AVI movies losing Aspect Ratio going to DVD

[Warlock_THR]

I checked the forums but didn't come across exactly what I was seeking... a lot of AVI to DVD posts... but for me, I have a widescreen AVI file (probably made from a DVD). When I make a DVD out of it, it works and looks and sounds just fine, except the it's now a forced full screen so everyone looks 10' tall.

I am new to this, trying out software, trying to figure what's best/easiest to use. I used ULead a few times now and seems fine, but with an AVI file it only lets me choose about 4 different resolutions, none matching the original AVI resolution.

Can anyone suggest a program that will burn to DVD and leave the ratio alone? Or do I have to convert to MPEG and when using ULead tell it not to convert compatible MPEG files?

[Tommyknocker]

Remember, Ulead is a company, not a software application. Please be a little more specific. Also, to adjust an aspect ratio in a program like Video Studio, you have to adjust the project settings.

[lcaluga]

Unfortunately Ulead doesn't do to good of a job at reencoding avi files.I suggest using TMPGEnc to encode the file, but make sure you select (in the second options tab) "Full screen (keep aspect ratio)".

[Warlock_THR]

It was ULead DVD Movie Factory 2... compared to the bad menu creations for VCDs found in Nero... it's pretty good... but not many options for aspect ratios Icaluga has mentioned.

Icaluga - I have seen that program mentioned quite a few times... was hoping to avoid the extra conversion step but, if it works it works. Thanks for the info I'll give it a try.

[Tommyknocker]

No extra step involved. If you use TMPGEnc, load the AVI, select the template the aspect ratio, and encode.

[lcaluga]

The guy is right. With some movies all you have to do is set the resolution and, happy encoding. But I came across some movies that needed the "Keep asect ratio setting". Just something to keep in mind if the first method doesn't work.

[bugster]

As TommyKnocker said, this is not an extra step, it is actually an alternative encoding method, and one that will do what you want (preserve original aspect ratio) and will also probably provide better quality. There are several guides on converting avi to DVD compliant mpeg using TmpGenc, I suggest you read one or two to help you get started as there are a myriad of other settings that will affect the quality of the final video. Once you have the mpeg, import this into Ulead MF and be sure to tick the check box 'do not convert compliant video' or it will encode all over again.

Hope this helps.

[Warlock_THR]

The FAQ/How-To I read for the TMPGenc was pretty good, converted to MPEG with widescreen no prob...

The extra step I was refering to was that when I did it with ULead, I would just pick to make a DVD, load the AVI and hit record and it did the rest. The extra step now is I take the AVI, go into TMPGenc and convert to MPEG... then... I open something like ULead and load the video file and record to DVD. So there is an extra step involved, I can't just load the video file into ULead, hit record and come home from work and have it done, now I come home from work and it's encoded but I still have to load it into burning software and wait for it to burn.

But, so far so good, the MPEG file seems fine I am just waiting to see how it looks after it's burnt.

[Warlock_THR]

Ok... first attempt half passed and half failed...

I burned to a DVD-R using the ULead mentioned in previous posts. I also included a menu on the DVD and imported an MP3 of the movie theme song.

On my PC it's all good, no probs.

On my Toshiba SD2800, the menu works with music. The movie looks great, no sound.... any ideas what I missed? I am assuming some sorta sound setting like mpeg sound, or wrong frequency ratings...

Anyone? I have another post in this forum similar regarding the same prob with a DVD-VCD but no responses....

[bugster]

Hmmm. AFAIK, Ulead MF will only generate a single 'titleset' on the DVD. Also, when you imported the mp3, it may have been converted to PCM. The mpeg produced by TmpGenc would have had mp2 audio. This means your DVD contains 2 differnt audio types within 1 title set. Many DVD players don't like this (I think it is not DVD compliant, not sure). Check the Ulead MF settings and select mp2 audio for everything if you can, or convert the mp3 to mp2 before importing.

Hope this helps.

[Gazorgan]

To be sure your complient, you may want to work exclusively in M2V's and AC3's. As I recall Ulead is notorious for PCM sound only ( I use TMPG Author, very nice for as complex as I get ). Anytime your Authoring applications tries to re-encode, you didn't do it right. That puppy should be spitting out VOB's immediately.

[Warlock_THR]

Hmm... I'll have to give it another go... but yeah, if it's supposed to be just spitting out the vob's then I must be doing something wrong for sure.

I'll also try getting something more than the freeware of TMPGenc... it converts well enough, but then I have to go elsewhere to setup and burn.

[Gazorgan]

TMPG Author is a different program than TMPGEnc the encoder.