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GF2 Stable Settings
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  • More pondering how GOP and I-frame size could affect stability... and this thread is about stability :)

    The longer GOP gives the taller I-frame size. As overall bitrate increases, the longer GOP lowers the stability. That's why we don't have 155Mbps GOP12. I speculate that there might be a cap on how tall I-frame can grow. So what's best bang for the buck I-frame size?

    The 32Mbps AQ4 GOP15 made 800KB I-frame. The detail on static shot looked good enough to me.

    1080p30 GOP1 would require 192Mbps to produce 800KB I-frame. 1080p30 GOP3 around 110Mbps. 1080p30 GOP6 around 80Mbps.

    That sounds pretty stupid to bump up the overall bitrate just to achieve 800KB I-frame for static shots. But the shorter GOP has taller I-frame than the longer GOP's I-frame for action shots.

    24p/30p/60i settings are sorta intermingled, and it seems they better have same GOP. Correct me if I'm wrong.

    GOP3 or GOP6 seems reasonable choice to support wider range of modes. Glad to see @lpowell's GOP3 approach.

    I'm not a GOP1 hater though. 1080p24 GOP1 would require 0.8 * 8 * 24 = 154Mbps, and @driftwood's 24p patch looks absolutely fantastic.

    Prolly I'm just repeating what others have already said…

  • StoneBat.. Im still new to this all.. Im just trying to shoot as close to the GH2 with a film like feel, but get the max out of this GF2.. Any suggestions and or can you recommend / load a file?

    Thanks..

  • I really don't know.

  • Stonebat.. Can we get the same settings and performance out of a GF2 and or GH2... I looked here and saw the differences but do they apply after HACKING?

    http://snapsort.com/compare/Panasonic_Lumix_DMC-GF2-vs-Panasonic_Lumix_DMC-GH2

  • @wrleo at the top it says last updated June 2011. The GF2 has only been hackable for a few days so it cant be after hacking. I will post my results later of the new driftwood patch "Quantam X v2 rocket" which is one of the best intra patches you can use now for the gf2 and gh2.

  • @stonebat - after resetting settings it seems to work ok with your patch, thanks!

    Also it seems like this patch is focusing on 1080 settings. Do you intend to add anything for 720p or mjpg settings?

  • @videohq yes, that's the one I'm referring to at least. If there's > 1 I'm not aware of the others.

  • Technically it's @cbrandin's 44Mbps patch without the settings for the testers.

    http://www.personal-view.com/talks/discussion/comment/16757#Comment_16757

    See this new attachment. The seti.ini contains the settings for the end users.

    Please ask Chris Brandin for details as I have no idea why he picked 2x on the bitrates. I'm gonna give GF2 back to my wife as she's been asking where her camera is.

    Hope you guys find what you want. Good luck~!

    seti.ini
    476B
  • Are you leaving from GF2 hack development for good or just for now?

  • These are gf2 settings? Video Bitrate 24H=44000000 Video Bitrate 24L=32000000

  • @videohq Try the one I attached and check if it gives higher bitrate. Roughly it would double the stock bitrates. Let's just call it 44Mbps settings. It's one of the popular settings.

    FYI @cbrandin's 44Mbps settings are considered as the benchmark. It's very good ;)

  • @holmes6 Prolly the settings will be ignored by PTool.

  • @ryanhoj I'm sure more help will be on the way as expert testers will be getting GF2. They are busy with GH2 settings for now.

  • I went out to use the new "Quantum X v2 Rocket" settings today and here is what i found. I first used these settings on the codec stress pictures posted on page one. I was able to record for 11 minutes and i got 96mbps with no errors or anythings wrong. But when i tried to use 720p mode i couldn't even record for 1 second without a write speed error. So i went out to record today and i found that the patch is decently stable. I filmed 50 clips and during 9 or 10 of them the camera froze and i had to take out the battery and put it back in. When the camera did freeze though it was on the same 2 shots. One a well lit zoomed in shot of pine needles and another shot of a walkway that was poorly lit. I can't figure out why the camera froze on those two(Probably because the patch is new and not much gf2 footage has been tested with it yet) but on my other clips i averaged 85-95mbps without any errors. All of the clips that worked were 108060i, i still cant get 720p mode to work with this patch in even dark low detailed areas for more that 2 seconds. Anyone find anything else with this patch yet?

  • 44Mbps 720p60 AQ4, 32Mbps 1080i60 AQ4 pretty stable, thanks Vitaliy !

    setg.ini
    469B
  • I'm new at this, so here goes what is most likely a stupid question: is there any possibility of making live view AV out available while shooting video ? I ask because this little camera would be an excellent companion for my Quadcopter due to it's weight and small size. And since video quality seems no longer to be a problem… :D

  • If anyone is interested in Spain you can buy the GF2 + 14 mm lens from an online shop called www.fotoboom.com at a little over 350 €.

  • I think in general things to keep in mind when talking about stable: What happens when the file reaches 4GB? Can the video be played back on the camera? Were there any errors? If so, describe (card, scene). Can the error be duped reliably?

    Saying something like "Pretty Stable" is too ambiguous for others to understand.

  • Settings Tested:
    Video Bitrate FSH/SH=48000000
    720p Top Setting=44000
    720p Bottom Setting=24000
    720p60 GOP Size=3
    Video buffer=0x1800000
    720p60 FB1=691200
    Auto Quantizer for 720 modes=4 - All to details

    Environment:
    GF2 with kit 14-42 lens and PNY 16GB class 10 20MB pointing at 1366-768 laptop playing 3 second slideshow of stress images AFC

    Results:
    Does the file span successfully at 4GB? Yes
    Can the file be played back on the camera? Partially, plays a few seconds and stops, can be restarted after ff
    Were there any errors? None Observed

    Streamparser:

    720p-custom.jpg
    1295 x 681 - 231K
  • @videohq sure, but just note it's only changing 720p settings now.. If you want to change 1080i you need to modify it or use someone else's settings. Also note I am no expert on this, just kind of messing with settings from others. I'm hoping to post some 1080 settings too, but want to test more first.

    720p-only-48aq4.zip
    332B
  • I got card write error when i tested 48Mbps720p60 and 39Mbps1080i60 on TEAM 16GB Class 10. I choosed 44Mbps for 720p60 and 32Mbs for 1080i60 and recorded full card with stress pictures and motions at ones without any error. Recorded files all playable on camera...

    44M720p60.jpg
    1277 x 666 - 165K
  • I think these settings I'm posting are stable. Whether they're good, well I'm not sure, I only shot test screens and I do not have the eye of a pro to tell much difference with small changes very well.

    Changed some settings on mjpg also, seems to work and looks good, but only ~3.5 min of record time Settings Tested:
    E1 Quality=300
    E1 Table=24
    E2 Quality=270
    E2 Table=24
    E3 Quality=240
    E3 Table=24
    E4 Quality=200
    E4 Table=24

    Environment: Same as above

    Does the file span successfully at 4GB? No, it only reaches 2GB and does not span
    Can the file be played back on the camera? No, card read error
    Were there any errors? Only during playback.

    MediaInfo:
    Video
    Codec ID : jpeg
    Duration : 3mn 32s
    Bit rate mode : Variable
    Bit rate : 74.7 Mbps
    Width : 1 280 pixels
    Height : 720 pixels
    Display aspect ratio : 16:9
    Frame rate mode : Constant
    Frame rate : 30.000 fps
    Compression mode : Lossy
    Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 2.703
    Stream size : 1.84 GiB (99%)

    And 1080i avc:

    Settings Tested:
    Video Bitrate FH/H=32000000
    Video buffer=0x1800000
    1080i60 FB1=783360
    1080i Top Setting=32000
    1080i Bottom Setting=24000

    Environment: Same as above

    Results:
    Does the file span successfully at 4GB? Yes
    Can the file be played back on the camera? Yes, although I did not test thoroughly.
    Were there any errors? None Observed

    Streamparser:

    1080-holmes6-4.jpg
    1292 x 678 - 230K
    holmes6-gf2-4.zip
    423B
  • Hello guys, i ve got a question, I m sure i will receive an answer. I want to buy GF2 or GH1, i want to ask, if i hack GF2 can it shoot videos at 720p60p? like GH1, i need it for slow motion, is it possible? and also after hack which camera records better GH1 or GF2? Thanks

  • videohg, what lens did you used?

  • @BekaKob: The GF2 is not capable of recording true 720/60p, with or without the hack (it only records 720/30p, but doubles each frame to comply with the 60p standard). I understand this is a limitation of the sensor, not the firmware, so do not expect this will change in the future. Given the choice, I would take a GH1 over a GF2 for video work. At this point, the GF2 does not even have full manual controls over video exposure (although VK is working on it), the GH1 sensor is superior (lower noise, higher resolution, multi-aspect ratio), and the fold out screen comes in handy for video work.