.AVI to MPEG-2 w/TMPGEnc Plus 2.5

[srshep]

Here is the file information for 90% of my source files. My question is what should my source setting be set at and should I convert my 352x240 video to 704x480?

Frame Size 352x240, 14.985 fps
Decompressor Microsoft MPEG-4 Video Codec

I want to convert these .AVI files into the best quality MPEG-2 DVD Compliant video. I have successfully converted many but feel I might not be getting the best quality that I can. I realize that quality is directly related to source footage being used to encode but sometimes I get scenes that are unusually dark. I have read many of the conversion guides and still feel unsatisfied with my results. Any help is greatly appreciated.

[willy_annand]

First I would suggest TMPGEnc. It seems to be the best at conversion.

Going 4 times larger might cause your picture to lose alot.
Try going to a Half-D1 DVD compliant file. (352x480, 29.97fps, 48KHz audio)

To do my conversions, I use the DVD Template and just adjust the resolution. The results are excellent.

[srshep]

If I convert the video to 352x480 how is the picture quality as compared to a standard 720x480?