What's the correct maximum video bitrate for compliant SVCD?

[hone]

My standalone DVD player is a Yamaha S510. When I play SVCD authored with TMPGENC at 2520 video and 224 audio then there are some short freezings. When I lower the bitrate to 2376 there are no freezings but the displayed time is incorrect. The relation between displayed and original time is like 2376 to 2516.

This coincides with the maximum bitrate that FITCD recommends.
This tool says max is 2516 giving an overall bitrate of 2740. ( It also calculates a recommended min leading to 1370 overall).

TMPGencs default is 2520 -> 2744 overall and some freezings on my standalone.
VCDHelp has it even higher at 2524 and 2748.

Other tools (like bbmpeg) are more conservative and calculate 2376 giving 2600 overall.

So what is the correct maximum video bitrate for compliant SVCD with 224 kbps audio?

[kitty]

All of the literature I have says 2520 max. But if you lower it it is still in spec.

[Mercury]

There are two numbers I'm aware of. Either 2756 or 2748 kbps combined audio and video. If your audio is 224 kbps, then video limit is either 2532 or 2524.

2520 would be good estimate, since it would leave a safety margin of sorts.

[Mercury]

Actually, since SVCDs are technically supposed to be read at twice the speed of VCDs....

VCDs have a combined total bitrate of 1374 (1150+224). SVCDs then have 1374*2=2748, so the max video bitrate should, in fact, be 2524.

[adam]

There is so much conflicting information about this on various web sites but the IEC specs are very clear. The max video bitrate is 2600kbits, the max audio bitrate is 384kbits and the max total bitrate is 2778kbits. This includes audio+video+multiplexing overhead+subtitles if they exist.

Factoring in audio and multiplexing overhead a reasonable max video bitrate to use is about 2520kbits.

[banjazzer]

And it has been suggested by several people that TMPG does not always keep strictly to the maximum bitrate specified, although I have not checked this.

[vitualis]

As to the original poster's problem, it is always possible that your DVD player can't quite read your CD-R/W disc at 2x CD...

If you find lowering the bitrate solves your problem, then that's the pragmatic solution. Although most people say 2520 kbit/s for the video (with the assumption of 224 kbit/s for the audio), I personally think that it is a little bit safer with a larger margin (i.e., a max. of 2500 kbit/s would be appropriate).

Regards.

[hone]

Thank you all for your responses,
now I can conclude that the general confusion about the maximum bitrate is due to the unknown amount of multiplexing overhead, which has to be taken into account.

[banjazzer]

What is multiplexing overhead?

[hone]

Just installed TMPGenc 2.59... And now the default value is 2516 as opposed to TMPGenc 2.56... where it was 2520!