MSharpen Filter for VirtualDub

This plugin for VirtualDub implements an unusual concept in spatial sharpening. Although designed specifically for anime, it also works well with normal video. The filter is very effective at sharpening important edges without amplifying noise.

Following are before and after frames for a typical anime:

The justification for the filter is simple. The biggest complaint about Unsharp Mask (for example) is that setting the strength high enough to sharpen important edges also amplifies noise and small detail. MSharpen solves this problem effectively by detecting important edge areas and then applying sharpening only to those areas. You first set the 'threshold' parameter so that desired edges are selected. Then you set the sharpening strength. You can set very high sharpening strengths without amplifying noise or fine detail (because the edge map is used to mask the sharpening).

Version 1.2.1 [Source code]

Version 1.2.1 includes speed optimizations by Andreas Ludwig.

Version 1.0 [Source code]


Copyright (C) 2002, Donald A. Graft, All Rights Reserved.

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