SUPER cannot encode to AVI

[Grunberg]

I am having problems using the SUPER Encoder v07b23 to encode a WMV to AVI (or an AVI that's too large to a smaller AVI). Super just refuses to encode anything to AVI for me. I have the Vista Codecs package installed. And my computer is brand SPANKIN' new and totally capable of doing this.

This is what I'd like to accomplish:
Format: AVI
Resolution: 720x480* NTSC
Bitrate: Best quality without being excessive (3Mbps?)
Best audio quality

*By the way - it claims 720x480 corresponds to an aspect ratio of 3:2. Is this really true? Shouldn't it be 4:3?

Here are the results of just a few tests I tried (through the MEncoder setting):

OUTPUT CONTAINER / OUTPUT VIDEO & AUDIO CODEC / RESULT
AVI (DivX optimizer) / MPEG-4, MP3 / ERROR!
AVI (DivX optimizer) / DivX, MP3 / Not responding
AVI (DX50 optimizer) / DivX, MP3 / ERROR!
AVI (DivX optimizer) / MPEG-4, MP3 / Not responding
AVI / MPEG-II, MP3 / "Now encoding", but no progress visible

I don't want to burn my video to DVD in WMV format, because they won't be true to the 720x480 file size, and the volume in the WMV's is lower than AVI's.

All I'm trying to accomplish is getting my AVI's small enough to fit onto DVD, and I'm good to go. But this is extremely frustrating, having to find "just the right configuration" of options to get this to work. Can anyone be so kind as to help? Thanks a bunch!

[redwudz]

SUPER is good for odd formats, but I wouldn't use it to create DVD files. You might try the freeware FAVC or the payware ConvertXToDVD if you want to convert a AVI type file to a DVD file. They both work with Vista.

And SUPER won't handle all versions of WMV.

720 X 480 is a NTSC framesize, but the aspect ratio can be 4:3 or 16:9.

[Ai Haibara]

SUPER and Vista don't necessarily get along well, due to the way SUPER does some things. When you initially installed it, did you run the setup program as your Vista system's administrator?

Does it show the same problems if you right-click on the SUPER shortcut (or Start menu item) and pick "Run as administrator"?

[Grunberg]

Yeah - I ran as administrator. The funny thing is, after I posted this, Super ran fine converting to AVI, but then it glitched up again.

In the meantime, I've been using the application on my roommate's XP computer to create the AVI's. But I will DEFINITELY check out FAVC!

Thanks...

[Grunberg]

Hey - I noticed that FAVC does a great job generating DVD's - but can I use it to just encode files? This is all I need to do, since I use Nero for the actual burning process...

[Ai Haibara]

As far as I know, no. FAVC is just for video to DVD.

However, SUPER is primarily just a GUI for ffmpeg, mencoder, x264, and other encoders (along with other things), so you might try other such programs that might have fewer problems with Vista... WinFF, maybe. I haven't really experimented with that or any other video conversion program on our Vista system, except for AutoGK and VirtualDub (and a variant or two).

Or, if you don't mind running from the command-line, you can always run ffmpeg or mencoder directly.


Hmm... I haven't tried this either, as I don't really feel like installing SUPER on the Vista system, but I wonder if setting the compatibility options to XP or earlier would also help. SUPER's creators also recommend disabling UAC, on their forums, but I can't really recommend that, myself.

[redwudz]

Unless you have some overpowering reason to use Nero to author and burn your DVD, FAVC will likely do a better job of creating the VIDEO_TS folder.

You can just burn the VIDEO_TS folder FAVC creates with Nero Burning ROM by using the 'DVD Video' mode and putting the contents of the VIDEO_TS folder into the red Nero folder. But it would be easier to use ImgBurn in 'Build' mode and drop the VIDEO_TS folder in there. ImgBurn is also freeware.

I have used SUPER with Vista Home Premium a few times. You need to both install it as an administrator and run it as administrator. Seems to work OK, though. It also insists on accessing the internet each and every time you use it, which I find irritating.

[Grunberg]

How do I install *and* run Super as administrator?
My current problem is that most of my --> AVI conversions result in ERROR or nothing happening.

[Ai Haibara]

To install SUPER as administrator, right-click on the install/setup exe and select "Run as administrator." (You'll need your admin password for this, of course. If you haven't installed SUPER this way, you might want to completely uninstall it and reinstall this way.)

To run it as administrator, right-click the SUPER shortcut on the desktop or in the Start menu, and - as above - pick "Run as administrator." You can go into Properties and change them so the shortcut will always run as administrator, but it'll still prompt for your admin password, either way.

The other alternative is to just install and run it from the admin account. (I can't recommend that, though. )

[Grunberg]

Okay. So not only have I noticed that Super doesn't like to convert 90% of the time, the DivX Encoder has a slight problem as well. Well - what happened was that the resulting DivX file - when played on the DVD player at 720x480 - doesn't fill the height of the screen and, of course, is cut off on the left and right. The difference in both cases is about an inch.

I feel like I'm going to have to use PAL resolution, although I'm in NTSC Land and I'm the only one watching this video anyway...!

[Stiiv]

Forgive this silly question, but when converting wmv to avi, have you tried checking the "use Direct Show" box? This has worked for me in the past, but only when the original file is in wmv format.

Another silly question: if you're looking to make dvd's to play on a set-top dvd player, why not just encode to the dvd standard?

[Grunberg]

Okay, I got Super to encode properly by clicking "DirectShow decode" and selecting the FFMPeg engine, but it only encodes to WMV. In previous experiments, my WMV's burned to DVD as 720x480 don't fill my screen height.

When I encode to AVI, it does fill the height and the volume is higher -- which is kind of what I need. However, it seems as though I've only gotten Super to encode to .WMV files today, whether I choose the FFMpeg or MEncoder engine. (What about the other two engines?)

What I'm trying to accomplish is getting the DVD output CORRECT through 720x480! This is frustrating.

Per Stiiv's suggestion, I've also tried to encode to the VOB format. But since I cannot play that filetype locally, I've put that on the backburner as I try other formats also.

I'm really confused. Shouldn't I be trying to encode to AVI by default? It does 720x480 well...but I can't get Super to encode to an .AVI file, no matter what container or codec I try. Can someone help me further please? Thanks!

[Stiiv]

Sorry I didn't get back to you sooner...gotta make this a "watched" topic.

Re: Transcoding from your original wmv files - I wouldn't try to convert directly to .vob format in any case...set it to convert to MPEG2, & tweak the settings to conform to the dvd standard. Use a dvd authoring program to convert & burn your dvd. It will play on your computer, & probably on your set-top dvd player.

Re: Transcoding to avi - remember that .avi is a "container", which means practically any codecs could be in use for video & audio. In SUPER, I've had good results converting wmv to xvid/divx avi's. Make sure to check the various parameters; size, aspect ratio, bitrates, etc.

Re: 720x480 not filling the tv screen - "Normal", non-HD tv's have an aspect ratio of 4:3, but your 720x480 video plays in "letterbox" mode, which you can probably change to "pan & scan" or "4:3" in the settings of your dvd player.

Good luck!

[Grunberg]

SUPER is frustrating the heck out of me. Now it seems that I can encode a small video file to AVI just fine, but using the SAME parameters to convert a video that's over an hour long...it WON'T do it. It truly seems to me that SUPER's behavior can be unpredictable and completely random at times.

It's a shame. I have four VHS's I would like converted to DVD, and this is the final stage - getting the resolution and quality just right for burning to DVD. I've spent waaaay too much time on this project, and it is just not working. LOL

[Stiiv]

using the SAME parameters to convert a video that's over an hour long...it WON'T do it.

Does it abort with an error? Or does it just seem to never finish? One of the bad things about SUPER is there's no progress indicator...that scrolling bar means nothing, other than showing that the prg's still working on your file.