AutoGK Error - Unsupported audio type

[bjblackmore]

Hi,

I'm trying to rip some dance music videos from a few DVDs so I can watch them on my MG-350HD (media streamer). I've used DVD to AVI Converter from mydvdtools.com to rip each video to an AVI file, which ends up between 20mb-40mb. I'd like to decrease the file size, so I can save some space, by about 50% so I'm using AutoGK with the output size set to 75%. However when it runs I get the error: EXCEPTION: Unsupported audio type.

AutoGK is reporting the input AVI as having audio track type 192 Kbps MPEG-1/2 L3 2ch and I've tried all the audio conversion settings from Auto to Original (AC3/DTS/MPA), VBR MP3 and CBR MP3, but I get the same error with all.

The DVD to AVI Converter settings are:
Audio - High Quality 48 - 44.1KHZ, Dolby Surround
Video - 23.976 NTCS, Bilinear SSE2 - Detect prog 24HZ
Export - 352x240 - Full (16:9 or 4:3 input)
AVI - have tried both Audio Use MP3 & Store to WAV
Video - have used XviD MPEG-4 Codec & Cinepak Codec by Radius

What settings do I need, either in AutoGK or DVD to AVI Converter, to be able to shrink my AVI down? I've tested the process on other AVI files that I have downloaded, and it works fine, although the one I tested was reported as having audio type 192 kbps CBR MP3 2ch rather than 192 Kbps MPEG-1/2 L3 2ch.

Any help much appreciated!

Ben

[manono]

Hi-

I don't know what 's wrong with your audio, but this caught my eye:

so I'm using AutoGK with the output size set to 75%.

75% isn't a size value, but a quality value. You'll probably wind up with a file larger than you started with, depending on the other settings you use.

My suggestion about the audio is to strip it from the AVI, feed an audioless AVI into AutoGK, and then mux in the audio yourself when done. Either that or convert it to WAV audio first and give that to AutoGK to shrink both the audio and the video.

[bjblackmore]

Hi manono,

I thought 75% quality would mean 75% of the existing quality, so a 20mb file would end up at around 15mb. I used this same method on the downloaded AVI, and it shrank a 32mb video down to 25mb, but as I said, the audio type was different in that AVI!

I'll have to read a bit more about MUX-ing, kinda a newbie at this! I did select the 'Store as WAV' option in DVD to AVI Converter, but that failed too.

[manono]

I was thinking 75% meant an absolute term, corresponding to an average quant of about 2.5 or so. But I've been known to be wrong. I was also thinking it would increase the resolution of your AVI by default, and some research definitely proved me wrong on that one. Sorry, about the mistakes, but I don't reencode AVIs.

Which brings me to another question. Am I right in thinking that you're using this DVD2AVI Converter program to first convert from DVD to AVI, and now you want to reencode them yet again to shrink the size? This kind of begs the question; why not go back to the DVDs and do it right the first time, or load the VOB(s) into AutoGK and go for the size you want? As you know, by shrinking the size by 50% (if keeping the same resolution), you're going to also degrade the quality of these AVIs by quite a bit. The quality might be somewhat higher were you to start with the DVDs themselves. Plus, you won't have the audio problems you seem to be having by feeding AutoGK some sort of audio it doesn't like. But based on the audio information you provided, nothing really jumps out as being a problem, especially when the source is an AVI with MP3 audio, which AutoGK doesn't even reencode. Sorry, not much help.

[bjblackmore]

Which brings me to another question. Am I right in thinking that you're using this DVD2AVI Converter program to first convert from DVD to AVI, and now you want to reencode them yet again to shrink the size?

Correct

This kind of begs the question; why not go back to the DVDs and do it right the first time, or load the VOB(s) into AutoGK and go for the size you want?

I didn't realise this was possible, the ease of using the DVD2AVI program is that each video is one chapter of the DVD, and the DVD2AVI lets you capture individule chapters, so I can tick a check box, and capture each chapter as a separate file, where as other methods I've seen I have to capture the entire movie, then use some additional software to remove menus and split each video track. However I will give your method a try, and see if it solves the audio problem, and it sounds like it might provide better quality as well!

[manono]

...where as other methods I've seen I have to capture the entire movie, then use some additional software to remove menus and split each video track. However I will give your method a try, and see if it solves the audio problem, and it sounds like it might provide better quality as well!

Ok, something I know about. Set up DVD Decrypter in IFO Mode (not the default - up at the top, Mode->IFO). The DVD will then be shown by PGC, with the longest one shown first. You're saying (I think) that the music videos are in the same PGC, but different chapters. That's how they usually are. You'll see all the chapters checked. Just uncheck them (Right-Click->Select none), and check them one at a time, decrypting each chapter/music video into its own folder. Then set up your encodes in AutoGK by opening each VOB and setting up the encode. You can set them all up at once and then let AutoGK work on them. Or do a few single video test encodes first, to make sure you're getting what you want, before doing a bunch at one time.

[bjblackmore]

Hi manono,

Gave that a try, and it worked perfectly! It was much easier, and gave far better quality, i.e. setting the output to 15% quality gave an AVI that was only 18mb in size, and video resolution of 720x416, compared to my previous attempts which created a 27mb file and resolution of only 352x240.

Before you posted the above I'd found the following article, which seems to be a very very long winded way of doing what you just made very easy!
How To: Individual DVD Chapters to DivX AVI

Many thanks

Ben

[manono]

Hi-

Good, glad it's working for you, and maybe I redeemed myself a little bit in your eyes. I have a suggestion, though. Lower the resolution and raise the percentage. 15% is very low. You might try 512 width and maybe 60-65%. Maybe play with the width and percentage combinations until you find one that gives you the size and quality you like. Using 15% will give you macroblocks during any sort of movement, and a soft and blurry picture. Try pausing it during some action/movement and looking for all the blocks or squares in the picture. Not good. Good luck.