DVD Video Quality Question

For one thing, the DVD specification covers a range of video and audio bitrates, GOP structure, and other arcane parameters. Accordingly, there are any number of possible DVD-legal MPEG-2 encodings of your original AVI that you can generate.

It is not uncommon to get some pixelation at the edges of moving portions of the video image as a consequence of compression into MPEG-2. Minimizing such usually comes at the expense of size of the encoded MPEG-2 file and the time it takes to do the one-time encode from AVI to MPEG-2.

It sounds like you are providing MyDVD with your AVIs and letting it do the encoding. The MyDVD encoder is fairly lame. If you want more control, try using the encoder available from http://www.tmpgenc.net which is available for free as a trial for 30 days, and for which a license can be purchased for $48.

If you use TMPGEnc in connection with MyDVD, bear in mind that MyDVD insists that the audio be 48 kHz PCM. Given this, you may want to set up TMPG to generate separate video (.m2v) and audio (.wav) elementary streams using the appropriate settings. As long as the audio and video files are in the same subdirectory and differ in name only as to their extensions, MyDVD will pick up the .wav file automatically when you direct it to the .m2v. It is my understanding that if your audio was recorded by the camera as 48 kHz PCM, TMPG will not do any transcoding and will just separate out the audio portion of the AVI.

If you decide to use TMPG and it balks about accepting your AVI as input, you may convert the AVI from Type 1 to Type 2 using the Canopus DV File Converter, which you can get from http://www.vcdhelp.com/tools. For guidance on choosing the settings for TMPG, see http://pwp.netcabo.pt/0165394101/TMPGEnc_Template.html.

This may be more information than you wanted or expected, but I have just gotten to the point of using MyDVD with my new Pioneer A05, and I have been collecting information for a couple of weeks on the subject, and there's no point in you doing it all over again.

As for the particular problem with red in video, red is particularly susceptible to bleeding, regardless of whether it is presented in DVD form or not. I will defer to somebody else to explain the physics that underlies this issue.

Regards,

Eric J

Thank you Eric J. for all this information. Looks like you've done your homework for sure.

I'm totally wet behind the ears about DVD, so you've enlightened me far more than I expected.

I've yet to even look into using another encoder...mostly because I've been pretty well pleased with my burnings so far. From what you're telling me, I can easily exceed the quality I'm seeing now.

Why couldn't I use my Main Concept Mpeg2 codec that's within my Vegas Video NLE? If so, could I then use that with MyDVD?

I'm going to look into the TMPGEnc link you provided to get further educated.

Ed.... I'm doing just like Eric figured, I'm letting MyDVD take control of the encoding as it sees fit.

Thanks again guys for the help. I'll post my new findings soon.

Regards,

Tim

Thank you Mr. Thorvaldsen for your input. I do still need some help though...

If I render my avi file to Mpeg2 w/Main Concept in Vegas, how then do I finish the job with MyDVD?

I piddled around with this last night and have yet to see how I have any choice other than to let MyDVD re-encode as the program sees fit.

Please forgive me for my lack of knowledge in the DVD realm of things. I'm trying though...

P.S. All hush-hush on my end about the Vegas usage.

Thanks again!

Tim

Eric,

Thanks again for your help. I think I'm beginning to understand
more about what you're trying to tell me ; )

Correct me if I'm wrong, but this process takes place more within Windows Explorer than the cheezy MyDVD GUI, right?

I'm going to follow up with the help files within MyDVD and see what I can come up with tonight.

Thanks again,

Tim

The only thing you would be doing in Windows Explorer would be part of step 4 as defined by Doug above, and even that is likely not necessary. Certainly if you use TMPGEnc, and I would think very likely if you use your Main Concept plugin with Vegas, you can arrange for the .m2v and .wav files to be, at the time of their creation, both:

in the same subdirectory; and
identical in filename except for the extension.

If this is the case, you need do nothing other than open MyDVD, open a DVD project, import the desired video files, and burn the DVD (or create the DVD folder on your hard drive). Even though you are only importing the video file, MyDVD will identify the presence of the corresponding audio file in the same folder and pull it in also.

As for the MyDVD-specific requirements, I believe it requires (or at least claims to require) a closed GOP structure (contrary to the netcabo recommendation). That may be the only setting that you have to treat differently from the netcabo approach (aside from the overall setting to create separate audio and video elementary streams).

I seem to recall that MyDVD states in the help file that the GOP structure must be one of IBP and IBBP, but I found that this is not so. I used the bitrate/settings calculator on the netcabo site to set bitrate and I/B/P settings, and MyDVD seems to handle it just fine.

As I have no insight into the Main Concept encoder, I am left to assume that all of the TMPGEnc parameters discussed in the netcabo guide are similarly available under MC.

Regards,

Eric J

Tim,

Thanks for asking your question and thanks to all who responded. Excellent thread!

Like you, I will be venturing into DVD burning shortly and using MyDVD like you to start. Per's response that the Main Concept MPEG-2 encoder in VV3 is better than the others mentioned is enlighting since I have VV3. Will save me from buying one of the others.

Thanks all and keep the good info flowing,
Morris