Xvid to DVD Conversion Advice

[SharkBait]

Hi,

Ok I've been trying to convert xvid (I assume they are a type of avi like divx) to MPG2 so I can then burn them to dvds.

The following programs I have are: DIKO, TPMGEnc DVD Author, and TPMGEnc.

I've used diko to try and do everything at once. I took 5 video files that play wonderfully with WMP. I have it set to NTSC at 4:3 ratio (they are tv shows) and them seem to encode to mpeg2 fine. I can still play the newly created mpegs and there is no audio mishaps or anything.

I burn the disc using Nero. Diko creates an ISO of the DVD with the Audio and Video directories (though the audio directory is empty when I view it in explorer). I've tried burning them at 4x and 8x. 2 of my dvd players do not want to read them. A Pansonic and a Sony. Though I can put the DVD into my computer and it plays fine. Though I've noticed the disc tries to start on Title 1 and not the menu that has been created. Another disc I created earlier (i managed to get 10 episodes on it and the quality was crap ) allowed me to goto the menu if I pressed the menu button on the remote, but llike the recent ones, it starts at title1 and plays from there.

Would it be better to use TPMGEnc to encode them to mpg2. And then Use the TPMGEnc DVD Author to create the dvd with menus? (I'm trying for 5 episodes per disc, so I would have roughly 4 discs)

Should I include VirtualDUB or something to work with the audio? I like the all-in-one programs because then I dont have to worry about using all these programs to do different things.

My Machine is an AMD Athlon 1600+ (1.4GHz) with 768MB SDRAM 300GB of hardrive space and a GeForce 4 Ti4200. A bit old, but the encoding takes roughly 1.3hrs per video file (~400MB/file).

[jimmalenko]

If a one-clicker is your thing, maybe give convertxtoDVD a try. It can burn for you as well.

Or another option is to invest in a divx/xvid capable settop dvd player. No conversion neccessary !

[SharkBait]

I was thinking about that. A dvd player that would play xvid/divx would be cool but I do not have the resources to make such a perchase.

I'll take a look at convertodvd.

[redwudz]

SharkBait, please use a descriptive title for your posts. 'Newbie Stuck... ' is not one. More appropriate would be one like 'Converting Xvids to DVD' or similar that describes your topic. You would get a lot more views that way and it enables others to find your post when searching.

Moderator redwudz

[SharkBait]

Ahh yea, that was a dumb title.

Sorry its been changed

thanx

[SharkBait]

Sweet ConvertXtoDVD working wonderfully. took 3hrs. It wasnt set to the Best Quality but on the TV I am using, they look as good as if I were watching it live

The menu system is easy to use too. Thanx for the recommendations

[redwudz]

Good to know. Thanks for the title change. If you want the best quality, look to the individual tools. I use TMPGEnc to encode to MPEG-2, and TMPGEnc DVD Author for making the DVD format. They give you some adjustments not available in the all-in-ones. Depends on what you need.

There are other programs that can do as well. But if ConvertXToDVD works for you and does what you need, fine.

[SharkBait]

I'll monkey around later with TMPGEnc and TMPGEnc DVD Author. I have them both and have used them a little bit. I used to encode .mov files into .mpg (or was it .avi) with TMPGEnc, but never really played with the settings much.

Thanx again

[guns1inger]

I use ConvertXtoDVD for quick conversions (I can do a 90 minute movie in around 80 minutes on highest quality mode), if spped is more important than quality, or if the avi resolution is already very close to DVD.

If quality is the most important factor, my process is Avisynth (with the blockbuster and asharp filters) to resize and serve the video to CCE, encode in CCE with a 3-pass VBR encode. If the audio isn't AC3 then I convert it to AC3 using sound forge. Finally, I author the whole thing with DVD Lab Pro. This process usually takes around 4 - 5 hours all up.