Need help converting VC1 to MPEG2

[Bootstrap]

I need MPEG2 files to stream video over my home network. So I am in the process of converting a bunch of my video files to MPEG2. I am using a commercial video converter. And it works well, took me awhile to learn, but it is now working well. I have run into a problem though... I am unable to convert a few VC1 files directly to MPEG2. This slows me down, because I must 1st convert to MP4, and then finally to MPEG2. I would like to convert directly to MPEG2, to save time and video quality. Most of the programs I have seen recommended seem to specialize in MP4 or MKV. So my question is... are there any good choices for programs that can convert directly from VC1 to MPEG2?

[jman98]

Have you considered that maybe it would be a better idea to do your streaming with something that didn't require you to convert? It's your life and your money but personally I'd rather not have to convert "a bunch of videos" just because all my network can deal with is MPEG-2 and I was too cheap to buy something that would stream my videos as is.

I don't work with VC-1 but I have a possible way that might work. However, this requires a LOT of learning on your part. The cost is nothing though.
1) Open the VC-1 file in MeGUI and use the File Indexer option to create a .dga file.
2) Write an AviSynth script that can open the .dga file and feed that into HCenc.
3) Produce MPEG-2 output with HCenc to your desired specifications.

[Bootstrap]

Have you considered that maybe it would be a better idea to do your streaming with something that didn't require you to convert? It's your life and your money but personally I'd rather not have to convert "a bunch of videos" just because all my network can deal with is MPEG-2 and I was too cheap to buy something that would stream my videos as is.

I don't work with VC-1 but I have a possible way that might work. However, this requires a LOT of learning on your part. The cost is nothing though.
1) Open the VC-1 file in MeGUI and use the File Indexer option to create a .dga file.
2) Write an AviSynth script that can open the .dga file and feed that into HCenc.
3) Produce MPEG-2 output with HCenc to your desired specifications.

I am unsure how to respond to this. Perhaps I am stupid, for buying the consumer video equipment that I have. But, let me assure you that the equipment I own is far from "cheap". Perhaps there are better more capable PS3's out there, maybe more capable blu-ray players (I have 3 of them in addition to my PS3). Maybe, there are faster more capable tablets ... who knows? And I am sure I could find lots of different network routers and adapters. But here is the problem... in a home with more than 20 possible clients, that run the gamut from PS3 to Android tablets and iPhones and Droids... I have to find a format that can be accepted by the most different clients. There will always be a lot of different clients. So far, the only format that seems acceptable to the majority is MPEG2.

Now, I guess, I could have my server transcode videos on-the-fly. I have tried that with Serviio... and it does work. But I prefer to transcode once, rather than every time a video is watched.

[Guest34343]

I don't work with VC-1 but I have a possible way that might work. However, this requires a LOT of learning on your part. The cost is nothing though.

DGDecNV will certainly decode and frame serve VC-1 (advanced profile) into HCEnc for conversion to MPEG2 but it requires a $15 donation. You might have to demux first too, depending on your container; if your input is VC-1 ES, then you can open that directly in DGDecNV.

[jman98]

Who has a "home with more than 20 possible clients"???? Clearly whatever your situation is, it's highly unusual.

iPhones do not support MPEG-2 without the use of non-free 3rd party software.

The PS3 and Xbox both got surpassed permanently as home streaming devices over FOUR YEARS AGO. Yes, you read that right. Yet the number of people who paint themselves into a corner with one of those remains high even though there have been far superior streaming devices on the market for over 4 years now.

[Bootstrap]

Who has a "home with more than 20 possible clients"???? Clearly whatever your situation is, it's highly unusual.

iPhones do not support MPEG-2 without the use of non-free 3rd party software.

The PS3 and Xbox both got surpassed permanently as home streaming devices over FOUR YEARS AGO. Yes, you read that right. Yet the number of people who paint themselves into a corner with one of those remains high even though there have been far superior streaming devices on the market for over 4 years now.

My situation may be unusual, but here are the painful details. I have 4 children, 2 of which still live with me, and 2 that visit often. They are all adults. Each has their own tablet and cell phone (quite a variety of devices), then we have 2 large screen TVs, one in the den and 1 in the living room... each with a blu-ray player or game console, i.e. PS3 or Xbox 360. The 2 children living at home have TVs with blu-ray in their bedrooms. When we started out, we used mac address filtering in our router, but just last year we surpassed the ability of that table in the router. I haven't counted my own personal tablet, and bedroom TV/blu-ray... I am the Dad of this crew. I could be wrong, but I am pretty sure we have >20 client devices that may want streaming video (most of them have Netflix and Hulu Plus too). So you can see it is an EXTREMELY varied environment. Some devices are rather new, i.e. the blu-ray players, some are rather old, like the PS3. None of them can be ruled out as a client though. I have been playing with the setup of this server for more than 2 years and already have about 400 videos loaded in it. Right now, they are mostly MP4, coded for tablet streaming, i.e. Baseline 3.0 with 1 Ref Frame. But that format stutters quite a bit on our new blu-ray players, so I am in the middle of redoing to a format more universal across the spectrum of clients, i.e. MPEG2-PS for HD and MPEG2 NTSC for SD... these are the only formats I have found that work smoothly across the lot of devices.

On the iOS devices, we use a 3rd party app to play the MPEG2. GoodPlayer I think is the name of it. I actually haven't figured out how to stream to the Android devices, there must be an app though. Luckily for me, most of our mobile devices are iOS, and thus can use GoodPlayer.

[dragonkeeper]

any good choices for programs that can convert directly from VC1 to MPEG2?

No. Its gonna be a two step process anyway you slice it. But you shouldn't have to convert the video twice.

Try loading the VC1 files into ripbot264, go through the motions of creating a mp4/mkv file (i.e. set the video resolution etc), but don't start the job. Go into the ripbot264 temp folder double click the

[poisondeathray]

If it's not elementary stream, and not interlaced vC-1, you should be able to use some ffmpeg based tools to do it in one step (there is a list of GUI's when you click on the ffmpeg hotlink)

e.g. winff, any video converter, tencoder, avanti, mediacoder

[Bootstrap]

any good choices for programs that can convert directly from VC1 to MPEG2?

No. Its gonna be a two step process anyway you slice it. But you shouldn't have to convert the video twice.

Try loading the VC1 files into ripbot264, go through the motions of creating a mp4/mkv file (i.e. set the video resolution etc), but don't start the job. Go into the ripbot264 temp folder double click the

Looks like a bit of your message was cutoff.

The process I am using now, that I would like to change, is: a ripper creates MP4 or MKV from blu-ray source, then that file is trans-coded to MPEG2 by a video conversion program. On the blu-ray the file exists as a VC1, if I copy it to my hard disc, I can play it in VLC, no problem. I am running a blu-ray decrypter in the background... so it is decrypted automatically. I was hoping then to just convert the VC1 directly to MPEG2. This would give a faster work flow and higher quality. And I was able to do several like this. But then the conversion program barfed on one of the VC1 files. I had to drop back and have the ripper convert to MP4 or MKV, as before. This adds about an hour to the process, and involves some loss of quality.

[El Heggunte]

...

But then the conversion program barfed on one of the VC1 files.

That's a good-reason for posting a MediaInfo report about the problematic VC-1 stream.

As poisondeathray said, a different / more complex approach will be required for dealing with interlaced VC-1, for example.

And maybe it's time to drop the video converter you bought :–/

[Bootstrap]

...

But then the conversion program barfed on one of the VC1 files.

That's a good-reason for posting a MediaInfo report about the problematic VC-1 stream.

As poisondeathray said, a different / more complex approach will be required for dealing with interlaced VC-1, for example.

And maybe it's time to drop the video converter you bought :–/

I don't think it is a "problematic" stream. As I mentioned, it played very well in VLC. I think it is a bug in the video converter. Hence this thread. My main purpose is to "drop the video converter" I bought, and find a different better one. One that can handle VC-1 format without any problems.

It seems to me that I need a better tool. So I was asking if a better tool could be recommended...

If possible, I would like a unified complete video converter, and I am not against paying for it, if necessary.

[El Heggunte]

OK, my bad

Anyway, now I was about to recommend neuron2's suggestion, but since you're looking for a "unified complete video converter", I'd better let the others share their greater experience ( as I often happen to make things unnecessarily complicated =^.^= ).

[RBK]

Thanks for the lead about Goodplayer. Its not perfect but does a god job on those things it does work with

[Bootstrap]

Thanks for the lead about Goodplayer. Its not perfect but does a god job on those things it does work with

You are welcome! My biggest gripe about GoodPlayer is that it keeps forgetting about my server -- but remembers my wife's. I run the PS3 Media Server on my system, and GoodPlayer finds it hard to locate. My wife runs a small personal server on her computer, which sits right next to mine, physically and topologically (network-wise). Hers pops in there instantly when I start GoodPlayer, but the media server on my system takes its sweet time. All my other clients find the media server on my system very qyickly, so I am not sure why the delay.

But after it is started, it plays all my videos like a champ! Both the mp4 and mpg variety.