Problem frameserving from VirtualDub MPEG to ProCoder 2,help

[msimon7]

new thread from thread: https://www.videohelp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=1079723

having a problem using served file in ProCoder... here is what i did...

ran the latest VirtualDub MPEG2 version
opened the mpeg file
under filters, chose cropping and cropped 72 lines from top and bottom
(PAL 4:3 letterbox SVCD to NTSC 16:9 DVD)
added Lanczos3 resizing filter, set it to 720x480
did file/start framserver...
clicked start and saved file as test.avs
clicked source in ProCoder and added the .avs file and get this error...
AVI Reader: Cannot play back this file. The format is not supported.

what do i need to do differently to get the avs file to open in proCoder?

searched these forums before asking, and seems that you can serve to procoder, but haven't seen this problem asked about yet. in one of the framserve guides it show how to load the vdr handler, so i did that also, but still get the same error in proCoder.
my guess is that i'm missing something, like a codec or reader or something. but don't know what
do i need the VFAPI wrapper? read about that a few times in various posts, but didn't seem to completely match what i was doing. didn't want to load anything unneccessarily on my PC if i don't need it.
thanks for any help! feel like i'm almost there....just need a push

[erratic]

Like I suggested in the other thread, you have to install Avisynth or ProCoder can't open .avs files. I uninstalled Avisynth and got the same error. After reinstalling Avisynth it worked again.

[msimon7]

posting in this thread as well as i'm not sure which one will be read...

hello. thanks again for the replies. lost cable connection for the past few days, so i haven't been able to get back with follow up questions.

after installing avisynth, i am able to pull in the avs files just fine in procoder. thanks for that tip. couple of questions...

1) when opening the avs file in procoder, the source now shows the file as interlaced with lower/bottom first. when i pulled the mpeg file in directly it showed it as non-interlaced. should i be concerned about this? don't want to run a long conversion to only see that my settings aren't correct

2) in regards to the 23.976p -> NTSC (3-2pulldown) setting on the target, just as you had mentioned i can no longer choose non-interlaced on the target if i use this. if the avs file is now being detected as lower/bottom, should i not match that on the target as well if i choose 23.976p? if i end up having to use 29.976, should i go for non-interlaced or choose lower/bottom or still try and use upper/top

3) a little off this topic, but can i frame serve multiple files? seems like from virtualdub you can only serve the one file you are working with. i have a handful that i'd like to run overnight and was just wondering if that is possible? maybe open multiple copies of virtualdub?

thanks again for the help!!

[erratic]

1) Change the source setting to Non-Interlaced. Always make sure this setting is correct. Select the correct field order if your source is interlaced, select non-interlaced if your source is progressive.

2) I'm not absolutely sure it matters, but I would choose upper field first. This appears to be how most (if not all) 23.976fps DVDs are flagged.

3) BJ_M has answerd this question in the other thread.

[erratic]

By the way, ProCoder 2 always crashes when I try 23.976 fps output. Canopus are aware of the bug, but they're taking their time fixing it.

In that case you'll have to convert to 29.97 fps of course. ProCoder converts interlaced PAL to interlaced NTSC very well, but I'm not sure what the best target settings are if your source is progressive: non-interlaced or upper field first. You should try both options with a short clip and judge the results on a TV, not on your monitor.

[msimon7]

thanks again for the replies. i'll try these tonight and write back what i find. thanks again!!!

[erratic]

By the way, ProCoder 2 always crashes when I try 23.976 fps output.
Canopus are aware of the bug, but they're taking their time fixing it.

I just found out that ProCoder 2 doesn't crash if you change the Stream Format to Generic ISO MPEG stream in the target parameters. Apparently it only crashes if the stream format is DVD. So if your source is non-interlaced PAL you should convert it to 23.976 fps because ProCoder 2 automatically slows it down. That's much faster (and probably better) than a framerate conversion to 29.97 fps. (If your source is interlaced PAL a framerate conversion to 29.97 fps is smoother.)

[msimon7]

hello erratic. thanks for the follow up info. i was able to do what you described (not the 23.976 fps) and successfully convert the movie clips i wanted. thanks again for your help!