(timer-)scheduled tv capturing with VBR into mpeg2 for DVD

[FierceG]

Presently I can do the above with 4000/5000/7000/9000 CBR only, and thus no filesize control. Additionally I've tried to encode with 2-pass VBR to create a filesize fitting a DVD, but most of the times audio gets of sync, apart from the fact that it's very timeconsuming.

Without the encoding I can have my movie captured from tv, cutting out the advertisements in approx. 20 minutes (with Cyberlink PowerDirector Smart Video Rendering Technology, which indeed nicely cuts out whatever I want, very fast, and very reliable).

What I really want is to be able to capture with 1-pass VBR, while being able to manually set the (minimum), average and maximum bitrates, depending on movielength and genre, better yet, the expected amount of highactionscenes, and by trial and error in the beginning, but while building and maintaining a small database of same, becoming more and more accurate in the end, so as to create VBR .mpg-files with highest quality within the given DVD filesize limits.

Although I haven't tried it, I guess that once I have a 1-pass VBR .mpg-file I'm still able to use powerdirector to cut out whatever I want, as with the CBR .mpg-files.

Please advise software/hardware.

[Forum Troll]

I capture stuff with my Hauppauge PVR 250, and I use its WinTV Scheduler, since the stuff I want is on when I'm at werk. I set the capture resolution to 352x480, with VBR at 3000/min, 9230/max. This gives you a file size of about 1 Gb for an hour show. I edit out the commercials with VideoReDo (no sync problems at all), then author to DVD with TMPGEnc DVD Author.

[FierceG]

I'm not sure if it's important, but the .mpg-file is to be watched on big screen, for which I've connected a beamer to another PC (on the second VGA-output).

So quality is rather important for me, meaning that I really want to be able to optimize bitrates, to have a proper home cinema experience while still being able to fit it on DVD (to the fullest). I know, highaction-scened and over 2-hour movies are becoming problematic, but fortunately there are not too many like that.

I can select to capture at 4000/5000/7000/9000 CBR-DVD kind of quality, but always at 720x576, 25 fps.

Maybe 600x480 or something in between would also be acceptable, but I don't know which software/hardware provides this.

The Hauppauge PVR 250 sounds interesting, but maybe I'd better buy the PVR350, as I understood that the PVR350 has mpeg2 hardware encoding.

Point is, I use my server (with 2.6 PIV-HT) to capture and store my movies, whereas a lot of times another pc (with 3.0 PIV-HT) is simultaneously "streaming" from the server while I'm watching the movie on the big screen.

And to make sure the encoding on the server is not hampered, while the server is also serving the home cinema, actually I take it that I'd better go for the PVR350?

[lordsmurf]

What card are you using?

[FierceG]

I'm using a Medion TV-Tuner 7134 MK2/3 card. With Philips SAA7134 chipset, suitable for wdm-drivers. As VirtualDub is not usable, I've tried virtualVCR with it, but don't know how to use or where to find the correct compression codecs/filters? with the desired bitrate control.