How much DVD space should u allow for a 700MB avi file?

[lingoguysw5]

I have a few avi files of between 600 + 700MB and I need to encode them to TMPgenc to put them on DVD & hopefully maintain the same quality. How much DVD would I probably need, and do you use less if you use the wizard or not? Thanks

[junkmalle]

Anywhere from 1 GB to 4 GB per hour of your source material.

[ghoster]

if it was me i would just use a cd since the quality won't be much beter anyways after you encode it to mpeg......

[ZippyP.]

The size of an avi has no direct relation to the size of a DVD file. The size of a video file depends on the running time and the bitrate that is used when encoding. The wizard does not affect the size, only the bitrate that you choose. The wizard has a convenient built in bitrate calculator.

Which bitrate to choose? Depends on the resolution, the amount you want to fit on a disk and the type and quality of the source.

[lingoguysw5]

ghoster thanks for your feedback. I would use a cd but I am a doing a movie for someone else who tells me his home cinema only plays DVDs and audio cds, which I find a little strange but there you are

Zippy That's another problem I've encountered I never know what bitrate to choose, and how do you know how much quality you are losing? Is it trial and error? Furthermore I wasn't aware that the bitrate depended on the resolution used.

Thanks guyz for your feedback. It's been very helpful

[jimmalenko]

The amount of time you wish to place on a DVD determines the bitrate. The bitrate and resolution determine the quality. You determine if this quality is satisfactory. So if you say, "I would like to fit 5 hours on a DVD" then we can work things out from there.