Apple Compressor 3 User Manual
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• Details Level: Use this slider to set a level (from 0 to 100) to preserve sharp edges. This
is a sharpening control that lets you add detail back to an image being enlarged. Unlike
other sharpening operations, the Details Level setting is able to distinguish between
noise and feature details, and generally doesn’t increase unwanted grain. Increasing
this parameter may introduce jagged edges, however, which can be eliminated by
increasing the Anti-alias level.
Note: Adaptive Details, “Anti-alias,” and Details Level pertain only to frame resizing
(scaling), not deinterlacing.
Retiming Controls Area
Use the controls in this area to choose the algorithm with which frame rates are adjusted.
Note: When you use the retiming controls to change the video speed, Compressor will
also adjust the audio portion of the output media file so that it stays in sync with the
video. The retiming controls will not affect the audio pitch. See
for more information about using these options.
• Rate Conversion: Use this pop-up menu to choose from the following techniques for
retiming frames (changing the frame rate). This decision is a trade-off between faster
processing time and higher output quality. In many cases, the Better setting will provide
sufficiently high-quality conversion at a substantial savings in processing time over the
Best setting.
Important:
Using all Best settings may result in unexpectedly long processing times.
The Better setting for rate conversion will provide sufficiently high-quality conversion
at a substantial savings in processing time over the Best setting.
• Fast (Nearest frame): No frame blending is applied; Compressor simply uses a copy
of the nearest available frame to fill the new in-between frames.
• Good (Frame blending): Averages neighboring frames together to create new
in-between frames.
• Better (Motion compensated): Uses optical flow to interpolate frames, with good-quality
results.
• Best (High quality motion compensated): Uses optical flow to interpolate frames, with
higher-quality results; this option is particularly useful for transcodes that involve
increases in frame rates (for example, 23.98 fps to 59.94 fps).
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Chapter 23
Working with Frame Controls