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Encoding Filters Pack - Codecs Reference
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Overview
This document provides a comprehensive reference for all video and audio codecs supported by the DirectShow Encoding Filters Pack. The pack includes both software and hardware-accelerated encoders for professional media encoding.
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Video Codecs
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H.264/AVC (MPEG-4 Part 10)
The most widely used video codec for streaming, broadcasting, and file storage.
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Encoder Options
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Profiles and Levels
Profiles:
- Baseline - Basic features, mobile devices
- Main - Standard features, most applications
- High - Advanced features, HD content, Blu-ray
Common Levels:
- Level 3.0 - SD (720x480 @ 30 fps)
- Level 3.1 - 720p (1280x720 @ 30 fps)
- Level 4.0 - 1080p (1920x1080 @ 30 fps)
- Level 4.1 - 1080p @ 60 fps
- Level 5.0 - 4K (3840x2160 @ 30 fps)
- Level 5.1 - 4K @ 60 fps
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Rate Control Modes
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Recommended Settings
Streaming (1080p @ 30fps):
- Bitrate: 4-6 Mbps
- Profile: High
- Level: 4.0
- GOP Size: 60 (2 seconds)
- B-frames: 2
Recording (1080p @ 60fps):
- Bitrate: 8-12 Mbps
- Profile: High
- Level: 4.1
- GOP Size: 120 (2 seconds)
- B-frames: 3
Low Latency Streaming:
- Bitrate: 2-4 Mbps
- Profile: Main
- Level: 3.1
- GOP Size: 30 (1 second)
- B-frames: 0
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H.265/HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding)
Next-generation codec offering 40-50% better compression than H.264.
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Encoder Options
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Profiles and Tiers
Profiles:
- Main - 8-bit, 4:2:0, standard use
- Main 10 - 10-bit, HDR support
- Main Still Picture - Single images
Tiers:
- Main Tier - Standard applications
- High Tier - Professional/broadcast
Common Levels:
- Level 3.1 - 720p @ 30 fps
- Level 4.0 - 1080p @ 30 fps
- Level 4.1 - 1080p @ 60 fps
- Level 5.0 - 4K @ 30 fps
- Level 5.1 - 4K @ 60 fps
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Recommended Settings
4K Streaming (2160p @ 30fps):
- Bitrate: 15-20 Mbps
- Profile: Main
- Level: 5.0
- GOP Size: 60
- Tile Encoding: Enabled
1080p High Quality:
- Bitrate: 3-5 Mbps
- Profile: Main or Main 10
- Level: 4.0
- GOP Size: 90
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VP8
Google's open-source video codec, primarily for WebM containers.
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Features
- License: Royalty-free, open source
- Container: WebM (preferred), MKV
- Hardware Support: Limited
- Quality: Good at medium-high bitrates
- Complexity: Moderate encoding time
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Recommended Settings
WebM Streaming (720p):
- Bitrate: 1-2 Mbps
- GOP Size: 120
- Quality: Good (0-63 scale, lower is better)
- Threads: Auto
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VP9
Successor to VP8 with significantly improved compression efficiency.
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Features
- License: Royalty-free, open source
- Container: WebM (primary), MKV
- Hardware Support: Recent GPUs (Intel, NVIDIA, AMD)
- Quality: Comparable to H.265
- Complexity: Very high (software), moderate (hardware)
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Profiles
- Profile 0 - 8-bit, 4:2:0 (most common)
- Profile 1 - 8-bit, 4:2:2/4:4:4
- Profile 2 - 10/12-bit, 4:2:0
- Profile 3 - 10/12-bit, 4:2:2/4:4:4
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Recommended Settings
YouTube/WebM (1080p @ 30fps):
- Bitrate: 2-4 Mbps
- Quality/Speed: 1 (fastest), 0 (slowest/best)
- GOP Size: 60
- Tile Columns: 2
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MPEG-2
Legacy codec still used for DVDs and broadcasting.
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Features
- License: Requires license
- Container: MPEG-PS, MPEG-TS, VOB
- Hardware Support: Universal
- Quality: Good but requires higher bitrates
- Use Cases: DVD authoring, broadcasting
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Common Variants
- MPEG-2 DVD - 4-8 Mbps, 720x480/720x576
- MPEG-2 SVCD - 2.5 Mbps, 480x480/480x576
- MPEG-2 HD - 15-25 Mbps, 1920x1080
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Recommended Settings
DVD Video (NTSC):
- Resolution: 720x480
- Bitrate: 6 Mbps
- GOP Size: 15 (NTSC) or 12 (PAL)
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9 or 4:3
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MPEG-4 Part 2
Older MPEG-4 Visual codec (DivX/Xvid era).
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Features
- License: Requires license
- Container: AVI, MP4, MKV
- Quality: Moderate
- Use Cases: Legacy content, low-power devices
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Recommended Settings
Standard Definition:
- Resolution: 640x480
- Bitrate: 1-2 Mbps
- GOP Size: 250
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Audio Codecs
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AAC (Advanced Audio Coding)
Industry-standard audio codec for most applications.
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Encoder Options
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Profiles
- AAC-LC (Low Complexity) - Standard, most compatible
- HE-AAC (High Efficiency) - Better at low bitrates
- HE-AAC v2 - Even better for very low bitrates
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Recommended Bitrates
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Sample Rates
- 44.1 kHz - CD quality, music
- 48 kHz - Professional audio, video
- 32 kHz - Lower quality (voice)
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MP3 (MPEG-1/2 Audio Layer III)
Legacy but still widely used audio codec.
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Encoder Options
- LAME - Excellent quality open-source encoder
- FFmpeg MP3 - Built-in encoder
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Bitrate Modes
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Recommended Settings
Music (High Quality):
- Mode: VBR
- Quality: V0-V2 (LAME scale)
- Approximate Bitrate: 190-245 kbps
- Sample Rate: 44.1 kHz
Podcast/Speech:
- Mode: CBR
- Bitrate: 96-128 kbps
- Sample Rate: 44.1 kHz
Low Bandwidth:
- Mode: VBR
- Quality: V5-V6
- Approximate Bitrate: 120-150 kbps
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Vorbis
Open-source alternative to MP3 and AAC.
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Features
- License: Completely free, no patents
- Container: OGG (primary), WebM, MKV
- Quality: Excellent, especially at low-mid bitrates
- Compatibility: Good but not universal
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Recommended Settings
Music (High Quality):
- Quality: 6-8 (0-10 scale)
- Approximate Bitrate: 192-256 kbps
- Sample Rate: 44.1 kHz or 48 kHz
Streaming:
- Quality: 4-5
- Approximate Bitrate: 128-160 kbps
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Opus
Modern, highly efficient codec for both speech and music.
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Features
- License: Royalty-free, standardized (RFC 6716)
- Container: WebM, MKV, OGG
- Latency: Extremely low (5-66.5 ms)
- Bitrate Range: 6-510 kbps
- Quality: Superior to MP3, AAC, Vorbis
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Applications
- VoIP/Voice Chat: 8-24 kbps
- Music Streaming: 64-128 kbps
- High Fidelity: 128-256 kbps
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Recommended Settings
Voice Chat:
- Bitrate: 16-24 kbps
- Sample Rate: 16 kHz or 48 kHz
- Application: VoIP
Music:
- Bitrate: 96-160 kbps
- Sample Rate: 48 kHz
- Application: Audio
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FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec)
Lossless audio compression.
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Features
- License: Open source, royalty-free
- Compression: Typically 40-60% of original
- Quality: Bit-perfect lossless
- Compatibility: Good and improving
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Compression Levels
- Level 0 - Fastest, ~50% compression
- Level 5 - Default, ~55% compression
- Level 8 - Slowest, ~60% compression
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Recommended Settings
Archival:
- Compression Level: 5-8
- Sample Rate: Original (typically 44.1 or 48 kHz)
- Bit Depth: Original (16 or 24-bit)
Streaming:
- Compression Level: 0-3
- Sample Rate: 44.1 or 48 kHz
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Speex
Specialized codec for voice compression.
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Features
- License: Open source (BSD)
- Purpose: Speech compression (not music)
- Bitrate: 2-44 kbps
- Quality: Optimized for voice
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Modes
- Narrowband (8 kHz) - Phone quality, 2.15-24.6 kbps
- Wideband (16 kHz) - Better clarity, 4-44 kbps
- Ultra-wideband (32 kHz) - Full speech spectrum
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Recommended Settings
VoIP:
- Mode: Wideband
- Quality: 6-8 (0-10 scale)
- Bitrate: ~15-20 kbps
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Hardware Acceleration Overview
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NVIDIA NVENC
Supported Codecs:
- H.264/AVC (all NVIDIA GPUs from Kepler generation)
- H.265/HEVC (Maxwell generation and newer)
Generations:
- Kepler (GTX 600/700) - 1st gen, basic H.264
- Maxwell (GTX 900) - 2nd gen, HEVC support
- Pascal (GTX 10XX) - 3rd gen, improved quality
- Turing/Ampere (RTX 20XX/30XX) - 7th/8th gen, excellent quality
Performance: Up to 8K @ 30 fps (GPU dependent)
Quality Settings:
- Preset: P1 (fastest) to P7 (slowest, best quality)
- Recommended: P4-P6 for balanced quality/speed
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Intel QuickSync
Supported Codecs:
- H.264/AVC (2nd gen Core and newer)
- H.265/HEVC (6th gen Core and newer)
- VP9 (9th gen Core and newer)
Generations:
- Sandy Bridge (2nd gen) - H.264 support
- Skylake (6th gen) - HEVC support
- Ice Lake (10th gen mobile) - Improved quality
- Rocket Lake (11th gen) - Enhanced features
Performance: Up to 4K @ 60 fps
Quality: Good, improving with each generation
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AMD AMF (Advanced Media Framework)
Supported Codecs:
- H.264/AVC (GCN 1.0 and newer)
- H.265/HEVC (Fiji/Polaris and newer)
Generations:
- GCN 1-4 (R7/R9, RX 400/500) - H.264 only
- Vega (RX Vega) - HEVC support
- RDNA (RX 5000/6000) - Improved quality
Performance: Up to 4K @ 60 fps
Quality: Good, competitive with QuickSync
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Codec Selection Guide
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For Streaming (Live)
Recommended: H.264 (NVENC/QuickSync)
- Reason: Universal compatibility, low latency, hardware acceleration
- Fallback: H.264 (software)
Settings:
- 1080p @ 30fps: 4-6 Mbps
- 720p @ 30fps: 2.5-4 Mbps
- Low latency: Disable B-frames
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For Recording (High Quality)
Recommended: H.265 (NVENC/QuickSync) or H.264 (software)
- Reason: Best quality-to-size ratio
- Alternative: HEVC software for maximum quality
Settings:
- 4K @ 30fps: 15-25 Mbps (HEVC) or 35-50 Mbps (H.264)
- 1080p @ 60fps: 8-15 Mbps (HEVC) or 15-25 Mbps (H.264)
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For Web Delivery
Recommended: VP9 or H.264
- Reason: Browser compatibility, royalty-free (VP9)
Settings:
- VP9: 1080p @ 2-4 Mbps
- H.264: 1080p @ 4-6 Mbps
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For Audio
Music: AAC (128-192 kbps) or Opus (96-160 kbps) Voice: Opus (16-32 kbps) or Speex (15-20 kbps) Archival: FLAC (lossless) Podcast: MP3 VBR (V4-V2, ~130-190 kbps) or AAC (128 kbps)