Authoring 3.5 hour movie in Maestro in dvd9

[cub]

I have the drive and media capable of doing dvd9. My question is: can I go through the authoring process with DVDMaestro and burning process with RecordNowMax like I used to do with DVD-R? I'm afraid that it kicks me out of the burning process in the middle of burning and dvd9 media is kinda expensive right now.

Thanks in advance,
Lucas

[tim6661234]

Well as Maestro hasn't been updated for along time now it probably won't support writing +DL. So I would go down the route of prducing an ISO or directory and buring it with something that does support it.

[freestyler]

The last burner that Maestro officially supported was the A03 and there was a hack for the A04. I don't know of many people who burn from within Maestro as there is really no benefit to it.

Maestro uses the Padus burning engine which is the one found in DiscJuggler.

[cub]

So I take that Maestro can author dvd9. Now, what's the best dvd9 burning software that accepts .IMG files from Maestro?
Thanks,
Lucas

[Edmund Blackadder]

So I take that Maestro can author dvd9. Now, what's the best dvd9 burning software that accepts .IMG files from Maestro?
Thanks,
Lucas

Lucas,

I tried authoring DVD9 in Maestro with later making an IMG file with selected layer break chapter point, but unfortunately that layer break instruction within IMG file is incompatible with burning programs capable of DL burning.

So your best solution is to compile a VIDEO_TS folder in Maestro and then burn it with RecordNow 7.2 (not RecordNow Max). RecordNow 7.2 will take care of a layer break for you.

On the other hand if you want more control over where you'd like to put the layer break in a long title/movie do this:

After compiling VIDEO_TS in Maestro, go to image creation tool and select dual-layer as your target. Then see which chapters points Maestro gives you as a layer break point without any warnings. Sometimes there are many chapters available for this and sometimes there's only one. If you have a few then simply select the one that would be the least noticeable for the layer break and remember it. Close Maestro and don't do anything to your compile.

Next open PgcEdit. In PfcEdit click File -> Open DVD. Find you VIDEO_TS folder. When it opens, in the left frame look for your needed title, for example Title 1 and double-click it. In the new opened window look bor Layer Break table. Then simply put the layer break checkmark in the box next to the desired chapter (but only one of those chapters that Maestro suggested you for layer break). Don't change anything else and click OK. Then in the main window select File -> Save DVD and close PgcEdit.

Now the very important part: Don't forget to go to your VIDEO_TS folder and delete/remove PgcEdit_backup folder inside of it (it contains the original IFO files). If you don't - your DVD will not be playable.

Now simply burn with RecordNow 7.2 in Data Mode and you should have a layer break in a desired spot. It worked for me like a charm.

Another important thing: Once all this been set, try not to add any other large files (DVD-ROM part) to your DL DVD as this will shift the center point of the possible layer break and if so RecordNow 7.2 will either put the layer break in its own chosen spot or refuse to burn at all if there's not enough space to do a good job with layer break.

And as I was bragging earlier, RecordNow 7.2 is currently the only software that does DL burning properly, according to DVD-Video specifications. DVD Decrypter might be good for cloning existing DVD9 discs, but for your own DL's that you create from scratch, the above method is the only one I've found to be the most compatible.

For my original thread about this issue please go here:
https://www.videohelp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=225001

Hope this helps.

[cub]

That's a great reply you provided there, Edmund. So the simplest way to do is to compile from within Maestro after authoring, then burn the VIDEO_TS folder resulted from that compilation. Now, the question is: there is a free utility called "imgtool" that's capable of making an .img file from a VIDEO_TS folder. Can I use that utility to create .img file without losing the layer break for dvd9 compatibility? The reason is: it's just nicer to store several .img files on the drive than storing several "VIDEO_TS" folders on the drive

Many thanks,
Lucas