REALPRODUCER USER S GUIDE

Transcription

1 REALPRODUCER USER S GUIDE RealProducer 13.1 Revision Date: 21 January 2010

2 RealNetworks, Inc. P.O. Box Seattle, WA U.S.A. Copyright RealNetworks, Inc. All rights reserved. Information in this document is subject to change without notice. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, in any form or by any means, without permission in writing from RealNetworks, Inc. Helix, the Helix logo, the Real "bubble" (logo), RealProducer, Helix Producer, RealSystem Server, Helix Universal Server, RealAudio, RealVideo, RealMedia, RealPlayer, and RealOne Player are all trademarks or registered trademarks of RealNetworks, Inc. Other product and corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners Copyright (c) RealNetworks, Inc. This product may incorporate one or more of the following: U.S. Patent # 5,917,835; U.S. Patent # 5,854,858; U.S. Patent # 5,917,954; U.S. Patent # 6,597,961; U.S. Patent #6,314,466. Other U.S. patents pending. All rights reserved. RealNetworks Lossless audio codec Copyright (c) RealNetworks, Inc. All rights reserved. RealNetworks RealAudio Multichannel Codec Copyright (c) 2003 RealNetworks, Inc. All rights reserved. ACELP(r).net codec by VoiceAge Corporation Copyright(c) All rights reserved. AAC and aacplus implementation developed by Coding Technologies. All rights reserved. The Ogg Multimedia Framework and the Vorbis audio compression tools have been provided by the Xiph.org Foundation. RealNetworks RealVideo 8 video codec Copyright (c) RealNetworks, Inc. Portions Copyright (c) Intel Corporation. All rights reserved. RealNetworks RealVideo 9 video codec Copyright (c) RealNetworks, Inc. Portions Copyright (c) Intel Corporation. All rights reserved. RealNetworks RealVideo 10 video codec Copyright (c) RealNetworks, Inc. Portions Copyright (c) Intel Corporation. All rights reserved. STLport (c) 1999, 2000 Boris Fomitchev. Copyright (c) 1994 Hewlett-Packard Company. Copyright (c) 1996,97 Silicon Graphics Computer Systems, Inc. Copyright (c) 1997 Moscow Center for SPARC Technology. Helix, RealAudio, RealNetworks, RealSystem, RealVideo, and SureStream are trademarks or registered trademarks of RealNetworks, Inc. All other companies or products listed herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

3 CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1 How This Guide Is Organized... 1 Conventions Used in this Guide... 3 PART I: GETTING STARTED 1 INSTALLATION 7 System Requirements... 7 Installing on Windows... 7 Windows.Net RunTime... 8 Uninstalling the Program CODECS AND FILE FORMATS 11 Input Formats...11 Uncompressed Input Formats...11 Formats Requiring DirectX...11 Formats Requiring QuickTime...12 Output Choices...12 RealMedia...12 Audio Codec Choices...13 RealAudio...13 Video Codec Choices...17 RealVideo...17 Multi-Rate Streams...18 Rate Shifting...19 Encoding Requirements for Rate-Shifting Clips...19 PART I: INPUTS AND OUTPUTS 3 INPUTS 25 Input Tab...25 Jobs and Job Files...26 Loading an Existing Job...27 Upgrading Older Job Files...27 File Input...27 iii

4 RealProducer User s Guide iv Video Source File Size Limit...28 Capture Input...29 Input Duration...29 Audio Mixer...30 Audio Vendor Controls...30 Video Settings...31 Timeline Editor...33 Timeline Editing Controls...34 Source Properties PREFILTERS 37 Audio and Video Preprocessing...37 Controls for Displaying and Enabling Prefilters...38 Audio Level...38 Audio Synchronization...39 Input Cropping...39 Cropping Controls...40 De-Interlace and Inverse-Telecine...41 Inverse-Telecine Prefilter...42 De-Interlace Prefilter...42 Video Noise...43 Low Noise Filtering...44 High Noise Filtering...44 Input Resize...44 Resize Controls...45 Maintain Aspect Ratio...46 High-Quality Resize...46 Black-Level Correction OUTPUTS 47 Output Tab...47 Single Outputs and Multiple Outputs...48 Outputs and Destinations...48 Outputs List...49 Output Selection...50 Output Name...50 Encoding Settings...50 Audience Control Buttons...51 Audience Templates...51 Audience Customization...52 Output File Destination...55 Archive Clips...55 Output File Extension...55

5 Contents Two-Pass Encoding...56 Output File Size...56 Metadata...57 Metadata Buttons...57 Metadata Entry...58 Metadata Titles and Values...58 PART II: ADVANCED AUDIO AND VIDEO SETTINGS 6 AUDIO CUSTOMIZATION 63 Audio Encoding Settings...63 Audio Codec...64 Channels...64 What is Stereo Surround?...65 What is Multichannel Audio?...66 Average Bit Rate...67 Sample Rate...68 What is a Sampling Rate? VIDEO CUSTOMIZATION 69 Video Encoding Settings...69 Video Codec...70 Level...70 Video Average Bit Rate...70 Frame Rate...71 Target Frame Rates...71 Factors that Affect RealVideo Frame Rates...71 Frame Size...72 Maintain Aspect Ratio...73 High-Quality Resize...73 Notes on Resizing...73 Encoding Complexity...75 Frame Rate Mode ADVANCED VIDEO OPTIONS 77 Advanced Video Settings...77 Variable Bit Rate Video...78 VBR Compared to CBR...78 VBR Maximum Bit Rate...79 VBR Target Quality...80 Maximum Video Buffering (Preroll)...81 Maximum Key Frame Interval...82 What is a Key Frame?...82 v

6 RealProducer User s Guide Advantages of Lowering the Maximum Key Frame Interval...82 Costs of Lowering the Maximum Key Frame Time...82 Startup Latency Reduction During Broadcasts...83 PART III: BROADCASTING 9 BROADCAST FEATURES 87 Live Broadcasting...87 Broadcast Trial Runs...88 Types of Broadcasts...88 Helix Push Broadcast...89 Helix Advanced Push Broadcast...91 Helix Multicast Push Broadcast...92 Helix Pull Broadcast...94 Server Broadcast Mode...96 Broadcast Transports...97 Encoder Redundancy...97 Forward Error Correction...98 Error Correction Percentage...99 Redundant Stream Protection...99 FEC Rates and Receiver Buffering...99 Archiving RealProducer Archiving Helix Server Archiving Version 6 IP Addresses SERVER DESTINATIONS 103 Server Destinations Output Servers Buttons Server Destination Templates Helix Push Destination Helix Push Basic Settings Helix Push Advanced Settings Helix Advanced Push Destination Helix Advanced Push Basic Settings Helix Advanced Push Advanced Settings Helix Multicast Push Destination Helix Multicast Push Basic Settings Helix Multicast Push Advanced Settings Helix Pull Destination Helix Pull Basic Settings Helix Pull Advanced Settings vi

7 Contents PART IV: MONITORING 11 JOB MONITORING 125 Monitoring Tab Starting a Job Preview Section Multiple Output Display Audio Meters Clipped Audio Session Logging Session Log Viewer Logging Types Settings Advisor PART V: APPENDIXES A PREFERENCES 133 Preferences File File Location Preferences Template Directories Temporary Directory Log File Preferences Log File Location Logging Settings Log File Rolling Output Preferences Encoding Defaults Output Directory and File Name Defaults Output Server Defaults Metadata Defaults Signal Detection Preferences Audio Watchdog Tests Video Watchdog Tests Message Suppression Frame Analysis Period B AUDIENCE TEMPLATES 145 Predefined Audience Templates Templates Included with RealProducer Customized Templates k Voice k Video k Music vii

8 RealProducer User s Guide 56k Video k Music k Video k Video k Music k Video k Video k Video k Video M Video % VBR Quality Video C AUDIO AND VIDEO TIPS 157 Audio Capture Source Media Recording Equipment Shielded Cables Input Levels Volume Levels for Live Broadcasts Sampling Rates Audio Optimization DC Offset Normalization Dynamics Compression Equalization Video Recording Video Staging Scene Changes and Movement Colors and Lighting Video Output Color Depth Source Media Quality INDEX 163 viii

9 INTRODUCTION This guide explains how to use the graphical application of RealProducer 13.1 to encode on-demand clips and live broadcasts. It describes the file formats and codecs that RealProducer can use to create output. It also explains how to customize audio and video output to meet your viewers needs. For More Information: An additional guide, RealProducer Command Line and Job File Reference, explains how to run RealProducer 13.1 from the command line. It also describes the syntax of the job, audience, and server files used by the graphical application. How This Guide Is Organized The guide contains the following chapters. Chapter 1: Installation This chapter covers RealProducer requirements and installation. Chapter 2: Codecs and File Formats This chapter explains the output file formats and codecs that RealProducer supports. Chapter 3: Inputs As explained in this chapter, you can encode audio and video from a file or live input. Chapter 4: Prefilters By applying prefilters to the input, you can improve the audio and video quality as well as crop and resize a video. 1

10 RealProducer User s Guide Chapter 5: Outputs This chapter explains how to define outputs and select audiences to control how the output is encoded. Chapter 6: Audio Customization In many instances, you ll want to refine the audio settings by customizing an audience definition. Chapter 7: Video Customization You can also customize the video settings of an audience to change, for example, the video codec used to encode the output. Chapter 8: Advanced Video Options This chapter explains advanced video customizations, such as defining the video preroll and creating a variable bit rate clip. Chapter 9: Broadcast Features Refer to this chapter for basic information about broadcasting a live stream. Chapter 10: Server Destinations When you are ready to broadcast a live event, you set up a server destination using the instructions in this chapter. Chapter 11: Job Monitoring This chapter explains how to start, stop, and monitor an encoding job. Appendix A: Preferences This appendix explains how to modify the RealProducer preferences to set overall encoding preferences. Appendix B: Audience Templates Audience templates define encoding settings such as the streaming bit rate. This appendix describes the predefined templates included with RealProducer. Appendix C: Audio and Video Tips Good quality starts at the source. This appendix provides tips for creating high-quality audio and video input. 2

11 Introduction Conventions Used in this Guide The following table explains the typographical conventions used in this guide. Convention emphasis Notational Conventions Meaning Bold text is used for in-line headings, user-interface elements, URLs, and addresses. terminology Italic text is used for technical terms being introduced, and to lend emphasis to generic English words or phrases. syntax This font is used for fragments or complete lines of programming syntax (markup). syntax emphasis Bold syntax character formatting is used for program names, and to emphasize specific syntax elements. variables Italic syntax character formatting denotes variables within fragments or complete lines of syntax. [options] Square brackets indicate values that you may or may not need to use. As a rule, when you use these optional values, you do not include the brackets themselves. choice 1 choice 2 Vertical lines, or pipes, separate values that you can choose between.... Ellipses indicate nonessential information omitted from examples. 3

12 4 RealProducer User s Guide

13 Part I: GETTING STARTED PART I This section explains how to install RealProducer It also covers the file formats and codecs that RealProducer can use when encoding on-demand clips or live broadcasts.

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15 Chapter 1: INSTALLATION CHAPTER 1 This chapter describes the hardware and software requirements for RealProducer. It then explains how to install the product. System Requirements The following table lists the requirements for using RealProducer RealProducer 13.1 System Requirements Hardware or Software Requirement Windows Version Windows XP SP3 Windows Vista Windows 7 Windows Server 2003 Windows Server 2008 Windows.Net runtime.net 2.0 (automatically installed if not present) Windows Installer CPU (minimum) RAM (minimum) Display Resolution version 3.0 (included with Windows XP SP2 and later) Pentium 4 or Core2Duo (recommended) 512 MB 1024x768 pixels or greater Note: When encoding multiple outputs, RealProducer uses each processor core to encode an output. A four-core processor can encode four outputs at the same time, for example. Installing on Windows To install RealProducer, you need a binary installation file that enables the RealProducer features. Note: Your account must have Administrator privileges to install RealProducer. 7

16 RealProducer User s Guide For More Information: See System Requirements on page 7 for computer hardware and software requirements. To install RealProducer onto Windows: 1. Close all running applications. 2. Double-click on the installation program icon. The installer unpacks the required files and opens the installation dialog. 3. Choose the product to install. 4. Read the license and click Accept to agree to its terms. 5. The next page allows you to choose the installation location. The default directory is under C:\Program Files\. You can change this directory by clicking the Browse button and selecting the new path. Note: The installer adds the installation directory to your Windows PATH variable. This allows you to run the commandline application from any directory on your machine. If you do not want to update the PATH value, remove the checkmark from the option. Tip: You must log out of Windows and log back in before a Path variable update takes effect. 6. In the final confirmation screen, verify your choices and click Install. Windows.Net RunTime On Windows, RealProducer installs Microsoft.Net 2.0 SP1 if it is not present already. This installation does not affect other versions of the.net runtime. For example, you can have.net 3.0 and 3.5 installed on the same machine without conflict. Uninstalling the Program Note: If the installer included the.net runtime, you will need to reboot your machine after the installation completes. To remove RealProducer from your machine, use the Add or Remove Programs dialog of the Windows Control Panel. The removal process deletes all files that 8

17 CHAPTER 1: Installation were created by the installer. However, it does not remove any encoded outputs or job files created by RealProducer. 9

18 10 RealProducer User s Guide

19 Chapter 2: CODECS AND FILE FORMATS CHAPTER 2 This chapter explains the input and output formats, audio codecs, and video codecs that you can use with RealProducer. Input Formats When creating content to encode, use uncompressed formats whenever possible. Otherwise, you compress the source once when you digitize it and again when you encode it in a streaming format. This double compression can decrease the image quality. Use a compressed source format only if RealProducer supports the file as input. Uncompressed Input Formats Tip: Always keep copies of the video source files. You cannot convert encoded clips back to their original source formats or transcode them to other streaming formats. You can use the following file formats as input sources on any operating system that runs RealProducer. Using these formats does not require installing other audio and video software: Uncompressed QuickTime 3, 4, and 5 (.mov) WAV audio files (.wav) Uncompressed AVI (.avi) Formats Requiring DirectX You can use the following file formats as inputs on Windows if you have DirectX 9.1 or higher installed: Compressed AVI (.avi) AIFF (.aif,.aifc,.aiff) 11

20 RealProducer User s Guide QuickTime 2 (.mov) MPEG Formats Requiring QuickTime Note: Using MPEG-2 requires the DirectShow MPEG-2 reader. Tip: If you experience problems using MPEG inputs under DirectX, install QuickTime. For More Information: For the latest version of DirectX, go to The following file formats can be used as sources on Windows if the latest version of QuickTime is installed: AU (.au,.snd,.ulw) Sound Designer II (.sd2) DV (.dif,.dv) QuickTime Flattened Movie (.mov,.qt) MPEG For More Information: For more about QuickTime, visit Output Choices RealMedia RealProducer constrains the available audio and video encoding options to values appropriate for the output type. For More Information: See Outputs List on page 49 for information about how you choose the output type. The RealMedia output is a proprietary RealNetworks format. players: Desktop versions of RealPlayer. Mobile devices based on Helix technology. file type: RealMedia (.rm,.ra,.rv,.rmvb) 12

21 CHAPTER 2: Codecs and File Formats audio: RealAudio video: RealVideo multi-rate: yes (see Multi-Rate Streams on page 18) Audio Codec Choices RealAudio The following are the audio codecs that you can choose. Note that all audio codecs encode at discrete bandwidths only. For example, RealAudio stereo music codecs provide 44 Kbps and 64 Kbps choices, but no bandwidths inbetween. For More Information: See Audio Encoding Settings on page 63 for details about how you choose an audio codec and select the audio bit rate. You can use RealAudio as a stand-alone audio format, or as the audio track of a RealVideo clip. audio type: voice, music channels: mono, stereo, stereo-surround, multichannel file types: RealMedia (.rm,.ra,.rmvb) video: RealVideo multi-rate: yes (see Multi-Rate Streams on page 18) The following sections describe the RealAudio codecs available through RealProducer. The codecs are listed in separate tables for voice, mono music, stereo music, stereo surround, and multichannel audio. RealAudio Voice Codecs Voice codecs produce the best results for voice-only audio input. RealAudio Voice Codecs Bandwidth Codec Channels Sampling Rate 5 Kbps RealAudio Voice Kbps RealAudio Voice Kbps RealAudio Voice

22 RealProducer User s Guide RealAudio Voice Codecs (continued) Bandwidth Codec Channels Sampling Rate 16 Kbps RealAudio Voice Kbps RealAudio Voice Kbps RealAudio Voice Tip: The lowest-speed voice codec normally used to encode a RealAudio clip is 16 Kbps. The lower-speed codecs (5, 6.5, and 8.5 Kbps) are used as duress streams when the connection bandwidth drops in a multi-rate clip. They re also used to encode soundtracks for low-bandwidth RealVideo clips. RealAudio High-Response Codecs A high-response codec may have up to twice the range as a normal-response codec. This means it provides crisper sound and captures higher frequencies. High-response codecs are available for mono and stereo encoding. RealAudio High-Response Music Codecs Bandwidth Codec Channels Sampling Rate 20 Kbps RealAudio High Response Kbps RealAudio High Response Kbps RealAudio High Response Kbps RealAudio High Response Kbps RealAudio High Response Tip: A high-response codec may produce more distortion with voices and loud sounds such as drums. If you are encoding music with a diverse range of frequencies, use a high-response codec first. If you notice distortion, compare your results with a clip that uses a normal-response codec. 14

23 CHAPTER 2: Codecs and File Formats RealAudio Mono Music Codecs Use mono music codecs for encoding mono input or stereo input for mono output. RealAudio Mono Music Codecs Bandwidth Codec Channels Sampling Rate 6 Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio RealAudio Stereo Music Codecs Use stereo music codecs for encoding traditional, two-channel stereo music. RealAudio Stereo Music Codecs Bandwidth Codec Channels Sampling Rate 12 Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio AAC Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio AAC Kbps RealAudio AAC Kbps RealAudio AAC Kbps RealAudio AAC Kbps RealAudio AAC Kbps RealAudio AAC

24 RealProducer User s Guide RealAudio Stereo-Surround Codecs Encode your audio using a stereo-surround codec if you know that the source audio is matrixed, multiple-channel sound, and you wish to preserve the multiple channels for your listeners. RealAudio Stereo-Surround Codecs Bandwidth Codec Channels Sampling Rate 44 Kbps RealAudio 2s Kbps RealAudio 2s Kbps RealAudio 2s Kbps RealAudio AAC 2s Kbps RealAudio AAC 2s Kbps RealAudio AAC 2s Kbps RealAudio AAC 2s Kbps RealAudio AAC 2s For More Information: See What is Stereo Surround? on page 65. RealAudio 5.1 Multichannel Audio Codecs Use the multichannel RealAudio codecs if you know that the source audio includes multichannel sound, and your intended listeners have systems able to play all of the channels. RealAudio Multichannel Codecs Bandwidth Codec Channels Sampling Rate 96 Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio Kbps RealAudio For More Information: See What is Multichannel Audio? on page

25 CHAPTER 2: Codecs and File Formats Video Codec Choices RealVideo The following are the video codecs that you can choose. Note that video codecs encode at any bandwidth. For example, if your target bandwidth is 100 Kbps and you choose a 32 Kbps audio codec, the video track automatically encodes at 68 Kbps. For More Information: See Video Encoding Settings on page 69 for details about how to select a video codec. RealProducer encodes RealVideo clips using a RealAudio soundtrack. rate control: constant bit rate (CBR), variable bit rate (VBR) versions: 8, 9, 10 file types: RealMedia (.rm,.rv,.rmvb) audio: RealAudio multi-rate: yes (see Multi-Rate Streams on page 18) RealVideo 10 Codec The RealVideo 10 codec creates the highest quality RealVideo content. It offers improved visual quality over RealVideo 9 and RealVideo 8, especially with fastaction scenes and on-screen text. This is the default RealVideo codec used by RealProducer. Note: Because RealVideo 10 performs more complex analysis of video data than earlier codecs, encoding may take more than twice the time required with RealVideo 9. Use a different RealVideo codec if you need faster encoding performance during broadcasts. RealVideo 9 Codec RealVideo 9 improves on RealVideo 8 with higher compression and improved visual quality. RealOne Player and later can play RealVideo 9 clips. Users who have older versions of RealPlayer are prompted to autoupdate when attempting to play a RealVideo 9 clip. 17

26 RealProducer User s Guide RealVideo 8 Codec The RealVideo 8 codec is compatible with RealPlayer 8 and later. The video quality is not as high as with RealVideo 9 and 10, but encoding is faster. Additionally, RealVideo 8 requires fewer resources on the RealPlayer machine to decompress. This makes it suitable for the slower processors of mobile devices. Multi-Rate Streams With RealMedia output, you can encode an audio-only stream or a video stream for multiple bandwidths. For example, you can create a single RealVideo clip that streams at 56, 128, or 256 Kbps by choosing audiences that encode the same input at different bandwidths. When a viewer requests the clip, Helix Server determines which stream to use based on the available bandwidth, as shown in the following illustration. Clip Encoded for Multiple Bandwidths Note: Each stream that you add to a multi-rate clip increases the clip s file size. Streams for higher bandwidths increase the file size more than streams for lower bandwidth because highbandwidth encodings include more data. Tip: Including multiple audiences in an output increases the processing time needed to encode the stream. This can become a critical issue during live broadcasts because RealProducer must encode all outputs in real-time. When running a 18

27 CHAPTER 2: Codecs and File Formats Rate Shifting broadcast, carefully choose the audiences included in the output. For More Information: The section Audience Templates on page 51 explains how to add multiple audiences to an output. See Live Broadcasting on page 87 for background about running a live broadcast. A rate-shifting clip is a type of multi-rate clip that allows Helix Server to switch between different audience encodings to compensate for network conditions. The following figure illustrates a media session becoming bogged down because of excessive network traffic. Helix Server downshifts to a lowerbandwidth stream to prevent the presentation from stalling. When the congestion clears, Helix Server upshifts to a higher-bandwidth stream. Rate Control During Network Congestion Encoding Requirements for Rate-Shifting Clips The following conditions must exist to enable Helix Server and the media client to shift between audiences during a streaming session: The Helix Server rate control feature must be enabled and configured. For More Information: See Helix Server Administration Guide for information about this feature. 19

28 RealProducer User s Guide The audiences encoded in the clip must be compatible. The following sections explain the requirements for enabling rate shifting when using multiple audiences. Audience Streaming Rates When you create a rate-shifting clip, chose the audience streaming rates carefully. If rates are too close together, the media player may shift rates continuously, which creates a poor user experience. If rates are too far apart, the media player may not be able to shift rates at points where doing so would be advantageous. You may need to experiment with settings until you find audiences that work well for your viewers and your network. To start, follow these principles: Set the top streaming rate to approximately 80 percent of the ideal throughput. To target a 256 Kbps network speed, for example, set the topspeed audience to stream at 200 Kbps. Create a compatible audience that streams at approximately 80 percent of the top-speed audience: 160 Kbps, for example. The media player can shift to this audience if the network throughput slows. Helix Server Oversend Rate When you encode a multi-rate clip or broadcast for rate control, Helix Server allows upshifting to the next higher stream rate only if that rate is no more than a certain percentage above the current rate. This is called the maximum oversend rate. Suppose that the maximum oversend rate is 300 percent. For a clip encoded with 56, 128, and 256 Kbps streams, the media player can upshift through all of the streams because no rate is more than 300 percent of the preceding rate. If the clip contains just 56 and 256 Kbps streams, however, the media player cannot upshift from the 56 Kbps stream. For More Information: The maximum oversend rate is configurable for each Helix Server. For details, refer to the rate control chapters in Helix Server Administration Guide and Helix Server Configuration and Registry Reference. Audio and Video Codecs In a rate-shifting clip, you must encode all video audiences using the same RealVideo codec. For example, you cannot encode one audience with 20

29 CHAPTER 2: Codecs and File Formats RealVideo 8 while encoding another audience with RealVideo 10. Audiences for rate-shifting clips can use different versions of the RealAudio codec, however. Video Frame Size For More Information: See Audio Codec on page 64 for information about audio codec selection. The section Video Codec on page 70 explains video codec selection. Every audience in the output must use the same video frame size to enable the stream to shift bandwidths during streaming. For instance, a video stream cannot shift from a 256 Kbps audience at half-vga dimensions (640x240 pixels) to a 128 Kbps audience at quarter-vga dimensions (320x240 pixels). All Audiences Must Encode Video at the Same Dimensions to Allow Rate Shifting For More Information: See Frame Size on page 72 for an explanation of how to set an output video s dimensions. 21

30 22 RealProducer User s Guide

31 Part I: INPUTS AND OUTPUTS PART I The following chapters explain the basics of how to use RealProducer to select media inputs and define encoded outputs.

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33 Chapter 3: INPUTS CHAPTER 3 The first step for encoding a clip or live broadcast is choosing the input source. This chapter describes how to select a file or live capture device as the input. It also explains how to save your encoding settings to reuse later. Input Tab Click the Input tab to display the controls that allow you to select content and apply prefilter options. Input Tab The controls on the the Input tab allow you to do the following: Start a new job (see Jobs and Job Files on page 26). 25

34 RealProducer User s Guide Select a file to encode (see File Input on page 27). Capture live input (see Capture Input on page 29). Select a portion of a video to encode (see Timeline Editor on page 33). View properties of the input streams (see Source Properties on page 35). Modify the input using prefilters (see Audio and Video Preprocessing on page 37). Note: The settings advisor may also display above the Input tab if RealProducer detects problems with the encoding settings. The section Settings Advisor on page 130 explains this feature. Jobs and Job Files Whenever you use RealProducer, a job records the encoding settings you ve selected. You can view the job syntax at any time by clicking the XML tab. If you save the job to a job file (file extension.rpjf.), you can later use your encoding settings for another clip or broadcast. To save a job file, select File>Save, Ctrl+s, or the Save button on the toolbar. If no job file exists for the job, use the save dialog to choose the job file name and location. You can also choose File>Save Job As to save a modified job file under a new name. If you want to start over, create a new job by selecting File>New, Ctrl+n, or the New button on the toolbar. Warning! Creating a new job resets any encoding information already entered into the graphical interface. Tip: You can create a job file that defines outputs and encoding settings, but no inputs. This allows you to create a library of job profiles to use later. Note: RealProducer provides predefined job files in the samples/jobs subdirectory under the RealProducer main directory. For More Information: For an explanation of the job file syntax, refer to RealProducer Command Line and Job File Reference. 26

35 CHAPTER 3: Inputs Loading an Existing Job To open an existing job file, select File>Open, Ctrl+o, or the Open button on the toolbar. Use the browse dialog to navigate to the job file on your file system. Note the following about reusing a job file: RealProducer records any changes you make to the open job, but does not write the changes into the job file until you save the job. Relative paths in job file values are relative to the directory that holds the job file. Double-check the audience settings for the job to ensure that you are encoding the output properly. For More Information: See Encoding Settings on page 50. A job file can record information specific to a certain clip (metadata). You may need to change this information each time you encode a new clip using an existing job file. Upgrading Older Job Files For More Information: See Metadata on page 57. RealProducer 13.1 uses the job file 3.0 format. The older, version 2.0 job file format used with earlier versions of RealProducer and RealProducer is not compatible with the 3.0 format. However, RealProducer 13.1 automatically updates these older job files to the new 3.0 format. Warning! Once existing job files are updated to the 3.0 format, they are no longer compatible with earlier versions of Helix Mobile Producer and RealProducer. File Input Source files are digitized media files on a hard disk, network, CD, or DVD. To encode output from an existing source, click the File radio button under Input Source on the Input tab. Then click the Open button next to the Input File field to navigate to the file. After a video file loads, the video preview region of the Input tab displays the video s first frame. 27

36 RealProducer User s Guide Input File Video Source File Size Limit Tip: The Input File drop-down records the locations of previous inputs. Click the drop-down arrow to select from these files. For More Information: You can set a video clip s starting and ending points using the timeline editor. See Timeline Editor on page 33. Some computer file systems limit a single file to 2 GB (2048 MB) in size. At a 320-by-240 size and 15 fps, this is about 9.5 minutes of uncompressed, digitized video. Certain video production programs support the OpenDML (AVI 2.0) standard, which allows the creation of files larger than 2 GB. RealProducer may be able to accept a video source file larger than 2 GB as input, depending on the production software used to create the file. If you plan to produce long videos or videos with large dimensions, check whether or not your video production software is limited to a 2 GB output file size. If it is not limited to 2 GB, create a video file larger than 2 GB and test it to determine if RealProducer can accept the file as input. Disk Space Requirements for Video Capture Use the following formula to calculate the approximate size in megabytes of a digitized video file: (pixel width) x (pixel height) x (color bit depth) x (fps) x (duration in seconds) 8,000,000 Suppose you want to capture a three-minute video at 15 frames per second, with 24-bit color, in a window that is 320 by 240 pixels. As you can see from the following equation, your digitized source file would be approximately 622 MB: (320) x (240) x (24) x (15) x (180) / 8,000,000 = 622 Megabytes 28

37 CHAPTER 3: Inputs If necessary, you can conserve disk space by decreasing the clip dimensions or lowering the frame rate, or both. Capture Input To encode live audio or video from a capture card, click the Device radio button under Input Source on the Input tab. Next, select the audio or video device to capture from in the Audio or Video drop-down menu. Input Device Input Duration Tip: If you use a single video capture card to capture both audio and video, choose that card in both the Audio and Video menus. Note: If the video capture card is functioning, the video preview region of the Input tab displays the real-time input. Audio input is not rendered, however. For More Information: If you plan to broadcast the captured input, refer to Live Broadcasting on page 87. The section Video Recording on page 161 provides tips for shooting a video. By default, RealProducer stops encoding the input when the job is stopped manually. Check the Duration box to set a specific point in the stream at which encoding ends. Then enter the time in days (d), hours (h), minutes (m), and seconds (s). Note: This stream duration is measured from the time at which RealProducer starts the encoding process. 29

38 RealProducer User s Guide Audio Mixer To launch your operating system s audio mixer, click and hold the Audio button. Then choose Recording Mixer from the pop-up menu. Audio Mixer Context Menu This opens the recording control window in which you can specify how audio is mixed. Audio Mixer Audio Vendor Controls Note: Audio mixer controls are specific to the sound card and operating system. If you want to adjust the sound recording capabilities of your audio device, click and hold the Audio button. Then choose Vendor-Provided Controls from the pop-up menu. 30

39 CHAPTER 3: Inputs Audio Vendor Control Context Menu This opens the control dialog specific to your audio card and operating system. Audio Control Dialog (Specific to Vendor) Video Settings For More Information: See also Audio Capture on page 157 and Audio Optimization on page 159. To adjust the video recording capabilities, click and hold the Video button next to the video device name. This displays a submenu of available settings dialogs, which can vary with each capture device. Video Vendor Control Context Menu 31

40 RealProducer User s Guide This opens the control dialog specific to your audio card and operating system. Video Control Dialog (Specific to Vendor) Video Capture Dimensions For most video capture cards, you can select the video dimensions in pixels. The input dimensions should be at least as large as the dimensions of your largest output. For More Information: The section Frame Size on page 72 explains the common output dimensions that you can set. Full-Screen Capture A common capture size is 320 pixels wide by 240 pixels high. If you have a fast computer, you can capture full-motion video at the full-screen size of 640 by 480 pixels. Do this only if all of the following are true: Your clips will stream at broadband speeds of 250 Kbps or higher. Your encoded clips will be larger than 320 pixels by 240 pixels. You have a video workstation capable of digitizing full-motion, full-screen video. Consumer-oriented PCs typically cannot handle this large of a load. Cropping and Resizing Whenever possible, capture video at the same dimensions and aspect ratio as your intended outputs. This eliminates the need to crop and resize the video during encoding, which can require significant processing power. If necessary, however, you can crop and resize during the encoding process: 32

41 CHAPTER 3: Inputs The section Input Cropping on page 39 explains how to crop the video input. See Input Resize on page 44 for a description of how to resize the input video. Each output can be resized independently. See Frame Size on page 72 for details. Video Capture Frame Rate For most lower-bandwidth clips and broadcasts, capture at 15 frames per second (fps). This is the maximum, recommended frame rate for outputs lower than 150 Kbps. At speeds higher than 150 Kbps, you can encode up to 30 fps. In these cases, you may want to capture the source input at 30 fps. Timeline Editor After you load an input video file, you can use the timeline editor to set starting and ending points for the encoding job. You can use the timeline editor, for example, to encode only the first minute from a two-minute input file. If you do not make changes using the timeline editor, the entire source file is encoded. Timeline Editor 33

42 RealProducer User s Guide Timeline Editing Controls Tip: The Mark-In and Mark-Out boxes of the File Input section indicate the selected start and stop times in days (d), hours (h), minutes (m), and seconds (s). The Mark-Out time is measured from the input file s normal beginning, not from the Mark-In time. See File Input on page 27. Note: The timeline editor does not play the video or render the audio. The controls on the timeline editor allow you to set the starting and ending points for encoding. The editor displays the timline section to be encoded as a green line. Back to Start. Cick to move the currently displayed position to the input clip s normal starting point. Back 1 Frame. Click to move the currently displayed position back one frame. You can also click the left arrow on the keyboard. Current Position. Shows the position of the frame currently displayed in the editor. Drag to change the displayed frame. Forward 1 Frame. Click to move the currently displayed position forward one frame. You can also click the right arrow on the keyboard. Forward to End. Click to move the currently displayed position to the input clip s normal end. Start Point for Encoding. Drag to set the timeline position where encoding begins. End Point for Encoding. Drag to set the timeline position where encoding ends. Tip: If you open a new video clip as the source, the encoding markers retain their positions unless the new clip is shorter than the selected timespan. Note: RealProducer may adjust the starting and ending points slightly to align them with input video frames. 34

43 CHAPTER 3: Inputs Source Properties After you select an input file or capture device, the Source Properties region of the Input tab displays the input s audio and video properties. Input Properties Information displayed for the source properties includes the following: duration of the input source (file only) name of the input (file only) audio format number of audio channels audio bit depth video format video frame rate in frames per second (fps) video frame size in pixels 35

44 36 RealProducer User s Guide

45 Chapter 4: PREFILTERS CHAPTER 4 Prefilters modify the input stream before it is encoded. They can crop and resize the input as well as improve the audio and video quality. However, some prefilters can significantly increase the encoding time, which may be problematic during a live broadcast. Audio and Video Preprocessing Prefilters appear in the Audio/Video Preprocessing section of the Input tab. All prefilters are optional. Prefilter Settings 37

46 RealProducer User s Guide Controls for Displaying and Enabling Prefilters The following controls appear to the left of each prefilter: Controls Hidden A summary of the prefilter settings (if any) appears to the right. Click to display the full controls. Controls Displayed Click to hide the controls. Prefilter Disabled Any previous settings are retained for this job, but the prefilter will not be used during encoding. Click to enable the prefilter. Prefilter Enabled Click to disable the prefilter. Audio Level The audio level control allows you to set a decibel gain from +12 (amplify the audio) to -12 (attenuate the audio). medium: Audio use: Boost, decrease, or mute the audio input level. impact: Negligible. Safe for broadcasts. To change the audio input level, click and drag the slider control. You can also type a value directly into the text box or click the arrows. Click Mute Input Audio if you want to silence the audio track of a video. Audio Level Controls Tip: A value of 6 doubles the audio level while a value of 12 quadruples it. A value of -6 reduces the level to half, while -12 reduces it to a quarter. Note: When you amplify the audio signal, RealProducer dynamically compresses the audio range if the output signal becomes overmodulated. This way, the output audio is never clipped, even at maximum gain. 38

47 CHAPTER 4: Prefilters Audio Synchronization The audio synchronization prefilter corrects audio shift when audio input is out of synchronization with a video s visual track. medium: Audio use: Shift audio timing to synchronize it with the video track. impact: Negligible. Safe for broadcasts. In the prefilter controls, select Advance or Delay. Then set the number of seconds for the advance or delay by typing the value in the text box or clicking the arrows. Audio Synchronization Controls Tip: Some third-party video editing tools provide information about how much delay exists between audio and video. Input Cropping The cropping prefilter reduces the size of the input by cropping out unwanted portions along the video edges. This can reduce the amount of data encoded and boost clip quality. medium: Video use: Reduce the size of the input by cropping along the video edges. impact: Small. Safe to use with live broadcasts. Tip: If you are encoding a letterbox clip (16:9 aspect ratio) for display on computer screens that use a traditional 4:3 aspect ratio, crop out the black bars at the top and bottom of the video image. This helps to improve the video quality. For More Information: See also Cropping and Resizing to Change Aspect Ratios on page 74 for an example of how to alter an input clip s aspect ratio. 39

48 RealProducer User s Guide Cropping Controls To crop a video, click the Input Cropping box. Input Cropping Controls You can select the cropped area three ways: Click a text box and type the new value manually. Click the arrows beside each text box to select a value. Click and drag the yellow lines in the preview window. Cropping Values The following values appear in the cropping control text boxes. Left Pixels from the left edge where cropping occurs. You can specify up to 32 pixels less than the total width. Top Pixels from the top edge where cropping occurs. You can specify up to 32 pixels less than the total height. Right Pixels from the right edge where cropping occurs. You can specify up to 32 pixels less than the total width. Bottom Pixels from the bottom edge where cropping occurs. You can specify up to 32 pixels less than the total height. Note: If the width or height of the cropped video is not a multiple of 4, the next lower multiple is used. For example, a value of 162 pixels for width or height is adjusted to 160 pixels. Cropping Preview Yellow lines appear on the input preview to indicate the cropped section. You can click and drag a line to set a new cropping position. Click inside the selected area to drag the entire cropping section around the video frame. Areas that will not be encoded are grayed out. 40

49 CHAPTER 4: Prefilters Cropped Video Region De-Interlace and Inverse-Telecine The de-interlace and inverse-telecine prefilters remove artifacts that may occur in videos larger than 320x240 pixels and NTSC-format video transferred from film, respectively. De-Interlace and Inverse-Telecine Controls If you need to use these prefilters, click the Automatic radio button to have RealProducer apply the prefilters only if needed. To use just one of the prefilters, check the Manual button and select the prefilter (one or both) you want. 41

50 RealProducer User s Guide Inverse-Telecine Prefilter Use the inverse-telecine prefilter when encoding NTSC video that was transferred from film and has a frame rate of 30 fps. The prefilter strips out redundant fields, letting RealProducer focus on image quality. medium: NTSC video use: Remove redundant frames. impact: Small. What is Inverse-Telecine? Film is usually shot at 24 frames per second (fps), whereas the NTSC standard for video is 30 fps. The film-to-video conversion (called telecine ) duplicates some fields to increase the frame rate from 24 to 30. American films transferred to video, for example, undergo the telecine process. Applying the inverse-telecine prefilter strips out the redundant frame information, resulting in a higher-quality streaming video. De-Interlace Prefilter Tip: PAL video does not require the inverse-telecine prefilter because the conversion from 24 fps film to 25 fps PAL does not use the telecine process. The de-interlace prefilter removes jaggedness in interlaced NTSC or PAL video. medium: NTSC or PAL video use: Remove jaggedness from video. impact: Small. Not used if the video is less than 240 lines high. Generally safe to leave on for all video input. What is De-Interlacing? A video camera running at 30 frames per second captures the odd-numbered lines of a field in 1/60th of a second and the even-numbered lines in the next 1/60th of a second. It then interlaces the two to create the frame. Because half the field s lines are captured a fraction of a second later than the other half, fast-moving objects may appear jagged. This is the result of the object advancing slightly within 1/60th of a second. 42

51 CHAPTER 4: Prefilters Tip: Typical source video for standard-resolution television is 480 lines high. If you digitize the video with a video capture card that captures at 240 lines high or less, the card throws out either the odd or the even lines, de-interlacing the video during the capture process. De-Interlacing Example The following figure illustrates jaggedness in a detail of an interlaced video. Jaggedness in an Interlaced Video (detail) The next figure shows the jaggedness removed using the de-interlace prefilter. Jaggedness Removed with the De-interlace Prefilter (detail) Video Noise Video noise is a by-product of poor quality in the video production process. The noise reduction prefilter can help reduce this distortion. medium: Video 43

52 RealProducer User s Guide use: Eliminate visual artefacts. impact: Small for Low level. Large for High level (not recommended for broadcasts). Use the drop-down of the noise controls to choose the Low or High level. Video Noise Controls Low Noise Filtering Tip: The source of the noise is typically hardware, such as the video tape, capture card, or camera. Using professional-quality equipment and media helps eliminate video noise at the source. If your source video has high quality, you won t need the noise reduction prefilter. For More Information: See Video Recording on page 161 for tips on creating high-quality source video. If your video input has a small amount of noise, use the Low setting. Because this has a small impact on processing power, the Low noise level is generally safe to leave on for all jobs. It s better practice, though, to use it only when necessary because it may slightly degrade high-quality input video. High Noise Filtering If noise greatly distorts the source video, try the High noise setting. This setting may remove slight details, making highly textured surfaces look more smooth, which may not be desirable in all cases. Warning! The High noise setting can add 30% or more to the encoding time. Input Resize The resizing prefilter allows you to resize the video before you encode it. medium: Video 44

53 CHAPTER 4: Prefilters Resize Controls use: Resize the video dimensions. impact: Small for fast resize. High for high-quality resize (not recommended for broadcasts). Tip: If the input video has a non-square pixel aspect ratio (such as DV), you can use the resizing prefilter to shorten the video horizontally. This converts non-square pixels to square pixels. For More Information: When you encode multiple outputs, you can set the video dimensions for each output separately. See Frame Size on page 72. Use the resize controls to specify predefined or customized video dimensions. The video preview window on the Input tab indicates the new video size. Resize Controls In the drop-down, you can set one of the following values (WidthxHeight in pixels): Custom Set pixel width and height using the Width and Height menus. 128x96 (SQCIF) Sub-Quarter Common Intermediate Format. 176x144 (QCIF) Quarter Common Intermediate Format. 352x288 (CIF) Common Intermediate Format. 640x240 (HVGA) Half VGA. 320x240 (QVGA) Quarter VGA. Note: The minimum size for a resized video is 32-by-32 pixels. The width and height must be multiples of 4, such as 160 pixels, 240 pixels, and so on. Tip: If you plan to create multiple outputs at different sizes, set the input size to the largest output size. Then scale other 45