VCD error : mpeg2enc version has changed ?

[Pix]

Hi Major,

Sorry I post in the forums although I would have preferred email (as the error log is quite long) but I have currently an out of order email. Then sorry guys if you have to read a one page error log.

I’m using ffmpegX to make mainly VCDs, so calling mpeg2enc.

For the first time ever I have the enclosed error message (in any ffmpegX version 007d or former)
The only thing which changes now from last encodings is that I reinstalled (as advised) the binaries and mpeg2enc seem to have changed (date was 27.06.03 instead of the old 05.09.02).

I don’t know if mpeg2enc really changed, or maybe some arguments in the ffmpegX scripts that manage mpeg2enc.

Maybe you have a clue. Or is it a... (if I dare) bug ?

I have MAcOS 10.2.6, an iMac G3 400 DV, 512 Mo RAM.
Source is a single .vob extracted from a PAL DVD.
Destination is PAL VCD.
Settings are default VCD settings, but I ticked (encode high frequencies) and changed from (mux as SVCD) to (mux as VCD), as ever...

Hereunder is the long log (I cut the audio things) : never got the message regarding the –h option.

Hope to know if it’s a ffmpegX problem, mpeg2enc problem or source problem (which I don’t expect, but I’ll try a second source this evening).

Thanks for your support Major, I hope there’s nothing wrong and also you have time to read this log.



Encoding started on Wed Jul 9 12:50:38 CEST 2003
/usr/bin/mpeg2enc: invalid option -- h
--verbose|-v num
Level of verbosity. 0 = quiet, 1 = normal 2 = verbose/debug
--format|-f fmt
Set pre-defined mux format fmt.
[0 = Generic MPEG1, 1 = standard VCD, 2 = VCD,
3 = Generic MPEG2, 4 = standard SVCD, 5 = user SVCD,
6 = VCD Stills sequences, 7 = SVCD Stills sequences, 8 = DVD]
--aspect|-a num
Set displayed image aspect ratio image (default: 2 = 4:3)
[1 = 1:1, 2 = 4:3, 3 = 16:9, 4 = 2.21:1]
--frame-rate|-F num
Set playback frame rate of encoded video
(default: frame rate of input stream)
0 = Display frame rate code table
--video-bitrate|-b num
Set Bitrate of compress video in KBit/sec
(default: 1152 for VCD, 2500 for SVCD, 3800 for DVD)
--nonvideo-birate|-B num
Non-video data bitrate to assume for sequence splitting
calculations (see also --sequence-length).
--quantisation|-q num
Image data quantisation factor [1..31] (1 is best quality, no default)
When quantisation is set variable bit-rate encoding is activated and
the --bitrate value sets an *upper-bound* video data-rate
--output|-o pathname
pathname of output file or fifo (REQUIRED!!!)
--vcd-still-size|-T size
Size in KB of VCD stills
--interlace-mode|-I num
Sets MPEG 2 motion estimation and encoding modes:
0 = Progressive (non-interlaced)(Movies)
1 = Interlaced source material (video)
--motion-search-radius|-r num
Motion compensation search radius [0..32] (default 16)
--reduction-4x4|-4 num
Reduction factor for 4x4 subsampled candidate motion estimates
[1..4] [1 = max quality, 4 = max. speed] (default: 2)
--reduction-2x2|-2 num
Reduction factor for 2x2 subsampled candidate motion estimates
[1..4] [1 = max quality, 4 = max. speed] (default: 3)
--min-gop-size|-g num
Minimum size Group-of-Pictures (default depends on selected format)
--max-gop-size|-G num
Maximum size Group-of-Pictures (default depends on selected format)
If min-gop is less than max-gop, mpeg2enc attempts to place GOP
boundaries to coincide with scene changes
--closed-gop|-c
All Group-of-Pictures are closed. Useful for authoring multi-angle DVD
--force-b-b-p|-P
Preserve two B frames between I/P frames when placing GOP boundaries
--quantisation-reduction|-Q num
Max. quantisation reduction for highly active blocks
[0.0 .. 5] (default: 0.0)
--video-buffer|-V num
Target decoders video buffer size in KB (default 46)
--video-norm|-n n|p|s
Tag output to suit playback in specified video norm
(n = NTSC, p = PAL, s = SECAM) (default: PAL)
--sequence-length|-S num
Place a sequence boundary in the video stream so they occur every
num Mbytes once the video is multiplexed with audio etc.
N.b. --non-video-bitrate is used to the bitrate of the other
data that will be multiplexed with this video stream
--3-2-pulldown|-p
Generate header flags for 3-2 pull down of 24fps movie material
--intra_dc_prec|-D [8..10]
Set number of bits precision for DC (base colour) of blocks in MPEG-2
--reduce-hf|-N num
[0.0..2.0] Reduce hf resolution (increase quantization) by num (default: 0.0)
--keep-hf|-H
Maximise high-frequency resolution - useful for high quality sources
and/or high bit-rates)
--sequence-header-every-gop|-s
Include a sequence header every GOP if the selected format doesn't
do so by default.
--no-dummy-svcd-SOF|-d
Don't generate of dummy SVCD scan-data for the ISO CD image
generator "vcdimager" to fill in.
--playback-field-order|-z b|t
Force setting of playback field order to bottom or top first
--multi-thread|-M num
Activate multi-threading to optimise through on a system with num CPU's
[0..32], 0=no multithreading, (default: 1)
--correct-svcd-hds|-C
Force SVCD horizontal_display_size to be 480 - standards say 540 or 720
But many DVD/SVCD players screw up with these values.
--no-altscan-mpeg2
Force MPEG2 *not* to use alternate block scanning. This may allow some
buggy players to play SVCD streams
--no-constraints
Deactivate the constraints for maximum video resolution and sample rate.
Could expose bugs in the software at very high resolutions !
--help|-?
Print this lot out!

[Pix]

Well I think I found the answer, just would like to have a confirmation.
Just surprised that noone else got the problem : but maybe not everyone reinstalled the mpeg2enc binary nor are making VCD (I know it's a kind of lame format...)

This is what I saw in the readme on sourceforge :
On Thu, 26 Jun 2003, Gernot Ziegler wrote:
I don't have time to write a README now (getting ready to start
a 3000km drive tomorrow - going on vacation) but I did have a
few minutes to create brand new (current CVS as of this morning)
mpeg2enc and mplex executables. Static linked so they should
work on any OS/X 10.2.x system (might work on 10.1 but I have no
way of testing on the obsolete version of the system).

The "old" binary is 556k and was last modified on 05th sept 2002.
Works.

The "new" binary is only 184k and was last modified on 26th june 2003.
Doesn't work.

(sorry, wanted to join some pics, but I'm too stupid to manage that, it seems)

Now, where's the prob' ? The new mpeg2enc really doesn't work, or maybe some arguments have changed, which are not included (yet) in ffmpegX ?

Anyhow, the workaround is to reinstall the old one...if you're lucky enough to have backed it up.

FYI Major

[Pix]

Therefore my question : I don't know the detail of GNU licences and I deeply repsect the fact that Major does not wish to break any rule by not including some binaries with the distribution of ffmpegX.
In the above case it would have helped...

On the other hand, at least two other softwares (free or shareware, one of it is iVCD) are including mpeg2enc.
Is that really impossible with ffmpegX ?

Thanks.

[Pix]

Mmm ?

[DreamStatic]

I am having similar issues!

I wanted to reinstall the old version of the mpeg2enc but don't have it backed up. Would you have a copy of it? I would greatly appreciate any help with this issue. And thanks to you for letting Major know of the results. Hopefully it will help in making ffmpegx better than ever.

[major]

https://www.videohelp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=169164