converting from VOB to AVI for editing?

[gkknipp]

I'm a bit of a newbie at this, but here goes:

I am running Vegas Movie Studio Platinum V10 and use DVD Architect to burn to DVD.

I have a DVD containing a home movie that a video service converted from 16mm film to something called VOB format (I had never heard of this format). I would like to be able to bring this into Movie Studio for editing. My initial assumption was that I need to convert to AVI first. I can use ArcSoft Media Converter to convert from VOB to AVI. If I then edit and burn to DVD, will there be any loss of quality compared to the VOB file that I started with?

In the Vegas Pro forums someone mentioned that you can bring the primary .ifo file VTS_01_0.IFO directly into Vegas and it will place all the parts of the DVD on the timeline without any gaps. I tried this and it seems to work, but again I am wondering if this is the best approach and whether the image quality will be impacted.

Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance for any info you can provide

[Steve Grisetti]

There are a number of ways to do this.

But for the best results and performance, I'd recommend you convert it to a DV file using the free program MPEG Streamclip, available from http://www.squared5.com. (You may need to download or purchase a component from Apple, which I think costs $20 at most.)

To use MPEG Streamclip, open the VOB file you want to convert with MPEG Streamclip and then open the AVI/DivX Exporter window from File/Export to AVI.

For Compression select the Apple DV/DVPRO_NTSC (or DV PAL, if appropriate) codec.
For Field Order select Lower Field First.
Change the default sound settings from MPEG Layer 3 to Uncompressed.

If you have widescreen footage click on the Options at the top right. Leave the Scan Mode as is but change the Aspect Ratio from 4:3 to 16:9.

If you would like to save these settings, click on the Presets button at the bottom left then click on the New button to name and save your settings. The next time you run MPEG Streamclip, you can go directly to the Presets button and Load your saved settings.

Click on “Make AVI” and choose a folder and filename for your DV-AVI file.

[gkknipp]

Steve,
Thanks for your response. I'll give it a try. By the way I bought your "Guide to Vegas Movie Studio HD Platinum 10" and it has been a huge help in getting up to speed on Movie Studio. I recommend it highly to anyone new to Movie Studio.

[Steve Grisetti]

Thanks for your kind words about the book, g!

Our goal with this site and our books has always been to help people learn the joys of videomaking. It's wonderful to hear that we're actually accomplishing that goal!