HDTV capture and conversion to DiVX - problem with video playback

[hockey2112]

I have a motorola HDTV DVR box. I have been capturing the recorded digital HDTV and SDTV streams to my computer via firewire and the program CapDVHS, and then convert it to DiVX using Auto GK. I recently began using SolveigMM Video Splitter to remove the commercials... it is very easy and fast to use, and the results are pretty great.

My problem is with the file that I get after removing the commercials with SolveigMM Video Splitter. The file plays just fine on my PC, but when I fast-forward or click to a different point to the file, the picture "messes up" for a few seconds. It is hard to describe exactly what it does... Basically, it goes to the next scene, and you can see the actors moving about, but the previous scene is still mostly there, on top of the current scene. The previous scene then starts "flaking off" of the current scene in large blocks until it is completely gone and we are now left with just the current screen.

What is causing the previous scene's images to stick around temporarily like this? I do not experience this problem with the post-AutoGK file, just with the post-SolveigMM Video Splitter file.

Does this sound like a software problem, or could this be caused by low PC specs? I do not have the most RAM in the world, and my processor is a few years old too. If the problem is Solveig, can you recommend another program with which I can remove all commercials at once, and then quickly save the commercial-less file?**

Thanks for any help!



** The way that Solveig works is that you set markers at the beginning and end of each commercial break, select those commercial break segments that you have marked, and then click "trim". It processes the file for about 5 minutes, and you are left with a commercial-less video file, akin to the files created by the warez release groups.

[MaxBlack]

I recently began using SolveigMM Video Splitter to remove the commercials... it is very easy and fast to use, and the results are pretty great.

Hmmm, it sounds like the results actually Suck Big Time!?

Try importing and editing your file with VirtualDubMod instead, using Direct Stream Copy mode (so as not to re-encode).

[hockey2112]

I recently began using SolveigMM Video Splitter to remove the commercials... it is very easy and fast to use, and the results are pretty great.

Hmmm, it sounds like the results actually Suck Big Time!?

Try importing and editing your file with VirtualDubMod instead, using Direct Stream Copy mode (so as not to re-encode).

Haha, yeah, I guess you are right. Although, I should have said that this doesn't happen with all of the files that I convert, only some of them.

I just opened a video in VirtualDubMod, but it appears that you can only mark on "in" and one "out" marker per processing session. Do I need to cut each piece of the program and save each segment as separate files, and then use VDubMod to rejoin the pieces into one file? Or am I missing an option that allows you to make multiple "in" and "out" markers, and then process the file once?

Thanks for the quick answer, by the way.

[MaxBlack]

Thanks for the quick answer...

Well, maybe it was TOO quick cuz in fact I have only ever used VDubMod to trim an .avi front-and-back. Sorry, apparently you are right that you would have to cut as segments and then use VDubMod to join them again (open the first segment and from then on use "Append AVI segment" to join them back together in order.

This may be worth a try, just to see if the result is cleaner than the other tool. Not sure why Splitter would have problems, though of course Divx files are non-trivial I think to edit--you might just have 1 keyframe in 300 and any other cutpoints have to be re-encoded?

You should consider editing instead at the pre-AGK stage. You're likely to get better cuts, and then AutoGK has a smaller program to convert (faster conversion to Dvix)!

Assuming the "pre-AGK stage" is MPEG2 transport streams, the best editor out there is VideoReDo Plus, but it's not free (after a 14-day full function trial it costs $50). But I do a lot of TS editing and it's the best $50 bucks I spent last year! Again, sorry if I sent you down a rabbit hole...

[Josef Kneht]

I have a motorola HDTV DVR box. I have been capturing the recorded digital HDTV and SDTV streams to my computer via firewire and the program CapDVHS, and then convert it to DiVX using Auto GK. I recently began using SolveigMM Video Splitter to remove the commercials... it is very easy and fast to use, and the results are pretty great.

My problem is with the file that I get after removing the commercials with SolveigMM Video Splitter. The file plays just fine on my PC, but when I fast-forward or click to a different point to the file, the picture "messes up" for a few seconds. It is hard to describe exactly what it does... Basically, it goes to the next scene, and you can see the actors moving about, but the previous scene is still mostly there, on top of the current scene. The previous scene then starts "flaking off" of the current scene in large blocks until it is completely gone and we are now left with just the current screen.

What is causing the previous scene's images to stick around temporarily like this? I do not experience this problem with the post-AutoGK file, just with the post-SolveigMM Video Splitter file.

Does this sound like a software problem, or could this be caused by low PC specs? I do not have the most RAM in the world, and my processor is a few years old too. If the problem is Solveig, can you recommend another program with which I can remove all commercials at once, and then quickly save the commercial-less file?**

Thanks for any help!



** The way that Solveig works is that you set markers at the beginning and end of each commercial break, select those commercial break segments that you have marked, and then click "trim". It processes the file for about 5 minutes, and you are left with a commercial-less video file, akin to the files created by the warez release groups.

Hi hockey2112,

I'm sure if you ask SolveigMM directly, they help you.
http://www.elecard.ru/forum/viewforum.php?f=26&sid=2d2fd16a478198ac88c57b8f5504e797

[hockey2112]

Hi hockey2112,

I'm sure if you ask SolveigMM directly, they help you.
http://www.elecard.ru/forum/viewforum.php?f=26&sid=2d2fd16a478198ac88c57b8f5504e797

Good call. I checked on that link, and they mention that version 1.1 is now out. I have version 1.0.3. In the release notes, they state:

Fixes:
- The bug with AVI damaging while trimming has been fixed (after trimming in lower part of video in some AVI files appeared artifacts)


I assume that this is a fix to the problem I am having. I'll have to look into getting the latest version from them.

Thanks for the quick answer...

Well, maybe it was TOO quick cuz in fact I have only ever used VDubMod to trim an .avi front-and-back. Sorry, apparently you are right that you would have to cut as segments and then use VDubMod to join them again (open the first segment and from then on use "Append AVI segment" to join them back together in order.

This may be worth a try, just to see if the result is cleaner than the other tool. Not sure why Splitter would have problems, though of course Divx files are non-trivial I think to edit--you might just have 1 keyframe in 300 and any other cutpoints have to be re-encoded?

You should consider editing instead at the pre-AGK stage. You're likely to get better cuts, and then AutoGK has a smaller program to convert (faster conversion to Dvix)!

Assuming the "pre-AGK stage" is MPEG2 transport streams, the best editor out there is VideoReDo Plus, but it's not free (after a 14-day full function trial it costs $50). But I do a lot of TS editing and it's the best $50 bucks I spent last year! Again, sorry if I sent you down a rabbit hole...

Thanks for the tip on VideoReDo. I am working with MPEG-2 ts files, so I will definitely check that out. I am also going to try cutting the file into pieces with VDubMod, just to see if it works better.

One other thing that I just realized... on one particular file that gives me the artifact issues, I did not cut the file exactly at the keyframes, b/c that was giving me little pieces of the commercials in the output file. I will try re-cutting the file only at keyframes, and see if that fixes the issue as well.

Again, thanks to everyone who has helped. I have used this website for years now, and I have always been able to find an answer to my issues, without fail.

[jagabo]

VirtualDub (any version) cutting:

Cut out each section you don't want with mark-in, mark-out, then cut. Do this multiple times to remove all the sections you don't want. What's left is just what you do want. Save as AVI.

You will continue to have problems with non-frame accurate cutting in Direct Stream Copy mode. You can only mark-in on a keyframe. If you mark-in anywhere else VirutualDub will automatically move the mark-in to the prior keyframe.

[hockey2112]

VirtualDub (any version) cutting:

Cut out each section you don't want with mark-in, mark-out, then cut. Do this multiple times to remove all the sections you don't want. What's left is just what you do want. Save as AVI.

Holy crap, I can't believe I have never thought of just using the Edit>Cut command (seriously). Haha, how easy is that? I just tested it with a small video at work, and it looks like it will work beautifully. I am definitely trying this tonight at home with my tv show file. Thank you very much for the tip!

[MaxBlack]

Hopefully the requirement that cuts only be at Key frames will not be a problem for you. If you do need more accuracy note that VideoReDo permits MPEG2 editing at any frame at all (it will re-encode just that portion to make legal GOPs). Another benefit of VRD is that it has an audio waveform that lets you find silent spots to cut at.

But I'm glad I found this thread; learned a few things. I do wonder tho if VDubMod can do editing, what the Solveig product has over it.

[hockey2112]

Hopefully the requirement that cuts only be at Key frames will not be a problem for you. If you do need more accuracy note that VideoReDo permits MPEG2 editing at any frame at all (it will re-encode just that portion to make legal GOPs). Another benefit of VRD is that it has an audio waveform that lets you find silent spots to cut at.

But I'm glad I found this thread; learned a few things. I do wonder tho if VDubMod can do editing, what the Solveig product has over it.

One cool thing about Solveig is that you can actually set multiple markers at once, and then essentially batch them all to create the output file. It is also pretty easy to see where you have marked your cuts, whereas the VDubMod timeline will not be quite as obvious.

I'm sure I will find out tonight when I try it, but can VideoReDo make multiple cuts in one file, or is it more like our earlier supposition for VDub... i.e. cutting multiple pieces and then piecing them back together?

[DarrellS]

Like Jagabo stated, with Virtualdub, you don't need to cut the movie in pieces and join it back together. You cut one commercial out and move to the next until all commercials are cut out and then encode your XviD or DivX.
It is best to start at the last commercial and work your way back to avoid any sync problems.

There are a couple of threads about programs that are supposed to automatically find the commercials and cut them out if you look for them. They were posted this week so they shouldn't be too hard to find.

[TBoneit]

VRD can make multiple cuts in one file, I use it myself too. Plus you can mark parts to cut out or parts to retain. IOW set begin/end cuts or begin/end retention points. Two scroll bars, one coarse and one fine. Keybaord defaults are fine for me. right or left arrows = one frame forward or backwards. Good Support. I use it one VOBS, MOGs and .ts files.

[hockey2112]

An update...

I installed VideoReDo last night. First, I tried cutting a few random bits out of a one-sing concert performace. I checked the resulting .ts file, and it was indeed missing all of the sections I cut. So that worked.

I then loaded up an hourlong show that I recorded (widescreen HDTV source). VRD gave me an error... something like "cannot load file" with some gibberish behind it (really gibberish, with "#$%&*" and other symbols like that). I happened to have the folder in which this file and the concert performance files were in open, and I saw them disappear before my eyes from the folder. I opened My Computer, and sure enough, I had that much more free space on my hard drive... the files had been automatically deleted from my hard drive, no doubt by this "cannot load" error in VRD.

I tried using a few data recovery programs, but none of them could find those three .ts files (hourlong, original concert performance, and VRD-edited concert performance).

Any ideas on why VRD would not want to open that hourlong file? It was approximately 4.2 GB or so, and I had approx 10 GB free on my hard drive at the time. Also, why would the previously-edited file and concert "source file" be deleted as well? I can understand the hourlong being deleted (I guess), but it makes no sense to me that the other files were deleted as well.

Any ideas and feedback would be great!



VirtualDub editing update:

I loaded up my file that gave me the SolveigMM problems into VirtualDub, and used the "Cut" feature. It worked like a charm, and the file plays wonderfully.



One last question:

Does anyone else have another .ts editing software that they can recommend, that will perform the same manual commercial-removal functions that VRD can? I would indeed prefer to edit the .ts file before converting to .avi, so that I can use AutoGK to convert the commercial-free file to a specific size, like the standard sizes the release groups use (175 MB for 30-minute shows, 350 for hourlongs, etc).


Thanks!

[hockey2112]

Sorry for the double post, but I figured the last one was long enough.


I found another program, called HDTVtoMPEG2, and I am trying it out right now. I had it do an auto-commercial scan, and processed the original .ts to a new .ts excluding those commercials. I have the edited .ts running through AutoGK at 350 MB, 624 px width on my home computer as I type this (ain't using remote desktop at work fun? ). I will post back here this weekend after I watch the resulting file, to let you all know how things turned out.

Of course, I would still appreciate any feedback and tips that others may have.

[TBoneit]

VRD support will be glad to be helpful even when you are on a trial version, I had support questions before buying.

I'd ask them about the disappearing files. I haven't dug into the settings deeply but am curious what they say. If you gave them info on your source device etc. I bet they'd be able smooth any bumps in the road. BTW VRD also has commercial detect and when I use it I always check the results.

I'm suspecting that HD could be tough to work with based on an assumption of mine that they may be playing games with the data stream wherever commercials are inserted. What I'm thinking is, and I could be wrong, that there could be all sorts of discontinuities in the .ts stream.

We ar talking about broadcasters that will hold severe storm warnings/breaking news back until the commercial break is over so they do not disturb the important part of what they are broadcasting.

Don't believe me? Why no station logos or promos for another show are displayed over commercials.

[satviewer2000]

Womble MPEG Wizard never misses a frame and it doesn't re-encode so you retain all of the original quality. However, if you are capturing from DVB or cablebox, you must then run the file thru VideoRedo to fix an audio-sync problem if you're converting to AVI or DivX. I have successfully converted DVB HDTV captures into DivX-HD which are 1/3 the size and retain 95% of the quality of the original MPEG2 in hi-def too.