI_0204-1.mov
ffmpeg version N-89674-g57d0c24132 Copyright (c) 2000-2018 the FFmpeg developers
  built with gcc 7.2.0 (GCC)
  configuration: --enable-gpl --enable-version3 --enable-sdl2 --enable-bzlib --enable-fontconfig --enable-gnutls --enable-iconv --enable-libass --enable-libbluray --enable-libfreetype --enable-libmp3lame --enable-libopencore-amrnb --enable-libopencore-amrwb --enable-libopenjpeg --enable-libopus --enable-libshine --enable-libsnappy --enable-libsoxr --enable-libtheora --enable-libtwolame --enable-libvpx --enable-libwavpack --enable-libwebp --enable-libx264 --enable-libx265 --enable-libxml2 --enable-libzimg --enable-lzma --enable-zlib --enable-gmp --enable-libvidstab --enable-libvorbis --enable-libvo-amrwbenc --enable-libmysofa --enable-libspeex --enable-amf --enable-cuda --enable-cuvid --enable-d3d11va --enable-nvenc --enable-dxva2 --enable-avisynth --enable-libmfx
  libavutil      56.  7.100 / 56.  7.100
  libavcodec     58.  9.100 / 58.  9.100
  libavformat    58.  3.100 / 58.  3.100
  libavdevice    58.  0.100 / 58.  0.100
  libavfilter     7.  8.100 /  7.  8.100
  libswscale      5.  0.101 /  5.  0.101
  libswresample   3.  0.101 /  3.  0.101
  libpostproc    55.  0.100 / 55.  0.100
[mov,mp4,m4a,3gp,3g2,mj2 @ 0000028b83ec9880] st: 0 edit list: 1 Missing key frame while searching for timestamp: 3600
[mov,mp4,m4a,3gp,3g2,mj2 @ 0000028b83ec9880] st: 0 edit list 1 Cannot find an index entry before timestamp: 3600.
Input #0, mov,mp4,m4a,3gp,3g2,mj2, from 'h:\a1\DJI_0204-1.mp4':
  Metadata:
    major_brand     : mp42
    minor_version   : 1
    compatible_brands: mp42avc1
    creation_time   : 2017-12-16T18:06:14.000000Z
  Duration: 00:00:12.48, start: 0.000000, bitrate: 60824 kb/s
    Stream #0:0(eng): Video: h264 (High) (avc1 / 0x31637661), yuv420p(tv, bt709), 3840x2160 [SAR 1:1 DAR 16:9], 60486 kb/s, 25 fps, 25 tbr, 90k tbn, 50 tbc (default)
    Metadata:
      creation_time   : 2017-12-16T18:06:14.000000Z
    Stream #0:1(eng): Audio: aac (LC) (mp4a / 0x6134706D), 48000 Hz, stereo, fltp, 253 kb/s (default)
    Metadata:
      creation_time   : 2017-12-16T18:06:14.000000Z
Stream mapping:
  Stream #0:0 -> #0:0 (h264 (native) -> dnxhd (native))
  Stream #0:1 -> #0:1 (aac (native) -> aac (native))
Press [q] to stop, [?] for help
[dnxhd @ 0000028b84c12140] pixel format is incompatible with DNxHR HQX profile
[dnxhd @ 0000028b848b0980] ff_frame_thread_encoder_init failed
Error initializing output stream 0:0 -- Error while opening encoder for output stream #0:0 - maybe incorrect parameters such as bit_rate, rate, width or height
Conversion failed!


So I tried with a 1920 x 1080 H.264 23.98. Same error.

Code: Select all

ffmpeg -i h:\a1\DJI_0204-1.mp4 -c:v dnxhd -profile:v dnxhr_hqx  h:\b1\DJI_0204-1.mov
ffmpeg version N-89674-g57d0c24132 Copyright (c) 2000-2018 the FFmpeg developers
  built with gcc 7.2.0 (GCC)
  configuration: --enable-gpl --enable-version3 --enable-sdl2 --enable-bzlib --enable-fontconfig --enable-gnutls --enable-iconv --enable-libass --enable-libbluray --enable-libfreetype --enable-libmp3lame --enable-libopencore-amrnb --enable-libopencore-amrwb --enable-libopenjpeg --enable-libopus --enable-libshine --enable-libsnappy --enable-libsoxr --enable-libtheora --enable-libtwolame --enable-libvpx --enable-libwavpack --enable-libwebp --enable-libx264 --enable-libx265 --enable-libxml2 --enable-libzimg --enable-lzma --enable-zlib --enable-gmp --enable-libvidstab --enable-libvorbis --enable-libvo-amrwbenc --enable-libmysofa --enable-libspeex --enable-amf --enable-cuda --enable-cuvid --enable-d3d11va --enable-nvenc --enable-dxva2 --enable-avisynth --enable-libmfx
  libavutil      56.  7.100 / 56.  7.100
  libavcodec     58.  9.100 / 58.  9.100
  libavformat    58.  3.100 / 58.  3.100
  libavdevice    58.  0.100 / 58.  0.100
  libavfilter     7.  8.100 /  7.  8.100
  libswscale      5.  0.101 /  5.  0.101
  libswresample   3.  0.101 /  3.  0.101
  libpostproc    55.  0.100 / 55.  0.100
Input #0, mov,mp4,m4a,3gp,3g2,mj2, from 'h:\a1\DJI_0204-1.mp4':
  Metadata:
    major_brand     : isom
    minor_version   : 512
    compatible_brands: isomiso2avc1mp41
    encoder         : Lavf56.40.101
  Duration: 00:09:45.50, start: 0.000000, bitrate: 567 kb/s
    Stream #0:0(und): Video: h264 (High) (avc1 / 0x31637661), yuv420p, 1920x1080 [SAR 1:1 DAR 16:9], 306 kb/s, 23.98 fps, 23.98 tbr, 24k tbn, 47.95 tbc (default)
    Metadata:
      handler_name    : VideoHandler
    Stream #0:1(und): Audio: aac (LC) (mp4a / 0x6134706D), 48000 Hz, stereo, fltp, 256 kb/s (default)
    Metadata:
      handler_name    : SoundHandler
Stream mapping:
  Stream #0:0 -> #0:0 (h264 (native) -> dnxhd (native))
  Stream #0:1 -> #0:1 (aac (native) -> aac (native))
Press [q] to stop, [?] for help
[dnxhd @ 000001e3f6ded040] pixel format is incompatible with DNxHR HQX profile
[dnxhd @ 000001e3f7680900] ff_frame_thread_encoder_init failed
Error initializing output stream 0:0 -- Error while opening encoder for output stream #0:0 - maybe incorrect parameters such as bit_rate, rate, width or height
[aac @ 000001e3f73aea40] Qavg: 35500.078
[aac @ 000001e3f73aea40] 2 frames left in the queue on closing
Conversion failed!


Seems like I'd have to fine tune things for each file type.

Definitely not what I'm after.

Regarding Dali's Moustache you should contact the manufacturer about this message.
It works fine here, even if I prefer Kyno (Mac only).

If it's definitely going to do exactly what I want, I'd go to that trouble. But based on past experiences I expect it would become a time sink, even if the developer is responsive.

Even you say you prefer something else, so I'm reluctant to put in the time.

The last time I was looking for something to do this sort of job was about 4 years ago and I wasted countless hours downloading and testing various software. I was hoping there would be a complete user friendly program to do this by now.

Regarding Dali's Moustache you should contact the manufacturer about this message.
It works fine here, even if I prefer Kyno (Mac only).

If it's definitely going to do exactly what I want, I'd go to that trouble. But based on past experiences I expect it would become a time sink, even if the developer is responsive.

Even you say you prefer something else, so I'm reluctant to put in the time.

The last time I was looking for something to do this sort of job was about 4 years ago and I wasted countless hours downloading and testing various software. I was hoping there would be a complete user friendly program to do this by now.

What is stopping you from transcoding in Resolve using Media Management?

What is stopping you from transcoding in Resolve using Media Management?

Because Resolve doesn't read enough file formats.

Done. My test source file is H.264 3840 x 2160 25p from a current model Panasonic consumer camcorder.

Now I get "[dnxhd @ 0000024021e93380] pixel format is incompatible with DNxHR HQX profile"

Seems like I'd have to fine tune things for each file type.

Definitely not what I'm after.

You need to use a different pixel format for DNxHR HQX than the ffmpeg default pixel format.

Try adding, -pix_fmt yuv422p10le, to your ffmpeg command line. e.g.
-c:v dnxhd -profile:v dnxhr_hqx - pix_fmt yuv422p10le

-pix_fmt yuv422p is the normal pixel format one would use for most DNx output other than HQX.

You might try Adobe Media Encoder. Subscription is an expensive pain and certainly better to avoid it, but there have been cases where clients sent me weird file formats and Media Encoder was one of the few tools that was able to transcode it.

It's true that AME eats about everything, but it has its hiccups too, like with variable frame rates.
What exactly was your quality issue with VLC? Maybe just the settings?
Regarding Kyno, I prefer it for its organizational possibilities, not for formats. Dali's Moustache accepts more exotic formats.

You can try Xmedia Recode https://www.xmedia-recode.de/en/formate.html - supports many formats including WebM for input and DNxHD or uncompressed formats for output. Another worth trying is Eyeframe Converter https://eyeframeconverter.wordpress.com/ - a GUI for ffmbc, with customizable templates and parameters. Very useful for setting Resolve-understandable timecodes from source file data (the EFC is a bit dated, but you can separately download and update ffmbc).

Hi,

I tested an OBS VBR:
Direct to to DVR : OK
TMPGENC => DNXHR 444 => OK video + audio
Dali Mustache => Prores 422 HQ (registered version)
- 1st pass without audio
- 2nd audio pass only
all OK
- tested with ffmpeg but as I do not know it => others can help you

Post a link to a small clip if you want to be tested for you.
It's not easy to work blindly

Seems like I'd have to fine tune things for each file type.

Definitely not what I'm after.

You don't.
All what you need is correct command. Just add mentioned -pix_fmt yuv422p10le command and it will work for any file. Also make sure you are on current ffmpeg version for DNxHR use.

ffmpeg is hands down the best option in my opinion.

I tried ffmpeg quite some time ago, but found it painful to use. The main problem is not knowing what settings to use, and most of my experiments resulted in poor quality results.

I seem to remember that there have been several GUI wrappers written for it. I've tried at least one of those, but again, couldn't get acceptable results.

Do you have an example to produce a matching frame size and rate good quality file suitable for Resolve?

I use ffWorks( formerly iFFmpeg ) on Mac or myFFmpeg on windows. Theses GUI wrappers are really easy to handle and really cheap compared to the power they provide . You have to download the latest ffmpeg build and you’re good to go to decode and encode the most exotical codecs.

I use ffWorks( formerly iFFmpeg ) on Mac or myFFmpeg on windows. Theses GUI wrappers are really easy to handle and really cheap compared to the power they provide . You have to download the latest ffmpeg build and you’re good to go to decode and encode the most exotical codecs.

Thanks for that.

I've downloaded myFFmpeg and done a couple of tests. It locked up on me once, but so far it looks to be the best option for me.

I can recommend VirtualDub_FilterMod (free and open source). It's the old well known VirtualDub software with a bunch of current codecs compiled in including ffmpeg and others. Worked like a charm for me to convert an unusual format with an odd high resolution to a ProRes mov (with that original resolution), which Resolve then could work with. The program is GUI-type and pretty easy to use (I think) and can also do batch conversion etc.

https://sourceforge.net/p/vdfiltermod/wiki/Home/

I'm using that free tool for awhile

http://www.shutterencoder.com/

It is a good free transcoder tool with a simple and efficient GUI.

ffmpeg is fine if you know all the settings for every type of file. Putting all of the clips on the timeline and generating separate clips is fine if you want the same settings for all, and you don't mind renaming all of the files back to what they were and sorting them out again. Thanks very much for the tip of using File / Media Management. That one kept the same frame rate (basically), file names, etc. The transcoded files (to H265) were smaller, which is good for storage, but still lots of software that can't deal with h265.

ffmpeg is hands down the best option in my opinion.

I tried ffmpeg quite some time ago, but found it painful to use. The main problem is not knowing what settings to use, and most of my experiments resulted in poor quality results.

I seem to remember that there have been several GUI wrappers written for it. I've tried at least one of those, but again, couldn't get acceptable results.

Do you have an example to produce a matching frame size and rate good quality file suitable for Resolve?

A really decent front end for ffmpeg is "Myffmpeg", it's not free but's it's inexpensive (I'll post link below).

https://www.myffmpeg.com/

A really decent front end for ffmpeg is "Myffmpeg", it's not free but's it's inexpensive (I'll post link below).

https://www.myffmpeg.com/

This thread is very old. That's what I ended up getting and still used it frequently.

Hello,
You have also shutter encoder, completely free and the autor is very helpful.
https://www.shutterencoder.com/en/

One thing I like about "Tag Editor" is you can set the thumbnail for an MP4, but it requires some weird settings that I don't always get right (max-padding). I wonder if MyFFmpeg lets you set the thumbnail more simply.

Having a thumbnail on the video helps when browsing the file system, but the thumbnail doesn't carry forward to YouTube, etc.

tageditor-3.3.9-x86_64-w64-mingw32.exe" -s cover="C:\PosterFrame.jpg" --max-padding 125000 -f "2020-11-02 - Moab (1080p).mp4"

Hello,
You have also shutter encoder, completely free and the autor is very helpful.
https://www.shutterencoder.com/en/

+1. excellent, and free

And for both platforms.

Hello,
You have also shutter encoder, completely free and the autor is very helpful.
https://www.shutterencoder.com/en/

I don't see any information on the web site about how they handle licensing of the patents involved in several of the formats they claim to handle. That would make me very nervous about using a free, open-source video encoder, at least here in the United States where the patents are enforced.

It looks like many of you may be in countries where the laws might be different, but this is a (rather stupid) roadblock that we currently face for using a lot of the open source video software here in the USA.

Well you can always use it for non-commercial needs...
Patents are debatable, specially ones like RED got for RAW compression.
They quite often apply only when to try to build eg. service like Netflix which streams huge volume content using given codec.
I would not worry much about it.

Well, it's based on ffmpeg and it's free. Among other codecs, it's offering ProRes on Windows, which is a reverse engineered version. As we all know, Apple can be really tough about their copyright, but they seem to tolerate it as long as you don't make money with the software.
There once was a software by Cinemartin which also offered ProRes, but it was not free. Disappeared pretty soon. But I've never heard about anyone being sued for using ffmpeg in professional productions.

If you want to be on the safe side, get Kyno. It's the cheapest way to get an Apple-blessed batch encoder for ProRes on Windows and it's a pretty useful tool anyway. Being a commercial product, I'd expect the other codecs they use to be legal too. After all, they've been around for quite a while.

Don't get KYNO...

1) As far as anyone can tell it's dead. Hasn't been any activity of their social media pages for ages (>year?)

2) Pretty sure most of what it does is FFMPEG powered anyway (check the license info from the help menu)

Maybe there will be a resurrection... but I would wait before spending your money.

Well, it's based on ffmpeg and it's free. Among other codecs, it's offering ProRes on Windows, which is a reverse engineered version. As we all know, Apple can be really tough about their copyright, but they seem to tolerate it as long as you don't make money with the software.
There once was a software by Cinemartin which also offered ProRes, but it was not free. Disappeared pretty soon. But I've never heard about anyone being sued for using ffmpeg in professional productions.

If you want to be on the safe side, get Kyno. It's the cheapest way to get an Apple-blessed batch encoder for ProRes on Windows and it's a pretty useful tool anyway. Being a commercial product, I'd expect the other codecs they use to be legal too. After all, they've been around for quite a while.

There is about nothing patented in ProRes (there is something about specifics of encoding interlaced content I think).
What you just can't do is call your codec ProRes as this is Apple trademark.
If you, like some, tried to use ProRes name in your product which you sell then it's obvious Apple has all rights to sue you.
I can't imagine Apple will ever do anything about a person who encodes PrxRex files with ffmpeg...

Don't get KYNO...

1) As far as anyone can tell it's dead. Hasn't been any activity of their social media pages for ages (>year?)

2) Pretty sure most of what it does is FFMPEG powered anyway (check the license info from the help menu)

Maybe there will be a resurrection... but I would wait before spending your money.

Most of the app is most likely ffmpeg based, but they have licensed ProRes encoder as well, which you can validate on Apple website.

Kyno is now owned by Signiant.

Yep: https://lesspain.software/kyno/pages/ne ... -software/

Yes, I posted about the Signiant takeover several months ago.

Point is, it has languished with no development for years now and the company does not respond to queries on its website or social media pages. Signiant is not a consumer software products company. There is no promise to continue KYNO development.

Do you really want to recommend people pay $159- $349 for that?

I only mentioned it because it's the lowest priced transcoder for ProRes on PC on Apple's list (and it still works).
Personally, I'd rather recommend to forget ProRes on Windows.
Unfortunately, many clients are still asking for it. OTOH, none of them has complained about ProRes generated by ffmpeg.

To get back to the initial question:
- If ffmpeg is too complicated, use Shutter Encoder.
- If you only need H.264/265, use HandBrake.
- If you want a 'legal' product for ProRes, get one of the dozens from the official list on Apple's support page.

If you need an actual licensed ProRes encoder by a current company, go with Assimilate Scratch Play Pro. It’s $20 to rent or $300 to buy.

https://www.assimilateinc.com/products/playpro/


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If you want to be on the safe side, get Kyno. It's the cheapest way to get an Apple-blessed batch encoder for ProRes on Windows

If you need an actual licensed ProRes encoder by a current company, go with Assimilate Scratch Play Pro. It’s $20 to rent or $300 to buy.

Or there's Fusion Studio, which is already included free for any Resolve Studio users.

I know it's not precisely a 'batch processor' but one could write a script to achieve that. Or link it directly to Resolve using VFX Connect.

Example workflow to do one render to ProRes via Fusion Studio:

1. Select the clip(s) to render (as a single file) on a Timeline
2. Right-click -> New VFX Connect
3. To choose a location for the temporary export. Choose a suitable high-quality Render Format, such as MXF + DNxHR or Quicktime + Uncompressed. Tick "Open VFX Connect Clip in Fusion".
   
4. In Fusion Studio: Edit the Saver node, setting:
   • The desired output location and file extension (eg MOV)
   • Format: ProRes.
   
5. Click Render

Now you have a ProRes export of that clip/timeline that you can deliver to the client or whatever you need to do.

In Resolve you can Undo the VFX Connect creation to go back to your individual clips. Then manually delete the VFXConnect render folder created by Resolve - in my above example that would be /Volumes/4TB/Resolve/VFXConnect/<some long UUID name>.

It's not an ideal workflow but it's pretty quick to do and available for free for any Studio users.

Alternatively, one could render out intermediates in the usual way via Resolve's Render Queue, then write a script for Fusion Studio to batch convert them. I think such scripts already exist in fact and should be findable via Google (likely on the We Suck Less forum.)