Trouble balancing quality vs size in MKV and MTS conversions.

[Omid]

Hi
Lately I have been trying to convert my .mkv files to DivX of Xvid.
I use WinAVI or Xilisoft Video Converter Ultimate
The trouble is a 700MB mkv file (let's say a 1:40min movie), will convert to a >2GB one in the output if I leave the default settings which is of course of excellent quality.
To get a reasonable size (800-900 MB) I decrease the video bit rate to ~1500-2000 and then I get a pixellated low quality picture, unless I decrease the screen size as well , let's say to 640x320.
I have noticed other good quality (unconverted) DivX movies have bit rates of even less than 1000(700 or so) and still are crystal clear.
And I can't understand why a 1:40min DivX movie cannot have a good quality with a size of less than a GB when converted from MKV.
I have exactly the same problem converting (down-sizing) my MTS files from digital camera as well(MTS to DivX I mean) . Any bit rate less than 2000 will be extremely of low quality.
In short I can't get the balance between the size and quality in my MKV and MTS conversions
I haven't had similar trouble converting any other format or ripping DVD's.
Can anyone tell me what I'm doing wrong please??

[Baldrick]

Have you tried something else than crap winavi and xilisoft? Like Staxrip, Xmedia Recode, Megui. Use for example 2-pass xvid encoding and set the output file size to around 1 gb.

And reconverting an ALREADY heavely compressed mkv h264 to divx/xvid isn't the best idea. But if your source is good you should be able to get good quality...what's the details from your mts files?

[Omid]

Thanks for the reply
No. I haven't tried any of those tools yet. But I will.
The reason I insist on converting MKV to divx/xvid is my player.
And how can I tell you the details of my MTS files???
Here is a sample which I've uploaded. Is it too much to ask you to have a look please?

http://rapidshare.com/files/452972819/00185.MTS

Thanks

[jagabo]

Different videos require different bitrates in order to maintain quality.

Your MTS video is noisy and has lots of camera shake. That, along with that textured carpet in the background is limiting the amount of compression you can apply. In this post I outlined some of the properties that require more bitrate:

https://forum.videohelp.com/threads/297423-My-quest-to-get-quality-HD-video-with-FLV-He...=1#post1815542

Attached is your video at 640x360 (using a bilinear resize filter to reduce noise a bit) after deinterlacing with Yadif. I encoded with Xvid at target quantizer 3 and it averaged around 680 kbps.

[Omid]

Have you tried something else than crap winavi and xilisoft? Like Staxrip, Xmedia Recode, Megui. Use for example 2-pass xvid encoding and set the output file size to around 1 gb.

And reconverting an ALREADY heavely compressed mkv h264 to divx/xvid isn't the best idea. But if your source is good you should be able to get good quality...

Thanks a lot for your guidance.
I tried Staxrip and Megui
Both give excellent results at ~800MB which is exactly what I'm after.
However, the only thing about both of them is I couldn't find an option to optimize the resolutions manually:
1.MeGUI gave me a default of 720x304 which is fine but I'd like to be able to tweak it.
2.StaxRip has a sliding bar with fixed ratios so I cannot for example get 720x480 which is a standard option.

And the other thing is they are both a bit complex to work with.
By the way I think if I can get the hang of them they are excellent tools/
Thanks again.