Xvid Settings for DVB Capture?

[Soft Maniac]

Hi!

I've started just a month ago, capturing digital content, and i've being encoding in xvid!

But quality was never good as i expected from xvid!!

Normaly the capture is pal, interlaced, 25fps, at various resolutions!

What i really want is the xvid settings that you use to encode your capture!

I now that you will say that every capture is diferente and i must try diferents settings, so i will ask some settings that i really need and are crucial.

1-witch VHQ do you use 1 or 4?
2-Do you usualy use QP?
3-Witch BF thershold do you use?

That's it!
That's all i want for now;)
I really apreciate your reply, and thanks in advance!

Oh, i forgot, sorry my really bad english :(

[Herske]

It's not XVID, it's the source, since most digital broadcasts are low quality when compared to any decent DVD transfer.

Read the guides in the XVID section; I'm using 2 Bframes (default settings), no qpel, vhq 1 'cause I got a slow processor. Heavy filtering is recommended! :)

What channels exactly are you capturing from?

[Soft Maniac]

I'm capturing from Hispasat from lusomund Premium and taquilla 1...14!

I'm capturing movie from many channels of hispasat!

I don't think it's from the source!!
if i play the mpg file the quality is very good not compared with dvd but better than mpeg4!

I'm using the folowing script for the frameserving:

SetWorkingDir("E:\")
LoadPlugin("mpeg2dec3.dll")
LoadPlugin("FluxSmooth.dll")
LoadPlugin("TomsMoComp.dll")
LoadPlugin("undot.dll")
mpeg2source("E:\something.d2v")
Undot()
TomsMoComp(1,5,1)
crop(16,4,696,568)
FluxSmooth(7,7)
BilinearResize(640,480)


In Xvid i use the "recomended settings:

6-Ultra High
H.263
Xvid
VHQ 1
250
1
DISABLE Enable Lumi Masking
Use Chroma Motion
Quarterpel
2 (ENABLE B-frames)
150
100
0
DX-50 Bvop compatible
Quants
2
31
2
31


Two Pass tab.

below i-frame distance: 13
i-frame bitrate reduction: 25
bitrate payback delay: 250
Payback proportionally


Debug tab.

Check Chroma Optimizer
Everything else default.



What do you think i'm missing?

[symonjfox]

Maybe it's on the RESIZE. Well, you know that many DVB sources are 352*576 or 544*576 or other anamorphic resolutions.

The best thing is to keep it untouch, so you'll get the resolution that won't destroy image quality (if you upsample the image will be flat and has higher bitrate, if you downsample the image will be less detailed but smaller filesize).

The matter is that MP4 flag is a bit complicated and it seems that nobody need it (I think). It would be nice if a small box in the VFW Xvid GUI tell you what AR you want to use. It doesn't matter for me if AVI doesn't support it, I like MPEG4 streams in MP4 container.

Another point is that many channels are interlaced, so you need to keep interlaced fields or deinterlace the image.

No other things. I always reencode DVB to Xvid and quality is very nice (and off course depends on the source file).

[Soft Maniac]

Thanks!

I will try many settings!!

[ewat]

Simon what is your process for this (including cutting out ads?)

It's exactly what i wanna do!

[symonjfox]

1. Demux using PVAstrumento or ds.jar or whatever you want.
2. I create an AVS script including audio. You know MPASOURCE.DLL? It works fine.
3. Helping with VDubmod I trim the video, apply filters and so on.
4. Encode video to Xvid
5. Save WAV from the AVS file.
6. encode the wav into MP3 or MP4 AAC
7. Remux AVI or MPEG4 container

[ewat]

interesting, but then whats an easy way to have the audio cut too?

[symonjfox]

Let's edit the script:

Loadplugin("mpeg2dec3.dll")
Loadplugin("mpasource.dll")
Mpeg2source("d:\test.d2v", idct=7)
Mpasource("d:\test.mpa", normalize=True)
Trim(0,3456) ++ Trim(5880,19890) ++ Trim(20888,405676)

Doing so, the audio will be decoded in WAV and properly cut at the selected frames. So if you load this script in VDubMod and then choose SAVE WAV, audio will perfectly match with video.

Instead I have no clue if you want to keep the original MPA audio ... Once I read something about MP2 in avi files, but I have never tried it so far. Now I've a DVD burner so I won't reencode audio no more.

[ewat]

yeap, trimming within is EASILY the easiest i find =\ less to worrya bout later..

question: what are your xvid settings? I cant seem to get something really fantastic (well imo)...its ok, and the source is great...makes me thinking im missing some setting (ive followed a few guides)

also if im doing 1pass CBR @ 1K ...theres no real need for 2 passes is there? (or will 2 passing help the motion out)??

sorry few noob questions here ;\
Im not really caring about filesize too much, just something that can not rape the great source in the first place! and i can store easily ehe

[symonjfox]

Originally posted by ewat
Question: what are your xvid settings? I cant seem to get something really fantastic (well imo)...its ok, and the source is great...makes me thinking im missing some setting (ive followed a few guides)
also if im doing 1pass CBR @ 1K ...theres no real need for 2 passes is there? (or will 2 passing help the motion out)??
I use the default Xvid settings, with VHQ=4 and Bframes. I always do 2 passes, I only change bframes number & few settings, depending on what I'm working.

Keep in mind that DVB quality is far from DVD source.
1- DVB is CBR so most scenes are OK, but the most complex are awful;
2- DVB has lower resolution in many cases (352, 544, 704 x 576). Resizing them to keep a 4:3 aspect ratio, will reduce sharpness and global quality.
3- DVB is often compressed in real time by HARDWARE MPEG encoders and then broadcast; else DVD is SOFTWARE encoded from professionists, working with the ORIGINAL UNCOMPRESSED material, so giving the best quality as possible for 1 DVD.

IMHO, you should do a 2 pass only if you have a filesize to match (ex. 1CD, 2CD, 1 DVD and so on). Else try to do a 1 pass QUALITY 85 - 90 - 95, depending on your target. Using a Quantizer = 2 will create a larger file in many cases.