Recommendations for ripping my DVD collection.

[awhite2600]

I've finally decided that I want to rip my DVD collection. I'm considering ripping mainly for the convenience of not having to mess with physical discs. Device portability and having a backup are also considerations.

My main devices for viewing the rips will be a PS3 hooked to a 61" DLP TV and a Samsung Smart TV - in different areas of the house. Secondary viewing devices are an iPad and various phones and tablets. The Samsung TV plays just about anything as do the tablets / phones with appropriate software. The PS3 is the "problem" device. This has lead me to the decision that x264 / mp4 is likely the best format for my needs. (Although, if the PS3 can handle DVD MPEG2 in another container without converting then that will work nicely.) I'm not worried about file sizes. I won't quote the usual newbie phrase that I want the "best quality".

My DVD collection contains a number of TV series and animation collections with multiple titles on each disc. While I don't expect a one-click solution, I'm looking to streamline the workflow when dealing with multiple discs, a large number of resulting files, appropriate naming, etc. Software that deals nicely with content that might have been interlaced NTSC (some TV series) or film (animation) would be preferred.

So with the above criteria, what are some recommendations for software? Free would be nice. Reasonably priced is fine too.

[Baldrick]

You can put DVDs in a mkv without reconverting using MakeMKV. But I doubt it will work that good an all your devices...


But if you want to convert I would try Vidcoder (latest beta) and use the Picker mode(top right) and you can automate the conversion to mp4 h264(title section, audio, subtitles, encoding presets). Try the High Profile and see how it works on all your devices.

Install a background dvd ripper like anydvd or dvdfab passkey (the free version might be enough).

Or try an all-in-one solution like dvdfab.

[awhite2600]

Thanks for the recommendations Baldrick. I will try out the software that you recommended. Vidcoder sounds like it might be the better option. The PS3 doesn't support mkv containers so MakeMKV is likely not a good solution. I have an older copy of AnyDVD to do the decrypting. I didn't buy a subscription. Most of my DVDs are older so hopefully I'll be okay. If not, I'll try dvdfab passkey.