new version questions, resolution question

[fisix]

i downloaded the free new version and alot of the adjustments were greyed out when trying to make an svcd. was this just a limitation of making an svcd compatible output or is this a shareware lock?

also, i use virtualdub to frameserve an avisynth script to tmpg so that i get some speed increase by doing most of the image processing
outside of tmpg. the one thing i haven't done is move the resizing to the script. i was wondering if i could do that and possibly see a decrease in ecoding time. the problem is that i don't what the exact resolution of feed into tmpg should be for svcd, and i don't know if that even IF i do send it the correct rez, whether or not it will turn off it's on resize step. i'm guessing that it might just (default) run it through its own internal resize filter not matter what, causing a slowdown.

understand what i mean? got an answer?

-fisix

[tiki4]

If you choose a certain encoding template like 'SVCD PAL' or something like that many options get locked in TMPGEnc. You are able to unlock them again by loading the 'unlock.mcf' template. It's located in Template/Extra.

From my experience resizing outside of TMPGEnc is much faster and you save quite a lot of time. I didn't test that too well, but I always use an Avisynth script to frameserve into TMPGEnc. Just make sure you switch off the DirectShow reader in the options. You may generate such a resizing script with GordianKnot by choosing SVCD resizing. Also make sure that you selected the right aspect ratio (4:3 or 16:9) before.

If you encode from AVI source you have to change the .avs file to your needs of course. Please compare with the 'mpeg2dec frameserving' guide on doom's page. There you find the right values for SVCD resizing.

I hope that helps a little bit.

tiki4

[fisix]

just to be clear, you still use virtualdub to frameserve to tmpg, or have you found a way to do it directly from an .avs? so far i have to use virtualdub (i get a devide by zero if i try to open an .avs with tmpg).

why turn off the directshow filter?

thanks for the pointers, i'm beginning to get a handle..

-fisix

[tiki4]

Oops,

O.K. just let me tell you that it is not necessary to frameserve from VirtualDub to TMPGEnc. You can open avs files directly in TMPGEnc. Just make sure you switch off the 'DirectShow multimedia file reader'. This is located in Options -> Environmental setting -> VFAPI plugin (I had to look this up myself). Just tick off the check box before. Then your avs script will be read by the 'AVI VfW compatibility reader'.

I use this to encode TV captures to MPEG2. So I capture for example to an AVI with video as Morgan MJPEG and uncompressed PCM audio. Then I write an Avisynth script like

AviSource("X:\capture.avi")

... some filters ...

BicubicResize(480,576)

This would be O.K if your source is 4:3 (like TV usually is). If your source is 16:9 you have to resize differently and use the 'AddBorders' command. Please check doom9's 'mpeg2dec guide' where it is explained how to do the resizing in an Avisynth script file. I don't have any examples right here.

tiki4

[bb]

You can also use GordianKnot to generate the AVS file. It has an SVCD option when saving the AVISynth file(s). Together with GKnot's preview this is a much easier way to get the cropping, resizing and border addition done.

bb

[tiki4]

That's true, but you shouldn't have an captured AVI source then...
I always generate my script files in GordianKnot and then comment in and out what I need.

tiki4

[fisix]

so i found out why i couldn't open the avs directly in tmpg.

well, not why, maybe more how.

i have the following line in my .avs"

>BicubicResize(352,576,0.33,0.33,8,4,620,460)

but this doesn't seem to agree with tmpg. when i change the line to the following:

>BicubicResize(480,576)

everything works fine. i don't do the resize last in my avs, and if i use vdub to frameserve to tmpg, i also don't get the error (some devide by zero error).

anyone know why? i'm going to post this in the avisynth forum as well.

THEN, i'm going to try another pass at using tmpg to encode, if for nothing else than to test it against ccesp5.0. thanks for the wakeup on the frameserving and the good info. i'll finish reading doom9's guide on making a nice svcd and try again.

it IS enough different that there are some hard dicisions to make. most dvd->svcd operations don't need to include any deinterlacing, and my tv captures look awful without.

are there some hard and fast limitations on xsvcd?

thx,
fisix

[tiki4]

I don't know anything about XSVCD, sorry.

However, try the DVD2AVI -> TMPGEnc -> bbMPEG -> VCDEasy way.

It has worked well for me. Deinterlacing is a good point: MPEG2 can handle interlaced video without a problem, but if you look at the final SVCD on your PC deinterlaced content will look better. If you watch on your TV this may be different (I don't own a TV anymore).

If you capture from TV you cannot use DVD2AVI, but I recommend you follow the same guide. Frameserve and handle your video in Avisynth, it's the fastest way I know (you are doing that right now, I guess), but don't use VirtualDub for frameserving (it was just meant to bring in the Subtitles in the TMPGEnc guide). Encode in TMPGEnc with toolame for the audio, then demux and mux again in bbMPEG. Finally generate and burn the image in VCDEasy (the guide is something like VCDs with chapters). As the name says, it's really easy.
On the other hand you want try the DVD2SVCD complete package, I think it has good AVI support in the mean time, give it a shot maybe.

CU,

tiki4

[Erik_Osterholm]

fisix,
By virtue of what it is, XSVCD has not hard and fast limitations. It's not a specfication, but an extension of a specification. Your only limitations will be the size of your medium (the CD) and what your DVD player can handle.

As for opening an avs file, I've never seen a problem with it if DirectShow multimedia file reader is turned off. I didn't see in your replies whether or not you'd tried this, so give it a shot and let us know.

[disturbed1]

You have to turn off Directshow Multimedia Reader because TMPG doesn't support directshow.

Download the readavs dll from Avisynth's software page (http://math.berkeley.edu/~benrg/avisynth-apps.html) scroll down to TMPG 0.11e and download the linked dll.

It will allow you to open avs and vdr files just like avi's.

[fisix]

update:

directshow is unchecked (didn't seem to matter) and i have an error in using a crop command before the inherent crop in the bicubic resize call. haven't yet fixed the .avs and checked to see if that was the ticket. i'll reply when i do, and thanks for following the thread.

-fisix

[tiki4]

@fisix:

Again you should use Crop() and then BicubicResize(). I've never seen a crop inside a resizer command so far, so maybe you read the Avisynth scriping reference on http://www.videotools.net.

@disturbed1:

You don't need that plugin with recent version of TMPGEnc (say 2.xx) as it can handle .avs files without problems, as long as you turn that 'DirectShow multimedia file reader' off. It's just that it doesn't make sense to read an AVS file with the DirectShow interface. But the DirectShow reader has higher priority than the VfW reader and that's a problem.

Also I don't know why you think that TMPGEnc doesn't work with DirectShow? You may try to open a WMV file for example, that has worked for me (don't know what to do with that, but it works).

tiki4

[fisix]

just checked, and after fixing the double crop error tmpg opens up the .avs just fine as long as the directshow filter is unchecked (off). interesting that vdub lets the error slide, while tmpg is more strict.

so, there are two possiblities for my avs:

Crop(14,10,620,460)
BicubicResize(480,576)

or just

BicubicResize(480,576,0.33,0.33,14,10,620,460)

arguments for and against either of these:

separating the crop from the resize allows you to insert processing that you might think will work better or faster in between the actions.

supposedly, (read this in a post long ago, it's also on the videotools.net page about avisynth, look in the discription of BilinearResize) the second, one-line version is infinitessimally faster.

using the one command might help you remember what all the inputs are without having to look them up (obviously didn't help me, because i didn't comment my .avs) like adjustments to the b and c constants.

using one command might help you not insert incompatible processing on the weird sized video in between crop and resize.

-fisix

[disturbed1]

Originally posted by tiki4
@fisix:

Also I don't know why you think that TMPGEnc doesn't work with DirectShow? You may try to open a WMV file for example, that has worked for me (don't know what to do with that, but it works).

tiki4

TMPGEnc can not read AVI file with DV format.

The file is probably Type-1 DV format. The format is not supported by TMPGenc. Type-1format has different structure from AVI format. TMPGenc can not read the format since TMPGenc does not support DirectShow.
To solve this matter, try to save the captured or edited file as Type-2 DV format, however, there are still chance not to be able to read the file if you are using general IEEE1394 board without codec for VFW.

http://www.tmpgenc.net/e_faq.html

[tiki4]

@disturbed1:

What are you talking about? DV format and DirectShow are two different things in my opinion. While you may be right (and I think you are right) that TMPGEnc can't handle those DV type 1 files, it can import files that were compressed in a form where no VfW codec but only a DirectShow codec exists. For example if you compress a file in the Windows Media Encoder maybe with WMV 7 and WMA 8 this file can be read by TMPGEnc via that 'DirectShow multimedia file reader'. If that makes sense or not is a different thing, but it is the only program I know that allows direct transcoding of WMV to AVI (with whatever codecs you like).

I hope we understand each other now and don't post things that don't help noone.

tiki4

P.S. I took a look on the TMPGEnc homepage and I found exactly the sentence you were posting. In my opinion there is also some confusion there: While TMPGEnc DirectShow file reader can't handle DV type-1, the Windows DirectShow interface is of course not limited to DV type-1 files, otherwise your Windows Media Player and also WinDVD and PowerDVD wouldn't give you picture nor sound.