DAT to MPEG 1

[MI6]

How can I convert DAT file from video CD to MPEG 1 file.
Regards

[jman98]

This is very easy. Download and install the free VCDGear package. There is a setting in it to convert from DAT to MPEG-1. Note that DAT files are just MPEG-1 files with different headers, so the only "conversion" is to change the header information. The video is not actually re-encoded.

[Midzuki]

jman98 wrote:

Note that DAT files are just MPEG-1 files with different headers,

If there is only one MPG-video on the CD, then that's true. BUT if the (S)VCD
contains several MPG clips, then the .DAT files and the actual MPG tracks
not always are the same thing.

[MOVIEGEEK]

If there is only one MPG-video on the CD, then that's true. BUT if the (S)VCD
contains several MPG clips, then the .DAT files and the actual MPG tracks
not always are the same thing.

All VCD's rename the MPEG files to AVSEQxx.DAT,all video files are kept in the MPEGAV folder.
Most SVCD titles have the MPEG files named AVSEQxx.MPG,some SVCD have the files named AVSEQxx.DAT.All video files are kept in the MPEG folder.

[Midzuki]

https://forum.videohelp.com/topic350272.html#1843094

[Alex_ander]

Womble MVW works with .dat natively.

[p_l]

Sometimes you can cheat and simply rename the file extension from .DAT to .MPG, but I'm sure somebody around here will come and wrap you on the knuckles.

[jman98]

Midzuki - I bow to your knowledge, but I have NEVER (and I do buy VCDs) seen a VCD where a single MPG track spanned multiple DAT files. I'll have to take your word on it. I can't think of what you would possibly accomplish by doing that, even if the format supports it. What's the advantage?

[julitomg]

You can also try ISOBuster (even the free version will allow you to do it)

[Midzuki]

Both jman98 and MOVIEGEEK --- please stop misunderstanding
evrything I say

I can't think of what you would possibly accomplish by doing that,
even if the format supports it. What's the advantage?

I have created several non-standard VCDs and SVCDs with VCDImager itself,
and such disks usually show there can be a difference between a .DAT on the
filesystem and a physical track on the recordable layer of the CD. Maybe it's just
the way VCDImager works in such situations, maybe there is no other way for
authoring non-standard VCDs and SVCDs, or perhaps that's just what happens
when a compact disc is supposed to contain over 15 MPEG clips ----
---- I really don't know which is the correct explanation to the "problem".

[ronnylov]

I have extracted mpg from VCD using the VCDrip function in VCDEasy.

[Midzuki]

Just putting some more light onto the subject...

I have created several non-standard VCDs and SVCDs with VCDImager itself,
and such disks usually show there can be a difference between a .DAT on the
filesystem and a physical track on the recordable layer of the CD. Maybe it's just
the way VCDImager works in such situations, maybe there is no other way for
authoring non-standard VCDs and SVCDs, or perhaps that's just what happens
when a compact disc is supposed to contain over 15 MPEG clips ----
---- I really don't know which is the correct explanation to the "problem".

The documentation of MPlayer says:

About .DAT files. The ~600 MB file visible on the first track of the mounted VCD is not a real file! It is a so-called ISO gateway, created to allow Windows to handle such tracks ( Windows does not allow raw device-access to applications at all ). Under Linux you cannot copy or play such files (they contain garbage). Under Windows it is possible as its iso9660 driver [s:70e2f8e8f3]emulates[/s:70e2f8e8f3] attempts to emulate the raw reading of tracks in this file.

\\\\\\

[lordsmurf]

Sometimes you can cheat and simply rename the file extension from .DAT to .MPG, but I'm sure somebody around here will come and wrap you on the knuckles.

Because that fails a portion of the time. My experience put it as high as 25% of the time. Some higher, some lower.

[p_l]

My bad, on two accounts. Yes, it is cheating and does fail from time to time, and that should have been "rap."

[Midzuki]

Well, here goes another (¿not-so-?) "amazing" "discovery".
Just "out-of-curiousity", I started my PC with a Windows ME emergency floppy,
and read the directory listing of the MPEGAV folder of one of my infamous
XVCDs --- and soon afterwards, compared that listing with the output given by
the cmd.exe of Windows XP. OK, the results are:

[MS-DOS 8.0 --- command.com]

.              <DIR>        14/07/80   0:00 .
..             <DIR>        14/07/80   0:00 ..
AVSEQ01  DAT     5.150.720  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ01.DAT
AVSEQ02  DAT     7.319.552  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ02.DAT
AVSEQ03  DAT     5.023.744  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ03.DAT
AVSEQ04  DAT     3.567.616  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ04.DAT
AVSEQ05  DAT     6.064.128  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ05.DAT
AVSEQ06  DAT     3.534.848  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ06.DAT
AVSEQ07  DAT     2.764.800  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ07.DAT
AVSEQ08  DAT     6.602.752  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ08.DAT
AVSEQ09  DAT     4.655.104  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ09.DAT
AVSEQ10  DAT    30.072.832  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ10.DAT
AVSEQ11  DAT     9.678.848  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ11.DAT
AVSEQ12  DAT   163.452.928  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ12.DAT
AVSEQ13  DAT     3.280.896  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ13.DAT
AVSEQ14  DAT   361.691.136  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ14.DAT
AVSEQ15  DAT    66.402.304  14/07/80   0:00 AVSEQ15.DAT

----------------------------------------------------------

[WinXP cmd.exe]

13/07/1978  21:00    <DIR>          .
13/07/1978  21:00    <DIR>          ..
13/07/1978  21:00         5.915.324 AVSEQ01.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00         8.406.092 AVSEQ02.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00         5.769.500 AVSEQ03.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00         4.097.228 AVSEQ04.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00         6.964.316 AVSEQ05.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00         4.059.596 AVSEQ06.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00         3.175.244 AVSEQ07.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00         7.582.892 AVSEQ08.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00         5.346.140 AVSEQ09.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00        34.536.812 AVSEQ10.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00        11.115.596 AVSEQ11.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00       187.715.516 AVSEQ12.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00         3.767.948 AVSEQ13.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00       415.379.708 AVSEQ14.DAT
13/07/1978  21:00        76.258.940 AVSEQ15.DAT

\\\\\\\\\\\\\