Noob needs help understanding the basics!

[Tookie75]

Hi all, i was hoping some of you guys might be able to answer some questions i have about video converting,
im trying to grasp the basics, so please be gentle with me.

Here go's,

Im mainly looking at converting some of my dvds to Divx/Xvid Avi's.

If ive got this right dvd resolutions are PAL 720x576 and NTSC 720x480.
Now when i try to convert a Pal dvd using the same resolution as above it comes out as a 4.3 aspect ratio when the dvd is 16.9 why is this?

Are resolution and frame sizes the same thing?

How do i know what the best frame size for a certain dvd is?

I think i remember reading something about a certain calculation that you should use when altering the frame size, does anybody know what im talking about?

I have many more questions but this will do for starters.

Thanks in advance for any help.

[yoda313]

Welcome!

it comes out as a 4.3 aspect ratio when the dvd is 16.9 why is this?

What program are you using?

It should have an output option to preserve the 16:9 ratio.

Are resolution and frame sizes the same thing?

Good question. I am not entirely sure. I think for the end user they are but I could be oversimplifying that.

Check out this glossary for more details:

https://www.videohelp.com/glossary

How do i know what the best frame size for a certain dvd is?

Are you keeping it as a dvd? Then don't change anything. Are you converting it to play on a portable player like a smartphone, ipad, zune, etc? Then you will have to convert it to conform to the devices specifications. If you are converting it to divx or something similar for a settop player than you should keep it like the dvd since you are watching it in full screen not on a portable.

certain calculation that you should use when altering the frame size, does anybody know what im talking about?

Sorry not off hand. What situation is it for?

I have many more questions but this will do for starters.

Sure thing. Don't forget to browse the "stickies" at the top of each forum for some starter points.

[jagabo]

If ive got this right dvd resolutions are PAL 720x576 and NTSC 720x480.
Now when i try to convert a Pal dvd using the same resolution as above it comes out as a 4.3 aspect ratio when the dvd is 16.9 why is this?

The difference between a 4:3 DVD and a 16:9 DVD is only a flag that tells the player how do display the video, 4:3 or 16:9. If you want to retain the frame size you need to flag the aspect ratio in the output file. Depending on what codec, container, and player you are using that may or may not work. It's usually safest to convert to "square pixels" where the display aspect ratio matches the relative frame dimensions. For example, for a 4:3 display aspect ratio use a 640x480 frame size, for a 16:9 display aspect ratio use a 640x360 frame size.

https://forum.videohelp.com/threads/322346-same-resolution-but-difference-in-display-w-...=1#post1995959