AC3 or Wav in DVD2AVI for conversion to MP2?

[webbjs11]

I have a situation. I'm extracting VOB files in SmartRipper and using DVD2AVI to create D2v file and audio file.

I will use TMPGEnc for encoding to SVCD, but am not happy with the audio feature. I want to process the audio seperately, and use bbMPEG to MUX the a/v back together.

I tried 2 things in DVD2AVI with the audio. The first was to DEMUX the AC3 and convert to MP2 using BeSweet. No matter what I tried, I could not get a bitrate over 128 kbps for MP2 audio. However, the volume level was good.

The second was to DECODE the wav and convert to MP2 using BeSweet (actually 2Lame encoder in BeSweet). I was able to get the bitrate I wanted, but the wav volume level was very low.

What is the best technique to get a MP2 file with the bitrate and volume level I require?

[mats.hogberg]

If you decode to wav, then almost any (Goldwave, Sound Forge, CoolEdit...) have a normalize tool to pump up the volume, before encoding to mp2.

/Mats

[webbjs11]

I was able to use headAC3he to create the MP2 at the bitrate I wanted, but the volume was really loud. I had a concern that it could be distorted.

So is there any advantage to whether I make my MP2 from a wav or an AC3?

Is there a way to adjust the gain in HeadAC3he during the AC3 to MP2 process?

Does the sound file tend to get louder going from AC3 to MP2, or was this just the result of using HeadAC3he? What tool can I use to see if my signal is clipping?