Apple Compressor 2 - Manual (Page 10)

10 Preface An Introduction to Compressor
 Creating MPEG-2 files for use with DVD Studio Pro: Before you can convert your
existing media files into DVD Studio Pro projects, you must convert them into
MPEG-2 files. Before importing one or more media files into DVD Studio Pro,
Compressor transcodes the files into the MPEG-2 format. Compressor 2 can encode
audio in the Dolby Digital Professional format (also known as AC-3). Dolby Digital
Professional is a very common compressed audio format for DVD-Video discs.
Compressor also supports two specialized situations:
 For those situations in which you are editing high definition (HD) sources in
Final Cut Pro and want to create a standard definition (SD) DVD from them,
Compressor includes a high-quality down-conversion capability. HD sources
using 1080i or 720p resolutions use a high-quality transcoding process to create
SD MPEG-2 video output files.
 For those situations in which you must fit the maximum video onto a DVD and
do not require broadcast quality, Compressor includes the ability to export DVD-
Video–compatible MPEG-1 format files.
Compressor Features
Compressor can work as a standalone application or be integrated into the workflow of
other applications, such as Final Cut Pro. To this end, Compressor accepts the same full
range of source media file types that Final Cut Pro accepts. Compressor is targeted at
video postproduction professionals and compressionists who require high performance
and maximum control over the final digital content for DVD authoring, streaming
media servers, and wireless devices. Compressor gives you resizing, cropping, image
processing, encoding, and delivery options, and offers the following features:
 Batch processing: This streamlined process allows you to create multiple output files
from single source media files.
 VBR options: Using the MPEG-2 encoder, you can set either a single or dual-pass
variable bit rate (VBR) for your output files, a setting that affects the video file
image quality.
 H.264 encoding: H.264 produces higher quality video at lower data rates for
everything from mobile phones to High Definition (HD). H.264 works especially well
with the Apple QuickTime 7 media player.
 Droplets: These standalone applications can be used for drag-and-drop transcoding
operations straight from your desktop. Once created, Droplets simplify and automate
the transcoding process and can be used even without opening Compressor.
 Settings: Settings contain all necessary file format, filter, and geometry settings
needed for transcoding. You can customize and modify existing settings or create
new ones, an option that lets you build and save a library of different settings that
can be reused.