Seeking A Better Hammer -- Simple GUI to Convert Ripped DVDs

[GrayStrickland]

I am seeking recommendations for a better app to convert ripped DVDs. I want a simple, straight-forward GUI-based application which will let me convert for my (1) Popcorn Hour A100, (2) Sony Playstation Portable ("PSP") and (3) iPod Classic 160, (4) iPod Nano 3rd Gen and (5) iPod Nano 4th Gen. For the Popcorn Hour, it is very important to me to be able to select exactly which audio tracks and subtitle sets are included in the final product. Whenever available, I typically want to preserve three sets: English, French and Director's Commentary. All subtitles must be "soft" (switchable). I don't want to have to muck around with dozens of settings or installing dozens of subprograms.

TOOLS I ALREADY OWN:
1. AnyDVD (I use this to rip all DVDs to my hdd before I do anything).

2. CloneDVD2 (This is fine tool, but it only produces mpeg2 files and burns dvds)

3. CloneDVD Mobile (This will produce xvid based AVIs, but you can only select one audio track and one subititle set and subs must be burned-in).

4. Nero Recode 3.x (This will produce a max of 2 audio tracks and 2 subtitle sets -- and it's sloooooooooow)

5. Womble MPEG Video Wizard (This is also a fine tool, but it won't let you select audio tracks and subtitle sets. It'll produce an MP4 for iPod or PSP, but options are limited for creating an MKV or MP4 that I'd want to play on my Popcorn Hour).

6. Divx Pro 6 and 7 and Divx Converter 6 and 7 (Ver. 7 will make a MKV file and let you choose the options I want, but every time I create an MKV ("Divx Pro HD"), the audio is very noticebly out of sync, even though the source VOBs produced by AnyDVD are in sync and other programs can convert the same VOBs with no sync issues).

I'd like something with a simple interface like CloneDVD2 that will output my choice of MKV, MP4 or AVI with easily selectable presets for the Popcorn Hour, PSP and iPod. And, as mentioned repeatedly, I want the power to select any combination of audio tracks and subtitle sets I want (one, two or all is not sufficient).

I don't care if I have to pay for this capability. I paid for all of the above programs. I'm used to paying for good software.

[Des]

XviD4PSP Should do the trick.

[Supreme2k]

Or Handbrake. It has profiles for all of your devices.

[GrayStrickland]

Or Handbrake. It has profiles for all of your devices.

Handbrake supports creation of only one set of subtitles. Further, the Project Wanker at Handbrake has zero interest in ever supporting more than one set of subtitles.

[GrayStrickland]

XviD4PSP Should do the trick.

XviD4PSP does not -- at least as far as I can tell -- allow me to select more than one audio track to include in the final file. When I rip a movie (with AnyDVD) for my family that has English, French and Director's Commentary, then I want to preserve those three audio tracks every time. Most have at least English and French.

XviD4PSP does not extract subtitles. It may import subtitles somehow, but it doesn't extract them. Since I have no subtitle sets already made for my source DVD, I don't know if it will let me include multiple subtitle tracks in the file it produces. I always want the subtitle track that goes with each audio track I include (see above).

The ability to let me select my choice of up to three audio tracks and the subtitle tracks to go with each is a MUST HAVE for me.

[poisondeathray]

It's not that difficult to add the tracks/subs in after.

I'm 99.999999999% certain that no single GUI will to what you want

[Des]

GrayStrickland

XviD4PSP does not -- at least as far as I can tell -- allow me to select more than one audio track to include in the final file. When I rip a movie (with AnyDVD) for my family that has English, French and Director's Commentary, then I want to preserve those three audio tracks every time. Most have at least English and French.

I missed that part in your requirements.
AutoMKV will definately do what you are looking for, but it has a bit of a learning curve, however once set up it runs on it's own.

There is a good guide for it here: http://www.afterdawn.com/guides/archive/automkv_install_config.cfm

--dES

[GrayStrickland]

@ DES

Maybe -- probably -- I'm missing something, but it seems that AutoMKV is limited to a maximum of two (2) audio tracks and a maximum of two subtitle sets. I often want as many as three (English, French and Director's Commentary).

Is there a workaround to get AutoMKV to build a file containing as many as three audio tracks and three subtitle sets?

[freebird73717]

Always good to "see" a fellow okie around. I'm from warner.

I don't have an answer for your question but you might send a pm to buzzqw and ask him to look at this thread and see if he has an answer. He is the creator of automkv.

[Des]

I'm petty sure I remember reading that there is a way to do add additional audio and sub streams into the build via the advanced settings, but you probably have to rip them seperately first.

Posting on the Doom9 forum should get you good and quick answers, especially from buzzqw:
http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=140178

Good luck!


--dES

[buzzqw]

Thanks freebird73717 for suggesting a pm, i am not "always around", a pm will got my attention

on automkv you can select one, or two, or ALL audio tracks detected
OR you can add an EXTERNAL audio file

the same for subs, one, two, all, or load an external

automkv can be very complex , BUT for your need you should work ONLY with basic panel only

In case of subtitles is always better to include ALL, since the subtitles file will "weight" very few mb (and when muxing on mkv it will be automatically compressed)

Since you want 3 audio and only 3, i suggest with way:
select "all audio track"
select enough disk setting (or do a profile quality encoding )
select all subs track
then let automkv do its job

open the mkv with mkvtoolnix and remux, selecting only wanted audio tracks

You can even try autox264, with this applications you can select an arbitrary number of audio tracks BUT not subtitles, wil be very easy to extract/mux subs after encoding

BHH

P.S. maybe in a future upgrade i will allow multiple audio and sub selections