Need some help with converting Avi files to MPEG-2/DVD

[JamesyBHOY]

Hi,This is my first post & i have a problem and hope somebody would be able to help me.

I used to use a cd writer to backup all my movies to Avi,Now i have a Dvd Writer Pioneer DVR-106D Dual Format Burner & would like to tranfer them to DVD-R's so they will play on my standard home DVD player.First off yes i'm what you would consider a newbie because i have just upgraded to a DVD Writer but i have tried myself to do this before bothering anybody else.Before any movie i had i would just leave the computer on overnight & let DR Divx convert it to a 800MB or 900MB CD-R,Then overburn it using Nero Avi File then only play it on my computer So i wasn't concerned with bitrates,FPS Etc.Now i want them to be able to play on home DVD Players.Basically they are all roughly the same as below with some small differences in Width,Length Etc

All AVI Files
All FPS or 29.97(NTSC)
Bitrates of roughly 1000
Width 576 Length 240 (Basically all are widescreen)

Audio Bitrate 128kb/s
FS 48000 Hz
etc etc

I bought a few DVD-R's from http://www.blankdiscshop.co.uk/ to experiment on.I Now have 3 left.We have 2 players in our house & 2 in my Mom's house.The last 1 i tried only worked in the shitty Alba 1,The rest you either got only sound or green/Pink Lines throught the picture or nothing at all.So i can't keep affording to spend money only to waste DVD'S.So i have decided to ask here so i can get proper help.

I have tried a few Encoders first.

All Video Converter would have done what i needed but after being on for 10 Hours it was only 27% Done.

Avs Video Converter can only output to VCD/SVCD

I tried a few other as well Hero Video ConverterWinMpg,AARE Neither worked properly.

So i found a tutorial here https://www.videohelp.com/tmpgencdvd.htm
I tried it but when i try to open 85% of the Files.It only recognises the Audio & when i try to input the video it says Cannot Open or UnSupported.

The easiest way that i planned to convert was to use Tmpgenc to convert Avi to Mpeg-2.Then De-Multiplex it using Tmpgenc,Then use IfoEdit to Multiplex it into Vob,IFO,Bup files & burn with Nero.

So does anybody know how i can get Tmpgenc to recognise the Avi's or even a better way to convert to Mpeg-2 or burn to DVD.I don't need to worry about quality encoding because the files aren't anywhere near DVD Quality to begin with or have Menus,Chapters etc.Just to allow them to play on Home(Pal) DVD Players.Thankis for any help received James..

[housepig]

my biggest recommendation to you is to go buy a 5 pack of dvd-rw discs - I have some, any "test" discs I burn get burned on rewriteables until I get them set the way I want, then I'll burn a regular disc.

a bit more expensive than regular discs (mine were around $5 each at CompUSA) but I've burned each of them over 10-15 times so far, so it's worth it...

as for the videos, if TMPG can't open them, see if VirtualDub will. If VirtualDub will open the files, you can frameserve the file from VirtualDub to TMPG, and get your files encoded that way.

There are some tutorials in the How To: Convert section, or do a search for frameserving in the Forums - I know it can be done, but I don't know how to do it, so don't ask me.. maybe someone else will chime in with some more info.

Or you can try another encoder, like CCE or Main Concept. I like TMPG myself, but your mileage may vary.

[ZippyP.]

Are you sure that you have the necessary codecs installed on your sytem? Get Gspot from the Tools section and test your files. It will tell you the necessary audio and video codecs and if you have them.

Also, you might want to consult this page.

[Jukka]

Sorry have to disagree with Housepig when he says TMPG won't cope with the videos (by which I assume he means the AVIs). I have converted AVIs to MPEG1/2 many times in TMPG (actually TMPG+) without any problems, even converted the mp3 soundtracks.

Just make sure you have all the codecs you need (use GSpot or AVICodec to tell you which) and TMPG should cope.

Good luck

Jukka

@Housepig - hope I have interpreted your comment correctly.

[JamesyBHOY]

Hi,Yes i used Gspot on it,That was how i knew the average frames & Audio Bitrates of the moves.it says for them all that i have 2 compatible codecs installed for both audio & video.I also have all the very latest codecs & they all play fine in Windows Media Player,BSPlayer & WinDVD Platinum,Just when i load up nearly all the movie files into Tmpgenc i always get can not open or unsupported,Also for the few that i am lucky enough for it to accept it gets about 50% done then i get a ??????.Dll Error message then it stops altogether.Also for virtualdub yes some open in that except for a VirtualDub has detected an improper VBR audio encoding in the source Avi File & will rewrite the audio header with a standard cbr values during process for better compatibility.Then if i save that and play it back it really messes up the Audio/Video Sync.

I used download.com & checked their Video Section,Downloaded their most popular recommendations & gave them a try & none of them worked either,either they were taking 30hrs or over or were messing up the audio/video sync or file sizes were over 5gigs.When i got the writer i knew the guy in the shop because i had been going there for years to get cd-r's etc.So he threw in some software for me Pinnacle Instant CD/DVD & Sonic DVDit Se.I tried the sonic left it on overnight,When i checked it it was over 7 gigs.All this messing about is really screwing up my hard drive & forced me into a total re-install.So if i can't get Tmpgenc to work which i will try a few install's/reinstall's & reboot's then give it a few tries but if it doesn't work anybody please know of a way to convert to MPEG-2 with original width,Length,Convert to pal & keep file size to a couple of gigs then i can de-multiplex & use IFOEdit then burn it.Like i said the original files aren't great quality so i am not worried about great video or audio quality.Thanks James..

[todgerme]

okay this ones easy!
go to www.kazaalite.tk and download the codec pack and install.
forget virtual dub frameserver, just a smart ass in my opinion trying to show off his knowledge.
go into tmpgenc->options->environment settings->vfapi plugins->
set priority to directshow file reader to 3 and avi (open dml) to 1, everything else should be 0 or -1!!!
with that you'll be set to get whatever you need converted! ntsc nasty!! what you doing with ntsc anyway, blankdiscshop is a UK company, shouldn't you be working in PAL???

Todgerme
PS Tmpgenc also supports mpg2 plugins if you ever need to reencode things like that take a look here http://www.tmpgenc.net/e_vfapi.html

[housepig]

Sorry have to disagree with Housepig when he says TMPG won't cope with the videos (by which I assume he means the AVIs).

I never said TMPG wouldn't cope with avi files (it's my encoder of choice, I use it for all my mpeg-2 conversions) - the original poster said that he was having trouble opening his avi files in TMPG.

@todgerme:

forget virtual dub frameserver, just a smart ass in my opinion trying to show off his knowledge.

you don't read much, do you? if I was "showing off my knowledge", I think I would pick something I am knowledgable about, rather than something I admit in the post I don't do and don't know how to set up....

[todgerme]

here's a tip housepig, don't recommend a solution to a problem until you've actually tried it!

just my 2 sense (cents)

todgerme

[Timoleon]

I've had great luck using DVD2SVCD to convert my Avi files to DVD compatible mpegs. Pretty straight-forward and automated, although you can fiddle with many options if you wish.

I've converted all four seasons of Farscape from avi to dvd using DVD2SVCD to create the mpegs, and then DVDLab to author with menues, etc. Looks nice and professional, and I get 4 to 5 one-hour (48minutes, actually) episodes onto a single DVD.

Try it with a re-writeable DVDr first!! Good Luck!!

[housepig]

here's a tip housepig

thanks, I'll file it in the same place I file your opinions.

don't recommend a solution to a problem until you've actually tried it!

I have tried it, but it doesn't make a lot of sense for the way I work, so I haven't done it much, or lately. However, there are guys here who swear by it, and other resources in the guides and Forum to get someone started doing it.

just my 2 sense (cents)

you're overcharging.....

[todgerme]

you gonna bitch slap me next???

There are some tutorials in the How To: Convert section, or do a search for frameserving in the Forums - I know it can be done, but I don't know how to do it, so don't ask me.. maybe someone else will chime in with some more info.

so you have or have not tried it, seems a bit of confusion there, multiple personnalities using your body??? so you know it can be done, but you've done it, but don't ask you!???

your contribution rates as one of the best or is it worst ever to see the light of day on this forum, shouldn't have used the bandwidth on the internet to type that crap infact.

you got any handy DIY tips to share to wreck our homes? i mean you've probably heard about, maybe tried it and are willing to give advice on it, however asking you is a bad mistake because it went wrong for you!

just my 2 pence for a guy with no sense!
god i'm a poet!

[housepig]

okay, read this really slow so you can follow along without getting lost.

I have successfully frameserved from Virtualdub to TMPG. I have done it a grand total of 2 or 3 times, always with a manual in front of me.

I came to the conclusion that, while it worked, I don't need to do it, I found other ways to work the edits I needed without going through the process of frameserving.

There are MANY other people here who advocate frameserving and do it all the time - such as the people who wrote the guides on frameserving, so rather than asking me how to set it up, they should check the guides.

And to go with your DIY analogy, if someone asks a question about how to wire a new electrical circuit in their house, I can do it, I have done it successfully, but I'm not an electrician. So I can tell them "yes, you can do it", but I wouldn't presume to walk them through it, I'd point them to the information that I followed.

For someone who dislikes a smartass, you seem to have no problem with dishing it out.

[johns0]

frameserving works great when using filters that tmpgenc dont support and i rather follow housepigs help rather than someone who insults and critizes.

[todgerme]

well why do framesever when tmgenc canbe made to support any format you want using the right method and by the way no one asked for your opinion! and i never said frameserver doesn't work but its more complicated than setting one option in a program and installing a codec pack wouldn't you say!

from the guy you shouldn't listen to because he just critises and insults. by the way johno0!!! can you read? it takes 2 to tango! maybe you should read some of hornypigs comments too, they're not so graceful!

[Jukka]

@Housepig - Okay I need my eyes testing, didn't see the 'IF' before in the 'If TMPG cant open'. Apologies.

[JamesyBHOY]

Thanks guys for the help i still get the cannot open or unsupported for a few but i just try a couple of times and it eventually accepts them but the movie is 1hr 47mins long but it says in Tmpgenc that it is just under 4 hrs long,So i tried it and it was taking over 14hours to complete even though i have a 1.6Ghz,512ram,60gb H/D(basically a new computer that is only just over a year old).So anybody know how it thinks that the movie is almost 4hrs long.

Also last night i used Mainconcept MPEG encoder,Until i get Tmpgenc working properly.Anyways the file i encoded was 870MB's,just under hrs.592x256(Which is where my question comes in).I encoded it in it's original width length of 592x256(Widescreen),If's it's played in 4:3 it's unwatchable,So like i said i encoded it and when i got up early this morning it was finished and looked pretty good (1.6gigs)So i opened up Tpmgenc DVD Author and tried to load it in but it wouldn't accept it saying that it was invalid for DVD as it should have a res of 352x288,352x576,704x576,720x576 for DVD.The problem is like i said that it's only watchable in it's original screen resolution,So does anybody also know how i can get around this problem as well & encode it in it's orinal resolution & allow it to be accepted by authoring progs like tmpgenc dvd author,Thanks for any help James..

[Jukka]

Ok try TMPGEnc again. One of the reasons you may be getting a funny film length reported in TMPG is the audio (someone else had that problem a few weeks ago). Split the audio from the video using VDub. In VDub select Full Processing Mode, then under compression select 'Uncompressed' and save the WAV file separately.

Then select No Audio and also Direct Stream Copy for Video and save the video out separately.

Load the video into TMPG and see what length it thinks the film is, this should fix it.

This should also fix the 16 hr encoding problem, BUT do expect it to take 4-5 hours.

You should have no resolution problems in TMPG, just make sure under the options to select 'Full Screen - Keep Aspect Ratio'. Unfortunately this will insert black bars either to the side of or above / below the video, but the main picture will be the correct aspect.

Then convert as normal and TMPG DVD Author should accept it.

Let us know how you get on,

Jukka

[JamesyBHOY]

I was wondering when encoding a movie in the settings menu,You get an option encode mode & can select Interlace & Non-Interlace & this option is also in the advanced menu in video source type,It's just that i read somewhere that 1 is used for Moniors & 1 for Televisions,So all my movies i only want to play them through my home TV,So should i consider changing the options or leave them as they are,Thanks James..