Resolved Do I need HandBrake?

[camelia]

Hello,

Newbie trying to editing videos

At this moment I am working with .m2ts files but I can play them with QuickTime Player, Elemdia player or
VLC media player, and I can edit them with iMovie or VEGAS Movie Studio and save them as .mp4

So why I need HandBrake to convert the .m2ts files to .mp4 before edit them?

Thanks
Came

 

[cruisin]

The need to convert depends on your editing software and the video format. Premiere imports m2ts files and natively supports certain Sony cameras, but m2ts is optimized for video compression and playback and not video editing.

Video is rarely a series of frames (pictures) due to the size of the final video, so some compression is usually used. And certain compression types are designed for later editing to make life easier, usually by only minimally compressing. So a format not designed for editing might need a conversion unless you have software designed to work with m2ts directly.

Hope that helps.

 

[phrehdd]

There are a few things going on here and probably the best two things you can do is learn about the following -

Find a good software with a good reputation for editing video. Make sure to find out what formats it can handle and then learn the best path to get to a usable media file format for editing. Some will import* certain types of files and do the conversion for you without need of another software (and some require a format other than what you have so you will need that 3rd party software).

The catch with all of these "conversions" is you are going from one form of compression to another and that means some loss of quality. Often this is the video side of things as audio can be kept relative pristine with the right formats. Handbrake is a really cool piece of software but alas, probably not needed for doing some conversion other than to compress and make a smaller file as well as the format itself.

Here are some software options you might want to check out. You would want to find out which type of files they will successfully import first. These are just a casual list as there are probably a couple of others people can recommend.

• DaVinci Resolve
• Final Cut Pro X
• Adobe Premiere Pro CC
• Adobe Premiere Elements 2018

 

[camelia]

There are a few things going on here and probably the best two things you can do is learn about the following -

Find a good software with a good reputation for editing video. Make sure to find out what formats it can handle and then learn the best path to get to a usable media file format for editing. Some will import* certain types of files and do the conversion for you without need of another software (and some require a format other than what you have so you will need that 3rd party software).

The catch with all of these "conversions" is you are going from one form of compression to another and that means some loss of quality. Often this is the video side of things as audio can be kept relative pristine with the right formats. Handbrake is a really cool piece of software but alas, probably not needed for doing some conversion other than to compress and make a smaller file as well as the format itself.

Here are some software options you might want to check out. You would want to find out which type of files they will successfully import first. These are just a casual list as there are probably a couple of others people can recommend.

• DaVinci Resolve
• Final Cut Pro X
• Adobe Premiere Pro CC
• Adobe Premiere Elements 2018

Ok, Ok here I am going to ask again

If I want to upload my videos to YouTube or only share them with my friends is .mp4 the best format?

Adobe solutions is very expensive for me, but Does Final Cut Pro X can handle and convert m2ts files to .mp4 without loss of quality (Video and sound)?

Thanks
Came

 

[Dave Braine]

If I want to upload my videos to YouTube or only share them with my friends is .mp4 the best format?

It's as good as any.

Does Final Cut Pro X can handle and convert m2ts files to .mp4 without loss of quality

I don't know about FCP, but you can "re wrap" the m2ts files into an m4v(basically mp4) container without conversion and any loss of quality by using ReWrapAVCHD.
http://www.timesforfun.de

 

[cruisin]

mp4 is actually a container, and what people think of mp4 is often H.264 in mp4. H.264 is a good format as it will play just about everywhere without downloading an app, but for YouTube they want one of these: https://support.google.com/youtube/troubleshooter/2888402?hl=en

• MOV
• MPEG4
• MP4
• AVI
• WMV
• MPEGPS
• FLV
• 3GPP
• WebM
• DNxHR
• ProRes
• CineForm
• HEVC (h265)

YouTube cannot accept M2TS, so M2TS is apparently an unpopular format.

Converting anything will cause a small loss of quality. It is like someone showing you a photo and you redraw it yourself, but for video. Sometimes you can get good results where you don't see the change in quality.

As mentioned you can change the container, but not everything will guarantee to play it as most phones/tablets/etc settled on H.264 for video playback (and are slowly adding H.265 and others). You can do a small test file and see who has problems in your target audience, but H.264 is very close to a universal video format so everyone seems to use if for simplicity.

 

[Partron22]

Watch out on the audio end of things as well.
There are some versions of AAC or AC3 that are not recognized ny players such as Kodi.

The container concept for video distribution was a good one, but that .MP4 at the end of a file name can mean quite a few different things.

 

[camelia]

It's as good as any.


I don't know about FCP, but you can "re wrap" the m2ts files into an m4v(basically mp4) container without conversion and any loss of quality by using ReWrapAVCHD.
http://www.timesforfun.de

ReWrapAVCHD is a very old app
Any newer?

Thanks
Came

 

[MacUser2525]

ReWrapAVCHD is a very old app
Any newer?

Thanks
Came

Age does not matter with an application like that working with an established never changing standard file format. There is only one way to move it to a different container it probably uses ffmpeg like most of them programs do. If you want a modern command line version of that you will need to install it from a third party, you could compile your own version though. Then make your own gui like they have or use it on the command line.

 

[camelia]

If you want a modern command line version of that you will need to install it from a third party, you could compile your own version though. Then make your own gui like they have or use it on the command line.

Lol

yeah sure

Came

 

[Kevbasscat]

Ok, Ok here I am going to ask again

If I want to upload my videos to YouTube or only share them with my friends is .mp4 the best format?

Adobe solutions is very expensive for me, but Does Final Cut Pro X can handle and convert m2ts files to .mp4 without loss of quality (Video and sound)?

Thanks
Came

FCP X is quite a good editing application, and it can certainly Change your video from m2ts to mp4. Sony invented m2ts as an extremely high compression algorithm when recording and storing very large hi def video recorded in their video cameras. At 1080i it's default uncompressed data rate is greater than 220MBs/sec. That's almost a billion pieces of information every 5 seconds, so you can see why compression isn't just desirable, it's absolutely required.

With Handbrake, you can shrink those sizes considerably without much lose of quality and convert it to mp4 which is the format most content producers use on youTube as well as most websites, and phone scocial apps as well. AND!... it's free! There is a nightly build of it since it's open source, and it's easy to use. FCP X costs about $300.00. Hope that helps

 

[BeatCrazy]

FCP X is quite a good editing application, and it can certainly Change your video from m2ts to mp4.

How about using Apple's Compressor app vs. FCP X?

 

[Kevbasscat]

How about using Apple's Compressor app vs. FCP X?

Compressor is a tool used in FCP X to change it's characteristics, but it's $40.00 and not all that good imho. What or why do have reservations about handbrake? Most who use it are well versed in video editing and changing format, the size in Mbs or Gbs etc and it's free!

 

[BeatCrazy]

Compressor is a tool used in FCP X to change it's characteristics, but it's $40.00 and not all that good imho.

I have it, but haven't used it much at all. I thought it could be used as a standalone video compressor, a la Handbrake.

 

[Kevbasscat]

I have it, but haven't used it much at all. I thought it could be used as a standalone video compressor, a la Handbrake.

Yes it certainly can and. if you have it, by all means read up on it and/or ask advice on the forums here and give it a real try. Honestly, I had issues with the older version, not the new compressor, so I could be wrong, I am wrong a. lot.

 

[phrehdd]

Hello,

Newbie trying to editing videos

At this moment I am working with .m2ts files but I can play them with QuickTime Player, Elemdia player or
VLC media player, and I can edit them with iMovie or VEGAS Movie Studio and save them as .mp4

So why I need HandBrake to convert the .m2ts files to .mp4 before edit them?

Thanks
Came

There are ways to edit m2ts files and of course that has to do with the software you choose for editing. However, many software may prefer another format and if that is the case, some will let you import your m2ts files and convert. You should find out if your software of choice will do the conversion as needed or suggest a specific 3rd party software.

A few years ago, I was given two rather large files that were to be put together as one larger file. However, there was about 8 seconds at the end of first file and 4 second at the beginning of the second file. On a Mac, I found an old software that handled m2ts files and though not an ideal tool, I was able to trim off the 8 and 4 seconds (actually about a total of 11.9 seconds) and merge the two together. I believe it was TSmuxer (usually known for Windows).

 

[Kevbasscat]

I have it, but haven't used it much at all. I thought it could be used as a standalone video compressor, a la Handbrake.

Duh lol. I have thousands of m2ts files. They're created on my computer when I load a video file from my Sony video camera onto a hard disc from Sony's software. They originally were AVCHD files, which is what Sony and Panasonic collaborated on. A highly compressed video file. QuickTime X, the one that comes with all newer os's, plays m2ts files natively, and can also export them as quicktime files .

Another method is you can right click your video file, and at the bottom select "Services." Then select "Encode Selected Video Files." That opens a popup menu that asks how. 1080p? 720p? 480p? Audio Only? Apple Pro Res? Choose. Then below it asks why. "Greater Compatibility?" Or "Higher Quality?" Then where to save it. Choose, then click, and it begins the encoding process to an mp4 video in the background.

If you have a Mac that is not using 10.15 Catalina and you have QuickTime 7 Pro that is "registered," meaning it displays a code from the purchase of it in the about qt7. If you don't know, open a .mov or .mp4 file and try to edit it, by changing the bass or brightness. If you can then you're good, and HOLD ON TO THAT APP! If you delete it, Apple will not restore it any longer. You can open the freshly exported QTx file in QT7 Pro, then edit, cut, change audio settings, color, brightness, etc, and save. Also using QT7 Pro you can use it's "export for web" function, meaning QT 7Pro assembles a package for internet uploading automatically, including a .png (picture) "poster frame" that you select yourself, the converted .mp4 file, a small .mov of the file, and the "read me," HTML file instructions. It's an all in one web video creation machine.

Of all the things Apple has done away with, QT7 is missed the most by me. It made life so easy, but it was 32 bit and Mojave is the last OS to allow it, with warnings. I really wish they would have given QTx the same functionality.

It sounds complicated, but it's very, very easy, and once you've done it once or twice, it's a no brainer. So there are some options that exclude opening compressor, or FPX, or any third party apps.