clever FFmpeg-GUI, small FFmpeg UI, fully portable, no installation.

[ProWo]

Hi Lathe,
I think the 1st is the right one.
Load the full movie, click main page, click encode video, select stream 0 and go further.
If this isn't working, try stream 1.
If this fails too, extract the 1st videostream only and work with this one.

[ProWo]

Newest beta (v3.3.1.02), online now.

Fixed:
Bug in missing value assignment for destination folder after first start (thx to oniiz86 for the hint).
Bug in batch tasks handling.
Bugs in hardware supported encoding for h264_amf, hevc_amf, h264_nvenv, hevc_nvenc (thx to Findu for testing support).
Bug in concat list handling (cut section).

Changed:
Default flag handling in muxing grid (thx to neptune84 for the hint).

Hardware supported encoding should work now for the following video codecs:
h264_qsv + hevc_qsv (Intel GPUs), 264_amf + hevc_amf (AMD GPUs), h264_nvenc + hevc_nvenc (nVidia GPUs).

Prerequisites:
FFmpeg static or shared, full version
Newest drivers for your hardware.

[ProWo]

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
November 14 2024 release version 3.3.2.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Added:
-tag:v hvc1 for hevc streams muxing (thx to neptune84 for the hint).

Fixed:
Bugs in profile, preset and tune selections (for AMD and nVidia HW supported encoding).
Bug in chapters handling.
Bug with faststart for mp4 and mov muxing.
Bug in missing value assignment for destination folder after first start (thx to oniiz86 for the hint).
Bug in batch tasks handling.
Bugs in hardware supported encoding for h264_amf, hevc_amf, h264_nvenv, hevc_nvenc (thx to Findu for testing support).
Bug in concat list handling (cut section).
Bug with rows sort in mux and batch grid.
Bug in batch simple remux.

Improved:
Many small code improvements.

Changed:
Ac3 decoder DRC set to on (default), if not recoded to ac3.
Default flag handling in muxing grid (thx to neptune84 for the hint).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NOTE: If you're already using clever FFmpeg-GUI, replace the exe only with the new version.
Leave the other files to keep the previous settings.

[ProWo]

Newest beta (v3.3.2.01), online now.

Fixed:
Bug in video encoder quality value change (thx to Findu for the hint).

Improved:
Colorspace handling.
HDR to SDR code.

[ProWo]

Newest beta (v3.3.2.02), online now.

Added:
Crop video (metadata only, for h264 and hevc, without recoding). Not supported by all players. Thx to videoAI for the hint.

Fixed:
Bug in output file naming in the multiplex grid (thx to onlinedragon for the hint).

Improved:
av1 encoding ( (libaom-av1, libsvtav1, librav1e, av1_amf now with separate settings. Thx to Findu for the hint.).
Encoding with LUT's.
Colorspace handling.

Changed:
Colors of some buttons (useful on dark themes, thx to videoAI for the hint).
removed tune settings for not supporting encoders (h264_amf, h264_qsv, hevc_amf, hevc_qsv, thx to Findu for the hint.)

[jimbobub]

I'm unable to produce pillarboxes. I enter 960x720 in frame size and 1280 pad width and 720 pad height and the display is 4:3 with no pillarboxes. I'm looking for 1280x720 with 4:3 video with pillarboxes. I've tried ar with 1.33 and 1.78 and no effect. Thanks.

[ProWo]

I'm unable to produce pillarboxes. I enter 960x720 in frame size and 1280 pad width and 720 pad height and the display is 4:3 with no pillarboxes. I'm looking for 1280x720 with 4:3 video with pillarboxes. I've tried ar with 1.33 and 1.78 and no effect. Thanks.
You are right. I have tested this and confirm the bug. I will fix it with the next beta, which goes online tomorrow.

[ProWo]

Newest beta (v3.3.2.03), online now.

Added:
Automatic online check for newer release.
vp9 lossless encoding.

Fixed:
Bug in video padding (thx to jimbobub for the hint).

Improved:
Used ffmpeg version check.

Changed:
Cut section: ffplay is used instead of virtualdub2 in video cut points searching, because the latter shows wrong frame times.

[ProWo]

Newest beta (v3.3.2.04), online now.

Fixed:
Video encoding:
Bug with ghost info box.
Bug with doubled messages after encoding/aborting.
Bug with aborted search LUTs action.
(thx to Findu for this hints).

Improved:
Start behavior.

[jimbobub]

Before I begin thanks for all your effect put into this program. The resizing and borders are working with the updates. There is an issue with no video duration. I first demuxed with tsmuxer r, a 264 video and an mpa audio produced with staxrip. Staxrip does not keep audio and video in sink. Back to Clever, the video doesn't have a duration listed in mediainfo either. Clever asks me to input a frame rate. I entered in one listed from mediainfo, 59.839. After pressing ok it seems that it is working on it but then and quickly the same window pops up asking me to enter a fps again. I cannot close the window, as it keeps coming back, nor can it be exited. Task manager has to be used to shut the program down. Thanks.

[ProWo]

Before I begin thanks for all your effect put into this program. The resizing and borders are working with the updates. There is an issue with no video duration. I first demuxed with tsmuxer r, a 264 video and an mpa audio produced with staxrip. Staxrip does not keep audio and video in sink. Back to Clever, the video doesn't have a duration listed in mediainfo either. Clever asks me to input a frame rate. I entered in one listed from mediainfo, 59.839. After pressing ok it seems that it is working on it but then and quickly the same window pops up asking me to enter a fps again. I cannot close the window, as it keeps coming back, nor can it be exited. Task manager has to be used to shut the program down. Thanks.
You are right, this is a bug and will be corrected in the next beta.
just two comments:
59.839 is not a correct frame rate.
Instead of using tsmuxer to extract the two streams, you can also simply load the staxrip video into clever FFmpeg GUI, click main page, click multiplex.
Here you can enter any delay for the audio stream and simply mux it again.
But for a more detailed analysis you would have to post a mediainfo report (text mode) of the original video (before editing with staxrip) and of the staxrip video here.

[ProWo]

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
December 09, 2024 release version 3.3.3.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Added:
Crop video (metadata only, for h264 and hevc, without recoding). Not supported by all players. Thx to videoAI for the hint.
Automatic online check for newer release.
vp9 lossless encoding.

Fixed:
Bug in output file naming in the multiplex grid (thx to onlinedragon for the hint).
bug in loading 264 raw video stream (thx to jimbobub for the hint)
In video encoding section:
Bug in video encoder quality value change (thx to Findu for the hint).
Bug in video padding (thx to jimbobub for the hint).
Bug with ghost info box.
Bug with doubled messages after encoding/aborting.
Bug with aborted search LUTs action.
(thx to Findu for this hints).

Improved:
Colorspace handling.
HDR to SDR code.
av1 encoding ( (libaom-av1, libsvtav1, librav1e, av1_amf now with separate settings. Thx to Findu for the hint.).
Encoding with LUT's.
Colorspace handling.
Used ffmpeg version check.
Start behavior.

Changed:
Removed tune settings for not supporting encoders (h264_amf, h264_qsv, hevc_amf, hevc_qsv, thx to Findu for the hint.)
Cut section: ffplay is used instead of virtualdub2 in video cut points searching, because the latter shows wrong frame times.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NOTE: If you're already using clever FFmpeg-GUI, replace the exe only with the new version.
Leave the other files to keep the previous settings.

[jimbobub]

From Staxrip

General
Unique ID : 182387714876773703008533453416908514774 (0x8936989DBDFCA14FC657FBCF848CE5D6)
Complete name : C:\Users\fluffy\Documents\PROGRAMS\FFmpegstoredfolders\VTS_01_1.mkv
Format : Matroska
Format version : Version 4
File size : 690 MiB
Duration : 25 min 17 s
Overall bit rate : 3 817 kb/s
Frame rate : 59.839 FPS
Encoded date : 2024-12-08 23:36:16 UTC
Writing application : mkvmerge v86.0 ('Winter') 64-bit
Writing library : libebml v1.4.5 + libmatroska v1.7.1

Video
ID : 1
Format : AVC
Format/Info : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile : High@L3.1
Format settings : CABAC / 4 Ref Frames
Format settings, CABAC : Yes
Format settings, Reference frames : 4 frames
Codec ID : V_MPEG4/ISO/AVC
Duration : 25 min 17 s
Bit rate : 3 589 kb/s
Width : 720 pixels
Height : 540 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 4:3
Frame rate mode : Constant
Frame rate : 59.839 FPS
Standard : NTSC
Color space : YUV
Chroma subsampling : 4:2:0
Bit depth : 8 bits
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.154
Stream size : 649 MiB (94%)
Writing library : x264 core 164 r3191+1 e3de8e8 [Mod by Patman]
Encoding settings : cabac=1 / ref=3 / deblock=1:0:0 / analyse=0x3:0x113 / me=hex / subme=7 / psy=1 / psy_rd=1.00:0.00 / mixed_ref=1 / me_range=16 / chroma_me=1 / trellis=1 / 8x8dct=1 / cqm=0 / deadzone=21,11 / fast_pskip=1 / chroma_qp_offset=-2 / threads=17 / lookahead_threads=2 / sliced_threads=0 / nr=0 / decimate=1 / interlaced=0 / bluray_compat=0 / constrained_intra=0 / bframes=3 / b_pyramid=2 / b_adapt=1 / b_bias=0 / direct=1 / weightb=1 / open_gop=0 / weightp=2 / keyint=250 / keyint_min=25 / scenecut=40 / intra_refresh=0 / rc_lookahead=40 / rc=crf / mbtree=1 / crf=20.0 / qcomp=0.60 / qpmin=0 / qpmax=69 / qpstep=4 / ip_ratio=1.40 / aq=1:1.00
Default : Yes
Forced : No
Color range : Limited
Color primaries : BT.709
Transfer characteristics : BT.709
Matrix coefficients : BT.709

Audio
ID : 2
Format : MPEG Audio
Format version : Version 1
Format profile : Layer 2
Codec ID : A_MPEG/L2
Codec ID/Hint : MP2
Duration : 25 min 17 s
Bit rate mode : Constant
Bit rate : 224 kb/s
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Sampling rate : 48.0 kHz
Frame rate : 41.667 FPS (1152 SPF)
Compression mode : Lossy
Delay relative to video : 24 ms
Stream size : 40.5 MiB (6%)
Default : No
Forced : No

Original Video

General
Complete name : C:\Users\fluffy\Documents\PROGRAMS\FFmpegstoredfolders\VTS_01_1.VOB
Format : MPEG-PS
File size : 977 MiB
Duration : 25 min 17 s
Overall bit rate mode : Variable
Overall bit rate : 5 400 kb/s
Frame rate : 29.970 FPS

Video
ID : 224 (0xE0)
Format : MPEG Video
Format version : Version 2
Format profile : Main@Main
Format settings : BVOP
Format settings, BVOP : Yes
Format settings, Matrix : Default
Format settings, GOP : M=3, N=15
Format settings, picture structure : Frame
Duration : 25 min 17 s
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 5 069 kb/s
Maximum bit rate : 4 999 kb/s
Width : 720 pixels
Height : 480 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 4:3
Frame rate : 29.970 (30000/1001) FPS
Standard : NTSC
Color space : YUV
Chroma subsampling : 4:2:0
Bit depth : 8 bits
Scan type : Interlaced
Scan order : Top Field First
Compression mode : Lossy
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.489
Time code of first frame : 00:00:00:00
Time code source : Group of pictures header
GOP, Open/Closed : Closed
Stream size : 917 MiB (94%)
Color primaries : BT.601 NTSC
Transfer characteristics : BT.601
Matrix coefficients : BT.601

Audio
ID : 192 (0xC0)
Format : MPEG Audio
Format version : Version 1
Format profile : Layer 2
Duration : 25 min 17 s
Bit rate mode : Constant
Bit rate : 224 kb/s
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Sampling rate : 48.0 kHz
Frame rate : 41.667 FPS (1152 SPF)
Compression mode : Lossy
Delay relative to video : 24 ms
Stream size : 40.5 MiB (4%)

Menu
Format : DVD-Video

The original video plays fine (vob). It is in sync on all of my players such as vlc, mpc be and the dvd it was from on the dvd and the bluray player.
When processed with staxrip, ripbot and hybrid all are out of sync. When processed with Clever, Handbrake and Avidemux all are in sync.
I was hoping to use qtgmc as the deinterlacer. I did try a remux with clever but i had the same out of sync issue. Using different encoders
in staxrip gave me different lengths for the video. I tried adjusting the audio length with clever. Sometimes I was able to get good sync
at the beginning but was off nearing the end or sync was off at the beginning and on at the end. This was with the video and audio being
the same length. I also tried with leaving the video and audio as is(no changing length of the audio) when remuxing, no luck.

[ProWo]

The original video plays fine (vob). It is in sync on all of my players such as vlc, mpc be and the dvd it was from on the dvd and the bluray player.
When processed with staxrip, ripbot and hybrid all are out of sync. When processed with Clever, Handbrake and Avidemux all are in sync.
I was hoping to use qtgmc as the deinterlacer. I did try a remux with clever but i had the same out of sync issue. Using different encoders
in staxrip gave me different lengths for the video. I tried adjusting the audio length with clever. Sometimes I was able to get good sync
at the beginning but was off nearing the end or sync was off at the beginning and on at the end. This was with the video and audio being
the same length. I also tried with leaving the video and audio as is(no changing length of the audio) when remuxing, no luck.
Did you explicitly specify the output framerate of 29.97 fps (or 59.94 fps) in staxrip, hybrid and ripbot?
If not, the output after qtgmc is no longer 29.97fps (or 59.94 fps).

[jimbobub]

I did specify when experimenting with changefps at 59.94. It would be 59.94 in mediainfo. The sync was still off. In the 59.839 example, I figured just letting staxrip do a 2 for 1 frames that the sync would be ok but no luck. I tried yadif bob and qtgmc both which deinterlace each field.

[jimbobub]

I forgot to add that in staxrip some of the decoders would show the source video as 29.97 while others would show as 29.919. I tried them all.

[ProWo]

I forgot to add that in staxrip some of the decoders would show the source video as 29.97 while others would show as 29.919. I tried them all.
You could also try muxing the staxrip video stream with the original audio stream. It could be that the audio stream was damaged during encoding with staxrip.

(This is why clever FFmpeg-GUI processes the streams separately).

To test this, start clever FFmpeg-GUI, load the staxrip video, click main page, click multiplex, drag the original video into the grid.
Deselect all streams first and select then the staxrip videostream and the original audiostream. Finally click multiplex.

[jimbobub]

Thanks for you help thus far. I did try your suggestion above. It seems that ffmpeg works fine if everything stays in that universe but with avisynth or vapoursynth the audio sync is off.

[Lathe]

I have one of those UHD rips in a BDMV/CERT folder where the main movie isn't just one file, but is I guess divided up into many small files. Since your program can only open 1 file, is there any way to load this full movie into it?

Maybe there is a way to import it into BDRB and it can create a single complete m2ts file...

Thanks!

***EDIT

Okay, I did import it into BDRB and it SEEMED to create a single m2ts file of the whole movie just fine which plays perfectly well on VLC. BUT... when I imported it into your program it threw an error when trying to execute. I had set it of course to do a HDR-SDR UHD-HD conversion as I always do. This is the error it showed:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczPdCIeY8-JVe6_WJXp4JHzKSJRI7G2GQxh8QWFZyObsPqSX1AAy0UGavsfMHJmamrj0NLfyP6bKqWpDWx1xWYFzCozjAvkBJU59Ggz94oSYyYNVpOfr5WUVOrLIcIq6T2EVuZZ-bQyyeTURbczlTWBHXA=w443-h141-s-no-gm?authuser=0

It's a real shame because I do have the full movie nicely in a software playable file, but Clever FFMpeg just won't run it.

BTW, it has one of the dual HEVC video files where I THINK the 2nd video file is the DV information. But, the last time I simply chose a the 'Video' file in your program when it also had dual video files like this one, it ran it and did just fine. I don't know what is different about this one.

This is the BT_Open txt information after the error:

Video ---> x264 (avc) - Stream ID 0 from?D:\__BDRB\00000.m2ts?6902103?-hide_banner -loglevel error -stats -y -fflags +genpts -i "D:\__BDRB\00000.m2ts" -vf fps=24000/1001,scale=1920:1080,zscale=t=linear:npl=200,tonemap=mobius:desat=0,zscale=t=0:p=0:m=0,sidedata=delete,colorspace=all=bt709:iall=bt2020,format=yuv420p -map 0:0 -c:v libx264 -profile:v high -preset medium -tune film -crf 17 -aspect 1.78 -an -sn -dn -metadata:g encoding_tool="clever FFmpeg-GUI" ?E:\TSMUXER\00000_V0.mkv

***EDIT 2

Okay, so I extracted just the primary video file of the 2 HEVC files using your program. But, after doing that and then trying to choose the extracted file (which still played just fine in VLC) I got the exact same error as I show above.

So, now I am using Handbrake, and yes, it seems to be taking the same extracted file and encoding it just fine to SDR HD. I play tested the resulting SDR 1080 file and it seems to play just fine. I wonder why Clever FFMpeg wouldn't work with it...?

[GeoffreyA]

I have one of those UHD rips in a BDMV/CERT folder where the main movie isn't just one file, but is I guess divided up into many small files. Since your program can only open 1 file, is there any way to load this full movie into it?

Maybe there is a way to import it into BDRB and it can create a single complete m2ts file...

Thanks!

***EDIT

Okay, I did import it into BDRB and it SEEMED to create a single m2ts file of the whole movie just fine which plays perfectly well on VLC. BUT... when I imported it into your program it threw an error when trying to execute. I had set it of course to do a HDR-SDR UHD-HD conversion as I always do. This is the error it showed:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczPdCIeY8-JVe6_WJXp4JHzKSJRI7G2GQxh8QWFZyObsPqSX1AAy0UGavsfMHJmamrj0NLfyP6bKqWpDWx1xWYFzCozjAvkBJU59Ggz94oSYyYNVpOfr5WUVOrLIcIq6T2EVuZZ-bQyyeTURbczlTWBHXA=w443-h141-s-no-gm?authuser=0

It's a real shame because I do have the full movie nicely in a software playable file, but Clever FFMpeg just won't run it.

BTW, it has one of the dual HEVC video files where I THINK the 2nd video file is the DV information. But, the last time I simply chose a the 'Video' file in your program when it also had dual video files like this one, it ran it and did just fine. I don't know what is different about this one.

This is the BT_Open txt information after the error:

Video ---> x264 (avc) - Stream ID 0 from?D:\__BDRB\00000.m2ts?6902103?-hide_banner -loglevel error -stats -y -fflags +genpts -i "D:\__BDRB\00000.m2ts" -vf fps=24000/1001,scale=1920:1080,zscale=t=linear:npl=200,tonemap=mobius:desat=0,zscale=t=0:p=0:m=0,sidedata=delete,colorspace=all=bt709:iall=bt2020,format=yuv420p -map 0:0 -c:v libx264 -profile:v high -preset medium -tune film -crf 17 -aspect 1.78 -an -sn -dn -metadata:g encoding_tool="clever FFmpeg-GUI" ?E:\TSMUXER\00000_V0.mkv

***EDIT 2

Okay, so I extracted just the primary video file of the 2 HEVC files using your program. But, after doing that and then trying to choose the extracted file (which still played just fine in VLC) I got the exact same error as I show above.

So, now I am using Handbrake, and yes, it seems to be taking the same extracted file and encoding it just fine to SDR HD. I play tested the resulting SDR 1080 file and it seems to play just fine. I wonder why Clever FFMpeg wouldn't work with it...?

MakeMKV tends to work nicely for creating a single file.

[ProWo]

Okay, I did import it into BDRB and it SEEMED to create a single m2ts file of the whole movie just fine which plays perfectly well on VLC. BUT... when I imported it into your program it threw an error when trying to execute. I had set it of course to do a HDR-SDR UHD-HD conversion as I always do.
This is the BT_Open txt information after the error:

Video ---> x264 (avc) - Stream ID 0 from?D:\__BDRB\00000.m2ts?6902103?-hide_banner -loglevel error -stats -y -fflags +genpts -i "D:\__BDRB\00000.m2ts" -vf fps=24000/1001,scale=1920:1080,zscale=t=linear:npl=200,tonemap=mobius:desat=0,zscale=t=0:p=0:m=0,sidedata=delete,colorspace=all=bt709:iall=bt2020,format=yuv420p -map 0:0 -c:v libx264 -profile:v high -preset medium -tune film -crf 17 -aspect 1.78 -an -sn -dn -metadata:g encoding_tool="clever FFmpeg-GUI" ?E:\TSMUXER\00000_V0.mkv
Hi Lathe,
found the error:
Delete this from the line above:
,zscale=t=0:p=0:m=0
then it should work.
I'll fix this in the next beta.

[Lathe]

MakeMKV tends to work nicely for creating a single file.

Ah... I hadn't realized that MakeMKV would do UHD folders. So, I guess I'd just open the BDMV folder like I would a regular Blu-ray or whatever, right?

But yeah, if that works with UHD folders then that would be most helpful.

But, like I mentioned above, Clever FFMpeg would not process the resulting single file, however it WAS instrumental in extracting just the actual HEVC movie file, but then it wouldn't process it. But, so far Handbrake seems to be doing okay with it.

[GeoffreyA]

Ah... I hadn't realized that MakeMKV would do UHD folders. So, I guess I'd just open the BDMV folder like I would a regular Blu-ray or whatever, right?

But yeah, if that works with UHD folders then that would be most helpful.

But, like I mentioned above, Clever FFMpeg would not process the resulting single file, however it WAS instrumental in extracting just the actual HEVC movie file, but then it wouldn't process it. But, so far Handbrake seems to be doing okay with it.

I haven't tried it with UHD, so fingers crossed.

[ProWo]

Newest beta (v3.3.3.01), online now.

Fixed:
Bug in HDR to SDR tonemapping (thx to Lathe for the hint).

[Lathe]

Hi Lathe,
found the error:
Delete this from the line above:
,zscale=t=0:p=0:m=0
then it should work.
I'll fix this in the next beta.

Oh wow, I'm glad the information was helpful! :)

Um... when you say 'Delete the line', does that mean that I simply leave that text file in the output folder, but EDIT the content of it as you say by deleting that section and saving the text file in that same output folder, right? Then, do I close the program and re-open it and somehow it will read that edited file the next time it opens, and THEN I can import the same source file and it will now be able to encode it?

Thanks!

[Lathe]

Newest beta (v3.3.3.01), online now.

Fixed:
Bug in HDR to SDR tonemapping (thx to Lathe for the hint).

Awesome! So, I've usually waited for the complete release as I just did here recently. But, I guess in this case, I should go ahead and download this new Beta release, right? Should I do that each time you release a Beta update also? Thanks!

[Lathe]

I haven't tried it with UHD, so fingers crossed.

Well, if not, thankfully BDRB is good in collecting all those little files and putting them together in one m2ts file. I've always been curious why they do that? Actually, I was rather surprised to see that they did that with this new 4k release. I don't remember seeing that for quite some time now. I always figured it was some kind of anti-piracy thing, IDK...

@ProWo Do you think there is a way your program can import a folder instead of just a file like the way BDRB does? Because I guess in cases like this where the main movie file is divided into many smaller files, then by being able to open the BDMV folder, could your program somehow also collate all those pieces and then import it in order to encode the entire movie file?

Oh, and also, what's the deal with the dual HEVC video files anyway? I read that the smaller 2nd one is DV information. I THINK your program did the last one that was like that just fine when I just chose the 'video' stream to reencode. I think that time it somehow imported it properly. Perhaps because of that particular line error you mentioned, that may have been the holdup this time and maybe normally it will read the dual HEVC files properly.

[Lathe]

Oh, sorry, just thought of something else... we can always just take the new .exe file in the newest version and simply replace it in the folder version we are currently using, right?

[ProWo]

Oh, sorry, just thought of something else... we can always just take the new .exe file in the newest version and simply replace it in the folder version we are currently using, right?
Exact

[Lathe]

Exact

Thanks!

Do you think there is a way your program can import a folder instead of just a file like the way BDRB does? Because I guess in cases like this where the main movie file is divided into many smaller files, then by being able to open the BDMV folder, could your program somehow also collate all those pieces and then import it in order to encode the entire movie file?

Oh, and also, what's the deal with the dual HEVC video files anyway? I read that the smaller 2nd one is DV information. I THINK your program did the last one that was like that just fine when I just chose the 'video' stream to reencode. I think that time it somehow imported it properly. Perhaps because of that particular line error you mentioned, that may have been the holdup this time and maybe normally it will read the dual HEVC files properly.

[gonca]

Ah... I hadn't realized that MakeMKV would do UHD folders. So, I guess I'd just open the BDMV folder like I would a regular Blu-ray or whatever, right?

Actually, try to use the playlist instead.
This way you can keep chapters, etc
You can use MakeMKV, MKVToolNIX or TsMuxer to do this.
I assume your files are decrypted.

[ProWo]

Thanks!

Do you think there is a way your program can import a folder instead of just a file like the way BDRB does? Because I guess in cases like this where the main movie file is divided into many smaller files, then by being able to open the BDMV folder, could your program somehow also collate all those pieces and then import it in order to encode the entire movie file?

I can do that if ffmpeg is able to combine these files. To test this, you need to make me a list of all the files in the folder and tell me the complete path to this folder and the folder name. Then I can send you an ffmpeg command line that you can test.


Oh, and also, what's the deal with the dual HEVC video files anyway? I read that the smaller 2nd one is DV information. I THINK your program did the last one that was like that just fine when I just chose the 'video' stream to reencode. I think that time it somehow imported it properly. Perhaps because of that particular line error you mentioned, that may have been the holdup this time and maybe normally it will read the dual HEVC files properly.
The 1st videostream shoud be the normal videotream, the 2nd one the dolbyvision data. The last beta should read and convert the 1st one without problems.

[ProWo]

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
December 11, 2024 release version 3.3.4.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fixed:
Bug in HDR to SDR tonemapping (thx to Lathe for the hint).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Lathe]

Actually, try to use the playlist instead.
This way you can keep chapters, etc
You can use MakeMKV, MKVToolNIX or TsMuxer to do this.
I assume your files are decrypted.

I've never tried that, thanks!

[Lathe]

I can do that if ffmpeg is able to combine these files. To test this, you need to make me a list of all the files in the folder and tell me the complete path to this folder and the folder name. Then I can send you an ffmpeg command line that you can test.


The 1st videostream shoud be the normal videotream, the 2nd one the dolbyvision data. The last beta should read and convert the 1st one without problems.

Yep, I'm pretty sure the last one read the 'Video' dual file the last time.

I THINK I see what you are asking about the multiple files making up the movie. I'll try to do that (if I can...) Strange that we only seem to come across this once in a while. I wonder what the parameters are for them to decide to divide up the movie file like that because it doesn't seem like they usually do that very much any more.

[Lathe]

Okay, this is a bit odd...

I did the original encode UHD-HD HDR-SDR with Handbrake since we hadn't figured out Clever FFMpeg yet. And then, after you updated the program I wanted to redo it to compare. Well, I'm in the process of reencoding it, and I tested a snippet of the resulting MKV file and it looks WAY darker than the Handbrake encode! I used the same settings I've always used, HDR to SDR with Mobius and a desaturation of '2' and of course a resize to HD. I don't understand why it looks SO dark and different?

The first picture is from the Handbrake encode and the 2nd is from Clever FFMpeg. I mean, I really dig the sharper highlights and more vivid contrast and deeper colours of Clever FFMpeg, as a matter of fact, EVERYTHING about it looks great, but it is SO dark...?

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczOH5kbslZYfd12mwN0rNfKa7gqWtiVQx1Az9qvaLWTHmwTqDSEMf6TISsbZnlZrx58j0ns8DYbMiwIqEePsRoxBnG4aeg1z1aYCyjMNGC88PraQwxLDHlI9W41RCDcYPI_7sLXxOQn0Mz-avT_gLS5grQ=w1004-h409-s-no-gm?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczNSETpYBnlHC7636GF0FipbbLtc5u_vDWaGM90_kPIQyfsJKNxagSjcNnNuH3RydlkCwLZb67X_wCMy5awjiBHGarmqSczyZCZn8Tc02VATscVgLNKzynqW75LhfurZCzK4LUHBDlEP0ayiY-CPye5R5g=w954-h494-s-no-gm?authuser=0

[gonca]

@Lathe
Can you compare the two command lines and look for the differences?
Clever ffmpeg and handbrake use ffmpeg.

[Lathe]

@Lathe
Can you compare the two command lines and look for the differences?
Clever ffmpeg and handbrake use ffmpeg.

Ooh, I don't know how to do that (especially after the fact) I used the standard setting for both for UHD-HD HDR-SDR conversion. The BT709 filter with handbrake. To me the Handbrake one looks a tad washed out. I used the same, standard settings with Clever FFMpeg, HDR-SDR, etc, with Mobius and a desaturation of 2. I'm trying to use 'Brightness' on Clever FFMpeg, but I can't seem to get the setting right, I guess I'll just hafta experiment. What's throwing me off, is I can't tell what the 'Neutral' brightness, contrast, etc., settings are. It LOOKS like the defaults already boost something, but I don't know if for example '1' on brightness means it's being boosted or if '0' on contrast means it's not affecting it. Very confusing!

Here is what the default screen looks like. So, with these untouched settings, is it already boosting something, or do I assume it is already set to a default where nothing is boosted? And, is THIS saturation setting going to override what I chose in the HDR-SDR conversion? So, should I also set it to -2 (desaturation of 2 on the HDR-SDR setting) or do I leave it at zero?

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczOql5OGct9DnHJFpnZ01ClKfpC3YU49rj6_sHif-_gj7PWm_ZHOrsQqkfma7mxm2wU9VGyuHuNxuAitjQeFY3NcgWSdGJUbWPDXIm6nIu0zWkKbXzchv95r40MvrdhvalkExjjFU6gZvy8oHjdOq1hkNQ=w349-h317-s-no-gm?authuser=0

[gonca]

try setting brightness to 2.0
just encode a small sample for testing purposes

[Lathe]

try setting brightness to 2.0
just encode a small sample for testing purposes

I already just tried .5 and it was all blown out... So damn confusing! Also, what I added above about the saturation setting coinciding with what I already set in the HDR-SDR conversion.

[Lathe]

And again... I DON'T know if the contrast and the other setting are ALREADY doing something!

[gonca]

try one setting at a time, use small samples and see the results
Or wait until someone can give you a precise answer

[Lathe]

Yeah, that's basically what I'm going to hafta do (unless our Mr. ProWo will tell me what those settings mean... :))

So, I set everything except Gamma to '0', I THINK it's supposed to be at '1' but I'm not sure, and I bumped up the brightness by 10%.

[Lathe]

Heh, I just got a completely white screen... :D

Oh well, keep trying, I'll nail it eventually (just like you do with the moose(s)...)

[Lathe]

Man, this is getting really wacky... I mean seriously... Okay, so as I said, just setting the HDR-SDR and mobius and desaturation at 2 the film comes out rather dark as shown in my picture way above. So, I tweaked the contrast and brightness and I had it looking really good, more detailed and vibrant than the Handbrake encode, but it was just a tad bright. So, I go back and BARELY lower the brightness, and now the screen is almost totally black...

Makes NO bloody sense. Any help there Mr. ProWo...?

***EDIT

Okay, I think I'm getting shell shocked here... I think I went the wrong way with the brightness. Still trying...

[Lathe]

Alrighty... I KNOW you guys are ready to hang yourselves just about now... https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczORFIrrA9wuubBtlMTrcyq3yxUEg-IWkgmD1-T1am23X13AOW1ZICXk2YD-SXUaH-_f_mR7Jdyomgl2LL7SHTWHsGe3oyYAy1eDpmD0JotYUvCPmKbcrxURUqURnjR3X_3pzVLKDJh3Yxr2wHdZWPcFPg=w30-h31-s-no-gm?authuser=0 But, I think I've whittled it down to about the way I want it to look. I STILL don't understand why Clever FFMpeg looked so damn dark like the picture above with the proper default settings for HDR-SDR, but anyway, I basically kept dialing back the contrast to about -.35 where the bright areas were not as pixelated looking, and brought up the brightness to about +.8 and left everything else the same. So, the result was a slightly sharper picture with definitely more saturation and about equal brightness as the Handbrake encode. So, basically it looks more exciting now than the Handbrake encode (of course, ANY scene with Sandra is F'n exciting! https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczOoYexQoDpOzw1iOf64P9sOCeQ3Thz-NDPF4bPzOsGX1tqiW1qOfgvsZSWlQBjQtSFz8_oRHvoUbugmpHRzNwcCv4S26hrJh-Dszr9EzTiu6oYUc6IBy0iTWzf0rS8KSXSJbS_OLjCX0PrwWdCwoePpgw=w28-h28-s-no-gm?authuser=0)

So, after about 50 different tries I think I finally got it!

[GeoffreyA]

The Handbrake encode looks washed out because they use, I think, Hable. Does Clever FFmpeg allow you to adjust the command-line? The problem here is likely the "npl" value for zscale: too big. However, the previous page shows 200, which should be close to spot on for most films.

[Lathe]

The Handbrake encode looks washed out because they use, I think, Hable. Does Clever FFmpeg allow you to adjust the command-line? The problem here is likely the "npl" value for zscale: too big. However, the previous page shows 200, which should be close to spot on for most films.

No, at least I haven't quite figured that out yet. I THINK ProWo said that you can edit the BE_text file AFTER aborting an encode and somehow maybe it reads it when you load the file in the next time? I'm honestly not sure about that.

But, it does allow you to choose which method to use including Hable, Mobius, and another 1 or 2. In looking at the result now (after like 50 tries!) everything looks great EXCEPT the faces are to saturated...:cool: Oh well... the Handbrake one really doesn't look that bad at all, just a tad less saturated than I could quite hit with all my tries with Clever FFMpeg. But, it looks pretty good.

STILL don't know why this program didn't render it better than the picture I show above though... Most of the time it has done just great.

[Lathe]

@ProWo... Bro, I'm sorry to keep pestering you, but I just started another enode from an UHD full 4k Blu-ray source and with the exact same settings that I ALWAYS use, yep, it is turning out all weird and dark again!

You might want to check to see if maybe you changed something, because this is 2 in a row that are not turning out right. Now the ONLY thing that I can see that is superficially different, is that when you choose 'Various' and you select HDR-SDR, the saturation used to default to '2', now it shows '0' when the window opens, so you actually have to set it to '2' which was what the default was before. Other than that, I don't see any other obvious changes, but these movies are not coming out right and you should know so you can see what is going on. Here is the BE_text:

Video ---> x264 (avc) - Stream ID 0 from?G:\___TL\HEVC.mkv?6672167?-hide_banner -loglevel error -stats -y -fflags +genpts -i "G:\___TL\HEVC.mkv" -vf fps=24000/1000,scale=1920:1080,zscale=t=linear:npl=200,tonemap=mobius:desat=2,sidedata=delete,colorspace=all=bt709:iall=bt2020,format=yuv420p -map 0:0 -c:v libx264 -profile:v high -preset medium -tune film -crf 18 -aspect 1.78 -an -sn -dn -metadata:g encoding_tool="clever FFmpeg-GUI" ?D:\__HEVC.mkv

Here is how the movie is turning out with Clever FFMpeg:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczPyXBooOXK9WUG5ZwhQNYeaL8-WBbHbsLz50zexDZMcT5anNYpPoCl-wU_uiZmfsAD9acMOhOhP92MYvhd9cmwc1SrigHEzC23D8jS0bBytFzrLsi-lyLJ2Q8oAs3Oj_3RcRUAaSgzdnogoPefGAhC0jw=w1228-h632-s-no-gm?authuser=0

Here is a snapshot of how this 2nd movie is turning out with Handbrake:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczNjOr1Eu9XDIJy61-SC03uiKrqzPCeQRZ4lPwVoP4__tRxaX8ShrHBeyWx-Opl8mzqgbNXmCzBLpkjFCxOeD7CI1_fJ-bzE6nw2lEjRn3d9XqC1cIOcpwn3mqjtQtF1TOSAz50xsMyybh4ZGR7Ooh5bMg=w1124-h635-s-no-gm?authuser=0

These are with the exact same settings with BOTH programs that I have always used for UHD to SD and HDR-SDR.

[GeoffreyA]

If possible, try the following script to use FFmpeg directly and let's see what happens.

setlocal

set src=Test.mkv
set start=1:00:00
set length=10
set npl=203

ffmpeg -ss %start% -i "%src%" -map 0:v:0 -vf zscale=m=gbr:t=linear:dither=none:npl=%npl%,format=gbrpf32le,tonemap=mobius:desat=0,zscale=1920:-1:f=spline36,zscale=m=709:t=709:p=709:r=limited:dither=error_diffusion,format=yuv420p,sidedata=delete -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -t %length% "test.mp4"

endlocal
pause

Change the variables src, start, and length: the last two so that you don't have to encode the whole file. Place the code in a BAT file, along with an ffmpeg executable in the same folder, and run.