EyeTV to DVD with subs and all languages

[Nikki]

Toast 9 accepts EyeTV files, but does not keep all languages/channels. I manage to mux video and 2 audios - but only into a Video_TS file which then burns nicely. However this does not allow for the generation of a DVD menu in Toast. The same holds with combining several Video_TS files onto one DVD. Is there a way to keep everything in the EyeTV file AND combine several to generate a DVD that has a selectable menu? Toast crashes if only VOB-files are added into the DVD-Video window.

[Nikki]

Here is the response to my own question recently (EyeTV to DVD with subs and all languages).

Situation: EyeTV's mpg files contain all the movie information such as subtitles and multilanguage - but not in a form to put it directly to DVD e.g. via Toast (8 or 9). Toast requires you to make a choice of audio (instead of implementing complete transfer and burning...). The same is true with other options: VOB to .avi conversions in several programs throw out the audio except one. There was a recent post to demux EyeTV files with MPEG Streamclip, then put it back together in ffmpegX, output as VIDEO_TS folder which then can be burned in Toast. Doable, memory hungry, time-consuming and no possibility to create a selectable menu for several VIDEO_TS folders.

Here is a faster, more satisfying solution (preliminary SOP):

Required programs: EyeTV (commercial)
MPEG Streamclip (freeware)
Handbreak (freeware)
Toast (pay-through-your-nose-ware)

1) Take your EyeTV .mpg, edit and convert it with MPEG Streamclip into a movie.ts file (which keeps the VLC icon and preserves the entire content. This is killing me: again it is not accepted by Toast without a choice of what to throw out). This will take about 5 min. for a regular movie.

2) This movie.ts file can be placed into an .avi container via Handbreak. This will create a movie.ts.avi file. Make sure NOT to take the AC3 choice as there is no such file within EyeTV but mp3 audio and activate both audio channels (only stereo it seems) and subs. (This would be a good time to do something else such as going to work or to bed).

3) Next morning you should have your movie.ts.avi file which is used as such in Toast and therefore amenable to a menu to your liking. You may now burn your very own DVD, including all your audios, subs and files.

4)* Extra asset: The "automatic" setting of Toast does not necessarily profit from the total capacity of a DVD and "custom" has rather coarse increments. A better option is to create an image disc in DVD DL (double layer=8.7 GB) mode. This will require twice the amount of hard disc space. HOWEVER, the image file then can be compressed and burned to a single layer DVD, maximizing quality and available capacity of a DVD.

Concluding remarks: All this I figured out by trial & error and many hours reading through the forums (thanks to everybody who contributed)! It is pityful,nonetheless, that commercial products cut corners and offer half cooked programs (hey, you can choose the window color and we have dancing icons...).

Greetings and good luck, N.

[Nikki]

Attention:My apologies to al who tried and back to square one. Although I checked each step along the way, in the real world (= stand alone player) all is gone except one audio track...I do not know where this happened (invalid .avi or vindictive Toast?) but now I am running out of options and ideas.

Any help out there??? N.

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