Final Cut Express/AviSynth Final Encoding Please Help!!!

[musicalpets]

Hello everyone,
I am really in need of a new guide or something, I have read through what seems like a million guides already! Anyway, here is the issue. I am using a new IMac and FinalCut Express. I used AviSynth via Crossover for Mac to clean up my clips prior to editing. They came out looking great and all have the correct 720x480 size. So, I edited my video and then exported it from Final Cut Express as an uncompressed MOV file (because every time I tried to make an AVI in FCE it came out corrupted). So the problem is that the great looking file is huge! 6.1GB and it is only 2 minutes long!! I need to send it in to a contest soon and I have tried everything to get my video smaller and hopefully an MPEG2 without my quality turning to crap!!! I have used SimplemoveX, iSkysoft video converter and TMPEGenc and every time it either gets corrupted, crashes or looks terrible! I went through all this work editing every single clip in AviSynth so I am really frustrated that it looks like my video will end up looking like I didn't try to make the quality good. Please Help!!!
Melissa

[Kionon]

Hi, Melissa,

Looks like you used my guide! Glad to have helped yet another fellow mac user.

Screencaps of the corruption would be valuable, but I think I can suggest a plan of action initially. Using SimpleMovieX or MPEGStreamClip (or any such program previously mentioned by me or others), convert to AVI (BUT LEAVE UNCOMPRESSED) and then move into VDubMod via Crossover and encode into lossless HuffYUV. From there, you should be able to either A) submit as is, many contests take HuffYUV b) open back up in SimpleMovieX or MPEGStreamClip and convert to your desired codec.

[musicalpets]

Thank you so much for the reply! I love your guide for Mac! It is the only reason I have come as far as I have and as I said the quality on my uncompressed video is awesome! Thanks!
I still can't make an uncompressed AVI from Final Cut. It always only compresses half the video and says it's finished. Upon playback, only the fist half of the video is there and VLC and AviSynth say the file is corrupted. So I made an uncompressed Mov through final cut, put it into SimpleMovieX and exported as an AVI. Whew! Then I just made a HuffYUV and it does look great, but it is still too large to send via FTP to the convention, so I am going to email the coordinator to see if it is ok to send a file that big on DVD to the contest. They say in the rules that they prefer MPEG2 compression though. I can do that using TMPEGenc. So thanks to you I seem to be all set! Thanks so much! One final question. Do you have any idea why TMPEGenc makes the video playback the wrong shape every time? I am checking to make sure that my size is correct at 720X480 and it is, but when the Mpeg2 plays back it is actually shaped 720X540. Thanks for all your help!!!!
Melissa

[Kionon]

Seems like TMPEGEnc is flagging it. I assume your convention asked for 720x480, otherwise it isn't a resolution that is considered a distro standard (640x480 for 4:3 or 848x480 for 16:9). You have probably missed an option where 4:3 is checked, thus 720x540.

Glad my guide is helpful. I am working on a more comprehensive mac guide as well.