Total newb question

[PhoenixDown]

Hey guys, I feel like such a newb but im hoping you can point me in the right direction here...

I have a collection of dvd movies which im looking to archive. What is the best format and the best tools to

- Keep the file size small
- Keep the quality high if I need to burn it back to dvd
- Possibly allow me to stream it to Apple-TV or convert to other formats for future devices

I'm thinking maybe I should just rip it straight to the format that apple uses since im pretty sure I'll be getting an apple-tv for the living room at some point. Makes it easier for my neices and nephews to watch movies without getting fingerprints all over the dvd's.

Appreciate your help! Thanks!

[Guest]

Welcome to the forum!

But I have to inform you that you have violated two forum rules with your first post: rules 9 (use a proper thread title) and 12 (do not ask what's best). Please read and follow the forum rules.

http://forum.doom9.org/forum-rules.htm

[PhoenixDown]

My apologies... I know the "whats best" question can be a broad subject - I'm simply hoping that someone who may have had similar considerations can share what process they ultimately decided on.

[ilovejedd]

I'm thinking maybe I should just rip it straight to the format that apple uses since im pretty sure I'll be getting an apple-tv for the living room at some point.

Yep, that might be the most suitable option for you. It'll just be a pain in the neck, not too mention time-consuming, for you to re-rip and convert to Apple TV compatible video. Previously, I converted DVDs into 3 different formats - AVI XviD for my SAP, MP4 for my PSP, and MP4 for PC (better quality than XviD at the same bitrate). Thankfully, Sony updated the PSP's firmware so now, I can use the same encode for my PC and PSP. When I've replaced all the SAPs at home with either MPEG-4 AVC capable SAPs (an Xbox360 or PS3 would work, too) or HTPCs, then I'd only need to do one encode for all. *sigh* That would be nice...

As for tools, MeGUI comes to mind. That seems to be the most often used for MP4 x264. There's an iPod 5.5G profile which I'm pretty sure would work for Apple TV. If you ever get yourself a video iPod, that's one less conversion to do.

[Awatef]

According to an internet review, the Apple TV is not worth its money, unless you're an iTunes customer and willing to download from its video catalogue.
Here the disadvantages:
- Video Quality is bad when you convert to apple TV's format (Quicktime Pro has a profile for it).
- High power comsumption (50W for Apple TV + the power that the server PC will be consuming)
- No drive
- Gets quite hot (45°C)
- Too expensive: for the same price you could get a nice HTPC that plays back even 1080p (Apple TV is limited to 720p).

[ilovejedd]

- Too expensive: for the same price you could get a nice HTPC that plays back even 1080p (Apple TV is limited to 720p).

Sorry for the OT post, but do you have maybe a list of the parts for said $300 (or so) HTPC? Because whenever I try to play around at Newegg, I always go over $1,000. Right now, my option for a "cheap" H.264 player is either an Xbox360 or for a more versatile media player, a PS3 w/Linux (I believe VLC and mplayer are currently in development for the PS3).

[Awatef]

@ ilovej
I could suggest this for about 300€:

Basic black desktop case w/ 250W PSU
Motherboard: MSI K9AGM2-FIH (has ATi graphics w/ Avivo support, FireWire & HDMI-output)
CPU: AMD Athlon64 3500+ LV (only 45W TDP)
RAM: 1GB
HDD: 80GB
DVD-ROM drive
Basic wireless mouse