Converting Divx in one step

[timmer]

I hava a load of divx videos that I wish to convert to PPC. I have tried PocketDivxEncoder but half the time the audio is out of sync and the resync feature does not solve it.

I like using VirtualDub but I cannot find a way to do 2 pass encoding in one step. i.e. tell vdub to do first pass then immediately do 2nd pass without me having to setup the 2nd pass myself.

Are there any other options to do 2 pass encoding without having to do the 2 passes separately. Or am I just missing how to do this in vdub ?

[DiGiTYZED]

Why is 2nd Pass encoding important?

I think I've been using 1-pass encoding, and from the looks of your post, I'm doing something wrong.

[ST8]

try gordianknot? It'll create all the scripts for virtualdub to run 2 pass encodes...

[Munkee]

You're right Timmer, pocketdivxencoder tends to leave the audio & video out of sync, but what soft are you using to play back the file on your PPC?

I use Betaplayer (the best out there by far) and it has a manual A/V offset, so you can adjust it there.

[timmer]

2 pass gives much better visual quality in my opinion for the same file size as a 1-pass encoded divx. Thats why I prefer to do 2-pass.

I do use Betaplayer and am aware of its a/v offset but I'd rather have it in sync to start with so I am not forced to always use a player with this feature.

I once tried gordian knot but found it a bit overwhelming. I am no pro at this and VirtualDub is about my limit of expertise.

I've also heard of autogk - may give that a look

[epdm2be]

Perhaps the windowsencoder can help. I tried it once using a few small clips and Ithought it wasn't that bad.

Regards,

EPDM

[timmer]

actually autogk seems to be for dvd->divx whereas I am trying to do divx->divx so thats a no go.

[timmer]

Perhaps the windowsencoder can help. I tried it once using a few small clips and Ithought it wasn't that bad.

Regards,

EPDM

that doesnt do divx and its quality is nowhere near what you can get with divx/xvid in my opinion.

[Pat Logsdon]

I think VirtualDub is going to be your best bet. One thing that made it easier for me to use was the usage of saved profiles. I usually end up tweaking quite a few things for each movie, and many of them are the same. Saving those settings in a profile makes the process much faster. You'll still probably want to modify the video size for every movie, but you can save everything else. 8)

[Darius Wey]

What version of PocketDivXEncoder are you using? I seem to have no problems with audio/video sync when I use the program. Also, I find the need for 2-pass encoding to be a little out of the way if you don't demand too much from the quality of the video. Usually, 1-pass is fine, although 2-pass can help fix a few glitches here and there, but it's nothing that will drive you up the wall (...I hope). :)

[Mitchybums]

Windows Media Encoder converts almost anything, as long as the codecs are installed. Quality differences between divx and wmv is arguable, but the main thing is, with WMEncoder, you can change the framerate, 1pass/2pass audio/video without affecting sync.

Most PPC devices do not have a screen thats good enough to display a movie at 30fps, so why loose quality of the picture itself when not all the frames are displayed anyway?

I usualy encode movies using Windows Media Formats on a framerate around 14-15 fps.

on my 2215, I cant tell the difference in playback between that or 20+fps
but I can tell the difference in picture quality between those.
It takes some fiddling around to get the settings right, but imho it can be darn good quality.

Look at www.bigdsvideo.com for some guides for conversion of movies

[timmer]

I think VirtualDub is going to be your best bet. One thing that made it easier for me to use was the usage of saved profiles. I usually end up tweaking quite a few things for each movie, and many of them are the same. Saving those settings in a profile makes the process much faster. You'll still probably want to modify the video size for every movie, but you can save everything else. 8)

The point is that you cant get vdub to do both passes in one step.

[ToddJ]

which one makes it the least pixelated?

[timmer]

Windows Media Encoder converts almost anything, as long as the codecs are installed. Quality differences between divx and wmv is arguable, but the main thing is, with WMEncoder, you can change the framerate, 1pass/2pass audio/video without affecting sync.

Most PPC devices do not have a screen thats good enough to display a movie at 30fps, so why loose quality of the picture itself when not all the frames are displayed anyway?

I usualy encode movies using Windows Media Formats on a framerate around 14-15 fps.

on my 2215, I cant tell the difference in playback between that or 20+fps
but I can tell the difference in picture quality between those.
It takes some fiddling around to get the settings right, but imho it can be darn good quality.

Look at www.bigdsvideo.com for some guides for conversion of movies

Windows Media Encoder may encode anything but into wmv. I dont want wmv. In my opinion it is a rubbish codec - but each to their own.

My PPC plays 30fps absolutely fine no dropped frames whatsoever. I can definitely tell the difference between 14-15 fps and 20+fps.

[ToddJ]

when I extract something with DVD shrink then use Pocket DiVX encoder, it makes it really pixelated. Is there a better way to do it? ALso, with pocket DIVX encoder, is there any way to tell how big the output file will be ahead of time?

[Pat Logsdon]

when I extract something with DVD shrink then use Pocket DiVX encoder, it makes it really pixelated. Is there a better way to do it? ALso, with pocket DIVX encoder, is there any way to tell how big the output file will be ahead of time?
Are you using 2 pass encoding? What's your video quality setting?

[Mitchybums]

The pixelation is usualy a result from the lower bitrates.

to have the same quality in picture quality, a 15 fps movie can have half the filesize (half the bitrate) for a similair quality 30fps movie.

The bitrate is based on kilobits per second.

16bits colour means 16bits x 320x240pixels per frame that is being displayed.

to get the filesize (estimated) multiply the total bitrate (audio+video) with the amount of seconds in the movie.
this is in bits.
to get the MB's, devide it by 8 (make it Bytes) and then by 1024 (make it megabytes)