ffmpegX installation

[barry3333]

i downloaded the trial of ffmpegX and installed it. it is asking for 3 components: mpeg2enc, mencoder, mplayer. i hit locate but cant find them. i went to the links supplied but its all code numbers. does anyone know how to get past this step?

[redwudz]

Better asked and answered in our ffmpegX Forum. Moving you.

And welcome to our forums.

[Case]

From the website:
• The mpeg2enc binary for ffmpegX is available here (don't click but use CTRL-click on link and then "Download Linked File").
• The mplayer and mencoder binaries for ffmpegX are available here. Decompress the downloaded zip file by double-clicking the icon.

[barry3333]

thank you very much. i installed those three thanks to you. now i drag clip into the source format box then hit dv as target format then a window comes up saying "Where is Progress.app" What is a progress.app? i looked on my computer but cant find one???

[Case]

Progress.app is a helper application that keeps track of the encoding progress.
It is located inside ffmpegX. Normally ffmpegX should know where to find it by itself.
However, the issue has been reported before (with a solution reply): https://forum.videohelp.com/topic344989.html#1805609

[barry3333]

thank you for the help on that. i went to that link and found the progress file. i did everything it says in order to convert the files but it wont work for some reason. its been 2 months now and i still cant convert the mpeg1 muxed into dv files and there is 3 hours of footage to edit. in the ffmpeg it encodes says finished in about 3 seconds but there is no info in the file it makes. any help would be great cus we cant reshoot this material

[barry3333]

it says after it converts "file cannot be opened the end of the file is reached" what is that???

[barry3333]

but i hit on info and there is 0kb info in the file so nothing converted?

[Case]

After you hit 'Encode', a new window "ffmpegX Progress" should open. The blue "i" on the right is a button, which accesses 'Process Information' (the log), detailing what the application was doing and what errors were found. Please post that text output here for examination.

[barry3333]

will try this thank you for helping me!

[barry3333]

the message is
The movie could not be opened
The end of the file was reached.

[Case]

I guess ffmpegX couldn't find movie data in your input file. I would expect the log to say "Unknown format" in such cases.
Tell a little more about your input file. Is this a VCD? Is it recorded by some digital camera? Does the filename end with ".mpg"? Are you trying to encode from a disc or from your hard drive? Does ffmpegX recognize the input file (left side of the Summary tab), or does it error out before it provides such information?

[barry3333]

the files are Mpeg Movie files Mpeg1-muxed They were transfered from the memory sticks to the computer from a dvd. when i drop it into the ffmpegx sourse box it says MPG Video mpeg-1 640X480 25fps, Audio mp2, 32000Hz 64kbps. Yes that is what is recognized in the summary tab. they are from my computer hard drive.

[barry3333]

i tried doing a conversion on audio only and that did work. but no video.

[Case]

I don't know why it won't convert. If I create an MPG file (Video mpeg-1 640x480 25fps, Audio mp2, 32000Hz 64kbps), then it converts to DV without problems. Weird. Without having access to your source file, I don't know what else to suggest...

...except try another wonderful program: MPEG Streamclip. It has an 'Export to DV' item in the File menu, which should guide you to making a good .dv file.

[barry3333]

i dont know whats wrong either. mabey its cus its 25fps? i donno. i tried streamclip and i cant figure it out. thank you for trying i really appreciate it. you guys rock.

[barry3333]

is there anyway i can email you one of the files? the smallest i have is 30mb tho

[barry3333]

i am on yahoo also mabey you use yahoo messenger?

[Case]

is there anyway i can email you one of the files? the smallest i have is 30mb tho

You could upload a file to a free File Transfer Service like
• YouSendIt (<100 MB)
• SendSpace (<300 MB)
• Uploaded.to (<250 MB)
• .Mac free 60 day trial, with iDisk (<2 GB)
and send me the URL that they provide after the upload.

[barry3333]

http://uploaded.to/?id=6zgus0
i found a 3mb file

[Case]

When trying to encode MOV08269.MPG to DV, my Process Information log says

Encoding started on Sat Feb 23 01:19:57 CET 2008
Input #0, mpeg, from '/Users/username/Desktop/MOV08269.MPG':
  Duration: 00:00:08.6, start: 0.110000, bitrate: 3028 kb/s
  Stream #0.0: Audio: mp2, 32000 Hz, mono, 64 kb/s
  Stream #0.1: Video: mpeg1video, 640x480, 25.00 fps
Codec type mismatch for mapping #0.0 -> #0.0

The solution for a "Codec type mismatch for mapping" error is usually to set the "Invert mapping" checkbox in the Audio tab, to 'correct' the stream mapping. After setting that, it converts fine to DV:

Encoding started on Sat Feb 23 01:20:15 CET 2008
Input #0, mpeg, from '/Users/username/Desktop/MOV08269.MPG':
  Duration: 00:00:08.6, start: 0.110000, bitrate: 3028 kb/s
  Stream #0.0: Audio: mp2, 32000 Hz, mono, 64 kb/s
  Stream #0.1: Video: mpeg1video, 640x480, 25.00 fps
Output #0, dv, to '/Users/username/Desktop/MOV08269.MPG.ff.dv':
  Stream #0.0: Video: dvvideo, 720x576, 25.00 fps, q=2-15, 25000 kb/s
  Stream #0.1: Audio: pcm_s16le, 48000 Hz, stereo, 1536 kb/s
Stream mapping:
  Stream #0.1 -> #0.0
  Stream #0.0 -> #0.1
bench: utime=17.918s
Can't process DV frame #224. Insufficient audio data or severe sync problem.
video:31781kB audio:1687kB global headers:0kB muxing overhead -5.882221%
Encoding completed on Sat Feb 23 01:20:45 CET 2008

If you need the DV to be NTSC, then set the framerate to NTSC (29.97 fps) and Autosize to DVD (which is the same size as DV), in that order (!), then Encode.

Encoding started on Sat Feb 23 01:34:42 CET 2008
Input #0, mpeg, from '/Users/username/Desktop/MOV08269.MPG':
  Duration: 00:00:08.6, start: 0.110000, bitrate: 3028 kb/s
  Stream #0.0: Audio: mp2, 32000 Hz, mono, 64 kb/s
  Stream #0.1: Video: mpeg1video, 640x480, 25.00 fps
Output #0, dv, to '/Users/username/Desktop/MOV08269.ntsc.dv':
  Stream #0.0: Video: dvvideo, 720x480, 29.97 fps, q=2-15, 25000 kb/s
  Stream #0.1: Audio: pcm_s16le, 48000 Hz, stereo, 1536 kb/s
Stream mapping:
  Stream #0.1 -> #0.0
  Stream #0.0 -> #0.1
video:26484kB audio:1687kB global headers:0kB muxing overhead 11.897025%
bench: utime=18.907s
Encoding completed on Sat Feb 23 01:35:14 CET 2008

[barry3333]

i checked the invert mapping and it works!!!!!!!! WOW THANK YOU!!! Another question in Options should i check High Quality? Will this give me the best conversion or just leave it unchecked like it was?

[barry3333]

i added it to final cut express the clip and it says
Attention this clip does not match this sequence's settings or any of your sequence presets. Change sequence settings to match the clip setting? anyway this is a big downer. mabey i should use the streamclip? is it better or mabey the format is wrong but i was told dv is best. i will walk away from all this for a bit. you dont havfe to help anymore if its too much

[Case]

In Options should i check High Quality?

The website says about the option:
• Enables high quality mode. Encodes each macroblock in all modes and then choose the best. Slower, but results in better quality and file size.
I'm not sure if it breaks compatibility for DV or even if it does anything when converting to DV. It is supposed to improve quality, so try it on a small clip to see if iMovie (or whatever editor you use) accepts it the same.

[Case]

i added it to final cut express the clip and it says
Attention this clip does not match this sequence's settings or any of your sequence presets.

That might be due to adding PAL footage to an application that has NTSC set (although I'm not a Final Cut user). Try converting the MPG to DV NTSC and adding that to FCE.

[barry3333]

theres no ntsc option ill try squared 5 again

[barry3333]

i re downloaded streamclip and changed the audio setting to resample audio to 48kz and now the audio is working in final cut! so a step forward here. it says i need to render the video so mabey you know if there is something im doing wrong when i hit makedv also it says interlaced scaling and reinterlace chroma are checked is that ok???

[Case]

theres no ntsc option

Sure there is:

ffmpegX defaults to the same framerate as the source file (like many video converter apps), so if you want to convert to a different tv standard, you'll have to specify it in the Video tab.

[Case]

I changed the audio setting to resample audio to 48kz

True, DV audio should be 48 kHz.

It says i need to render the video so mabey you know if there is something im doing wrong

If "render" means a re-encode by Final Cut, then that would be a bad thing, but I'm not familiar enough with Final Cut to be sure.

When i hit makedv also it says interlaced scaling and reinterlace chroma are checked is that ok?

No, they should be deselected for progressive video streams (like your sample MPG).

[barry3333]

ok i found it thanks. put in final cut again and still same message and needs render. if we only knew this was going to happen we would not have shot in that format but we didnt know