First shot at DVD to MKV

[Lukage]

I tried turning my episdoes of the anime Hare + Guu into *.MKV files. Putting the DVD on my HD was simple, as I'm familiar with Decrypter (from copying movies). I gave r4r a shot to use Gordian Knot to add subtitles and audio tracks to the video. Everything seemed alright until I was previewing it. No audio. I wasn't sure if the video preview was supposed to have audio, so I didn't sweat. Once I tried to encode and save, I noticed that as it started, it said it didn't include the audio tracks and that I should add those later (Sorry I can't show screenies...at work ATM). After 7 hours of encoding and converting, I got the disc into a 400MB .MKV

I played it and realized that some of the closings for the episodes were all at the end...on top of the fact that it was all one file. As I clicked through it to check it, I noticed the audio wouldn't quite sync correctly, and that the Japanese audio track was never added...and that there were 2 of the same English one. (I know the 2 tracks I added were the English and Japanese...I checked the .mp3's myself) On top of that, there appeared to be 2 subtitle tracks, the first that did nothing, and the second that was proper. The BIG problem is that...each .VOB for the DVD is an exact length, 18:00--something. So that puts each episode on 1 file...and a little bit more.

I'm looking for a few things from all of this:

- How to split the episodes up
- How to ensure the audio stays synced
- How to ensure that I don't get audio encoding errors

Feel free to request more info and when I'm home tonight, I'll post screenshots with details to what my problems are. Sorry in advance for a lack of detail.

[Awatef]

Well, one thing is to check with your DVD player which episode corresponds to which chapter(s) on the DVD, that will makes things much easier. Same goes for the audiotracks order.
Afterwards, you rip every chapter "package" to a separate directory to keep things clean.
Try to get a hold of the audio delay, and insert it as is at the right place (keep it negative if you find it negative).
That should eliminate the sync problems... unless your DVD is already slightly out of sync, then you'll have to correct the delay manually!!
A small hint here: sometimes (for an unknown reason) the software reports 2 tracks of each "breed". Like there is only 2 audiotracks, one english and one japanese, and it reports 2 of each = 4 in total! here take the first and the third track...

[Lukage]

Well, one thing is to check with your DVD player which episode corresponds to which chapter(s) on the DVD, that will makes things much easier. Same goes for the audiotracks order.
Afterwards, you rip every chapter "package" to a separate directory to keep things clean.
Try to get a hold of the audio delay, and insert it as is at the right place (keep it negative if you find it negative).
That should eliminate the sync problems... unless your DVD is already slightly out of sync, then you'll have to correct the delay manually!!
A small hint here: sometimes (for an unknown reason) the software reports 2 tracks of each "breed". Like there is only 2 audiotracks, one english and one japanese, and it reports 2 of each = 4 in total! here take the first and the third track...
Just to confirm, DVD Decrypter can split it up by chapter, rather than file?

[jellysandwich]

http://amnah.net/uploader/files/1/dvd_decrypter_53.jpg

Typically, the chapters will be in order. For example, if you know that the DVD has 4 episodes and it has 25 chapters, then 1-6 will likely be episode 1, 7-12 will be episode 2, and so on (25 should be extra and probably not needed).

js

[Lukage]

Well I have trouble with a part of the walkthrough on encoding to MKV. At the last screen, I try to add the job to the queue, but the walkthrough isn't complete

http://img369.imageshack.us/img369/1775/gordianju8.th.jpg (http://img369.imageshack.us/my.php?image=gordianju8.jpg)

Now what exactly do I do here? I tried selecting the audio tracks and the video file for each tab, but I don't have an AVS file for the frame server or frame credits, just the .VOB and the .D2V.

This is what the walkthrough ends at:

http://img105.imageshack.us/img105/7093/gordian2wx1.th.jpg (http://img105.imageshack.us/my.php?image=gordian2wx1.jpg)

BTW, I was able to use Decrypter to just select the Chapters I needed, thank you.

[Lukage]

I'm still having a few problems with it...not sure what the deal is though.

Primarily, I'm still getting no sound, even though I selected the audio tracks:

http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/2122/nosoundko8.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=nosoundko8.jpg)

And with no sound, I have no subtitles. :( All the software is doing is changing the audio formats. Am I missing how to actually add it to the video?

[CWR03]

In the main Gordian Knot window, you're only selecting the file as a calculation factor. As one of the last steps before you start the encode you have another audio selection window which is where you actually choose the audio for the encode. I also see that in your latest screenshot you've selected the audio file, but in the Interleaving to the right you've selected "vbr mp3." You don't select the audio file in that window when encoding to VBR MP3 - you select the bitrate at which you plan to encode the audio, then you enter that same bitrate in the final audio selection after selecting the source audio.

You're probably doing something wrong in the subtitles selection as well, because you should have subs whether or not there's audio.

[CWR03]

Example:

http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/4819/buttonxd9.th.jpg (http://img150.imageshack.us/my.php?image=buttonxd9.jpg)

For images of such large size, it's preferable to post only a thumbnail to minimize the load time of the page.

[Lukage]

In the main Gordian Knot window, you're only selecting the file as a calculation factor. As one of the last steps before you start the encode you have another audio selection window which is where you actually choose the audio for the encode. I also see that in your latest screenshot you've selected the audio file, but in the Interleaving to the right you've selected "vbr mp3." You don't select the audio file in that window when encoding to VBR MP3 - you select the bitrate at which you plan to encode the audio, then you enter that same bitrate in the final audio selection after selecting the source audio.

You're probably doing something wrong in the subtitles selection as well, because you should have subs whether or not there's audio.

Yeah I figured... :\ Is there any way to rip the subs without doing the whole chapter again? I tried to mess with DVD Decrypter, but had no luck in just selecting the subs.

Could you explain what I'm doing wrong? The tutorial says to select that in the Interleaving, then to click "Just mux" at the end. I have to select a format for the audio, but all it does it transcode it.

[Lukage]

Hmm, well it's telling me that the audio is being added...not sure what I was doing wrong there. I selected the .ogg and it seems to be working. Now to get the subtitles again. :p

http://img73.imageshack.us/img73/7928/workingmn7.th.jpg (http://img73.imageshack.us/my.php?image=workingmn7.jpg)

EDIT: I used the thumbnails for you...and I should also note that I used VobSub to rip the subtitles to the .sub and .idx and they're not appearing in the subtitles tab. No clue how to get the srt. :\

[CWR03]

After you select the audio file, you then click the (in your case) x264 tab and click the "Add job to encoding queue." You're probably clicking the "Add Audio-job to Encoding Queue (no Video!)" which, obviously, encodes only the audio with no video processing.

[CWR03]

EDIT: I used the thumbnails for you...and I should also note that I used VobSub to rip the subtitles to the .sub and .idx and they're not appearing in the subtitles tab. No clue how to get the srt. :\
Use SubRip to convert them to .srt format. The first time or two is a little painstaking as you create the matrix, but it gets much faster as you build it.

[Lukage]

Use SubRip to convert them to .srt format. The first time or two is a little painstaking as you create the matrix, but it gets much faster as you build it.

It's odd that VobSub doesn't work...but SubRip seems to be much more detailed (I can see myself eventually making this cool) and the fact that I have several lines that it finds questionable.

I assume SubRip is a neat way to make the subtitles especially cool. I'll give this a shot and HOPEFULLY it should work.

[Lukage]

Still no audio....although...when it finishes, it never really saves the file. For example, my log shows:


Files:
VirtualDubModExe: C:\PROGRA~1\GORDIA~1\VirtualDubMod\VirtualDubMod.exe
NandubExe: C:\PROGRA~1\GORDIA~1\nandub\Nandub.exe
AviFinal: F:\HAREGUU1\VIDEO_TS\Hare_Guu_1.mkv
AviMovie: F:\HAREGUU1\VIDEO_TS\Hare_Guu_1_Movie_1.mkv
AviCredits: F:\HAREGUU1\VIDEO_TS\Hare_Guu_1_Credits.mkv
MovieFS: F:\HAREGUU1\VIDEO_TS\Hare_Guu_1.avs
CreditsFS:
Log : F:\HAREGUU1\VIDEO_TS\Hare_Guu_1.log
Stats: F:\HAREGUU1\VIDEO_TS\Hare_Guu_1.stats
Ecf : F:\HAREGUU1\VIDEO_TS\Hare_Guu_1.ecf

I never get the Hare_Guu_1.mkv file. All that I end up seeing is the Hare_Guu_Movie_1.mkv

Could this be part of the problem?

EDIT: I should also note that SubRip doesn't really do anything...I end up skipping a ton of pictures and when its at 100%, there's nothing left to do. I find it odd that it never prompts me for an output file, either.

[CWR03]

To use SubRip on existing .sub files, open SubRip, click File > Open VOB(s), click the Open Dir button and select the .sub file, then click Start. At that point you will either begin selecting the matching characters or you can open an existing matrix file by clicking the Search for... button. For each letter, you will type the corresponding character. Special characters, such as É, can be copied from Character Map, and you can right-click one of the * buttons below to paste them there so you can click to add them.

It will not prompt you to save - you have to click File > Save as... yourself.

Do not click "Skip this picture" if it tries to use two parts of the same character as two different characters - instead, assign it as a space, then you can correct it later. If you "skip" anything it skips the rest of that subtitle.

[Lukage]

For each letter? Ugh, this is gonna take some time. I've got the video and audio encoding problems fixed, though.

Do I have to redo the movie in Gordian Knot, though? I'm trying (and failing) to just add the subtitles without re-encoding it all.

[CWR03]

If you already have the audio and video, once you get the subs you can quite easily mux them together with VirtualDubMod into an .mkv file. The lack of the proper .srt file may be what's preventing Gordian Knot from muxing them.

It doesn't take very long to type the subs in one letter at a time - keep in mind you won't have to type a letter more than once, unless there are a lot of italics. I did the same movie twice while I typed my last response, and each time took me about two minutes. It had a LOT of dialogue, over 6,500 words.

[Lukage]

If you already have the audio and video, once you get the subs you can quite easily mux them together with VirtualDubMod into an .mkv file. The lack of the proper .srt file may be what's preventing Gordian Knot from muxing them.

It doesn't take very long to type the subs in one letter at a time - keep in mind you won't have to type a letter more than once, unless there are a lot of italics. I did the same movie twice while I typed my last response, and each time took me about two minutes. It had a LOT of dialogue, over 6,500 words.

Yes, I read about that, but it seems it can't mux into MKV format. It seems I'd still have to do the AVI though. :(

[Gehenna]

Another alternative muxer is mkvmerge GUI (mkvtoolnix 1.70)
http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=103757

Just drag and drop your audio/video/subs into mkvmerge,and give it an output filename,and you should be good to go.

[CWR03]

Yes, I read about that, but it seems it can't mux into MKV format. It seems I'd still have to do the AVI though.
VirtualDubMod is what Gordian Knot uses to create its outputs, including the .mkv format. I even tried it to mux separate components, and it worked perfectly.

[Kurtnoise]

VDM is not recommended anymore to create mkv files...Use mmg or AviMUX_GUI.

[CWR03]

What does "not recommended" mean?

[Kurtnoise]

http://forums.virtualdub.org/index.php?act=ST&f=1&t=11493&

[Lukage]

Thank you, Genenna. I'll try that one out. CWR, here's what happens after I try to open the video file:

http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/9692/muxsubsgj2.th.jpg (http://img63.imageshack.us/my.php?image=muxsubsgj2.jpg)

And thanks already to all the help, guys!
EDIT: Is there another site to find it? I've looked around and found no mirrors (the bunkus site is down)?

[Lukage]

So...sooo...sooooooo....close.

It seems that there are already subtitles embedded into the opening theme (as it is in Japanese). Of course my subtitles also appear, so you see double. Full-screen only (Sorry, impossible to get a screenie). So basically if I have the video at anything above 100% zoom, I see two sets of subtitles. What would be the best way to tackle this? :(

[CWR03]

Are the subs in English? If so, and if the opening theme is short, you could open the .srt with WordPad and delete the duplicates.

[Lukage]

Are the subs in English? If so, and if the opening theme is short, you could open the .srt with WordPad and delete the duplicates.

Well I just did the Force ON to easily take care of it. I'm sending the video off to a buddy for "inspection." :p

Thanks again for the help guys!

[Lukage]

Hmm. Well now that I actually watch it, I've noticed in parts that have a lot of movement...there seem to be horizontal blurs in the video. I see plenty of other MKVs out there that are also 22 minutes that are half, or even less the size of mine...and have larger resolution and better quality.

The details of my video are as follows:

Video: MPEG4 Video (H264) 576x416 29.97fps [English (Video 1)]
Audio: Vorbis 48000Hz stereo [English (Audio 1)]
Audio: Vorbis 48000Hz stereo [Japanese (Audio 2)]
Subtitle: VobSub [Undetermined (Subtitle 1)]
Subtitle: VobSub [English (Subtitle 2)]

http://img147.imageshack.us/img147/4971/snapshot20060731012526pw3.th.jpg (http://img147.imageshack.us/my.php?image=snapshot20060731012526pw3.jpg)

As you can see, where there's movement, things become blurred. What sort of bitrate settings should I be doing, then? I was keeping the bits*(pixel/frame) over .2 like the guide shows. Thanks yet again for the help!

[CWR03]

It has nothing to do with bitrate. The source is likely interlaced, or possibly telecined. Run a small sample of an area with such movement through DGIndex with both Honor Pulldown Flags and Force Film. Encode the "Honor" using IVTC, and try a few of the deinterlacing filters with the force film segment. If you only select ten seconds or so of video it won't take long at all to determine which is correct, then you can re-encode the entire file properly.

[Lukage]

It has nothing to do with bitrate. The source is likely interlaced, or possibly telecined. Run a small sample of an area with such movement through DGIndex with both Honor Pulldown Flags and Force Film. Encode the "Honor" using IVTC, and try a few of the deinterlacing filters with the force film segment. If you only select ten seconds or so of video it won't take long at all to determine which is correct, then you can re-encode the entire file properly.

Well I tried every combo of settings in DGIndex...and they all still seem to have these horizontal line glitches in the movement. Am I supposed to encode to really see if it works? :\

[CWR03]

Am I supposed to encode to really see if it works? :\
Yes...

[Lukage]

Yes...

Any suggestions though on improving the resolution and bitrate while lowering the file size? I'm seeing tons of 720x480 files that are half the size of my MKV, with bigger and better quality.

[HymnToLife]

Well, improving the bitrate while lowering the filesize is like "have your cake and eat it too". Higher bitrate automatically means bigger file. But higher bitrate does not always mean better quality, it all depends of your encoding parameters, codecs, whether you used AviSynth with lots of pplugins, etc.

[CWR03]

There are a great deal of settings within the XviD codec that you can manipulate to improve the quality. This thread (http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=107897) is a heavy read, but useful.

[Lukage]

Well, improving the bitrate while lowering the filesize is like "have your cake and eat it too". Higher bitrate automatically means bigger file. But higher bitrate does not always mean better quality, it all depends of your encoding parameters, codecs, whether you used AviSynth with lots of pplugins, etc.

So if I shoot for a lower file size, I should just go ahead and start encoding with a setting, check it a few hours later when it's done, and see if it turns out how I'd like? :\

There are a great deal of settings within the XviD codec that you can manipulate to improve the quality. This thread (http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=107897) is a heavy read, but useful.

Wouldn't using Xvid take away from my ability to allow switching of the subtitles in the video (thus MKV format)?

[HymnToLife]

So if I shoot for a lower file size, I should just go ahead and start encoding with a setting, check it a few hours later when it's done, and see if it turns out how I'd like? :\

Basically, yes. But for testing you could just use a short clip form the vid instead of the whole thing.


Wouldn't using Xvid take away from my ability to allow switching of the subtitles in the video (thus MKV format)?

No, the ability of switching streams depends on the container and has nothing to do wit the codecs you use.

[Lukage]

After countless attempts...I've failed to shrink the file size to anything decent. I tried ogg format, mkv again, and xvid. None really had much of a difference in file size or bitrate...every attempt I did all came out the same: the lines still there.

Although I notice in DGIndex, the Video Type and Frame Type keep changing (Film/Video & Interlaced/Progressive, respectively)...but I think I've literally tried every sort of encoding that I can do. Between the VOB format and the D2V preview...and onwards.....I get the lines still.

I'm real close to just giving up. :\

[CWR03]

What you're working with is a hybrid video file - there are ways of dealing with it. Try AutoGK and see if the results are satisfactory.
I tried ogg format, mkv again, and xvid.
.OGG and .MKV, as well as .AVI, are simply containers - it has nothing whatsoever to do with the quality of the video. XviD, DivX and x264 can yield differences in quality with the right settings, but "the lines" cannot be solved by the codec. Regardless of which codec or container you use, "the lines" will be the same.

[Lukage]

When asking some other people about the problem, they suggested using MeGUI to allow it to fix the "deinterlacing" issues when making the AVS Script. I do prefer GKnot, so if this is what I need to do when making the AVS, I think it would be most beneficial.

It reads:

Progressive Sections: 4
Interlaced Sections: 5
Partially Static Sections: 112
Film Sections: 30
Source is declared hybrid film/ntsc. Majority is film.
Source is declared tff by a margin of 29 to 0.

Alright. Now I am starting to understand why it's not working. I was able to fix it with MeGUI's deinterlacing and I think that with the video encoded there properly, it'll work. Thanks again for the help!

[Lukage]

Alright, I can get the interlacing fixed with MeGUI, but I'm back to the subtitle problems. The software only uses .srt subs...so when I try to rip them in Subip, it's only reading the opening credits....so when I mux and play it in MPC, I'll see the two sets of subtitles again, etc.

:\