THE "HOW-TO" OF VIDEO ENCODING
The Windows Media Encoder (free) is the key software tool needed to prepare videos for SermonAudio. |
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Boilsoft provides tools to rip DVDs, split and join WMVs, convert Quicktime and RealMedia files. |
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The Magic DVD Ripper is a tool you can use to "rip" (copy) the video from existing DVDs. |
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The Xilisoft DVD Ripper is a tool you can use to "rip" (copy) the video from existing DVDs. |
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Movavi Video Converter is a ground-breaking video format converter to convert video & DVD files. |
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We recommend the powerful yet easy-to-use Sony Vegas Movie Studio tool for any video editing! |
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SermonAudio supports uploading of Windows Media Video in addition to MP3 audio and PDF texts.
You can upload videos of your church services, special events, welcome/greeting messages, DVD samples, camps and outreaches, etc.
Anyone with the latest version of Windows Media Player installed on their PC can freely stream or download videos
but if you are wishing to upload video content, please consider the following:
- You must be a "FULL" Broadcasting Member (more info).
- One-time $10 upload fee for each new uploaded video.
- No additional monthly fees for video support!
- Unlimited storage and unlimited bandwidth for video!
- Video files are encoded at 150kbps bitrate (HIFI: 340kbps) but you can upload them at any bitrate and we'll auto-convert!
- Broadband internet access is highly recommended.
- Acceptable video formats include: WMV, MP4, M4V.
There are a number of ways to prepare video for the site (live capture, editing, DVD-ripping, converting existing video files)
but the key tool is the Windows Media Encoder which is used in the final step to encode the video to the proper WMV format for PCs.
It is beyond the scope of our help page to give step-by-step details
on each of the different methods of creating the video content. However, we have summarized
the various methods below and the remainder of this page provides step-by-step details of the final encoding step involving the Media Encoder.
Summary of steps:
- Capture LIVE video or DUB video from another source directly into the computer using a video capture tool. If you use the Windows Media Encoder as your video capture tool, you can also encode the captured video to the correct WMV format at the same time eliminating all other steps.
- If you are a live (video) webcaster already, you can simply turn ON the "archive" function of the Windows Media Encoder and use the resulting WMV file to upload to the site. It should already be encoded at the correct setting because the live webcast and archived video settings are the same.
- Optionally, you can RIP the video (to an AVI format) from existing DVDs using any DVD-ripping tool such as Boilsoft DVD-Ripper, the Magic DVD-Ripper, or the Xilisoft DVD-Ripper. (Tip: Rip the DVD to an AVI first, then convert it to an WMV using the Windows Media Encoder).
- Optionally, you can convert existing Quicktime or RealVideo files to the AVI format using any conversion tool such as Boilsoft (also provides handy tools to JOIN or SPLIT video files).
- Optionally, you can edit your video using any video editor of your choice (we recommend Sony's Vegas Movie Studio as a powerful yet easy-to-use general-purpose video editor and DVD-creator).
- The final step is to use the Windows Media Encoder to convert the AVI or MPG video file to the properly-encoded WMV file. We have provided step-by-step details of this step below.
- If you need to, you can use the Windows Media File Editor (which is included with the Media Encoder installation) to quickly and easily TRIM your WMV files.
- All video files are encoded at 150kbps bitrate (HIFI: 340kbps) but you can upload them at any bitrate and we'll auto-convert!
- Use the Submit Sermon form to submit the sermon details and then upload the VIDEO!
(more help on submit & upload)
VIDEO TIP: For an example of a well-encoded VIDEO, please watch the video for this sermon.
Note the video bitrate (under 150kbps). For an example of a HIFI-encoded video (maximum allowable bitrate of 340kbps) please watch this video.
The following screen shots will take you step-by-step through the
final step of encoding your video into the proper WMV bitrate and format (using the Windows Media Encoder tool).
Step 1: Start Windows Media Encoder.
You will need to start the Windows Media Encoder program on your computer.
This is a free tool from Microsoft that you can download by clicking here.
Once the program loads up, the first thing you should see is the following screen (select the Convert a file icon):
Please note that on the above screen, you can optionally select the Capture audio or video icon if you wish to
capture a live video event (or dub a video source into the computer). The remaining screens are generally the same after this point.
If you are a live (video) webcaster on SermonAudio already, you can simply turn ON the "archive" function of the Windows Media Encoder and use the resulting WMV file to upload to the site. It should already be encoded at the correct setting because the live webcast and archived video settings are the same.
If you need to, you can use the Windows Media File Editor (which is included with the Media Encoder installation) to quickly and easily TRIM your resulting WMV files.
Step 2: Click the OK Button and then proceed to the next screen.
For this next step, you will need to use the Browse button to specify the SOURCE video file
as well as the OUTPUT video file. Please note that you can specify an AVI, MPG, or WMV file as the SOURCE video file.
Step 3: Click the NEXT Button and then proceed to the next screen.
Be sure that the Windows Media Server (streaming) option is selected in the list as shown below.
This is the fastest way to select the correct bitrate setting on the next screen.
Step 4: Setting the Bitrate — Important!
Click the NEXT Button and then proceed to the next screen. Here, you will be setting the video bitrate of the
encoded WMV file. It is important that you correctly set the bitrate on this step. Please observe the screenshot below
and ensure that it matches what you are doing.
New! HIFI 
OPTION. Broadcasters that have the HIFI option enabled for their account can webcast at higher bitrates and upload archived media at higher bitrates. You must have this option enabled for your account in order to use the HIFI bitrates. To learn more, please click here..
Please note: In the Video drop-down list, if they are not already selected, select "Multiple Bit Rates Video", and in the Audio drop-down list, select "Multiple Bit Rates Audio".
If you are using any other tool to encode your video files, please note that the maximum allowable bitrate
for video on SermonAudio is 150kbps CBR (HIFI: 340kbps). You can optionally encode your video with lower bitrates to make downloading quicker for viewers.
The WMV (Windows Media Video) file format is a largely popular format which can both be streamed (for immediate playback) or downloaded to the end-user's computer.
Many new Windows-based portable devices (including cell phones, PDAs, portable media players) as well as most PCs are capable
of playing WMV files and it provides a natural fit to our current live video webcasting solution.
Step 5: Click the NEXT Button and then proceed to the next screen.
At this point, you can optionally fill in the
details of your video file (ie: Title, Author, etc). This information will NOT appear anywhere on the SermonAudio site
but it WILL be "attached" to the file and appear in the viewer's Windows Media Player.
Step 6: Finished! That was easy!
Click the NEXT Button and then proceed to the next screen.
At this point you are ready to begin the video conversion process.
If the "Begin converting when I click Finish" option is CHECKED, then after clicking the Finish Button
the conversion will begin immediately. However you can un-check that option to adjust some other settings before beginning if you wish.
Please note that it may take a long time for this last step to finish depending on the length of the video and the speed of your computer.
Please be patient.
Step 11: Strongly recommended step for video encoding presets!
New! SermonAudio has provided the following PRESET Encoding Setting file (modified from the default encoder settings) that you can
download and import into the Encoder for your convenience:
- sermonaudio150.prx - for standard live video webcasters (150kbps).
| Encoding Mode: | CBR |
| Audio Codec: | Windows Media Audio 9.2 |
| Audio Format: | 20kbps, 22khz, mono CBR |
| Video Codec: | Windows Media Video 9 |
| Video Size: | 320x240 (Widescreen: 430x240 or 480x270) |
| Video Bitrate: | 121kbps |
| Frame Rate: | 15fps |
| Key Frame Int: | 10 seconds |
| Vid Smoothness: | 60 |
| Total Bitrate: | 148kbps (do not exceed this) |
- sermonaudio340.prx - for HIFI live video webcasters (340kbps).
| Encoding Mode: | CBR |
| Audio Codec: | Windows Media Audio 9.2 |
| Audio Format: | 20kbps, 22khz, mono CBR |
| Video Codec: | Windows Media Video 9 |
| Video Size: | 320x240 (Widescreen: 430x240 or 480x270) |
| Video Bitrate: | 311kbps |
| Frame Rate: | 29.97fps |
| Key Frame Int: | 8 seconds |
| Vid Smoothness: | 70 |
| Total Bitrate: | 340kbps (do not exceed this) |
Please note: You are welcome to adjust these settings to suit your particular needs but please keep the following
issues in mind if you wish to change the settings:
- Mobile Phones. Most cell phones today can play videos and we take that into consideration with our iPhones and Kinoma solutions.
Providing a satisfactory streaming experience for viewers over a slower cellular network is part of our bitrate policy.
- Portable Media Players. Portable players like Microsoft's Zune can natively play WMV video files. However,
we have found that if the video size is not 320x240, it will take much longer to load these videos on to the device because it must first "convert" them to native size.
- SermonAudio Internet Radio. Although the Internet Radio is an audio-only device, it can also tune into live video webcasts
from the site. However, the manufacturer has advised that only the Windows Media Audio 9.x audio codec be used (do not use the WMA Voice 9 codec).
- Dialup Users. Broadband users will of course benefit the most from the video webcasts. But there are still many who use dialup
and for them, only the audio portion of the stream will be used. For this
reason we recommend that the audio encoding settings are kept under 30kbps if possible for the most reliable streaming experience.
Our "SermonAudio Preset" takes into account the above considerations to provide the optimum encoder settings for the
best possible video and audio experience while at the same time ensuring that
our many dialup users can also enjoy your webcasts reliably. Follow these steps to
properly apply the presets:
At this point, you can select OK to accept all the changes and then you can begin your webcast by clicking on the
Start Encoding button as shown below!
Step 12: TIP for Improving the Quality of "Noisy Video"
New! This entire step is an optional tip to help improve the quality of "noisy video" for those
experiencing this problem. The "noise" is a result of the interlacing artifacts that sometimes appears in video. The below screenshot shows how to make the
necessary setting adjustment to help eliminate "noisy video".
Please note, this option is significantly CPU-intensive and is only advisable if your computer is fairly
powerful with a higher-end graphics card (that supports hardware de-interlacing).
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HIFI OPTION: Broadcasters that have the HIFI option enabled can upload media at higher bitrates. You must have this option enabled for your account in order to use the HIFI bitrates. To learn more, click here..
AUTO-CONVERT: You can actually upload your audio in ANY WMV format and we will automatically convert it to the correct WMV bitrate with the ideal settings for optimum video quality! To learn more, click here..
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YOU ARE DONE! CONGRATULATIONS!
At this point you have created the WMV (video) file suitable for SermonAudio. The next step is
to actually upload the video and get your sermon online! Click here to see how to
SUBMIT and UPLOAD your sermon.
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