Encore CS4 or Sonic DVDit ProHD???????

[Raja]

Thanks for the replys guys.

Jerry, Does CS3 have popup menus (like CS4)?

Ron, do BDs created in Architect play fine on BD players?

[Ron Evans]

Raja
I have created Bluray really for my own archive which play fine on my PS3 and also on the few players I have tried at friends etc. These include the latest Sony BD players tried at the Sony store and friends Samsung and Panasonic players. 4 different players and my PS3 is all I know of at this time. All played no problem both writen on Sony BD-RE discs and Verbatim BD-R discs both 25G and Dl 50G. All have been MPEG2 VBR at about 23 to 25mbps average max 30 and min 15.

Ron Evans

[[email protected]]

I use Edius for editing the project & making the final avi. I then import it into CS4 - Encore - for DVD authoring and I have never had one single issue. (OK - ONE thing that stumped me was rendering my highly-involved motion menu once so that it would play in the preview window - but that was easily solved and a user issue!) I regularly make motion menus and put audio on my main menus.... I have never had one problem.... As far as encoding time, the more powerful the computer, the faster the time. I have a workhorse of a computer - plods along slower but always gets the job done. It takes about 1.5 hrs for me to completely encode a 2 hour DVD with very involved motion menus, audio.... etc.

Jerry - can you please elaborate for me as to the pop-up issue? I am unaware of any and this sounds important!

As far as Encore vs DVDIT - You do not need to know how to use Photoshop, as customizing menus in Encore itself is simple. However,if you do know your way around Photoshop, making custom menus, buttons, even motion menus is easy. I have not used CS3 but switching between the Adobe platforms in CS4 is seamless. I have used DVDITPRO and it simply looks childish compared to Encore - even the included templates in Encore are great. IMO,Encore gives the user more opportunities for creativity.

Plus, Encore can make Blu-Ray, DVD's and flash files. Very convenient! Downside - you will need to purchase the entire suite to get Encore, it's not stand-alone. BUT - Along with (Obviously) Premiere Pro, it also comes with Media Encoder - REALLY useful for encoding for web videos and interchanging between formats (plus other useful programs too... lol)

Hope this helps.
S.

[Jerry]

Jerry - can you please elaborate for me as to the pop-up issue? I am unaware of any and this sounds important!

As far as Encore vs DVDIT - You do not need to know how to use Photoshop, as customizing menus in Encore itself is simple. However,if you do know your way around Photoshop, making custom menus, buttons, even motion menus is easy.

First, here is a link for the popup creation technique:

http://www.adobe.com/designcenter/encore/articles/lrvid4079_enc.html

In order to make your own popup menus, you WILL need to know your way around photoshop. The actual menu is a pain to create. Adobe does have
pre made ones, but I prefer my own.
As you mentioned, it is easy to customize your menu within Encore. However, I find it missing the abilities that are truely needed to modify a comlplete menu.

CS3 is basically the same as CS4 with a few addtions. Many of them buggy at this point.

[[email protected]]

TY for the info, Jerry.
AND I agree - customizing within Encore is not as robust as using Photoshop... However, the menus generated within Encore look much more polished than those of DVDIT. If one did not know Photoshop, at least they could produce good looking menus by semi-customizing (or customizing once you got good) the templates using the built in editor.

As you said, Photoshop users will get much more out of using Encore than those who are unfamiliar with it.

TY for the info again!
S.

[Raja]

First, here is a link for the popup creation technique:

http://www.adobe.com/designcenter/encore/articles/lrvid4079_enc.html

In order to make your own popup menus, you WILL need to know your way around photoshop. The actual menu is a pain to create. Adobe does have
pre made ones, but I prefer my own.
As you mentioned, it is easy to customize your menu within Encore. However, I find it missing the abilities that are truely needed to modify a comlplete menu.

CS3 is basically the same as CS4 with a few addtions. Many of them buggy at this point.

Thanks for the link Jerry. I've been using Photoshop for years. I'm quite fluent with it.
I'll give CS3 Encore a try.

[Watermoore]

I thought Edius 4 and 5 could do DVD menus.

I used to use Uleads DVD authoring program with Edius 3.5 but I now use the CS4 Master Collection. The integration was to hard to over look. I imagine Encore would be better than Uleads DVD program if you have AE and Photoshop. With out the Production Premium or the Master Collection it is hard to design menus in Encore. Edius is OK if you just do video editing but if you want to run the full scope of multimedia then CS4 is your best bet.

The RT of Edius is great but it is no match for the CS4 integration. On the other hand you might be dissapointed just using Encore with out Photoshop or AE. Ulead worked OK for me but it is not as good a using the CS4 Master Collection.

Going to Adobe CS4 because its convent would be a rash decision you would most likely regret down the line. A lot of the components that are offered by Adobe that are great: After Effects, Encore, and Photoshop mainly, I use them to this day. Premiere may seem fine but its hardly stable when it comes to editing or even handling HDV. The sad thing being that the bugs have been around since cs2 or even earlier and still remained unaddressed! Adobe has made a ton of great products but since they have shifted there focus into acquiring and integrating other people software is seems what they had gets nothing more then an updated Ui. This is the main reason I am even aware of Edius. I got sick and tired of putting my money in a bundle of software that feels unfinished especially since I got to the point where I was spending more time troubleshooting then editing.