Shrink MPEG video for DVD

[dreamweaver888]

Hi all, great site here...totally new to this but have been searching around. Here goes...

I am trying to burn Microsoft recorded TV (WTV files) to SL DVDs. These WTV files are huge (5 GB an hour), so can only fit 40 minutes on a DVD. Plus they need to be burned as MPEG-2 to be playable on standard DVD players. I have found a number of programs that can change WTV/DVR-MS files to MPEG-2, so it can be burned to DVD without further reencoding.

Anyhow, I have been looking for a freeware method to reduce the file size so I can fit more video on a SL DVD. I found the recommendation for using Rejig:

https://forum.videohelp.com/threads/214468-Shrink-%28transcode%29-MPEG-2-files-using-Rejig

However this results in separate M2V and MPA files. To avoid further reencoding I need a single MPG or VOB file. So I tried to combine the M2V and MPA output using Rejig but the software freezes...

I also did try the (pay required) TMPGEnc program and it did not recognize the MPG files as valid.

Anyhow, is there any free method to shrink the file size (change bitrate I assume, lowers quality) of an MPEG-2 file and output as a single MPEG file for DVD burning? Thanks for any help.

[guns1inger]

Rejig is doing the right thing - you just have to learn how to author the files it creates into a DVD. You could use one of the free tools, from Muxman to GUIForDVDAuthor to DVD Styler. Any of them will do it.

Or you can try something like AVSTODVD or DVD Flick, either of which will re-encode your files and output am authored DVD. These will take long than Rejig, as Rejig is just a transcoder, whereas AVStoDVD or DVD Flick will do a full re-encode. Transcoding is good when the amount of reduction is relatively small - <10%, for example - where as re-encoding is best for larger reductions.

[MJA]

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[dreamweaver888]

Rejig is doing the right thing - you just have to learn how to author the files it creates into a DVD. You could use one of the free tools, from Muxman to GUIForDVDAuthor to DVD Styler. Any of them will do it.

Or you can try something like AVSTODVD or DVD Flick, either of which will re-encode your files and output am authored DVD. These will take long than Rejig, as Rejig is just a transcoder, whereas AVStoDVD or DVD Flick will do a full re-encode. Transcoding is good when the amount of reduction is relatively small - <10%, for example - where as re-encoding is best for larger reductions.

Thank you for the recommendations!! So since Rejig does only small reduction, I should use a different program. I need to halve the size of files (or more) to fit in a 4.7 GB single-layer DVD.

Yes, I am using DVD Flick and/or DVD Styler. One reason I am interested in MPEG-2 output is because both DVD Flick and DVD Styler can burn MPEG/VOB files without re-encoding. I am trying to re-encode the files first separately. My goal is to find the most expedient method of converting WTV files to a smaller size to burn to DVD.

Thanks for the suggestion regarding AVStoDVD, I am trying it now to see how they can reduce MPEG-2 file size. A recorded 1 hour video is a 4.2 GB MPEG-2 file, I guess I can try lowering the bitrate to reduce the file size?

Edit: I lowered the bitrate using AVStoDVD and that does the trick, the file size is reduced (and quality as expected). However it apparently takes 30 minutes or so per file to re-encode.

........perhaps the problem (of having to reduce file size) could be avoided if the recorder program used a lower quality setting to begin with. If only Windows Media Center (current version) allowed adjustable recording quality! Argh.

[guns1inger]

The best option, where possible, is to get the bitrate correct the first time. Sometimes that isn't possible, so you have to take a second run at it. AVStoDVD can output either elementary streams (like rejig does), a single mpg stream, or an authored DVD structure ready for burning. It uses the high quality HCEnc encoder for re-encoding (or Qenc if you prefer). I would recommend you don;t put more than two hours to a disc if you are going single layer and want to keep the quality up. AVStoDVD is probably going to be slightly slower than DVD Flick, simply because HCEnc is slower than ffmpeg when these two apps are compared. However I believe HCEnc produces better quality output.

Best bet is to run a comparison with the same material and make the call for yourself.

[dreamweaver888]

The best option, where possible, is to get the bitrate correct the first time. Sometimes that isn't possible, so you have to take a second run at it. AVStoDVD can output either elementary streams (like rejig does), a single mpg stream, or an authored DVD structure ready for burning. It uses the high quality HCEnc encoder for re-encoding (or Qenc if you prefer). I would recommend you don;t put more than two hours to a disc if you are going single layer and want to keep the quality up. AVStoDVD is probably going to be slightly slower than DVD Flick, simply because HCEnc is slower than ffmpeg when these two apps are compared. However I believe HCEnc produces better quality output.

Best bet is to run a comparison with the same material and make the call for yourself.

Thank you for the sound advice. AVStoDVD did successfully convert the file, which is great, to an arbitrary-set lower size (albeit with some slight quality issue--brief pixelation at some points). It did take quite a while though. Still I'm glad that it worked, now there is that option for files recorded by Windows Media Center.

However, you're right, it would be best to have the bitrate done correctly the first time. The question is how to get a target bitrate when recording (more DVD-friendly). Using Windows Media Center, or MediaPortal, seems to record channels "as is" in large 2-4 GB files. There are no quality settings that I can find. I'm going to search/ask in a separate thread for any free PVR program which can record in selected quality (like the LP, SP modes of VHS years).

[yoda313]

I'm going to search/ask in a separate thread for any free PVR program which can record in selected quality (like the LP, SP modes of VHS years).

How are you getting the tv signal? If you are capturing over the air most capture cards wont' let you select a quality setting. You'll be getting the digital signal in a fixed format at a set size. There may be some capture devices that let you tailor your digital signals to a certain size but I couldn't tell you which ones if they exist.

If you are getting an analog source than you'd probably have to use a different capture program than WMC. I don't believe it has recording modes like you want.

[dreamweaver888]

I'm going to search/ask in a separate thread for any free PVR program which can record in selected quality (like the LP, SP modes of VHS years).

How are you getting the tv signal? If you are capturing over the air most capture cards wont' let you select a quality setting. You'll be getting the digital signal in a fixed format at a set size. There may be some capture devices that let you tailor your digital signals to a certain size but I couldn't tell you which ones if they exist.

If you are getting an analog source than you'd probably have to use a different capture program than WMC. I don't believe it has recording modes like you want.

Thanks for the info. Please forgive my newbie question, I have basic cable service, with coaxial cables. My TV signal is not over-the-air, it is through cable lines. With this service, I've previously used a DVR (with DVD burner) to record programs in either LP or SP quality settings, which can then be burned to DVD. On my DVR when I record in LP mode it is about 1 GB per 60 minute program.

Now, I'm trying to replace the DVR with a new Windows 7 computer. I've connected the coaxial cable to the PC's built-in TV tuner, and now get the same cable channels on the PC via QAM. There are no quality settings in this latest version of WMC, so a 1 hour recorded show from a basic cable, non-HD channel comes out to over 4 GB, and is encoded as a .WTV file. The same format and no quality settings exist when using MediaPortal.

The lack of any recording quality controls means that every program, including low-quality broadcast channels (non-HD), is recorded in high resolution, 4GB per 60 minute size. It's not feasible to burn that large size to DVDs, so I'd have to reencode that WTV file as a lower bitrate MPEG, which takes extra time that was not needed when using a VCR or DVR. I've also been browsing online and it seems that there may be cards with built-in MPEG2 encoding while recording, and there are some old programs like MSDVR 2000 that allow TV recording in small file formats.

Is there no way to adjust the recording quality on a modern Windows 7 system so it produces a smaller MPEG file than 4GB per hour? The same cable connected to the DVR or even my old VCR can record in EP, LP, SP modes, allowing several hours to fit on a single DVD or VHS tape. Maybe I need a different tuner like the old analog one in the VHS system...?

[yoda313]

@dreamweaver888 - I believe what you need to look into is capturing with a different program than windows media center. I believe that is fixed and has no quality settings (I could be wrong I don't have win 7 but win vista premium with wmc and I don't believe that version has quality settings).

If you have files over 4gb but under 7.95 you can burn to dual layer dvdrs assuming you have a dual layer dvd burner (most computers made in the last several years should have that as standard but check your manual to be sure - if not new dual layer dvd burners are only 35.00 or so online new at places like newegg or tigerdirect - maybe even lower as I haven't looked recently).

And fyi you can edit the files and remove the commercials to make them smaller to fit on a single dvd if its just over 4gb and you have ten or fifteen minutes of commercials. I do not know what programs work with the newer wtv files. Check the tools section on this website for editing software.

Whatever card you are using to capture with came with its own software - unless you are using a windows media center computer perhaps? But if you bought one and installed it yourself into windows 7 than it came with its own capture program. That capture program will almost certainly have quality settings to make smaller file sizes. Of course remember if you go too low the video may look poor and could be a little jumpy and pixelated depending on the format used.

These are just somethings to consider. There are also third party capture programs you can acquire that will work with your capture card as well.

Edit - I see you mentioned QAM. I am not familiar with that for capturing on a personal basis - I know its for cable but I haven't used it on a pc card. That might restrict you to digital only capturing even if its analog. You would have to research that. But even still you can edit the video files to cut commercials and fit on a single layer or burn to a dual layer disc.

[dreamweaver888]

@yoda313, thanks for the reply, yes I am looking into different programs. I have a win 7 computer with a built-in tuner and DL burner, so that seems to be the way to go (although dual layer media was more expensive last I checked). Anyhow, good point on the tuner card/its own software, that seems to be a way to go for settings-configurable recording.

Regarding WTV files, win 7 and freeware systems can convert WTV to DVR-MS. I actually found a freeware converter, the MC-TV converter, which can quickly change WTV to MPEG-2. I can then use a program like MPG2Cut2 to chop out segments, etc. And this thread suggested AVStoDVD, which I tested and could reencode the MPEG files to smaller sizes if needed.

All of this is pretty good, as my experience with the included Windows Live Movie Maker found it to be cumbersome in chopping things out, then providing output.

[yoda313]

@dreamweaver888 - yes dl media is more expensive than single layer. But not as dramatic as in years past. Plus for stuff under 7.95 no cutting is needed and saves time and hassle.

But cutting is probably more effective on stuff that is just over the size of a single layer disc.

It will be good to do testing on various programs and settings to see what you like.

You might also check to see if avstodvd can import the wtv files directly. Also check multiavchd as well. Multiavchd can make standard definition discs as well as avhcd discs and might have more input options than avstodvd - I'm not sure though.

Come back with more questions and we (the forum) can try to point you in the right direction.

P.S. Glad you looked at some programs on your own or through suggestions. Trial and error is often the only way to get satisfactory results in the world of digital video.

[dreamweaver888]

Thanks again for the advice!!! This forum has been a great help.