Can anyone explain this CCE problem?

[maca]

After discussing various encoders here for a few days, I've decided to go back and give CCE (which I never liked) another try. I'm having an inexplicable problem: though I set the output for "DVD compliant", I always wind up with an mpg that has the same resolution as my original divx. My dvd authoring program will say, for example, "640 x 480 cannot be used to author DVD". When I go back and check my divx file, sure enough, it's 640 x 480. Why isn't CCE changing it if I specify DVD compliance? What am I missing here? Thanks for any help.

I've looked through the guides and haven't found a reference to this particular problem.

[SLK001]

Your "DVD Compliant" switch only controls the bitrate. CCE doesn't resize - YOU have to do that.

When all else fails, read the CCE manual.

[maca]

Well, actually...

When I set to "DVD compliant", it DOES set the resize options to 720 x 480. But the mpg still comes out with whatever resolution the divx had. And I have read the manual, which doesn't address this problem at all.

[Jikchung]

You need to frameserve with a resize command and filter. CCE will not resize for you.

[guns1inger]

Learn to frame serve. You have basically three options.

Virtualdub ( or variant). Easy to use, visual feedback.

Avisynth. Scripted, non-visual, more complex, generally about 3 times faster than virtualdub on more complicated filters.

Debugmode FS. Requires either Vegas or Premiere. Allows you to frameserve from the timeline to the encoder of your choice.

CCE does not have all the bells and whistles of something like tmpgenc, so you really need to do all your resizing and filtering before you get to it. On the plus side, it is of equal or better quality, in a bout a third the encoding time.

[maca]

I know how to frameserve, just didn't know I needed to do it before using CCE.

[guns1inger]

No probs. Sometime when you say 'frameserve' in a response, the reply is either huh ? or 'too hard'

[FulciLives]

Learn to use AviSynth. It actually is pretty easy to use.

For AVI clips you can try using FitCD which will generate an AviSynth script for you ... just make sure you install AviSynth.

CCE is great but mostly worthless without using AviSynth.

Also it is a bad idea to use that DVD Compliant option in CCE.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[guns1inger]

I actually stay away from flags like that in most apps. They seem to almost guarantee the opposite.

[skeg64]

Also it is a bad idea to use that DVD Compliant option in CCE.

I haven't heard this before. Can you elaborate a little please?

[SLK001]

Also it is a bad idea to use that DVD Compliant option in CCE.

I haven't heard this before. Can you elaborate a little please?

I always use the "DVD Compliant" option when I encode for DVD and have never had a problem with it.

[skeg64]

ditto. That's why I was wondering what Fulci knows that I don't...

[pijetro]

If you're feeding a correct stream to CCE, then this option doesn't need to be checked..
It's sort of like a safeguard against streams that aren't DVD compliant..

It's been a long time since i've read the .PDF of CCE, but many of my stuttering problems went away after unchecking "Make DVD Compliant"..

[manono]

I always use the "DVD Compliant" option when I encode for DVD and have never had a problem with it.

I never use it and have never had a problem. You just have to make sure that the .avs feeding into CCE is properly set up.

[SLK001]

I always use the "DVD Compliant" option when I encode for DVD and have never had a problem with it.

I never use it and have never had a problem. You just have to make sure that the .avs feeding into CCE is properly set up.

With my version of CCE (2.50), checking this box is supposed to prevent bitrate jumps above 9.8Mbps when there are major changes in the video (like from a dark scene to a sunlight scene). It does not adjust the horizonal or vertical resolutions, does not adjust the color spaces and does not adjust the luminance values. These parameters MUST be controled before you feed them into CCE (you're right - a good .AVS script is a necessity).

I've always used this parameter, but I don't really know if it is doing me any good. But then, with a proper script to feed CCE (I mostly frameserve to it), checking this box may not be necessary.

[hrlslcbr]

As far as I know, that option in CCE only changes the header, making any program 'see' the video stream as having 9.8Mbit/s.
Not sure though .

[FulciLives]

As far as I know, that option in CCE only changes the header, making any program 'see' the video stream as having 9.8Mbit/s.
Not sure though .

One reason why I do not check mark this option.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[manono]

A look at the user guide always helps. Damn but I hate PDF. Can't cut and paste. I'm using CCE 2.70:

Outputs DVD compatible stream. If the resolution (framesize and framerate) does not match with DVD standard, it will be automatically converted...In DVD Mode, when you select 2-pass VBR, 9,800 kbps is always written as maximum bitrate in the sequence header of output MPEG files, whatever value you may set...Note that actual bitrate does not exceed your maximum bitrate setting even if 9,800 kbps is written in the sequence header.

There's more in between the dots. Didn't feel like typing it all out. 2.70 may be different than 2.50. It resizes now, though badly It'll either add black all around, or stretch it to fill the frame, depending on whether or not the "Resize" box is checked. Doesn't do anything about keeping the DAR, as TMPGEnc can do.

[SLK001]

A look at the user guide always helps. Damn but I hate PDF. Can't cut and paste. I'm using CCE 2.70:

Outputs DVD compatible stream. If the resolution (framesize and framerate) does not match with DVD standard, it will be automatically converted...In DVD Mode, when you select 2-pass VBR, 9,800 kbps is always written as maximum bitrate in the sequence header of output MPEG files, whatever value you may set...Note that actual bitrate does not exceed your maximum bitrate setting even if 9,800 kbps is written in the sequence header.

There's more in between the dots. Didn't feel like typing it all out. 2.70 may be different than 2.50. It resizes now, though badly It'll either add black all around, or stretch it to fill the frame, depending on whether or not the "Resize" box is checked. Doesn't do anything about keeping the DAR, as TMPGEnc can do.

In 2.50, CCE also resizes (my bad). Here is an excert from the CCE manual:

"If DVD complient is selected, instantaneous bitrate in GOP units is controlled to be a maximum of 9.8 Mbps. During VBR operation, 9.8 Mbps is always written to the sequence header regardless the specified maximum bitrate. 9.8 Mbps is the maximum bitrate allowed under the DVD standard. 9.8 Mbps is used here because in the case of the VBV model in VBR, bit allocation planning by the encoder becomes more flexible as the maximum bitrate becomes higher, therefore higher image quality can be achieved."

Never tried the "resize" capabilities, but the 2.50 manual says that it is "matted" to the proper resolution.