The best way to make DVDs out of captured MPEG2 videos?

[mob]

I remember reading somewhere that mpeg2 is the standard for dvd movie format.

If this is true then I am assuming I am in good shape here.

I use my PVR to capture some video to MPEG2 stored on my hard drive.

What is the best way to make DVDs out of these MPEG2's?

My main goal is retaining quality.

[gadgetguy]

Not all MPEG2s are created equal. Read "What Is DVD" to the left and make sure your videos comply. If they do, then you need an authoring program to build the DVD file structure.
Edit: No quality will be lost in the authoring process.

[mob]

gadgetguy, thanks for letting me know this.

I'm in the mood to learn more, so lets say for argument's sake, that the MPEG2s are not in correct DVD format.

Say the audio wasn't in the correct format, or something was wrong with the video. I don't even know what "could" be wrong with the video, I am assuming the AR is the only thing that could be worng... ??

Anyways, too make the long story short, I'd like to know the different things that could be wrong with the MPEG2 along with solutions on how to fix them.

And I don't mind spending money on the best software to get the job done. Of course, I'd prefer good freeware but I understand that sometimes paying for good software is the only way to go.

[guns1inger]

The biggest issues are

1. Non-compliant resolution (See what is DVD to find out what is compliant, use the latest G-Spot beta (2.52) to determine what your is)
2. Non-compliant bitrate (There is a maximum permissable bitrate for DVD playback on standalone players. Some cheaper players cannot sustain playback at the highest permissble levels)

Both of these problems can be solved by re-encoding.

If possible, always capture to a compatible resolution at the highest bitrate you can afford to, and if necessary re-encode later to reduce the bitrate. You will generally do less damage reducing bitrate than resizing.

[mob]

If possible, always capture to a compatible resolution at the highest bitrate you can afford to, and if necessary re-encode later to reduce the bitrate. You will generally do less damage reducing bitrate than resizing.

Thanks for that tip.

So here is what I understand so far:


1) Capture the video with the capture card which saves it as MPEG2.

2) In order to make DVDs out of the captured MPEG2s, one must author the files first. ( I am using TMPGEnc DVD Author )

3) If the MPEG2s are not DVD compliant, then the DVD authoring program will reject them. You will have to ?convert? the MPEG2s to the standard dvd compliant version??


Now the question is, how would I go about transforming the non-compliant MPEG2s to dvd-compliant MPEG2s that will be accepted by the authoring software? If that is even what I need to do...?

I've done some searching and came across a little tool called PVAStrumento which supposedly demuxes the MPEG2s and gets them into the standard dvd format. I'm not sure if this is infact what I need to do, or if there is a better program out there that I could be using.

It's either I am on the right track here, or I am totally lost. I would appreciate any help you guys can offer me. Thanks

[redwudz]

You're on the right track. Once you've checked your video with Gspot and compared it the the DVD standards you will know if it is compliant. Check the audio too.

If you need to reencode, look here for some guides:

https://www.videohelp.com/convert#4;43

If you are lucky, all you would have to do is drop it into your authoring program and make some menus and you would be done. Usually we aren't that lucky.

[Nelson37]

Well, no, you're not. Only very minor issues can be fixed with a tool such as PVAStrumento. The MPG must be DVD-compliant to begin with. If it is not, then you must re-encode. Resolution, max bitrate, and audio frequency are the most common issues. Audio can be fixed seperately, but non-compliant video must be re-encoded. (Some few can be patched to "fool" the DVD player, but this does not always work.)

Best advice is to capture to compliant settings to begin with. Do NOT rely on the software to produce a compliant video. Read up on what DVD-compliant is, and then set the software to produce it.

[mikiem]

FWIW, encoders can empasize speed or quality -- captureing mpg2 usually means speed. After all, the developer has no idea of whether you're using a 1 gig cpu or the latest & greatest system sold, and so designs for the lowest common denominator. Capturing DVD compliant mpg2 is certainly possible, but given a decent enough source, you should see a difference if you capture at highest bitrate, or DV or MJPEG, & then encode your capture.