HomePage 4 of 10: MeGUI: Video Encoding Options
Step 4: MeGUI: Video Encoding Options
We'll now set up the H.264 encoding options in the x264 encoder. This step has the most options to configure, and this is where PS3 compatibility is determined. This guide won't go into detail about all the options, just the ones you need to ensure PS3 compatibility - and if you need further explanation of the options, refer to our x264 Options Explained article.
In the MeGUI "Input" section, select one of the "x264" profiles for the "Encoder setting" option. We do not need to set a container as we will do that later using the "AutoEncode" function.
The PS3's H.264 video support is limited to the following (you don't need to understand what it all means):
- AVC Profile: Baseline, Main or High Profiles
- Maximum bitrate: None specified (although testing shows stuttering occuring above 20 Mbps)
- AVC Level: 4.2 (although 4.1 or below is recommended)
- No B-Pyramid and P4x4 support
The "x264: PlayStation 3" profiles are the one that we need and using this one will ensure compatibility with the PS3. If you want to be able to set the output file size, you need to select the "2-pass" profile - all the other profiles will have unpredictable output file sizes as they're either based on encoding speed or output quality. For example, "Balanced" will give you a good balance between encoding speed and quality, but you can choose something like "High Quality" for that extra bit of quality, or "Insane" if you don't mind spending hours to encode just a few minutes of video.
