DivX Encoding

[Squeaky]

ok, I just CAN'T get this right :( ... in desperation I turn to you lot ;)

the story so far....

In a galaxy far far away..

I ripped my DVD to my HD using SmartRipper..very straightforward, works fine.

Now, the next step ..encoding this to DixX. Varying results depending on software. I would like a little advice on software, anybody have preferences? or even workarounds for the odd issue im having? If possible using a one stop solution.

I've tried XMPEG, Flask and EasyDivX so far, I've also installed NeoDivX and Vidomi but have not yet attempted anything with these. I have lame and one or two other sound codecs installed and also DivX 5.02.

XMPEG and Flask are very very similar, and i would have been happy with the software except my original test DVD uses interlacing and i could not clear this up no matter what de-interlacing settings i tried :(

EasyDivX was exactly as stated..easy, the quality was good, the time was not too poor, and more importantly .. the Interlacing issue so apparent with Flask was remedied to my satisfaction, however, the finished AVI and AC3 file were not combined at the end of the process, an issue with the latest version (0.82) and windows XP i think - the software just dies at this stage. I *think* the audio and video files are complete though, so i could potentially use VirtualDub or similar to synch the two files together, and split for 2 cds (the final divx process which never happened). I was not REALLY wanting to make this such a multi-stage/multi-software chore
(so if anyone out there has the 0.81 version :) ?).

Any thoughts or comments oh illustrious readers (Ian, 7of9 :D?)

cheers
Squeaks

[Squeaky]

GGGRRRrrrrrr

NeoDivX encoding complete with good results..but the finished avi has the sound out of synch!!

the 9.2 suite does come with smartripper and nandub etc so i guess i will just have to work out how to use these various multiplexing tools etc :(

[Ian Newson]

Might be worth giving Virtualdub a go here (www.virtualdub.org) . A tuition can be found here (http://www.doom9.org/virtualdub_procedures.htm) . I havent done a divx yet but in general www.doom9.org is pretty good for most ripping guides.

[Ian Newson]

Found at forum.firmware-flash.com

I use cladDVDXP "http://clonead.cjb.net" to rip (decode/decrypt) the DVD to hard disk. I then use Vidomi 0.469 "http://www.vidomi.com" to encode using DivX 5.02.

Vidomi is really good now because it does the sound at the same time as it's producing the output file. Most encoders before would produce a video file and a very large sound file (.wav format). You would have to combine the two using something like VirtualDub.

The process does take a long time. Ripping is pretty fast, but encoding a 2 hour movie to DivX can take 15 hours on my 650MHz notebook.

Vic

[Squeaky]

thanks Ian

have tried out Vidomi now too... again, good quality, nice interface...but my first attempt leaves my sound out of synch :(

gotta be going wrong somewhere!! flask and xmpeg blended the two perfectly (if only their de-interlace worked :()

one or more of the progs DO allow me to generate separate image and wavs but ive been trying to avoid using more software for what i thought would be relatively easy :(

ill keep trying..gotta be a ticky box that makes a difference somewhere ;)

Squeaks
:sunshine:

[Ian Newson]

The only one I really played around with was DVDX 1.6 , I haven't played around with the later ones. Try looking at dvd.box.sk for it.

[ryan4nayr]

I have used Gordian Knot that I d/led from www.doom9.org for a few weeks now. I must say, the guides + that software, I would never have tried DVD ripping. GKnot automates all those processes, & as long as you have already used SmartRipper & then DVD2AVI (which GKnot automatically installs for you) for each DVD rip, you can queue up as many of those DVD rips while you go out & see sunshine. :sunshine:

Big CON: you really rely on those guides, but if you're feeling adventurous, you should play around with the settings. It also helps if you know some1 who knows GKnot. ALSO, when I was installing, it messed up my DivX 5.0.2 settings, but a simple DivX re-install solved the prob.

[RinTinTin]

Hello Squeky,
Late reply but I just happened around...
I've done quite a lot of ripping/encoding in the past year; I started
with DIVx 3.11 & Flask...and I've settled for quite a while now with DIVx5.01 & XMPEG4.5 with good results... I got a friend who's using the Gordian Knot (good results too, we're exchanging the final products with great pride LOL), but this suite is for the more lazy type who does not want to get to much involved!

[RinTinTin]

...sorry Squeaky, an over-sensitive touchpad on the laptop and the reply was submitted mid-message! Blast!!!
So...as pointed before a great source of info and programs is :
www.doom9.org alongside the very useful www.divx-digest.com (where I found all the programs I'm using and good tutoring as well).
I've never had problems with the audio/video sync. The encoding is done on a slow PC (Athlon 600 slot A) and on a faster one (Athlon 1500) with similar results (but the speed of execution)
That's it...Have fun!

rtt

[^7_of_9]

If you want a guide on how to do it with high quality then PM me. I've done ALOT of DVD's myself. I can give you the straight forward guide on how to do it without any confusing guides like doom9 and others have sometimes with all their links.

[Squeaky]

Thanks guys :D

All the info I needed, cheers :)

I've settled on Guardian Knot, had a little confusion about sound settings in the authors 'how-to' but all sorted now and my first DVD is now ripped (double dvd to 4cds) - and once past this sound confusion --- perfect results, interlacing removed, no synch problems. dvd2avi and nandub were equally straightforward for the segments of the process i needed them for.


alls well that ends well

thanks again
:)

[^7_of_9]

Wow 4 CD's ....

I always keep mine around 1 to 2 CD's Max

[Valkyrie]

Did you like the Spyware that DivX 5.02 put on your pc? (Unless you didn't get the freeware version) I've all but given up on the whole idea 'til I get a DVD burner. It's just too time consuming for the limited mpeg4 quality.

[Squeaky]

hiya Valkyrie..

the spyware is removable with a trick or two ;)

ill post it when i get home tonight :D

[Valkyrie]

I read somewhere that the older version of divX is better. (3.11a)
This is the guide I had been following and had figured it out in a day. (The day after I installed a dvd in my pc) Flask is very quirky. The whole thing is too time consuming. When I get my os changed from win98 to xp I'll be dabbling in video editing as I may be getting Premiere with a firewire card.
There are just so many variable in video editing. So far I think I prefer photo editing. Just wondering what program you use to view dvd's?

http://www.dvdripguides.com/dvdrip3a.html

[Squeaky]

check this out Valkyrie

http://www.atlandide.net/~uncasms/en/index.php?page=gordian

not only is guardian knot the best freeware ripping collection ive found, this guide tells you how to remove the 5.02 spyware (which was not a very sophisticated installation)

[Valkyrie]

Thanks, I'll check it out. For the sypyware, I just deleted the trickler.exe then removed 5.02 divX altogether after reading about an older version being better. I'll have to read more about what other people say about 5.02.