Need software advice for frustrated Studio 8 user

[ejm1385]

Working on cataloging episodes of a favorite TV series and to put 3 episodes on each DVD, add a custom menu with a link (button) to each episode.

Steps I am currently using:

1) Epsiodes are captured by a friend with a PVR in his PC and converted to MPEG2.
2) Convert raw MPEGs to AVI in Pinnacle Studio 8
3) Add 3 AVI's to new project. Edit out commercials and add a custom menu with a custom background, wav file and custom size and position buttons.
4) Convert back to MPEG2 / DVD compliant and burn using Pinnacle.

Seems like a lengthy process, when I could just as easily edit the MPEG's. But, when doing that, chapter links on final DVD are all wrong. So, I deal with the extra steps.

When converting/burning w/Pinnacle - some OOS problems later in the disc. Thought this should not happen w/AVIs.

Considering using new software, but I like studio's menu flexibility. I tried a number of trial software and none seem to allow me to resize and place the menu buttons exactly where I want them like Studio allows.

Any recommendations? This project should be simple as I don't think I am trying to do too much. It's all about the ability to convert and the menu creations.

Thanks.

[timmyp]

There is a very good chance that your sync issues are caused by the multiple file conversions. Have you tried using the original mpegs for your project instead of converting to avi and back again?

[falberni]

Studio 8 works best for capturing and editing AV. For anything else, various people have various degrees of success.

In your case, since you already have MPG2, there's no reason to convert it to AVI again. Just go ahead and edit the mpg files, then after finishing the edit, make new mpg file.

Now you need a good authoring sw. I recommend TMPGEnc DVD Author. There's a trial version avaiable.

For burning, use whatever sw you have. Nero, Record Now, Roxio, or DVD Decryptor are a few that come to mind.

Good luck

[ejm1385]

Actually, the reason I'm converting MPG2s to AVI is because of the menu-chapter linking problems I was having by using the MPG2s. Everything would preview fine, but in my final DVD, when I clicked on a menu button it always brought me to the wrong scene. Checked the auxiliary files and the vobs were fine (had all the footage), but the chapters were not linking right. Read a lot of forum posts on Pinnacle's site and the solution for this was to edit AVI's, not the MPEG2s. May have something to do with scene selection, but I have not been able to pinpoint it yet.

[falberni]

Hi again,

If you author your mpg files in TMPGEncDVD Author, you won't have the chapter problems you just described.