recommended bitrate for dvd to avi

[blarson]

i would like to convert a bunch of my home videos from dvd format to avi format and i found a free program that looks like it will do the job (any video converter). the only question that i have is what to set the bitrate at. my dvd files right now are 7812.5 kb/s, 720 x 480, 30 fps. when i'm done i would like the .avi files to be the same quality as the originals. i'm not too concerned about the file size but i don't want to make these files 10 times bigger if you won't be able to tell the difference. i was hoping that by bringing the bitrate down the program would be faster at converting the files (i have alot of videos and it seems to me that this is going to take my computer alot of time). any advice??

[powerpc123]

From their website:
--Setting Output Videos Parameters
With Any Video Converter, you can define all the technical parameters according to your demands. Generally, the default settings in the program can produce videos in good quality.

More advice?
"i'm not too concerned about the file size"
Dont convert to avi. Leave them as DVD format.

"when i'm done i would like the .avi files to be the same quality as the originals"
That's not going to happen

If you must convert - read up on and use the quality tools mentioned throughout the videohelp.com website.

[Soopafresh]

I'd resize to 720x400 and encode at 2000K. Should look pretty good.

[jagabo]

Use a constant quality encoder. Pick the quality you want and encode. The encoder will use whatever bitrate is required to deliver the quality you specfied, regardless of the nature of the video.

[Krispy Kritter]

AutoGK is pretty straight forward. Though, as noted above, any conversion will reduce quality. If you already have them in DVD format, why not just leave them as is?