Using Roxio to Burn VCD, having some problems...

[kitykat_2004]

I use Roxio ECD 6 to burn my home movie vcd's. Well, the first couple times I ended up having bad discs. The picture had blocks on them like the resolution wasn't correct or something. Then I tryed to encode them to the proper format... that didn't work right either.
Then out of the blue one of my vcd's worked! I didn't really do anything different, I just put it in my dvd player and it worked perfectly!
Now when I try to create vcd's, I have the same problem as before... the picture looks horrible.
Should I try another type of software... I know I haven't read anything about Roxio here, and what I have read is not that great!
I know about garbage in/garbage out but my videos are of great quality!
Also, what is the best media to use for vcd's?

[mats.hogberg]

Also, what is the best media to use for vcd's?

The one that your player likes to read, and your burner likes to write to. It's dependent on your hardware, in other words. To me, it's a no-name bulk CD-R, that's of Ritek manufacture.
As for software to use in ??? to VCD conversion (If ??? is AVI of some flavor):
VirtualDub, TMPGEnc, VCDEasy. Nothing beats this trio.

/Mats

[kitykat_2004]

Thanks for the tip man, I have noticed that my computer like Maxell cds but they are for music.
I have tryed VCD Easy and didn't really like it much... but I only tryed it for about 15 min. I encode my home movies to mpg before I burn, should I just leave them as they are? With Roxio I've noticed that if I encode them first they seem to come out better...

[mats.hogberg]

I encode my home movies to mpg before I burn, should I just leave them as they are?

No. Encode to mpg with a dedicated encoder like TMPGEnc. Remember, Roxio , Nero et al are apps to burn stuff to CD/DVD. They've added some video handling capabilities for the novice, but they don't come near dedicated encoders in quality and flexibility. Another advantage of encoding as a separate step is that you can check the outcome of that stage before it's too late. The biggest hurdle seems to be how to persuade Roxio/Nero not to touch (reencode) the mpeg - that's one of the reasons I use VCDEasy. It authors what I tell it to, possibly with a warning when it sees something it doesn't like.

/Mats

[reboot]

I used to be of the opinion that "what I don't know can't hurt me", until I burned a few coasters using different "all-in-one" type programs.
As mentioned above, there is no better combination than VirtualDub, TMPGEnc, and VCDEasy, although I still prefer Nero to burn.
Check and edit the video if needed, in VirtualDub-MP3.
Convert in TMPGEnc, and if it's done properly, Nero will burn it without trying to re-encode anything.
The finished product is well worth the extra time.

[handyguy]

Nero has great converters that you use as plugins but you have to pay.

[kitykat_2004]

I have used a couple of seperate video converters. Right now I'm trying FX Video Converter. I'm still not used to it but I'll keep trying it out. I am thinking about purchasing Nero for my vcd authoring. Thanks for the tips... if you have any more you can offer please let me know.

Thanks

[reboot]

As long as you've got Roxio, and it burns, keep using it, but only for burning.
Do all your conversions in something else, and it's difficult to beat TMPGEnc, for both quality and price
If you're willing to invest a little money, one of the best products I have found is Mainconcept's MPEG Encoder. Almost twice as fast as TMPGEnc, and more settings to play with than you'll probably ever need.

[kitykat_2004]

But Roxio goes through its own encoding process right before it burns and I don't believe there is a way to stop it from doing that. That is something that I am thinking is messing up the final product... is Roxio going through its encoding process. Unfortunately there isn't much support concerning vcds on the roxio homepage so I really don't know if there is a way to stop it from encoding on its own.
Soon I'll be buying a dvd burner, then I'll see how things turn out... but I'll probably have more problems. ha ha...

[mats.hogberg]

I am thinking about purchasing Nero for my vcd authoring.

Why on earth? It'd be like buying a Swiss Army Knife to pick your teeth (it comes with a tooth picker, but there are better ones (do you hear the sarcasm?). And they are free.
I might be exagerating, but my first tries at VCD authoring nearly made me quit the business altogether. I used Nero to author, and none of my VCDs played on my standalone. Desperately browsed around for alternatives, found VCDEasy - and lo and behold! Not a coaster since.

/Mats

[reboot]

If Roxio is anything like Nero, it only reencodes if it determines that the input is NOT in the format needed.
In other words, if the mpeg is not completely SVCD compliant for framerate, size etc., it will reencode it.
Use TMPGEnc to make a completely compliant SVCD, and see if Roxio still attempts a reencode. It shouldn't, unless it really is a POS software.
Personally, I quit using Roxio when it became separate from Adaptec, somewhere about version 4.x, at the same time then dropped support for XP unless you purchased the upgrade. Since then, I have played a bit with Roxio 5, and hate it with a passion.
[/rant]
Get VCDEasy, just like Mats has recommended, it's free, and you can't go wrong.