total newbie on converting AVI files to DVD specific help

[onepie]

okay i tried using AVI2DVD program to do this but i got confused half way
cuz i couldnt create chapters other than the first file i loaded up and i wanted 3-4 files on it

like many, i have a lot of avi files i want to burn into DVDs
some movies i want to put just one files but some i want to put 3-4 files

what do i need to do in order to make a dvd with a menu and have multiple files in them.

and i dont want to lose any quality of the avi files which means i dont want to make them into mpegs right?

my understanding is that, i need a program to convert avi to dvd, then another program to "author" (not sure what that really is haha) it, and another prgram to burn it??? is that right??

or is there one program i can download or buy that will let me create a menu with chapters, and burn multiple files??

yes im a newb of all newbs... sorry but help would be greatly appreciated

[guns1inger]

If you don't have a DVD player that can play Divx/Xvid files, then you must convert them to mpeg. You will also, in most cases, have to resize them to compliant resolution as well. Given that the avi files have already been compressed (heavily) and will contain flaws from this process, there is a good chance these will be visible in the mpeg conversions. You will also find that the best running time is less than 3 hours unless you start looking at lower resolutions and lower quality. I have not used AVI2DVD, preferring to take a more manual approach, so I can't answer your specific questions about chapters etc.

My approach, in a nutshell, is;

1. Short avisynth script, usually initially generated by FitCD, to resize to DVD resolutions. I modify this to include BlockBuster and aSharp to remove compression artifacts and add back detail lost in the resize. This is tested in virtualdub.

2. Encode with 2 or 3 pass VBR in CCE or ProCoder

3. Demux the audio as uncompressed wav with virtualdub (assuming MP3 audio) and encode as 224 AC3 with Sound Forge.

4. Author in DVD Lab Pro. For most avi conversions I keep the authoring simple - no menu, auto-chapters. I only put one to disk in most cases as any more than this will reduce quality.

This process works for me, produces consist results, and is repeatable - all the sign of a good process.

[onepie]

ok, it sounds really confusing but ill go try it now... so by your method i CANT have multiple files in one DVD cuz there is no menu right??

ill go try this on a movie since i really need to fit 4-5 files into one DVD cuz i have over 60 episodes of a show i want to burn and 60 separate DVD for each episodes sounds like a waste

and i dont think my dvd player has divx compatability hmm

if there is any step by step guide to anything it would be great help
im dont have a lot of knowledge of these stuff

[guns1inger]

You can have as many as you can fit. The menus are created at the authoring stage. For a newbie I would suggest you download the 30 day demo of Tmpgenc DVD Author. It does menus, chapters, mulitple titles, and is nice and simple to get into.

How long are the avis (running time) ?

I did have to do a 6 part series once. Totoal running time approx 2 hours 50 minutes. I used DivxtoDVD to encode and TDA to create the menus (using the 'Add Video' function). The video quality is softer than my manual approach, but that is the price of one-click solutions and trying to fit more than 2 hours to a disk.

[onepie]

each of the avi i want to put in a group are 23-25 mins long... 175mbs

i was doing the FitCD thing and i have no idea what is what... haha O.o is there a guide to this??

and i havent even opened the avisynth yet...

[guns1inger]

The 175mb means nothing if you are converting to DVD. AVI to DVD usually requires an increase in size of a round a factor of 4 - 5 tims. Expect each episode to require around 800-900mb of space.

I would start with DivxtoDVD (free version) and TDA (30 day trial). Load 5 or 6 episodes into DivxtoDVD (hold down the shift key when selecting) and process them. This will create a DVD without menus, but we can fix that with TDA. Use the 'Add Video' function in TDA to add each of the episodes you just converted, create a simple menu, and author to disk. Don't use the TDA burning engine - not good.

[onepie]

i will go try it thanks
ill let you know if it works