Muxman problem with chapter times

[lordretsudo]

I'm having a problem with a DVD I'm trying to re-author, where Muxman gives the error message Reference to non-existant scene "Segment_1_scn8". I've searched around and it seems the commonest suggestion is to remove the last line from the chapter times text file. I've tried this, but it means that the last chapter of the film then doesn't work.

It seems like it's a fairly common problem, so I was hoping someone out there might have come across a better way around it by now?!

FWIW, my chapter times are as follows (and they check out in PGC Edit):

28095
64023
87918
119418
131808
147318
147330

[sambat]

I did this recently - this is the numbers I had and how to fix.
I shamelessly cribbed these notes from manono and others.

In PgcDemux Logfile.txt, note the total number of frames:
Total Number of Frames=248795
In Celltimes.txt, note the last number.
248780
Change the line in Celltimes.txt to 248795-30=248765
Note that 30 is for NTSC, subtract 25 for PAL.
I.E. 248795-25=248770

[manono]

That may fix the problem, although the problem here may not be the last chapter being too close to the end. Also, I've increased the frame number difference to about 40 or 45 recently. I'm not real sure why lordretsudo says the last chapter won't work after being removed because when doing the 'Replace' step using VobBlanker it creates a new last chapter. Maybe he's not using VobBlanker. And maybe that last chapter isn't the problem

Anyway, there's another problem and that's the next-to-last chapter being only 12 frames before the very last chapter. There should also be 40-45 frames between those 2. If a check of the log as described by sambat doesn't show a problem with the last chapter, maybe change the frame number for the next-to-last chapter to 147290.

[lordretsudo]

Thanks for the advice. I tried doing as sambat suggested, and got exactly the same error message from Muxman. The new value for the last chapter was 149212, so it's a much bigger gap than before (total no of frames was 149237 and it's a PAL DVD).

@ manono - I am indeed using VOB Blanker, but whatever it did the last chapter didn't work - by that I mean if I skip to the last chapter, it won't play. If I skip to the 2nd to last chapter and then fast forward, I can go through to the end of the film. It's just the chapter point that doesn't work, but this is still really irritating and something I'd like to be able to correct...

[manono]

If 149237 is shown by the logfile to be the last frame, then you don't want to remove or change the last chapter (frame number 147330). Leave it alone and change the frame number of the second to last chapter as I described.

[lordretsudo]

If 149237 is shown by the logfile to be the last frame, then you don't want to remove or change the last chapter (frame number 147330). Leave it alone and change the frame number of the second to last chapter as I described.

I've just tried changing the 2nd to last chapter to 147290 and leaving the last one as 147330 and got the same stupid reference to non-existant scene "Segment_1_scn8" error message in Muxman. I then tried changing the 2nd to last chapter to 145000, just to see if a bigger gap helped. Alas, the same error message once again It really seems like there's something wrong with the last chapter.

I really do appreciate the help, as things like this are just so frustrating! I've had this problem a couple of times before, but never had such difficulty resolving it...

[manono]

Curiouser and curiouser. I'm starting to think that the movie isn't complete now. Even though Muxman didn't complete the mux, the VOBs should be complete. Can you play the end of the last one and make sure the end frames are there?

How'd you encode the movie? Did you use a DGIndex project file and an AviSynth script? If so open the script in VDub(Mod and confirm that the movie goes to the end. If it does, and if it's a 23.976fps progressive movie, multiply the last frame number by 1.25 and check if it's within a frame or 2 of the number given in the log as the last frame number. If it's a 29.97fps video, check to see if the last frame number is the same as that in the log.

[lordretsudo]

The film is definitely complete, and plays to the end. The only thing that doesn't work after remuxing is the final chapter stop. I haven't done any encoding, so no DGIndex/AVISynth stuff. It's a retail Italian DVD, to which (after demuxing) I've added a re-synced English audio track (from a VHS rip) and an English subtitle track. I've made many custom DVD's like this in the past (I post them under the same username at DVD sites like Cinematik and AsianDVDClub), and although I've encountered problems before, this is the first time I've been really stumped!

Maybe I should just give up - I must have remuxed everything about 25 times by now! Thanks again for your time & assistance

[manono]

Oh, and here I was assuming it was NTSC, with that stuff about multiplying by 1.25.

Here's a work-around. Leave out the last chapter and mux as before. Then create a new last chapter using VobBlanker. You said you already use VobBlanker, so it shouldn't be too difficult for you. Here's a guide:

http://jsoto.posunplugged.com/guides/VobBlanker/splitting_cells/index.htm

I think I would create that new last chapter on the Muxman authored DVD, rather than waiting until after doing the 'Replace' using VobBlanker. That way it'll already have the correct number of chapters when doing the 'Replace' in Vobblanker.

I sure wish I knew the reason for the problem. The Muxman log (in the root of the C Drive) doesn't give any additional clues?

[lordretsudo]

I will attempt to do it the way you suggest, though it sounds a little complicated...!

An example of the Muxman log I get is as follows:

MuxMan version 1.0.3
new database size 400, base 1461f0.
Opened script file C:\Documents and Settings\Tom Foster\Desktop\shabba.mxp
Accepted audio E:\residencia stuff\residencia demux\AudioFile_80.ac3
Accepted audio E:\residencia stuff\residencia demux\AudioFile_81.ac3
Accepted audio E:\residencia stuff\residencia demux\AudioFile_82.ac3
expanded database to 602 entries.
expanded database to 804 entries.
expanded database to 1006 entries.
expanded database to 1208 entries.
expanded database to 1410 entries.
expanded database to 1612 entries.
expanded database to 1814 entries.
expanded database to 2016 entries.
expanded database to 2218 entries.
expanded database to 2420 entries.
expanded database to 2622 entries.
expanded database to 2824 entries.
expanded database to 3026 entries.
expanded database to 3228 entries.
09:56:31 Begin m2v survey of E:\residencia stuff\residencia demux\VideoFile.m2v.
09:56:44 End survey of E:\residencia stuff\residencia demux\VideoFile.m2v.

09:56:44 Begin multiplex VTS01.
Title Segment List
Segment_1 non-seamless
Encoded stream 20 is script stream 1.
Encoded stream 21 is script stream 2.
Encoded stream 22 is script stream 3.
Encoded stream 23 is script stream 4.
Buffering audio track 1 file E:\residencia stuff\residencia demux\AudioFile_80.ac3.
Buffering audio track 2 file E:\residencia stuff\residencia demux\AudioFile_81.ac3.
Buffering audio track 3 file E:\residencia stuff\residencia demux\AudioFile_82.ac3.
Maximum audio duration 294638 fields.
new graphics buffer size 414720.
Positioned E:\residencia stuff\residencia demux\VideoFile.m2v to 00:00:00:00
Starting scene Segment_1_scn1 at 00:00:00:00
Starting scene Segment_1_scn2 at 00:18:43:20
Starting scene Segment_1_scn3 at 00:42:40:23
Starting scene Segment_1_scn4 at 00:58:36:18
SPU buffer size 12288.
Starting scene Segment_1_scn5 at 01:19:36:18
Starting scene Segment_1_scn6 at 01:27:52:08
SeqEnd at 14B5649A9.
Starting scene Segment_1_scn7 at 01:38:12:19, requested for 01:38:12:18
SeqEnd at 14B5662C4.
Bytes remaining in buffer = 0.
Bitrate - avg: 8273586, min: 368640 (lba 2975917), max: 9120426 (lba 2008043).
Shortest GOP has 2 fields, longest GOP has 30 fields.
Fields: 294658, Still fields: 18, VOBU: 9833, Sectors: 2975926.
Reference to non-existant scene "Segment_1_scn8" from PGC "VTS01_TTL01_PGC1"

One thing I do wonder about... the PGC Demux log gives the final frame as 149237, yet chapter 7 is basically the end of the film, bar a couple of seconds. It seems as though the final frame information may be incorrect?!

[manono]

MuxMan version 1.0.3

What is that? Are you using the Pro version? Mine says MuxMan version 0.16.6.

the PGC Demux log gives the final frame as 149237, yet chapter 7 is basically the end of the film, bar a couple of seconds.

But what were you saying earlier about losing the last chapter? Was there something in that same vobset after the movie? A studio logo, a warning of some kind, an advertisement, a trailer? Perhaps something you got rid of using either VobBlanker or PGCEdit before demuxing with PGCDemux?

So, deleting the last chapter before muxing didn't lose the last chapter of the movie after all, did it? And there's nothing in the chapters/scenes menu that points to an eighth chapter? And maybe not even to a seventh chapter?

[lordretsudo]

I should have said that I also tried several different versions of Muxman, that being just one of them. I also have the Pro version.

However, I think you have solved the problem: when I checked the DVD menu, there are indeed links to only 6 chapters, despite there being 8 listed on the side title menu (in Windows Media Player). If I click chapter 7, it takes me back to the main menu, and if I click on chapter 8, it seems to just crash.

I can't believe that I never thought to check something so simple/obvious - I just blindly assumed that if there were 8 chapters listed, then there must be 8 chapters! Obviously, this explains why I was unable to use the chapter skip button to get to the final chapter - by that point I was already in it!

Thanks for your patience and help. I now feel very silly...

[manono]

You're welcome. So just delete the last 2 chapters and allow VobBlanker to create new ones (or leave the 7th if it authors OK), The 7th one (I still don't know about the 8th one, although there has to be a reason both PGCDemux and PGCEdit list it) was originally created so you can quickly get back to the menu when playing the 6th chapter and you hit 'Next' on the remote. You might do that when watching the movie and you don't want to sit through the end credits. It'll include that last partial second of the video (probably a few black frames) before quickly returning to the menu.

Maybe that 8th chapter was just an authoring error of some kind. However I don't know of any authoring program that will allow the inclusion of chapter points well after the end of the video. As you discovered, Muxman sure won't.