DVDs already ripped - how to get them to CVD or KVCD?

[Donny Bahama]

I recently had a number of my DVDs destroyed. The good news is, they were all backed up to my media server, ripped using DVD Shrink (with no compression for best quality.) Burning the movies to DVDs is no problem, but some of the DVDs I lost were TV series, and the quality on those just isn't as important to me. I'd like to burn those to CVD or KVCD.

I don't really want to put any money into this until I'm sure I'll be happy with the quality (my video system is pretty high end and my screen is huge, so quality issues are fairly easy to spot.) I downloaded DVDx and tried creating an SVCD, but I couldn't even fit a single (43 minute) episode on a 700MB CD. I'd like to get at least an hour and a half (2 episodes) on each CD. Will CVD do that? From what I've read, KVCD will, but I can't find any guides on how to create these. Can anyone point me in the right direction? I'll be happy to write a guide if I can find the info to get me started.

[Scorpion King]

KVCD is a nonstandard vcd template. You can use them but they might not play in your settop box. Tmpgenc can use them.

With the time to encode to VCD - - - wouldn't it be simpler, and just as cheap, when you consider your time and electricity, to just burn them on DVD? I'd forget the VCD idea. That's old stuff nowdays. Even I don't do them anymore.

Good luck.

[lordsmurf]

I thought the same thing.

While quality has been mentioned as not important, how important is your time?

You're wanting to spend hours and hours, with a end result that looks worse?

Seems backwards to me.

[ZippyP.]

If you use VCD resolution and bitrate to make a DVD you can about 7 hours on a disk.

[Alex_ander]

From what I've read, KVCD will, but I can't find any guides on how to create these. Can anyone point me in the right direction? I'll be happy to write a guide if I can find the info to get me started.

You can find KVCD templates for TMPGEncPlus and links to the guides here:
www.kvcd.net

Actually KVCD will play on most (if not any) standalones. The only non-standard thing in it is custom coefficients of encoding matrice and therefore lower bitrate.

[lordsmurf]

Actually KVCD will play on most (if not any) standalones. The only non-standard thing in it is custom coefficients of encoding matrice and therefore lower bitrate.

Baloney.

Most of the KVCD spec is non-standard, including resolutions, bitrates, and the bitrate method. In other words, it will only play on a minority of DVD players because it does not adhere to DVD-Video, VCD, or even the lesser-used CVD or SVCD specs. It's just the personal settings from some random guy that wanted to cram a crapload of video onto a CD and pretend it looked "as good as DVD" does (which of course, it does not).

[AlanHK]

I recently had a number of my DVDs destroyed. The good news is, they were all backed up to my media server, ripped using DVD Shrink (with no compression for best quality.) Burning the movies to DVDs is no problem, but some of the DVDs I lost were TV series, and the quality on those just isn't as important to me. I'd like to burn those to CVD or KVCD.

You can do MPEG2 at very low bitrates, lower than VCD MPEG1 if you want. However, MPEG2 is (usually) VBR, where VCD is CBR, so you can get a better overall quality for the same average rate.

I've put up to 10 43-minute TV episodes on a DVD, encoded at a rate of about 1200. Five or six one-hour episodes per disc is my standard for HBO dramas or the like.
One DVD is better than a stack of VCDs at lower quality; and cheaper too.

You might look at Rejig, which reencodes MPEG2 and squeezes them down by a set amount.

Also, for most TV shows hifi sound is hardly important. You can cut that down to 128 k or lower, in my opinion.

[lordsmurf]

Also, for most TV shows hifi sound is hardly important. You can cut that down to 128 k or lower, in my opinion.

Mono will muffle sound.

128k will create "tinny" metallic audio compression artifacts. Bass is usually reduced far below suggested levels. You basically distort the audio below 192k, and 256k is suggested.

[AlanHK]

Also, for most TV shows hifi sound is hardly important. You can cut that down to 128 k or lower, in my opinion.

Mono will muffle sound.

128k will create "tinny" metallic audio compression artifacts. Bass is usually reduced far below suggested levels. You basically distort the audio below 192k, and 256k is suggested.

Who said anything about mono?

Anyway, we're talking about episodic TV, not Doctor Zhivago or Saving Private Ryan. Basically conversation. Maybe you've got golden ears and $10,000 speakers. On my TV, 128k is fine. Nothing "tinny" or "distorted". When it comes to investing 10MB of space, I think it better as video than audio.