Encoding is the process of converting your video - in whatever form you provide - to another file format. That may sound simple, but encoding is just as much art as it is science. Knowing which encoder to use, how to best tweak the settings given the particular challenges presented by each piece of source video, and how to best maximize the bit budget available for your project are skills that only come with years of experience.

We have prepared the final MPEG-2, H.264 and WMV format video assets for countless projects, ranging from DVD to specialized High Definition video playback scenarios using multiple screens and external sequencers. HD encoding requires extensive knowlege of the myriad frame rates, resolutions, codecs and stream types required by a broad range of available hardware playback systems. We've encoded HD video for devices made by Alcorn McBride, Adtec, Visual Circuits/Focus Enhancements, ElectroSonic/MediaSonic, I/O Data, Roku, as well as proprietary prototype players not yet in production. Each has its own set of quirks and special requirements, often varying from the manufacturer's published specifications. Our extensive internal knowledgebase takes the guesswork out of encoding.

For Standard Definition video, Gamma Ray Digital is Boston's only facility with the Spruce MPX3000 hardware MPEG encoder, widely regarded as one of the top three hardware MPEG 1/2 encoders in use by DVD authoring facilities worldwide. The MPX3000 is a real-time device capable of 2-pass encoding from any analog or digital video source format, with excellent results every time. While tuned for DVD-compliant MPEG streams, it's perfect for quick turnaround high bitrate (12mbps and under) system streams for hardware-based MPEG players in museum and kiosk applications. In addition to the Spruce Encoder, we have a variety of software encoders installed on both Mac and PC workstations, including the Cinemacraft encoder used to prepare MPEG files for most current commercial DVD releases.

We'll prepare your video assets for playback on any of these devices quickly and reliably. We even include loading of the final assets and quality control testing from the actual hardware you're using in the quoted price. That way you can be sure it will work as expected.

For web video, we offer high quality FLV-format encoding. FLV has rapidly become the standard cross-platform format for streaming and downloadable web delivery of video. FLV files can be delivered electronically, for quick turnaround. We'll make the final files available to you on our FTP servers, so you can often be up and running within 24 hours.

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