Converting DVD to mp4 (H.264) - missing resolution

[peku]

Hello all,

as Microsoft started to eliminate DVD support in his flagship OS I'm thinking
about converting DVDs content to a more modern standard (e.g. mp4 (H.264)).

In X5 SP1 I'm facing an unexpected problem. There is no matching resolution.
DVDs use 720x480 (NTSC) or 720x576 (PAL) but in the convertor I cannot
find matching resolution in mp4's container for H.264 MAIN nor BASELINE
nor HIGH profile encoders.

Is is a X5 implementation error or a 'feature' dictated by a standard
or my blindness, please?

thank you in advance
Petr

[BrianCee]

Yes it's not quite as obvious as the other options but it is all there.

After you click on 'Create a video File' and the drop down opens - go right to the bottom of the choices and choose 'Custom' - then towards the bottom of the new dialogue window use the "Save as type" dropdown - and the "Options" button to set resolution, frame rate etc.


OR - if your going to be doing quite a bit then go to "Settings >> Make Movie Template manager" and when the dialogue window opens choose 'new' and give your new template a meaningful name - click OK then use the 'General' and 'Compression' tabs to set your requirements - under the compression tab against the 'video type' is a drop down where you will find both the H264 Baseline and Main options. exit that box - now when you go to Create video File at the very bottom of the drop down you will find the name of your own template - click on that and continue from there.

[teknisyan]

Just to add to what Briancee mention, you can go here for more info on how to create your own Movie Template - http://product.corel.com/help/Video/540 ... lates.html

[peku]

Well,

first thank you for the hint.

But even when I use the custom option I cannot find the matching resolution.
DVD resolutions are not predefined and the user specific radio-check is disabled
for the mp4 container and H.264 compression (regardless of the profile).

Am I missing something, please?
Petr

PS: I'm in batch convert context but it seems irrelevant, options
are basically the same as for 'Create a Video File'.

[lata]

Hi Petr

DVD video uses is anamorphic, that is the frame size of Pal 720 x 576 is stretched to form 4:3 and for widescreen 16:9 frame sizes.

Mpeg4 is not anamorphic so produces the same frame size as the pixels used.

If your source DVD is widescreen then using 1280 x 720 will create a widescreen 16:9 video
1920 x 1080, full hd is also widescreen 16:9

Right click your original video clip and select properties, what are they.

[peku]

Hi lata,

it's an interesting aspect I have not been aware of.

It would mean that I could not keep all: horizontal resolution, vertical resolution and screen ratio while converting mpeg2 compressed to H.264 compressed. So I should reformulate my question to reflect that.

Speculative part

For 4:3 ratio NTSC DVD no problem as for 480 lines vertical resolution ratio-calculated vertical reslution is 640 rows which exactly matches one of the predefined resolutions for H.264.

So remaining problem are 4:3, 16:9 PAL videos and 16:9 NTSC videos.

E.g. for 4:3 PAL I''d be looking for 720x540 resolution (keeping original
horizontal resolution and calculating vertical one) or 768x576 resolution
(keeping original vertical resolution and calculating horizontal one).

The first question, are above speculative calculations correct for the purpose
of mpeg2 -> h.264 conversion?

Next question, how could I specify matching H.264 resolutions in X5, please?

thank you ahead
Petr

[Ken Berry]

The other way of doing this would be to forget about using the various mpeg-4 formats (base, main, high). Instead, I suggest you look at going to Share > Create Video File > Custom. In the dialogue box which appears, change 'Save as Type" to "mpeg transport stream (.m2t). Then click the Options button. On the new box which appears, click the compression tab and change the Video format to "H.264 video". Then tick the AVCHD box a bit below that. (AVCHD of course is another form of mpeg-4 using the h-264 codec, though is usually high definition.) You could also change the bitrate down from its default 18000 kbps to something closer to DVD bitrates e.g. 8000 kbps.

Back on the General tab, Frame Size will offer you the 720 x 480 NTSC (or 576 PAL) option. Click OK to close that dialogue box, and on the first box, give your new file a name, then press Save.

You can also use Settings > Make Movie Template Manager to make a custom template for this if you intend to process a lot of video into this format.