Telestream Speeds Video Encoding

Telestream announced that DnA Creative Services, a leading video production company in Louisiana has selected Episode® Encoder for Windows to address the company’s advanced encoding and content repurposing needs. DnA uses Episode Encoder for various applications such as convert video to MPEG for DVD, using QuickTime and Windows Media for emailing and uploading projects to clients, and Flash for embedding videos on client web sites. Episode Encoder makes it easy to import virtually any file format and encode media to Web, DVD, or mobile including portable device formats.

As a full-service media company that provides location filming, audio recording, and complete postproduction services, DnA needed a practical means of delivering TV commercials digitally to area television stations. Over the years, DnA has used several software encoders, including Sorenson Squeeze, but turned to Telestream’s Episode Encoder for Windows due to its flexibility to quickly encode a multitude of formats including high-quality broadcast formats.

One of DnA’s ongoing projects is a semi-annual modeling and talent competition. During the weeklong event, DnA does on-location editing and uses the Episode iPhone setting to quickly encode videos before showing them to event producers on the iPhone handset. With this flexibility, the producer can instantly provide approvals and comments before broadcasting on the large projection screen over the main stage, thus mitigating any additional costs for re-shoots. In addition to flexibility, DnA chose the Episode Encoder because it has the fastest encoding speeds available in a desktop video encoder, and its fine-tuning compression capabilities generate the highest-quality media files.

“Episode Encoder's impact is much greater than the dollar value we charge for encoding video. With Episode, we are totally comfortable that the encoded video will be the highest quality and the process will be very quick and simple as opposed to the worry and work-around we would have had to go through with other encoding solutions,” said David Cardwell, Owner of DnA Creative Services.

DnA also credits using Episode to encode DVD-compliant video files, which cuts the company’s time to produce a master DVD in half. Even more significant, videos on the resulting DVDs look noticeably better and in the long run the company expects to see this directly impact its bottom line.

“The Episode line continues to deliver an unprecedented customer encoding experience, and we are delighted to have customer success stories of this nature,” said Barbara DeHart, VP of Marketing at Telestream. “The innovative work DnA Creative Services is doing as the result of Episode truly changes the way the company does business. The quick encoding speeds actually allow companies such as DnA to focus on its core competencies and in this instance, I would say, the product has not only out-performed the competition, but helps deliver peace of mind.”

Encoding H.264 Downloadable Streaming Video with Episode Encoder Pro

Encoding H.264 downloadable streaming video with Episode Encoder Pro is simple to do. For this tutorial we’ll take a DV.mov source file that is 720 x 480 and 29.97 frames per second captured from an analog source. The source file has the DV/DVCPro Codec for video with PCM for audio.



To get started with encoding this file for downloadable streaming for high broadband users in Episode Encoder Pro, we first need to select our source file.



Next, drag it to the Batch area where Drag Source is displayed



Now your source file can been seen in the batch. You can also drag the video file directly to the Batch from a folder or the desktop. Let me talk a little about our source before we move forward. If you select the source and click the Enter button on your keyboard a preview of the video appears.



As my preview appears I want to point out that this source has black banding around the edges. As we encode our video we want to make sure we crop this black out of the video. It will make our output file look so much better. Now we’ll move forward to create a compression preset for our encoding. Keep in mind that these settings will be a good starting point as every source file is different and the encoder will respond differently to each source file you encode.



Open up the Templates and twirl down to the All File Formats Templates.



Once the All File Formats Templates are open navigate to the H.264 Download templates and select the H264_480x360 preset. With the preset selected Control-click and choose Duplicate from the Contextual Menu to make a copy.





You now have a copy of the preset you duplicated. Click where the H264_480x360 copy text appears to rename your preset.



Let’s call your preset H264_600k_DL and select Enter. Notice that we don’t have any spaces the preset name. This is because the preset will be used in the file naming and it’s better to take out all spaces in the encoding process. When you author video content for the web you don’t want to have spaces in your video name.

Once you rename your compression template Double-click the preset to open the setting for customizing.



When your setting is open the Output tab will appear. Since we are encoding a downloadable streaming H.264 file notice that your file extension will be .mp4 and the H.264 codec is used for the video and AAC is used for the audio. You can see that the Hint Prepare for Streaming check box is not selected. Hinting isn’t necessary to use because we’re not targeting this video file for a streaming server.



Next move on to the Video Tab. Twirl down where H.264 is displayed to adjust the settings for the H.264 codec.



For the datarate type in 600 kbps and you can continue to use VBR using VBV. For the buffer, since this is a downloadable video, you can increase your buffer to 10 seconds. This will allow the codec to vary the bit rate more. For the Keyframe distance you can use a value of 90 frames which will provide a keyframe at least every 6 seconds.



Click on the Profile and Quality tab. Notice that 2-pass encoding is selected. Adjust the quality slider to the highest quality of 100 and twirl up the codec setting.



Go to the Frame Rate Filter and twirl down. For the filter mode choose Fixed framerate.



For the Framerate preset you can use Automatic and select 15 fps. Now twirl up the Frame Rate filter.



Twirl down the Deinterlace filter and choose Automatic Detection for the Field Order. This fact that this setting is available is great because with compression it’s always good to know you field order. Choosing the Automatic Detection value takes the guess work out and the codec will determine the field order for you. Go ahead and twirl up the Deinterlace filter.



Now twirl down the Resize filter.



For the output size you can leave it at 480 x 360. You can choose Cut for Maintain proportion with.



For the cropping values we’ll multiply the 4:3 aspect ratio by 8 and crop 32 x 24 pixels. So crop 12 pixels off the top, 12 pixels off the bottom, 16 pixels off the left and 16 pixels off the right.



Since we’re dealing with video from an analog source we need to apply a Noise Reduction filter. Navigate to the Noise Reduction filter and click the check box to make it active.



Now, twirl down the Noise Reduction filter to adjust the values. Check Median and Only Filter Chroma to apply the filter only on the Chroma channel. Leave the other values at the default. Twirl up the Noise Reduction filter.



Let’s move to the Audio tab.



Click on the Bit Rate Pop-up Menu and choose 32 kbps.



You can leave Stereo selected for Channels and 44.1 kHz selected for the sample rate.



Now that were are finished making our adjustments click the Save Setting button to the top right on the Episode Encoder Pro interface.



Click the Close Setting button.



Next, select the H264_600k_DL setting that you created



and drag it onto your DV.mov video source.



You can see that your compression preset appears right below the video source. Before we start encoding let’s look at something. Select the H264_600kDL preset and click the Enter key.



A preview of your video output appears with the cropping values applied under the Resize filter. Our black edges no longer appear. Time to encode your video file.



At the bottom right of the Episode Encoder Pro interface click the Start Encoding button.



You can watch your progress under status. This will show you how much time you have left.



Once your video has finished encoding your status will switch to Done. You have now encoded an H.264 downloadable streaming video using Episode Encoder Pro.

Telestream and Flowerfire Sponsor Episode Encoder, Wirecast and Sawmill Professional Training in Six U.S. Cities

Orlando, Florida - October 21, 2009 - Freeman Compression Inc. today announced that it will be providing Episode Encoder, Wirecast and Sawmill Professional Training in six U.S. cities from December 2009 through May 2010. The Episode Encoder and Wirecast portion of the training is sponsored by Telestream and the Sawmill Professional portion is sponsored by Flowerfire. The full day training sessions will take place in New York, Chicago, Cincinnati, Las Vegas, Atlanta and Orlando. Free instruction will be provided on video compression using Telestream Episode Encoder Pro, live streaming media production using Telestream Wirecast and log files analytics for streaming servers and other devices using Flowerfire Sawmill Professional.

The training sessions will be led by Derrick Freeman, Instructor and Video Streaming Consultant for Freeman Compression, Inc. Freeman provides instruction for Episode Encoder, Wirecast and Sawmill Professional classes at Freeman Compression Inc.

"Training is geared at familiarizing class attendees with the use of Episode Encoder, Wirecast and Sawmill Professional, along with helping them realize the powerful features found in each of these tools,” said Derrick Freeman, Instructor. “These classes will be exciting because we'll get the chance to show students encoding techniques, how to set-up live streaming, and many of the endless possibilities when users analyze their log files."

The cost of the training is free. Registration is free as well. A schedule of dates, times and locations is available at www.freemancompression.com/html/trainingevents.html. Those who would like to register or receive more information can contact Freeman Compression Inc. at 407.477.5837 or send an email to info@freemancompression.com.

About Flowerfire, Inc.
Flowerfire, Inc., founded in 1996 and based in Santa Cruz, California, is a software company which provides log analysis and reporting solutions. Flowerfire's primary product is Sawmill, a universal log analysis tool which can analyze and generate reports from over 800 log formats, including log files from all popular web servers, media servers, security applications, mail servers, spam filters, firewalls, proxies, gateways, and FTP servers. In addition to Sawmill, Flowerfire also provides consulting services for log analysis and reporting solutions. Flowerfire is privately held, family-friendly, and employee owned and controlled. (www.sawmill.net)

About Telestream
Telestream products make it possible to get video content to any audience regardless of how it is created, distributed or viewed. Throughout the entire digital media lifecycle, from capture to viewing, for consumers through high-end professionals, Telestream products include components, cross-platform encoding and live video streaming applications, plus fully-automated workflow systems. Telestream enables users in a broad range of business environments to leverage the value of their video content. Telestream corporate headquarters are located in Nevada City, California, and its team of video experts is located in France, Germany, Sweden, UK and US. (www.telestream.net)

About Freeman Compression Inc.
Located in Orlando, Florida Freeman Compression Inc. provides consulting for video streaming and compression. The company also offers video streaming training and compression training. The classes provided are: 1-Day Wowza Media Server Pro, 1-Day Episode Pro, 1-Day Wirecast, 1-Day Sawmill Professional and 2-Day Video Streaming and Compression. (www.freemancompression.com)

Installing Episode Plug-in for Compressor 3

If you have a license of Telestream's Episode Encoder and you are using Compressor 3 you can have access to the Episode Encoder encoding templates right from within Compressor. Here's how to install the Episode Encoder Plug-in for Compressor to get access to the templates.



On the install disk image for Episode there's a folder called Plug-ins.



Inside the folder there's a package called Episode Plug-in for Compressor. Double click on the package to install it. Restart your computer and the Episode presets will be an option in Compressor 3 encoder.

Testing Encoding Speed vs. Quality Setting in Episode

As if Telestream's Episode wasn't already fast enough, there's a way to make you encoding jobs go even faster. Here's some information from a quick test I did on Encoding Speed vs. Quality Setting in Episode.

Here's the source file that I used for encoding:

Video Format: QuickTime

Frame Size: 640 x 480

Codec: DV

FPS: 30

Audio: 44.100 kHz

16 bit Stereo

Duration: 30 seconds

I used the default H.264_Medium compression setting in Episode Pro which uses a 2-pass VBR compression method. For the first encode with the Encoding Speed vs. Quality setting set to 90 my video took 40 seconds to encode. On my second encode I adjusted the same compression setting and switched the Encoding Speed vs. Quality setting to 10. The video took 27 seconds to compress. Now when comparing the quality of both of my output files the video encoded using a quality setting of 10 still looked really good in terms of quality. Most would never notice the difference in quality. This is good news for those that need to compress files fast with Episode but don't won't to loose quality.

Episode Engine for Split and Stitch Encoding on the Mac

Organizations and companies can consider Telestream's Episode Engine for Spit and Stitch encoding on the Mac. This encoding feature is one of the coolest I've seen because it takes advantage of cluster encoding. With Episode Engine you can build your own cluster with computers and XServes on your network. For those that are interested in high volume ultra fast encoding on the Mac platform using your internal network, Episode is definitely something to consider. With Telestream's Episode Engine you can submit a video file to one of your designated Watch folders and then Engine can divide the video up amongst the encoding nodes in your cluster. This makes the encoding process for each file much faster. You could literally have 5 Xserves working on encoding one 30 or 60 minute video file. So encoding 50 videos goes much faster than real time.

Here's a glimpse of what Split and Stitch looks like. The above image shows the video file divided into 8 sections and then each part can be sent to a node. Once all of the 8 sections have finished encoding the file is brought back together into one file. Split and Stich is great for long form content and for those that want to get video content on-line in the shortest amount of time.

Training for Video Streaming and Compression in Europe

On-site training for Video Streaming and Compression is available in Europe. In addition to making our training classes available In-class and On-line, Freeman Compression Inc. will be available to come and train your organization in Europe. This can provide a tremendous cost savings because organizations won't have to pay for their employees' travel to the U.S. Our full list of training classes will be offered in Europe.

Organizations will be able to choose from any of the following classes or have them grouped together:

2-Day Video Streaming and Compression Training
1-Day Sorenson Squeeze Training
1-Day Episode Pro Training
1-Day Wirecast Live Streaming Training
1-Day Wowza Media Server Pro Training (PC)
1-Day Wowza Media Server Pro Training (Mac)
1-Day Sawmill Professional Training

If you'd like to have Freeman Compression Inc. train your organization in Europe or in another country give us a call by phone at 407-477-5837 or E-mail us at info@freemancompression.com

Video Streaming and Compression Training Schedule

1-Day Wirecast Training (PC)

March 1, 2010
April 1, 2010

1-Day Sawmill Professional Training (Mac)

March 6, 2010
April 2, 2010

1-Day Sawmill Professional Training (PC)

February 24, 2010
March 24, 2010
April 21, 2010

1-Day Sorenson Squeeze 6 Training

March 10, 2010
April 20, 2010

2-Day Video Streaming and Compression Training (PC)

February 25 -26, 2010
March 25 -26, 2010
April 22-23, 2010

1-Day Wowza Media Server 2 Training (PC)

February 27, 2010
March 27, 2010
April 24, 2010

1-Day Wowza Media Server 2 Training (Mac)

February 3, 2010
March 2, 2010
April 28, 2010

1-Day Episode Encoder Pro Training

February 9, 2010
March 31, 2010
April 30, 2010

Call Freeman Compression Inc. at 407.477.5837 or contact us by E-mail at info@freemancompression.com to register for a class.

Upcoming On-line Training

1-Day Wirecast Training (PC)

March 29, 2010
April 16, 2010

1-Day Wirecast Training (Mac)

March 23, 2010
April 17, 2010

1-Day Sawmill Professional Training (Mac)

March 26, 2010
April 19, 2010

1-Day Sawmill Professional Training (PC)

March 3, 2010
April 17, 2010

1-Day Sorenson Squeeze 6 Training (PC)

March 13, 2010
April 25, 2010

1-Day Sorenson Squeeze 6 Training (Mac)

March 30, 2010
April 29, 2010

2-Day Video Streaming and Compression Training (PC)

March 11-12, 2010
April 15-16, 2010

2-Day Video Streaming and Compression Training (Mac)

March 4-5, 2010
April 5-6, 2010

1-Day Wowza Media Server 2 Training (PC)

March 22, 2010
April 7, 2010

1-Day Wowza Media Server 2 Training (Mac)

March 30, 2010
April 14, 2010

1-Day Episode Pro Training (Mac)

March 16, 2010
April 27, 2010

Call Freeman Compression Inc. at 407.477.5837 or contact us by E-mail at info@freemancompression.com to register for a class.

Episode Series 5.2.1 is now available

The newest version of Episode is now available as a free update. This is an update for Episode Encoder, Episode Encoder Pro, Episode Engine, Episode Engine Pro and Episode Podcast media encoding software products.

Version 5.2.1 adds several enhancements and fixes, including:

Episode Encoder:

* Improved H.264 quality and stability
* Improved quality when encoding XDCAM HD from 4:2:2 sources
* Improved MPEG-1 audio and video support

Episode Engine:

* Improved stability when using input monitors
* Fixed audio issue when using QuickTime components in Split-and-Stitch mode
* Fixed Split-and-Stitch issue when encoding to Windows Media

Episode Pro Training

Class Summary: Learn how to compress videos in this 1-Day Episode Pro training to formats like QuickTime, Real Media, Flash, Windows Media and H.264. As one of the best applications for craft encoding, Episode Pro 5 gives users the power to make a wide number of adjustments and changes to compression settings, filters and many other settings. With Episode Pro users have total control over the adjustments that they would like to make for their encoding jobs. This one day class gives users hands-on tips and tricks for utilizing this video compression tool. Students will learn how to encode to all the popular video formats for Web Server and Streaming Server delivery. In addition attendees will learn how to encode to 25 Mbps and higher MPEG-2 files, how to encode Multiple Bit Rate Real Media video files, and how to add and adjust filters. Our Episode Pro Training class is available On-site or On-line. Contact us for more details.

Episode Pro training class schedule

In this training students will also learn:

• How to encode to QuickTime, RealMedia, Flash, Windows Media and H.264 formats
• How to encode Real-time and Downloadable streaming videos
• How to set-up Filters for Encoding Projects
• The process for encoding multiple videos using Watch Folders
• How to choose the proper codec for your output format
• How to compress videos for Video iPods, iPhones and Video Podcasts
• How to encode Multi Bit Rate Windows Media Files
• How to add watermarks when encoding
• The process for including bumpers and trailers on video output files

Featured Software for Class

Episode Pro 5 with Flash 8 encoder

Class Overview

1. Interface Overview

Your instructor will show you the different features of the interface to get you familiar with the application quickly. This part of the class will cover Bookmarks, Compression Settings, the Job Batch, the Settings Editor, and the various Tabs within the Compression Settings. This part of the training will also cover the Source and Preview windows along with how to choose a custom output location for your encodes.

2. Encoding Downloadable Streaming Videos

You will encode videos for downloadable streaming in formats such as: QuickTime, H.264, Windows Media, Real Media and Flash. This part of the class will teach you how to get the quality you desire for your downloading streaming videos. Learn how to adjust the various Compression Settings for your desired format and how to choose the proper codec in Episode Pro 5. You'll also learn how to take a default compression preset and customize it for better quality.

3. Encoding Real-time Streaming Videos

Learn how to encode real-time streaming videos for streaming server delivery to QuickTime, H.264, Windows Media, Real Media and Flash file formats. Also learn about hinting and how to deliver real-time QuickTime and H.264 files for a QuickTime Streaming Server, Flash Streaming Server or Helix Universal streaming Server. You'll learn what you will need to consider when compressing your videos for Streaming Servers such as: bandwidth considerations, target audiences, frame size, frames per second and other items.

4. Compression for Video iPods, Video Podcasts and Audio Podcasts

Students will learn how to compress video content for Video iPods, iPhones, Video Podcasts and Audio Podcasts using Episode Pro 5. Participants will learn how to adjust their compression settings to get high quality results. The instructor will also show you how to get encoded videos onto the video iPod and how to display them onto your TV. This class will teach you the best codec to use for compressing your videos for Video iPods, Video Podcasts, iPhones and Audio Podcasts with Episode Pro 5.

5. Compression Settings

This portion of the class will cover the details of adjusting the many compression presets. Learn how to set parameters such as: Data rate, Sample Size, Sample Rate, Encoding Method, Frame Size, Frame Rate, Frames Per Second, Profile, Key Frame Every. Also learn which codecs to use with your desired output format.

6. Adding and Adjusting Filters

You will learn how to add and adjust filters for your compression presets. Learn how to add and adjust Deinterlace, Noise Reduction, Contrast, Fade, Smoothing, Burn Timecode and Watermark filters along with many others.

7. Encoding 25 Mbps and higher MPEG-2 files

Many video editors need to create high bit rate MPEG-2 files for services such as DGFastchannel. Episode Pro is the perfect encoding tool for this. Learn how to create an encoding preset that will allow you to encode 25 Mbps or 50 Mbps MPEG-2 files with Episode Pro 5.

8. Creating Multiple Bit Rate Windows Media and Real Media files

Students will learn how to create multiple bit rate Windows Media files for playback on a Windows Media Streaming Server or a Helix Universal Server. Class attendees will also learn how to encode Real Media files for a a Helix Universal Server. With the MBR files the player will automatically detect the best data rate to use for the end user based on their Internet Connection.

Call Instructor Derrick Freeman at 407.477.5837 for more information about this training class or email him at derrick217@gmail.com

Episode Encoder Available for Windows

Telestream announced an important milestone for its Episode Series media encoding software products. Previously only offered on the Mac platform, version 5.1 extends Telestream's Episode and Episode Pro desktop encoding products to the Windows operating system. Version 5.1 also brings watch folders to Episode desktop products for both Mac and PC users. Episode provides universal transcoding between virtually any video and audio format, offering ultimate flexibility in a single software package.

"With the addition of Windows support and watch folders, Episode 5.1 is more accessible and useful than ever," observed digital video compression expert Nate Caplin. "Episode Pro's deep format support and comprehensive set of professional-grade filters make it an essential part of my video transcoding toolkit. Whether I need to convert files for post-production or produce files for the web and mobile devices, I've never met an encoding challenge I couldn't solve with Episode Pro."

Episode products provide a fast, flexible and future-proof solution for virtually any SD or HD compression need. Episode desktop products include extensive fine-tuning compression capabilities, batch encoding and many presets which enable users to quickly create extremely high-quality output files. Cross-platform support in Episode and Episode Pro 5.1 means that users and organizations no longer need to learn and support multiple encoding tools for different purposes. The addition of watch folders in version 5.1 saves time and effort by enabling users to simply drop finished projects into folders for automatic encoding.

"Episode Pro is the closest thing I've ever found to a universal anything-in, anything-out transcoder," adds Caplin. "But its power goes beyond simple conversion and compression. What really sets Episode apart is the ability it gives me to easily massage any video source into clean output by applying its extensive set of video and audio pre-processing filters. With Episode Pro, I feel like I'm in control of my video."

Episode Series provides scalability from standalone desktop media encoding applications for individual users to powerful, server-based encoding applications for larger organizations with higher volume needs. Known for speed, quality and ease of use, Episode products simplify content repurposing for distribution to the growing number of digital media channels such as Web, DVD, IPTV, mobile phones and portable devices.

Version 5.1 offers a number of powerful new features and enhancements. With extended MXF decode and encode support, Episode continues to expand support for broadcast workflows and playout servers such as Avid, Omneon and K2. Episode now offers more robust, intelligent monitoring of incoming media to further automate and fine tune file transfer into Episode Engine for encoding and delivery to specified destinations.

Telestream's Pipeline device allows for media ingest directly from SDI tape or live sources into Episode Engine. In version 5.1, users can simultaneously encode media into any format with Episode Engine while it is being ingested with Pipeline saving valuable time in critical workflows.

For Mac desktop users, version 5.1 adds enhanced functionality to the Apple Final Cut Compressor plug-in. In addition to encoding to any format, users can now adjust settings for Windows Media and Flash encoding including resize, deinterlace and frame rate.

Cross-platform Episode desktop encoders for Mac OS X and Windows are available in two versions. Episode imports virtually any file format, including broadcast and professional formats, and encodes media to all major Web, DVD authoring, mobile and portable device formats, including Flash 8/9, Windows Media, QuickTime, H.264, VC-1, 3GPP, MPEG-1/2/4 and more. Episode Pro includes all of the same features and formats plus encoding to high-end broadcast and professional formats such as GXF, MXF, H.264 High Profile, DVCPRO HD, mobile multi-bit rate and more.

Episode desktop products are now available for online purchase at http://www.telestream.net. Both the desktop and server products are also available from Telestream's worldwide network of resellers and distributors, as well as Apple online stores.