I originally posted this on the iLounge forums. I thought it may be useful here as well. I'm going to leave the post pretty much in-tact and copy/paste it here.
I just found this forum recently and would like to begin by saying thanks to everyone that posts here. I was able to find a lot of good info on converting DVDs and video files for use on my newly aquired iPod Video.
One thing that has been lacking, I believe, is information on making correct audio/video sync. I was unable to find much information on this subject here. After running the .vob files of The Incredibles and Robots through Videora iPod Converter, I was disapointed that the sound was way off, enough that they were very much unwatchable.
After spending countless hours trying out multiple video converters, I finally found PocketDivXEncoder (google it and pick the first site). I was very pleased to find that it included an option not found in all the other software I had tried, a feature called "direct audio stream copy" which when checked allows for no audio compression. After playing with the settings a bit and encoding a few files, I was finally getting perfect sound and video sync every time. The Incredibles and many other previously unwatchable movies were now perfect.
Here are the exact settings I used in PocketDivXEncoder.
1. Click "Advanced Options" and then click the "Direct audio stream copy" box. THIS MUST BE DONE TO INSURE PERFECT SOUND SYNC!
2. Just beside the "File to encode" area, click the browse button and select the .vob file of the movie on your hard drive. (DVD Decrypter is my program of choice for ripping DVDs)
3. A box will come up asking you to select an audio stream. Select the first choice (assuming you selected the 5.1 English stream in DVD Decryptor).
4. Set the "video quality" slider all the way to the right for the best quality video. It doesn't take any longer to encode and you want to ensure the best quality file. NOTE: you will still have to encode the resulting .avi file one more time in Videora. More on that later.
5. You will not be able to change the "audio quality" slider because of the "direct audio copy" box that you checked already.
6. If you leave the "brightness" slider alone, the video will show up darker than it was on the dvd. I have found that it needs to be pushed up to about 25-30 for most movies ripped from a DVD. Experiment to find out what looks best to you.
7. "Saturation" and "contrast" sliders can be left the same. Again, feel free to experiment with those to find out what looks best to you.
8. You now want to change the Output dimensions. Press the "Output" button. It is important here to pick a video size that is proportional to the original. For The Incredibles and Robots, I used 320x192 for instance. If you use the standard 320x240 for all movies, regardless of whether or not it's widescreen, you will get some stretched, out of shape videos. Don't forget what size you used. It will be important later.
9. The final step in PocketDivXEncoder is to click the "Direct encoding" button. Make sure you wait until a new screen pops up telling you that the file has finished. The progress bar is not even close to the real percent. Just be patient with it.
Now you are all done with PocketDivXEncoder. The remaining steps are all done in Videora iPod Converter.
10. Make sure you make a new profile using the same video size as the .avi file that PocketDivXEncoder created. (I told you it would be important to remember 320x192) You will have to manually type the size in the drop down box. It doesn't have all of the sizes that you may need, and again if you pick the wrong size, the resulting video will appear distorted.
11. The rest should be self explanatory. I use H264>CBR at 640kbps and 128kbps stereo audio. Leave the aspect ratio as 1:1 and framerate as "input". The final video using these options is usually around 500-600mb depending on the length of the movie.
12. Once you save your profile, go to the convert screen and browse for the .avi file that PocketDivXEncoder created. Select the profile that you created from the drop-down box and start converting it.
I know this method may take a bit longer because of having to run the .vob through PocketDivXEncoder first, but in the long run it is well worth it to have movies that are actually watchable on your iPod. I have used this method successfully to get correctly synced audio multiple times now and just wanted to my steps with everyone else. Any feedback or suggestions would be appreciated. I would love to hear if anyone else tries it out as well. If this has already been posted before, you have my apologies. Don't jump all over me too quickly as it did take a bit of time to type up.
Let me know what you think.
I just found this forum recently and would like to begin by saying thanks to everyone that posts here. I was able to find a lot of good info on converting DVDs and video files for use on my newly aquired iPod Video.
One thing that has been lacking, I believe, is information on making correct audio/video sync. I was unable to find much information on this subject here. After running the .vob files of The Incredibles and Robots through Videora iPod Converter, I was disapointed that the sound was way off, enough that they were very much unwatchable.
After spending countless hours trying out multiple video converters, I finally found PocketDivXEncoder (google it and pick the first site). I was very pleased to find that it included an option not found in all the other software I had tried, a feature called "direct audio stream copy" which when checked allows for no audio compression. After playing with the settings a bit and encoding a few files, I was finally getting perfect sound and video sync every time. The Incredibles and many other previously unwatchable movies were now perfect.
Here are the exact settings I used in PocketDivXEncoder.
1. Click "Advanced Options" and then click the "Direct audio stream copy" box. THIS MUST BE DONE TO INSURE PERFECT SOUND SYNC!
2. Just beside the "File to encode" area, click the browse button and select the .vob file of the movie on your hard drive. (DVD Decrypter is my program of choice for ripping DVDs)
3. A box will come up asking you to select an audio stream. Select the first choice (assuming you selected the 5.1 English stream in DVD Decryptor).
4. Set the "video quality" slider all the way to the right for the best quality video. It doesn't take any longer to encode and you want to ensure the best quality file. NOTE: you will still have to encode the resulting .avi file one more time in Videora. More on that later.
5. You will not be able to change the "audio quality" slider because of the "direct audio copy" box that you checked already.
6. If you leave the "brightness" slider alone, the video will show up darker than it was on the dvd. I have found that it needs to be pushed up to about 25-30 for most movies ripped from a DVD. Experiment to find out what looks best to you.
7. "Saturation" and "contrast" sliders can be left the same. Again, feel free to experiment with those to find out what looks best to you.
8. You now want to change the Output dimensions. Press the "Output" button. It is important here to pick a video size that is proportional to the original. For The Incredibles and Robots, I used 320x192 for instance. If you use the standard 320x240 for all movies, regardless of whether or not it's widescreen, you will get some stretched, out of shape videos. Don't forget what size you used. It will be important later.
9. The final step in PocketDivXEncoder is to click the "Direct encoding" button. Make sure you wait until a new screen pops up telling you that the file has finished. The progress bar is not even close to the real percent. Just be patient with it.
Now you are all done with PocketDivXEncoder. The remaining steps are all done in Videora iPod Converter.
10. Make sure you make a new profile using the same video size as the .avi file that PocketDivXEncoder created. (I told you it would be important to remember 320x192) You will have to manually type the size in the drop down box. It doesn't have all of the sizes that you may need, and again if you pick the wrong size, the resulting video will appear distorted.
11. The rest should be self explanatory. I use H264>CBR at 640kbps and 128kbps stereo audio. Leave the aspect ratio as 1:1 and framerate as "input". The final video using these options is usually around 500-600mb depending on the length of the movie.
12. Once you save your profile, go to the convert screen and browse for the .avi file that PocketDivXEncoder created. Select the profile that you created from the drop-down box and start converting it.
I know this method may take a bit longer because of having to run the .vob through PocketDivXEncoder first, but in the long run it is well worth it to have movies that are actually watchable on your iPod. I have used this method successfully to get correctly synced audio multiple times now and just wanted to my steps with everyone else. Any feedback or suggestions would be appreciated. I would love to hear if anyone else tries it out as well. If this has already been posted before, you have my apologies. Don't jump all over me too quickly as it did take a bit of time to type up.
Let me know what you think.