DVD Lab - Audio Issue?

[TheGame7]

I want to use DVD-Lab to author my DVD-R.

I have encoded to mpg-2 following Lord Smurf's settings/guide.

However, when I insert the video in the "Video/Audio" Tab, it does the "percentage thing" and then I am left with two files, a mpv and an mpa.

At what stage do I ensure I receive AC3 audio?

Should I have done it in TMPGEnc (it didnt seem to be there? only mpeg layer II etc. were)

Or now? How?

Cheers.

[bugster]

Tmpgenc, Nor DVD-Lab, will convert your audio to Ac3.
Tmpgenc wil encode your audio as mp2.

If you want/need Ac3 you must convert the audio seperatley.

TmpGenc DVD Author now has an Ac3 plugin that will do this conversion, or you could try BeSweet.

[TheGame7]

At what stage should this be done?

[bugster]

As it is done seperatley from the video it can be done at any stage before authoring.

[TheGame7]

Is it possible to have an AC3 codec and then encode to this in TMPGEnc Plus?

If done seperately, how can I ensure I don't lose sync/timing when putting it into DVD-lab and trimming etc?

Also, I am right in wanting to have this audio format? Is it the most common? What do the retail DVDs use?

Or is the mpeg-1 Layer II the one I should be using?

[bugster]

Is it possible to have an AC3 codec and then encode to this in TMPGEnc Plus?

No. TmpGenc plus CANNOT encode Ac3 audio.

If done seperately, how can I ensure I don't lose sync/timing when putting it into DVD-lab and trimming etc?

If you are using TmpGenc's source range function to trim the encode, then encode with audio but demultiplex afterwards and then encode that audio stream to Ac3. This should ensure sync is maintained.

Also, I am right in wanting to have this audio format? Is it the most common? What do the retail DVDs use?

Or is the mpeg-1 Layer II the one I should be using?

DVD standard says that every DVD should have at least one audio track containing either Ac3 or PCM. As PCM is uncompressed it takes up loads of space and so is only reccomended for shorter videos. Mp2 audio is also valid in Europe (PAL) but many if not most (though not all) US DVD players will also play mp2 audio.

[TheGame7]

Thanks for that info, its cleared things up for me.

However, I wondered, is there any other encoders to convert to ac3? Since I have read there are compatibility issues with the one you suggested or is that best?

[andkiich]

I think that TMPGENc Plus has an AC3 encoder now. Check out www.pegasys-inc.com

I think I remember reading someewhere they had released an encoder.

[awlchu]

yup,

TMPGencs AC3 encoder will encoder a wav into certified AC3 (dolby digital) audio, 2-channel.

I use it all the time with DVD-lab. I don't own DVD-author, just installed the plug-in and use the (ugly) wav player to batch encode.

[TheGame7]

WAV player?

Does the TMPGEnc plugin have issues with Pioneer DVD Players or any others for that matter?

[andkiich]

Not as far as I know.

[TheGame7]

Any full working free trial converters?

Ones that are compliant with all brands of DVD players.

[studawg66]

I have heard that ffmpeg has come out with a new version of their encoder that is compliant with the Pioneer players. It is free.
Check this DVD-Lab forum thread for more info:
http://www.mmbforums.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=4501

If you want to spend $30 for a program that will give you certified Dolby Digital encoding, check out the TMPGEnc AC3 Plug-in, as "awlchu" mentioned earlier. Contrary to what the site indicates, you don't have to own the TMPG DVD Author program to get full use of this plugin. There is a WAV player program installed when you install the AC3 plugin. Once you validate your license you can use this player to do batch encoding from WAV to AC3. Ugly interface, but batch encoding is nice and it runs fairly quickly.

Either of these two options is better than BeSweet.