How to: Making a DVD with WinAVI Video Converter.

[jumpingjaxs]

hi there ..i hope im posting in the right spot -im new.
after reading a few guides /tutorials and looking around this forum (which has been very helpful!) im still a little confused..

with winAVI 8.0 and Nero6 im trying to burn an avi file to a dvdr disk.
everything seems fine through the conversion process, but i dont think i get the right files to add to Nero. the total size exceeds the limit.
in my output folder i find:
audio_ts folder (empty)
video_ts folder (2 x BUP files + 2 x IFO files which windows cannot open;
5 x vob files that are 13.2mb + 1022mb 1022mb + 1022mb +1019mb which each open fine)
i need to add all of the files to nero, correct?
and i should be burning as data, correct?
is the audio folder supposed to be empty?
i hope you can help me figure out what ive done wrong or what im overlooking.

initially i used ConvertXToDVD demo and successfully burned the movie in one step, however at very poor quality and with the unfortunate watermark. i scrapped that application and searched until i found videohelp.com

thanks so much

[guns1inger]

Burn with Imgburn instead. Much less margin for error.

[jumpingjaxs]

ok, thanks. ill try imgburn if i cant figure out my problem with winavi. but ive already installed and uninstalled quite a few different applications lately. each one apparently better than the next... and too, id rather learn something about it than hop from method to method..
surely someone could help me understand why my converted files wont burn?

[poisondeathray]

Your DVD folder generated from winavi looks fine. The Audio_TS folder should be empty

If you are using Nero, DO NOT BURN AS A DATA DISK

From SmartStart, the correct profile would be "Burn DVD Video-Files" under the Photo & Video menu. When it opens, you just drag all the items in the Video_TS folder to the left side then press burn

[guns1inger]

The problem with WinAVI is, well, WinAVI. That, and a big dose of pebkac.

[jumpingjaxs]

poisondeathray, thanks that makes more sense, but even when i add the files that way the used space is still .52GB more than available on the disk. (and this is one of my shorter movies). shouldnt i be able to burn atleast one movie onto a disk?

[jumpingjaxs]

and nevermind, guns1inger. ive to start somewhere ;P

[poisondeathray]

jumpingjaxs - How is "13.2mb + 1022mb 1022mb + 1022mb +1019mb" .52GB more than available? You should be able to fit 4.37GB.

You can also set the size of the DVD under advanced options.

Unless you changed some of the default settings in Nero?

[jumpingjaxs]

oh, i didnt notice that: even though the actual files add up to 4.0982GB, nero says the total space used is 5.22GB, .52 more than available.

and even though the actual size should fit, its not by much -so what about movies that are significantly longer? (what is an average size when you do this?)

yeah, all the settings seem fine, according to the guides and what ive learned so far.

[poisondeathray]

You probably dragged some other stuff into the compilation - this could make your DVD fail too.

When movies are encoded into DVD Video files, you can adjust the bitrate so it "fits" on a disk. Winavi (and other programs) do this for you automatically; or you can use a bitrate calculator. The final output DVD video files are less than 4.37GB - which fits on a DVD.

The more stuff you put on a disk, the lower the bitrate is needed, and as a result the poorer the quality. If your original video is crap to begin with, your DVD will be even crappier.

[jumpingjaxs]

wait,
under output setting, how do i determine the constant output file size?

[poisondeathray]

The drop down menu allows 3 settings

If you choose const output file size, you can type in the number

If you choose const quality, it will use a preset

filesize = bitrate x running time

If you video is not long enough, even at the maximum MPEG-2 DVD bitrate spec (6000kb/s), you might not "fill" the entire disc.

If your video is not very long why don't you pick constant output filesize and press the up arrow to max it out. (Just make sure its <4300MB)

Since you are in Canada, you probably have NTSC, so choose that.

I don't know what you did wrong. I have no idea how 4.02GB = 5.22 GB?

EDIT By the way, I circled the wrong box in the picture, it should be the box above

[blackcat_gemini]

Hello, I've successfully used WinAVI to convert & burn on DVDs for months now. My new challenge is converting avi with separate srt file.

Under advanced option, I inserted correct srt file (that is the same file name as avi)) with stream select, I tried "merge as one title" & "One DVD, Separate Title". the file is converted successfully but less the subtitle.

What did I not do right? Any help is greatly appreciated.

[cheero]

I use to love this program while I was on XP although even then it had certain issues.

I am currently on Vista 64 Bit and I am using WinAVI 9.0 -- I installed it two days ago and it worked like a charm, however, it no longer works. After I load an AVI/XVID etc, the program simply dissapears (I have to remove it from the task manager manually), it won't even let me change the DVD options.

I wish I could provide more info, but this computer is brand new. I didn't install anything new after WinAVI 9.0, it simply crapped out after 2-3 uses. How does this happen?

Does anyone know what the issue is and how I can go about fixing it if its even possible?

I'm also interested in any suggestions for another converter, the main reason why I like WINAVI is because it takes only 2-3 steps and the file is ready to be burned via Nero. I'd love to hear if there is another tool just like it (that actually works on Vista 64 Bit)

Thanks in advance,
cheero

[malvarenga]

Hello, I was a Happy WinAVI user but suddenly my dvds are mute. I reinsatlled the Winavi 8.0, AC3 filter and disinstalled all codecs that I found that could be causing the problem. But still all dvds will not produce any sound. Im running Vista 64. Anyone had that problem?

Thanks, Mauricio.