Native MPEG specs for the MVP.

[HtV]

I found anything else didn't work properly - Especially mpeg1 - which would play, but no skipping.

I think MVP's are known to have poblems with mpeg1.

[mvallevand]

I think MVP's are known to have poblems with mpeg1.

I think the "problem" with mpeg-1 is that sub doesn't support them fully in GBPVR. Given the quality of both the picture and the timesync'ing I've seen on many mpeg-1's I can't really blame him.

Martin

[Azimuth]

So does anyone know what the optimal settings are for MVP playback?

[zehd]

So does anyone know what the optimal settings are for MVP playback?

Perhaps if we knew what your goal was, we'd be able to answer directly...

This is what I mean... If your intention is for playback only on the MVP, you can use a variety of settings, that even break the very strict DVD guidelines.

But when transcoding into an MVP MPG, there are known issues with Time Sync and ability to ff/rw correctly. That has to do with the several different Transcoders that we use for on the fly transcoding. FFmpeg, MEncoder, VLC to name three. They all do well, but not good enough.

Psycik suggests that tmpgenc will produce a better quality Mpeg that will circumvent the MVP issues.

That said here are some examples of perfectly valid command lines with their parameters, the other transcoders might use...

ffmpeg

Code:

"C:\Program Files\devnz\gbpvr\Third Party\FFmpeg\ffmpeg.exe" -y -i "C:\TV\Recorded\Robot Chicken\Robot.Chicken-S01E11-Toy.Meets.Girl.avi" [B]-target ntsc-dvd[/B] -deinterlace  -b 4000k -vcodec mpeg2video -ab 224 -ar 48000 -acodec mp2 -ac 2 -r 29.97 -s 720x480 -aspect 4:3  "C:\TV\Override\Robot.Chicken-S01E11-Toy.Meets.Girl.mpg"

-b bitrate
-ab audio birate
-ar audio freq
-r output framrate (NTSC 29.97, PAL 25)

mencoder

Code:

"C:\Program Files\mplayer\mencoder.exe" -oac lavc -ovc lavc -of mpeg -mpegopts [B]format=dvd[/B]:tsaf -vf lavcdeint,scale=720:480,expand=0:0:0:0, -srate 48000 -af lavcresample=48000 -lavcopts vcodec=mpeg2video:vrc_buf_size=1835:vrc_maxrate=4000:[B]vbitrate=4000[/B]:keyint=12:acodec=mp2:[B]abitrate=224[/B]:aspect=4/3  [B]-ofps 29.97002997003[/B] -o "C:\TV\Override\Robot.Chicken-S01E11-Toy.Meets.Girl.mpg" "C:\TV\Recorded\Robot Chicken\Robot.Chicken-S01E11-Toy.Meets.Girl.avi"

[zehd]

Did you find and play with these settings?

I looked further. You're right. But what I meant was that there is really no way to have custom margins. Custom inside dimensions yes. Also, no way to pass command line arguments directly to tmpgenc. Yeah you could use the batch file, but that makes everything the aspect ratio...

And it's painfully slow... too slow for on the fly transcoding... and won't allow access to the file as its created...

[Azimuth]

OK, so what I'm learning is that the MVP can play a wide range of framerates, bitrates, resolutions and aspect ratios in mpeg2 files without having to transcode them?

[psycik]

OK, so what I'm learning is that the MVP can play a wide range of framerates, bitrates, resolutions and aspect ratios in mpeg2 files without having to transcode them?

Hmm, I'm not sure I'd say that either.

I did try (using tmpgenc again since I knew it well) playing arround with different mpeg2 bitrates and didn't have much success.

So once I found that you could use what is considered a compliant svcd (a compliant svcd is a bitrate range and resolution that can be made into a svcd - like a vcd but mpeg2), I stuck with it. It was the only settings that I found to work - and by working I include playing, resuming and skipping. Anything else I tried would play, but you'd loose the skipping and resuming.

I hope that explains it better, we kind of got off track....so there is nothing to say that you couldn't go and get the definition of an SVCD disk and plug those values into whatever encoding system you want - ffmepg, mencoder. I just knew tmpgenc from when I was making vcds and svcds before I had a dvd burner.

It would be worth testing yourself as newer/different models of mvp maybe be more tolerant....

[zehd]

It would be worth testing yourself as newer/different models of mvp maybe be more tolerant....

You're right about the MVP needing to be tolerant of the file so skipping works... I suppose I meant, most mpegs will play... (skipping is gravy) actually I've never had a on the fly transcode actually allow me to pause/ff/rew very well... And I know that the svcd setting with MEncoder and FFmpeg won't work on my MVP anyhow. the best success I've had is transcoding into DVD format...

[psycik]

You're right about the MVP needing to be tolerant of the file so skipping works... I suppose I meant, most mpegs will play... (skipping is gravy) actually I've never had a on the fly transcode actually allow me to pause/ff/rew very well... And I know that the svcd setting with MEncoder and FFmpeg won't work on my MVP anyhow. the best success I've had is transcoding into DVD format...

Svcd "format" is very similar to dvd, just a slightly lower bitrate.

[zehd]

I ran some tests, with transcoding a couple of AVIs using the svcd template in tmpgenc and did not see any difference in skipping/rw/ff ability compared with transcoding with VLC, FFmpeg or MEncoder...

As I have chased my tail many, many hours on this with the other transcoders, I've come to the thought that it may be very difficult getting one transcoder that works right for everyone.

VLC transcodes to 720x480 better on my Fast Machine, ffmpeg transcodes to 352x240 better on my slower machine. In no case was the skip and rew/ff issue completely gone...