AVStoDVD Support Thread

[Heathsideboy]

Hi guys, I'm back again.

I used DVD Shrink to make a copy of the DVD (with DVD Shrink open and the DVD in the disk drive, I then chose "Open Disc." After the DVD was collected on DVD Shrink, I then chose "Backup" and saved it to my video library). That then gave me all the folder structure.

On one of the DVDs I copied, the folder structure showed 4 files that all had the same icons on them.

The first file was labelled "VIDEO_TS.VOB" and when I clicked on it the first time, this one did not play at all.

The next three were labelled "VTS_01_VOB," "VTS_02_VOB" & "VTS_03_VOB" respectively. They all played okay all from the same point as though they were identical. Is this the norm? Once I had clicked on those three to test them, then when I went back to the first folder (VIDEO_TS.VOB), then it started to play normally. When I came out of the folder completely, then I went back into the folder again, then that first one would not play again until I started playing the other three that would, first. Is this also normal?

The other files that were in there had no icon on them and showed blank white. They were all labelled respectively:

"VIDEO-TS.BUP," "VIDEO-TS.IFO," "VTS_01_0.BUP" & "VTS_01_0.IFO"

On the other DVD that I backed up using DVD Shrink, a similar folder structure showed in my video library. When clicking on any of the files with the icons on, none of these played at all in this folder. Is there an explanation for this or is DVD Shrink a bit temperamental sometimes and this happens?

Thanks

HB

[theewizard]

dvd shrink is out dated for copying NEW movies/dvd's

you need something like Dfab, or the free part called decrypter

after you decrypt the dvd aka remove copy protection and copy to PC

then you can 'shrink' it if you wish

dvdshrink is no longer valid as a copy protection removal program, it does not /can not defeat current methods of copy protection

this 'thread' is about avstodvd support

why do you ask about copying discs with dvdshrink, that should be in a separate topic

[davexnet]

These are the typical files you should see. If the DVD is not a commercial DVD (ie. something you burned or similar)
you don't really need DVD Shrink to copy it. Just drag and drop the video_TS folder using Windows Explorer is usually enough.

This file set was produced in AVStoDVD, it's a movie and it has no menu, and one title. It's perhaps 1% undersized,
which often happens with HCenc one-pass (it's normal).

For more info, see this:
https://www.videohelp.com/dvd

[Heathsideboy]

this 'thread' is about avstodvd support

why do you ask about copying discs with dvdshrink, that should be in a separate topic

Because MrC brought the subject up and so it was relevant to my follow-up post. I didn't realise it was a hanging offence.


Perhaps you should worry about some of the things you are doing in this thread instead of asking me why I am posting about certain things "not relevant" in your opinion. For one, why do you sometimes paste the whole of your logs in the actual thread thus messing the whole thread up instead of just attaching your log as you were asked to?

@theewizard

And, please, use the VideoHelp upload file utility to post the log, otherwise the forum page become a mess

And yes, I do know this is the AVStoDVD Support thread thanks.


@ Dave, these DVDs I am talking about are home-made videos that have been burnt to the DVD from VHS tapes. Thank you very much for your advice.

HB

[_MrC_]

Guys, please, do think twice, drink some good cold water, then write.

theewizard, please read all the previous related posts before giving any kind of advise.

HB, we are going out of topic. What is exactly the purpose of transferring the DVD from disc to hard drive?

A. Do you want a backup? Then you have just created it with DVDShrink: the VIDEO_TS/AUDIO_TS folders and VOB, IFO, BUP files are exactly the DVD standard structure. You should read https://www.videohelp.com/dvd as dave has already suggested.

B. Do you want to manipulate (edit, trim) the DVD content (mpeg2)? Then you have to use other apps.



Bye

[Heathsideboy]

@ MrC,

Sorry for my little rant I just took up your suggestion and used DVD Shrink to Make a VOB Folder.

I was just a bit concerned that some of the VOB files with icons on them did not play while others did. (As fully explained in one of my previous posts).

The other thing I was going on to say was; if I wanted to make a DVD with the MP4's I was originally talking about mixed with the VOB files, would I put all of these files mixed together in AVStoDVD to make one big MPEG? And more importantly, these would not be re-encoded? I've learnt that VOB files are in effect MPEG's, so if I wanted to burn these two file types together how would I do this?

If I wanted to edit any of them, should this all be done first before converting?

If I want them to have a DVD menu and use a program such as DVD Styler, do I just pop all of the converted MP4's and VOB's in here, choose a menu and they will not be re-encoded reducing the quality when burnt to disk?

Sorry if it's all a little bit off topic but I am a newbie and it is all interlinked in my opinion. Also, I'm sorry I can't grasp it all at the moment so need your help.

My main priority is to burn a DVD with these home movies on and it not be re-encoded. Not re-encoding the DVDs was my main goal from the very outset.

HB, we are going out of topi. What is exactly the purpose of transferring the DVD from disc to hard drive?

The DVD discs are home movies transferred from VHS tapes. They all belong to my mother-in-law and I got them copied onto DVD for her. The reason I want them on my computer is so I can play about with them after giving her the originals. In other words I can edit, add menus that sort of thing at my leisure if I have the disk folders on my hard drive while she has the originals.

I have some other questions but I don't want to overcomplicate things so could you deal with these questions first?

Thank you

HB
..

[davexnet]

I have some other questions but I don't want to overcomplicate things so could you deal with these questions first?

Thank you

HB
..

Do you have a specific question?

[manono]

If your intent is to use the VOBs from your DVD in DVDStyler to create a nice-looking menu, then you don't need AvsToDVD at all. This was pointed out to you quite some time ago:

So you're satisfied with the original DVD as-is, and only have to convert the MP4 video to DVD video? Leave the DVD alone and convert the MP4 files using something else, AVSToDVD perhaps. Then use DVD Styler or similar authoring program to create the menus.

If you intend to edit the DVD by maybe cutting out parts, MPEG2Cut2 has already been suggested, although there are also other programs for that. You can load all the VOBs, make your cuts, and it'll give you back one large MPG ready for DVDStyler. Again, nothing to do with AvsToDVD (or DVDStyler).

And in your other thread I also suggested making sure that the converted MP4 DVD be of such a size that it plus the already compliant DVD plus the menus you make (probably very small) be under the size of a DVD5.

The first file was labelled "VIDEO_TS.VOB" and when I clicked on it the first time, this one did not play at all.

The only ones with actual video content are the "VTS_01_1.VOB, VTS_01_2.VOB, VTS_01_3.VOB, etc. The TS VOB and 0 VOB (if any) don't have any of the video in which you're interested.

[theewizard]

as pointed out by mr_c and others, you need to go to the editing video forum and read there about the tools and ways of editing

i use video redo for editing mpeg2 and sometimes vobs
it will also join files as long as the are all the same resolution , aspect etc..

which means all vobs containing video from One dvd could be joined and edited

you won't Author a new dvd with avstodvd Or styler until you are done with editing the files that will be on that dvd

[davexnet]

Some good info here. To get a better idea of what you're looking at, make sure file extensions are visible in
Windows Explorer and turn on details view when you're looking at the video_ts folder. That will show you the sizes of
the files.

[Minnie]

Hi, I've been using AVStoDVD for a while now and it's been working great. However I downloaded it for use on my laptop today, waited hours for the process to finish and at 60% completion the process aborted during the muxing phase. I've attached the logs

I have the AUDIO_TS AND VIDEO_TS files in the DVD folder and not sure what the problem is and where to go from here. I receive an error message when I try to play the VIDEO_TS file in VLC media player.

[_MrC_]

@Minnie

from the BatchMux log, it seems that the multiplex step was completed but the finalization step (creation of .IFO files) had some problems. It is hard to guess why. I would suggest you to make a try with a small clip and understand if the issue is file-related or not.



Bye

[_MrC_]

I was playing around with a file, encoded a short clip like I always do to check the quality,
and was surprised that the output had no audio (almost none - there was a strange gurgling noise in the background).
The file was mp4/AVC/AAC. I had AVStoDVD audio source filter A2Dsource in the preferences. I set it to FFmpegsource
and this time the audio was produced normally.

I set it back to a2dsource to see if I could find the problem. Updated to the latest Haali splitter, no change.
Went into the FFdshow audio config and changed the aac setting from Libavcodec to Libfaad2.
Now audio was good. Perhaps Libavcodec has problems with certain aac streams?

I have FFdshow version 4422 installed.

Yes, I have recently read (cannot find the source) there are some troubles with HE-AAC and Libavcodec implementation in ffdshow. The workaround was exactly to shift to Libfaad2.

The issue should be not within Libavcodec itself, because ffmpeg (hence FFmpegSource plug-in) actually IS Libavcodec. The issue must be related to ffdshow AAC decoding routines implementing Libavcodec.

Let's hope the authors will fix that in next releases.



Bye

[Heathsideboy]

Do you have a specific question?

The other questions I was going to ask are not to do with AVStoDVD (I don't think) so would be slightly off topic. The questions were:

As I have had some VHS tapes converted onto DVDs, I simply copied the VOB files from the DVDs in Windows Explorer to my hard drive as you suggested. I understand exactly what you mean now by not needing DVD Shrink. This was where I was getting confused.

Anyway, whether this problem was on the original DVD or just in the VOB files that I copied from the DVD, I don't know. On the VOB files which I have since tested, the longer the film goes on, I eventually notice that the video and audio become slightly out of sync with each other. Not by much, but noticeable. So my question is, can I do anything about this either with AVStoDVD or another software and how?

The other question was; when I play the DVDs on my TV, the picture quality is not great and they look a little grainy. Is there such a software that you can use that cleans up the picture and makes it much clearer and distinctive? If there is, at what point of the procedure should it be cleaned up? By this I mean in what order, would it be after the editing before converting etc etc?

Manano

If your intent is to use the VOBs from your DVD in DVDStyler to create a nice-looking menu, then you don't need AvsToDVD at all. This was pointed out to you quite some time ago:

@ Manano: Yes, I realise this now and I do remember your posts. I was getting
confused. Part of being a newbie I suppose. I have now saved those posts.

as pointed out by mr_c and others, you need to go to the editing video forum and read there about the tools and ways of editing

Duly noted and thanks for the other advice you gave.

Any help on the questions I laid out would be most helpful and I'm sorry if they are off topic.

Thanks

HB

[manono]

Any help on the questions I laid out would be most helpful and I'm sorry if they are off topic.

Yeah, they're off-topic, for sure. So, to be brief, if you want to get rid of the grain/noise, you reencode them with a denoiser applied. I do this using the AviSynth denoisers after capturing VHS tapes to the computer as tapes are notoriously noisy. You, of course, do this before authoring for DVD. It would have been much better had your tapes originally been converted to something better than DVD video, but that can't be helped now. I have no idea whether or not AvsToDVD has any filters of the kind you need built-in, but I don't think so.

Anyway, whether this problem was on the original DVD or just in the VOB files that I copied from the DVD, I don't know.

It should be the same in both DVDs, the one on disc as well as the one on the hard drive, since the one you put on the hard drive should be identical to the one on disc. But it would be good for you to confirm that the audio on your DVDR is also off by the end. The audio has to be 'stretched' so it's the same length as the video. You do that (usually) in some sort of a WAV editor, one such as the free and very good Audacity.

[Heathsideboy]

if you want to get rid of the grain/noise, you reencode them with a denoiser applied. I do this using the AviSynth denoisers after capturing VHS tapes to the computer as tapes are notoriously noisy. You, of course, do this before authoring for DVD.

Isn't AviSynth installed with AVStoDVD? I seem to remember it being a part of the install. Or are we talking about another department of AviSynth that deals with that type of thing?

It would have been much better had your tapes originally been converted to something better than DVD video, but that can't be helped now. I have no idea whether or not AvsToDVD has any filters of the kind you need built-in, but I don't think so.

If the video and audio is out of sync on the original DVDs, then they will be going back to the people who originally transferred the VHS tapes to DVD to do again. I won't know if they are out of sync until my mother-in-law has viewed them properly because she has them now. If the originals are out of sync, and I have to send the VHS tapes back to be done again, what would be your suggestion on the best format to convert them to other than DVD video and why?

It should be the same in both DVDs, the one on disc as well as the one on the hard drive, since the one you put on the hard drive should be identical to the one on disc.

Yes, that makes sense. The ones on my hard drive are definitely out a touch so I would just have to wait from my mother-in-law to confirm if it is true on the original DVDs.

The audio has to be 'stretched' so it's the same length as the video. You do that (usually) in some sort of a WAV editor, one such as the free and very good Audacity.

So would I be able to do something about the copied VOB files that are slightly out of sync with the software you mention? Is it pretty easy to use?

Thanks

HB

[manono]

Isn't AviSynth installed with AVStoDVD? I seem to remember it being a part of the install.

Yes, AvsToDVD uses AviSynth. Maybe you can edit the script it uses to add in a denoiser. Someone else more knowledgeable will have to let you know if that's possible in AvsToDVD.

If the originals are out of sync, and I have to send the VHS tapes back to be done again, what would be your suggestion on the best format to convert them to other than DVD video and why?

Some lossless AVI codec such as Lagarith or UT Video Codec. But I doubt a VHS2DVD service is set up to do that. They'll just stick your tape into a VHS/DVD combo recorder and give you the DVD that pops out. Why do it the way I suggest? Because MPEG-2 is very lossy. If you are planning on reencoding the video, you want it as close to lossless to begin with as possible. Even DV AVI is better than beginning with the already reencoded DVD.

So would I be able to do something about the copied VOB files that are slightly out of sync with the software you mention? Is it pretty easy to use?

You demux the DVD (PGCDemux), convert the audio to WAV audio (I use BeSweet, or install the AC3 plugin for Audacity so it'll open AC3 audio directly), stretch the audio, convert it back to AC3 (Aften or something else), remux (Muxman) and then test it out.

[Heathsideboy]

Well that's easy enough then! That should keep me busy for the next couple of years. Thanks for all the advice Manono and that goes for everybody else and thank you MrC in particular because of the off topic questions. Somehow though, I think I will be asking a lot more when I actually try to achieve some of this stuff.


Thanks


HB

[theewizard]

as a quick test, you could use img burn, and burn one of your hard drive dvd copies to a DVD
and test it in your dvd player

you don't have to wait on M.I.L. to report back

[davexnet]

You can try the hqdn3d noise reduction on the avisynth/enhance tab of the project settings.

[Heathsideboy]

as a quick test, you could use img burn, and burn one of your hard drive dvd copies to a DVD
and test it in your dvd player
you don't have to wait on M.I.L. to report back

I may just try that. Thanks.

You can try the hqdn3d noise reduction on the avisynth/enhance tab of the project settings.

It is not so much the sound but the picture quality that's the problem. Where, exactly would I find these settings? I cannot seem to find the one you mention anywhere.

I can only see AviSynth in the AVStoDVD Preferences tab. I have looked at all the options in there and cannot find the feature you mention. What do you mean by the "AviSynth/enhance tab of the project settings?" Where exactly is this "hqdn3td noise reduction" feature you mention?

The only other setting that I can see to do with AviSynth is on the main interface where it says, "Run Title AviSynth FrameServing Check at runtime." It's little box is shown unchecked. Is this what you mean that I should check this option and what will happen if I do?

Thanks

HB

[davexnet]

You can try the hqdn3d noise reduction on the avisynth/enhance tab of the project settings.

It is not so much the sound but the picture quality that's the problem. Where, exactly would I find these settings? I cannot seem to find the one you mention anywhere.

HB

edit title/avisynth tab/deselect auto avisynth script/enhance/select hqdn3d.

The default setting 1, provides mild NR to the picture, a good place to start.

[Heathsideboy]

edit title/avisynth tab/deselect auto avisynth script/enhance/select hqdn3d.

The default setting 1, provides mild NR to the picture, a good place to start.

Okay, I see what you mean now. When I looked, the setting was set on 4. Is this just for NR? Will this also tidy up the picture quality as well or am I barking up the wrong tree? Or is there another setting that will tidy up the picture. As I said, the sound isn't that bad it's just the picture is a little grainy.

Thanks

HB

[davexnet]

edit title/avisynth tab/deselect auto avisynth script/enhance/select hqdn3d.

The default setting 1, provides mild NR to the picture, a good place to start.

Okay, I see what you mean now. When I looked, the setting was set on 4. Is this just for NR? Will this also tidy up the picture quality as well or am I barking up the wrong tree? Or is there another setting that will tidy up the picture. As I said, the sound isn't that bad it's just the picture is a little grainy.

Thanks

HB

I not sure what you're getting at . It is video noise reduction (get rid of various artifacts by temporal/spatial smoothing, etc).
Nothing to do with audio.
If 4 is the default, that's fine. (I probably reduced it to 1 and it remembered it). Encode some short clips to see how
it works and find you own value for your particular clip.

[Heathsideboy]

Sorry Dave, I just assumed when you said "NR" meant "Noise Reduction, " that being of the audio. I shall give it a bash and let you know the outcome.

Thanks

HB

[Seeker47]

I was playing around with a file, encoded a short clip like I always do to check the quality,
and was surprised that the output had no audio (almost none - there was a strange gurgling noise in the background).
The file was mp4/AVC/AAC. I had AVStoDVD audio source filter A2Dsource in the preferences. I set it to FFmpegsource
and this time the audio was produced normally.

I'm not sure whether I've seen that before -- possibly. In such a case, one of the things I would try is to run AudioExtractor (from AoA, the older free version 2.25 is what I have installed) on the source file, probably outputting to .AC3, since that is likely to be the most usable in any further steps. It is also what I use whenever AVS bombs out during the audio processing of a source, leaving a 0 bytes sound file, which happens on occasion. I think the success rate with that workaround has been 100 % for me, so far.

[davexnet]

Seeker47, thanks for you message.
In my case the results were different. Avstodvd did not bomb out, but finished normally - except for the fact
that playing back the video_ts folder showed the audio problem.
As I mentioned in my post, it appears to be a problem in ffdshow/lavacodec.

Forcing ffmpegsource (avstodvd preferences section/avisynth tab' audio source filter)
completely eliminates the problem.

I did toy around with the idea of demuxing the audio (to PCM since it was 2 channel),
but it's not necessary if you do the above.

[Heathsideboy]

Encode some short clips to see how it works and find you own value for your particular clip.

@ Dave,

It's really strange. The first time I put a VOB file into AVStoDVD and followed the steps you mentioned that was; edit title/avisynth tab/deselect auto avisynth script/enhance/select hqdn3d, it was giving me the choice to choose a particular number.

Now I have tried it again by putting in a VOB file except when I uncheck the "Auto AviSynth Script" box and then click "Enhance," everything is greyed out including "hqdn3d," so I cannot check it. Any idea why this is or what I may have done wrong?

Thanks

[_MrC_]

@HB

I suggest you not to work on VOBs, because they are only part of the full DVD footage. It is better to add to AVStoDVD the VTS_01_0.IFO file and let AVStoDVD index the full DVD structure. Then the hqdn3d will be available.



Bye

[2WhlWzrd]

I have a couple of questions.
I am currently using version 2.6.0. because the DVDs I create are played back on multiple devices, and I really like the preset or "automatic" placement of the subtitles. They are always, in my opinion, in the right place.
I tried version 2.7.1. with the default settings, and I really liked the new subtitle handling routine. But inevitably ended up with the subtitles being cut off on one device or another. Which brings me to my first question:
Is there a way to toggle between "manual" and "automatic " positioning of subtitles in version 2.7.1.?
My second question is about .ass subtitles with utf-8 encoding. I have created an .ass subtitle using Aegisub which includes utf-8 characters, I have of course chosen a font that supports these characters and "default" encoding. But what I end up with is ANSI encoded characters instead of utf-8.
Does 2.6.0 support .ass subtitles with utf-8 characters or not?
(I should also add that I am new to .ass subtitles, so there is the possibility that I do not have something set correctly)