Log in

View Full Version : Pointer blues :(


ILj
21st November 2002, 20:21
Hello gang,

I'll try to make this as short as I can. When trying to keep the original menus and file structure of a DVD in-tact (instead of reauthoring the menus) with a movie that needs to be transcoded I'm having some problems with playback. Here are my methods:
Step 1. Rip the entire DVD to the hdd with DVD Decrypter;

Step 2. Frame serve the main movie (demuxing the audio streams as well) with DVD2AVI and load the movie up in CCE.

Step 3. Encode with CCE (9 pass :) and pulldown resulting .mpv file.

Step 4. Use Scenarist to reauthor the main movie vob files according to the guide here at doom9.

Step 5. Use IFOUpdate to update the original IFO I ripped from disc with the reauthored IFO and auto-correct VTS sectors.

Step 6. This is where it gets kinda tricky. Load up all IFOs into IFOEdit. First I region free and remove p-ops for all of the ifos and save each one. Then, I delete the vob files for the extras I'm going to strip out, re-open the corresponding IFOs in IFOEdit and hit "delete playback" on each of the PGC streams deleting any video playback for that IFO.

Step 7. In my particular case I wanted to keep only audio tracks x80 and x82. I've found that if you strip out x81 with IFOEdit that it will put x82 in x81's slot and x82 (which is now x81) won't use the correct button in the menus. Therefore, I created a dummy x81 in scenarist when I reauthored. So now, in my updated IFO for the main movie I have x80, x81, and x82. I then open that IFO in IFOEdit and click on VTS_PGCITI at the top of IFOEdit and then click on PGC1. I then go down to where it says Audio stream 2 status (x81) and double click on that line. I then replace the address it has listed for audio stream 2 (x81) with a 0 which effectively "deletes playback" on x81 while keeping x80 and x82 in place so they link up correctly with the menus. I then save the IFO.

Step 8. After all of that I hit "get VTS sectors" in IFOEdit. I find it interesting that after I get VTS sectors in IFOEdit if I go back to IFOUpdate and just do a correct vts sectors (not an update) it gives me different pointer numbers than IFOEdit does. Anyway, I stick with IFOEdit's numbers. I then try the project in PowerDVD. Everything loads up fine, all of the extras that were deleted just link back to the main menu, the audio tracks all select and play correctly, as do the main movie chapter selects and extras that I've kept. No problems what-so-ever. Then I burn the disc. I create an .img file and then burn with Record Now Max. After the disc burns I try it in my Apex DVD player. No problems at all. However, I then try it in my PS2 and it reads the disc as a DVD-Video but then tells me that it is "Unable to read disc." Now, you might say that the PS2 isn't a real DVD player and it is very picky. However, every copied disc that I've totally reauthored (menus and all) has worked in it and every "scene release" dvd-r that I've tried has worked in it, and I know that the "scene releases" use the original menus, not reauthored.

So, if you've stuck around long enough to get this far, what am I doing wrong? If anyone has any input it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading. :)

TRILIGHT
23rd November 2002, 23:21
The only thing I can think of is it doesn't like that particular piece of media you are using. I highly recommend sticking to Ritek, Verbatim, and Pioneer media. I've not had problems with any of them in any player I've tried. What media are you using anyway?

By the way, just FYI (and others may feel differently), I personally do not even like the mentioning of "scene releases". I don't condone the practice, it certainly does not fall under "fair use" rights, and it only serves to jeapordize the future of this forum. I know you didn't really mean any harm in mentioning it this time but try to be mindful of it in the future please. Thanks and welcome to the forum! I'm sure you'll find lots of good info here!

ILj
24th November 2002, 01:13
Oops, thanks for the heads-ups, mum is the word. :)

I'm using DVDPro white/purple media which seems to work in everything I've tried it in. I actually figured out the problem a while after I posted. :) It's not the media but the way I was stripping the video_ts.vob. I would load up IFOEdit and strip something from the video_ts.vob (let's say there are 4 vob ids and I'm only keeping #1) and IFOEdit would create a new video_ts.vob as well as new video_ts.ifo and .bup files. Well, I would only copy the .vob over to my project, not the .ifo or .bup files. Unfortunetly, the original video_ts.ifo is still calling for the vob ids I stripped out, causing the PS2 to give me an "unable to read disc" error. If I copy over the new .vob, .ifo, and .bup it only calls the vob ids I didn't strip out and everything is hunky-dory. :)

Perhaps that will help someone else with the same problem. :)

It's bad enough I spend 14 hours doing a 9 pass downsample in CCE... plus, it leaves me less time to actually watch movies. :>

TRILIGHT
25th November 2002, 05:34
Ah ok. I don't use IFOedit to strip things or "author" DVD's. Results are too unpredictable IMHO.

ILj
25th November 2002, 10:20
What do you use, if I might ask?

TRILIGHT
25th November 2002, 11:23
A number of different pieces of software depending on the task at hand. For what specific task do you want to know which piece of software I use? If you're referring to the actual authoring software, I use Scenarist, Maestro, and ReelDVD, depending on what I'm working with.

ILj
25th November 2002, 11:42
Ahh... well, I guess I was referring to what software you use to strip extras and stuff out but it sounds like you reauthor the entire disc. :) I did that with Maestro when I first started out but it got to be a pain and too time consuming relinking all of the chapter selects and what-not. :) Keeping the original menus seems to work alright now that I figured out my video_ts problem. I mean, sure you can save some space downsampling the menus, not including the ones you don't need and reauthoring in maestro but typically only 100 or 200 megs. I'm not sure 200 megs is worth all the headache. :>

It's bad enough I spend 14 hours doing a 9 pass downsample in CCE... plus, it leaves me less time to actually watch movies. :>

TRILIGHT
25th November 2002, 21:15
I don't touch the menus. As you mentioned, it's not worth the time. I also don't run 9 passes in CCE. Unless you are SERIOUSLY reducing the size of your movie (and it doesn't sound like you do the whole disc like a lot of us), I don't see the need for 9 passes in CCE. The increase in quality is marginal and, as you pointed out with other things, is just not worth the time.