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Bitrate Combinations -- Post Successful Ones Here

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yellowbuddy

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As you know, many of us have the problem of audio and video out being out of sync after using Videora and DVD Decrypter. Many people have given suggestions to decrease the audio and video bitrate, hoping this would solve the problem. However, this has been described as a "hit and miss" process, which many of us do not have time for as it takes me 3-4 hours to convert a 1.5 hour movie.

That is why I have created this thread.

Those who use Videora and DVD Decrypter and are successful with them, PLEASE POST YOUR SUCCESSFUL AUDIO/VIDEO BITRATE COMBINATIONS HERE for the good of the forum! It will save a lot of threads and a lot of frustrated people.

Thank you!

EDIT: Here is the definitive post by Bodacious. Thanks for all the time you spent pulling this together.

Tip: If your video/audio is out of sync, try typing "-async 1" into the custom FFMPEG section on the setup screen. (Bodacious)

Even though we have a pretty comprehensive list, if you have any questions or more combinations, please feel free to post them here.

-----
16:9 video (iPod use): Best used for content which is described as Widescreen, 16:9, Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, Letterbox Widescreen
320x180 (iPod size)
MPEG-4 > FQ-VBR
One Pass
Q Scale=3
Framerate=29.97fps
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

16:9 video (iPod use, higher quality): Best used for content which is described as Widescreen, 16:9, Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, Letterbox Widescreen
320x180 (iPod size)
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=900kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

16:9 video (Television output): Best used for content which is described as Widescreen, 16:9, Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, Letterbox Widescreen
640x360 (Television size)
MPEG-4 > FQ-VBR
One Pass
Q Scale=3
Framerate=29.97fps
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

16:9 video (Television output, higher quality): Best used for content which is described as Widescreen, 16:9, Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, Letterbox Widescreen
640x360 (Television size)
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=2200kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

4:3 video (iPod use): Best used for content which is described as 4:3, Standard Ratio, Non Widescreen, General non HDTV television
320x240 (iPod size)
MPEG-4 > FQ-VBR
One Pass
Q Scale=3
Framerate=29.97fps
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

4:3 video (iPod use, higher quality): Best used for content which is described as 4:3, Standard Ratio, Non Widescreen, General non HDTV television
320x240 (iPod size)
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=900kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

4:3 video (Television output): Best used for content which is described as 4:3, Standard Ratio, Non Widescreen, General non HDTV television
552x414 (Television size)
MPEG-4 > FQ-VBR
One Pass
Q Scale=3
Framerate=29.97fps
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

4:3 video (Television output, higher quality): Best used for content which is described as 4:3, Standard Ratio, Non Widescreen, General non HDTV television
552x414 (Television size)
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=2200kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

2.35:1 video (Television output): Best used for 2.35:1 content described as 2.35:1, Super Widescreen, Letterbox widescreen. Only advise using this for television output purposes and for the maximum real pixel output.
CROP VIDEO INPUT 66 TOP AND BOTTOM (Done in same menu screen as the other options for encoding)
720x306 (Television size)
MPEG-4 > FQ-VBR
One Pass
Q Scale=3
Framerate=29.97fps
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

2.35:1 video (Television output, higher quality): Best used for 2.35:1 content described as 2.35:1, Super Widescreen, Letterbox widescreen. Only advise using this for television output purposes and for the maximum real pixel output.
CROP VIDEO INPUT 66 TOP AND BOTTOM (Done in same menu screen as the other options for encoding)
720x306 (Television size)
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=2200kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

I must note that when I choose 2200kbps as the average bitrate for A-VBR i was basing this on a FQ-VBR (Quality 3) encoding of the chapter in Star Wars Episode I in which Obi Wan and Darth Maul fight and the Chapter in Star Wars Episode III just after the title scroll during the space battle and lightsaber fight against the droids in the hanger bay. Both scenes I'm sure require more detail than most and so basing my average bitrate for A-VBR on these tests would likely mean that 2200kbps would be higher than necessary for a entire film which wouldn't be full of action scenes and fast motion. A bitrate of 2000kbs for the average bitrate in A-VBR would most likely be more than acceptable
----
 
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JMG

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Very good idea. I'll start

OFFICE SPACE 16:9 Widescreen
DVD Decrypter and Videora
MPEG-4 320x240 768kpbs/128kbps
Sucessfull

THE INCREDIBLES
same settings as above, but it skips a scene right after the opening title and therefore the audio is not in sync for the rest of the movie. (The scene skipped is the one showing the robbers running from the cops. It goes right to Mr. Incredible hearing the police scanner in his own car instead)
 
Last edited:

bodacious

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Good idea yea. All my settings are based around soley watching on the iPod and not through a TV. I haven't the ability to play through a TV yet so no need for me to encode massive files yet!

All using Videora iPod converter:

16:9 video:
320x180
MPEG-4 > FQ-VBR
One Pass
Q Scale=3
Framerate=29.97fps
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

16:9 video (higher quality):
320x180
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=900kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

4:3 video:
320x240
MPEG-4 > FQ-VBR
One Pass
Q Scale=3
Framerate=29.97fps
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

4:3 video (higher quality):
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=900kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

All of these have worked for me. The one thing which is a bit strange is that when I try to watch these files through iTunes even though I have a fast computer the delay in opening the file seems to create a out of sync playback. But when the same files are put onto my iPod they're in sync right up to the end.
 

yellowbuddy

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JMG: Was Office Space a widescreen movie? Is it widescreen on your iPod with your settings?

Bodacious: Which of your formats are widescreen?

Thanks for posting, I'm going to try some of these settings today.
 

JMG

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^ Yes Office Space was 16:9 widescreen.

Had anyone successfully converted any 2.35:1 movies like Gladiator?
I tried the following resolutions with no luck:

320x136 - everything looks too fat
720x306 - too fat
320x240 - too skinny
 

bodacious

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yellowbuddy said:
JMG: Was Office Space a widescreen movie? Is it widescreen on your iPod with your settings?

Bodacious: Which of your formats are widescreen?

Thanks for posting, I'm going to try some of these settings today.
The two 16:9 ratios are widescreen. These will work for any widescreen DVD, regardless of whether it states widescreen, anamorphic widescreen or 2.35:1 ratio. With the latter two the settings I have will work for them fine preserving the ratios without stretching or anything as it will encode the black bars with them. I'm working on trying to crop out the black bars for better efficiency at higher resolutions but so far meeting with little success :(

I'm trying to do this with a snippet of Star Wars ep 1 but when i try to crop out the bars using videora it doesn's seem to work like it should and I always seem to end up with a fat image. I'll have to wait to see if anyone posts their settings for true 2.35:1 encoding.
 

bodacious

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Right, got 2.35:1 ratio encoding cropping the top and bottom bars to work! My videora/computer was acting up a bit so that's why it wasn't working before.

I'm going to cut and paste my settings I posted above again as I just feel if anyone wants to browse settings it'd be better to have them all together. This time I'll also try to give a description of when to use each setting in terms of when you read the box of a DVD or the description of a show on TV. The same thing can be described a few different ways so I might sound like I'm repeating myself but just trying to help any beginners!

16:9 video (iPod use): Best used for content which is described as Widescreen, 16:9, Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, Letterbox Widescreen
320x180 (iPod size)
MPEG-4 > FQ-VBR
One Pass
Q Scale=3
Framerate=29.97fps
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

16:9 video (iPod use, higher quality): Best used for content which is described as Widescreen, 16:9, Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, Letterbox Widescreen
320x180 (iPod size)
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=900kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

16:9 video (Television output): Best used for content which is described as Widescreen, 16:9, Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, Letterbox Widescreen
640x360 (Television size)
MPEG-4 > FQ-VBR
One Pass
Q Scale=3
Framerate=29.97fps
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

16:9 video (Television output, higher quality): Best used for content which is described as Widescreen, 16:9, Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, Letterbox Widescreen
640x360 (Television size)
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=2200kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

4:3 video (iPod use): Best used for content which is described as 4:3, Standard Ratio, Non Widescreen, General non HDTV television
320x240 (iPod size)
MPEG-4 > FQ-VBR
One Pass
Q Scale=3
Framerate=29.97fps
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

4:3 video (iPod use, higher quality): Best used for content which is described as 4:3, Standard Ratio, Non Widescreen, General non HDTV television
320x240 (iPod size)
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=900kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

4:3 video (Television output): Best used for content which is described as 4:3, Standard Ratio, Non Widescreen, General non HDTV television
552x414 (Television size)
MPEG-4 > FQ-VBR
One Pass
Q Scale=3
Framerate=29.97fps
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

4:3 video (Television output, higher quality): Best used for content which is described as 4:3, Standard Ratio, Non Widescreen, General non HDTV television
552x414 (Television size)
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=2200kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

2.35:1 video (Television output): Best used for 2.35:1 content described as 2.35:1, Super Widescreen, Letterbox widescreen. Only advise using this for television output purposes and for the maximum real pixel output.
CROP VIDEO INPUT 66 TOP AND BOTTOM (Done in same menu screen as the other options for encoding)
720x306 (Television size)
MPEG-4 > FQ-VBR
One Pass
Q Scale=3
Framerate=29.97fps
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

2.35:1 video (Television output, higher quality): Best used for 2.35:1 content described as 2.35:1, Super Widescreen, Letterbox widescreen. Only advise using this for television output purposes and for the maximum real pixel output.
CROP VIDEO INPUT 66 TOP AND BOTTOM (Done in same menu screen as the other options for encoding)
720x306 (Television size)
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=2200kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input


Phew, that list took a long time to put together! I must note that when I choose 2200kbps as the average bitrate for A-VBR i was basing this on a FQ-VBR (Quality 3) encoding of the chapter in Star Wars Episode I in which Obi Wan and Darth Maul fight and the Chapter in Star Wars Episode III just after the title scroll during the space battle and lightsaber fight against the droids in the hanger bay. Both scenes I'm sure require more detail than most and so basing my average bitrate for A-VBR on these tests would likely mean that 2200kbps would be higher than necessary for a entire film which wouldn't be full of action scenes and fast motion. A bitrate of 2000kbs for the average bitrate in A-VBR would most likely be more than acceptable
 
Last edited:

pinkuff

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Yeah, this should be made a sticky.

DVD Ripper: ImTOO DVD Ripper v 3
MP4 encoder: ffmpeg
Movie: Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining"
DVD aspect ratio: 4:3
TV: 4:3 27" Bang&Olufsen (no HD)

My problem was that although videos played OK on iPod, they looked ugly on TV; there are still a few things I don't understand so I am posting this both as a way to help noobs like myself but also also to ask for help.

I figured the closest you can get to your TV pixel total count and HxW, the better the image will be (less distortion, stretching, etc.; also, the higher the bitrate, the better the image

Output format/codec: Divx AVI
Output size: 544x400
Framerate: 25 (I have a PAL television, so I figured I needed to use PAL framerate)
Audio bitrate: 192 kbit/s
Video bitrate: 2000 kbit/s (I now have tried bitrates between 1000 and 2500, single and double pass; higher bitrates help around the edges and smoothness of movement; double pass feels not much advantage for twice the time)
Audio volume: 3 (but it's still too low, will try 5 or higher next time
Zoom: set to Full

PROs and CONs
:D Movies play OK on both iPod and TV (maybe I'm being picky, but on TV it's nowhere close to DVD quality)
:D MP4 encoding about 0.7x movie time
:( 1-pass ripping about 2.5x
:eek: 2-pass ripping about 4.5x !!!
:mad: File sizes are HUGE. Think minimum 10MB per minute - MP4 encoding changes nothing which is probably correct given the resolution and bitrate paramenters are left the same as in the AVI file. The help file of ImTOO says xviD codec gives better results, but I also have seen posts to the contrary. any experience/ideas to reduce filesize without compromising TV out quality?
:confused: Color saturation is not very good - reds esp are lame - need to find out which parameter to tweak on the ripper.
 
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timk99

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pinkuff said:
Yeah, this should be made a sticky.

DVD Ripper: ImTOO DVD Ripper v 3
MP4 encoder: ffmpeg
Movie: Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining"
DVD aspect ratio: 4:3
TV: 4:3 27" Bang&Olufsen (no HD)

My problem was that although videos played OK on iPod, they looked ugly on TV; there are still a few things I don't understand so I am posting this both as a way to help noobs like myself but also also to ask for help.

I figured the closest you can get to your TV pixel total count and HxW, the better the image will be (less distortion, stretching, etc.; also, the higher the bitrate, the better the image

Output format/codec: Divx AVI
Output size: 544x400
Framerate: 25 (I have a PAL television, so I figured I needed to use PAL framerate)
Audio bitrate: 192 kbit/s
Video bitrate: 2000 kbit/s (I have also tried 2500, which is the max iPod will take, and there is a little incremental improvement, especially on uniform swaths of color)
Audio volume: 3 (but it's still too low, will try 5 or higher next time

PROs
:D Movies play OK on both iPod and TV (maybe I'm being picky, but on TV it's nowhere close to DVD quality)
:D MP4 encoding is quite speedy, 2-pass ripping about 2.5x movie time

CONs
:mad: File sizes are HUGE. Think 10MB per minute - MP4 encoding only decreases filesize about 10% which is probably correct given the resolution and bitrate paramenters are left the same as in the AVI file. The help file of ImTOO says xviD codec gives better results, but I also have seen posts to the contrary. any experience/ideas to reduce filesize without compromising TV out quality?
:mad: Aspect is still wrong - I don't understand what I am doing wrong here - suggestions? 544x400 is 34x25 macroblocks, or 1.36 aspect ratio for 217,600 pixels (the next option is 528x416 which gives 1.26 for 219,600)
:mad: Color saturation is not very good - reds esp are lame - need to find out which parameter to tweak on the ripper.
First of all, forget XVid if you want to play it on your IPod.

As for the aspect ratio - is the source in widescreen ? If so, then yes your resolution is wrong. You want the height to be more like 300 not 400. Dont have a calculator to hand to work it out exactly.

10Mb per minute sounds about right. The only way you are going to reduce this is by reducing the bitrate.
 

yellowbuddy

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Bodacious, I used these exact settings for trying to put The Princess Bride on my iPod:

16:9 video (iPod use, higher quality): Best used for content which is described as Widescreen, 16:9, Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, Letterbox Widescreen
320x180 (iPod size)
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=900kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

It is in widescreen, and the quality looks nice, but the audio is still out of sync. Any suggestions?
 

bodacious

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yellowbuddy said:
Bodacious, I used these exact settings for trying to put The Princess Bride on my iPod:

16:9 video (iPod use, higher quality): Best used for content which is described as Widescreen, 16:9, Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, Letterbox Widescreen
320x180 (iPod size)
MPEG-4 > A-VBR
Two Pass
Bitrate=900kbps
Min=128
Max=2500
Framerate=29.97
Audio bitrate=160kbps
Stereo
Sample rate=input

It is in widescreen, and the quality looks nice, but the audio is still out of sync. Any suggestions?
Type "-async 1" into the custom FFMPEG section on the setup screen. Save this then try to transcode again (easier said than done! Doing the whole film again might take a while, I susgest leaving it on overnight or put it on before you go to work/school and on the transcoding screen set it to shutdown PC upon completion). This custom flag works to counteract some of the things which cause the audio to go out of sync but I don't mean that this will definitly work. For some reason I've been hearing that some files/DVDs will always refuse to be transcoded in sync in videora. I personally haven't encountered any files/DVDs like this....yet.

I must point out to everyone that I haven't just sprouted this information out of my own brain. I've taken the information and advice given out in the videora ipod forum and used it to create my own profiles. To get to the videora ipod forum (because I can't post links) go to pspvideo9.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=18&sid=e037fea83ac02d4541553f95f9c17e0d obviously with a www in front of it.
 

bodacious

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Just wanted to repeat myself. Even if you find that something is playing back out of sync in iTunes still try putting it on your iPod and scrubbing to somewhere near the end of the film. I've found that things which play back out of sync on iTunes play back perfectly on my iPod. And skipping to the end will let you see quickly whether it is out of sync as towards the end will be when the sync issue would be at its worst.
 

yellowbuddy

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Allright, I'll post my results in the morning, thanks for the tips, Bodacious, and thanks to the admins for stickying this!

EDIT: Allright, something weird happened. For the first 7 minutes and 30 seconds, the sound was out of sync. For the entire rest of the film, it's perfectly in sync. For the life of me I can't find the place where it goes back into sync. I think I should just give up on this DVD and try some other ones. Thanks for your help.
 
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funkpod

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question, i am trying to use your posted bitrate, but my widescreen comes up as
320x128.
which i think is a 5:2 ratio?

does this sound right/wrong to anybody?
~funkpod
 

bodacious

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funkpod said:
question, i am trying to use your posted bitrate, but my widescreen comes up as
320x128.
which i think is a 5:2 ratio?

does this sound right/wrong to anybody?
~funkpod
I don't quite understand your question!

Do you mean that the original video was 320x128? Or that the output video is 320x128?

If it's the latter then you can change the resolution on video in the "Setup" then "Profiles" tab. Change the settings there to what you want then click apply.
 

funkpod

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i'm using Handbrake to rip the movie.
it's spiderman2, but all my dvds were this way.

when i am in the picture menu and i click the down arrow to reduce the width, the closest i can get it to the 320x180 parameter mark is 320x128.
so instead of a 16:9 ratio i believe it is starting off as a 5:2 ratio.
it seems REALLY skinny (up and down wise), but the characters seem the right size.

am i not doing something correctly? so i use something else besides handbrake?

if i have a video that is too big for my ipod, will it automatically reduce the video to the screen size, or just not play it at all?


i have yet to try these files on my ipod, cuz i get to open it in 6 days. however, i want to get some videos ready for me to try out.

~funkpod
 

yellowbuddy

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Hmm... I use DVD Decrypter and have no problems now at all, I reccomend you download that. It is free, and can be found at doom9 dot net. Thanks to Bodacious here I now have four full movies on my iPod.
 
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