Handbrake rf 18 vs 20. Jan 12, 2026 · HandBrake settings The best HandBrake sett...

Handbrake rf 18 vs 20. Jan 12, 2026 · HandBrake settings The best HandBrake settings depend on your goal: file size, quality, or speed. (684kbps 7. However resulting files so far have been around 800mb for a DVD, at rf 20 they are about 1. RF encoding is the inverse of two-pass encoding. To put it simply, lower RF numbers means more bits in the output video, and higher RF numbers means fewer bits in the output video. com May 16, 2020 · I used to encode my Blurays with Megui and Handbrake back in the day so I do have experience with encoding. A quick comparison of different RF values used to encode a short video clip from within Handbrake. Noting the log scale, it seems that enc_qsv consumes almost two to three times the bitrate of x264 at the same numerical value. It states that for 4K videos with x265 they suggest a Constant Rate Factor (CRF) encoding in the range of 22-28 (the larger the number the lower the quality). 720 is 19, 1080 is 20, and 4K would be 21. ) How large is an HD movie for you at RF 16? RF examples – Here are a couple screenshots taken at different RF settings (one at 20, and one at 30) to give you a very rough starting point (click for a larger view): For a more in-depth look at RF values, check out Comparing x264 “RF” settings in Handbrake (examples) for the full write-up. Constant Rate Factor will increase the Q to, say, 20, for high motion frames (compressing them more) and lower it down to 16 See, DVDs use lossy compression to squeeze down the raw video the studios use to make them -- sort of like a quality level of RF 20. Generally the file size savings is 50% or higher. My first test is encoding right now at 100% quality, 1920x1280, 23. 9. But a RF of 18 (lower number = higher quality) looks better to me for a few megabytes more. It is not file size per RF setting. e. For videos that don't necessarily need to be archive quality (i. Whether you're shrinking large video files fo Dumb question Guys - reading through the handbrake manual and don't understand this at this page HandBrake Documentation — Adjusting quality RF 19-23 for 720p High Definition. 265/HEVC quality: RF or bitrate based? I'm ripping several HDR UHD movies, and with quality set to 19, one movie encodes at an average 15. Aug 5, 2013 · Start with 18 vs 22, where I should, theoretically, see any differences most clearly. Efficiency is visual quality per file size. 1) So as it stands, Handbrake is telling me, it will take 25 hours to encode a 2hours and 20 minutes Blu ray movie. You can find the full writeup with further details at http://mattgadient. h264 vs. 264 and H. Being a newbie to video editing/conversion and Handbrake, I understand that the RF values are used to select quality. So using RF 18-22 doesn't make your video standard def, RF 18-22 is recommended if your video is standard def, and so on. Your recommended settings for the most efficient encoding? I use 265-10b on veryslow at around CRF 18-22 depending on resolution. 1 for DVD sources. That is, RF 18 in one preset will not have the same results as RF 18 in another. May 16, 2020 · I used to encode my Blurays with Megui and Handbrake back in the day so I do have experience with encoding. Constant quality mode does the opposite; you specify a quality level and HandBrake adjusts the bitrate (that is, the size) to meet it. Indeed the RF settings do not line up between the different presets, especially in x265, which enables different codec features in the slower presets that change the behavior quite a bit. halfourdeen. In the past, I went straight to Handbrake’s documentation. So basically the higher the number, the better the quality according to handbrakes own website. 3 which includes three options: MPEG-4, Matroska, and WebM. With each successive "step" up you can increase the ideal best RF by one. The H. Constant Quality - Worth Going Under 18? I’m a bit of a quality nut, and I’m fine with huge file sizes. So between 2 different encoders it's worse. The medium preset still takes 50-60% longer as the H. Is this normal? Are there any other recommended settings? RF 18-22 for 480p/576p Standard Definition 1 RF 19-23 for 720p High Definition 2 RF 20-24 for 1080p Full High Definition 3 RF 22-28 for 2160p 4K Ultra High Definition 4 Raising quality minus 1-2 RF may produce better results when encoding animated Sources (anime, cartoons). Handbrake recommends 25-30 for 720p (and up) for AV1, but on RF 25 I notice very slight compression artifacts on presets 5 and 6, which is what I use. Please be cautious of possible scams. Feb 23, 2025 · Adjust the RF Value: In HandBrake’s quality slider, lower the RF (Rate Factor) value to 18-20. Jan 23, 2017 · I'm considering encoding a bunch of blurays rather than leaving them in their raw (20-40GB form), but I don't want to sacrifice much in terms of quality. At RF 20, auto settings, and preset to "slow", I'm doing about 1/3 the file size, often less, as good as 1/4 the size. Oct 3, 2016 · Results: Bitrate vs CRF/CQ Plotting the bitrates versus CRF/CQ values show significant deviations in the scale of enc_qsv versus x264/x265. We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. If I recall correctly, transcoding animation source files results in better output if the RF isn't so high. We're talking `~15 gb ish. Just as the HQ (High Quality) official presets use RF 18 for SD, RF 19 for 720p, and RF 20 for 1080p, we can implement a simpler quality control that achieves the same goal. 265 MKV 1080p30 preset with an RF of 20 gets me similar drops in size. These are both still better than broadcast quality on most TV channels. If you have the same DVD and are looking to reproduce this test, the following settings were used: On the Videotab, increase video quality by adjusting the control toward the right, and reduce video quality by adjusting the control toward the left. You can test your settings by encoding and watching short clips using HandBrake’s Preview feature. 265->H. 265 RF=24. (Anime) I personally use 20 RF. Since 2160p video is much higher quality, why is it recommending a higher RF? Aug 27, 2016 · The test clips were encoded with Handbrake in H. Recommended quality settings Recommended settings for the x264 and x265 encoders: RF 18-22 for 480p/576p Standard Definition 1 RF 19-23 for 720p High Definition 2 RF 20-24 for 1080p Full High Definition 3 RF 22-28 for 2160p 4K Ultra High Feb 2, 2017 · An in-depth Guide/Tutorial explaining all the x264 intricacies and advanced settings offered in handbrake advanced tab. Hm. 3gb. These are recommended RF (quality) values for those resolution ranges. Dec 6, 2024 · How to use HandBrake to convert videos for Plex? What are the best HandBrake settings for Plex? All the answers are covered in this post. I'm looking for the best quality settings to use for encoding via handbrake. You'll find out what works for your time, source, and space. Recommended quality settings Recommended settings for the x264 and x265 encoders: RF 18-22 for 480p/576p Standard Definition 1 RF 19-23 for 720p High Definition 2 RF 20-24 for 1080p Full High Definition 3 RF 22-28 for 2160p 4K Ultra High Dec 28, 2017 · Does anyone have recommended handbrake settings for UHD rips, my Bluray (H. "Lowered" RF 20 to RF 21 hoping for smaller filesize. The settings in this tab are for those who like to tweak and fine tune the encoder's settings for the video. Sep 26, 2024 · Was sind die besten Einstellungen für die konstante Qualität der RF-Werte in HandBrake? Verwenden Sie den besten konstanten Qualitäts-RF-Wert in HandBrake, um ein optimales Gleichgewicht zwischen Qualität und Dateigröße zu erreichen. The first is the "RF" level, which is the primary setting that controls video quality. h264 10-bit vs. If someone with 20/20 vision and a 1080p display can discern a difference between (quality setting) 20 and 18 when seated at a distance that allows him/her to fully resolve 1080p, that's quite objective. Lower the RF value, higher Mar 20, 2023 · "Aaarrrrgggghhhhh!!!" Handbrake has a lot of customizable settings but in my testing I focused on two. Be aware, higher quality encoding settings can create larger file sizes, than a lower (faster) quality setting for the same RF. Aug 8, 2023 · The lowest you typically would ever want to go is around the mid-teens and I typically encode with H. The HandBrake Documentation site recommend these settings: RF 18-22 for 480p/576p Standard Definition RF 19-23 for 720p High Definition RF 20-24 for 1080p Full High Definition RF 22-28 for 2160p 4K Ultra High Definition I'm a little confused: why would you set a higher RF (lower quality) for a High Definition video? Shouldn't it be the opposite? RF 18-22 for 480p/576p Standard Definition 1 RF 19-23 for 720p High Definition 2 RF 20-24 for 1080p Full High Definition 3 RF 22-28 for 2160p 4K Ultra High Definition 4 Raising quality minus 1-2 RF may produce better results when encoding animated Sources (anime, cartoons). See, DVDs use lossy compression to squeeze down the raw video the studios use to make them -- sort of like a quality level of RF 20. Here's my question -- any suggestions for the settings when exporting from Adobe? I don't want to introduce new artifacts. To reduce video quality, adjust the quality control toward the left. Am I missing something? RF 18 will give pretty much the same quality as the original rip while trimming down the size by a lot. I’m using HandBrake 1. If I really want good quality RF=20, by RF=18 you can barely see the improvement even in a side by side comparison. www. The slow preset on H. I've read mixed answers in regards to x265 and x264 and the balance For pre-text i'm using placebo encode speed for maximum efficiency (I don't care about time) if setting constant Quality to 50 slices my video into like 2 pixels and 0 is lossless quailty for that 24907259097375027 pixels, why does the suggestions say 20-22 for Blue-ray quality (what I view as 4k) and 20-18 for Disc (what I view as 1080p) when the values should be switched around? I'm using 18 Also, to save space, are you turning up the RF value to 20 when not required? Thus, would RF 18 work for all films but some of them would now be overkill? I guess I'm asking is raising the RF value lowering the quality or raising it? I'm not familiar with Handbrake. Using the quality control Most of HandBrake’s official Presets use the x264 video encoder and a constant quality setting between RF 18 and 24. 264 (x264) with High profile, RF 18–20 for standard HQ or RF 16 for Super HQ. There are many unofficial mirrors of HandBrake and while most of them offer legit versions of HandBrake, there are a few that don't. My Handbrake settings are quite simple: (Assuming the source media is HDR): H265 10-bit Constant Quality, with CRF = 18 Preset = "Very Fast" My hardware is an Intel 16 core / 32 thread processor. A lower RF number means higher quality. Jul 21, 2016 · The proposed idea is essentially to alias a given quality label to a rate factor based on resolution. Windows For 10 and later (Intel or AMD x64 CPU's): Download (exe installer) Download (zip package) (Qualcomm/ARM64 CPU's): Download (exe installer) Download (zip package) Your recommended settings for the most efficient encoding? I use 265-10b on veryslow at around CRF 18-22 depending on resolution. 6 you don't need as low an RF value that you might be using with standard dvds, you should be using an RF somewhere between 20-22. videos that are for my non-quality-snob family rather than for myself) and that are 40+ mins long, I'll typically do 23 RF for 1080p and 22 RF for 720p. "? Handbrake Quality Question? If I was to encode using the very fast preset with rf set to 16, would the encode be better than veryslow at 20? Am I right in thinking that it doesn't matter how quick you encode, its all about the rf setting? The very fast encode will be bigger as its encoded quicker and the very slow would be aloy smaller? We're talking `~15 gb ish. You can test your settings by encoding and watching short clips using HandBrake’s Preview feature. spaced by 4). RF 18 is the highest quality you need to realistically go for _DVD_. Have a print that's pretty grainy, so naturally ended up with a fairly chunky file that was only about 1/2 the size of the original that I remuxed in MakeMKV. 265 FPS: Same as source (Variable fps) Constant Quality: 20 RF (I use 18 for any rare DVD rips) Encode Preset: Medium Encoder Tune: None (no fast decode) Encoder Profile: Auto Is this suitable for encoding UHDs H. To increase video quality, adjust the quality control toward the right. 98 fps, progressive. HandBrake is free software and does not require an account to use! It runs entirely locally on your computer. Oct 4, 2020 · The first thing you need to decide when ripping a video using HandBrake is the resulting file format. RF20 vs RF20 was easily noticeable especially on people. Jan 11, 2017 · This question is based on the software Handbrake. You decide the quality level at the start and during a single pass, Handbrake adjusts the bit rate in real-time to meet the quality level you set, again determined by the complexity of each frame. h265 (10-bit vs. For the rest of the videos I typically do 20 RF for both Nov 26, 2019 · I believe Handbrake recommends RF 20-23 for HD sources, but I've found RF 20 to be noticeably better than 23, at least to my eyes, all other settings being equal. I open the movie in Handbrake and set the encoding range to "Seconds" and queue up the 10 sample files using my default encoding values. When looking at the recommendations and what everyone is saying, for the constant quality the lowest setting that is recommended is 18. The quality of a x264 veryfast CRF 18 is maybe equals to a x264 veryslow CRF20. 265 is painful and i run an i5-4670K @4Ghz and it took forever. RF 20-24 for 1080p Full High Definition. 265 profile is; Video Codec: H. 265 (x265), Constant Quality=20 RF Preset: very slow (did this because somewhere i read it makes it a very small file. RF 22-28 for 2160p 4K Ultra High Definition. These are the lowest quality RF's I'll do. fr), this sub is for information exchange and helping out, not affiliated with the developers. Slow, medium, and fast are a trade-off between your patience and quest for the highest possible quality. Nov 26, 2025 · Summary: 480p and 576p are the best HandBrake settings for DVD to MP4 rippingand, top recommended presets are H. My settings: H. care to share your suggestions for settings to speed up the process? Bump up the preset to something faster, or switch to hardware encoding, depending on how inefficient you want to get. This setting balances compression and quality, reducing the chances of noticeable artifacts. I started with encodes from the “24” DVD (Season 6, Episode 1). You should compare a few HQ and SuperHQ presets with 264 vs 265 encoders, medium vs slow speed, audio etc. 265? A higher RF value will lower the file size. What're the Best Constant Quality RF Value Settings in HandBrake? Use the best constant quality RF value in HandBrake to get best balance between quality and file size. I see many people say to split out around 10 1min clips using MKVToolnix or something, but as far as I'm concerned this is an uneccesary extra step as with timestamps you can do the exact same thing in Jan 24, 2015 · A constant QP encode at Q=18 will stay at Q=18 regardless of the frame. Likewise, the HQ and Super HQ Presets use even slower video encoder presets (x264 slow and veryslow, respectively) and even higher quality (RF 20 and 18, respectively), while also including surround audio. com/comparing-x264 Sep 27, 2022 · 3) RF 25 When I researched this, I believe I read something that said that anything above RF 20 was a waste of time for mundane content and transcoding projects. Constant Quality vs Average Bit Rate HandBrake supports two modes of encoding video. Recommended HandBrake settings by use case RF examples – Here are a couple screenshots taken at different RF settings (one at 20, and one at 30) to give you a very rough starting point (click for a larger view): For a more in-depth look at RF values, check out Comparing x264 “RF” settings in Handbrake (examples) for the full write-up. It throws away detail. Regard RF settings, I’ve found that I see a negligible difference—if any at all—between 24 to 22 to 18 (doing still frame comparisons), yet the file sizes went up several times over, to the point that a straight MKV rip would be the same size (and I imagine it would be smaller than a file at RF 14. 264) to H. Of if you think you can afford hair more quality, move the RF to 19. Whether you're shrinking large video files fo Apr 8, 2019 · I mainly use Handbrake now use ffmpeg because I learned Handbrake only has a 8-bit internal pipeline. Probably not enough, as you are more than fine going into RF 19 or even 20 and still get the best quality, or at least not be able to tell the difference. Is it because that’s the point in which you start getting diminishing returns? Here, I’m taking a look at various RF settings in Handbrake, both in terms of visuals and filesize. My memory is hazy but I ended up with RF 19 or RF 20. These are the settings that seem most important (as far as I know): AV1 vs. If you think 20 RF is a bit damanding on file size, move to 22 or 24. Video Information RF 18-22 for 480p/576p Standard Definition 1 RF 19-23 for 720p High Definition 2 RF 20-24 for 1080p Full High Definition 3 RF 22-28 for 2160p 4K Ultra High Definition 4 Raising quality minus 1-2 RF may produce better results when encoding animated Sources (anime, cartoons). DJ, now I understand. The price for higher quality and more features is again larger file sizes, and longer time to encode. The CRF is just a level that you can adjust with the SAME profiles and same settings, means if you have x264 preset slow and x264 preset slower with the same CRF you will not have the same result. Playing videos side by side i couldnt tell, although thats making the screen approx. Choose "Slow" or "Very Slow" encoder presets for better quality, and stick with Level 3. (I personally use 24 RF; slower; 265x) For DVD: (live action) I would use 18 RF, slow, keeping all else the same. . Apr 8, 2019 · I mainly use Handbrake now use ffmpeg because I learned Handbrake only has a 8-bit internal pipeline. CQ Setting on M1 Macs using VideoToolbox (different from RF?) Hello, I've been trying out the version of Handbrake that's built for native compatibility with Apple's M1 SoC. 12-bit)? Constant quality (RF value)? I remember hearing something in the range of 18-20 RF is good, but any thoughts there? Encoder preset? "Very fast, fast, medium, slow, very slow, etc. 3. I use 20 just to be safe but many folks report transparent results with certain content at 21 or 22. This is the unofficial subreddit for the handbrake video conversion software (handbrake. Handbrake x264 "Constant Quality" (RF) comparisons YouTube Handbrake Quality Rf 0, 10, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32. Sep 17, 2013 · Quote: Originally Posted by Donny Bahama /t/1491023/optimal-settings-for-handbrake-blu-ray-and-dvd-rips#post_23762283 I disagree. Dec 27, 2011 · I took it down to 19 from 20 as the help guide said lower is better quality. 265 for comparison at 11 different CRF values, evenly spaced from 8 to 48 inclusive (i. 🧪 Here's how to use the best Handbrake settings to get the perfect balance between file size and video quality. A short sample encode will look exactly the same as your final full encode. com We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. H. 265 RF 18 (occasionally 19) and preset SLOW. 264 run. Constant Quality Benefits over Average Bitrate Faster Encoding Handbrake Quality Question? If I was to encode using the very fast preset with rf set to 16, would the encode be better than veryslow at 20? Am I right in thinking that it doesn't matter how quick you encode, its all about the rf setting? The very fast encode will be bigger as its encoded quicker and the very slow would be aloy smaller? I use Handbrake to put content onto my media server for convenience - my objective is quality first, size reduction second - I use H. For most users in 2026, H. 10 and 12-bit encoding Supported Encoders The follow encoders support higher than 8-bit. 2Mbps bitrate while another at an average 5. 5 and so on. So I'm not sure what the best settings are to go about encoding them. 13" each at a distances of 30-40cm for viewing. Thank you for taking the time to teach me. Move the constant quality rf slider far enough to the right (or use a high enough average bitrate) and the. 265 (x265), Constant Quality RF 20–22, and a built-in preset like “HQ 1080p30” give the best balance between quality and compression. Free open source HandBrake offers users a lot of controls and tools to transcode video, one of which is quality setting. Constant Quality Benefits over Average Bitrate Faster Encoding RF 18 will give pretty much the same quality as the original rip while trimming down the size by a lot. Lower quality settings may be used to produce smaller files. I have one clip sitting on top of the other. With these settings, it takes about 3 hours to fully encode a movie. Constant Quality Benefits over Average Bitrate Faster Encoding 20-24 is 1080 full high def. Mar 25, 2012 · Is this for the new aTV3? With blu-ray rips and the High Profile pre-set in 0. The ICQ/CQ scales aren't even the same for different encoder settings with the same encoder. The HandBrake Documentation site recommend these settings: RF 18-22 for 480p/576p Standard Definition RF 19-23 for 720p High Definition RF 20-24 for 1080p Full High Definition RF 22-28 for 2160p 4K Ultra High Definition I'm a little confused: why would you set a higher RF (lower quality) for a High Definition video? Shouldn't it be the opposite? Likewise, the HQ and Super HQ Presets use even slower video encoder presets (x264 slow and veryslow, respectively) and even higher quality (RF 20 and 18, respectively), while also including surround audio. Audio: English DTS AC3 Passthru. Download the HandBrake Application or Source Code. 1Mbps bitrate. Is there reason to be concerned about the quality of the movie on a 4K screen (both are new Star Trek movies)? Efficiency is visual quality per file size. May 5, 2016 · Video: H. When HandBrake uncompresses the video prior to conversion, the quality lost when the DVD was made is still gone. With the average bitrate, you control the size of the output file but give up control over the video’s quality. Begin by making small adjustments; plus or minus a few steps is usually noticeable. 265 10 bit Passthru metadata No filters RF 20, medium speed, peak framerate Passthru audio plus encode TrueHD to AC3 (some of my devices don't like truhd) passthru english subs Midway 4k looks better than HD, but my tinker tailor soldier spy 4k looks muddier than HD. ) How large is an HD movie for you at RF 16? 🧪 Here's how to use the best Handbrake settings to get the perfect balance between file size and video quality. RF 18-22 for 480p/576p Standard Definition 1 RF 19-23 for 720p High Definition 2 RF 20-24 for 1080p Full High Definition 3 RF 22-28 for 2160p 4K Ultra High Definition 4 Raising quality minus 1-2 RF may produce better results when encoding animated Sources (anime, cartoons). So, is there any technical difference between CQ for both the encoders used? Does (Hardware accelerated) ICQ=20 differ from (software based) CQ=20 or is the underlying scale exactly the same? They're completely different. eaelw rroxb odigfj ufmg tzqqb rbch lamyq tdxdqv usrt eljztm