Idea Vegas To Handbrake Rendering (vegas2handbrake) DebugMode FrameServer - Opinion

I have been using the 'vegas2handbrake' DebugMode FrameServer process for a while now with satisfactory results, and the process has also been discussed here in various threads. With the recent interest in new users to Sony Vegas Pro 13 and the upcoming Magix Vegas Pro 14 release, I thought there may be new users who are not aware of this rendering (encoding) tool.

Within Vegas Pro, the rendering templates with MainConcept AVC and Sony AVC are two good options for rendering out quality mp4 videos for viewing on a PC or TV, or uploading to YouTube. If this quality and the time to render is acceptable the effort to setup and use the DebugMode FrameServer may not be of interest. However, if users are interested in a bit more quality, reduced file size and faster rendering times the DebugMode FrameServer offers those advantages.

When it has been installed and setup, DebugMode FrameServer allows Vegas Pro users to render a finished product using Handbrake, from within Vegas Pro without the necessity of rendering an intermediate file, with only a couple clicks of the mouse. The process sends the timeline video project from Vegas Pro and loads it into Handbrake, then Handbrake encodes (renders) the projects using the codec you select, such as h.264/x.264 into an mp4 container, and when finished returns to Vegas Pro.

I have seen three advantages to this process. With most projects (2 minutes or longer) the time to render has been faster than either MainConcept AVC or Sony AVC rendering. The files are usually smaller in size, and the quality is a bit better because of the x.264 codec Handbrake uses.

It took me about 30 minutes to download, install and setup the process. The link below provides a step-by-step procedure and is relatively straight forward. When completed, it provides a 1-click script to start the process and call up Handbrake, then another 1-click within Handbrake to start the render. Other than those 2 mouse clicks, the process is automated.

Vegas 2 Handbrake

I have used this process with Sony Vegas Pro 13 (build 453), however the author states it has been tested in Vegas Pro 12 and 13 on Windows 7, 8/8.1 and 10 (64 bit), and may also work in Vegas Pro 11, but is sure it will not work in versions prior to 11. I have also tested this process with success in Magix Vegas Pro 13 build 545. I have doubts it will work in Magix Vegas Pro 13 build 543, but didn't test it before updating to 545, so not sure just a guess.

Rendering comparisons......the DebugMode FrameServer process has some upfront overhead, while it loads and sends the video to Handbrake, and Handbrake then processes in the source. In my computer for a 2 minute runtime video project, this overhead is about 28 seconds. The actual time to render in Handbrake is about 1:40 for a total time of about 2 minutes 15 seconds. In comparison, the time to render within Vegas Pro 13 using MainConcept AVC (cpu only) it takes my system about 3 minutes and 10 seconds. A longer video would show an increase in render time savings. Also, the finished video file size runs about 30% smaller rendered in Handbrake given the same size bitrate settings.

The initial settings as default from the Handbrake installation and the setup of this process, will provide excellent quality results. Beyond those initial default settings are many settings which can be adjusted by the user to improve quality if they elect to use them. Of course some of the settings will also effect the render times as well as render file size. It is an option for the user to make their own settings to achieve their preferred results if they elect to explore the capabilities. However, the 'Out of the Box' default installation settings have pretty much been satisfactory for my purposes.


NOTE: For those interested in reading the above link and/or installing the DebugMode FrameServer 'Vegas2Handbrake' process, in reference to the '1 second buffer'.......It's easy to follow the instructions within the linked document to add this 1 second buffer.

I have elected to make up a 1 second null clip and just add it to the end of my project. To create it, I brought to the timeline the 'Default Text' 'Legacy title/text' from the 'Media Generator'. Deleted any text, reduced the length to 1 second and then rendered it out using the 'CineForm 422 Filmscan 1' codec in an .avi wrapper and named it '1 Second Null Clip.avi'. Actually almost any render template will work, as all this does is provide a black (null) 1 second addition to the timeline at the very end of the project. That is at the very end of the last video or audio event, whichever is at the very end.

Most of my projects end with a fade to black (usually at the end of the credits), with the background music fading a second or two later, so my '1 Second Null Clip.avi' is added to a video track lined up at the end of the audio track.


I hope this may be of help to new users of Vegas Pro who were previously unaware of the Vegas 2 Handbrake DebugMode FrameServer process. If anyone detects an error in my thread, or if I have left something important out, please post a reply and I will make immediate corrections.

Hi Eagle Six

I was doing some analysis and noticed that your forum post about Handbrake is ranking well in Google search results.

For anyone new people that discovers this excellent forum thread, I recommend that you read and watch my new tutorial on how to render video from Vegas Pro to Handbrake.
In this new tutorial, I have all the latest information you need to setup this complicated workflow.
www.moviestudiozen.com/free-tutorials/sony-vegas-pro/590-render-video-from-vegas-pro-to-handbrake



Regards
Derek