Strange prblem when converting Divx(AVI) to SVCD...

[Mulder777]

I've done many conversions of DIVx and such...but every once in awhile i will try and convert a DIVX into a SVCD and it'll convert fine...but the file becomes so large it would take 4 cds.....I've double checked my bitrate calculations and settings in TMPGEnc and tried again but with same results...what am I doing wrong....any help would be greatly appreciated

[Stinky]

SVCD standard template?

I think a normal movie in length *could* take 4 cd's with the standard TMPGEnc SVCD template -- the SVCD standard can hold (and I quote) "about 35-60 minutes on 74/80 min CDs" so a 138 minute movie *could* take 4 disks - lowering the max bitrate or changing quality setting to lower than 60 should help fix the problem. You could also switch to CQ_VBR.

If you want to maximize your SVCD and have the time 2-Pass VBR will give you the most per disk.

[Mulder777]

yes using the standard SVCD template and then changing to CBR and bitrate and quality...but ive done the same thing with otheres and it has worked fine....when you calc the bitrate and input how many cds shouldnt it work then?

[Stinky]

It should - but I *think* (not 100% sure) if the movie has a lot of fast motion then TMPGEnc has to use a higher bitrate more often - not sure if that would account for a 4 disk movie though -- I haven't had the problem you describe - I'm just thinking out loud to see if any of these ideas lead you to a solution.

[thenewboy]

Mulder777,

I'm new to svcd. But can you tell me what bitrate are you using? Even a 138 min movie could fit onto 3 cds or even 2, however you'll need to sacrifice the quality for 2 cds. I just done a svcd for the Planet of the Apes and I've use 2 cds. I could have 3 but most of my collections are in 2 and the quality is about the same as 3 cds. Also, what's the size of your encoded svcd? And what size of cd-r are you using.

I've also notice, the bitrate cal is great but you can't really rely on it. For example, if you have a 138 min movie split into two cds. Are you going to cut at the 69 (138/2) min scene or are you going to cut your movie at the scene where you think its best to re-connect with another cd and will look like professional. Its really up to you. For me, I would cut my scene at the point where I think I could re-connect the movie with another cd and where viewer wouldn't notice that its a home made production. So, many of my movies have a slight difference in play time. For example, a 138 min movie would be split up as 70 min on 1 cd and 68 min on another. Usually, I decide how many cds I plan to use and then go to the scene where I plan to split the movie and jot down how many min will there be in the first cd and how many in the 2nd cd. From there, I'll use the bitrate cal to calculate my bitrate per cds. Although the average bitrate will differ in slight for both cd but viewers couldn't notice the difference. Jordan