VOB to mpeg2: well worn ground but need help

[plange]

I have been converting analog and digital home movies to DVDs on PC platform. Currently I am saving key material in mpeg2 backups but it is inefficient in terms of time and storage space. I would like to have the ability to go back and extract clips from the DVD files for future editing projects. I tried Flaskmpeg but it only gave me video avi, but no audio. Is there a simple way to extract audio and video from .vob files from a non-commercial DVD?

[VidHack]

I didnt know if I fully understand your request? You want to extract part of a VOB to its elemental streams (Audio/Video) then join the clips back together to mix up the video sequences? There are MANY tools to do this. You can use DVD2AVI, and select the frames. Vobcutter to slice up vobs. DVD2SVCD in DVD mode to Frame select the scenes. IFOedit to join random VOB segments to create a new compulation. Heck, even Virtualdub (Mod) can do it. Its definatly possible, you need to post your question a bit more specific, then one of these kind folks will give you an exact answer....

VidHack

[plange]

Thanks VidHack. Your reply reflects my frustration with my own question! I know there are alot of tools out there, but many seem designed for more complicated tasks such as ripping and converting commercial DVDs. I just want to be able to re-edit the content of my own DVDs which means accessing the VOB files (right?).

Let me state my need/problem in basic terms. I shoot miniDV footage or convert analog footage (each are home video) with my Sony DCR-PC9, edit with Pinnacle Studio 8, burn DVD with Nero, and scrap the source footage. Chances are 9 in 10 that the only use I will ever have for the edited footage is to watch the original DVD I made. BUT, let's say somewhere down the line I decide I want to do a "This is your life" of one of my children. This would entail extracting clips from the earlier DVDs and re-editing etc. before burning a new "This is your life" DVD. Currently, if I have material that I think I may want to use later, after rendering the DVD from AVI files, I re-render in MPEG2 for archive purposes so if I ever want to use any of the footage again I can use it in Studio 8. If I knew I could get at the VOB files, I wouldn't need the MPEG2 archive files. Thanks again.

[VidHack]

OK, I think I see what you want to do. Basically, its what we all do to DVD's. Weather or not its a home made DVD or commercial, a VOB is a VOB, a Video Object File. It contains Video (Mpeg2) and audio (Ac3/mp2..) and navigational information multiplexed into a VOB FIle. So, you want the ability to :
1 Cut out the selections
2. Seperate the Video/Audio streams
3. Tweak up the Video/Audio
4. Recompile the project, back into a DVD VOB Structure.

OK, you want a single app to do all this, hmmmm, it seems you simply dont know how to demultiplex a VOB file back into its basic Audio and video streams, Well, this is the forum that eats that for lunch.

Try this for a test run...

Download smartripper.
Put in a Home Brew DVD,...Rip it. (Extract the streams to seperate files)
There are tons of SmartRipper Guides on the net...in this very website.

This program will let you rip the VOB apart and you will have the Basic video and audio to do with it what you want....

Have fun Re_authoring

VidHack.

[plange]

If I can indulge your patience VidHack. I downloaded SmartRipper and followed instructions on Doom9.net. Appears I need to install an ASPI layer (need confirmed w/Adaptec ASPI Checker). Well, Doom9's fix of ForceASPI didn't work, nor did installing Adaptec's Windows XP ASPI driver. Hate to be dense, but what am I missing?

I am using Windows XP SP1 w/1.8G P4.

[plange]

Solved my own problem thru trial and error. Had to install ASPI Layer 4.60 (1021) as newer versions would not run on my XP system. Extracted a chapter in vob form with SmartRipper. Will now get up to speed on how to work with the new vob file. Thanks again.

[VidHack]

Glad to see I can help you. Yea, you should have gotten a program called 'ForceASPI', it will do the job. Also, you last POST is worrying me. You said "NEW VOB", I think you Smart Ripped it Wrong.

Smartripper can decrypt a encrypted VOB (Commercial DVD), but the feature you need is the VOB Demultiplexing routine. You have to use STREAM PROCESSING MODE. Then, select the VIDEO track and DEMUX to EXTRA FILE, also do the same with the audio track. You should NOT end up with a new VOB, you should get something like....VIDEO(Ex0).M2V, thats your raw video, and AUDIO(x80).ac3 thats your raw audio, then you can use that to ReAuthor your new DVD.

Hope all that made sense, if not read up on MPEG2 specs. Again, happy authoring.

VidHack

[plange]

You worried right. I had simply extracted a one chapter vob. I was researching the answer to the demuxing but you have answered it. I now get the following two files for my chapter:

Stream[001] X=[[0xE0] Video NTSC 720x480] [PTS 665:36:52] [Delay 0 ms] [@1] []
Stream[002] X=[[0xA0] Audio English LPCM(2Ch) 48kHz 16bit ] [PTS 665:31:38] [Delay -314 ms] [@1] [32 kb/s]

[0xA0]_audio is a .wav file (which I test played with Musicmatch; it's the right audio)
[0xE0]_video is an .m2v file

Have seen numerous articles on frameserving vobs with DVD2AVI to TMPGEnc. But since I demuxed I take it I am not to go this way (which is fine cuz it seemed like a lot of work and I don't want to buy the TMPGEnc mpeg2 plugin).

Hate to be dense, but what tool is best to work with the above files? Let's say I want to extract 10 seconds of synchronous video/audio from the middle of the 2 minute clip. Means I have to remux the above streams, right? Into what...mpeg2?...avi? Thanks again.

BTW, I first tried ForceASPI but it didn't work even after multiple install/reboots.

[VidHack]

Glad to see your making progress. A few things first. Its sort of refreshing to read your posts, you seem to be truley honest in your ways.
Anyway, perhaps this forum isnt really what you are after, the Doom9 forum on DV / Video Capturing is doing exactlly what you are doing. Also, there is a video capping forum here as well, I believe. Getting back to your original POST. To make your life a bit easier, you can rip out the exact section of the VOB with DVD2AVI, using the slider bar at the bottom, and yes, you could frame serve it. That would be a long approach (Though you arent really needing compression, so it would be fast). Also, you can fix that WAV file delay by useing BeSweet. (All these programs are free). Your REAL solution is VirtualDub Mod. It can open VOBs, cut clips, join clips, demux audio, and with plugins, you can insert titles, fade in, fade out, basically anything you can imagine. The program is free. You see, once you have those basic audio / video streams any Mpeg2 editotor will do. But, to save you time, if you can open up the VOB in its basic file format you can save yourself some time.

VirtualDub Mod is a modified version of virtualDub, it can open VOBS and accept m2v video in directly. Also, do yourself a quick favour, download DVD2AVI, and load in the .M2V file, you can use the slider bar at the bottom to do a quick check of the video, basically it will let you "see" the stream.

Good luck...Your on your way...

VidHack

[plange]

VidHack, thanks for your patience and assistance. I spent a fair amount of time today researching my question at the office (away from my computer) and there are several posts out there asking the same question (doom9, Pinnacle boards, others, even a German post on the topic), and there does not seem to be an easy answer. So I'll wind this up with where I finally got to...

I did have a degree of success using DVD2AVI to create a .d2v file to serve the .m2v stream to TMPGEnc (SmartRipper created a .d2v file when I demuxed but it was not readable by TMPGEnc so I guess it does something different). I do have the audio sync problem and the mpeg2 video is jerky...but I did wind up with an mpeg2 file that I could bring into Pinnacle Studio 8. Will check out your recommendation on BeSweet for the audio sync problem.

Gave up on FlaskMpeg because it can't see my PCM audio stream in the vob file. Read somewhere that it is not supported in the product.

Downloaded VirtualDub Mod but admittedly have not studied up on its usage. I did try to bring in one of my .vob files extracted with SmartRipper but VDM couldn't see the audio either and the video was a black garbled mess. I'll need to spend some time learning how to use the product.

Thanks again. Haven't quite accomplished what I set out to do, but at least I am now comfortable that my DVD video is not lost to future editing. Hell, after this initiation I might just buy something if it actually does what I need, simply!