why will some avi files play in my dvd player while others will not?

[panman36]

I downloaded a bunch of avi files a while back. Now I want to play them on my dvd player. Some of my discs play great, but others only show the titles and have no time on each file, so it goes through the titles in a couple seconds.

I can't remember clearly how i downloaded, but I believe I changed methods at some point, so I might have missed some key step. I'm surprised, because under file type they both say Video clip (.avi) and play perfect on a computer.

How can I fix these that aren't playing? I have a dvd player that's MPEG-4 compatible. I hope someone could help! Thanks

[redwudz]

I'd try two things. Use a program like MediaInfo or GSpot to identify what codec the file is using. And for set top Divx players, you might look at this thread about compatibility: https://forum.videohelp.com/threads/290800-My-DivX-DVD-Player-can-t-play-my-avi-DivX-xvid-video

Most likely the ones that aren't playing are damaged or the wrong specification. But you could try re-encoding them to a Divx compatible format that your player should understand.

And welcome to our forums.

[guns1inger]

Most DVD players that support Divx/Xvid playback only support files encoded to a very specific set or parameters - a lowest common denominator, if you will. Most likely the ones that will not play fall outside these rules. Unfortunately there is usually no way to fix this without re-encoding the file, which takes time and risks reducing quality. The simplest solution is probably AVI Recomp, which was written to do exactly what you are trying to do - make incompatible files into files that will play on standalone DVD players with Xvid/Divx support.

Your other solution is to get a more versatile media player, like the WDTV or similar (there are many different ones popping up nowadays) that will play a much wider range of formats.

[jimmalenko]

I seem to recall a while back that Packed Bitstreams and/or B-VOPs can cause issues with some players. GSpot is the way to go here, on both the ones that work and the ones that don't, then compare the results to figure it out. AutoGK's default settings have always been good to me as far as re-encoding goes.

[PSVE]

@panman36 Even though they are all AVI files, don't forget that all AVIs are not the same. Every video file is created using a Codec to encode and then decode audio and video. So, the DVD player uses the same codec to play back the AVI that was used to create the AVI.

Pizzas from different restaurants are made with different ingredients....but still called Pizza.

Many simple editing programs allow you to import AVIs, string them in to a timeline and then output to DVD. Granted it's double compression, but it's an option.

[panman36]

Thanks for the help. Though sounds a bit more complicated than I had hoped. Seems a common problem then. I'l try a few of these options. I really want these to play. Be back if I need any more assistance. Like I might need a couple sentences broken down from redwudz post. We'll see. I'm really a noob.

[davexnet]

Players have different capabilities. My Samsung player, 5 years old, plays B-VOP and packed data, but doesn't like GMC or Qpel.

The point is, once you figure out what your player likes, it's a simple matter to check the files before hand.