Noob Question About Transcoding!

[andrew_macaluso]

Okay, it seems I have a new question every day, but, forgive me, I'm new. I am intersted in the transcoding features, but how can I do it? I see that the CONFIG has some options there but I don't know how to use that feature. Is there something else required to make it work? Well, specifically, I would like to transcode to Divx or Xvid. Is there something else that I can use that will do it better? More easily?

I know its a lot, but I would really like a quick rundown of the different procedures and features. I searched around on the wiki and I didn't really see anything that told me anything specifically (at least that I could understand!). Well, any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank You.

[Ton]

Well, here's a quick rundown of it ....

When transcoding there is one important thing to consider....

- GBPVR stores the file-name of a recording in the database

This means that something will have to update that name when you transcode the file...

Well, here are the options as they are used today:

1. Transcoding with GBPVR

This is the simpelest one... All you do is enable it in "Config.exe". It uses an internal queue (in the database), and can be set to transcode all new recordings at a specified time (i.e. at night) or ASAP.

However, there are two limitations:
- With the version of ffmpeg (the tool that GBPVR uses for transcoding) there's a problem if the file gets larger then 1h 27m. of video. There seems to be a fix for this (search the forums).
- When you run tools that rename the recoding (there's a few) from the standard "[Show_Name]\[Show_Name]Date_fromtime_totime" to "[Show_Name]\[Episode_Name]", it will usually not update the filename in the internal transocding queue.This means that standard transcoding will not work..

2. Transcoding using a "hybrid" solution

There are two tools (Zprocess from Zehd and another one from pBS) that do a little trick (they replace the ffmpeg.exe with their own version). I don't have much experience with either of these tools, but if you search the forums, you'll find something.

3. Use another tool or extra command in "PostProcessing.bat"

This allows you additional control. Please note that this potentially still sufferes from the problems with renaming of recordings. There's a number of tips and hints on the forum if you want to go this route....

I hope this helps.... May still not answer anything, but should help get a better handle on the options available....

[andrew_macaluso]

No, that pretty much did it. At least you gave me enough info to find out what I need from here. Thank you very much!

[gEd]

When transcoding there is one important thing to consider....

- GBPVR stores the file-name of a recording in the database

This means that something will have to update that name when you transcode the file..

Not quite..

When you playback a recording, GBPVR looks for {filename}.mpg. If it doesn;t find it, it looks for {filename}.avi instead and if it finds it, plays that instead.

Therefore you can use something like Zprocess to convert a bunch of mpegs to avi without having to bother with updating the filenames in the database

[tweeknockr]

Will it only look in the exact directory where it thinks the .mpg file is? Or will it look in the more general directory that it is storing shows to?

[gEd]

no it only looks in the folder where it expects the mpg to be, it doesn;t go hunting through your recordings folder looking for it.

[andrew_macaluso]

Okay, I have a question about ffmpeg. Is it a standalone program or is it a part of something else? I've noticed that ffmpeg and mplayer are closely tied. I can't tell if one is a part of another, if they are separate things and mplayer just uses ffmpeg, or if they are completely separate things! I've looked on the internet, but I still can't tell. I'll try to look at it again, but some help will be greatly appreciated.

[pharmd24]

While we are on subject.....

What if any Divx codecs (what version) would be needed to make this work? I'm a n00bie too looking to convert my 1hour shows to dvix or xvid for archival purposes.

I ask the verison question b/c I have the 6.x divx installed and ffmpeg isn't playing well..

[HtV]

I ask the verison question b/c I have the 6.x divx installed and ffmpeg isn't playing well..

Do you mean: files encoded with ffmpeg don't play well? or.........?

[andrew_macaluso]

Okay, the autotranscoder in my install of GBpvr doesn't seem to be working. Is ffmpeg supposed to come with it? Do I have to add it myself? Can I re-add it myself to try to fix it?