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View Full Version : review my process please, and correct my mistakes


-i-
19th February 2002, 20:34
OK, as some of you have read, I am starting to capture VHS and migrate them to DVD via DVDit! PE, but I have a feeling I am either missing a step, or something (sorry if some of these questions were already posted by me, I wanted to put them in one post, so I can get a clear answer)...

first, here is the machine:

AMD 1600XP @ 1.533 (prime can run for days with no errors)
2x256 crucial 2100 DDR (no mem errors)
Abit KR7A-Raid (not running raid though)
ATI All In Wonder Radeon 8500dv
Soundblaster Audigy Platnium
40gig IBM Deskstar as C:/
60gig IBM Deskstar as my capture drive
Pioneer A03 DVD-R
DVD-R General disks from americal.com
cheap samsung VCR (I plan on replacing)

first I capture with vdub 1.4.7, 352x480 (so as to capture both fields in the virtical), YUY2, compress via Huffyuv 2.1.1 @ "predict median". 29.97fps. Audio is captured at 44.1 PCM, I get only a handfull of dropped frames :)

I then throw the capture file into vdub again, to size it. I also compress it again, and I usually just use divx 3.11, only because I am familiar with it. I would like to resize and go straight to MPEG2, but VDUB doesn't seem to have a MPEG2 codec. Any suggestions as to doing a resize AND a good compress at the same time?? If I don't compress, I get a nice fat 100+gig file, which isn't a good thing ;-]

I am looking into the stand alone MPEG2 encoders, like CCE, but I have 2 problems, I can't find the free ones that are any good, and I am still at a loss as to what to compress with in vdub when I do a re-size.

anyways, after I get my resize to 704x340 (is that an appropriate resolution?) and compress the video, while leaving the audio in 44.1 PCM, I then load the AVI into DVDit! PE, and do my authoring. I then set the output to all the appropriate settings for a 4.7 DVD-R, and I should be good to go??


some extras:

I do NOT do IVTC, because these DVD's will be viewed on a TV only. Am I right in that notion??

These captures have to be *exact* as the source, it is a project for my family, we have alot of VHS that are not on DVD, and they are rare or old. But if the DVD video os less in quality, I have to eat the cost of equipment!!!

I frequent this forum and site, VCDHELP, and especially lukesvideo guides, just so you know where I am getting my ideas and info. Lukesvideo is what I rely on for capturing in vdub.

thanks for any input!!!

Chumboy
19th February 2002, 21:15
have only done this twice, but not with reducing the file size:

capture to avi file from vcr tape
import into adobe premiere
do your editing
save timeline through LSX plug-in.
import into dvdit-pe
make menu's
burn

works fine.

here are the specs that DVDit-PE likes:


Here are the settings that should be accepted w/o conversion:

Audio
WAVE Audio for Windows 48 kHz, 8-, 16-, or 20-bit stereo (.wav)
MPEG-1 Layer 2 Audio 44.1/48 kHz, 8-, 16-, or 20-bit stereo (.mpa, .abs)
Dolby Digital (DVDit! PE only) 48 kHz, 8-, 16-, or 20-bit stereo Bit-rate: 96 Ü 448 kbps (.ac3)

PARAMETER NTSC (525 lines @ 60 Hz) PAL (625 lines @ 50 Hz)

Recommended source picture resolution:
NTSC 720 x 480,704 x 480, 352 x 480, 352 x 240
PAL 720 x 576, 704 x 576, 352 x 576, 352 x 288


Frame rate:
NTSC 29.97 Hz
PAL 25 Hz

Maximum GOP (Group of Pictures) size:
36 fields (18 frames) maximum
30 fields (15 frames) maximum


Aspect ratio:
4:3

MPEG-2 bit-rate
Constant bit-rate (CBR) or variable bit-rate (VBR)
2.0 - 8.3/9.4 Mbps

If you use PCM audio in a project, the maximum video bit-rate is 8.0 Mbps. If you use Dolby Digital (DVDit! PE only), the maximum is 9.4 Mbps. The combined video and audio bit-rate must not exceed 9.8 Mbps.

The DVD specification also requires a sequence header before each GOP (the sequence header contains information about the MPEG stream, such as aspect ratio, GOP size and bit-rate).

Chumboy
19th February 2002, 21:22
oh, yea...i've done it with virtualdub using Divx codec 4.12.

-i-
19th February 2002, 21:29
thanks!!


how do you set the sequence header though (That's the I frame, right?)

-i-
19th February 2002, 21:30
one more question, what format is your capture??

is it huffyuv??