Are divx bitrates EXACTLY the same as MPG bitrates?

[yoda313]

Hello,
I am fooling around with the delogo plug in forvirtualdub-mpeg2 to remove tv logos on videos. I know you lose some quality when converting .mpg to divx (dvd mpg from a wintv pvr250 capture card). My quesiton is can I use the bitrate that was recorded for divx to preserve quality?

Say I captured something at about 3000 kbps (dvd long play capture mode), can I use that as my divx compression and not lose much quality?

The other question is, would I be better off at using the High Definition option in Divx and cranking up the bitrate to 8000 or so?

I'd like to know what the IDEAL compression bitrate would be to keep the quality close to the original. Thanks in advance

Kevin
P.S. I know you can't get EXACT quality but I would like an idea of how high to set the divx bitrate to preserve quality (as best you can).

EDIT --- My goal is to go from .mpg to divx for the logo removal and then divx back to mpg so I can put it on dvd, thanks.

[bugster]

Are divx bitrates EXACTLY the same as MPG bitrates?

The answer to this question is Yes & No.

The bitrate (and playing time) determines the final file size. So in this respect, divx and mpeg are the same. An mpeg file withh 3000Kbps and a divx file with 3000Kbps (of the same length) would be the same size.

But the bitrate needed to achieve a certain quality level (however it is measured?) is lower for divx than mpeg 1 or 2.

For your situation, keep the resolution of your divx the same as the mpeg. Keeping the bitrate high (same as the source mpeg, high in divx terms) would help to minimise quality loss.

Better still, if you have the disk space, convert it to mjpeg or even huffy for the vdub filter work.

Under no circumstances should you change the resolution at any stage unless you really have to. (such as to make it DVD compliant).

[yoda313]

Hello,

bugster -For your situation, keep the resolution of your divx the same as the mpeg. Keeping the bitrate high (same as the source mpeg, high in divx terms) would help to minimise quality loss

Thanks for the response . I was wondering if that was the best route. I didn't want to do the overkill approach. I have a 40gb harddrive so I don't think I want to go too large on the filter stage.

I'll give it a go and hopefully matching the bitrate will preserve as much of the original as I can. Have a nice day.
Kevin