DVD Architect Pro 6.0

[Van Mol]

This software is way over my head. I would like to know how to convert, author or render an AVI movie file and burn it to DVD. Can u point me towards a simple to understand tutorial that will help. The software instructions and tutorials direct me to tabs or drop downs ETC that I can't find.
Another problem is when adding an MKV or AVI file I get error telling me that "the selected file is not of the required type"

I have been using AVS video comverter, Convertxtodvd and Wondershare in the past but looking for something that produces better quality.

Thanks for your time. Frank

I was told that I had posted this earlier in the wrong place.

[SameSelf]

DVD Architect is not for converting or rendering an AVI movie file. DVDA is for authoring. These are separate processes. You need a different tool to convert or render your AVI files for authoring a DVD in DVDA. The tool I use is HCenc. There is a "make DVD compliant" button. If you use that to encode your AVIs, DVDA should accept them and not require them to be transcoded. That is my experience with DVDA Pro 6.0.

[videobruger]

but looking for something that produces better quality.

Try AVStoDVD. It does both conversion and authoring. Start by setting Preference and on the video tab select "HCenc VBR 2-pass" as encoder. Drop an .avi on it. Press "Start". For burning install ImgBurn adfree version..

(EDIT: Oh. I see you already got that advice )

[_Al_]

DVD Architect can load frame server's avi from Vegas. Did not try 6.0 version though. Perhaps not applicable for op, just mentioning, there was some mentioning, even in the other thread it cannot process avi. The encoder is perhaps not as good as in Vegas (to compare it somehow), how much I don't know exactly.

[Van Mol]

Thanks for the valuable input guys. I think I will give AVStoDVD a try. Hope that the output quality is better the what I have been using. Frank

[SameSelf]

I have never used AVStoDVD. I migrated over to DVDA from Adobe Encore. But if all you are after is a play-only DVD versus a DVD with menus, then you are probably better off with a simpler tool than DVD Architect which is admittedly fairly sophisticated but that provides users with a fair amount of flexibility and customization when authoring DVDs with menus.

My experience from authoring numerous DVDs and Blurays with menus in DVDA is that 95% or more of the work occurs before I even open up DVDA. By the time I am finished editing, encoding, creating menu content, etc., the DVDA part takes maybe an hour, and most of that is just testing the DVD to make sure everything works as it should.

The basic workflow looks like this:

1. Drag and drop my menu video/audio onto the menu timeline. I don't worry about encoding menu assets because DVDA will always transcode menu assets no matter what.
2. Insert encoded DVD compliant .m2v and the similarly named .wav movie file as a top level asset into the DVDA project window, not as an asset under the Menu or some other asset in the Project Window.
3. Go to File - Optimize Disc to make sure DVDA accepted the .m2v/.wav without triggering a transcode. The menu will always trigger transcoding.
4. Add chapter points to my movie asset in the timeline window. I encode my movie as a single timeline because that is the only way to include navigable chapter points that work properly on a DVD remote.
5. Build a playlist based on my movie.
6. Link the playlist to the menu.
7. Test DVD playback in DVDA to make sure everything works as expected i.e. navigation points like what happens when the movie finishes playing.
8. Build DVD and burn using favorite burning software.

[SameSelf]

Thanks for the valuable input guys. I think I will give AVStoDVD a try. Hope that the output quality is better the what I have been using. Frank

Output quality of a DVD is a function of 1) the encoder and 2) the bitrate.

1) Because bundled encoders in authoring tools (including DVDA) tend to be lesser quality, I always encode my media with a third party encoder before importing into any authoring tool. HCenc is one of the better quality MPEG2 encoders out there that is free. I highly recommend you learn how to use it if quality is important to you. That is the only way you can ensure the quality of your discs versus trusting the authoring tool to do it for you.

2) You want to try hard to maximize the bitrate which is a function of the length of the movie. Don't get too greedy in trying to fit too much video on a DVD. Keeping a DVD to about an hour of content is usually a good optimum to maximize both bitrate and content. Trying to fit 90 minutes or 2 hours of video on a DVD will require really low bitrates that you will likely find unsatisfactory in terms of quality.

Hope this helps. Building a quality DVD requires a fair amount of planning. Good luck.

[DB83]

^^ Must somewhat disagree with some of the above.

2 hours is the 'sweet' maximum for a single-layer disk(why is it that blanks have 'Two Hours' written on them ). No reason why you can not achieve good quality for 90 minutes. Neither of these give 'really low' bitrates.

I have always used this as my yardstick:

1 hr @ 8000 kbps
90 mins @ 6000 kbps
2 hrs @ 4000 kbps

And all the above use LPCM for audio. So with ac3 you can up the bitrate for the video (in fact many a commercial disk will be encoded at around 5500 kbps)

As for avstodvd, it does give you a choice of encoders (when you get under its skin) one of which is Henc

By far the greatest issue with any dvd authoring is the mystique of why one cannot achieve the final quality that you see on that shiny disk in the stores. And the starting point in understanding that is the quality of your source media.

[SameSelf]

That is all well and good and I am glad that works for you. But I find my home video doesn't stand up very well to lower bitrates especially when the masters are SD vs HD. They need all the help they can get.