<p>I assume you're using the Mainconcept AVC encoder. 3GB for a 1h50m video implies a bitrate of 3.7 mbps. That's the average bitrate you need. Set max bitrate to 5 mbps.</p>

<p>Now, usually I render in two passes. First pass is a high bitrate from Vegas  (20 mbps or more) and then encode with <a href="http://ffmpeg.org/download.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">ffmpeg</a>, which is a free command line tool.</p>

<p>Command would be</p>

<pre><code>ffmpeg -i vegas.mp4 -crf 23 -movflags +faststart final.mp4
</code></pre>

<p>ffmpeg offers lot more variables to adjust but the above should be enough for most size adjustment. Usually a CRF value between 18-28 (lower is better but bigger) works.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-12-19T22:01:16.930Z
If Vegas can't produce a small enough H.264 file on its own, it would be better to encode with Vegas to a better mezzanine format than H.264, like DNxHD, ProRes, or even XDCAM/MPEG-2, and then use ffmpeg to convert to H.264. H.264 suffers from very severe concatenation issues that are visible to the average viewer.
Michael Liebman
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-12-20T05:10:45.250Z
'concatenation' issues? I don't follow. My workflow is for output meant for web playout, not broadcast.
Gyan
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-12-20T13:57:33.983Z
Concatenation errors occur when you go through multiple encode/decode cycles, particularly of the same codec. I understand that your workflow wasn't for broadcast, but the problems with H.264 are so bad even with just 2 codec cycles, that the average person will notice significant drops in quality. It's no more difficult for the OP to output from Vegas to MPEG-2 and get a much better result.
Michael Liebman
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-12-19T17:47:47.213Z
2016-12-19T17:47:47.213Z
Gyan
<p>So I have decided to unite in a whole video everything I have of my child. I wanna render it in a sole .mp4 file with 1080p, good audio, etc. I want all that <em>(1:50:00)</em> in 2GB or 3GB, no more. I've seen videos accomplishing this smoothly, but everything I've tried so far ends in 9-12GB.</p>

<p>What I need to do to achieve it?</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-09-07T03:32:33.917Z
Instead of targeting the final size you should target the bitrate. 1080p at bitrate lower than, say, 5 Mbit/s using AVC encoder would be too low. Not sure why do you care about the file size, the storage in cheap. Unless you plan to put it on a FAT32 memory card.
Rusty Core
<export>
Proper HD export format in Sony Vegas Pro 13 for a decent video size?
Alain Alemany
# Proper HD export format in Sony Vegas Pro 13 for a decent video size?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-12-19)

So I have decided to unite in a whole video everything I have of my child. I wanna render it in a sole .mp4 file with 1080p, good audio, etc. I want all that *(1:50:00)* in 2GB or 3GB, no more. I've seen videos accomplishing this smoothly, but everything I've tried so far ends in 9-12GB.

What I need to do to achieve it?

Thanks.

**Tags:** export

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Instead of targeting the final size you should target the bitrate. 1080p at bitrate lower than, say, 5 Mbit/s using AVC encoder would be too low. Not sure why do you care about the file size, the storage in cheap. Unless you plan to put it on a FAT32 memory card.  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2016-12-19. Score: 0

I assume you're using the Mainconcept AVC encoder. 3GB for a 1h50m video implies a bitrate of 3.7 mbps. That's the average bitrate you need. Set max bitrate to 5 mbps.
Now, usually I render in two passes. First pass is a high bitrate from Vegas  (20 mbps or more) and then encode with ffmpeg, which is a free command line tool.
Command would be
ffmpeg -i vegas.mp4 -crf 23 -movflags +faststart final.mp4

ffmpeg offers lot more variables to adjust but the above should be enough for most size adjustment. Usually a CRF value between 18-28 (lower is better but bigger) works.

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: If Vegas can't produce a small enough H.264 file on its own, it would be better to encode with Vegas to a better mezzanine format than H.264, like DNxHD, ProRes, or even XDCAM/MPEG-2, and then use ffmpeg to convert to H.264. H.264 suffers from very severe concatenation issues that are visible to the average viewer.  
> **username_2**: 'concatenation' issues? I don't follow. My workflow is for output meant for web playout, not broadcast.  
> **username_3**: Concatenation errors occur when you go through multiple encode/decode cycles, particularly of the same codec. I understand that your workflow wasn't for broadcast, but the problems with H.264 are so bad even with just 2 codec cycles, that the average person will notice significant drops in quality. It's no more difficult for the OP to output from Vegas to MPEG-2 and get a much better result.  

---

