Merge Two MPEG-2 Files

[hbmuller]

I recorded a concert from my band using a sony camcorder. For some reason, the camera split the video into two files, right in the middle of a song. Both files are MPEG-2 NTSC 720x480. Since both files have the same encoding and format, I was wondering if there is a software that would join them without reencoding, just merging them and rewriting the file headers.

[Baldrick]

mpg2cut2 or avidemux(file-> open and then append the other, under video and audio copy, save as new mpg) or vobmerge(it works with any file, you might have to fix the headers with something after).

[Guest34343]

You should able to simply concatenate them, for example with DOS copy /b.

[Baldrick]

That it was vobmerge does. Copy /b-gui.

[Guest34343]

I wasn't aware of that. Thanks for pointing that out.

[Cornucopia]

Note that this way is not as clean (extra headers & footers will exist within the concatenated file which must be ignored by subsequent apps in order for it to work correctly) as a true joiner, nor an NLE.

Scott

[Guest34343]

That's not correct. Transport streams and program streams do not have file headers! They have things like sequence headers, gop headers, and picture headers that are repeated at each instance of a sequence, gop, picture, etc. throughout the stream. These are not "extra" headers that must be ignored, rather, they are required to be present by specification.

An issue can arise with timestamps, but most applications are resilient to that because timestamps are often not monotonic for various reasons.