Reluctant to compress, advice?

[Guts118]

Hi,
I have been thinking about backing up my dvds, I don’t have a dual layer writer but even if I did have one I might not use DL dvds due to their high price in the UK(DVD-Rs are much cheaper). Therefore I want to use DVD-Rs but am reluctant to use something like dvd shrink because I can notice a difference in quality. My question is that if I split a movie onto two dvds, I know that if I do this I cannot keep the menu but if I also create another backup on which to store the dvds menu. Then at a later date when DLs are cheap could I put the two halves and the menu back together?

Any advice appreciated

Guts

[FulciLives]

DVDShrink allows you to back up just the movie and one audio track and if needed one subtitle track.

Some Dual Layer DVD discs will fit onto a single layer DVD-R when you do this ... or if compression is required it usually is very little thus not making a real noticeable difference in the image quality.

Another option would be to use a tool like DVDFab (not freeware unfortunately) which will split a DVD9 for you so that you can burn it across 2 single layer DVD-R discs. However this is, to the best of my knowledge, not something that can be easily undone but if you ever decided to go with DL blanks then you can just back up from the original again instead of trying to stich together the 2 single layer DVD discs.

I think I've seen a guide or guides on how to split a DVD9 using freeware tools but the only easy way to do it (as I know it) is to just use DVDFab.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[guns1inger]

I often use DVD Shrink with compression set to No Compression to remove things I don't need (usually reducing it to a movie and audio only disc - with commentary if one exists), then use DVD Rebuilder to reduce the size if necessary.

[manono]

My question is that if I split a movie onto two dvds, I know that if I do this I cannot keep the menu ...

Of course you can keep the menu, and quite easily. Just use VobBlanker to split the DVD into 2 parts. Blank out, say, the extras and the later chapters of the movie if necessary for the first DVDR. For the second DVDR blank out the movie, or the majority of it that you included on the first DVD, keeping the extras and perhaps the later chapters of the movie for the 2nd DVDR. You might also have to blank some menu buttons so you can't click on what's no longer there. You can use MenuEdit or PGCEdit for that.

Previously split DVDs can be remerged pretty easily using DVDRemake Pro:

http://www.dimadsoft.com/dvdremakepro/ht_merge1.php

[FulciLives]

My question is that if I split a movie onto two dvds, I know that if I do this I cannot keep the menu ...

Of course you can keep the menu, and quite easily. Just use VobBlanker to split the DVD into 2 parts. Blank out, say, the extras and the later chapters of the movie if necessary for the first DVDR. For the second DVDR blank out the movie, or the majority of it that you included on the first DVD, keeping the extras and perhaps the later chapters of the movie for the 2nd DVDR. You might also have to blank some menu buttons so you can't click on what's no longer there. You can use MenuEdit or PGCEdit for that.

Nothing wrong with that at all ... in fact I've done that a few times but ...

If I understand correctly DVDFab can very easily split a DVD9 out so that it fits on 2 single layer DVD discs in more-or-less the same way as you can with the above instructions. If you pick a menu option for something that is on the other disc you get a screen that pops up telling you that that feature is on the other disc and then you go back to the menu.

It is probably worth it for the "newbie" or anyone wanting to save some time and frustration to just use DVDFab instead.

I like to think I know what I am doing (try not to laugh kiddies) and even I find using VobBlanker a bit of a pain-in-the-ass so although I can use it and have done so ... I don't like it ... and ... I just don't see the average person being able to adapt to using it all that easily.

Hence my suggestion to use DVDFab eventhough it is not freeware.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[ROF]

Personally I'd wait for dual layer drives/discs to go on sale, buy a drive and a few discs, and make my backups. I wouldn't spend time splitting video discs up into multiple video discs just to make backups. This would make viewing the movie much more difficult. One of things I disliked about LD was when the movie was half over a message would appear to flip the disc over. I'd have to get up, eject the disc, turn it over, put it back in, and press play. After all this the impact of the scenes had lost their emotion and I could never get back into the movie.

I also feel as you the shrinking of movies destroys the quality and quite frankly defeats the purpose of backing up the movie in the first place. If it's minor shrinkage meaning less than 5 percent or so than it looks OK. Anymore than 8-10% and you've defeated the purpose of backing up a movie because backups are usually made to preserve the quality of the original. Since dual layer drives are now at rock bottom pricing and dual layer DVDs have dropped considerably it's uch more affordable, economically feeasible, and viewing preferrable to use these dual layer discs and back up your videos the right way.

[Grain]

DVDFab does do a very nice job splitting, zero compression like Fulci says. I wish you could put the extras on disc 2 instead of 1, but supposedly that is coming in an update. Good program.