Help making VCDs/SVCDs

[Wyatt Riot]

I've been trying to make VCDs and SVCDs for a couple of weeks now and it seems like I'm just running up against a brick wall. Repeatedly. And it hurts. I've searched on the forums here and probably about 50 (no exaggeration!) searches on Google. Here's my problem:

I *have* successfully made a VCD using the Video option of Toast Titanium 6. The downside is that it took over 2 hours to encode a 9-minute movie (this after "preparing" for about 45 minutes). I tried making a SVCD from a 12-minute video, and cancelled that after 3+ hours (when it was about 1/3 through encoding). The files were both mpeg-2 movies downloaded from archive.org. They look great in mplayer and I was able to make a VCD out of one of them, so I don't think there's a problem with corrupted files or anything. I figured that there has to be a better/quicker way, just drop the encoded files into Toast and burn.

So far I've tried ffmpegx, MPEG2 Works, and VCD Builder 1.1, none of which seem to work.

I've used ffmpegx to author SVCD files (.mpg and .xml), but Toast will not accept them, saying the length of the movie "is not a multiple of the sector size" when I try to drag them into the Copy window. I've tried using ffmpegx to author VCD files (.bin and .cue) but I always get .mpg and .xml files instead (meaning that, even though I chose VCD, I always got SVCD output).

MPEG2 Works just gives me an Applescript error -7200 when I try to encode the files. (I would like to try out more options on this program, but 90% of the buttons are grayed out/inoperative.)

VCD Builder 1.1.1 works fine until I try to "Make Images." It then says the following:

"Error: The MPEG stream is invalid.

Warning: Packet length beyond buffer (pos = 2054 + size = 2042 > buflen = 2324) -- stream may be truncated or packet length > 2324 bytes!"

It seems like vcdtoolsx 1.1.1 may help, but the link (http://www.sbpr.a.se/systemjammers/vcdtoolsx/files/vcdtoolsX_app.dmg.tgz) doesn't work anymore. I would be willing to give this app a try if someone could send it to me or host it for a short time.

Any suggestions?

Wyatt.

[WiseWeasel]

What's the resolution and framerate of the MPEG2 video you got from archive.org? What format is the soundtrack in (along with sampling rate)? Is it in an MPG container? Give as much info about the original files themselves as possible.

[Wyatt Riot]

Info taken directly from ffmpegx:

VIDEO: mpeg-2, size: 368x480, 29.970 fps, 3500 kbps. AUDIO: mp2, 44100Hz, 112 kbps.

This is from the same file I used to make a VCD, yet the apps still give the errors I mentioned above.

Wyatt.

P.S.--In case it helps, here is archive.org's FAQ on the encoding specifics:

"How did you digitize the films?

Almost all the films in the Internet Moving Images Archive are held (by Prelinger Archives) in original film form (35mm, 16mm, 8mm, Super 8mm, and various obsolete formats like 28mm and 9.5mm). Films were first transferred to Betacam SP videotape, a widely used analog broadcast video standard, on telecine machines manufactured by Rank Cintel or Bosch. The film-to-tape transfer process is not a real-time process: It requires inspection of the film, repair of any physical damage, and supervision by a skilled operator who manipulates color, contrast, speed, and video controls.

The videotape masters created in the film-to-tape transfer suite were then digitized at Prelinger Archives in New York City using an encoding workstation built by Rod Hewitt. The workstation is a 550 MHz PC with a FutureTel NS320 MPEG encoder card. Custom software, also written by Rod Hewitt, drove the Betacam SP playback deck and managed the encoding process. The files were uploaded to hard disk through the courtesy of Flycode, Inc.

The files were encoded at constant bitrates ranging from 2.75 Mbps to 3.5 Mbps. Most were encoded at 480 x 480 pixels (2/3 D1) or 368 x 480 (roughly 1/2 D1). The encoder drops horizontal pixels during the digitizing process, which during decoding are interpolated by the decoder to produce a 720 x 480 picture. (Rod Hewitt's site Coolstf shows examples of an image before and after this process.) Picture quality is equal to or better than most direct broadcast satellite television. Audio was encoded at MPEG-1 Level 2, generally at 112 kbps. Both the MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 movies have mono audio tracks.

To convert the MPEG-2 video to MPEG-4, we used a program called FlasK MPEG. This is an MPEG-1/2 to AVI conversion tool that reads the source MPEG-2 and outputs an AVI file containing the video in MPEG-4 format and audio in uncompressed PCM format. We then use a program called Virtual Dub that recompresses the audio using the MPEG-1 Level 3 (MP3) format. This process is automated by the software that runs the system."

Here is a direct link to the above FAQ: http://archive.org/about/faqs.php#44

[Wyatt Riot]

Bump.

Sorry to be a bother, but nobody has any ideas about this?

The only thing I can think of is to provide a direct link to the .mpeg file I downloaded and am trying to use. The file is quite large (250 MB), but archive.org gives good download.

Here's the link:

http://www.archive.org/download/DuckandC1951/DuckandC1951.mpeg

Thanks in advance!

Wyatt.

[WiseWeasel]

My suggestion would be to use ffmpegX to make an SVCD image (.bin and .cue) and then burn using Toast 6 in Disc Image mode. Try the ffmpegX forum for help with that.

[thorsted]

The mpeg is a not standard. It is an mpeg2 with a size of 320 x 240 (according to quicktime) NTSC. I don't think there is any easy way of getting it to the DVD player via S/VCD without demuxing and re-encoding to a VCD. Use bbdemux to seperate it, then use an mpeg2 decoder to quicktime format, decode the audio, paste them together, then make encode to VCD.

-thorsted

[Wyatt Riot]

Thanks WiseWeasel and thorsted! I'll try both of your suggestions.

Wyatt.

[WiseWeasel]

If it's 320x240, simple VCD might be your only option. I wonder why Archive.org would even bother to distribute MPEG2 at that resolution...

[sprouticus]

this isnt an answer to your question, i have a question of my own and didn't want to make a new topic.

anyway, i have the bin and cue files to burn an SVCD. the burn was a sucess, but it dosent play in anything. not my dvd player, not VLC, not my xbox, nothing. i think something may have gone wrong...any ideas?

[sprouticus]

update: still dosent work for me, but it works for my friend in WinDVD. are there any good SVCD players for mac?

[AntnyMD]

MacVCD will play SVCD tracks on Mac OS X provided the MPEG-2 playback component for QuickTime from Apple is also installed. Without this component, MacVCD will only play VCD tracks.

[sprouticus]

wonderful... i have the mpeg2 codec and macvcd, unfortunately whenever the disk is in and i open macvcd, the program unexpectedly quits. god damn it.

[AntnyMD]

The app needs to be on your boot drive I believe. Move it into your Applications folder (the same one with iChat and Safari).

[thorsted]

try taking the .bin file and ripping out the mpeg with vcdtoolsX. Then you try playing it in Quicktime witht he mpeg2 codec installed. If it works repack it with vcdtoolsX to a bin file and try again. Also it may help to use quality cd-r media that you know works well with your dvd player and burn it slow.

my two cents.

-thorsted

[Thargok]

Use VLC for playback of VCDs/SVCDs it is free and it works well (even with broken files).