DivX/XviD with VBR to DVD

[deesto]

I've read many, many articles and tutorials on converting DivX/XviD files to DVD format. I've become very familiar with the tools and applications, and many of their settings. And sometimes it comes out right. But there's nothing more frustrating than getting that movie your kids want to see so badly, spending the time and effort converting it to something they can watch on our TV... and then realizing that the video looks fine, but the audio is all out of sync.

I've noticed that this seems to happen only when a file has been encoded with a VBR (variable bit rate). I guess it makes sense: if the bitrate varies depending on the level of audio activity, it might be difficult to consistently line the video up with the audio during conversion.

Has anyone had similar trouble, and perhaps had any luck in getting it right? For the record, the methods I've used and seen described most are:
- Using VirtualDub to convert the audio to WAV format (usually get a warning about the VBR)
- Using TMPMGEnc to convert the file to MPEG2, using the AVI is the video source and the WAS as the audio source
- Using Nero Vision to "convert" the MPEG2 file to DVD format (although I'm not quite sure why it needs to be converted again), author the DVD image, and burn to DVD.

I would love to improve (or replace) any of these methods to get a DVD that works.

Thanks!
deesto

[Delta2]

VBR Audio is not a problem for me

- I use AVIMux first to apply delays
- I use VDub to uncompress audio to PCM format
- and encode normally with CCE or QuENC

what ever

[redwudz]

ConvertXToDVD can handle most VBR. It's an easy to use program and fairly inexpensive. Some VBR audio can be difficult, but you don't usually know till you convert them to MPEG. AC3 in a Xvid or Divx can sometimes cause problems also.

Nero has a bad habit of 'reconverting'. If you have DVD compliant video and audio, don't let it do it as it will just waste time and lower the quality. Why not use just an authoring program and leave Nero out except for the final burning? A simple freeware authoring program is DVDAuthorgui.

If I need to do a little more than ConvertXToDVD can do, such as filtering, I use VirtualDub Mod for extracting the WAV, then I convert the WAV to AC3 with ffmpeggui. The video I frameserve from VDM directly to TMPGEnc Plus encoder, video only. This saves time and hard drive space. Then I take the two files and put them into TMPGEnc DVD Author, author them and burn. This method works fine for me. But ConvertXToDVD does a good job also. Most Xvids I see are not that great of quality and ConvertXToDVD saves a lot of time and effort with them.

[deesto]

Thanks Delta2 and redwudz... good advice, and you've pointed me toward a few tools I've not used before. Being lazy, I'll give the ConvertXToDVD trial a try and see how it does. But even if it works, I'll probably tinker with the other methods just for fun.

I'll report back if I hit any walls... thank you!

[citanool]

I have not tried ConvertXtoDVD to compare, but you might also try WinAvi. Although, since this conversion is so rare for me, I usually just use NeroVision from start to finish.

[guns1inger]

WinAVI is a dirty word around here for a number of reasons. It is unreliable (especially with VBR MP3 audio), it's support is very poor, and it's authors frequently spam this forum to drum up business. Compare this with ConvertXtoDVD, which does a better job encoding, is more reliable, and whose authors came to this forum seeking input for their product in the form of beta testing and suggestions. If you need a one-click solution, ConvertXtoDVD is the only one I would recommend.

My method for manually doing these conversions is similar to the OP's, with the exception of tools used. I use avisynth and CCE for resizing/encoding video, and Sound Forge to convert the uncompressed wav to AC3 audio. Although I have less need to do this now as I have a Divx certified player, I have only ever had one file whose audio was so badly encoded I could not get it to match up.

[citanool]

Good info, thank you for elaborating.

Does ConvertXToDVD convert to anything besides standard DVD-Video, or would there be a different recommended one-click solution for say .mov or .wmv to divx/xvid .avi ?

[redwudz]

For Divx/Xvid from a DVD, I use FairUse Wizard. And AutoGK is popular. For just clip conversion, VirtualDub or it's variants are among the best programs. For other formats, try SUPER. It does quite a few.

[deesto]

Just tried ConvertXToDVD and it did a wonderful job... quick, simple, good quality, and the audio is in sync! Awesome... thanks for the tip!