MeGUI: General Questions and Troubleshooting Thread

[nurbs]

Can you be a bit more explicit please. What's the error massage? Does the script play in a media player?

[EuropeanMan]

Yes, the script plays perfectly fine. Only when I want to begin encoding, I get the error message.

Xvid & x264 both error out.

http://i34.tinypic.com/t6dzsh.jpg

[73ChargerFan]

why did you think it's related to megui ?
I just re-installed 1056, and the bug is also there.

The function DGDecode_mpeg2source is part of megui.

I'm not looking to fight, though.

[poisondeathray]

I just re-installed 1056, and the bug is also there.

The function DGDecode_mpeg2source is part of megui.



And what happens when you use DGIndex to index it manually, and using MPEG2Source(), with cpu=4 ?

[73ChargerFan]

I really have no idea, that is why I use a gui.

I've tried a few encodes of this movies, all unsatisfactory.
With "Mpeg deblocking" not selected in MeGUI, colors are fine and there are no dots.

[nurbs]

@EuropeanMan: Don't really know, sorry.

@73ChargerFan: DGDecode is part of DGIndex so maybe you should try contact the author. First try what poisondeathray sugested and replace replace the DGDecode_mpeg2source with just mpeg2source in the script.

[ACrowley]

Hello

Question :

I start megui ,the i go to the x264 config, set it to preset very slow, and then i use the Tune-Grain Option.

But i cant see any changes in the cmdline preview window ?
Tune-Grain is deblock -2:-2, psy-rd 1:0.25, no-dct-decimate, ipratio 1.1, pbratio 1.1, aq-strength 0.5, deadzone-intra 6, deadzone-inter 6, qcomp 0.8
But the megui doesnt apply the Tuning-Grain Parameteres like psy-rd 1:0.25 (instaed of very slow 1:0.0) or aq-strength 0.5 (instead of 1.0) ?

The final x264 cmdline into the Output log was :
--profile high --level 4.1 --preset veryslow --tune grain --pass 2 --bitrate 14800 --stats "F:\...stats" --thread-input --deblock -3:-3 --bframes 3 --b-adapt 2 --direct auto --b-bias 0 --scenecut 40 --ref 5 --vbv-bufsize 40000 --vbv-maxrate 40000 --rc-lookahead 60 --aq-mode 1 --aq-strength 1.0 --merange 24 --me umh --subme 9 --partitions p8x8,b8x8,i4x4,i8x8 --trellis 2 --psy-rd 1.0:0 --no-dct-decimate --no-fast-pskip --aud --output "F:\...264" "F:\..."

So which Parameters will x264 use ? The Tune Tweaks or not ?, even its not visible in the cmdline ? Its a litte bit confusing imho...

[Dark Shikari]

So which Parameters will x264 use ?It will use the explicitly-set parameters, not the ones you intended for it to use.

Yes, MeGUI is broken.

[newstd]

I am trying to have a better understanding of how MeGUI is determining interlaced/progressive through AVS script creator.
I am also referring to a previous post on this subject in this thread (march 2009).

MediaInfo (StaxRip uses MediaInfo probably) is a library which is able to parse only the headers/footers from files, whereas the Analyzer in the AVS Creator parses some parts from the whole stream. That's why you can have some differences, especially with this kind of information (interlaced/progressive).

This is not accurate all the time. Depends on the source type...


I am analyzing DVD sources (mostly in PAL) and AVS script creator always determine them as progressive (with the .d2v file created previously by DGIndex).
On the other side, Mediainfo parses them as interlaced VOBs, which would make sense to me as I always thought that DVDs were encoded in interlaced mode for keeping compatibility with analog devices.

So, any deeper clarification would help me ...

[Inspector.Gadget]

newstd: MediaInfo tells you about the flagging on the stream, MeGUI tells you about the actual content. Some PAL DVDs are 25p flagged as 50i.

[ACrowley]

It will use the explicitly-set parameters, not the ones you intended for it to use.

Yes, MeGUI is broken.

yes i see,no one of the Tune-Grain Paramters is used from megui.

The Output x264 File is encoded without Tune Grain Settings. I fan see it in the x264 log and with mediainfo/avinaptic.

Hopefully megui will be fixed soon

[LeXXuz]

Anybody else noticed a significant drop in filesize (and quality) between the actual 1056 build with x264 v1259 and older builds (mine was 1051 with x264 v1173)?

EDIT: Nevermind. In the meantime I noticed that there has been a change through redefining the crf-modes. Should read the forums more frequently.^^

[nhope]

Nero Audio Sample Rate Gets Halved

I'm inputting AVI files (AVS) with either 44100 Hz or 48000 Hz. When I choose Nero AAC audio with one of the templates such as NDAAC-HE-64kbps or NDAAC-HE-MultiChannel-128kbps the sample rate gets halved to 22050 Hz or 24000 Hz, even though sample rate is set to "keep original" in MeGui. Is this normal? Any way to prevent it? I specifically set the sample rate (e.g. "Change to 44100 Hz) but that didn't help.

Also when I uploaded such MPEG4 files to YouTube the audio comes out OK. But if I upload them to Facebook the audio comes out at half speed.

[EuropeanMan]

Anybody else noticed a significant drop in filesize (and quality) between the actual 1056 build with x264 v1259 and older builds (mine was 1051 with x264 v1173)?

I wish I could...I can't even encode anything anymore.

[tebasuna51]

Nero Audio Sample Rate Gets Halved

Do you know what is the HE part of AAC-HE?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HE-AAC

[nhope]

Do you know what is the HE part of AAC-HE?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HE-AAC
I didn't really know, so thanks for the link, from which I read that:

"MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 AAC LC decoders without SBR support will decode the AAC LC part of the audio, resulting in audio output with only half the sampling frequency, thereby reducing the audio bandwidth."

So I guess AVInaptic and Gspot see just the AAC LC part and report that. And Facebook somehow gets confused between reading the uploaded file and encoding it.

So I'm now searching for a good audio format to upload to YouTube, Facebook etc. along with my x264 video. The YouTube help says:

"you may get the best uploading results from converting your file to MPEG4 video with MP3 audio."

Lame MP3 at 192 or even 256kbps would be great but I can't mux MP3 audio with x264-encoded video into an MP4 wrapper can I? Or can I mux them into something else using MeGUI?

Edit: YouTube recommendations here: http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?answer=132460
How can I mux MP3 or AAC in an MPEGTS container with x264 video? Is this actually possible?

[Dark Shikari]

I didn't really know, so thanks for the link, from which I read that:

"MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 AAC LC decoders without SBR support will decode the AAC LC part of the audio, resulting in audio output with only half the sampling frequency, thereby reducing the audio bandwidth."

So I guess AVInaptic and Gspot see just the AAC LC part and report that. And Facebook somehow gets confused between reading the uploaded file and encoding it.If there's a problem in the Facebook encoding chain report all the specific info (and upload a sample file with the problem) and I can forward it to the right people.

[invy]

Hello guys. Is there any way to automatically mux x264 video and aac-lc audio to .MP4? I have to do it about 25 times so MeGUI is annoying here because I have to go through the menu to get to the muxer each time. It's such a hassle. How does everyone else do mass muxing?

Also I've already tried to do it with command line with mp4box but it would still take me a good 30 mins, although it is only SLIGHTLY less annoying this way. Any tips? Perhaps there's a different program to do this easily? BTW filenames are nearly identically since these 25 clips are from same tv series, if it helps any.

[nhope]

If there's a problem in the Facebook encoding chain report all the specific info (and upload a sample file with the problem) and I can forward it to the right people.

That would be great. I already informed them about it but didn't get a response and I've since deleted those files. I'll set up a new test case. Which of the ND-AAC templates would be theoretically a good one to choose for uploading audio to YouTube/Facebook (that they will obviously re-encode)? One of the 192kbps ones perhaps? HE or LC?

[Dark Shikari]

That would be great. I already informed them about it but didn't get a response and I've since deleted those files. I'll set up a new test case. Which of the ND-AAC templates would be theoretically a good one to choose for uploading audio to YouTube/Facebook (that they will obviously re-encode)? One of the 192kbps ones perhaps? HE or LC?Facebook just uses [mostly] stock ffmpeg for decoding, so anything ffmpeg will handle is good. So LC-AAC is your friend.

[nhope]

Facebook just uses [mostly] stock ffmpeg for decoding, so anything ffmpeg will handle is good. So LC-AAC is your friend.

I uploaded MPEG4 test videos using both the NDAAC-LC-MultiChannel-192Kbps and NDAAC-HE-64Kbps templates and the audio got encoded correctly by Facebook in both cases. Looks like Facebook have fixed it. Thanks for the reply.

[RandomEngy]

Hey, I'm having a bit of a problem trying to get multiple audio tracks on an MP4 file. I've got an MP4 file with an AAC audio track. I add the video and audio from that file, then another AAC track to it and mux them. The second track is a commentary track. The resulting file plays fine with Zoom Player, but Windows Media Player picks the commentary by default and I can't find a place to change it back. Quicktime plays both at once and doesn't let me change it.

Is there some way to specify that one track is the default track?

[Guest]

I've got an MP4 file with an AAC audio track. What is it and where did you get it?

[SacredCultivator]

Just wanted to double check on "Updates", there haven't been any through Kurtnoise's server and Sharktooth isn't back yet correct?

[RandomEngy]

What is it and where did you get it?

Well I just encoded a video to x264/PCM AVI in vegas, then used SUPER to put the video stream in an MP4 container, while encoding the audio to AAC. I didn't see a place to put in multiple audio tracks in either program so I'm trying to add it in after the fact.

[eyeguy]

Just installed megui on a new computer and trying to encode x.264 file and getting an error:

--[Information] [10/6/2009 1:38:46 PM] Encoding started
--[NoImage] Standard output stream
--[NoImage] Standard error stream: C:\Program Files\MeGUI\tools\x264\x264.exe: unknown option -- progress

any help is appreciated!

[ACrowley]

Just wanted to double check on "Updates", there haven't been any through Kurtnoise's server and Sharktooth isn't back yet correct?

correct...megui is still broken

[Dark Eiri]

^ It works for me.

[Jo-eL]

Just had to reinstall megui yesterday and had never have any problems before, but now the picture jumps already in the prewiev, I think there is something that have forgotten to install but I cant figure it out please help...

if you need more info let me know

[Shandra]

Well, I can just say - after a few experiments - if you stick to kurnoises server -> you live on the edge, but from my experiments I would conclude that sticking to *.1051 is the better way if you want to stay archival...
May I add - in my Opinion and Circumstances..... Because from what I had "preiviewed" with the branche from Kurtnoise is very promising!!! But somehow it is lacking a certain basic something :( But I may venture into saying that this certain "basic" was at no way an intention of this development of the tree....

So, why can't we just step back to use the old branch of a tree (*.1051) and be happy with the results ??? Should we truly argue against those who actually develop? Either we are Testies, or we are Users.... I stick to be a user... and from my experiences that means to stay with megui.org and my old install..... Maybe I am missing a something certain by that, but the Macroblocks Artifacts I came to notice by the Kurtnoise "uptodate"-branche ain't worth any further discussions! That branche is great in its own way, but not unless you are willing to build it, the enoding parameters, all up from *scratch* again.......

P.S.: I really love the "edge" branche, but it really is somehow less quality with same parameters... I don't know how to put it, but there are some Macro Artifacts that are not within the old build.... Maybe that is a decoder question? With me it is good old FFDShow TryOuts 090902....

[Chainmax]

I am also receiving an error message after installing MeGUI anew in preparation for a series of encodes I also receive an "unrecognized option" error. This is the generated CLI line:

program --profile high --preset fast --crf 18 --thread-input --deblock 1:1 --keyint 240 --min-keyint 24 --bframes 8 --b-adapt 2 --b-pyramid
--b-bias 0 --scenecut 40 --ref 16 --vbv-maxrate 25000 --rc-lookahead 40 --no-mbtree --aq-mode 1 --aq-strength 0.5 --merange 32 --me umh
--subme 9 --partitions all --trellis 1 --psy-rd 0.6:0 --no-dct-decimate --no-fast-pskip --output "output" "input"

And here's the error message:

[NoImage] Standard error stream: X:\wherever\x264.exe: unrecognised option `--rc-lookahead'

The option is located in the "Rate Control" tab, right above the "Use MB-Tree" option and there does not seem to be a way to disable it, even having MB-Tree unchecked (which I assume is what uses this lookahead setting).

[prOnorama]

Update your x264.exe to the latest version from x264.nl

(A moderator should make a sticky about this and other MeGUI update issues methinks)

[elkey]

Edit........................

[Inspector.Gadget]

We can't help you with Rule 6 material.

[elkey]

What do you mean?
If I get mistake, plz forgive it. I'm not good at using Eng. I've tried many ways but it's not working so I think the x264's developer can help me.

[Inspector.Gadget]

You don't own the source material: it is a downloaded "scene" release that violates copyright laws. We do not assist people with that sort of thing here. Read the rules linked at the top of the page.

[elkey]

You don't own the source material: it is a downloaded "scene" release that violates copyright laws. We do not assist people with that sort of thing here. Read the rules linked at the top of the page.

Well "scene release" ? Do you mean that --> http://x264.nl/x264/

And after step-by-step as i often did it before i re-install my OS, it became what i showed you :(. Pliz help or let me know if i break one more rule :(

[Inspector.Gadget]

Your source is of a type NOT PERMITTED on doom9. READ THE RULES. They are in simple English.

[elkey]

Your source is of a type NOT PERMITTED on doom9. READ THE RULES. They are in simple English.

Ops, I understand :(, the source that i used ? Pardon me you guys, i'll notice this carefully :)

[elkey]

So, now sb help me? Do i break any rulez :D
I have updated the lastest x264, Avisynth and meGUI. Actually I had encoded successfully with the same avs before I reinstalled my OS. And now it causes the problem : Could not open input file 'X:\xxxxxxxxxx.avs'.
http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn152/livetolove924/Avs-1.png
Thank you.
Cảm ơn ( in Vietnamese :D ).

[NoX1911]

Edit: I deleted the previous version of this post since the problem could be solved by flushing the AVS plugins folder (MeGUI hung when loading avs files).

Just want to add that when in v1056 x264 config window it removes the 'advanced' switch whenever i change the template. It was kinda useful to swap the templates and see the differences on the current tab. That's not possible at the moment. I downgraded back to 1051.

[RunningSkittle]

So, now sb help me? Do i break any rulez :D
I have updated the lastest x264, Avisynth and meGUI. Actually I had encoded successfully with the same avs before I reinstalled my OS. And now it causes the problem : Could not open input file 'X:\xxxxxxxxxx.avs'.
...
Thank you.
Cảm ơn ( in Vietnamese :D ).

Blanking out the file name doesnt change anything :| Read this as to why we cant/wont help you:
http://forum.doom9.org/announcement.php?f=6

[Alf Bundy]

Hi, the little box for adjusting bitrate is too short for 5 digits :

http://img29.imageshack.us/img29/7320/x264config.png

No big deal.


But, Presets are not applied correctly (always subme7 ?) and Tunings are not applied at all.
And this is a big issue. :(

Because we have to learn how x264 internally works.
Gui's users don't like that. :p

[SacredCultivator]

I updated my .x264 to the latest which is 1301, but when I try to encode something, it errors on me.

---

Here is the Commandline:
program --profile high --level 4.1 --crf 21.0 --thread-input --deblock -1:-1 --keyint 600 --min-keyint 60 --bframes 4 --b-adapt 2 --b-pyramid --ref 5 --rc-lookahead 60 --me umh --subme 10 --partitions p8x8,b8x8,i4x4,i8x8 --trellis 2 --no-fast-pskip --output "output" "input"

---
And my error is:
"And error occurred: x264 [error]: invalid argument: b-pyramid = --ref"

The weird thing is.. with previous revisions of x264.exe, I never got this problem.

Disabling "Keep some B-Frames as reference" solves this, but I generally have it enabled so not too sure as to whether I actually need it or not.

Thanks.

[nurbs]

The commits on monday changed how b-pyramid works. You now need either --b-pyramid normal or --b-pyramid strict
Strict is for blu-ray. You can deactivate the checkbox in the codec configuration and put it in the custom command line box instead.

By the way you do know that you haven't been encoding with b-pyramid for a while, right? In r1197 mb-tree has been introduced and made default and it doesn't work with b-pyramid yet, so the latter is switched off automatically.

[SacredCultivator]

Thanks for the help, and just to clarify, so for b-pyramid, if I use mb-tree, I can just disable "Keep some B-Frames as reference" and as you mentioned, input "--b-pyramid normal" in the custom command line box?

[nurbs]

No, b-pyramid doesn't work if mb-tree is on. You can deacitvate mb-tree and then you can use the command line switches I told you to turn b-pyramid on. You use the strict mode if you encode for a blu-ray disc (if your playback device is a blu-ray player), you use the normal mode in all other cases. You probably don't want to do that since mb-tree is more important for quality than b-pyramid.

The reason you got the error massage is that the way the --b-pyramid switch in x264 works has been changed yesterday and there hasn't been an update to megui yet to address this. Even before that, ever since x264 r1197 came out (4th of August) you haven't been encoding with b-pyramid because of the incompatibility with mb-tree. It's even in the logs. If you activate b-pyramid when mb-tree is still on x264 will warn you that they don't work together.

The developers said that mb-tree and b-pyramid will be made compatible soon.

[SacredCultivator]

Okays so if I want to use mb-tree, don't even add the --b-pyramid command correct?

And it's only the "Keep some B-Frames as reference" that needs to be disabled/unticked right?

[meatwad666]

i've been having an intermittant (or at least intermittantly noticeable) issue where converted files are around 60 ms out of sync. the source material is mpeg-2/ac-3 transport streams from clearQam HDTV captures.

i'd like to be able to upload the source and discuss my settings (to see if it might be a problem independent of megui), but i do know the rules on uploading a 1-minute clip of a capture from NBC. is this permissable?

in case someone can find a flaw in my settings, i have attached my log output. (i've already adjusted the H and W to be div16)

for awhile i thought it might be that avisynth's delayaudio() didnt like the fractional input the delay parameter gives (i.e. 32.0/1000.0) but i'm not sure.

i suppose a comercial would be easier, if the heroes clip is verbotten

[Alf Bundy]

Okays so if I want to use mb-tree, don't even add the --b-pyramid command correct?

And it's only the "Keep some B-Frames as reference" that needs to be disabled/unticked right?

Yes, "Keep some B-Frames as reference" must be unticked because it sets --b-pyramid wich is now invalid.