Convert PAL to NTSC?

[killerteengohan]

I bought some DVD's that were supposed to be region free but their Region 2 PAL DVD's
go figure eh? -_- false advertisement.

Anyways, I encode anime and shows all the time for myself but I have never done PAL before. I want to be able to watch these on my TV, they cost over 100$. I have witnessed a person rip PAL DVD's and convert them to NTSC MKV files and they looked amazing. Sadly I cannot ask this person or I would.

How would I go about converting these Region 2 DVD's into NTSC DVD or NTSC video files for my PC so tha I can encode myself and burn my own DVD's?

I have already ripped the DVD's into VOB files but their PAL resolution. How would I make them 640x480 NTSC MKV?

[Moontrash]

you can use Multiavchd or Avs2dvd..these aren't the simplest apps to use but when u learn them its an easy process

your simplest solution is to just buy a dvd player that can play these dvd's. Just grab a Philips 3560 or a Coby 288 for $45 and they'll play any dvd you throw at it.The Philips you'll need to "Region Free" the drive but thats easy. There are instruction in here on how to do it. The Coby also has "Region Free" instructions in here also.

[hech54]

I bought some DVD's that were supposed to be region free but their Region 2 PAL DVD's
go figure eh? -_- false advertisement.

Half-false advertisement actually. Even if they were "region free" they still would not have played on your NTSC equipment. A region free PAL DVD still won't play on most American equipment.

[killerteengohan]

I bought some DVD's that were supposed to be region free but their Region 2 PAL DVD's
go figure eh? -_- false advertisement.

Half-false advertisement actually. Even if they were "region free" they still would not have played on your NTSC equipment. A region free PAL DVD still won't play on most American equipment.

Yeah but theres hardware to fix that so they can be played on american TV's.
That still doesnt answer how I can convert like I originally asked though.

[jman98]

Exactly how many DVDs do you have? My policy is that you have to do this more than twice, you need to consider an alternative.

The path of sanity:
Follow Moontrash's advice on buying a cheap converting DVD player. I've got a Philips 3560 ($39.95 at Best Buy) and it works fine.

The path of insanity:
Go to the Guides section and look up the PAL ->NTSC DVD guides (there are many) and pick whichever conversion guide you feel like following. Spend all your spare time doing these conversions and pat yourself on the back knowing that you "saved money" because you didn't have to buy another DVD player to play them. Do note that menus will NOT convert and you will have to manually convert any extras as well.

[killerteengohan]

Exactly how many DVDs do you have? My policy is that you have to do this more than twice, you need to consider an alternative.

The path of sanity:
Follow Moontrash's advice on buying a cheap converting DVD player. I've got a Philips 3560 ($39.95 at Best Buy) and it works fine.

The path of insanity:
Go to the Guides section and look up the PAL ->NTSC DVD guides (there are many) and pick whichever conversion guide you feel like following. Spend all your spare time doing these conversions and pat yourself on the back knowing that you "saved money" because you didn't have to buy another DVD player to play them. Do note that menus will NOT convert and you will have to manually convert any extras as well.

Yeah theres about 20 DVD's in total I would like to do this to.

I saw one person take PAL DVD's and encode it to 640x480 NTSC MKV format and thats what I wish to do to mine. As for the menu, thats ok I have software to make my own menu's.

I have already ripped the DVD's into VOB files but their Pal resolution. How would I make them 640x480 NTSC?

[Moontrash]

jman98 is correct in that there are many tutorials in here to do the PAL to NTSC process...after you do a few you'll realize like I did years ago, it's not worth the time and hassle. I just got a Philips Dvd Player at that time and forgot the conversion process. I'm on my 4th Philips model and they've saved me countless hours of sitting around waiting for it to get done...w/o menus.

You can probably even use FAVC to do it. You would just have to click on all VOB files and set it to PAL. It's a pretty simple app to use.

[hech54]

Yeah but theres hardware to fix that so they can be played on american TV's.

Then make copies of your region 2/PAL DVDs(that will make them region free) and buy that hardware.

That still doesnt answer how I can convert like I originally asked though.

That's because converting PAL to NTSC is ridiculous. I grew up with this problem(collecting VHS and DVDs from Australia while living in the US). Computer conversion is not easy and 99% of the time not a viable alternative considering how difficult it is and how crappy the results are. Look for a hackable, converting Philips DVD player and be done with it.

[killerteengohan]

Yeah but theres hardware to fix that so they can be played on american TV's.

Then make copies of your region 2/PAL DVDs(that will make them region free) and buy that hardware.

That still doesnt answer how I can convert like I originally asked though.

That's because converting PAL to NTSC is ridiculous. I grew up with this problem(collecting VHS and DVDs from Australia while living in the US). Computer conversion is not easy and 99% of the time not a viable alternative considering how difficult it is and how crappy the results are. Look for a hackable, converting Philips DVD player and be done with it.

I dont find it rediculous, I have seen it done very well before to where you would have never known it ever was PAL to begin with. I could even show you an example of the work this person did if needed. Computer conversion is something I do alot, I just never did one region to another region before.

As for the DVD player idea, I already had planned to do that before I even asked here. I just wanted to be able to make it into NTSC MKV files like Ive seen done before so I didnt need a region free player. I could just play it via USB or burn my own NTSC DVD's.

[killerteengohan]

jman98 is correct in that there are many tutorials in here to do the PAL to NTSC process...after you do a few you'll realize like I did years ago, it's not worth the time and hassle. I just got a Philips Dvd Player at that time and forgot the conversion process. I'm on my 4th Philips model and they've saved me countless hours of sitting around waiting for it to get done...w/o menus.

You can probably even use FAVC to do it. You would just have to click on all VOB files and set it to PAL. It's a pretty simple app to use.

Alrighty Ill go look up a few of the tutorials you speak of and see if any of them are any good. I happen to have alot of patience and am very picky about encoding so I might find the so called hassle to be not as much of a hassle to me.

Thanks for the tips.

[Moontrash]

Multiavchd can do PAL to NTSC with an mkv container...it's just not the simplest app to use....you have to go into the settings and do quite a bit of configuring

[hech54]

Computer conversion is something I do alot, I just never did one region to another region before.

I'll be accused of being too blunt again but....you need to STOP and READ before you continue. By you saying "one region to another region" just proves that you have virtually no clue what you are doing or talking about.
Region coding and PAL/NTSC have NOTHING to do with each other. Converstion between codecs is one thing. There are a plethora of almost "one click codec conversion" softwares to choose from. PAL to NTSC is like nothing you have ever done.

My prediction. You'll wait a little while and come back to say "I did it - I knew I could do it - it was easy and my results are spectacular"....and never show your results because you actually gave up and bought a hackable, converting Philips DVD player.

[killerteengohan]

Computer conversion is something I do alot, I just never did one region to another region before.

I'll be accused of being too blunt again but....you need to STOP and READ before you continue. By you saying "one region to another region" just proves that you have virtually no clue what you are doing or talking about.
Region coding and PAL/NTSC have NOTHING to do with each other. Converstion between codecs is one thing. There are a plethora of almost "one click codec conversion" softwares to choose from. PAL to NTSC is like nothing you have ever done.

My prediction. You'll wait a little while and come back to say "I did it - I knew I could do it - it was easy and my results are spectacular"....and never show your results because you actually gave up and bought a hackable, converting Philips DVD player.

I thought you would know what I meant by region to another region conversion. Of course that meant PAL to NTSC conversion. If your that dense then Im sorry. I guess Ill have to be more specific. I do have plenty of clue what im talking about.

You have no clue what I have done, I have done plenty of things with video. Ill bet probly more than you. I just wanted some info on this and it seems like all the lazy people are just saying get a danm multi region DVD player. The whole damn reason for this post is because I dont want one, I want files playable on PC.

I got a great answer elseware in another forum so thanks for nothing I guess.

as for your last stement, I would never do that and say I did it if I couldnt do it. I would continue to ask around and try learning from people who actually give help and not criticism like a know it all who wont talk.

[killerteengohan]

Multiavchd can do PAL to NTSC with an mkv container...it's just not the simplest app to use....you have to go into the settings and do quite a bit of configuring

It doesnt have to be simple, Im pretty good with software configurations.

I am a very good encoder and have lots of exp with many different methods and softwares but there is one thing I have never done yet and thats convert a PAL dvd to NTSC MKV

Im not a noob at encoding so I should be able to keep up with configurations once I have the proper software.

Heres an example screenshot of my Yu-Gi-Oh! DVDRips and encode. It turned out very good. But thats working with an NTSC DVD, ive never tried PAL yet.

http://img651.imageshack.us/img651/7442/yugi4.png

[hech54]

I thought you would know what I meant by region to another region conversion. Of course that meant PAL to NTSC conversion. If your that dense then Im sorry. I guess Ill have to be more specific. I do have plenty of clue what im talking about.

You have no clue what I have done, I have done plenty of things with video. Ill bet probly more than you. I just wanted some info on this and it seems like all the lazy people are just saying get a danm multi region DVD player. The whole damn reason for this post is because I dont want one, I want files playable on PC.

I got a great answer elseware in another forum so thanks for nothing I guess.

as for your last stement, I would never do that and say I did it if I couldnt do it. I would continue to ask around and try learning from people who actually give help and not criticism like a know it all who wont talk.

I just had to quote that before you edited it.

[jman98]

I thought you would know what I meant by region to another region conversion. Of course that meant PAL to NTSC conversion. If your that dense then Im sorry. I guess Ill have to be more specific. I do have plenty of clue what im talking about.

You have no clue what I have done, I have done plenty of things with video. Ill bet probly more than you. I just wanted some info on this and it seems like all the lazy people are just saying get a danm multi region DVD player. The whole damn reason for this post is because I dont want one, I want files playable on PC.

Your "lazy" equals my "my time is VALUABLE". Most people here place no value at all on their spare time. You are very likely one of those people who don't care if you spend 100 hours doing this if you save $5. I'd rather have the 100 hours. Yes I certainly admit to being lazy but my spare time is worth something to me. I have quite a few PAL DVDs and I do have better things to do with my time than to convert them.

You really have no idea what you are talking about because PAL DVDs are already playable on a PC. No conversion necessary. Install the free VLC player and you also don't have to worry about region codes. Again - to play a DVD on a PC, no conversion is necessary but some commercial software players will honor region codes. VLC does not.

I still say that converting 20 DVDs is insane. But it's your time to waste. Do what you want.

[killerteengohan]

I thought you would know what I meant by region to another region conversion. Of course that meant PAL to NTSC conversion. If your that dense then Im sorry. I guess Ill have to be more specific. I do have plenty of clue what im talking about.

You have no clue what I have done, I have done plenty of things with video. Ill bet probly more than you. I just wanted some info on this and it seems like all the lazy people are just saying get a danm multi region DVD player. The whole damn reason for this post is because I dont want one, I want files playable on PC.

Your "lazy" equals my "my time is VALUABLE". Most people here place no value at all on their spare time. You are very likely one of those people who don't care if you spend 100 hours doing this if you save $5. I'd rather have the 100 hours. Yes I certainly admit to being lazy but my spare time is worth something to me. I have quite a few PAL DVDs and I do have better things to do with my time than to convert them.

You really have no idea what you are talking about because PAL DVDs are already playable on a PC. No conversion necessary. Install the free VLC player and you also don't have to worry about region codes. Again - to play a DVD on a PC, no conversion is necessary but some commercial software players will honor region codes. VLC does not.

I still say that converting 20 DVDs is insane. But it's your time to waste. Do what you want.

I already know their playable on pc, Its you who doesnt know apparently. I want em to be NTSC though and in MKV files, not PAL. try reading my original post where I said

I have already ripped the DVD's into VOB files but their PAL resolution. How would I make them 640x480 NTSC

and by lazy I meant the people who know the answer but dont tell and just say get a multi region dvd player. and not only that but even if it did take 100 hours like you say, most of it is from automated software doing the work once you configure it. its not like youll be working the whole 100 hours.

[killerteengohan]

I thought you would know what I meant by region to another region conversion. Of course that meant PAL to NTSC conversion. If your that dense then Im sorry. I guess Ill have to be more specific. I do have plenty of clue what im talking about.

You have no clue what I have done, I have done plenty of things with video. Ill bet probly more than you. I just wanted some info on this and it seems like all the lazy people are just saying get a danm multi region DVD player. The whole damn reason for this post is because I dont want one, I want files playable on PC.

I got a great answer elseware in another forum so thanks for nothing I guess.

as for your last stement, I would never do that and say I did it if I couldnt do it. I would continue to ask around and try learning from people who actually give help and not criticism like a know it all who wont talk.

I just had to quote that before you edited it.

first of all its not a quote if you altered it lol. i didnt put bold and second, why would I edit it? I meant what i said in it. you must be a kid or something.

[manono]

I thought you would know what I meant by region to another region conversion. Of course that meant PAL to NTSC conversion. If your that dense then Im sorry.

All you're doing is proving your own ignorance. You say these things are Japanese anime, right? Well, Japan is Region 2, but NTSC. And Region 2 also includes Europe and parts of Africa and the Middle East, which are PAL.

Stating the region doesn't necessarily also mean a specific format (PAL or NTSC).

How would I go about converting these Region 2 DVD's into NTSC DVD or NTSC video files for my PC so tha I can encode myself and burn my own DVD's?

You have no clue what I have done, I have done plenty of things with video.

I have already ripped the DVD's into VOB files but their Pal resolution. How would I make them 640x480 NTSC?

If you knew so much you wouldn't be speaking of 640x480 NTSC DVD files. And if you're so experienced, just use an AviSynth script to slow the video from 25fps to 23.976fps and do the proper 720x480 resize and send it to your MPEG-2 encoder. Then slow the audio to NTSC speed.

I am a very good encoder and have lots of exp with many different methods and softwares but there is one thing I have never done yet and thats convert a PAL dvd to NTSC MKV

Later you apparently changed your mind and decided you wanted an MKV (and x264 video?). OK, then you can make it 640x480, using the same AviSynth script. Just send the script to your encoder. For one as experienced as you claim to be it should be a piece of cake.

[jagabo]

The easiest way to make an NTSC DVD from a progressive PAL DVD: resize the frame from 720x576 to 720x480. Encode as MPEG 2, 25 fps with the same display aspect ratio as the source. Use DgPulldown to add 3:2:3:2:2 pulldown flags. Use any authoring program to make a DVD from that file and the original audio.

[killerteengohan]

I thought you would know what I meant by region to another region conversion. Of course that meant PAL to NTSC conversion. If your that dense then Im sorry.

All you're doing is proving your own ignorance. You say these things are Japanese anime, right? Well, Japan is Region 2, but NTSC. And Region 2 also includes Europe and parts of Africa and the Middle East, which are PAL.

Stating the region doesn't necessarily also mean a specific format (PAL or NTSC).

How would I go about converting these Region 2 DVD's into NTSC DVD or NTSC video files for my PC so tha I can encode myself and burn my own DVD's?

You have no clue what I have done, I have done plenty of things with video.

I have already ripped the DVD's into VOB files but their Pal resolution. How would I make them 640x480 NTSC?

If you knew so much you wouldn't be speaking of 640x480 NTSC DVD files. And if you're so experienced, just use an AviSynth script to slow the video from 25fps to 23.976fps and do the proper 720x480 resize and send it to your MPEG-2 encoder. Then slow the audio to NTSC speed.

I am a very good encoder and have lots of exp with many different methods and softwares but there is one thing I have never done yet and thats convert a PAL dvd to NTSC MKV

Later you apparently changed your mind and decided you wanted an MKV (and x264 video?). OK, then you can make it 640x480, using the same AviSynth script. Just send the script to your encoder. For one as experienced as you claim to be it should be a piece of cake.

wow your as strict/mean as I remember you lol, I know you well manono.

first off no I didnt say this was japanese anime anywhere.

Later you apparently changed your mind and decided you wanted an MKV (and x264 video?). OK, then you can make it 640x480, using the same AviSynth script. Just send the script to your encoder. For one as experienced as you claim to be it should be a piece of cake.

That is a piece of cake for me, but I never changed my mind, thats what I wanted from the beginning, I guess my wording in the first post was off or something.

I stated this right after it, you might wanna try reading the thread first.

I saw one person take PAL DVD's and encode it to 640x480 NTSC MKV format and thats what I wish to do to mine. As for the menu, thats ok I have software to make my own menu's.

If you knew so much you wouldn't be speaking of 640x480 NTSC DVD files. And if you're so experienced, just use an AviSynth script to slow the video from 25fps to 23.976fps and do the proper 720x480 resize and send it to your MPEG-2 encoder. Then slow the audio to NTSC speed.

Already done most of that but the resize made it look like I squished it down height wise too much and threw that aspect off. Is that actually ok to do?

[killerteengohan]

Basically heres the real question since you guys make it seem so easy after manono's last outburst.

Is going from 720x576 to 720x480 and then encoding to 640x480 h264 going to be alright?

Thats how I thought to do it in the first place with avisynth but I would think that would throw the aspect off and make it look squished height wise? Because of that I thought perhaps there was more to it than just that.

[manono]

first off no I didnt say this was japanese anime anywhere.

Gimme a break. Your avatar is from anime. The pic you included is from anime.

Anyways, I encode anime and shows all the time for myself but I have never done PAL before.

I'd say the odds of your DVD source being anime are pretty good.

Is going from 720x576 to 720x480 and then encoding to 640x480 h264 going to be alright?

No, not when you can go directly to 640x480.

Thats how I thought to do it in the first place with avisynth but I would think that would throw the aspect off and make it look squished height wise? Because of that I thought perhaps there was more to it than just that.

If it's a 4:3 DVD, that's how you do it (although I might crop 8 from both the left and right, perhaps depending on whether or not there are black bars there to begin with.

[jagabo]

Is going from 720x576 to 720x480 and then encoding to 640x480 h264 going to be alright?

Why would you do both of those? Just resize once. If you want square pixels the size you want depends on the AR of the source. Use a 4:3 frame size for 4:3 sources, 16:9 frame size for 16:9 sources. There's no reason to resize the frame at all if you're making h.264 MKV, keep the original frame size and set the h.264 pixel aspect ratio flags. Any player that plays MKVs is smart enough to read the flags and obey them. Actually, you don't even need to transcode them. Just remux the original MPEG2 and AC3 audio into an MKV container.

[killerteengohan]

first off no I didnt say this was japanese anime anywhere.

Gimme a break. Your avatar is from anime. The pic you included is from anime.

Anyways, I encode anime and shows all the time for myself but I have never done PAL before.

I'd say the odds of your DVD source being anime are pretty good.

Is going from 720x576 to 720x480 and then encoding to 640x480 h264 going to be alright?

No, not when you can go directly to 640x480.

Thats how I thought to do it in the first place with avisynth but I would think that would throw the aspect off and make it look squished height wise? Because of that I thought perhaps there was more to it than just that.

If it's a 4:3 DVD, that's how you do it (although I might crop 8 from both the left and right, perhaps depending on whether or not there are black bars there to begin with.

Yeah its a 4:3 DVD, and I did crop off black bars from the sides. Im now done and think it looks fine, and thank you both, but I got one last question.

Making 720x480 into 640x480 is ok for NTSC but wouldnt making 720x576 into 640x480 normally squish the original image height and make it look wierd?

[jagabo]

Making 720x480 into 640x480 is ok for NTSC but wouldnt making 720x576 into 640x480 normally squish the original image height and make it look wierd?

No, it would be perfect. NTSC DVD uses a 720x480 frame to hold a 4:3 or 16:9 picture, PAL uses a 720x576 4:3 or 16:9 picture.

[killerteengohan]

Making 720x480 into 640x480 is ok for NTSC but wouldnt making 720x576 into 640x480 normally squish the original image height and make it look wierd?

No, it would be perfect. NTSC DVD uses a 720x480 frame to hold a 4:3 or 16:9 picture, PAL uses a 720x576 4:3 or 16:9 picture.

If thats the case then this is way easier than I originally believed it would be. Thanks alot everyone.

[jagabo]

this is way easier than I originally believed it would be.

Until you come across an interlaced PAL DVD.

[killerteengohan]

this is way easier than I originally believed it would be.

Until you come across an interlaced PAL DVD.

It was interlaced, perhaps thats why I see some ghosting in the video. But the original VOB file also has the same ghosting, not just my encode.

[jagabo]

It was interlaced, perhaps thats why I see some ghosting in the video. But the original VOB file also has the same ghosting, not just my encode.

There are ways to deal with that.