New Guide: How to Encode MPEG-2 with Avidemux

[admin]

RE: Avidemux, Avidemux

Latest digital video guides:

• How to Encode MPEG-2 with Avidemux (Freeware) – Part 1
• How to Encode MPEG-2 with Avidemux (Freeware) – Part 2
  

Have Comments or Feedback?

As always, feel free to share your opinions, comments, etc, here in the forum, in this very thread.
If you're not already a member of The Digital FAQ forum, simply join as a Free Member. Or better yet, become a Premium Member.
If you liked it, then please share it on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter, by clicking the links on the editorial page.
Useful tips or updates from the community may be added to current/past guides, at the author's discretion.

Thanks for reading.

[Superstar]

I just used the guide to set it up, but then I realized, I can't figure out how to start the process. I don't see a "start" or "go" option anywhere. I thought it might be the "Load/Run" project icon, but I clicked it & nothing happened. I clicked the "go" option at the top and I then selected "play/stop" but all that did was play the video...is that what I want, or would it be something else?

-- merged --

I still need assistance with this please, thanks.

[lordsmurf]

I'm working on some tweaks to the guide -- having to do a lot of testing first, before it's done.
It'll be a few more days.

[Superstar]

Not a problem at all. Thanks!

-- merged --

Just bumping

-- merged --

Is there another good program that I can use to transfer avi to mpeg to be able to put onto DVD with good quality?

[JMP]

I believe MainConcept Reference (now TotalCode Studio) can handle this as well, but it is not freeware.
-JMP

[Superstar]

I'd like to use the Avidemux, but I just need to know how to start it after I apply all the settings that are outlined in the guide..

-- merged --

Can someone instruct me on how to do that? That's the only thing that I couldn't figure out how to do, because it wasn't listed in the guide..

[kpmedia]

The issue was Avidemux 2.5 and 2.6 were different -- maybe too different. So much so that a separate 2.5 and 2.6 guide probably needed to be created. Several times, I found that Avidemux would crash where Avideux 2.6 would not. But I'm not sure if that was this computer, or the program itself.

Because we have a difficult work schedule last month and this month, its had to wait. We do want to revisit it soon.

In theory, its as easy as File > Save > Save Video

avidemux-save.jpg

Then save as the correct file type. For MPEG, name the file "filename.mpg"

That's it. Try it.

[Superstar]

Oh interesting. I ended up having to do a full system recovery, because I lost connection one night and even the ISP couldn't help me fix it, so I did that hoping it would fix the connection problem and also take care of other problems I had, that were talked about in other posts. Fortunately everything is fixed now. However, I had to re-download the Avidemux. Should I go with the 2.6 version?

[kpmedia]

Sure. Try it, see what happens.

[Superstar]

I got the Avidemux 2.6 downloaded last night and based off the last picture provided for how to save it, I think we have different versions. On mine, when I go to "File" - "Save", there's no arrow like in your picture. It tells me to select an area to save it at, so I did that and when I clicked save, I got an error message come up that says:

[Mismatch]
Bad width/height for DVD

and when I click ok, another error box comes up that says Muxer cannot open and when I click that, it says the file was not saved correctly. I entered it just as you said to, with the filename.mpg

[kpmedia]

Are you giving it a DVD compliant video?
The instruction were for converting AVI captures to MPEG assets for DVD. Not converting videos from another source.

[Superstar]

Yeah, this particular file is .avi ..

I also have mp4's that I need to convert, so those would be different steps for the mp4s?

[kpmedia]

We can't make that guide right now.

What I suggest you do for those is use ConvertXToDVD. It's works very well, and looks almost as good as MainConcept for quality AVI (Xvid/Divx) and MP4/MKV (H.264) files. That's the best way. It's only $45 (use coupon below), and that's cheap for good video encoding software.

The easiest free way is to use VirtualDub first to convert to an intermediary Huffyuv file (resize to proper DVD resolution, etc), then use Avidemux. But that's not dummy-friendly like ConvertX.

You can try to use Avidemux for encoding AVI, too, but it's honestly too buggy for my liking, for non-capture sources.

Tip: Use coupon code 62DDFF434E for 10% off ConvertXtoDVD.

[Superstar]

I actually have main concept, you suggested it for me a few years ago, but I'd use it for encoding after I captured a video tape to my computer, then I'd use that to encode it before putting it on DVD. Would that program work for what I'm doing now? Or should I use this ConvertToDvd? Is there guide for that on here already?

[kpmedia]

If you have MainConcept, there's no reason the use Avidemux.
It can be used for converting AVI/MP4 to DVD, but you need to set everything up. It's not drag-and-drop-and-go.

[Superstar]

Ok, I don't have MainConcept on this computer, it's on my desktop that's not working, I made a post about that many months ago actually. I just watched a video tutorial for the ConvertXtoDVD, it said that if you put a blank dvd in, it'll just write it to DVD just from clicking the Convert button.

Is that all I need to do, or is there some settings I should change first for avi to dvd and mp4 to dvd?

[lordsmurf]

Then I suggest putting MainConcept on the computer that does work.

When I use ConvertXToDVD, I author it to a folder on the hard drive, without menus.
Then I "burn" it to an ISO file in Imgburn.
Then I use DVD Decrypter is IFO mode to extract the streams.
Then I use Womble to save it back to an MPEG container. (Cut off 1 frame from the end.)
Then its ready to use in my authoring program - usually Ulead DVD Workshop 2, though not always.

Other times, I author menu-less discs to the hard drive, and burn those with Imgburn.

I never use ConvertXToDVD to burn.

[Superstar]

Ok..I'll try those steps. I don't have MainConcept installed, because I don't capture video to this computer, so that's why I didn't put it on here.

When you author to a folder in ConvertXToDVD, do you change any settings, or do you just hit the "convert" button?

[lordsmurf]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Superstar

When you author to a folder in ConvertXToDVD, do you change any settings, or do you just hit the "convert" button?

The default is usually correct.
Just don't put too much on one disc, or it'll look bad. Two hours at most is what I suggest.

[Superstar]

"Then I use DVD Decrypter is IFO mode to extract the streams."

How would that be done? Just select the IFO mode and it does it automatically, or is there more to it?