System information
Working with AVCHD Video
You can edit files recorded with AVCHD camcorders just like any other supported media type on the
timeline.
The following steps will guide you through the process of using AVCHD video in your Vegas Pro project.
5.1-channel audio will be downmixed to stereo when importing into a stereo project. When importing
into a 5.1 surround project, audio will be added to separate tracks for the center, front, rear, and LFE
channels.
1. Shoot your video with an AVCHD camcorder.
2. Start a new Vegas Pro project, and set your project properties to the format that most closely
matches your desired output format.
For example, if you intend to burn the video to an NTSC DVD, choose NTSC DV (720x480, 29.970
fps) from the Template drop-down list on the Video tab of the Project Properties dialog. If you
want to create a 4.8 Mbps high-definition Windows Media Video file, choose HDV 720-24p
(1280x720, 23.976 fps).
For more information, see "Setting Project Properties" on page 53.
3. Import your AVCHD files.
For more information, see "Using the Device Explorer" on page 105.
4. Drag your clips from the Project Media window to the timeline to create events.
5. Edit your project as needed.
If you're working on a system with limited processing power, converting to a lower-resolution
format will streamline the editing process and allow you to preview your project with higher
frame rates. This process is called proxy editing.
For more information, see "Creating Proxy Files for High-Definition Editing" on page 107.
6. Render your project to any supported rendering format.
If you have a supported video card, Vegas Pro can use your GPU to improve AVC rendering
performance. You can turn GPU-accelerated encoding on or off by adjusting the Encode
mode setting on the Video tab of the Custom Settings dialog for a Sony AVC rendering
template: choose Automatic or Render using GPU if available to render using the GPU, or
choose Render using CPU only to turn off GPU-accelerated encoding.
GPU-accelerated rendering performance will vary depending on your specific hardware
configuration. If you have an older CPU and a newer GPU, rendering using the GPU may
improve render times.
Chapter 20
WORKING WITH AVCHD VIDEO419