Site last updated on March 26th 2008   

Prior builds have been known to cause sync issues with the audio and video, along with other random errors (such as no audio at all being saved). 

This Womble product is nice, especially for those capturing MPEG with ATI All In Wonder cards or files from DVD recorders. It is at least FOUR TIMES faster than the TMPGEnc MPEG TOOLS, and does not have errors scanning the file like TMPGEnc and MPEG2CUT sometimes get. The program costs under $100, and is easy to use, with an interface that strongly resembles a timeline found in Adobe Premiere and other editing programs.

1. Open the File. Either go to FILE-> OPEN MPEG MOVIE or click the OPEN MPEG FILE button (which looks like the NEW FILE button found in most other programs).




2. Color problems. If the video looks washed-out or has incorrect colors, do not worry. The program comes setup in 8-bit color mode, not 24-bit true-color mode. Goto TOOLS -> OPTIONS to change it.




3. The workspace. First it must be understood what each tool does before proceeding to the editing phase. Though the image below is small to save my bandwidth, try to open the box up as large as possible, as it increases the timeline area.




This is the PLAY button. It plays the video. Press it again to pause. The reverse PLAY button plays the video backwards. These are used to get the video close to the areas where the cutting will take place.

These are the frame advance buttons. You can move frame-by-frame to cut the video with great precision.

This is the MARK IN button. It selects the beginning of the selected area.

This is the MARK OUT button. It selects the end of the selected area.

This is a preview function. It zooms you to the MARK IN frame.

Again, a preview function. This one zooms to the MARK OUT frames.

This is the CUT LEFT button. It cuts all video on the LEFT SIDE of the selection.

This is the CUT SELECTION button. It cuts out the selected video between the MARK IN and MARK OUT on the timeline. (FYI: Womble MPEG Video Wizard is missing this useful button, and is why I do not plan make a guide for that software. This button is too important.)

This is the CUT RIGHT button. It cuts all video on the RIGHT SIDE of the selection.


4. How to edit. The best way to cut out unwanted commercials is to select the area you want removed. The video opened in this example is a capture for BIG O episode #17. I started the capture a few minutes early, and have X-MEN Evolution footage (shown in image above) and commercials before BIG O comes on. First, I'll MARK IN the very first frame, and select the black frame before BIG O starts as the MARK OUT. I will then use the CUT SELECTION button to remove that piece of unwanted footage.




5. Repeat as needed. Now that the beginning commercials and extra footage are removed, I'll repeat this process throughout the video clip, dragging the bar along the timeline, scanning for commercials. When I find one, I play the file, looking for the fade from show to commercial, and use the FRAME ADVANCE buttons as needed to get that precise cut.

6. When finished. When all the commercials an extra footage have been removed, it is now time to save the file. As long as you do not wander and change video settings, WOMBLE MPEG2VCR will NOT re-encode the video, and will merely save it as a new file based upon the cuts made in the timeline. Unlike TMPGENC, it will only take a few minutes at most, even for a 3-hour movie! 

Be sure to SELECT THE ENTIRE TIMEFRAME, by applying MARK IN on the first frame of the now edited video, and applying MARK OUT on the last frame of the video. The SAVE function saves the selected areas.

This is the SAVE button and once pressed it will reveal this screen:



Do NOT change anything. The settings (FORMAT, VIDEO, and AUDIO) have been acquired from your video, and altering them will require a re-encode on the video. Choose a FILE NAME and then merely press SAVE. 

Congratulations. The video is now edited free of commercials, and without the need of editing applications, encoding, or conversions to the video file and hence quality remains untouched.

For this tutorial "Cut Mode" is selected.

1. Start VideoReDo Plus. Open a file for editing.



The timeline is green, indicating the entire file will be output, as no commercial segments have yet been selected for deletion. If thumbnails are not displayed, press the F11 key or use the menu: View>Show Thumbnails. This will display a series of frames below the main screen allowing easier placement of selection markers. Use the Upper Slider (1) for coarse adjustment through the timeline and the Lower Slider (2) for fine adjustment. Even finer control is available using the lower slider with the right mouse button.

2. Placing Markers and Deleting Segments. Move the timeline cursor (1) to the black frames just before the beginning of the commercial or, if there are no black frames (fade to black transition) to the first frame of the commercial.

Press the SET START button to mark the beginning of the segment. A mark will appear on the timeline indicating your choice. Navigate to the end of the commercial. Press the SET END button to mark the end. A second mark  will appear. Press the CUT SELECTION button and the segment between the 2 marks will turn red, indicating the successful selection of the commercial. Repeat as necessary to mark all the commercial segments of the file. 

You can automatically detect and mark commercials for deletion by using the Ad-Detective button. This method is not magical, so be sure to verify the cuts.

3. Previewing Your Cuts. As you are placing your cuts or once you have finished, you can select Preview Mode to view your output file before saving. Press the TOGGLE PREVIEW MODE button (looks like a filmstrip). The timeline display will change from:

 
to:

You can preview your video and the cuts by navigating the same as in edit mode or by pressing the >> or << buttons to jump to the cut points. You can also set a Preview lead-in time so as you jump to the cuts, VideoReDo will display them with your selected pre-roll time. This is available under the Tools>Options menu.

4. Managing your edits. As you are editing or previewing, you may wish to modify the precise location of your cuts (to add or remove an extra frame or two for a “cleaner” edit. This is easily accomplished by simply double-clicking on the edit that will highlight  the selected cut.  You can use the >> and << buttons or “S” and “E” keys to navigate to the beginning and end of the cut. Reposition the marks using the SET START and SET END buttons and press CUT SELECTION again. A dialog box will appear asking you to confirm replacement of your existing cut. Click “Replace” if you are satisfied with your changes.

5. Saving your edited file. Press the SAVE AS button to save your edited, commercial-free video. The file will be saved in a few minutes without re- encoding the entire video. Only what you viewed in preview mode (or the green segments of the edit mode timeline) will be saved.




Using TMPGEnc Plus Encoder to remove commercials 

This may work in the regular TMPGEnc also, but I've never owned it, having started immediately with the PLUS version. This method takes much longer than MPEG2VCR, and TMPGENC is known to crash while using the MPEG TOOLS, thus making it a method I no longer use.

1. Open MPEG TOOLS. Goto FILE -> MPEG TOOLS in TMPGEnc. 




2. Open the video file. Goto the MERGE & CUT tab and then ADD a source file. You can add the same file numerous times. 




3. Select the good footage. One by one, EDIT each file, selecting the area that you want to keep. Unlike WOMBLE MPEG2VCR, the TMPGEnc splicing functions are not timeline-based, and you may only select one area at a time. Select the start point and end point with the MARK IN { and MARK OUT } buttons. 



Click OK when done, returning you to the previous screen, then RUN to complete the operation. It may take a while, depending on the length of the source. It takes about 15 minutes for every hour of footage.


4. TMPGEnc errors. Sometimes TMPGEnc will play the footage sloppily or freeze on a certain frame. The MPEG header is fine, but TMPGEnc cannot read it, and it must be repaired for use with TMPGEnc. Attempting to edit the file while damaged will result in erroneous output. You must use the CUT feature on the entire clip, by use MARK IN a few seconds into the piece, and MARK OUT a few seconds before it ends. The new file generated by TMPGEnc will now load properly and the stuttering/freezing errors will disappear on the newly-created file.

Page Last Updated: January 31st 2006