I referred to http://phpbb.ulead.com.tw/EN/viewtopic.php?t=27 and followed it to the letter re: the Create Video Phase. But when I get to the Burn DVD phase and do:
1. Select NEW project.
2. Select FILE/Project Properties/Edit/Compression tab select Media Type = PAL DVD, can I
(a) Change quality to 100?
(b) Change Video Data Rate to 8000?
(c) Change audio format from LPCM audio to Dolby digital audio with audio type of 2/0(L,R)?
If I do and hit OK, I get the warning "Modifying your project settings may clear the cache for audio/video preview and the undo/redo functions. Do you want to continue?" My logic is that we are working with an empty project, so I hit OK
Then I go back to the website and do
3. Select SHARE/Create Disc
4. Press Add Video. Navigate to select your Mpeg2 video file. It will appear in the lower display.
5. Click the little Gear-Shaped icon on the lower left, second to the right to set the properties for the DVD burn
At this point can I change aspect ratio from 4:3 to 16:9? If I do, I get the warning "This action will change the display aspect ratio and some information may be lost. Continue?"
If I hit Yes and hit Change MPEG settings/General, I get Freme type = Frame-based which I change to Lower Field First. Then I go to Compression, I get Quality=70 and Video data rate=7000 which I change to 100 and 8000 respectively.
If I hit OK and after all this is it safe to burn at 4.0x?
Without any way of previewing the end result (no PAL DVD player) and since these will be going to Africa, I want to get every detail right.
Thanks for your help
Making a PAL DVD
Moderator: Ken Berry
Making a PAL DVD
Richard
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Ken Berry
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With great respect to my friend Steve, I am not sure that it sounds OK to me... that, is based on the assumptions I am making from your current location in the world (NTSC) and where you want to send the final DVD (a PAL country in Africa). I am also assuming that since you followed the recommended procedures for producing your DVD-compliant video file "to the letter" that you most likely started off with NTSC DV format files. But I would appreciate you confirmation of these various points.
But if I am correct, then it seems you are only creating a rod to beat your own back with... If indeed you are starting off with NTSC DV files and want to convert this eventually to a PAL DVD, and moreover one with certain specific properties (such as you outlined), then IMHO you should be aiming to do that from the very beginning.
Thus, you would edit your NTSC footage in DV format, but at the end of that, you would go to Share > Create Video File > and here select not only DVD as the format, but also PAL as the TV system. Moreover, you should at this point also be choosing to set the quality/speed slider to 100, and setting the output bitrate at max 8000 kbps and the audio output to Dolby.
As it is, from what you have presented, it seems to me you are editing in NTSC, then producing an NTSC DVD-compatible mpeg-2. But then, when you move to the burning stage, you are seeking to have the burning process not only convert the TV system being used, but also completely change the fundamental properties such as bitrate and audio format. This to my mind is only asking for trouble.
If you follow my suggestion, on the other hand, you will already have a fully DVD-compatible PAL mpeg-2 file with exactly the properties you want, but well BEFORE you even go near the burning module (Share > Create Disc). Then you would only have to open the burning module, insert your PAL file and make sure 'Do not convert compliant mpeg files' is ticked in the Options cogwheel icon in bottom left, build your menus, then burn. You would not have to even check that the burning properties match those of the incoming file as the latter is already DVD-compliant and you have told the program not to convert compliant files. (Just to be sure, though, I always still make sure they match!)
Capisce?
Apart from that, have you considered that most PAL stand-alone DVD players these days can play NTSC DVDs with no problems (though the converse is not necessarily true). In other words, it is highly likely that the people in Africa could play your DVD even if you did not go to the trouble of first converting it to PAL. You might want to test this by sending them the same project burned on one DVD as NTSC and another as PAL. If the former will play properly for them, then in future you will not need to go to all the trouble of conversion if you plan to make this a regular thing.
But if I am correct, then it seems you are only creating a rod to beat your own back with... If indeed you are starting off with NTSC DV files and want to convert this eventually to a PAL DVD, and moreover one with certain specific properties (such as you outlined), then IMHO you should be aiming to do that from the very beginning.
Thus, you would edit your NTSC footage in DV format, but at the end of that, you would go to Share > Create Video File > and here select not only DVD as the format, but also PAL as the TV system. Moreover, you should at this point also be choosing to set the quality/speed slider to 100, and setting the output bitrate at max 8000 kbps and the audio output to Dolby.
As it is, from what you have presented, it seems to me you are editing in NTSC, then producing an NTSC DVD-compatible mpeg-2. But then, when you move to the burning stage, you are seeking to have the burning process not only convert the TV system being used, but also completely change the fundamental properties such as bitrate and audio format. This to my mind is only asking for trouble.
If you follow my suggestion, on the other hand, you will already have a fully DVD-compatible PAL mpeg-2 file with exactly the properties you want, but well BEFORE you even go near the burning module (Share > Create Disc). Then you would only have to open the burning module, insert your PAL file and make sure 'Do not convert compliant mpeg files' is ticked in the Options cogwheel icon in bottom left, build your menus, then burn. You would not have to even check that the burning properties match those of the incoming file as the latter is already DVD-compliant and you have told the program not to convert compliant files. (Just to be sure, though, I always still make sure they match!)
Capisce?
Apart from that, have you considered that most PAL stand-alone DVD players these days can play NTSC DVDs with no problems (though the converse is not necessarily true). In other words, it is highly likely that the people in Africa could play your DVD even if you did not go to the trouble of first converting it to PAL. You might want to test this by sending them the same project burned on one DVD as NTSC and another as PAL. If the former will play properly for them, then in future you will not need to go to all the trouble of conversion if you plan to make this a regular thing.
Ken Berry
Yes, I live in Arizona (NTSC country) and I captured from a DV camcorder (Type II) and my project settings were:
NTSC drop frame (29.97 fps)
MPEG files
24 bits, 720 x 480, 29.97 fps
Lower Field First
(DVD-NTSC), 16:9
I referred to http://phpbb.ulead.com.tw/EN/viewtopic.php?t=27 and followed it “to the letter,” re: making a PAL video file by doing the following:
Share/Create Video File/Custom
Saved as Type = Mpeg Files
Clicked the Options button
Compression Tab: PAL DVD, quality=100, Variable bitrate, 8000Kbps, and Dolby audio format and audio type 2/0(L,R).
General Tab: Frame type = Lower Field First, Frame Size was already set to 720x576, and Display aspect Ratio - 16x9.
Ulead Video Studio Tab: UNchecked Perform Smart Render and used Non-Square pixels.
Now, my questions from above are from that point forward when I went to the burn phase. Following the directions in the above website:
1. I selected NEW project.
2. When I selected FILE/Project Properties/Edit/Compression tab and selected Media Type = PAL DVD, can I
(a) Change quality from 70 (default) to 100?
(b) Change Video Data Rate from 7000 (default) to 8000?
(c) Change audio format from LPCM audio (default) to Dolby digital audio with audio type of 2/0(L,R)?
I assumed I could, so I hit OK. Then, I get the warning "Modifying your project settings may clear the cache for audio/video preview and the undo/redo functions. Do you want to continue?" My logic is that we are working with an empty project, so I hit OK
Then I went to the burning phase, I went back to the website and did:
3. Select SHARE/Create Disc
4. I added the PAL video file.
5. I then click the little Gear-Shaped icon on the lower left, second to the right to set the properties for the DVD burn:
(a)At this point can I change aspect ratio from 4:3 (default) to 16:9? If I do, I get the warning "This action will change the display aspect ratio and some information may be lost. Continue?"
(b) If I hit Yes and hit Change MPEG settings/General, I get Freme type = Frame-based which I change to Lower Field First. Then I go to Compression, I get Quality=70 and Video data rate=7000 which I change to 100 and 8000 respectively.
I think I’m missing something when I see two warnings on the road to this point prompting me to ask “If I hit OK and after all this is it safe to burn at 4.0x?”
NTSC drop frame (29.97 fps)
MPEG files
24 bits, 720 x 480, 29.97 fps
Lower Field First
(DVD-NTSC), 16:9
I referred to http://phpbb.ulead.com.tw/EN/viewtopic.php?t=27 and followed it “to the letter,” re: making a PAL video file by doing the following:
Share/Create Video File/Custom
Saved as Type = Mpeg Files
Clicked the Options button
Compression Tab: PAL DVD, quality=100, Variable bitrate, 8000Kbps, and Dolby audio format and audio type 2/0(L,R).
General Tab: Frame type = Lower Field First, Frame Size was already set to 720x576, and Display aspect Ratio - 16x9.
Ulead Video Studio Tab: UNchecked Perform Smart Render and used Non-Square pixels.
Now, my questions from above are from that point forward when I went to the burn phase. Following the directions in the above website:
1. I selected NEW project.
2. When I selected FILE/Project Properties/Edit/Compression tab and selected Media Type = PAL DVD, can I
(a) Change quality from 70 (default) to 100?
(b) Change Video Data Rate from 7000 (default) to 8000?
(c) Change audio format from LPCM audio (default) to Dolby digital audio with audio type of 2/0(L,R)?
I assumed I could, so I hit OK. Then, I get the warning "Modifying your project settings may clear the cache for audio/video preview and the undo/redo functions. Do you want to continue?" My logic is that we are working with an empty project, so I hit OK
Then I went to the burning phase, I went back to the website and did:
3. Select SHARE/Create Disc
4. I added the PAL video file.
5. I then click the little Gear-Shaped icon on the lower left, second to the right to set the properties for the DVD burn:
(a)At this point can I change aspect ratio from 4:3 (default) to 16:9? If I do, I get the warning "This action will change the display aspect ratio and some information may be lost. Continue?"
(b) If I hit Yes and hit Change MPEG settings/General, I get Freme type = Frame-based which I change to Lower Field First. Then I go to Compression, I get Quality=70 and Video data rate=7000 which I change to 100 and 8000 respectively.
I think I’m missing something when I see two warnings on the road to this point prompting me to ask “If I hit OK and after all this is it safe to burn at 4.0x?”
Richard
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sjj1805
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The first time I replied I didn't notice you were in Arizona and wronly assumed that you were dealing with PAL throughout (Thanks Ken for pointing out his location.)
Videos in PAL format are made up of 25 frames every second.
Videos in NTSC are just under 30 frames per second.
Therefore when converting from NTSC to PAL you have to lose 5 frames every second - result jerkiness.
Second issue is screen size.
Videos in PAL are 720 x 576
Videos in NTSC are 720 x 480
So to convert from NTSC to PAL the video gets stretched in height.
The warning boxes appear when changing from 4.3 to 16.9 or vice versa irrespective of which format (PAL / NTSC) you are using.
If you had a 16.9 video and by mistake started a 4.3 project, realised you made an error and so changed the project to 16.9 you get a warning.
(You may have carefully placed titles, thumbnail boxes and so on in the one format which would then effectively be out of alignment in the other format.)
Regarding burn speed - it is the recommendation of the forum that you burn at 4x or less no matter what the capabilities of your DVD burner and discs are. You can see more information regarding burn speeds here:
Problems burning a DVD
Videos in PAL format are made up of 25 frames every second.
Videos in NTSC are just under 30 frames per second.
Therefore when converting from NTSC to PAL you have to lose 5 frames every second - result jerkiness.
Second issue is screen size.
Videos in PAL are 720 x 576
Videos in NTSC are 720 x 480
So to convert from NTSC to PAL the video gets stretched in height.
The warning boxes appear when changing from 4.3 to 16.9 or vice versa irrespective of which format (PAL / NTSC) you are using.
If you had a 16.9 video and by mistake started a 4.3 project, realised you made an error and so changed the project to 16.9 you get a warning.
(You may have carefully placed titles, thumbnail boxes and so on in the one format which would then effectively be out of alignment in the other format.)
Regarding burn speed - it is the recommendation of the forum that you burn at 4x or less no matter what the capabilities of your DVD burner and discs are. You can see more information regarding burn speeds here:
Problems burning a DVD
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jchunter
RTR,
Your procedure looks OK except for step 2, which is unnecessary and doesn't accomplish anything. When you are burning a DVD, the project properties don't matter because the BURN properties govern what is actually written on the DVD.
In step 5(a), you can, but should not try to change the aspect ratio in the burn module. You are supposed to have everything set up properly in the video file before you burn DVD. The result may not be what you expect - incorrect aspect ratio, which could stretch/squeeze your pictures. If you are just setting it to match your video file, that's OK.
Don't worry about the warnings.
I hope that you have been able to preview your video file before the DVD burn to make sure that your PAL video file played OK. It should be perfect before you burn.
I don't know how you will be able to play the PAL DVD in Arizona to verify that the burn completed successfully.
BTW, you are attempting a very advanced operation without any prior experience, which doesn't have an encouraging prognosis for success...
Your procedure looks OK except for step 2, which is unnecessary and doesn't accomplish anything. When you are burning a DVD, the project properties don't matter because the BURN properties govern what is actually written on the DVD.
In step 5(a), you can, but should not try to change the aspect ratio in the burn module. You are supposed to have everything set up properly in the video file before you burn DVD. The result may not be what you expect - incorrect aspect ratio, which could stretch/squeeze your pictures. If you are just setting it to match your video file, that's OK.
Don't worry about the warnings.
I hope that you have been able to preview your video file before the DVD burn to make sure that your PAL video file played OK. It should be perfect before you burn.
I don't know how you will be able to play the PAL DVD in Arizona to verify that the burn completed successfully.
BTW, you are attempting a very advanced operation without any prior experience, which doesn't have an encouraging prognosis for success...
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sjj1805
- Posts: 14383
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Why not contact your friend in Africa and simply ask him/her if the DVD player will also play NTSC.
I have a few DVD discs that are in NTSC and play correctly here in the U.K. on my PAL DVD player. Besides, if he/she has a computer capable of playing a DVD he/she can watch it on the computer anyway.
I have a few DVD discs that are in NTSC and play correctly here in the U.K. on my PAL DVD player. Besides, if he/she has a computer capable of playing a DVD he/she can watch it on the computer anyway.
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heinz-oz
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jchunter
OK - will do. It may be some time before I hear back from anyone if at all.
I'm keeping track of the steps and, so far, upon playing it back in Interlead Video (came with VS10+ software) I've noticed some slight gaps in the audio, "stilted" video in general, but the titles appear to be OK so far.
I'm keeping track of the steps and, so far, upon playing it back in Interlead Video (came with VS10+ software) I've noticed some slight gaps in the audio, "stilted" video in general, but the titles appear to be OK so far.
Richard