Edit ATI real-time SVCD???

[Nelson37]

Capped at default GOP, 2200 bitrate, MPEG-2, VBR from Digital Cable.

MMC 7.6, Have tried both with and without "remove 3:2 pulldown",(Does anyone know exactly what this does as it doesn't seem to reduce framerate though it dramatically reduces filesize???)

TMPGenc Merge an Cut - Cut start and end, OK, start to first commercial, OK, any cut point which starts substantially into the file is 30 seconds to a full minute off, both beginning and end. Original File reads and scans OK in TMPGenc, Cut files plays in WinDVD and standalone with audio synch, it's just not cut right.. If I try to edit an already cut file, I can play the file but I can't move the slider, no highlight, time counters never move, can't set an edit point, it locks.

On the secondary cuts, I drag the slider close, play, stop, click the slider bar to rewind, play, stop, set cut point. I have tried setting the time in the start time window, but I haven't just let it play to the end of the first commercial, hopefully that won't be necessary.

TMPGenc 2.54.

M2-Edit Seems to cut OK but makes the file dramatically larger. 275 MB versus 75 MB for a similar segment.

Womble - strange interface, seems to have a similar problem as M2, still working on this one.

For kids cartoons and such, these real-time captures are pretty good, if I could just edit them they make a good balance of size, quality, and speed.

Any Ideas?

[lizzoqops]

I capture in real time and use tmp to edit. I've used different versions, and they all seem to work the same. My sound appears to be out of sync, not by as much as you describe (maybe 1 or 2 seconds), but when I burn the disc it's all back to normal. It does lock up occasionally, but that's usually when I have dropped frames. I have to restart tmp and let it play past the point where it locked up, then do a cut.

TMP doesn't do exact cuts, but it's good enough. I don't understand why an editing program would change the file size, something's wrong there.

For a 42-45 minute disc, I usually have about a 740 mb file.

Maybe post your computer specs, and someone can figure out why your file is going so out of sync.

Lizzo

[curbnoise]

Another thing you may want to try is Womble MPEG2VCR. It is a lot simpler to edit out commercials and can encode the new file very quickly with very good quality (or you can wait forever for marginal bang for your buck).

[Nelson37]

lizzoqops - I am not losing audio synch, that is actually OK, it's the edit point that is off. I get 30 seconds to a minute of commercial when I am certain my start point is after that. It seems as though both start and end points are shifted 30 seconds previous to the point I set them. Wierd.

Curbnoise, any info on Womble settings? Seems like settings from file would be best, I canceled edit when it indicated re-encoding but I noticed later it made a 500 MB file in a minute or two, it must be REBUILDING rather than re-editing. Womble demux and remux screwed up audio synch tremendously. I will try the edit again soon.

Something to note for all here is the huge variation in playback, partucularly audio synch, among various programs. WinDVD seems to best simulate my APEX DVD player. The ATI file player and STHSVCD both lose audio synch and show other glitches that WinDVD and Apex do not have.

[oldfart13]

The problems you are having are being caused by your capping in a "finished" format, SVCD with a VBR. I cap in a custom 480*480 format but with a much higher bitrate (6 - 7 MBs) and CBR. This allows me to cut out the commercials without losing video/audio sync. I then encode to the final SVCD spec (VBR). Most people are trying to get around the problem of reencoding the project but that's simply not feasible if you want any quality and you have to edit. New encoders like Procoder cut the encode times considerably though, even on lower systems like my PIII 1 GHz.

[curbnoise]

Okay, here goes (hopefully I won't incur the wrath of the "quality" zealots). Because you are capturing directly into SVCD compliant MPEG2, I am assuming (maybe wrongly) that pristine quality isn't your main requirement.

I capture using the SVCD template provided with ATI MMC 7.7. I then edit with Womble and save using their predefined SVCD Compliant stream under the "fast" setting (some of the terms may be slightly off because I am writing this from memory--at work ya know--but you get the idea). I've gotten to the point where I can edit and save an hour long tv show (about 42 minutes without commercials) in 7 minutes. Video/Audio quality is not appreciably different than the original MPEG2 file produced by ATI MMC and is still pretty damn good.

For me, I am mainly concerned with decent (i.e. much better than VHS) quality, speed and ease so I can get to the programming quickly and then ship off to my sister who is living in Germany. If this is not your goal, respectively disregard this post.

[curbnoise]

Aye Carumba,

Just reread your original post. Beginning with MMC 7.7, ATI now includes a standards compliant SVCD template (also does away with their abominable MP2 version of the MPEG2 standard--may have nixed it earlier but I'm not sure). I know upgrading anything from ATI can be an adventure, so don't hold me responsible if you decide to upgrade to 7.7 and things go wrong (I am a firm believer of creating a ghost image of my system regularly), but I have been very happy with this version of the software.

I have a AIW Radeon and have recently upgraded to the new Catalyst 3 drivers and WDM capture drivers as well as DirectX 9. If you do upgrade, I had better luck with installing 7.7 over 7.6 rather than an unistall/install. When I did the latter, scheduled caps didn't always work and the "Library" app wouldn't initialize (a know issue per the ATI site).

Good luck!

[dvasco]

lizzoqops - I am not losing audio synch, that is actually OK, it's the edit point that is off. I get 30 seconds to a minute of commercial when I am certain my start point is after that. It seems as though both start and end points are shifted 30 seconds previous to the point I set them. Wierd.

Something to note for all here is the huge variation in playback, partucularly audio synch, among various programs. WinDVD seems to best simulate my APEX DVD player. The ATI file player and STHSVCD both lose audio synch and show other glitches that WinDVD and Apex do not have.

Nelson, the editing is supposedly done at the I frame, I believe that that is the close of the GOP. You should be able to edit frame by frame with Womble, but I can't say because I don't own it. Good luck.

[Nelson37]

Thanks all.

Multiple attempts to install MMC 7.7, various methods and problems, never got TV app to work. Tried HWDetect flag, no go.

I normally cap hi-bitrate, edit, and re-encode, audio synch no problem, great quality. The real-time caps are mainly for kids cartoons and such, though quality is not bad at all.

Tried some Womble cuts, pressing Record in clip editor, Program Stream, not seeing options you describe. Audio synch is 10 seconds or more off.