No sound in DVD-Lab

[screwup]

Does DVD-lab offer and sound with its preview features? If not, is there a plugin available to do this? I would like to adjust the audio delay, but I cant tell just how much w/o audio monitoring. I get a constant out of sync condition after using the program to author a DVD(mpeg file from Win2K/Hauppauge 250 card). [If I use UMF3 instead of DVDlab, I get a progressive audio delay with no apparent way to fix.]
TIA

[Baldrick]

try "fix" the captured mpg with somehting like videoredo before authoring.

[screwup]

The captured mpeg plays correctly and videoredo and mpeg2vcr dont indicate there is a problem at this point. The problem occurs after authoring(or editing).

I would like to be able to hear the audio with the previewed video in DVDlab if the app allows this? Anyone know?

Also, one other problem I'm having is with mpeg2vcr - when i use the GOP fixer, it "says" its fixed but doesnt save the fixed file where it is indicated in the "output file to" location. In fact the "done" button is grayed-out after the scan/fix, leaving the only option to close. A reinstall didnt helpl. ?

The only fix I've been able to do is after editing in Videoredo, go back in and adjust the delay where it looks ok, and then use this figure (about 190ms) in DVDlab to offset the audio when I author the dvd. There must be an easier way?

One final question: When capturing a VCR tape, is there any point in trying to capture at a higher quality than the tape itself has, or would this just make a wasted larger file size?

[reboot]

Demux your captures in PVAStrumento. It compensates for dropped audio frames.
Import the demuxed files into DVDLab, and you should have no more desync.

There's no point in capturing at higher bitrates, you cannot improve quality, you can only maintain it. You just end up with a bigger file.

[screwup]

Well I ran the mpeg thru PVAstrumento, but it doesnt seem to be able to
save it's fixed files. I do get a log txt file that shows an "ALERT! unable to
write to" or something to that effect. I use WinXP on a P4. ??

What is the bit rate for VHS commercial tapes?

[reboot]

Change the output path. It's trying to overwrite the original file while it's reading it, thus the error.
VHS doesn't have a bitrate (it's analog).

[screwup]

Thanks.

I guess my question is: what bitrate should I capture a commercial VHS
tape at to get the same quality as the tape?

[guns1inger]

Bitrate is determined by length and available space. Therefore, if you are using single layer media, you have a little under 4.38 GB to play with. How many minutes do you want to fit in that space ?

This site has a pretty good bitrate calculator - use it to find the correct rate.

[screwup]

Yes, I have the BRC. The tapes run about 1.5 hrs. But what I am wondering is, will capturing at the highest bitrate possible for DVD5 be a waste of space since VHS isnt that high a quality to start with.

[guns1inger]

I would use the highest bitrate available to me. I would probably use muti-pass VBR encoding - some prefer CBR for VHS sourced material. If you aren't going to put anything else on the disk, then you may as well use the space for your material, rather than leave it blank. When it comes to bitrate, too much can't hurt, to little can ruin.

[screwup]

I have a large number of tapes to backup, so I had been considering doing more VHS episodes(4) per DVD. The tapes have 2 episodes each(1.5 hrs total), and are high quality(for VHS). I have tried several bitrates, and cant tell a lot of difference on my 17 monitor, but on a 27" TV it may be a different story. I don't want to compromise the "apparent" quality of the material. Is there some kind of curve, bitrate vs visual quality, to find the best compromise? Also, if I made other copies later from the DVDs, would this cause further degradation?

[guns1inger]

There are too many variables to give a definative answer. Quality of source, quality of encoder, filtering applied. You could probably get three hours (2 tapes) of good quality (i.e. equal to the source) by encoding at half-D1. The best way, however, is to test it. Find a representative 5 minutes of footage, and encode at different bitrates and resolutions. Author them all to a single disk, and use this to test how it looks on different TVs.

Assuming you never recompress when you copy, the copies should be exact duplicates of the original.

[screwup]

Thanks for the good information from all. . .

One last(hopefully)question: Is there any other software that will capture using Hauppauge PVR-250 card other than WinTV2K, that wont drop frames?

[screwup]

Gunslinger: What would I use to author the different bit-rate clips to one
DVD? I captured seveal different BR clips and then joined them into one
mpeg with VDredo. When I loaded into DVDlab, it crashed right away. UMF3 crashed when trying to burn the disk. I also tried taking each clip separate into DVDlab, but it wouldnt accept any after the first clip. ???

[reboot]

One last(hopefully)question: Is there any other software that will capture using Hauppauge PVR-250 card other than WinTV2K, that wont drop frames?

There are plenty of other software packages that will work with the 250. Look in the Capture software section under Tools.

I captured seveal different BR clips and then joined them into one
mpeg with VDredo.

Don't. You're just screwing up the timecodes badly, which is why everything crashes.
You need a better editor to do it right. VideoReDo is good for cutting bit's out, but not for joining them together.
Try Womble mpeg-vcr, or just author the 3 clips separately, and join in DVDLab (Playlist function), or direct link.