How to Preserve DVD Resolution in mp4

[dizzie]

Hi, All!

I'm certain that the answer to this question is somewhere to be found in the forums, but I just can't seem to find it in my searching through them!

I like to back up my DVDs as some type of mp4 - usually a Divx avi. Of course, the DVD's resolution is 720x480. Most of the DVDs are movies wih a 16:9 aspect ratio. I have been using a resolution of 704 x 400 in my mp4s. (This is the resolution suggested by Handbrake, although I usually use ffmpegx to encode.) However, I got to thinking - Am I losing 80 lines of horizontal resolution? (480-400 = 80) I tried encoding the same movie at 704x400 and at 853x480 . I honestly couldn't tell a difference in the two resolutions. And the larger format played a bit jerky at times. Perhaps this was just because my computer's processor couldn't handle it.

So, what do you think? Am I losing resolution when I go to 704x400, or is it just cutting off dead space in the DVD? And, if that is the case, do any DVDs actually utilize all of their 720x480 resolution. This would make for a strange aspect ratio unless it has something to do with the non-square pixels of a TV.

Hey, on a sidenote, are LCD pixels non-square, like on a CRT?

Thanks for all your acumen, friends!!!

[jagabo]

Of course you're losing resolution by resizing from 720x480 to 704x400. Try it with a resolution test pattern and it will be obvious (unless you're cropping the frame rather than resizing).

You could encode at 720x480 and set the DAR (Display Aspect Ratio) to 16:9. That way you avoid any resizing or loss of resolution. Not all players will respect the DAR setting though.

[dizzie]

wOw, thanks for the insightful and fast response, jagabo!!! Does anyone know if VLC and/ or Quicktime (non-pro) will respect a DAR setting in the manner that jagabo suggests?

Also - I'm not sure what a resolution test pattern is, but I'm sure I can find something about it in the forums.

[SatStorm]

media player classic , GOM player and probably VLC can do this

[jagabo]

And most players will let you force a 16:9 DAR.