optimal settings

[ludeboy12]

ok so i just purchased DVD Rebuilder Pro yesterday and so far I have to say this is a top notch program.

Currently im using the one click method on my movies and with 2 passes using CCE SP.

Anyways i was wondering if any settings should be tweaked to give me the absolute best picture possible.
also would it be better to do more passes??

thanks in advance.

[Digga]

welcome to the forum ludeboy.
there is no best quality :)

things that add up on quality:
- backup method.
(movie only will naturally result in better main movie quality than full backup on most disks)
- other self expl. stuff like only keep audio and subs that you need etc.
- encoder / transcoder used.
CCE is considered to be very competitive but with each and everything, quality can have a subjective meaning. i.e. some ppl prefer other encoders for lower bitrates, e.g. ProCoder.
- encoder setting.
you can play with VBR bias and qual prec in advanced settings.
much more than 3 passes is considered overkill. usually 2 or 3 passes will look the best it can get.
- matrix and filters used
- ripping method. under rare circumstances, glitches could be introduced while ripping.

[ludeboy12]

ok so i just triend 3 passes this time rather than the automatic setting of 2 so we shall see if things look a lil better.


also i've read multiple posts where people talk about matrices and what not. Is there one out there thats really good that people are using??

[Digga]

ok so i just triend 3 passes this time rather than the automatic setting of 2 so we shall see if things look a lil better.yeah you can try that, though at least for me it doesn't result in any viewable quality increase when watching normally.
also i've read multiple posts where people talk about matrices and what not. Is there one out there thats really good that people are using?there are a lot of posts where ppl talk about what not ;)
the default MPEG-2 (the video codec DVD uses) matrix is pretty good. a custom matrix starts to really show in low bitrate scenarios I guess.
though I wouldn't really know as I haven't tried any custom matrix or filters for my encodes.

[writersblock29]

@ludeboy12

I can sense that you're still kind of looking for "what's best." I've got to back Digga on this wholeheartedly; there's no such thing. Not only from person to person but from project to project.

Some will insist on using tons of passes with CCE. I usually use two for most projects, and they look like gold to me on an HDTV. Lately, there's been a lot of times I'll let OPV take care of things, provided the running time of the movie isn't beefy and the extras are sparse. There are times when OPV -- despite only using one encoding pass -- beats the quality I see with a multipass encode. Other times, it won't. And to make matters sticky, someone else out there probably disagrees with everything I've just said in this paragraph, and would have given different information -- which means, of course, that if I'd have told you what my favorite matrice is... what if someone else gave different advice? You're right back to having to test it for yourself and see what you think.

It really is all dependant on many, many factors... and in the end, judged in the eye of the beholder. We're lucky to be in the age of DVD backup programs where we're actually seeing such threads... because if a "what's best" thread winds up having any sort of debate behind it at all, it's a sign that we have a lot of high-quality options to choose from. But opinions are like... um... backsides: Everyone has one. (And some of 'em stink!)

You could try making movie-only copies to maximize the amount of space availible for main movie quality, then make a second disk for bonus materials if you'd like (DVD Shrink offers the ability to blank out any given titleset with a still frame that reads "the video has been removed," or DVD Rebuilder will simply blank it for you as well). I know this advice conficts with my standpoint that there's no such thing as "best." But it's still logical in that it gives you the most room for what you keep on a given disk, and space *can* equal quality in many cases.

There's always Dual Layer disks as well, which requires you to do no re-encoding whatsoever and will give you quality that's bit-for-bit identical to your source. They may be a couple of bucks apiece per blank... but that may well be worth it, once you consider the opportunity costs (things you could be doing otherwise) of day-long encodes and scene comparisions.

Good luck to you in deciding what works best for you!