Can't play ISO files with TViX M-6500A Media player

[ralph snr]

Hi.
Can any of you experienced guys tell me why my ISO files won’t play on my (New!) TViX M-6500A Media player?

They are composed of items I’ve copied from the TV to hard drive, edited and then copied to DVD. I’ve then copied the DVDs to the Media player in ISO format, using DVD Decrypter.

The files were saved to DVD in Disc Menu style. When I open the file with the Media player, select and highlight the item I want to play with the yellow bounding box and click to play, either the yellow box disappears, nothing happens for a few seconds then the yellow box reappears at item 1, but does not play. Or the file plays at the same section in the file each time for a minute or two, and then stops.

Initially I assumed the TViX M-6500A Media player just wasn’t capable of playing what they state it is capable of playing, but I’ve copied two Commercial DVDs to the Media player and they seem to play fine!

Hope you can understand my ramblings!

If anyone can help a novice and tell me how to solve the problem, I’d be very grateful.

Sincerely,
Ralph.

[poisondeathray]

It probably can't read files in the ISO image. What happens if you leave it in the regular Video_TS folder, or as .VOB's? I don't think they claim ISO support.

The other possibility is that your non-retail DVD's are not compliant

Do you have the latest firmware?

[ralph snr]

Hi poisondeathray

Thanks for the fast reply.
The TViX M-6500A has the latest firmware. I’m sorry but I don’t understand what you mean by “leave it in the regular Video_TS folder, or as .VOB's?.”
All the files were copied and saved using DVD Decrypter and according to the file properties, they are Image files and MDS files. I’m just going to these files in the media player and clicking on play. The media player suffixes the titles with ISO.

The TViX literature claims it can play ISO files, that’s why I bought it. Looking on this forum I find other posts referring to the TviX Playing ISO files ok. The two files of mine it does play are also ISO.

What do you mean by “The other possibility is that your non-retail DVD's are not compliant”?

All the files will copy to DVD again and play.

Sorry I’m so dumb but I did say I’m a novice! I don’t understand all the different formats

Thank you for your efforts,
Raph.

[poisondeathray]

You're right they do claim ISO support

An ISO is just a disk image. So if you mount the ISO with something like Daemon Tools, PowerIso, or MagicIso, and extract the image to the native folders, it should reveal a Video_TS folder. When you mount the image, it's like a virtual DVD drive

If it's a regular retail DVD that plays in a DVD player, inside that folder will have "normal" DVD contents, like .vobs, .IFO, etc... (Look at the top left hand corner and push the link "what is DVD")

I'm guessing that if you just import the plain video files (VOB's) into the TviX that it might read it properly. It might be that the ISO structure wasn't created properly: "items I’ve copied from the TV to hard drive, edited and then copied to DVD" - so something in your workflow might have created a noncompliance issue

[BobT]

Try downloading VLC Media Player and use it to play the video .iso on your computer. If it play OK then you know the file is not corrupted. I don't have the player you are using but according to the specifications all of the current Network Media Tanks will play .iso. Are you streaming the file or playing from an internal harddrive? I believe there are certain restrictions for streaming with an .iso. You may want to check the Wiki. Hope this helps.

[ralph snr]

Thanks once again guys.

poisondeathray Don’t really know what you are suggesting, but I’ll install Daemon Tools and see what I can do from there.

BobT I will install VLC Media Player also, and see if the files play. These files will play in Nero Showtime on my PC, even though they are not a recognized format with Nero, albeit sometimes without sound.
I’m playing the files from an internal hard drive.

I’ll let you know how I progress.

Ralph

[BobT]

I'm not sure that the way you made a DVD that it is compliant. Try using DVD Flick and then make an ISO with Imgburn and see if this works.

[poisondeathray]

ralph snr - Here is an analogy: think of the ISO as a box. The actual video is inside the box. Your Tvix might not have x-ray vision and can't see inside the box. What I am suggesting is taking the video out of the box so the Tvix can "see" the actual video

If your DVD was really compliant, it should have the DVD structure that I mentioned earlier (ie.. VOB's, IFO's etc...). Just mount the ISO (it's like a virtual DVD drive), and copy the VOBs over to the Tvix. The VOB's contain the actual video information.

[ralph snr]

I can’t keep up with you guys! If only I had this kind of response to all my problems.

BobT. I’ve tried VLC Media Player and it works brilliantly. All the video files that I tried ran fine. Does this mean the TViX M-6500A Media player should also be playing them?

Is there still any point in trying DVD Flick and Imgburn now?

poisondeathray. I’ve installed Daemon Tools I’ll give it a try tomorrow. Its getting late now here in the UK. Have to have my wash! I’ll get back to you all tomorrow (I'm an old man, getting tired now)

Once more, many thanks,

Ralph.

[ralph snr]

poisondeathray.
Can you tell me how to operate Daemon Tools? I now have an extra Rom drive but if I click on it, I get the message "insert cd in drive". There is also a desktop icon, but that doesn't seem to do anything when I try to open it. I've tried running an ISO file, to see if it activated Daemon Tools, but it opened in Nero.

Thank you ,
Ralph.

[jagabo]

The files were saved to DVD in Disc Menu style... copied and saved using DVD Decrypter and according to the file properties, they are Image files and MDS files

I think BobT is right -- you did not make standard DVD movie disks. Do these discs play in regular standalone DVD players? If not, that would explain why the Tvix won't play the ISO images.

Think of an ISO image as a photograph of a disc. The Tvix will play photos of a movie DVD but it will not play photographs of an LP, or a platter from a hard drive.

[poisondeathray]

Right click the Daemon Tools icon => mouse over the "virtual cd/dvd-rom"=> mouse over the "Device 0: [some drive letter:] No Media" => Mount Image => Browse to where the ISO image is located and select

You can open the image from "My Computer" now. Try copying the contents out of your iso to the Tvix (If it was a DVD-Video disk i.e. compliant with DVD standalone units), it should have the characteristics discussed earlier i.e. Video_TS folder ). Even if it isn't compliant, you should be able to copy the actual video files over (eg. file.vob or file.mpg)

[BobT]

Everyone here is making slightly different suggestions but they are all good troubleshooting techniques. Don't get confused by our different suggestions!

From your original post it appears that you have taken a commercial DVD, put it on your computer, made it into an ISO, moved it to the Hard drive on your Tvix 6500A and played it with no problems. Perhaps you need to try running the TV file you captured by itself. I'm assuming it is an MPEG2. file. If it doesn't run properly then take a VOB file from a DVD and rename it say Test.mpg and run it. It should run properly with sound and Subtitles. A VOB file is nothing more than an MPEG2 in disguise. An ISO is nothing more than a container for files and if the files are not correct you will have problems.

Simply break the problem down into small parts, take copious notes, and you'll solve it. According to what I have read the Tvix 6500a will accept a multitude of video files.

[ralph snr]

Thanks again everyone for your help.

I don’t think I was clear about how I arrived at my ISO files. To clarify: They are composed of items I’ve copied from the TV to my Panasonic DVD recorder hard drive, edited on the recorder and then copied to DVD on the recorder. I’ve then copied the DVDs to my PC hard drive and to the Media player, using DVD Decrypter, in ISO format.

jagabo Both my DVDs and the commercial ones play fine in my DVD player. Since I’ve installed VLC Media Player ALL the DVDs play fine in this software, it lists them as ISO files. This makes me think the files are ok and the problem lies elsewhere. What do you think??
Also, as I stated previously, the Tvix identifies the files as ISO and plays parts of some of them. They also copy back to DVD and play.

poisondeathray. I should imagine you’ve just about had enough of me! I’ve tried right clicking over the Daemon Tools short cut on my desktop and also over the drive in “my computer” but there is no "virtual cd/dvd-rom" option anywhere! Each time I install Daemon Tools, it takes me to their web site, am I supposed to carry out some action to activate the software?

BobT If you’ll read the first part of this post, I’ve tried to clarify how I created the files. Regards the type of file, I don’t know, whatever the dvd recorder saves it as on thr DVD. Regards your suggestion to use a VOB file, presumably that is what poisondeathray is suggesting, if I ever manage to open the files!
You guys are the experts, but now I know the files play on my PC with VLC Media Player, I can’t help thinking the files are ok? Plus they copy and play ok on DVD.
If one of you can help me to get Daemon Tools working, I’ll try the VOB files.

I’ll tell you guys, my heart hit my boots when I found the files wouldn’t play after spending all that money. Feeling pretty sick at the moment.

Thank you all once more,
Ralph.

[poisondeathray]

For Daemon Tools, it's the system tray icon in the lower right hand corner, not a shortcut on the desktop. Sorry for not being clear earlier

[jagabo]

I don’t think I was clear about how I arrived at my ISO files. To clarify: They are composed of items I’ve copied from the TV to my Panasonic DVD recorder hard drive, edited on the recorder and then copied to DVD on the recorder. I’ve then copied the DVDs to my PC hard drive and to the Media player, using DVD Decrypter, in ISO format.

jagabo Both my DVDs and the commercial ones play fine in my DVD player.

I'm sure they play in the DVD recorder you used to make them. But do they play in regular DVD players? Did you finalize them in the recorder? If they weren't finalized they don't have a master table of contents. Regular DVD players won't play them.

Since I’ve installed VLC Media Player ALL the DVDs play fine in this software, it lists them as ISO files. This makes me think the files are ok and the problem lies elsewhere. What do you think??

Calling them ISO images doesn't mean much. You can make ISO images of all kinds of discs. You can make an ISO image of your Windows install DVD. That doesn't mean your Tvix will do anything useful with it. Movie DVDs have very specific requirements for the file system, where the files are located, what type of data is in the files, etc.

I don't know how flexible VLC and DVD Decrypter are with DVD recorder formats. It may well be that VLC can play ISO images of unfinalized DVD recorder discs, whereas your Tvix can't. And I wouldn't assume your Tvix can play ISO images of finalized DVD recorder discs.

[ralph snr]

Thanks everyone for your help. You’ve cracked it!!!
I’ve managed to open the ISO files with Daemon Tools and copy the vob files to a folder in the Tvix and they play. Looks as though I’ll have a few hours work though, converting and titling all the files, but hey, I can play them!!!
On the plus side, as some of my files are composed of individual selections of music, it seems to me, I’ll now be able to move the individual artists around different files as I choose? A big bonus. (They were a collection of individual recordings copied to one DVD.)

jagabo Just to clarify. The DVDs are finalised, and I have copied programmes from the TV to DVD for my neighbour, and they play ok in his DVD Player.

I’ve certainly learnt a lot in the last 24 hours or so. I owe so much to you. My ulcer would still be growing if it wasn’t for you!!

Thanks to you all.
Sincerely,
Ralph.

[ralph snr]

Hi.
Just an update, should it be of help to anyone.
I've found that to play an ISO file successfully in the TViX M-6500A Media player. The files have to be saved using DVD Shrink.

Regards,
Ralph.

[RabidDog]

Your original statement that you used Dvd decrypter to make image files and MDS files. That is where you are going wrong. Now that you have finished washing your back you should use dvd decrypter in iso write mode. eg to output one single ISO file. Or if you find it easier just use dvd shrink. also look out for vob2mpg and imgburn other very useful tools.