Converting a DVD to XVid on 64-Bit Windows 7?

[jdanniel]

Hi everyone.

I’ve been trying to learn how to convert a DVD to either DivX or XVid. So far, I’ve tried a few programs that supposedly do it, but the ones I’ve tried apparently are obsolete, old, unsupported, or don’t work very well (if at all) on 64-bit Windows 7 Home Premium.

I did figure out how to convert a DVD to XVid using DVD Fab, but it made several AVI clips instead of one continuous file. Also, the sound appeared out of synch with the image, and there were no subtitles.

I’ve read a few tutorials on the web, but I’m clearly not grasping the concept. Either the tools I’m using don’t work, or more likely, the human who is operating them doesn’t understand what to do.

I’m not trying to learn this to distribute copyrighted material. I just want to learn the process and technique of digital video compression.

I am using an Intel dual core processor with 2 GB of ram. I’ve already mentioned which operating system I’m using.

With this said…what tool(s) should I use to start off with? And how do I ensure proper synchronization, along with embedded subtitles?

Thank you! Jd

[Steve Grisetti]

Super will do it. And it's free!

You can find the hard-to-find download link at the bottom of this page.
http://www.erightsoft.com/SUPER.html

You can find basic instructions for using the program in my Steve's Tips article on Converting Video for Premiere Elements.
http://muvipix.com/products.php?searchp ... =0&btn.y=0

For your output type, select AVI and use either the Divx or Xvid codec setting.

[John 'twosheds' McDonald]

You can also use VirtualDub. Here is a link to one of the many tutorials on 'how to...':-

http://www.afterdawn.com/guides/archive ... in_avi.cfm

[jdanniel]

Thanks for the replies.

I tried using Simple, which did seem to encode the DVD to XVid.

But I have two problems:

1. 23 separate files were created by the software. How do I merge them? And in the future, is it possible to create one continuous file?

2. The total size of the 23 separate files is 7.23 GB. That's the size of the DVD. I thought XVid was a compression codec. Isn't the purpose of XVid to get a DVD or large video file to its smallest practical size? How do I configure the software to shrink down the DVD?

Thank you! Jd

[John 'twosheds' McDonald]

You can also use VirtualDub. Here is a link to one of the many tutorials on 'how to...':-

http://www.afterdawn.com/guides/archive ... in_avi.cfm

Sorry, should have been a little more clear. This is how to concatenate .avi files.

[jdanniel]

All sorts of problems.

First of all, I used Super to convert the DVD to XVid.

As I said previously, Super didn't compress the video, and it created about two-dozen files.

I tried viewing the files in VLC, and here's the error warning I got for each AVI file:

No suitable decoder module:
VLC does not support the audio or video format " ". Unfortunately there is no way for you to fix this.

So, I do not know what I did wrong.

I haven't found any documentation so far that explains how to do any of this in Plain English. I confess, I am frustrated.

As for Virtual Dub: Am I correct in assuming this program will not convert the VOB files in my DVD to a different format? Does it work only with files that have already been converted?

If so, then I need to get SUPER to operate correctly for me first, before using Virtual Dub, right? Okay, so as far as SUPER is concerned: What did I do wrong?

The documentation for SUPER is...oh heck, I gave up even looking for it after rummaging around on that incredibly messy web site.

I'm not sure what to do. Anyone feel like guiding me through the first couple of steps? Thanks! Jd

[Steve Grisetti]

Okay -- but recognize that, since you're trying to do two things (combine VOBs, output a Divx), it's going to take a two step process. (There also may be another way, so maybe somebody else has an alternative way to do it. This is the way I'd do it.)

Since you have several VOBs that you want to turn into one file, you'll first need to use MPEG Streamclip. MPEG Streamclip is free, but it may require a $19 component from Apple.com.

Output a DV-AVI according to the instructions in the "Converting Video" article I linked you to above.

Once everything is in one AVI file, you can use Super to convert it to a Divx-AVI.

[jdanniel]

Here's the latest:

I think I managed to get Super to convert the test DVD to XVid format. Basically, I just messed with some settings.

Specifically, I deselected the STREAM COPY options for video and audio.

That seemed to work. The 7.28 GB DVD was shrunk down to 1.20 GB. Excellent. That's great!

And the files seem to work. I opened a few at random in VLC to see how they looked. The quality was perfectly acceptable, and the sound seemed in synch with the video.

The bad news: I tried merging these files with Virtual Dub. I got the following screen:


Strictly by accident, I discovered Super has a merge feature. I discovered it by clicking the OUTPUT CONTAINER radio button. The program switched to JOIN FORMAT-IDENTICAL FILES mode.

At first, I got quite excited! I thought I was going to finally meet with success. I came close, but here's the problem:

I merged the first three AVI files in the 43-file set. When I tried to play the test merged AVI file in VLC Media Player, I did not see any video. I heard audio, but it was staccato and erratic.

Failure.

So...what do I have to do with Super to get the merged files to merge successfully and properly, and play properly?

What do I have to do with Virtual Dub to get it to merge the files?

At least I'm getting a little closer.....

Jd

[John 'twosheds' McDonald]

Try downloading the KLite Mega Codec pack then try VirtualDub again.

[jdanniel]

Okay we are making progress, but we haven't crossed the finish line just yet. Very close, though.

At first, Virtual Dub didn't seem to recognize the codec pack. Then, I had an idea...maybe there's a conflict because I was using the 64-bit version of Virtual Dub.

I downloaded the 32-bit version, and it seemed to work.

When I opened one AVI file in Virtual Dub, I saw this warning:



I do not know if that's important or not.

Otherwise, the merge process seems to work. VERY close!

One other question, for now: I'm working with a foreign film, and I don't think the subtitles are included. How do I get subtitles incorporated into this mess?

Jd

[John 'twosheds' McDonald]

You can ignore the warning but check that the audio is in sync on the output file. Sorry, can't help with your subtitle question.