TMPGenc, what setting do i use for widesceen encoding?

[status66uk]

hi everyone

ive been using tmpgenc for a while now but now ive just got a widescreen television and i wondered what aspect ratio i should use to encode files in widescreen? on the second page of the project wizard in tmpgenc it give you 8 options to choose from, which one will i choose for widescreen? i had an idea it might be 16:9 625 line (pal) but i thought id check with some of the experts on here first

any info on this subject would be appreciated

thanks in advance

[mysticgohan17]

wrong area.

[j1d10t]

We need more information before we can offer any real help It also depends on what you are encoding. Some movies are 16x9, and some are 2.11:1, which is wider than 16x9 - movies like Star Wars and Indiana Jones are 2.11:1, just as an example, but most movies are 16x9. Also, are you making an anamorphic widescreen DVD, or are you trying for a widescreen VCD/SVCD? Keep in mind that VCD/SVCD does not support anamorphic widescreen - you have to stretch the image vertically when you encode (by setting TMPGEnc to Full Screen), and then have your TV stretch the image horizontally by setting it to Full Screen.

[poopyhead]

looks like you are confused with source settings and output settings.

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on the second page of the options (ADVANCED), it will want you to input SOURCE SETTINGS....this is irregardless of how you want to output...this only depends on the source. source can either be 16:9 or 4:3.

if you use dvd2avi at all, you can load the vobs into dvd2avi and press f5. an info box will appear telling you the SOURCE ASPECT RATIO.

as for NTSC or PAL, it depends on which region the commercial DVD is made for. if region 1 US/Canada/Mexico, of course the source will be "525 line NTSC".

IMAGE POSITIONING METHOD should be set to "fit to frame (preserve aspect ratio)" or "full screen (preserve aspect ratio)", depending on which version of tmpgenc you have.

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output video settings are determined by what type of TV you want to play the movie on. for regular TV, your OUTPUT aspect ratio will be 4:3. if you want to play it on widescreen, OUTPUT aspect ratio will be 16:9.

keep in mind, however, that these are NOT INTERCHANGEABLE. if you made your output video 16:9 to play on widescreen TV, the video will be skewed (messed up) if you play it on regular 4:3 TV...and vice-versa

[funkguy4]

output video settings are determined by what type of TV you want to play the movie on. for regular TV, your OUTPUT aspect ratio will be 4:3. if you want to play it on widescreen, OUTPUT aspect ratio will be 16:9.

keep in mind, however, that these are NOT INTERCHANGEABLE. if you made your output video 16:9 to play on widescreen TV, the video will be skewed (messed up) if you play it on regular 4:3 TV...and vice-versa

What's this hooplah about output aspect is based on what kind of TV you want to play it on. THIS IS NOT TRUE!!! If you have a fullscreen movie you need to set the output aspect to 4:3. If you have anything less than 1.77:1, then you need to letterbox it into a 4:3 frame. If you have something exactly 1.77:1 (16:9), then you DO NOT NEED TO LETTERBOX even if you plan to playback on a fullscreen TV, and this is because if you tell your DVD Player that you have a fullscreen TV, it will letterbox for you automatically. If you have something wider than 16:9, then you need to letterbox that into a widescreen frame (i.e.: fit a 2.35:1 movie into a 16:9 frame).
Yo poops, just to give you proof, most commercial DVDs these days come in a 16:9 aspect, and your DVD player letterboxes them for your 4:3 TV.

[status66uk]

in the second page of the project wizard, does it automatically detect the aspect ratio of the file cos i have just been leaving it as it is and not changing it,

where do i go to change the output aspect ratio so that i can encode it so it is for a widescreen tv and will not cut any picture off?

[funkguy4]

Why don't you stop using the project wizard?

[poopyhead]

@funkguy4,

errrr...ya

anywayz, (S)VCDs created by tmpgenc are NOT anamorphic, unlike most 16:9 widescreen commercial DVDs.

hence, dvd player will not automatically resize anything. if you set your output video in tmpgenc as 16:9, you will NOT be able to watch it correctly on a 4:3 TV. the other way around is true as well. if you set your output as 4:3, it will not fit the entire widescreen TV.

do not compare commercial DVDs to (S)VCDs created by tmpgenc.

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it seems like you are confused with SOURCE aspect ratio and OUTPUT aspect ratio. those 2 are independent settings in tmpgenc. a source could be 16:9 525 line NTSC, but when making a (S)VCD, the output video needs to be 4:3 NTSC to watch on a regular TV.

[Devanshu]

Select 16:9 on the second page and when you get to the page with "Other settings", click it and go to Advanced and under "Video arranged method", select full screen, keep aspect ratio 2. I think thats the right one. You might want to test it out first to see if its the right setting. Good luck.

[buttsy00]

I am trying to convert dv (720 x 576 - PAL) transferred from my dv camera into Widescreen VCD.

What is the best way to do this using TMPGENC?

What settings would you guys use to do this?

[energy80s]

I am trying to convert dv (720 x 576 - PAL) transferred from my dv camera into Widescreen VCD.

What is the best way to do this using TMPGENC?

What settings would you guys use to do this?

There's no such thing as widescreen VCD. You have to have fullscreen 4:3 with black bars on the top and bottom of the image.

Is you DV footage shot in widescreen? If so, import the file as normal (it will appear squashed as it will be in anamorphic format), leave most of the settings for the basic VCD template unchanged, BUT change the source aspect ratio to 16:9. TMPG will automatically letterbox the image for you by putting black bars on the top and bottom of the screen.

[j1d10t]

If you are going to be watching it on a 16x9 TV, and have no plans on watching it on a 4:3 TV, then in TMPGEnc, on the Video tab chose the aspect ratio of 4:3, and on the Advanced tab, Video Arrange Method, chose Full Screen. Then if you have a widescreen TV, have your TV set on the Full Screen setting, so it will stretch the image out, making it look widescreen.

[buttsy00]

energy80s

If I make the VCD with black bars at the top and bottom will this stop the image from looking slightly distorted on my widescreen tv?

Because at the moment when I encode it to a normal VCD the image looks slightly distorted and not as clear as it does on a 4:3 tv?

What settings do you guys recommend for me to use to get the black bars at the top and bottom in TMPGEnc?

[energy80s]

Sounds like you have a problem with your widescreen TV. The picture should not distort whether its letterboxed 4:3 or fullscreen 4:3. It is possible to make an anamorphic VCD, but what's the point. The resolution is no better than 4:3 letterboxed, and it will be incompatible with 4:3 TV screens. The only reason DVD's use anamorphic files is because a DVD player can automatically letterbox a 16:9 image for a 4:3 TV screen. If they couldn't do this, then there would be very few anamorphic DVD's out there.

[Nello_AU]

I had a lot of trouble with this also.
I did not realise that what I though was anamorphic wide screen in TMPGEnc was actually letterboxed 4:3 when I took my movie to a friends place to watch it on a wide screen Plasma screen.

To correct the problem this is what I did, and now do for all 'Widescreen movies' for use with DVD. It does not work for VCD or SVCD.

Click on settings
Then on the video tab in aspect ratio select 16:9 display.
Then on the advanced tab set Source aspect ratio to 4:3 625 Line PAL (or the NTSC equivalent)

Finally video arrange method this must be Full screen (keep aspect ratio).

This produces a video stream that will look correct on a 4:3 TV and also expand out without picture distortion to look correct on a 16:9 Display. Put simply, less black at the top and bottom.

Don't ask me why. I have asked this question before on this forum with no replies.

[buttsy00]

When you say fullscreen are you refering to the Video Arrange Method setting in TMPGEnc?

Currently I am using "Center (Keep Aspect Ratio)" when encodeing to VCD.

Should I be using "Fullscreen" instead?

Whats the difference between "Fullscreen" and "Fullscreen (Keep Aspect Ratio)?

[j1d10t]

Full Screen is just that, Full Screen - it will stretch the image to fill the screen, ignoring the aspect ratio. Full Screen Keep Aspect Ratio will letter box the video for you, giving you the black bars on the top and bottom, when viewing on a 4:3 TV.

As for looking weird on your widescreen TV, are you sure the video you have is 16x9? And not 2.35:1? Because if it is 2.35:1 it would look too tall on your widescreen TV, and 2.35:1 does need small black bars on the top and bottom to letterbox the 2.35:1 image into a 16x9. If you're not sure about your aspect ratio, check out this link: https://www.videohelp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=174200&highlight=