DVD Menus Lock Up My Player

[Mac Everyman]

After several weeks of successfully burning very simple DVDs (i.e. no menus at all, just movie files converted from VHS), I created my first menu-driven DVD using DVDIt PE. But my Sampo stand-alone player, which was perfectly happy with my earlier menu-free DVDs, simply locks up with these new DVDs-with-menus.

Specifically, the DVD boots properly in the player and displays the menu. But no matter which movie I select (I have several short films on the DVD), the player starts to play the first 2-3 seconds of the movie, then freezes. I have to shut off and restart the player just to get the DVD out.

Yet the DVD plays absolutely fine using PowerDVD on my PC. All menu functions work just great. I even tried reburning another DVD at a slower speed (1x), but same result. In any case, I can't believe it's a burning problem, since I use Nero for both the old menu-free DVDs and the newer ones, yet the older ones work just fine.

Any suggestions?

[DarkBuu]

I thought it was just me when this happened except for me it dosent play any of the file i choose it just freezes up on me. I just got this DVD player about 3 weeks ago and already problems I hope someone here can help solve the problem.

[Sartori]

After producing many menu driven svcds , I moved up with a dvd burner - dvds burned with Ulead DVD Moviefactory2 worked fine with menus , but after trying DVDLab (it worked fine on my pc) , I experienced the same as above with menu driven dvds . The only advice I can give is try Ulead MF2 (download the trial instead of buying it first of course) and see if thats ok , I`m pissed off with it as a major reason for upgrading was motion menus and now I can`t even have custom menus .

[willy_annand]

I`m pissed off with it as a major reason for upgrading was motion menus and now I can`t even have custom menus .

Take a look at DVD-Lab, custom menus and motion menus are it's forte.

http://www.mediachance.com/dvdlab/tutorial/index.html

Check out the 1st and 3rd tutorials.

[Sartori]

but after trying DVDLab (it worked fine on my pc) , I experienced the same as above with menu driven dvds .I`m pissed off with it as a major reason for upgrading was motion menus and now I can`t even have custom menus .

Sorry after rereading my post above , it was unclear what the hell I was saying.

DVDLab was the problem , it is still in beta stage as far as I`m concerned , it resets links , drops audio off and won`t give me menus ( if you visit the support forum - this particular subject is raised there) . UMF2 won`t give me animated menus but at least the menus work .
Therefore its a case of Ulead have got their code right and DVDLab hasn`t (just a case of yet hopefully) , it is probably the difference between DVD players but Uleads program works across all that I know of .
DVDLabs menus work in your DVD player doesn`t mean that it works universally like Uleads does , but if it works in yours then I`m happy for you to have a working program and DVDs.

That aside I can`t wait for DVDLab to be sorted , because its flexibility in allowing different mpegs to be burnt ( like the dvd standard says) and all its other great features , hope I don`t have to hold my breath to long.

[Mac Everyman]

Many thanks to all of you for your comments. Since my initial post, I tried creating the same DVDs, with the same menus, using Maestro instead of DVDIt, and the resulting DVDs worked just fine. I can only assume the problem was with DVDIt, not with my burner or my choice of blank discs.

This is a shame, as DVDIt makes menu creation much easier. The only clue for its failure was the fact that, after compiling a disc, I opened the VIDEO_TS directory that it created and found what appeared to be files for only one movie, even though the disc was authored to include 8 short films. I suppose it's possible I goofed during the compilation stage, but there are hardly any options to play with, so can't figure how it could go wrong.

Anyway, it seems Maestro remains the most reliable, if not necessarily the most easy to use.