DVD Shrink doesn't compress, How can I compress a MPEG2 File

[happydog500]

I captured some of my home movies (VHS) to my HD. Some are to big to fit on a disc. I have one that's been edited as far as it can go. It's .88mb over the limit to be put on a Disc (another is 5.5GB total, etc..) .

Since I captured it from a Tuner Card, DVD shrink doesn't see the file. I've been told that DVD Shrink only sees .VOB Files.

Is there anyway to get Shrink to see MPEG2 Video Files? Is there something like DVD Shrink that will work to compress my MPEG 2 Video Files to fit on a single disc? Thank you,
Chris.

P.S. I would prefer to have a program that doens't just compress a file, but compreses a file down just fit on a disc.

[jimmalenko]

I'm led to believe that rejig can transcode MPEGs. You could either try this or just author as normal anyway, ignoring any oversize warnings from your authoring software, and output to your hard drive. Then feed this into DVDShrink.

[Krispy Kritter]

You need to use an authoring program.

Check to the "HOW TO" AUTHOR section

[Jayhawk]

I second Krispy Kritter and jimmalenko. I had the same problem with a number of conversions. I my case, I was using Ulead Moviefactory to author the final DVD's and I normally output a ISO file (makes additional copies easier). On ones that are too big, I just read the ISO into Decrypter and use Shrink just as I would on a standard commercial backup.

[mats.hogberg]

ReJig transcodes mpg just fine.

/Mats

[happydog500]

I used rejig. A 5.3GB file ended up 3.somthing. It looked very, very good quality on TV, except one thing. No sound. The original file on my HD has sound, just not the file after I use rejig.
What should I do?

Anybody know of a site that explanes rejig?

[craiggus365]

REJIG requires you to re-multiplex the sound into the video. If you demux before compressing you can remux w/ REJIG or use TDA to author and select audio and vid files separately.........

[happydog500]

Rejig wants to make my video file 3451MB. If I have a 5.5GB video file, if jig makes it 3.4GB, won't it be less quality then say, 4GB? When I change the number in the window, it always goes back to 3451MB.

Also. is there a way to get a video file on a disc and keep the chapters? Thanks, Chris.

[happydog500]

Can someone walk me through how to get sound? I can't seem to get it to work. Wish "Nic" would of had a totorial someware. Chris.

[jimmalenko]

Demux your original file in TMPGEnc > MPEG Tools, then remux the audio it creates with the file Rejig creates.

[jimmalenko]

... or just demux it in Rejig:



1. Select your audio stream here.
2. Click Demux button. This will prompt you to save the audio file somewhere.
3. Just overtype with whatever filesize you wish to hit. I'd say it's probably just a default setting somewhere.
4. Press the "Re-compress Job" button to start the transcode.

[happydog500]

What order would I do this? Do the movie first? It seems I'll have the video and audio in a differnt folder since I have to "save it someplace."

Thank you very much for giving me the instructions with the pasted pic.

[jimmalenko]

You can do it in any order you please.

How's about doing it in the numbered order I gave ?

To get the files in the same folder, how about just saving the audio into the same folder as the video ?



It's not rocket-science

[happydog500]

The software I use to burn the DVD will not bun two files. You didn't mention any order. Makes no sence from what I'm asking. Thanks, Chris.

[jimmalenko]

What software do you use to author ?
What software do you use to burn ?

[happydog500]

I followed the instructions. As I followed them, a light went off and I got it. It was so cool. Just follow your instructions.

When I was done, I tried to burn the video. Two programs said the file contained no video. I opened the file in WMP and it just had sound, no video.

[jimmalenko]

I'll ask again ...

What software do you use to author ?
What software do you use to burn ?

The process you have just done creates an M2V file, and another file (either .mpa, .ac3 or .wav). This is what's called "Elementary Streams". You need to multiplex them back together into an MPEG file. Then, unless your player plays raw MPEG, you need to author that MPEG file. THen you can burn.

[mats.hogberg]

...or if you are authoring with an application that use elementary streams as source (most serious apps do!) just load the m2v as video source, audio as audio source.

/Mats

[happydog500]

Just so I have this stright. This program seperates the audio from the video and it doesn't or can't put them back together? I will need ANOTHER Program to finish?

I capture in my TV Tuner software (ComproPVR 2), edit the comericals in ULEAD VideoStudio 7, burn the DVD in ULEAD DVD Movie Factory.

When I capture from VHS, I use ULEAD VideoStudio, then the other ones in order.
Chris.

[Dragonsf]

The correct method should be:

1) Capture to mpeg2,
2) edit the video and
3) demultiplex. Gives elementary video stream (m2v) and audio stream (mpa/mp2/wav/ac3)
4) Shrink the mpeg2 video if necessary.
5) Author the DVD with ifoedit and
(Authoring will multiplex elementary streams)
After Authoring you can
6) use DVDShrink to get the footage to fit on a DVD (if not done at step 4)
7) burn with imgtool.

8) put DVD into player
9) enjoy

[jimmalenko]

The correct method should be:

1 a). Capture to MPEG-2, capturing with the correct bitrate to start with !

OR b). output from VideoStudio using the correct settings.

OR c). finish /author your DVD as per normal until you get to the point when you're ready to burn. Run the VIDEO_TS folder through DVDShrink, and it'll take care of the transcoding for you and output back to another VIDEO_TS folder ready to burn, or an ISO Image, or you can even set it to burn "automatically" with Nero, DVDDecrypter or CopyToDVD.



Then you don't need to go through all this demux/transcode/remux crap

[Dragonsf]

Sometimes it's not possible to capture with the correct bitrate, because the total time of comercials is not known in advance. So, you only can calculate the bitrate after cutting correctly.

(That's why I'm using DV for capture and convert to mpeg-2 afterwards). No demuxing is ok, if you don't want to edit the Audio as well.

[happydog500]

I can't bet on something working, even if it should.
I had a file around 4.1GB. MovieFactory said 4.1 was to big to fit on a DVD. When I opened it up in Nero, it saw the same file as 5.7GB.
Seems even if it should fit, nothing I've done so far fits on a DVD. That's why I was asking about DVD Shrink.

[Dragonsf]

Yes, sometimes calculation goes wrong. Even after doing more than 200 DVDs, I sometimes miscalculated the Bitrate and had to apply DVDShrink.

[mats.hogberg]

If my source, known to be a DVD compliant mpg is 4.1 GB, I'd immediately uninstall any application that told me that it can't be authored to a single layer DVD.
I'd say either your source isn't DVD compliant, and MovieFactory/Nero wants to reencode, or Nero/MovieFactory are even worse than I've imagined.
Use a real authoring app (as opposed to encoder/editor/author/burn combo) to author. TMPGEnc DVD Author seems a good choice.

/Mats

[jimmalenko]

I can't bet on something working, even if it should.
I had a file around 4.1GB. MovieFactory said 4.1 was to big to fit on a DVD. When I opened it up in Nero, it saw the same file as 5.7GB.
Seems even if it should fit, nothing I've done so far fits on a DVD. That's why I was asking about DVD Shrink.

I can only suggest that you try software that lets YOU tell IT what to do - a 4.1GB MPEG-2 file should have no problems fitting onto a DVD, provided that it meets DVD spec. Nero seeing it as 5.7GB sounds to me like Nero was gonna convert the audio to 1536kbps PCM.

Just a couple of pointers that may or may not help:

1. If editing needs to be done, it is much easier IMO to work with AVI (DV or one of the low-compression codecs is preferred). You can then edit in Virtualdub, apply filters via AVISynth, and then open your AVS file in your favorite encoder, without having to save out to intermediate files or anything like that. Then you let your encoder hit the correct bitrate as calculated, first time. No mucking about trying to make things fit after the event. It's a pretty slick method IMO.

2. Surely you must be able to tweak the output settings of VideoStudio. Adjust the bitrate so that it outputs a suitable-sized MPEG file.

3. Use an authoring software that lets you tell it what to do. There is generally some sort of tickbox option that stops programs re-encoding or applying their own take on the DVD spec.

[happydog500]

I can change the bitrate in VS.

When I first started, someone told me to get good quality, use a high frame rate, use compresion to make the size fit. If I use less rate and less compresion, less quality.

I thank every one of you for the posts. I've learned a lot from this.

What i've done so far is;
Record a 2 hour movie from TV. Take the file and open it in UVS. Edit the comericals to make it about an hour and a half. When I click on Creat disc, it crashes after a minute. I have to "Save as File". Takes 5 hours (Althon 2.4GHz, 512 DDR).

Once the file is saved again, I open it up in DVD MovieFactory. Add chapters. When I start to burn, it goes through 45 minutes of "Converting Video." Then it does "Video/Audio Multiplexing" for 45 minutes.
Next it "finalizing Video" for about 30-40 minutes.

All total is about 8 hours. This is on the ones I got to work. Most, almost all have been to big when I get done. I had one the was .88mb over. I want to keep the frame rate up, in fact, try to increase it and use compresion to make them fit.

One program suggested is $79. Any good ones cheaper?

I've done about 300 Tapes to CD with SoundForge Wav editor. I got real good at editing. I thought video was going to be almost as easy.

I still can't understand why, if an audio file (anolog from a tape) is put on a HD. Edit some stuff out, put it on a CD. With video, if I have a video file, why can't I just put it on a disc? Why does it have to go through all this stuff?

I like VideoStudio because the timeline eidting seems easy once I got use to it. I think it would be cool to have a program that will do each thing in stead of a seprate one for each thing. VS would do this if it didn't crash when I chose "Create disc."

I have a new Video Card comming. It has TV Out. When I record a show, I don't need to put it on a DVD to watch. I can watch it from my HD.

That means most of the video work will be transfering some of my video tapes to DVD. Chris.

[jimmalenko]

Yes, video is A LOT more complicated than just audio.

To be brutally honest with you, I think your software (and thus, your workflow) is holding you back, and hindering / confusing you more than it is helping. There's a number of dedicated programs such as CCE, TMPGEnc or any other dedicated encoders that will do exactly what you tell it to do. THere's also Quenc leading the charge from a freeware point of view. These programs won't make judgements for you, so if you get a setting wrong you might have to redo it. But set up right and it'll do exactly what you think it should do. The same for authoring - TMPGEnc DVD Author or dvd-lab pro are probably the two most popular payware authorers, and then there's gui for dvdauthor, dvdauthorgui and ifoedit as freeware solutions.


The method I use for TV and VHS is this:

1. "Capture" to DV-AVI using my ADVC-100 and ScenalyzerLive
2. Editing and filtering (if required) via AVISynth and virtualdubmod (guide here)
3. Load frameserved video into TMGPEnc Plus
4. Load MPEG-2 file(s) into TMPGEnc DVD Author.
5. Burn with Nero.

While it may seem like a lot of different steps, it is actually quite streamlined because the editing/filtering step and frameserving to TMPGEnc allows you to apply the filtering and edits without having to save out to an intermediate file. So the only files you're saving to your HDD are the initial capture and the final output of the MPEG-2 file, ready to author, and you've been able to edit as well as add any array of filters you choose in the meantime. Then of course you must also output your authored files.

Virtualdubmod and AVISynth are free
TMPGEnc Plus and TMPGEnc DVD Author both have 30 day fully functional free trials

Might be worth a look

[Dragonsf]

Jimmalenko is right, that's nearly my way to go:
capture to DV with ADVC 300 and DVIo (no drops)-> 2h
cut with AviSynth (controlled by VirtualDub) -> 20 min
Save wave with VDub ->10 min
Edit Wave (noise reduc/Normalize) with CoolEdit ->15 min
Convert Wave to ac3 -> 20 min
Convert Video to mpeg2 -> 1 h (no frameserving, direct from .avs file)

Author with IfoEdit-> 20 min
Burn with imgtools ->25 min

All in all a VHS conversion takes around 5h, which is quite an improvement over 12h befour (with a HDB and a slower CPU), as I haven't to care about dropped frames anymore

[pfh]

All in all a VHS conversion takes around 5h, which is quite an improvement over 12h befour (with a HDB and a slower CPU), as I haven't to care about dropped frames anymore

Unless you are encoding your cap as mpeg from the start. Then it's either real time or a little longer. Direct to disc or to HD 1st then disc.