Some Questions for Geeks!...

[madpierrott]

First of all: Hello to all
I'm from Argentina, my natal laguage is Spanish, and my English is not very good... so... make an effort for understand me... ;)
and more Important!, I'm a newbie...

My big question:
What can I do for improving the quality of a DVD Backup?

I always strip extras and audios, leaving only the main movie, main audio, some subtitles and the menu.
I use:
DVD ReBuilder Pro

CCE SP v2.70.02.01:
VBR_Passes: 10 (the time its not a problem for me... I know maybe there is not difference between 6 and 10 passes, but who knows... maybe its imperceptible, but the quality improving is there...)
VBR_Bias: 25 (I have not idea how to use this settings and how can affect in the quality )
Quality Prec: 16 (I have not idea how to use this settings and how can affect in the quality)

AviSynth v2.5.6 RC1 (not sure if this is a good idea, but a think maybe there is a lot of bugs fixes that can help....)
DGDecode v1.1.0 Final (A Question: if DVD Rebuilder get compatibility with the last version (1.4.4 Final), that will get better quality in the movie backup?)

I want to know what is and how to use "Quantization Matrices"...
This can help me in the quality?
Where I begin?

Almost the last:
In which case is a better option use DVD Shrink than DVD ReBuilder + CCE?

The last: When you select the option: "Mode ---> Movie and Menus Only (Blank Extras)", its any way to not rebuild the menu and just only the movie? because and I want to preserve the menu intact.

yes... I am obsessed with the quality... (thats because I have a 42'' Widscreen Plasma TV)

Sorry for so many questions accumulated... is my fault
this, of course, is my first post
always working in silent...


Thanks in advance...
madpierrott

[m1ckran]

yes... I am obsessed with the quality... (thats because I have a 42'' Widscreen Plasma TV)

I'm not trying to be flippant but you would probably achieve the best quality by not compressing anything. Have you tried burning to dual layer blanks?

Mickran

[jptheripper]

to answer questions.

1. rebuilder will always be better than shrink (my opinion)
2. most will argue anything over 3 passes is waste of time, and no quality difference. this doesnt stop me from doing 6 or 10 either
3. menu + movie mode keeps menus completely in tact and recodes only the movie
4. changing dgdecode will likely have no effect on quality of movie

matrices, on the other hand, are probably what you should spend most of you time on. I use defualt settings, no matrices, and on my 46" i have yet to notice any quality issues.


the other option you might want is looking into menushrink or dvd remake pro to leave menu structure intact but blank or still as much as possible.

[Zeul]

Also look at NuMenu4u to re-encode the menus first, retaining full functionality. This will allow more space for the movie - therefore a higher bitrate.

[madpierrott]

m1ckran: dual layer are very expensive in my country, not a good choice for now...

jptheripper: thanks for reply some of my questions...

Actually I use DvdReMake, VOBBlanker, MenuShrink, MenuEdit and... of course the increible NuMenu4u...

Maybe matrices are a better choice when the compression level are to low... like 60%

[feedback]

The great DVD Rebuilder Pro. add-on application, by Rockas, called
Rebuilder Matrix Editor is located Here (http://dvd-rb.dvd2go.org/modules.php?name=Downloads&d_op=viewdownload&cid=24) . It will allow you to try a different Matrix without waiting for an entire Encode. It is freeware BTW.

It also has a neat Extraction feature, by neuron2, that will allow you to extract a matrix from one movie so you can use it in another movie if you like. For example, you could extract the matrix from 'Finding Nemo' and use it on any other movie that you care to.

Still, there is a large assortment of Matrices out there (I have about 40) to choose from. For instance, a lot of people like using the Kika Comic High for animation.

'Kika Comic High'
Intra
08 16 16 16 24 24 32 32
16 16 16 24 24 32 32 32
16 16 24 24 32 32 32 32
16 24 24 32 32 32 32 32
16 24 32 32 32 32 32 32
24 32 32 32 32 32 32 32
24 32 32 32 32 32 32 32
32 32 32 32 32 32 32 32
Non-Intra
16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16
16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16
16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16
16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16
16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16
16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16
16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16
16 16 16 16 16 16 16 24

For natural movies I use among others AVAMAT6 and BDVD Matrix.
QLB is another popular Matrix by dragongodz.

Regards,:)

[madpierrott]

I really don't understand what are matrices....
If anybody can tell my where to begin... I will appreciate it... (Just something to read... I like the effort to learn)

I forgot one question, very important to me...
As I say, I like the quality...
So I always use two DVDs for one Movie Backup: 1 for the main movie, and the other for extras...

The problem is, when I need the main movie for some extras, like director commentary or "follow the rabbit" and thinks like that...
So I have to use DVD Shrink, because I want to leave Extras intact, and compress the main movie the necessary.
I really don't need a good quality in this case, but... I wonder if I could do this with DVD Rebuilder, and compress the main movie 40% or less but with CCE, and get something more decent than DVD Shrink. Always leaving Extras and Menu intact.
I was clear? (sorry my english...)

thanks to all geeks, helping me to be one of you!
The Power is in the wisdom!

[feedback]

O.K., first you should do a search for 'Matrices' to find more information about a Matrix.
Saying that, I have a link to Understanding a Quantization Matrix Here (http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=54147&highlight=work+matrix) by crusty.

Hope this gives you more understanding about, and the usefulness of, a Matrix.

Regards,:)

[steptoe]

I've never really fiddled with the matrix option either, but on other forums people do make a big point of saying that choosing the right matrix can make a big difference to your final output, especially if you are using a very low bitrate

If I'm doing an episode DVD where I know the output is going to be between 2000 to 3000 bitrate then I use the low bitrate matrix .... Especially if I do a series which is comes on 2 DVD's and I sqeeze it all onto one DVD

If anybody can suggest a better matrix for this method and why, then I'll certainly try it


Why would you want to use the Kika matrix for animation, is there a specific reason, has that matrix been created just for animation/cartoons/anime

[feedback]

The following information is by Didee:

"The standard matrix is well designed as an all-purpose-matrix. It delivers reasonable results with all quality ranges. But obviously, it is not at all optimized for either hi-quality or hi-compression scenarios. For both, a good custom one will fit better".

So, with that in mind the Kika Comic High matrix would seem to be optimized for animation.

Try the RME link in the posts above if you have DVD-Rebuilder Pro.
With it you can try many Matrices in a very short time on a particular video segment and judge for yourself the quality differences.

I have many Matrices some of which are not for use with Mpeg2.

The guys in the Xvid forum are always coming up with new and different Matrices some work with mpeg2 and some don't.

In the end you will have to make the call on what looks good to you, personally.

Regards,:)

P.S. You should read this link here. (http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=97114) It is informative and has links to more info.
Angel BestLow matrix is good for use between 1900-2500 BTW.

"The Angel-matrices were used initially for minimizing interlocks at standard SVCD bitrates. For this purpose they completely quantize the high frequencies out of the picture. The advantage: The compressing on macroblock level functions better, which saves bitrate. Disadvantage: The picture loses sharpness, in addition Rainbow-effects or blocks in soft backgrounds can occur. This matrices are also suitable for the Extras were we decrease the bitrate. Best Low approx. 1900 - 2500 kbps".