diff --git a/source/en/latest/table-of-contents.markdown b/source/en/latest/table-of-contents.markdown index aa791984..e9f51f83 100644 --- a/source/en/latest/table-of-contents.markdown +++ b/source/en/latest/table-of-contents.markdown @@ -142,21 +142,21 @@ May affect compatiblity! Use a preset! - Containers - Known issue: MP4 edit lists - Video - - Codecs - - x264 presets, tunes, and custom settings - - x264 profile and level - - Constant quality versus average bit rate + - [Codecs](technical/video-codecs.html) + - [x264 presets, tunes, and custom settings](technical/video-x264-presets-tunes.html) + - [x264 profile and level](technical/video-x264-profiles-levels.html) + - [Constant quality versus average bit rate](technical/video-cq-vs-abr.html) - VFR/PFR, CFR, custom frame rates - Advanced picture and filters - Anamorphic modes - Modulus - Custom filter settings - Audio - - Codecs: autodetection, read/passthru + - [Codecs](technical/audio-codecs.html) - Known issue: Dolby Atmos - - Gain - - DRC - - Mixdown + - [Gain](technical/audio-gain.html) + - [DRC](technical/audio-drc.html) + - [Mixdown](technical/audio-mixdowns.html) - Subtitles - Formats - Advanced preferences diff --git a/source/en/latest/technical/audio-codecs.markdown b/source/en/latest/technical/audio-codecs.markdown new file mode 100644 index 00000000..e6f858ad --- /dev/null +++ b/source/en/latest/technical/audio-codecs.markdown @@ -0,0 +1,101 @@ +--- +License_Abbr: CC BY-SA 4.0 +License_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/docs/license.html" +Language: English +Project_Version: Latest +Language_Code: en +Title: Audio Codecs +License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International +Text_Encoding: utf-8 +Copyright: 2016 HandBrake Team +Project: HandBrake +Authors: Scott (s55) +Project_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/" +--- + +Audio Codecs +============ + +  + +Encoding vs Passthrough +----------------------- + +HandBrake supports two modes of operation for handling audio tracks from the +source. + +It can either: + +- Re-Encode the track into a new format. For example, AC3 or DTS audio from a + DVD or BluRay into AAC for playback on mobile devices. + +- Passthru copies the audio track from the source to the newly encoded file. + +  + +Audio Encoders +-------------- + +- AAC: + + - Advanced Audio Coding (AAC) is one of the most popular formats available + in HandBrake and is widly supported by media players and mobile devices. + + - On Linux and Windows, HandBrake uses the LibAV AAC encoder. + + - On Mac, HandBrake uses Apple's CoreAudio AAC encoder. It's known to be + much better quality and is the default option for Mac users. + +- HE-AAC ( Mac Only) + + - High Efficiency AAC encoder. This encoder is optimized for low-bitrate + applications which may be useful for streaming. + + - Available on OS X only. + +- MP3: + + - HandBrake also offers the MP3 audio codec, for which it uses the very + well-regarded lame encoder. + +- Vorbis: + + - HandBrake offers Vorbis audio encoding as well, for which it uses the + aoTuV branch that offers quality tweaks. + +- AC3: + + - HandBrake can encode to AC3 using LibAV. + + - This is not the same as Passthru. You can encode any audio track to AC3. + +- Flac 16 and 24bit (Libav) + + - Loss-less audio compression. + + - Available in MKV files. + + - It is not currently possible to passthru the compression level to the + ffmpeg encoder which is currently defaulted to "5" + +  + +Passthru options. +----------------- + +HandBrake supports passthru for a limited number of popular source formats. +These are: AC3, DTS, DTS-HD, TrueHD, MP3 or AAC (Passthru) + +This copies the audio bit-for-bit from the source so offers no loss in audio +quality. These audio tracks can be quite large so can impact the final size of +the output file quite substantially. + +  + +Auto Passthru +------------- + +In the audio encoders list, there is an option called "Auto Passthru". When +encoding, this will automatically passthru any supported format to the source +file. If the source format is not supported, or not supported in the output +container, the fallback encoder will be used. The default is AAC. diff --git a/source/en/latest/technical/audio-drc.markdown b/source/en/latest/technical/audio-drc.markdown new file mode 100644 index 00000000..8de6f885 --- /dev/null +++ b/source/en/latest/technical/audio-drc.markdown @@ -0,0 +1,51 @@ +--- +License_Abbr: CC BY-SA 4.0 +License_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/docs/license.html" +Language: English +Project_Version: Latest +Language_Code: en +Title: DRC - Dynamic Range Compression +License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International +Text_Encoding: utf-8 +Copyright: 2016 HandBrake Team +Project: HandBrake +Authors: Scott (s55) +Project_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/" +--- + +DRC - Dynamic Range Compression +=============================== + +  + +Dynamic Range Compression +------------------------- + +The dynamic range of an audio track is the difference between the softest and +loudest sounds. + +Dynamic range compression reduces the gap between those extremes. + +On the Audio tab, each track provides an option to set the level of compression +you wish. + +- 1.0-2.5 are good values to use. + +- 0, the default, turns it off completely. + +- 1.0 uses the compression hints embedded in the AC3 track. + +Values greater than 1.0 compress the range further by boosting the volume of +soft sound samples while leaving loud samples as they are. This squeezes down +the range between the softest and loudest parts, but should make the softer ones +easier to hear in noisy listening environments. Note, this is not the same as a +gain or volume boost control. + +  + +Compatibility +------------- + +Dynamic range compression only works when the source audio is AC3 and you are +encoding to another format, like AAC. It has no affect on AC3 pass-through or on +DTS or MPEG-2 audio. diff --git a/source/en/latest/technical/audio-gain.markdown b/source/en/latest/technical/audio-gain.markdown new file mode 100644 index 00000000..f24431c8 --- /dev/null +++ b/source/en/latest/technical/audio-gain.markdown @@ -0,0 +1,19 @@ +--- +License_Abbr: CC BY-SA 4.0 +License_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/docs/license.html" +Language: English +Project_Version: Latest +Language_Code: en +Title: Audio Gain +License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International +Text_Encoding: utf-8 +Copyright: 2016 HandBrake Team +Project: HandBrake +Authors: Scott (s55) +Project_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/" +--- + +Audio Gain +========== + +[TODO] diff --git a/source/en/latest/technical/audio-mixdowns.markdown b/source/en/latest/technical/audio-mixdowns.markdown new file mode 100644 index 00000000..7acf5da9 --- /dev/null +++ b/source/en/latest/technical/audio-mixdowns.markdown @@ -0,0 +1,58 @@ +--- +License_Abbr: CC BY-SA 4.0 +License_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/docs/license.html" +Language: English +Project_Version: Latest +Language_Code: en +Title: Audio Mixdowns +License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International +Text_Encoding: utf-8 +Copyright: 2016 HandBrake Team +Project: HandBrake +Authors: Scott (s55) +Project_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/" +--- + +Downloading and installing HandBrake +==================================== + +  + +Available Down Mixes +-------------------- + +HandBrake supports the following downmixes: + +- Mono + +- Mono (Left Only) + +- Mono (Right Only) + +- Stereo + +- Dolby Surround + +- Dobly Pro Logic II + +- 5.1 Channels + +- 6.1 Channels + +- 7.1 Channels + +- 7.1 Channels (5F/2R/LFE) + +  + +Automatic +--------- + +"Automatic" will default to DPL2 + +  + +Upmixing +-------- + +HandBrake does not currently support upmixing audio. diff --git a/source/en/latest/technical/video-codecs.markdown b/source/en/latest/technical/video-codecs.markdown new file mode 100644 index 00000000..655e3167 --- /dev/null +++ b/source/en/latest/technical/video-codecs.markdown @@ -0,0 +1,77 @@ +--- +License_Abbr: CC BY-SA 4.0 +License_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/docs/license.html" +Language: English +Project_Version: Latest +Language_Code: en +Title: Video Codecs +License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International +Text_Encoding: utf-8 +Copyright: 2016 HandBrake Team +Project: HandBrake +Authors: Scott (s55) +Project_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/" +--- + +Video Codecs +============ + +  + +- H.264 (x264): For MPEG-4 part 10, also known as H.264/AVC. + + - This is HandBrakes default encoder. It provides excellent performance, + filesizes and quality. + + - It is widely supported by players and mobile devices. + +- H.264 (Intel QuickSync): For MPEG-4 part 10, also known as H.264/AVC. + + - Available on Intel processors with Intel HD Graphics. + + - QuickSync is a hardware based H.264 encoder so is very fast, with + significantly lower CPU usage than x264. + + - Intel Haswell or newer CPU's are recommended as these offer the best + results in terms of Quality and Filesize. + + - You can typically expect larger (but usually not significantly larger) + file sizes and slightly lower quality to an equivilent x264 encode. This + is a trade off that is fine for most. + +- H.265 (x265): Also known as HEVC + + - This is the next generation of encoder that offers even higher quality + encodes and better filesizes over H.264 + + - Note, encoding to H.265 is a significantly more complicated process, so + it is expected to be slower than !HandBrake's H.264 encoders. + + - Playback support is rather limited at the moment, particularly with + mobile devices but this should improve drastically throughout 2015/16 + +- MPEG-4 (ffmpeg): !HandBrake offers FFmpeg's MPEG-4 part 2 encoder for fast, + low quality encoding. + + - Better support from older devices such as DVD players and cheap "MP4 + Players" + + - Lower quality than the H.264 encode option but typically faster encodes. + +- MPEG-2 (ffmpeg): !HandBrake offers FFmpeg's MPEG-2 part 2 encoder for fast, + low quality encoding. + + - Fast Encoding, but requires larger files than MPEG-4 for the same + quality level. Useful for testing but not much else. + +- VP8 (Libvpx): + + - A free and open video codec which offers significant improvements over + Theora. + +- VP3 (Theora): !HandBrake can also encode Theora video. Theora video with + Vorbis audio in the Matroska container represents a truly free option for + multimedia encoding. + + - However, Theora has yet to reach maturity when measured by quality at a + given bitrate. diff --git a/source/en/latest/technical/video-cq-vs-abr.markdown b/source/en/latest/technical/video-cq-vs-abr.markdown new file mode 100644 index 00000000..7b265907 --- /dev/null +++ b/source/en/latest/technical/video-cq-vs-abr.markdown @@ -0,0 +1,133 @@ +--- +License_Abbr: CC BY-SA 4.0 +License_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/docs/license.html" +Language: English +Project_Version: Latest +Language_Code: en +Title: Constant Quality vs Average Bit Rate +License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International +Text_Encoding: utf-8 +Copyright: 2016 HandBrake Team +Project: HandBrake +Authors: Bradley Sepos +Project_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/" +--- + +Constant Quality vs Average Bit Rate +==================================== + +HandBrake supports two modes of encoding video. + +- With the average bitrate, you control the size of the output file but give + up control over the video's quality. + +- Constant quality mode does the opposite; you specify a quality level and + HandBrake adjusts the bitrate (that is, the size) to meet it. + +  + +Constant Quality +---------------- + +### Benefits over Average Bitrate + +- Faster Encoding - No need to do 2-Pass encoding (thus almost halving the + encode time.) Constant Quality can produce the same quality as a 2 pass + encode. + +- Reduced file sizes Videos usually have a mix of complex and less complex + frames. (The latter requiring less bitrate to achieve a set quality level) + If less complex frames do not have bits wasted on them, your overall output + filesize is reduced without any loss of quality. + +### Output File Sizes + +Because it takes a different bitrate to reach a given quality level for any +given part of any movie, the output size is unpredictable and varies from source +to source. + +Example: Given 2 sources of the same length, one could turn out to be 1.2GB, the +other 1.9GB. The difference can be more or less depending on the source. If your +source material is consistent, you will get roughly the same file sizes out for +each. + +In particular, grainy sources tend to come out larger as they require a higher +bit-rate to maintain all that extra detail in the video. In this case, you may +try turning on the "Denoise" filter or reduce the RF value a few points. + +You should also note that even if a file size is significantly smaller than a +counterpart encoded with target filesize, it does not mean it is any lower +quality. It's simply encoded more efficiently. + +### x264 Recommended Quality RF Values + +The Quality slider ranges from (Low Quality) 51 to 0 (High Quality) For good +quality output at reasonable file sizes, the following values are recommended: + +- Standard Definition (e.g DVD's) Use an RF value of around 20 +/- 1 As an + example using the AppleTV2 preset at RF20, with 20 different sources, the + average size was 925MB per hour of video. (Min: 625MB/h Max:1,503MB/hr) + +- High Definition (e.g Blurays 720/1080) Use an RF value of 22 +/- 1 Since HD + sources are typically quality, you can get away with a slightly higher RF + value than SD content without any perceived difference in quality. + +You should note that the quality slider is not linear for x264. It is +logarithmic (like the Richter or pH scales.) This means small movements in the +numbers can have large results. You can control the granularity of the slider in +the preferences / options. + +You can encode a few chapters of a source to experiment with different quality +values if the above recommendations are not suitable. Encoding a 10minute sample +in the middle of your source should give you a good idea of what to expect. + +### x264 and RF 0 + +RF 0 applies no compression. It is lossless: it compresses the source without +throwing away practically any detail. + +So should you use RF 0 to perfectly preserve the source? Nope. Not at all. In +fact, you'll end up with video that's way larger than the DVD, but doesn't look +any better. + +See, DVDs use lossy compression to squeeze down the raw video the studios use to +make them -- sort of like a quality level of RF 20. It throws away detail. When +!HandBrake uncompresses the video prior to conversion, the quality lost when the +DVD was made is still gone. When you use RF 0 quality with x264, you're telling +it to losslessly preserve the decoded, uncompressed video feed, not to +losslessly preserve the DVD. Both have the same picture quality, but the +uncompressed feed takes up a lot more space. + +To sum up: when converting from a DVD source, there is no reason to go above an +RF of \~19, which is roughly equivalent to how heavily the DVD is compressed. If +you do go higher, your output will be larger than your input! + +### Recommended values for other encoders + +[TODO] + +  + +Average Bitrate +--------------- + +Unless you really need to aim for a target filesize (which we recommend +against), it is highly recommended that you use Constant Quality. + +Bitrate is the number of bits dedicated to the video in a second. And remember, +that gets split between \~24-30 frames. When you set an average bitrate, the +encoder will vary the number of bits given to any one portion of the video, but +try to keep everything at the average you set. + +- The video bitrate can be set on the "Video Tab" + +- It is recommended that you use 2-Pass encoding. + +- This will provide better quality and better bit-rate distribution. A single + pass will lead to sub-optimal results. + + - The "Turbo" checkbox will make the first pass quicker at the expense of + quality. Most of the time this loss is minimal and not appreciable by + the viewer. + +- The downside is it can take up to twice as long to encode a file. diff --git a/source/en/latest/technical/video-x264-presets-tunes.markdown b/source/en/latest/technical/video-x264-presets-tunes.markdown new file mode 100644 index 00000000..dfd10ec1 --- /dev/null +++ b/source/en/latest/technical/video-x264-presets-tunes.markdown @@ -0,0 +1,77 @@ +--- +License_Abbr: CC BY-SA 4.0 +License_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/docs/license.html" +Language: English +Project_Version: Latest +Language_Code: en +Title: x264 Presets and Tunes +License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International +Text_Encoding: utf-8 +Copyright: 2016 HandBrake Team +Project: HandBrake +Authors: Scott (s55) +Project_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/" +--- + +x264 Presets and Tunes +====================== + +  + +x264 Presets +------------ + +x264 exposes a preset and tune system. Presets range from: + +- UltraFast - Very high speed encoding, but requires much higher bit-rates to + maintain quality. This means you can expect much larger file sizes. + +- Placebo - Extremely slow encoding but provides the best Quality and/or + filesize for a given source. - This option is often considered a placebo + because it offers diminishing returns in terms of quality and filesize. + +Typically, it's recommended to use the Very Fast to Slow settings range for best +results, or one of the slower options if you don't mind the speed loss. Medium +is a good balance and most of !HandBrakes presets use this option. + +  + +x264 Tunes +---------- + +The x264 tune options assign some additional options which will optimize the +encoder for certain types of content. + +If you are unsure or your content doesn't really fit into one of the following +tunes, you can simply leave this option at "None". + +- Film + + - Real life footage, films etc may benifit. (Not Cartoons or Anime). + Typically won't do any harm to if left on for most content. + +- Animation + + - Used for hand-drawn animated content. + +- Grain + + - Typically used for very grainy or old content. + +- Still Image + + - Can be used for Slideshows, Presentations etc where there is very little + moving content. + +- PSNR + + - Used for benchmarking quality. Should not be used for normal use. + +- SSIM + + - Used for benchmarking quality. Should not be used for normal use. + +- Fast Decode + + - Optimise for faster decoding. Useful for low power devices that struggle + to decode the video. diff --git a/source/en/latest/technical/video-x264-profiles-levels.markdown b/source/en/latest/technical/video-x264-profiles-levels.markdown new file mode 100644 index 00000000..e93de33e --- /dev/null +++ b/source/en/latest/technical/video-x264-profiles-levels.markdown @@ -0,0 +1,86 @@ +--- +License_Abbr: CC BY-SA 4.0 +License_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/docs/license.html" +Language: English +Project_Version: Latest +Language_Code: en +Title: x264 - Profiles and Levels +License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International +Text_Encoding: utf-8 +Copyright: 2016 HandBrake Team +Project: HandBrake +Authors: Bradley Sepos +Project_URL: "https://handbrake.fr/" +--- + +x264 - Profiles and Levels +========================== + +  + +H.264 profiles +-------------- + +Define the features / capabilities that the encoder can use. + +HandBrake exposes 3 profiles for H.264 Encodes. You can think of the profile as +the level of complexity required in encode / decode. The higher the complexity, +the more CPU power is needed to encode/decode. Setting a profile, constrains the +encode to using settings that are allowed for that profile level. + +Typically, devices will advertise that they are compatible for a particular +profile and level, so you can simply set the option that matches your device for +the best chance of compatibility. + +- Auto (Recommended) + + - This will automatically set the profile based on all the options that + have been selected. + + - It is recommended that you use this option unless you need to set a + profile to ensure compatibility for a particular device. + +- Baseline + + - Baseline encodes are the most basic form of encoding. While decoding is + much easier, it may also require much higher bit-rates to maintain the + same level of quality. + +- Main + + - The middle ground. Most modern / current devices will support this + profile. + +- High Profile + + - For best quality and filesize at the expense of CPU time in both decode + and encode. + +Note that setting a profile does not mean your encoded file will end up being +that profile. It simply prevents options being used that would breach that +profile constraint. + +  + +H.264 Levels +------------ + +The levels are another form of constraints that define things like maximum +bitrates, framerates and resolution etc. The wikipedia article lists the +relevant information for each level. +http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H.264/MPEG-4\_AVC\#Levels + +Most devices (and sometimes, software decoders) support a "maximum" level. When +the video's specifications exceed that level's constraints, the decoder won't be +able to decode the video properly (it may simply refuse to play the file). + +!HandBrake's H.264 encoder, x264, sets the appropriate level automatically based +on all the other settings. To make sure your video doesn't exceed a specific +level, you simply have to make sure the other parameters fit within the +constraints imposed by the level. + +It is recommended that you leave this setting on "Auto" unless you require to +set it for device compatibility. + +For a more detailed guide, see +https://forum.handbrake.fr/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=19368