DVD authoring software

[silverbeetle]

hi all, i'm in the process of gathering as much info as possible b4 purchasing a dvd burner. so what i'd like to know is what dvd authoring software you all prefer and also any downfalls?

i've noticed quite a few burner come with software bundled so i'm curious to see how these match up with your recomendations... and see whether i'll be needing to fork out more cash for better software ;) thanks in advance!

[jeff_marek]

Mr Beetle,

You are likely to get the myDVD v3.0 product, DVDit LE, or NeoDVDStandard. The options to date for authoring software are pretty much:

myDVD v3.0 OEM
myDVD Plus v3.0 $99 http://www.sonic.com
Ulead DVD Moviefactory $44.95 http://www.ulead.com
Ulead DVD Workshop $299 http://www.ulead.com/
Dazzle DVD Complete $99 http://www.dazzle.com/
neoDVDStandard $99 http://www.mediostream.com/
neoDVDplus ?? http://www.mediostream.com/
DVDit! LE OEM
DVDit! SE $299 http://www.sonic.com/
DVDit PE $549 http://www.sonic.com/
ReelDVD $1500 http://www.sonic.com/

Here is what you need to know about your options. Keep in mind that my notes are from memory.

ReelDVD

An expensive package that does everything. You can produce professional DVD's with this but it costs a fortune so nobody you will talk to online will have it ... except at work.

If you want to do multiple audio tracks, dolby digital, anamorphic video, this is your baby.

myDVD

A simplistic package for creating DVD's. You can't arrange the menu the way you want and the templates are pretty sorry looking. The MPEG encoder built into this product is generally rated as poor and doesn't have a Variable rate option. The biggest flaw is that if you trim your clips in this product the sound WILL be screwed up. The fix is to upgrade to version 3.1 which is a $69 upgrade. Well, supposedly its $50 if you own a non-oem copy but nobody online seems to have gotten that price.

I believe myDVD writes its sound as PCM which means no compression and less room for your video on the disc.

This program also has trouble with audio going out of synch by the end of a disc if you use any chapter stops... a major bummer.

The v3.5 version of this product will allow you to share templates for DVDs... neat feature.

Recommendation: skip this product and wait for v3.5 coming later. Better yet, skip this product entirely and consider Ulead's products or Dazzles.



Ulead DVD MovieFactory or DVD Workshop.

DVD Moviefactory is the best bang for the buck. You can create DVD's, create chapter stops and rearrange the clips on the menu. It does not import anything but MPEG or AVI files.

DVD Workshop is the big brother to Moviefactory and gives you a host of additional features. The most fun is the ability to create full motion menus.

This would be hands down my recommendation EXCEPT most people can't seem to get this program to write DVD's that have the audio and video in synch. Spin through old postings on this subject to get the flavor.

I believe that Ulead writes audio as MPEG encoded sound. ...more room for video but your player better read MPEG sound... most do

Recommendation: avoid like the plague until they admit they have a problem in their transcoding software and offer a patch ... otherwise your making coasters.

DVDit! SE & PE

These are excellent products. They write correctly but have the downside of being expensive. You have total control over your DVD BUT the learning curve is steeper and it takes longer to do anything. Also, I couldn't figure out simple tasks like how to line up menu items on a page. The differences in products will amount to what sort of audio you can write (e.g. PE will write Dolby Digital 2 channel) and other features. I can't recall if either one handles 16x9 gracefully. These include MPEG encoders but they are slow and you are better off learning what format MPEG file they want and feeding it to them. Actually, you are better feeding them an MPEG file with the audio demuxed if you want to write a DVD in your lifetime.

Recommendation: If you are seriously into DVD writing and MUST have dolby digital, this is the way to go.

Dazzle DVD Complete

From my previous posts you'll see that I think this is the greatest thing since sliced bread. It writes DVD's correctly, is cheap, and can create advanced DVD's through wizards. Sound can be recorded as PCM or MPEG and it automatically generates labels for the DVD, cover, etc. It also does full motion menus. In addition, it has a nice feature where it will archive your MPEG files in a raw state out to DVD so you can save them for future DVD creating. It has the ability to auto generate chapter stops and a host of other features. I was up and running the fastest with this program. Actually, I was just happy that a program finally wrote the audio and video correctly.

This program WILL NOT let you move menu items around but you will be able to create your own menus with a scripting language coming out shortly. This feature is also on tap for their 2.0 release.

This program includes the ability to take pictures (e.g. JPEG) and create a slideshow. A slide show can be combined with other video files on a disc... imagine a wedding video that includes all the digital photos you took as a slideshow with chapter stops...cool...

Recommendation: Definite buy. The included slideshow feature and the fact that this program actually works is a big plus. It beats out all the competitors through the $299 price range and I'd choose it over DVDit! PE if I didn't need Dolby Digital Sound....

--------------------

Thats what I remember off the top of my head. If there was a place to keep a faq on this kind of thing I'd be happy to coordinate the first version...

Bottom line... beware what you buy and read through the comments. You'll see which products do and don't work. You are on your own for the Video CD aspects of all these products. My 64" High Definition Toshiba Television gets mad at me if I don't play anamorphic discs... I'm too scared to put in a video CD... It might not talk to me again for a week!

Jeff
jeff_marek@yahoo.com

[TheeeGod 3]

if you are really serious about dvd authoring software you should consider Scenarist NT. this is THE tool if you are serious and it is used by many hollywood studios to create their dvds.

downside: its about $39,000. but hey....u neva know

[marsmayhem]

Any comments on Spruce's DVD Maestro? I heard it's supposed to be pretty good.

[jeff_marek]

I believe Spruce was aquired by Apple and the software is no longer generally available. You may be able to find the trial version on the web but then you would have to find a hack to be able to use it....

I too have heard good things about it but if there is no support it is only a matter of time before the software is outdated...

Jeff

[TheeeGod 3]

Maestro is another one of the professional DVD authoring applications similar to Scenarist NT. however, it is much easier to learn. yah and it was acquired by apple like jeff said. so, basically, there is no point in looking for it and using it. if you really want professional authoring, go with Scenarist NT. but it's a bitch to learn. so unless you have the time and patience, i wouldnt recommend it.

[jntaylor63]

Do any consumer products allow you to import dolby 5.1 ?

[DigitalGreg]

Since this is such a great thread, I thought I would update it to report that Ulead released a patch to fix the audio synch problem, and users on their webboard are reporting it now works perfectly.

[polygonsun]

Unless I am mistaken, Dazzle DVD Complete will not accept MPEG streams of 8000Kb/s or higher. Which is irritating because some of the streams I have hit the 9800Kb/s ceiling occasionally.

[Digitizer]

Do any consumer products allow you to import dolby 5.1 ?

Even the peace of $hit Sonic MyDVD can accept AC3 files. It is a total turn-off that Ulead DVW can't. But then again, it is only in 1.0 stage. I think they will be, eh, expeditious in adding the feature.

[yuppicide]

Can anyone offer suggestions why I have an internal Pioneer DVR-104 and with Cyberlink PowerDirector Pro 2.0 DE it works fine, but any other program I've tried so far says "error communicating"?! I would keep using CyberLink's product, but the menu I made didn't show up on my real DVD player.. just the song and I could hit play to play, but no menu picture.

[rinkel]

Hi,
Well all the above programs are good, some better, some less..
Because i wanted to use my burner for my home movies, i needed a good authoring package. The one which came with my burner was DVDit, i believe. I burned a movie, but NO standalone-player would accept it. It had something to do with the sound. It really is a PIECE OF CRAP !

So i looked for a simple program, which could do all the basic functions, like chapters and things like that. I had no need for Dolby, because my camera doesn't have dolby..

i got hold of Spruce-up. For simple movies, IT ROCKS !!.
But it's no longer supported, but for me that's no problem because it has all the features i need.
I'll try the big bother soon:
Spruce's DVD Maestro

Good luck