XviD compatibility

[Monstrosity]

How good/bad is the compatibility between different MPEG4 codecs?
For example: are modern h.264 codecs (x264, nero digital, ...) able to decode XviD movies since these codecs support more complicated profiles?
How do these codecs react on special functions of these codecs like custom matrices, ... and how can I avoid these incompatibilities?

[LoRd_MuldeR]

"MPEG-4 ASP" and "H.264" are two completely different formats!

All the MPEG-4 Codecs (DivX, Xvid, 3ivx and so on) are 100% compatible between each other, because they all implement the same format. At the same time all the H.264 Codecs (e.g. x264, Nero Digital H.264, Mainconcept H.264, and so on) are compatible between each other. There are official specifications (standards) for each format. Those specifications assure compatibilty between all Codecs that implement the same format. As long as all Codecs respect those official specifications, they will be compatible between each other. Nevertheless no H.264 Codec will ever be compatible with any MPEG-4 ASP Codec or vice versa! They simply implement different formats, so they cannot be "compatible" for obvious reasons! If you want to decode a MPEG-4 ASP stream, you need a MPEG-4 ASP decoder. If you want to decode a H.264 stream, you need a H.264 decoder. That's it.

BTW: Custom matrices are intended by the standard, so they are not a "special function", they are simply one legal feature. Therefore every "proper" Codec will have to support them and will handle them as intended...

[Monstrosity]

Thanks for pointing that out to me.

'People' told me in the past that XviD video's might not be DivX compatible? (especially in hardware players).

[foxyshadis]

In the distant past, divx, xvid, 3vix, and ffdshow had some incompatibilities with each other, but not for years. As long as you give your video a common fourcc (like DIVX or DX50) they'll all be able to decode it, even with 3-point gmc. They won't normally work with each others' fourccs, though divx6 has a longer list. (Such as XVID, FFDS, and 3VIX.)

[Brother John]

'People' told me in the past that XviD video's might not be DivX compatible? (especially in hardware players).
True, but that doesn't contradict what LoRd_MuldeR said. There's the world of MPEG-4 specifications ... and there's the completely different world of standalone "DivX support". Meaning no standalone exists that correctly implements the full feature set of MPEG-4 ASP.