MKVs with cyclic redundany problems

[cal_tony]

Sometimes when converting DVDs or BDs to mkv format the resulting file will have a glitch or two. The file will usually play on my computer players but the file gives a cyclic error when trying to copy them to another disk. I've had success in some cases by just running them through MkvToolNix. The resulting file in those cases is now error free and the file can be copied without the cyclic error.

When converting 1920 mkvs to 1280 withVidcoder, Vidcoder will on occasion just stop at the error and produce a shorter file. In those cases I can just put the original file back into Vidcoder and set it to produce a file beginning 15 to 30 seconds past the error. The resulting two files can now be appended in ToolNix to produce one error free file.

Also,I've never had Meteorite fix this type of error so, Is there an easier way to fix the errors?

Tony

[Bernix]

Try Handbrake instead. I noticed that 2 mkv appended to 1 file, cant be lately re-encoded without problem in avidemux or vidcoder. But Handbrake handles it properly. So maybe it helps you too. I do appending two mkv when film dont start with Keyframe so cant be directly copied, so I re-encode start and append it to rest of the movie (that is direct stream copy) Playing fine, but only way to re-encoded it properly is with Handbrake. Usually first short part (mostly subtitles) playing bad (with Vidcoder avidemux and more).
Bernix

[davexnet]

Your HDD media where these files reside may be failing. Try running a disk check and find out if the manufacturer hasa utility to certify the drive

[jagabo]

I agree with davexnet. A CRC error indicates a drive failure. And in my experience, once a drive starts developing bad blocks it's very common for more to develop shortly. Get everything off that drive and get rid of it. Or at least run CHKDSK with a full surface scan to mark the bad blocks so they aren't used again.

[cal_tony]

To me this seems more like a problem with the re-encoded file. It happens to about 1 out of 50 encodes and happens on different hdds. I can take the same file, redo the encode and the encode will fail at exactly the same place on the file. When I slow the encode to min. speed, the encode comes out fine, but it takes time and like I mentioned above, it doesn't happen that often and when it does happen, running the file through MkvToolNix fixes the file about half the time.

I've been converting all my BRs and DVDs to mkv files. I just don't like plastic disks. So, over the years I've been able to re-encode all my disks and it always seems like it's the plastic disk that has the problem.

There is ample software to fix this problem with DVDs. But so far the only software advertised on this site to fix MKVs is Meteorite and it rarely works to fix anything. So I was just looking to see if anyone has found software that will fix the glitches.

Tony

[davexnet]

I still think it could be a HW problem, if you're sure it's not the HDD's (you ran CHKDSK /f on them all
and checked output carefully for anything related to bad sectors)
could be intermittent errors in your RAM. Perhaps give memtest86+ a try. I would start it up and let it run all night.
http://www.memtest.org/

Any overheating in the PC during encode?

Usually the OS would record some info in the event log if a HW error was detected. Have you checked there?

[jagabo]

it always seems like it's the plastic disk that has the problem.

If the disc had a problem it would show up as decoding errors (of the source) not the MKV file. The file will have messed up frames of course, but it will not have a CRC error. I don't think MKV files even include CRC data (the drive or disc they are stored on includes CRC data but that's not a part of the file).

[cal_tony]

I still feel like they're encoding errors. Since I move my external hard disks between 3 computers, I run checkdisk every time just before I move a disk to another computer. With any of these bad encoded files on a disk never has an error been reported by check disk. all these files play from the disk that they are on. They play on software players and also on my media players. They just can't be copied from one disk to another without COPY reporting a cyclic error and stopping the copy process. If I re-encode the file at the same re-code speed that file will also have the error at the same place.
It's not like I don't understand my problem. I've been converting plastic disks to hard disk files for as long as I've been on this site[ since 2004]. Since all the players skip over the encoded errors, I just thought I might be able to fix these problems without having to completely re-encode the file.


I guess I'll just have to stick with the ways I've previously discussed

Tony

[Cornucopia]

Except there are many of us who have been ripping & re-encoding for as long or longer ('90s for me), and we do not have those issues!
As in almost NEVER.
So I've got to think you either have been doing something wrong, or you've grown accustomed to living with faulty/substandard equipment.
Not trying to disparage you, man, but there is a better path.

Scott

[jagabo]

I run checkdisk every time just before I move a disk to another computer.

By default CHKDSK only checks the directory structure. It does not scan every file and all the blank space on the disk. You must use the /R switch to scan the entire disc surface. Or using the GUI, enable the "Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors". This takes several hours on large drives.

By the way, that doesn't try to fix bad blocks. It tries to recover the data in those bad blocks and move it to a good block on the drive. Any bad blocks are marked as bad so they aren't used by the OS again.

[cal_tony]

I'm convinced.
Even though the problem has occurred only 1 or 2% of the time and it had always been fixable, I've already started the process of surface scanning my hdds. Most of them are of the 2TB variety so I suppose that's going to take some time.

I am very appreciative for the help given.

Thanks, Tony

[jagabo]

Also check your drives' S.M.A.R.T monitor. It's not perfect but it's worth checking.

[cal_tony]

Will do..

One 2 tb disk is on one of my other computers going through a scan. It's been 4 hrs now and from the Gui it looks like it will take quite a few hours longer. A month ago I did a quick reformat of this disk. Guess I should have done a complete.

Decades ago failing disks were commonplace. I just assumed it didn't happen that much anymore.

Thanks
Tony

[dannyboy48888]

Sounds like S.MA.R.T is kinda working. If on a read there is a error it will try to do a sector recovery and mark it bad. When your remixing the error may be little enough that mkvtoolnix is just rewriting the header making it for the most part good, and its being rewritten to a good part of the disk. Run the drive manufacters disk check instead of chkdsk on a full scan to ensure the disk is good. In windows I had a disk do very similar on epsides I ripped with makemkv and were corrupted but windows said there wasn't a error. Booting a Ubuntu live disk immediately told me the drive was failing via SMART.

[jagabo]

The drive itself keeps some reserve sectors (invisible to the OS) for remapping when it ha read problems -- it does this automatically without the OS knowing about it. When those reserve sectors run out the OS starts seeing errors. Once the OS starts seeing errors it is likely the drive will develop more bad sectors soon. So I usually copy everything to a new drive and relegate the bad drive to unimportant temporary storage, or discontinue using it altogether.

[dannyboy48888]

Forgot to mention that lol, it can only correct so many times s the reserve is not unlimited