Is DVDShrink credible?

[suhrudgodbole]

people, just want to know how credible DVDShrink is.. i was really in a problem, as my material is exceeding DVD9 capacity. i simply HAVE to fit everything in one DVD9.. i dont want any problems while compression, and thats what i am scared of. which is precisely why i am a bit skeptical with this application. otherwise i'll have to lower the bit-rate while rendering itself.. i know this is a high order, but isnt there any application which will give me the desired compression, without compression problems?

thanks in advance to all! please help me out!

[mats.hogberg]

If you really don't want to reencode at a bitrate that makes your source fit a DVD9, I can think of no better way than using DVDshrink, no. If it's <10% reduction, I doubt anyone will be able to tell the difference between original and shrunk versions.

/Mats

[ROF]

I'd agree here.

Although some people think a 6GB file shrunk to fit on SL media looks good.

[mats.hogberg]

I do. It doesn't mean I can't tell the difference between original and 33% shrunk copy!
It only means it's still good enough to me.

By a curious coincidence, this recent post shows you what to expect from DVDShrink.

/Mats

[A_51]

My friend if you are in doub try it with another file or movie. I'm shure that after seen with your own eyes you will become a beliver.

[Supreme2k]

I'd agree here.

Although some people think a 6GB file shrunk to fit on SL media looks good.

With dvdshrink, yes, I agree with your sarcasm. With dvd-rb + CCE, it's pretty much moot. Of course, most of my use for it is animation DVDs, so the difference is less severe.

Not to get SpectateSwamp in a tizzy, but would it be possible to edit it down to a smaller size? Also, what audio option are you going with? If it is PCM or DTS 5.1, is there any possibility of going to AC3? Exactly how much over DVD-9 is it? 8.9? 9.3? Length of material?

As far as the "single DVD-9" is concerned (since I know it may be a cost issue), would it be possible to split any non-essential material to a SL "Bonus" disc? I often do that with backups.

As I said with my preference, you may want to go with something like dvd-rb, rather than a transcoder like dvdshrink.

[dvdguy4]

Are you using shrink to do a dual layer dvd or are you going to single layer dvd5? With shrink I really cant tell all to much if the flick has been shrunk or not except with the really huge files such as Titanic or LOTR trilogy

[handyguy]

Seems the OP wants to fit everything on a DL disk not a DVD5. I never knew you could use it to shrink like 10 gigs down to dvd9.

[suhrudgodbole]

my whole content is exceeding to around 10 gigs, so thats not too much of a spill-over from a DVD9. i am worried about video jerks, or if DVDShrink skips frames etc etc..problems which are unpredictable.. thats what i am concerned about. and unfortunately the client just needs it on a DVD9 at any cost!

[mats.hogberg]

I shouldn't worry. Given a good source, the shrunk version should be equally good. Like I said, 10% shrinking will likely be unnoticable. I've yet to find any structural errors or stream corruptions due to DVDShrink.

/Mats

[dvdguy4]

I never knew that there was a dvd with over 10 gb on it. Ive never seen one.

[smearbrick1]

I never knew that there was a dvd with over 10 gb on it. Ive never seen one.

I'd imagine it's not a dvd, but dvd material (is everyone completely daft around here?).

Also, using DVDShrink to compress a 8GB DVD down to 4GB is not that bad. Most of the time, if you exclude the menus, extras, and superfluous audio streams, what is left over is usually a little over 4-5GB. DVDShrink provides very good results for what you would expect. I wouldn't expect perfection from 8GB to 4GB, but from 10GB to 8GB, I doubt you'd see any difference.

If you don't like the results from DVDShrink, find something better. You'll be hard pressed to find something that works as well for the cost (free).

Disclaimer: This is in no way an invite for someone to provide what they consider "something better".

[dvdguy4]

I never knew that there was a dvd with over 10 gb on it. Ive never seen one.

I'd imagine it's not a dvd, but dvd material (is everyone completely daft around here?).

Also, using DVDShrink to compress a 8GB DVD down to 4GB is not that bad. Most of the time, if you exclude the menus, extras, and superfluous audio streams, what is left over is usually a little over 4-5GB. DVDShrink provides very good results for what you would expect. I wouldn't expect perfection from 8GB to 4GB, but from 10GB to 8GB, I doubt you'd see any difference.

If you don't like the results from DVDShrink, find something better. You'll be hard pressed to find something that works as well for the cost (free).

Disclaimer: This is in no way an invite for someone to provide what they consider "something better".

I personally like dvd2one the best. It does have better compression than dvd shrink but, its not free. Not the new Dvd2one. Its to slow. But I think you can notice the difference if you were to put them side by side. Of course Im talking movie-only .

[ROF]

Also, using DVDShrink to compress a 8GB DVD down to 4GB is not that bad. Most of the time, if you exclude the menus, extras, and superfluous audio streams, what is left over is usually a little over 4-5GB. DVDShrink provides very good results for what you would expect. I wouldn't expect perfection from 8GB to 4GB, but from 10GB to 8GB, I doubt you'd see any difference.

If what's leftover is anywhere from 4-5GB that's not compressing 8GB into 4GB, that 4-5GB into 4.3 GB which at it's worst would be 14% compressed which isn't too bad but is approaching a noticeable difference on some larger screens. From 10GB to 8GB is roughly a 20% compression. This is below the threshold where a noticeable difference is apparent on most screens.

Granted, some people may not notice the difference but it is still noticeable. Any compression greater than 20% should not be attempted as the output will be significantly subpar.

Some people do claim that compression up to 40% or even larger does no significant damage to the video quality. To those people I would say put on your glasses or if you don't have a prescription be prepared to having one in the future after watching such skewed videos. In any case, don't subject your children to such degradation.

[e404pnf]

Q: How much is it going to cost you to do the compression with DVD Shrink to see if the results are acceptable?

A: Nothing, so just get on with it and report your findings!

It's been about 24 hours since your original post. In that time you could have tested it for yourself and made your own decision.

[gadgetguy]

e404pnf makes a good point. "Quality" is such a subjective thing when it comes to video that only you can make the final determination if it's acceptable or not. So give it a try and see if it works for YOU.