Geek Tested:

GPU-Based Video Encoding is Here: Does That Mean Curtains For Your CPU?

Posted 09/10/08 at 11:01:00 AM by Will Smith

Handbrake lines: 

Handbrake Baseline: -i "C:\DVD Rips\PEE_WEES_BIG_ADVENTURE" -o "E:\Pee-Wee Handbrake Baseline.mp4" -e x264 -E faac -p -b 2100 -x subme=1:partitions=i4x4:keyint=120:aq-strength=0:me=dia:vbv-maxrate=14000:no-cabac:vbf-bufsize=2100:no-dct-decimate:level=3.1:no-b-adapt:scenecut=1:progress 
PS3: -i "C:\DVD Rips\PEE_WEES_BIG_ADVENTURE" -o "E:\Pee-Wee Handbrake Baseline.mp4" -e x264 -E faac -p -b 2500 -x level=41:subme=5:me=umh -B 160 -R 48 -D 1 -v 
iPhone: -i "C:\DVD Rips\PEE_WEES_BIG_ADVENTURE" -o "E:\Pee-Wee Handbrake Baseline.m4v" -e x264 -E faac -w 480 -b 960 -I -x level=30:cabac=0:ref=1:analyse=all:me=umh:subme=6:no-fast-pskip=1:trellis=1 -B 128 -R 48 -D 1 --markers="C:\Users\Will\AppData\Local\Temp\chapters.csv" -v
 Deuce Six Quatre: -i "C:\DVD Rips\PEE_WEES_BIG_ADVENTURE" -o "E:\Pee-Wee Handbrake Baseline.mkv" -e x264 -E ac3 -p -b 1600 -2 -T -x ref=5:mixed-refs:bframes=3:bime:weightb:b-rdo:b-pyramid:me=umh:subme=7:trellis=1:analyse=all:8x8dct:no-fast-pskip -D 1 --markers="C:\Users\Will\AppData\Local\Temp\chapters.csv" -v

More Images

Baseline

Baseline comparison: In this relatively high-motion scene, you can see that both codecs look roughly the same. Both suffer some compression artifcats, but as a whole the quality is roughly equal.

Baseline Still Comparison: Again, both encoders produce roughly the same quality level. Check Pee-Wee's jacket, the skin on his cheeks, and the vertical lines on the Wig Factory's storefront to see potential compression problems.

Baseline Still #2: Pay extra close attention to the sweat on Pee-Wee's brow. I

Best Quality Comparisons

Best Quality Motion: In this instance, upscaling the resolution and wildly increasing the bitrate don't really show any improvement on general visual quality. The edges of Pee-Wee's shadow are still jaggy, and the scene under delivers. On the other hand, the Handbrake Best Quality rip looks awesome.

iPhone Comparisons

COMMENTS:7

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COMMENTS

Test With The Registered Release Version
Submitted by nVidiaRox on Sat, 10/25/2008 - 4:52pm

The full version just came out sometime recently. I went up and downloaded the test version and tried it. I saw some of the artifacts that you showed. I went ahead and purchased it since it is only $30 instead of the originally announced price of $100. I fired it up on an AMD X2 4850e and BFG GTX 260OC setup. The artifacts and watermark were no longer present. It still is not the super fast encoder that they kept pushing it to be, but it is fast. To take Indiana Jones 4 (movie only) to iPod Nano setting, it only took 4 1/2 minutes. Handbrake and CloneDVDMobile take MUCH longer. It looks great on the Nano screen. Who knows if there is a difference in image quality difference, the speed difference made me not care. It does appear to use the one core of the X2 while it converts.

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Testing at 720p
Submitted by delacroixp on Sat, 09/13/2008 - 11:06pm

I guess it would have been fair to test Badaboon at an 720p baseline encode where it could really flex it's muscles and show where it's at .

I should imagine that hi-res encodes are the wave of the future and out are the blocky DivX/Xvid monstrosities of yesterday .

It's all good !

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I don't get it
Submitted by huh on Fri, 09/12/2008 - 8:14pm

Is Badaboom a DVD backup tool or one for converting to your portable media device.

I also don't get why you even bothered with test #1 and #4. Baseline settings and iPhone at least use the similar video quality settings the other tests are meaningless or misleading at best.

Maybe they should take PS3 off the supported product list until they get other profiles working

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Ugh.
Submitted by Coma on Fri, 09/12/2008 - 2:46am

This review is only two days old, and yet you are using a version of x264 from February!

x264 is regularily updated, sometimes several times a day, and has received some new features that have a serious impact on the size to quality ratio.

For the sake of your readers, I request you update your x264 and redo the tests. If Handbrake does not allow manually updating, you should be using another, similar GUI to do this test, and not Handbrake.

Signed,

A reader who wants a fair review

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Peewee Mark
Submitted by Shalbatana on Thu, 09/11/2008 - 8:25am

I love it!!!

_______________________________

"There's no time like the future."

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This is scary
Submitted by Talcum X on Wed, 09/10/2008 - 8:17am

Why on earth do you have a copy of PeeWee's Big Adventure? That's low for even Geek standards.

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What about commercial products?
Submitted by NAYRhyno on Wed, 09/10/2008 - 4:47am

Is Badaboom intended to be a free product? If not, how does it compare to other commercial solutions like DVDFab Platinum or TMPEGENC Xpress?

What are you using to rip the DVD to the hard drive before converting it? Isn't it still illegal to rip a DVD because you are bypassing the copy protection scheme, or was there a change to the law?

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