EMC 8.0 AVI to DVD burn problems

[yukay]

I have just purchased EMC 8.0 but I am finding it very complicated as this is my first time to try and burn a DVD. I have an AVI video file I want to burn being 696mb in size which plays perfectly using Media Player. I understand from you that

 

"downloaded files are usually DivX which is ALREADY highly compressed. These files MUST be uncompressed and then recompressed to MPEG2 to play on a regular DVD player."

 

This one converts from 696mb to an indicated 4.6 gb, but having selected "fit to disc" I was surprised to see the encoding being very slow indicating it would take MANY hours to convert before burning. Is this the norm or do I need another program to assist this process? Also is my computer just too old to do this? My spec is

 

Athlon 2.2 / 32 mb graphics / 512mb ram / 30gb hard disc with 13 gb free.

 

Is this holding everthing back? Why does it take so long? Also do I need to convert and save the image to hard disc before burning?

Any assistance will be greatly appreciated.

[jcbodin]

You realize, of course, that with you having 8 posts and me only having 16 posts, we're kind of like the blind leading the blind here.

 

[T.O.T.G.]

Ah, but not only did I see it ... it was the ONLY helpful response I received.

 

AND, I learned a new word "necropost" ... that's right up there with "at this point in time" on the usefulness scale.

 

I stand corrected -- in this instance. however, experience on other boards (and viewing some older posts on this board) dictates that most users don't come back after a month has passed without anyone posting anything

 

I'm glad you got your help in the end, though it did take you 1.8 months

[grandpabruce]

Ah, but not only did I see it ... it was the ONLY helpful response I received.

 

AND, I learned a new word "necropost" ... that's right up there with "at this point in time" on the usefulness scale.

 

Hehehehehe. You have e-mail notifications enabled, evidently. You should browse the forums on a regular basis. I learn something new from them, every day.

[cwyelverton]

Ah, but not only did I see it ... it was the ONLY helpful response I received.

 

AND, I learned a new word "necropost" ... that's right up there with "at this point in time" on the usefulness scale.

 

Last post date: Jul 3 2006, 12:45 PM

User's last activity on this site: 3rd July 2006 - 01:30 PM

 

Please don't necropost, as the person who wrote the original comment probably isn't going to be around to see it anyways. Anything older than 2 weeks is forfeit...

[T.O.T.G.]

Last post date: Jul 3 2006, 12:45 PM

User's last activity on this site: 3rd July 2006 - 01:30 PM

 

Please don't necropost, as the person who wrote the original comment probably isn't going to be around to see it anyways. Anything older than 2 weeks is forfeit...

[jbodin]

Before you can work with .TiVo files, you need to convert them to MPEG files -- check out this link for more details:

 

http://www.zatznotfunny.com/ttg.htm

[cwyelverton]

I just burned to ISO file a 2-hr movie from TiVo, set resolution to 352 x 480 per recommendations, and it took over 14-hrs for EMC8 to convert it; so I am VERY interested in the suggestions for alternatives. Unfortunately, I feel like I've fallen into geek land and don't speak the language:

 

gui4ffmpeg wouldn't recognize the *.TiVo file, so I renamed it *.mpg (and *.mpv) ... when I tried to run the conversion the dos box showed "unrecognized format" (or unsupported) and would have nothing further to do with the file. The videohelp file is useless to me ... I've only been using computers since the IBM-650.

 

VideoInspector also doesn't recognize the TiVo MPEG2 file.

 

Mpg2Cut2 does open the file after saying there is some junk ahead of the header ... but I'm darned if I can figure out from the instructions how to cut OUT the commercial and other breaks ... it just seems to want to export all the chunks between the breaks; the opposite of what I'm trying to do. Obviously instructions for someone who already knows the language and how to use the app.

 

PVAStrumento does read the *.TiVo file ... now I'm trying to figure out what it does and how to do it.

 

The summary of tools and alternatives was very helpful, now could you possibly expand your explanation to include how to use the tools you recommended ... or where to find such help. At the moment "Free" doesn't seem very useful to me and I'll gladly pay for some useful tools if they include instructions and a Off/On switch that I can find.

[cwyelverton]

Sorry . my posting error. Blame the newbie.

[yukay]

Well guys.....

Have to report that since my first posting I encoded my first three avi files using EMC and am more than satisfied with the end result. I attempted to use third party software but found - FOR ME, it seemed all too complicated! I am at present restrained by my computer spec, nevertheless after waiting between 10 and 13 hours for encoding and burning for each video file to take place, I can now have a certain confidence in what I am attempting will be acceptable when I return home at night. For me, confidence in whatever program I am using is the ultimate criteria, and hope one day I will have sufficient processing capability to take it to another level!!

Many thanks for all your input.

[bimicher]

I have the same problem. To convert 700 megs AVI file (about 1 hour 40 minutes movie) to DVD took EMC8 more than 3 hours to finish. I had to adjust the sampling rate, because with default ("best") settings, it said that the project will not fit on the 4.7G disk. Maybe because of that, the result was very bad in quality. I even don't understand why sampling rate comes to the picture here: I was not capturing the analog input; AVI file should already have its own sampling rate.

 

Previously I used version 6, with the same problem.

 

So I bought Boilsoft for $20. It does the job well, pretty convenient. I has the batch mode: I can set it in the morning, and when I come from work I have a number of movies converted to DVD format. Then I can use EMC 8, or just burn the files on the disk (if I don't care about the menues and other frills).

 

Also, the size of the files produced by Boilsoft is essentially smaller than what Roxio produces. It is just as large as to match the quality of the original AVI. My impression is, Roxio tries to produce high quality file without understanding what is the quality of the source.

 

The bottom line, I have the same experience: using two programs gives shorter time to do the project. Pretty strange? Why can't Roxio embed a good AVI-toDVD converter in their product? I guess, it is licensing issue.

Your avi file is not standard DV avi but the highly compressed DivX format. A normal DVD at best quality will hold only 60 minutes of video. To get more time on the DVD you have to reduce the quality of the encoded video. There is a workaround in EMC 8 to easily get more then 60 minutes of video on a DVD. Use myDVD to create an iso file and then burn that iso file to a DVD using DiscCopier which will transcode the video to fit on the DVD with only slight loss of quality.

[lilyevsky]

I have the same problem. To convert 700 megs AVI file (about 1 hour 40 minutes movie) to DVD took EMC8 more than 3 hours to finish. I had to adjust the sampling rate, because with default ("best") settings, it said that the project will not fit on the 4.7G disk. Maybe because of that, the result was very bad in quality. I even don't understand why sampling rate comes to the picture here: I was not capturing the analog input; AVI file should already have its own sampling rate.

 

Previously I used version 6, with the same problem.

 

So I bought Boilsoft for $20. It does the job well, pretty convenient. I has the batch mode: I can set it in the morning, and when I come from work I have a number of movies converted to DVD format. Then I can use EMC 8, or just burn the files on the disk (if I don't care about the menues and other frills).

 

Also, the size of the files produced by Boilsoft is essentially smaller than what Roxio produces. It is just as large as to match the quality of the original AVI. My impression is, Roxio tries to produce high quality file without understanding what is the quality of the source.

 

The bottom line, I have the same experience: using two programs gives shorter time to do the project. Pretty strange? Why can't Roxio embed a good AVI-toDVD converter in their product? I guess, it is licensing issue.

[ggrussell]

Guess we just have totally different points of view. If it's a 'hobby', then why should time be an issue other than for those who are impatient?

 

But we got off the topic. When users of Roxio products come here for help, they usually want to know how to solve the problem with the product they purchased. I may suggest 3rd party or shareware at times, but only if the request absolutely can not be done within the EMC 8 suite.

Compare that to the time it takes me to do the same thing using gui4ffmpeg to do the initial re-encoding and it quickly becomes obvious that the time savings offered by my method makes the learning curve more than worth the effort.

Oeperative word here is 'me'. Not everyone would be as efficient with gui4ffmpeg as yourself especially someone that has never used it. Then what time would be saved? Even if the 'learning curve' wasn't that steep, the 'worth' of any time saved is purely subjective and may differ user to user.

 

As we say here in the south, we could discuss this til cows come home. Hopefully, the original poster was able to get some helpful information and has continued with his project.

[jcbodin]

Fast isn't always better. A new video card and a bigger hard drive is in order. 13GB of free space isn't much at all for video editing of any sort.

 

Better hardware always helps, but if money is an issue and upgrades aren't do-able, then better methods are sometimes the best solution.

 

 

As far as the overall speed issue goes, time is money and this is a hobby, so if all I want to do is quick-and-dirty transfer of a relatively low-res video capture to DVD, then time-to-burn is probably more important than trying to achieve the highest level of quality possible.

[ggrussell]

Fast isn't always better. A new video card and a bigger hard drive is in order. 13GB of free space isn't much at all for video editing of any sort.

[jcbodin]

Jeez... you guys are making this way too difficult.

 

Open MyDVD

Go to project setting and change to PAL

Add your video file

and burn it

 

That should do it. If the aspect ratio isn't totally correct, MyDVD should fill-in with black sorta like mixing 16:9 and 4:3. Try it out and let us know if it works. Granted MyDVD will definitely re-render the file, but I think most apps would.

 

Yes, this is most likely the easiest way to get this done, but it's definitely not the quickest. Given RG's computer specs (and in particular his video card), this method would probably take 8 - 12 hours to do the necessary re-encoding. Compare that to the time it takes me to do the same thing using gui4ffmpeg to do the initial re-encoding and it quickly becomes obvious that the time savings offered by my method makes the learning curve more than worth the effort.

 

If this is a one-time thing for RG, then he's probably better off following your advice and just doing it all in MyDVD/EMC8 . . . just bite the bullet and wait for the re-encoding to happen. If he's going to be doing lots of similar transfers over time, though, then it's probably worth taking the time now to learn a faster process in order to save copious amounts of time over the long run.

 

[ggrussell]

Jeez... you guys are making this way too difficult.

 

Open MyDVD

Go to project setting and change to PAL

Add your video file

and burn it

 

That should do it. If the aspect ratio isn't totally correct, MyDVD should fill-in with black sorta like mixing 16:9 and 4:3. Try it out and let us know if it works. Granted MyDVD will definitely re-render the file, but I think most apps would.

[yukay]

Thanks again. I'll try all this and report back to you.

RG

[jcbodin]

Yeah ... spot on!!!

 

First off, though, I need to verify your conversion resolution (i.e., what is the resolution of your original "source" file that you're trying to convert?). You say that it's 480x352 . . . this is a VERY odd format -- it's a non-standard, "bastard" format as far as I can tell, and it seems like it MIGHT be someone's version of a widescreen (16:9) capture. If that's the case, then the conversion may be a bit more problematic (that is, you might get some image distortion unless you can find a way to letterbox the resultant conversion).....

 

It's an old classic black and white film made approx 40 years ago that has a more square aspect than more recent films. I have checked the original res and it is 480x352

When I play a preview through Media Player it looks in perfect proportion and quality. Looking forward to your reply.

Thanks

RG

 

As noted in my last post, a 480x352 AVI file should roughly equal a standard 4:3 (standard, non-widescreen) TV image, so you're probably safe converting that to a 352x576 PAL (half-D1) file in gui4ffmpeg -- the results should play back fine with little or no image distortion (stretching) if I'm reading all this correctly.

 

You can do a partial encode in gui4ffmpeg to see how the results will look without having to wait for the full encode to complete -- just start an encode in gui4ffmpeg and stop it after several minutes worth of video have processed by closing the DOS window (this stops the encode), then view the resultant file to see how the aspect ratio of the resultant mpeg file looks on playback, and adjust accordingly if necessary.

 

[yukay]

Yeah ... spot on!!!

 

First off, though, I need to verify your conversion resolution (i.e., what is the resolution of your original "source" file that you're trying to convert?). You say that it's 480x352 . . . this is a VERY odd format -- it's a non-standard, "bastard" format as far as I can tell, and it seems like it MIGHT be someone's version of a widescreen (16:9) capture. If that's the case, then the conversion may be a bit more problematic (that is, you might get some image distortion unless you can find a way to letterbox the resultant conversion).....

 

It's an old classic black and white film made approx 40 years ago that has a more square aspect than more recent films. I have checked the original res and it is 480x352

When I play a preview through Media Player it looks in perfect proportion and quality. Looking forward to your reply.

Thanks

RG

[jcbodin]

As we have established I am PAL Europe and my conversion resolution from gui4ffmpeg is 480x352. Can I change this file project setting prior to burning, to the nearest a PAL conversion of 352x572 or will this start EMC re-encoding the file?

In other words, using your method, can I convert any AVI video file resolution at 352x480 to a PAL res of 352x572 simply or is it not possible?

Thanks for all your help nevertheless!

 

PAL-to-NTSC (or vice-versa) isn't something that I've done much of, but I think this is do-able.

 

First off, though, I need to verify your conversion resolution (i.e., what is the resolution of your original "source" file that you're trying to convert?). You say that it's 480x352 . . . this is a VERY odd format -- it's a non-standard, "bastard" format as far as I can tell, and it seems like it MIGHT be someone's version of a widescreen (16:9) capture. If that's the case, then the conversion may be a bit more problematic (that is, you might get some image distortion unless you can find a way to letterbox the resultant conversion).

 

If your source file is 352x480, though, then it should be much simpler overall -- what you want to do in this case is simply select PAL in gui4ffmpeg, with a resolution of 352x576. Going from 352x480 NTSC (half-D1) to 352x576 PAL (half-D1) will involve sizing the image up, which typically won't gain you anything in terms of resolution, but at the same time it shouldn't result in any (noticeable) image degradation.

 

Anyway, please verify your source resolution -- ultimately, if it is some non-standard resolution (such as 480x352), then you'll probably have to try to play with it a bit in gui4ffmpeg . . . start an encode, stop it (close the DOS window) after several minutes worth of video have processed, then view the resultant file (it will do a partial encode) to see how the aspect ratio of the resultant mpeg file looks on playback, and adjust accordingly if necessary.

 

EDITED TO ADD:

 

Here is some good info on resolutions and NTSC/PAL conversions:

 

http://www.videohelp.com/forum/userguides/174200.php

 

Seems like a 480x352 AVI source file would simply be a standard 4:3 picture (not a widescreen image), so you're probably safe converting that to a 352x576 PAL (half-D1) file in gui4ffmpeg -- the results should play back fine if I'm reading all this correctly.

 

Let me know how it goes.

[yukay]

As we have established I am PAL Europe and my conversion resolution from gui4ffmpeg is 480x352. Can I change this file project setting prior to burning, to the nearest a PAL conversion of 352x572 or will this start EMC re-encoding the file?

In other words, using your method, can I convert any AVI video file resolution at 352x480 to a PAL res of 352x572 simply or is it not possible?

Thanks for all your help nevertheless!

RG

[jcbodin]

Using VideoInspector shows prompt for "CODEC" download. How do I know if I need to download this as I have seen it mentioned several times on other sites?

 

Read this first for more info on what Codecs are all about:

 

http://www.videohelp.com/glossary?C#Codec

 

Then check this out -- I use VideoInspector, but AviCodec might be more helpful to you overall:

 

http://www.videohelp.com/play#identify

 

[jcbodin]

Hi again......

Just a thought ..... when I have converted my AVI file following your guide, how will I know if EMC is attempting to convert the file again or proceeding to burn to DVD? Will it be obvious or do I have to wait some time to see what happens????? If it's obvious then please excuse the question as I don't want to waste any DVD's if possible.

 

I recommend using the ISO creation option -- this creates an ISO file (DVD image) on your hard drive that can be later burned to disk. This way, if you start your project and for some reason it tries re-encoding, you can cancel the project without wasting a disk.

 

Now, that said, once you start to burn your project in MyDVD (whether burning to disk or creating an ISO image), here is how you can tell if MyDVD/EMC8 is trying to re-encode:

 

If you see a preview of your video in the small Encoding Preview window, then EMC8 is re-encoding;

 

If you see a light gray box with concetric ellipses in lieu of a video preview in the Encoding Preview window, then EMC8 is not re-encoding.

 

EMC8 refers to this method of creatin DVD files from MPEG-2 sources without re-encoding as "smart rendering," I believe -- as ggrussell posted in another thread:

 

You will know that smart render is working when you see a grey still image with the work MPEG in the render preview window. If you see your video, then smart render is not working and the video is being re-rendered.

 

Make sense?

[yukay]

Hi again......

Just a thought ..... when I have converted my AVI file following your guide, how will I know if EMC is attempting to convert the file again or proceeding to burn to DVD? Will it be obvious or do I have to wait some time to see what happens????? If it's obvious then please excuse the question as I don't want to waste any DVD's if possible.

 

I suppose the only way is to suck it n' see - if you get my drift!!

Thanks

RG

[yukay]

AH! VERY important that you adjust your resolutions accordingly, then (my 352x480 references will NOT apply for PAL formats).

 

Hope this helps!

 

 

 

Using VideoInspector shows prompt for "CODEC" download. How do I know if I need to download this as I have seen it mentioned several times on other sites?

Thanks

RG