best way 2 convert MPEG to DIVX? [or: Dr.Divx crashes!]

[lcswz]

Hello there,

I'm trying to find a way to convert some short (20-30 mins) mpg-1 videos to divx in order to save space. I still did not find any good way to do this using two pass encoding and an automated process (I don't want to use virtualdub manually, I have several videos to convert).

I've tried Dr.Divx 1.04 and previous versions, seems it's made to do this kind of job, but I really cannot keep it running:

- it's terribly SLOW (3-5 fps VS average 20 fps when using Divx codec within other applications)

- it crashes almost everytime at the end or in the middle of the movie processing with many different errors

Have you got any really "plug and play" solutions?

My question applies also to re-encoding Divx files to lower bitrates... Any help really appreciated, thanks..

[SeeMoreDigital]

Sounds like MPEGmediator (www.mpegmediator.com) was made for you!

With this application it's possible to mix Mpeg1, Mpeg2 and VOB streams, with or without audio, all together, at the same time!

Once you get used to adjusting/setting the picture aspect ratio. It's quite easy to generate encodes. And generating 2pass encodes manually is not such a pain!

You may also need to make sure you have some MP3 audio codecs installed. I use Radium MP3 codec v1.263 myself.

Good luck

[jggimi]

Hello, lcswz, and welcome to Doom9's forum!...it crashes almost everytime at the end or in the middle of the movie processing with many different errors...It could be something else, but ... this type of problem is indicative of a hardware problem, typically, heat stress.

This can happen even with off-the-shelf PCs that work fine with other applications. That's because video encoding causes your CPU to produce more heat than almost any other type of application. If you are overclocking, which produces extra heat, try resetting the CPU back to manufactured specification.

Try encoding with the cover off and with a fan aimed into the open case. If the problems go away, you have confirmed a heat related issue. Additional or more powerful cooling equipment will be needed for your PC if you wish to encode with the cover on.

If you need them, there are motherboard temperature monitoring programs, as well as CPU and memory stress test applications available.

[Blue_MiSfit]

Try virtualdub. you might have some MPEG errors in your source files, and those could be causing DR DivX to crash. I would say use vdubmod, and just drop your MPEG into it, then setup divx or xvid in there.
compress the audio to a CBR mp3 or something, and then volia.


~misfit

[quinn]

I'm using Gordian Knot and DVD2AVI without any problem (yes, it uses VirtualDub - but I don't have to personally mess with it!).

[jggimi]

These sources are MPEG-1. DVD2AVI is for MPEG-2 video streams, and while it is possible to use MPEG-1 sources with Gknot, the methods to do so may be beyond the point-and-click skills of lcswz, who is using Dr. DivX, a simple tool. But we still don't have quite enough information from lcswz to assist any further.

[SeeMoreDigital]

Definitely sounds like a job for MPEGmediator!

[DigitAl56K]

Crashing like this usually occurs when chipset drivers have not been installed for the motherboard (most noticable for VIA/SIS based boards in general).

VirtualDub/VirtualDubMod are good solutions to this problem. The QuickStart section of the DivX User Guide will walk you through mutlipass encoding using VirtualDub step by step with illustrations.

You can also queue jobs in VirtualDub so that you could queue several files up for multipass encoding, leave them overnight and watch the results the next morning. Very useful :)

To use jobs, simply check the "Don't run this job now; Add it to job control so that I can run it in batch mode" box when you go to save a file, then hit F4 to see the job control window.

-Al