how to copy the contents from a scratched vcd

[lordsmurf]

I would be less sanguine about Brasso's prospects for fixing DVDs, however, owing to the higher numerical aperture of the optics there, the tighter track pitch, and the higher linear bit denisty. But I've not tried enough experiments on DVDs to draw any firm conclusions. Maybe that's a good experiment for the next time the class is taught.

Hmmm.... to be completely honest, I approached this topic from a DVD perspective. Sorry for the tangent.

I was not at all thinking of CD's. So for CD's, it might just work.
But were you trying CD-ROM's or CD-R's? The inherent lower reflectivity and somewhat more chaotic nature of burned media might not work as well as the pressed discs!

[sumeshkri]

thanks a lot for the suggestions. i will try to use vcdgear and t,mpgenc. yes ofcource i know somtg aabout this bitrate used in dvd. thanks

[tomlee59]

You bring up a very good point. The margins are indeed likely slimmer for burned media for exactly the reasons you cite. Our sample size was too small to draw strong conclusions, but Brasso did work on the few that we had, although I definitely would have preferred something intermediate in abrasiveness between toothpaste and Brasso. One of these days, I'll have to pay closer attention to what's available at the hardware store. Maybe there's some readily available polish that is just what the doctor ordered. In the meantime, Brasso seems to be a surprisingly reasonable "last ditch" alternative, despite the imperfect surface it leaves.

[sumeshkri]

as suggested by Tomlee, i have to convert the audio to 48k to make advd. i convert the mpeg1 souce file with tmpg to make a vob file. it takes about 15 minutes to make a vob file out of a 800 mb mpeg file. This is the method i follow. i sthere an method through wchich i can change the audio to ac3 in lesser time and without any synchronising problem.
\thanks

[AlanHK]

I would be less sanguine about Brasso's prospects for fixing DVDs,

Now I have a data point to add: I bought a batch of used (pressed) DVDs a few weeks ago. They were all a bit scratched and dusty. (They were not in their original packaging and rather battered. But cheap.) I gave them a cosmetic clean (toothpaste, detergent) and rinse. Four out of five were playable, one died 15 minutes before the end.

I loaded it in my PC and used Isopuzzle. It quickly recovered 92% of the disc, then started grinding back and forward for the rest. After about 20 hours it had got up to 94%. So with little to lose I gave it a rub with Brasso, washed and dried it. Isopuzzle now got rapidly up to 98%. And at this point the stand-alone player could play the disc completely with a few lurches.
I gave it a second, more intensive, Brasso treatment, and now Isopuzzle was at 99.6%, and no noticeable glitches when playing.

I really think there is no need for a finer paste. The last errors were probably due to deep scratches rather than the slight dulling of the surface from Brasso polishing.

Postscript: I made a fresh start with Isopuzzle the next day (today), instead of incrementing the old file. It read a perfect 100% ISO in 16 minutes. Perhaps Isopuzzle's retry strategy needs some work. A very useful tool nonetheless.

Score one for Brasso.

[tomlee59]

Glad that it worked for you. And thanks for the additional data. It's a pleasant surprise to hear that Brasso is apparently effective on DVDs. I'll try it the next time I encounter a balky DVD.

[fatbloke88]

VideoRedo might also help using quickstream fix(tools/quickstream fix)it also has the added bonus that you are only encoding the cuts you make if you have to cut any thing out making it very quick and keeping the original file quality.
The downside is its not free but there is a free trial available.