Joining VOBs seamlessly - DVD Decrypter, VOB2MPG, or something else?
 

I've searched online quite a bit for the best solution to this issue, but have yet to find a clear winner. It's a very simple problem that has been cumbersome for years now...

Is there an easy way to join two VOBs into a single video file without dropping any frames or converting/re-converting the video?

I usually use Womble for editing, but it drops VOB frames on the timeline. I typically join the VOBs first with VOB2MPG to overcome this but, for numerous reasons, would like to avoid that program for right now (mostly because I don't like the new version 3 and version 2.5 is buggy on my virtual machine). Thanks!

Hmm, I have good luck with the VOB2MPG Pro, I don't know if the Pro version would help you or not.
It could be your computer...
You are talking about VOBs from the same source?
DVD decryptor should do it for you, I have Vista but haven't figured out yet how to make it work in Vista.

Yes, I'm talking VOBs from the same source/disc.

I read about Decrypter being able to do it, by setting File Splitting to "None" in IFO Mode. I haven't tried it, but it will supposedly give you a single giant file with all the VOBs strung together (which would certainly be ok).

What I'm really hoping for are some opinions about the most efficient way to do this before I go attempting solutions myself.

As for VOB2MPG, version 3 doesn't seem to work as well as version 2.5 (at least for me). Playing back a version 3 MPEG on Windows Media Player using Vista, it clearly has some aliasing issues; I experienced this right when the new version released and asked the author about it on the VideoHelp forums. Rather than addressing the issue, he and others simply said that what I was seeing was impossible since the video is not reconverted (although an A-B comparison confirms that I'm not seeing things ;)). Things may have secretly improved, but I'd really rather just stick to 2.5 for that program. 2.5 only works on the Vista (native) laptop, which has had some virus issues resulting in the program not working as well as it used to.

Thanks Steve!

Don't know for sure but WMP could be part of the problem for your situation.
You could burn both to a disc and then see how it plays to eliminate any computer errors, both on computer and TV.
Just a thought, I usually try the process of elimination when dealing with issues.
There is a guide here on this website for the dvd decrypter if you want to try that route, hope you get it figured out.

Rejoining VOB files tends to cause glitches -- mostly because the VOB files were not ripped correctly. Ideally, you want to access the video data from within the structure, meaning "IFO mode" on something like DVD Decrypter or VOB2MPG Pro.

I've had mixed results with Womble MPEG Video Wizard, so I don't suggest it.

Womble MPEG-VCR is not suggested for this task.

VideoReDo claims to work on this, but I had mixed success with it, too, in earlier versions (pre-2010) and doubt it's changed much.

TMPGEnc MPEG editor probably won't fair much better.

The "MPEG editor" programs really aren't designed for merging VOB files.

Oddly enough, TMPGEnc DVD Author (or the upgrade version TMPGEnc Authoring Works) can sometimes merge VOB files, because it also accesses the video via the structure using the IFO. "Import DVD" or some such command that I forget off-hand because I never use it.

WMP is never a good choice for video playback of any kind. For DVDs, use PowerDVD or WinDVD -- both have always been the preferred choice. For various video files, use a codec-less player like VLC or GOM. VLC can also play DVDs pretty decently, if you don't want to buy the better DVD players (as WinDVD and PowerDVD are both payware, although there are some trials to give test drive with).

If you have trouble with VOB2MPG, know that the author is a really nice guy, and he'll always reply to troubleshooting and error reports.

Thanks as always, Admin. I might try the VOB2MPG author again too. :)