Sound sync problem- please help!

Alan Smithee · Post by **Alan Smithee** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 3:33 am

This is my first time posting on this board, and I'm not entirely computer-literate so please be kind! I've seen a couple posts about sound being out of sync, but let me explain my situation:
I'm using ULead to add chapters to a DVD recorded on my standalone DVD recorder. The content is recorded from videotapes of TV broadcasts that are over 25 years old, and are in mostly good condition still but have occasional dropouts. The way my Philips recorder handles these is to simply not record to disc any portion where the video signal is going nuts- upon playback of the recorded disc it appears like the offending portion was simply cut out, but everything else is fine.
Here's where the problem starts: Somehow, after I have made the new disc image with Ulead, it is having trouble where the tape dropouts were, and making the sound jump slightly AHEAD of the picture- in other words, at the point where the DVD recorder stopped recording during the dropout, Ulead is getting the sound out of sync at that point. It does not do this EVERY time that happens though, only sometimes, but on the ones I have been working on I tried putting it through ULead several times and the problem always came up at the same place each time. The probem only comes up AFTER ULead is finished- if I preview the video on ULead before having it save the disc image, the sync problem is not there. It's after I've played the saved image either off of the hard drive or burned onto a DVD that the problem occurs.
I've been tearing my hair out trying to fix this but have had no success. Is there ANY easy way to get ULead to make the disc without the sound going out of sync? If not, can anybody recommend another program that doesn't have this problem???

heinz-oz · Post by **heinz-oz** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 3:51 am

I don't think this is a ULEAD problem entirely. You did not tell us the hardware spec's of the PC you are using to do this.

I had a similar issue with source material from DV tape and editing in MSP 6.5. The sound was increasingly getting out of sync. This problem was traced back to the soundcard I was, or rather, wasn't using. I was using the onboard sound AC97 of my MSI MoBo and bandwidth issues caused the problem. After buying a PCI soundcard and disabling the onboard sound, the problem disappeared.

Alan Smithee · Post by **Alan Smithee** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 6:01 am

As I said, I'm not too computer literate (the computer I'm using I bought used from a friend). I'm NOT doing any actual capturing or editing on the computer though. I'm simply taking something from one DVD that was made on a DVD recorder (just put the blank disc in and hit Record), adding chapter marks to it, and taking out the annoying menu that the DVD recorder puts in, so that it just plays automatically. Nothing is being cut or added to what's already there.

heinz-oz · Post by **heinz-oz** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 6:49 am

Sorry, but you lost me there somewhere, you are importing the files from the disk written by the recorder, right? What format are they in? I assume that ULEAD has to encode the files to make them DVD compliant and the problem occurs there. It may have to do with the GOP files not being closed or out of kilter, depending on where your recorder stopped the recording process.

You can try other programs but I would not hold my breath. You may be better off using a NLE editor program like Video Studio to cut the clips where your recorder stopped. Any funny bits can then be cut out by adjusting the leading or trailling edges of your clips. After that you author the clips back to DVD and burn them.

I have never attempted anything like what you are trying to do and can therefore not be of more help.

Alan Smithee · Post by **Alan Smithee** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 7:55 am

The material I am using is ALREADY DVD compliant. I can take a disc from the recorder (Philips DVR 985) and play it in most DVD players. The problem with that however is that it's had problems when you go back and add chapters on it after recording. Therefore, I'm taking the video straight off the DVD onto the hard drive using IFO Mode on DVD Decrypter, and using ULead to put the chapters where I want them. ULead then saves this as a disc image, which I would then put on a permanent disc, but this is where the sync problems occur.
Additional info: When I put the video from the original DVD onto the hard drive, it is saved as an mpg file. I can then open this up in ULead and do what I need to do with it, but again when I have ULead save it as a disc image the sound goes out of sync at some points. I had to closely watch a disc to see what might be causing it, and I found that the problem happens during glitches in the analog source that was recorded to the disc, but again the sync is fine on the original disc. It only goes out of sync on the new disc when ULead is done with it.
Thanks again for any help!

maddrummer3301 · Post by **maddrummer3301** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 2:25 pm

You didn't say what version of MF your using.
If MF3 or MF4 you can import the dvd directly into MF.
No need for another program to do this.

MF3 will import the chapters as separate mpeg2 files.
MF4 will import the complete dvd as 1 mpeg2 file or individual chapters/files.
(That is a new feature in MF4 Disc Creator).

If you have MF3 to import the complete dvd as 1 mpeg2 file on the recorder
disable chaptering if possible.

(If you are renaming VOB's to Mpg extensions that doesn't always work).

MD

Alan Smithee · Post by **Alan Smithee** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 10:26 pm

I'm using MovieFactory 3- I wasn't aware you could use that to import files off of the DVD, I'll have to look at that tonight. I was able to call ULead's technical support line and they suggested I check the capture rate under the template manager, and also check the frame size under the General Tab. Not sure what that means exactly but I will also try those tonight and see what happens!

DVDDoug · Post by **DVDDoug** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 12:29 am

I believe your MPEG files are corrupt. Your files are in a DVD compliant format... but they are not truly-compliant... they are corrupted.

Everything will remain in sync 'till Movie Factory de-multiplexies and re-multiplexes the audio and video. When it hits a glitch, the length of either the audio or video stream changes. When they are re-multiplexed, they don't match-up. When this happened to me, my MPEGs played fine. There was no hint of corruption (or sync problems) 'till I made a DVD. After lots of frustrationg experimentation, I accidently discovered that my files were getting corrupted (by Ulead Video Studio BTW).

I don't remember if MF has a do not recode compilant files option. (I've been using DVD Workshop for awhile... which gets the same sync problem with corrupted files.)

Here are some programs that are supposed to repair MPEGs:
PvaStrumento (Free)
VideoReDo ($50)
Womble MPEG Video Wizard ($120 after 30-day free trial) Or Womble MPEG2VCR ($50)

I have not tried any of them. (I own Womble MPEG Video Wizard, but I have not used it for this purpose.)

Alan Smithee · Post by **Alan Smithee** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 10:34 am

OK, I've tried a few other things and so far still haven't gotten it to work. I tried having ULead take the video straight off the disc (from the Video TS), rather than from an extracted file, but the 2-hour video is broken up into about 4 or 5 separate sections and will encode each as a separate title if I let it go any further. I have Womble MPEG Video Wizard, I tried having it save it as a new file but again the sync problem happens after I let ULead do its thing with it.

maddrummer3301 · Post by **maddrummer3301** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 2:07 pm

Each clip that's imported on the timeline should be a chapter in your
movie.

After you import the dvd into MF are there "X"'s in the top right hand
corner of each clip? (Or any clips?)
If so, then delete them from the timeline and Re-import them back into
MF again from the harddrive. If MF says they are compliant files (they
shoould be) then there will not be an "X" in the upper corner of each
clip(thumbnail/icon).

When you recorded the original dvd on the Phillips recorder is this
one continuous recording or did you stop the recording and start
another new recording?

After the videos are imported into MF what happens if you immediately
create a menu and burn the dvd without doing anything to the videos.
By that fact even bypass the menu if you want to save time.
Do not edit them at all (combine/split ect)
Make sure "Do not convert compliant files" is Checked On.

MD

Alan Smithee · Post by **Alan Smithee** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 5:27 pm

It's one continuous recording on the Philips recorder. When I import the videoTS it splits it up though- it did that on something else I tried a while ago which is why I haven't used that method to import video anymore. I haven't had it make a disc this way, but if I tell it to make a menu it will show 5 separate titles, when it should only be one. I don't know if the sound sync problem comes up this way either, I'm praying it won't! I'll have to play around with it some more this weekend, I was up late trying to get it to work!

maddrummer3301 · Post by **maddrummer3301** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 7:54 pm

I would definitely burn a dvd with the 5 separate videos to find out if
you problem is in any program editing the actual mpeg2 file.
There may be a slight pause between the clips which is normal.

MovieFactory 4 will import the complete video.
MovieFactory4 is new so I can't say how it will work on your machine.

The latest version of Nero 6 with the latest updates will import the
complete dvd. Nero uses NeroVision express. You can get the mpeg2 file
onto the harddisk with that program and then into MF3.
I wouldn't edit it because you probably will have sync problems.
VideoRedo is a good program to fix timebase correction.
I wouldn't use decryptor to do it because your obviously having problems
and it's not working.
Try the trial version of VideoRedo. Fully functional for the trial version
with good tech support after buying it.

VideoRedo is worth the money because good Mpg editing is a field in itself.

MD

Alan Smithee · Post by **Alan Smithee** » Sun Jul 03, 2005 12:49 am

Update- I had ULead take everything straight off the disc, and I was able to have it join back together everything that was separated (each segment is about 24 minutes), but the sound-sync problem was even WORSE than it was before! Back to the drawing board....