I got some AVI files that claimed themselves high quality. They were encoded by MS MPEG4V2. AVICodec said they were 85% quality. The resolution was about 720*480. When I watched them in MS Media Player, they were far from high quality and I can see a lot of artifacts. They cannot be compared with DivX with the same bitrates.

Are there any codec that are better than the MS one that comes with Media Player?

???

MPEG42 is a MS codec.
If you wants a better MPEG42, that does not exist. If you want a better MPEG4 codec, then as you said, Divx is better.

So I do not understand your question.

Oh sorry I didn't make my question clear enough.

I have a few AVI that were encoded with MPEG4V2 (MP42). On my PC, Microsoft codec that came along with WMP is the decoding codec in use. I was not satisfied with the output and just wonder whether there are other decoders that give better quality than MS one. Will Divx3 Alpha make the deal?

In other word you want to know if an other codec can decode your avi and displays it better than the original one ?

If think you don't understand that the poor quality of MP42 is not in the decoding, but in the encoding

But you can try to use Xvid or Divx (5 not 3 !) as they both have en option "support all MPEG4 format" (that you have to check in the configuration). Or you can use ffdshow that also supports MP42.

720*480 is a direct NTSC D1 Resolution means a poor mans wrong encoding direct from capture or DVD to NON PAR 1:1 which is NOT used by mpeg4 in general:

720/480 = 1.5:1 *wow*

And the known ARs are mostly 2.35:1, 1.85:1, 1.78:1 or 1.33:1

so 720x540 or 640x480 for instance would be one of the right ones (if 1.33:1 movie is encoded)

And as these words do say everything but NOT that you did the captures by yourself Im unhappy to say that THESE do smell like downloaded Movies. Cause NTSC captures encoded to mpeg4 mostly are done at PAR 1:1 like to 640x480 NTSC TV.

So if you do encode a movie BY YOURSELF using a given mpeg4 codec, then for shure its also installed on your system to decode also.
See the logic

The guy never told he did the movies itself Inc !

And read again the question : he HAS the codec but look for a BETTER one !

We are in the "codec" section, he is asking about codecs... the general rules about Dled stuff are irrelevant here IMHO

Take it easy

Oh, these where only assumptions ....

And Im taking it easy as otherwise I would have written "******* Closed *******"

"PAX Domini" Uruk-hai

Just use ffdshow. It contains many mpeg4 decoders, it will pick best one

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Go for SECAM =)