mkv2vob: New App to Remux MKV x264/AC3 which play on PS3

[lazarusbf]

hello
since i found your wonderful program i've always encoded mkv 720 p x264 files into mpeg or VOB and the output was generally double size (eg TV series original file 1.1Go and output once encoded was bewteen 1.6 & 2.1Go).
Now for the test, i've just tried the x264 encoding option (slow) instead of mpeg2 (fast) and my output isize is the same as the source.
Does it mean the image quality (or sound) is diminished ? If not, i'll always reencode into x264 so that 4 episodes do fit onto one dvdr.

[FOSI]

hi, i noticed a problem when watching Lost on the PS3. when i converted mkv to mpg with transcoding codec x264 all played well, but when i tried xvid it only recognized 28 minutes out of 41.
Is this a known problem? Or am i doing something wrong?

I noticed another thing, mkv2vob doesn't use all power of a dual core system.

Great little soft, and the best anyway.

[~bT~]

hi 3r1c!

is it poss that you can add the version # & date to the thread title like this chap here (http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=126647) so its easier to keep upto date. cheers!

[Audioboxer]

[avih: *Post deleted due to reference to illegal material]

[Sephiroth0000]

Don't know if anyone can help out but I keep on getting ERROR TRANSCODING no matter what setting I apply. I am using Windows XP Home Srv 2 with K-Lite Codec Package (Full) installed. The MKV file I am trying to transcode is made up of AC3 5.1 audio and MKV video which I got from EAC3TO and muxed together using MKVMerge. This is really frustrating.....any idea's anyone?

[~bT~]

^ start with uninstalling k-lite, then install ffdshow. all the best!

[neuromax]

To all having problems with subs in arabic.
Looking for something else around the internet I read that mencoder renders wrongly arabic subs if embedded in mkv streams but in the correct way if using an external srt file loaded with the option -sub on the command line. So, maybe if you extract the subs from the mkv and force mkv2vob to load them from the external file, maybe it will work.

Hope it helps.

[Sephiroth0000]

^ start with uninstalling k-lite, then install ffdshow. all the best!

Thankyou :)

[gusangora]

I am getting an error message: "error getting mkv info" as soon as I add a file/folder to convert. I have tried several different mkv files, always the same error. Any ideas?
I am using Vista Home Premium (32 bit). These files play perfectly on this computer.
Steve

[ajamils]

Thankyou :)

did that fix your problem ?

[Shayx]

hey there, i converted a mkv file into MP4 and chose not to split the file...but it did split the file.
why is that? can i join a mp4 file? is there a software for that??
in the old version it didn't happend and i managed to play a 5.2GB mp4 file on the PS3 without no splitting.

[Quatre]

do 1080i .ts play on ps3? you just have to join the .ts files together? if .ts doesnt' play (i think it used to at least) what can you convert the .ts file into to play on ps3?

[s_kound]

thanks for a great program!! Succesfully demuxed HD 720p animation movies like CARS, RATTATUILE & HAPPY FEET into VOB, burned them to DVD-R and watched them on the PS3 with greek 5.1 audio :) (my kids loved them :) :) )

Wish i could have greek subs as well for "english audio" 720p movies, without loosing quality and waiting hours to re-encode.

I have two questions if it's no trouble for you answering:

1st Question
I've downloaded the hereunder clip (from Ice Age, 6th Stream)
Video: MPEG4 Video (H264) 1920x1080 23.98fps [Video]
Audio: Dolby AC3 48000Hz 6ch [Audio]
File: M2ts
Will this work with no transcoding (just demuxing) or i would need to transcode? It's my first 1080p clip....

2nd Question
Quality wise (not size), is it better to transcode to x264, mpeg2 or something else?


Thank you !!!

[johnmerrick]

i have a question.

What program with MKV2VOB is used to split the output mpg?

I would like to convert the file but split it more evenly at the end.

This is because the second part of my split file is 1 minute long!

If this isn't possible what program can split an mpg? (not tpgmc please!)

thanks.

[~bT~]

^ i think it is m2split.exe.

[hfmls]

hi. is there a way to make it convert to xvid with ac3 and .srt hardsubbed and to fit in a dvd5 ?

[JohnBougiou]

I have a question too!

Where can I get a same program for Linux...?

Thanks!

My regards!

[Sephiroth0000]

Hello,

To anyone who does not know basically I have a MKV file that I am trying to run through MKV2VOB and keep on getting ERROR TRANSCODING. The MKV file was made from EAC3TO along with AC3 audio. I have the following operating system WIN XP HOME SRVC PK 2, CYBERLINK DELUXE POWERDVD, HAALI MEDIA SPLITTER, SONIC CINEPLAYER 4.3, and FFDSHOW.....help!

[Sephiroth0000]

did that fix your problem ?

Unfortunately not.

EDIT: Oh and the MKV file is 15.2GB Would that cause the error?

[playon]

http://www.mediafire.com/?ygpyft9djjg


hi i have these files and trying to use mkv2vob to play them on ps3 i keep getting an error can any1 help please


http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/1702/errorwj1.jpg

[djmas1998]

when transcoding which option results in the best picture quality when selecting transcoding codec?

mpeg2 or x264? will choosing either of these still result in a video file capable of playing on the ps3?

is there a difference in quality? anyone care to explain?

thanks in advance,

djmas

[neuromax]

when transcoding which option results in the best picture quality when selecting transcoding codec?

mpeg2 or x264? will choosing either of these still result in a video file capable of playing on the ps3?

is there a difference in quality? anyone care to explain?

thanks in advance,

djmas

This program is designed to create files playable on the PS3, this is what it does :). About the transcoding: at the end, in theory, the best possible quality in transcoding is with x264, because at the same bitrate it provides the minor loss in the original data. But all depends on the bitrate you intend to use and the encoding setting, but this program is not designed, at least now, to let you have control over these steps. This is a fast one click reorganizer that should only if possible pass the data streams to the output files without transcoding. And if it must transcode it makes it with some parameters figured out by the author and a bitrate chosen having the original bitrate in mind (at least it should, sometimes it uses strange bitrates) to get the best overall quality/easiness. To make it very simple, you can think with little room for error that the more time it takes to encode, the best quality you get.
If you really want to understand what is encoding a video in a particular codec and look at the huge amount of parameters you can change, try to use another encoding tool, there are a lot out there, but they are far more complicated.

[dexxe]

To all having problems with subs in arabic.
Looking for something else around the internet I read that mencoder renders wrongly arabic subs if embedded in mkv streams but in the correct way if using an external srt file loaded with the option -sub on the command line. So, maybe if you extract the subs from the mkv and force mkv2vob to load them from the external file, maybe it will work.

Hope it helps.
thanks for the help ,but i already tried that ,i used external arabic subtitle and used the option to use it ,its still separated and written from left to right.
i am using english subtitle ,better than nothing ,i really need to change the size of the subtitle ,since they are small ,thx 3r1c.

[Sephiroth0000]

Still getting ERROR TRANSCODING on a different machine running Vista Ultimate, VistaCodecs, Haali Media Splitter....why am I getting this error?

[johny1989]

i am also getting corrupted file at parts 2
all the movies like that
fuck
yes i know you dont konow how to fix but its ok you have done great work

[Dark_Angel_PT]

I'm sorry if this has been asked, i tried to search...nothing showed up.

Why not convert the subtitles into Vobsubs and mux them into the Vob?
Will the PS3 accept it? Has anyone tried?
That would eliminate the need to transcode the video

[~bT~]

Still getting ERROR TRANSCODING on a different machine running Vista Ultimate, VistaCodecs, Haali Media Splitter....why am I getting this error?

file could be corrupt..

[Glorioso]

I'm sorry if this has been asked, i tried to search...nothing showed up.

Why not convert the subtitles into Vobsubs and mux them into the Vob?
Will the PS3 accept it? Has anyone tried?
That would eliminate the need to transcode the video

Não Dark Angel, a PS3 não lê as legendas no VOB, tem de ser "queimadas" no vídeo.

No, PS3 wont read that.

[clotz2000]

Will you guys please start downloading or ripping from a decent source. Get any 720p or 1080p release with DTS and you will have a very good version of any HD movie you want. If you like watching tv shows get the best version you can find, if they have AAC audio and crap it's not going to work properly or you'll be upset because of quality or audio performance. If you can't get good quality releases or rips for yourself there's not point in putting it through this High Quality Application. 3r1c is not concerned with issues that have to do with crappy files and sources. Now, don't take this as a flame but if you get good quality releases you will be much more happy with your results and will be more happy that you're not wasting your time.
Again, thanks go out to 3r1c for this great application and can be expecting a large donation from me soon.

[ajamils]

Will you guys please start downloading or ripping from a decent source. Get any 720p or 1080p release with DTS and you will have a very good version of any HD movie you want. If you like watching tv shows get the best version you can find, if they have AAC audio and crap it's not going to work properly or you'll be upset because of quality or audio performance. If you can't get good quality releases or rips for yourself there's not point in putting it through this High Quality Application. 3r1c is not concerned with issues that have to do with crappy files and sources. Now, don't take this as a flame but if you get good quality releases you will be much more happy with your results and will be more happy that you're not wasting your time.
Again, thanks go out to 3r1c for this great application and can be expecting a large donation from me soon.

Thanks for the insight. Pm me the link to a "good source" cuz most of the stuff on torrents is not working for me.

[darko_kun]

Hey guys first of I want to say thanks for this great program. I was just about to give up streaming hd movies via my ps3 then I found this little gem. Everything has been working fine and I couldnt be happier. But I have noticed that on certain files I get errors that say "error demuxing wav" it mostly happens with HD anime series that are fan subbed. So my question is is there a way around this? Or will this be fixed in the next version? :thanks:

[MrAngles]

Are you sure the Ps3 will play a mp4 with multiple audio streams?
How do you change audio tracks ?
Doesn't the Ps3 play aac 5.1 as stereo ?
And if this really works can you upload a sample ?

You can change audio streams in mp4s by using the audio button on your remote or using the audio options button in the triangle menu.

Ever since fw version 2.0 the PS3 plays multi-channel aac audio just fine, but unfortunately most receivers don't have an aac decoder built in, so it has to be transmitted in 2-channel PCM. If you have a receiver that decodes aac or plays multi-channel PCM via HDMI, multi-channel audio in MP4s works great.

[Dav3Th3Rav3]

You can change audio streams in mp4s by using the audio button on your remote or using the audio options button in the triangle menu.

Ever since fw version 2.0 the PS3 plays multi-channel aac audio just fine, but unfortunately most receivers don't have an aac decoder built in, so it has to be transmitted in 2-channel PCM. If you have a receiver that decodes aac or plays multi-channel PCM via HDMI, multi-channel audio in MP4s works great.

Yeah, Multichannel AAC Works For Me Too. Its Ether Depends On The Reciever Or Connection You Use. HDMI Or Optical. I'm Going To Test Tomorrow And See If Multichannel Works Over Optical, As It Works Over HDMI Right Now.

[FOSI]

Here are some of the other new features/enhancements that will be included in Firmware v2.20:

* The ability to copy PS3 Music and Photo playlists to a PSP system. We introduced the ability to create Music and Photo playlists on the PS3 in firmware update v2.0. Now you can easily export your playlists to your PSP.
* You can now play DivX and WMV format files that are over 2 GB.
* Resume Play - begin playing a DVD or BD disc from the point where you previously stopped it, even if you eject the disc and insert a different movie or game.
* Use your PSP as a remote control to play back your music files on your PS3 without turning on your TV.
* The Internet browser now displays some web pages faster. In addition [Save Target] has been added as an option under file. This option lets you save a file that is linked to a web page to your PS3 hard drive or storage media.

There are a few other tweaks and upgrades included in v2.20 - we’ll provide more specifics as the update is about to go live.


Released till the end of march!!!!!!!!

no mkv support yet...

[Sgt.BigNuts]

Thanks for the insight. Pm me the link to a "good source" cuz most of the stuff on torrents is not working for me.

That is probably because most crap on torrents is f*cked up s*it anyway, you get what you pay for to be honest with you, Use a good news provider and get the best quality stuff from Usenet. Everything works fine when using this brilliant program MKV2VOB for me.
Thanks again 3r1c, keep up the superb work friend.

[Sephiroth0000]

file could be corrupt..

File was definitely not corrupt as ripped from original disc. But I solved the issue anyway by reverting back to an older version of MKV2VOB... file works like a charm!

[johnmerrick]

can anyone recommend a way to split the mkv's safely before converting? ie: split them in half then load them into the folder?

thanks

[nunyabuizness]

i guess that with the new update, the 2gb splitting for xvid avi's would not be necessary. two questions though:

i never used mkv2vob with xvid transcoding? they do all play on the ps3 right?

and how does the size of the file compare to the original? would it be worth it, after the update, to convert everything to xvid avi?

[nunyabuizness]

can anyone recommend a way to split the mkv's safely before converting? ie: split them in half then load them into the folder?

thanks

use mkvmerge. go to the global tab and set splitting by size (assuming youre using a dvd9 file) and set it to between 4150M and 4200M. after transcoding ( if necessary) they will both fit on dual layer dvds. if that file doesnt need transcoding, both files should fit on dvd5's

if you are using a dvd5 rip that you want to fit on a dvd5, watch the file to a timecode in the credits and use mkvmerge to cut it off. usually within the first minute of the credits is good enough to remove the enough data to fit on a dvd5.

[3r1c]

i think the new ps3 update is buggy.
i played a 1.5gb avi last night, it cut off at 1gb.
splitting the file under 1gb both parts played fine.

do not split with mkvmerge. use mkv2vob split function.
mkvmerge does not split properly the x264 headers, this will cause mkv2vob to want to transcode the 2nd file when it may not be needed.

[ajamils]

i think the new ps3 update is buggy.
i played a 1.5gb avi last night, it cut off at 1gb.
splitting the file under 1gb both parts played fine.

do not split with mkvmerge. use mkv2vob split function.
mkvmerge does not split properly the x264 headers, this will cause mkv2vob to want to transcode the 2nd file when it may not be needed.

In mkv2vob, is there a way to just split the files without going through the whole conversion process ?

[Quatre]

i think the new ps3 update is buggy.
i played a 1.5gb avi last night, it cut off at 1gb.
splitting the file under 1gb both parts played fine.

do not split with mkvmerge. use mkv2vob split function.
mkvmerge does not split properly the x264 headers, this will cause mkv2vob to want to transcode the 2nd file when it may not be needed.

which new fw, 2.17? maybe 2.20 will be better.

I wanted to report to everyone and 3rlc that I got a Popcorn Hour networked media tank ........and it kind of sucks.

I got it cus it was cheap and its in demand and back ordered and i had the chance to get one figuring what the heck and so that it would play all the files that i currently have to use 360 and ps3. plus i wouldln't have to use mkv2vob on x264's as it plays mkv natively.

Well, so far i personally like wmvhd playback better on 360 and remuxed x264 etc on ps3 better.

Also, the first movie i tried. Vexille (anime) 1080p with DTS has no sound. I guess the pch can't do dts, so its no better then the ps3.

maybe there is a prog that will just recode the dts to something that the pch can play but i dont know of any and I mine as well just use mkv2vob on it which will recode the dts audio for me. now if it has to transcode the video also thats maybe an extra step that the pch doesnt' need, but while i'm doing the audio i mine as well just let mkv2vob do the the video and then just transfer it to my ps3 320gb internall hdd anyway.

the pch uses an internal ide hdd which is slow to transfer to via ethernet and i can't get it to see my pc or vice versa anyway and i have no ide hdd in it. i'm just using 2.5" ext. usb hdd's. its nice it can read from hfs+, ntfs and fat32 where as ps3 can only read fat32 (360 can read from fat32 and hfs+) so its nice the pch can read ntfs and still read the wmvhd from my hfs+ drive but i'm just not that impressed overall.

i may end up just putting it in my basement home theatre where i dont have a ps3 and keep ps3 in main tv room.


edit:
ok DTS does work on the Popcorn Hour once i set the HDMI audio setting in the receiver to off (no tv sound but now dts sound works through surround).

Problems, is i guess the device can't fully handle some 1080p files and maybe ones iwth dts , i dunno, because it doesnt play smooth, its all jumpy and the audio drops out sometims and i've seen other reports at least of the audio drop out.

so after all that i'm using mkv2vob on this movie anyway (Vexille 1080p eye candy cgi type anime) which of course has to transcode it to hardcode the english subs. I set the preferred audio track to japanese just in case (as that is the way to watch anime) it actully has an english audio track or something and i wouldnt 'want that.

I didn't realize that transcoding to mpeg-2 lost any quality but according to someones post earlier, that technically the slowest x264 encoding would be the closest to the original and least loss in quality after transcode. so i'm doing that and i've heard it takes like double or more the time so for a 1080p movie its probably going to be a long time. this is exactly why i got the popcorn hour and shame itdoesnt play smooth. maybe if i put an internal ide hdd in it and not play from ext. usb hdd but i doubt it. prob going to need a new fw update to fix.

[Sgt.BigNuts]

Hi,

Once i have converted my mkv, i usually just rename the .VOB file to .MPEG and send to my PS3 using Red Kawara ps3 media x.
Can someone tell me if i just put the .VOB file straight onto a DVD9 disc using the burn as a data disc option with Nero will i be able to watch this way, or will the ps3 not recognize the disc?. Or could someone tell me how to do this , just so i can then keep a hard copy of the movies i have converted, cheers to everyone who helps out on this forum.

[Quatre]

if the ps3 did native x264 and dts like the popcorn hour and subtitles i bet it would play this movie perfect whiile the popcorn hour chokes on it.

so disappointed.

edit: ran Vexille 1080p x264 with dts through mkv2vob with auto setting. x264 transcoding. japanese prefered audio language and english subs. made a file that ps3 says is corrupt and cant play....

but popcorn hour plays the file perfectly where as before as the original x264 with dts it didn't!

heh, so mkv2vob came through after all and at least it works on pch even if it doesn't on ps3.

edit again: actually i think the reason it is corrupt on ps3 is because the file name has ,'s in it and the [ ]'s might not have helped either.
because in looking at the file its only 1.89gb which can't be right from a 7.82 mkv.

i'm going to try mkv2vob on the file again after changing the file name and removing the ,'s and [ and ]

[nunyabuizness]

Hi,

Once i have converted my mkv, i usually just rename the .VOB file to .MPEG and send to my PS3 using Red Kawara ps3 media x.
Can someone tell me if i just put the .VOB file straight onto a DVD9 disc using the burn as a data disc option with Nero will i be able to watch this way, or will the ps3 not recognize the disc?. Or could someone tell me how to do this , just so i can then keep a hard copy of the movies i have converted, cheers to everyone who helps out on this forum.

you dont even have to rename the .vob file to .mpeg or .mpg. all of my videos (20+) from mkv2vob are vob's and burnt directly to dvd5's or dvd9's using nero, poweriso, or imgburn as a normal data disc.

[MrAngles]

Yeah, Multichannel AAC Works For Me Too. Its Ether Depends On The Reciever Or Connection You Use. HDMI Or Optical. I'm Going To Test Tomorrow And See If Multichannel Works Over Optical, As It Works Over HDMI Right Now.

Multichannel aac is transmitted perfectly over optical as long as the aac checkbox is checked in the audio settings on the PS3, then it's just a matter of whether or not your receiver will decode it. If your receiver does not decode aac, you will get no sound. If you do not check the aac box on the ps3, the audio will be converted to 2-channel PCM, which any receiver will accept over optical.

[Quatre]

man, that 1080p mkv file with L4.1 encoding and 4 ref frames prob wouldn't have needed transcoding if it weren't for needing to hardcode the subs for ps3.

its an eye candy 1080p anime so i wanted the best quality and set the transcode to x264

it took all day and night long. is the quality really better when transcoding to x264 as opposed to the faster mpeg-2?

i didnt' realize that mpeg-2 was so inferior in quality especially when that used to be the only transcoding choice for this program.

is it just a very minimal barely noticeable difference for a huge amount of time difference type of thing?

either way i did it so i'll now have an x264 file with ac3 that should play on the ps3 and on the popcorn hour (as the original mkv played stuttery at times on the pch and the pch has problems with dts currently)

shame files have to be transcoded just to hardcode the subs and that dts still hasnt' gotten on board with the ps3.

so again, is transcoding to x264 as opposed to mpeg-2 really worth the huge longer amount of time it takes?

[lazarusbf]

Hello
what encoding options give the best results when original files are about 41 minutes videos that are broadcasted once a week, mkv hdtv 720p x264-CTU ?

NB my output settings so far are: file splitting none (video source is only 1,1Go) / video transcoding automatic / boost AAC and DTS is checked / transcoding x264 slow / output file mpeg (should i use VOB or something else for a better result ?)

thanks

[neuromax]

so again, is transcoding to x264 as opposed to mpeg-2 really worth the huge longer amount of time it takes?

at the same bitrate, codecs advanced as x264 give you better results than less advanced codecs as xvid or divx, if you use much higher bitrates MPEG2 still delivers great quality and is less power-demanding in encoding and decoding. So, if you dont mind a 3 GB files MPEG2 because you are streaming it, go for the mpeg2, the only reason to use x264 is to have smaller files to keep the files for collection/archiving. I watch tv shows, and then I delete the files. So I go for MPEG2.

[forumhound]

Hi all

I've donated (paypaluk), well worth it...this is an excellent program.

I have an .mkv file which contains two audio streams, 1 x german, 1 x english. I have english selected as my preferred language in mkv2vob, but the film is still in German once converted.. Any ideas ??

Thanks