Avid DNxHR Video

Avid DNxHR identifies resolution-independent production workflows in the VC-3 video coding family.

A production needs to edit pictures larger or differently shaped than traditional fixed HD modes. DNxHR supplies resolution-independent production workflows in the VC-3 family, retaining independently coded pictures while extending the useful raster choices.

That does not give one fixed data rate to the letters “HR.” The chosen picture size, quality representation and picture rate determine how much data the source supplies.

Data rate from a published UHD frame size

Avid's published legacy UHD table gives 3,641,344 coded bytes per frame for its 3840 ×2160 HQ/HQX example.

At 25 fps:

3,641,344 ×25 =91,033,600 bytes/s.

At 50 fps:

3,641,344 ×50 =182,067,200 bytes/s.

Declared example Decimal byte rate Binary byte rate
UHD example at 25 fps 91.0336 MB/s Approximately 86.8164 MiB/s
Same coded frame size at 50 fps 182.0672 MB/s Approximately 173.6328 MiB/s

The 25 fps case is 728.2688 Mb/s when expressed in decimal bits per second. This is a calculated production-data example from the published frame size, excluding additional wrapper/audio traffic. It is not the rate of every DNxHR file.

Avid's current data-rate table uses MiB/s explicitly. Multiplying the published byte count first makes the unit conversion transparent and helps compare it with other storage or delivery numbers.

Select a production representation

Familiar level Role suggested by its name
LB Low-bandwidth production/proxy representation
SQ Standard quality
HQ High quality
HQX High quality extended
444 Higher-fidelity color representation

A smaller proxy can make an editing session easier to handle, while finishing can return to the retained higher-quality source. Independent pictures provide direct frame access in both roles; quantization and coding choices determine the picture information retained.

The sample-format permissions belong to the actual codec generation and mode. The names alone should not be used to impose historical 8-/10-bit restrictions on newer Avid DNx output.

The newer name is Avid DNx

Avid now uses Avid DNx without the HD, HR orGX suffixes, with its updated quality-level and capability scheme. Its newer implementation offers broader precision/alpha options and adjustable rates within the defined levels.

The old DNxHR label remains useful for existing files, older exports and the historical specification. Record the actual raster, rate, profile and sample format when distinguishing those sources.

A conversion for Emby viewing begins by reconstructing that production source. A delivery codec can exploit temporal relationships between its pictures and choose a much smaller viewing-data budget. The independently coded source remains the finishing input, while that output is a separate presentation designed for delivery.

See Also

References