DVD Authouring Software

[topcat55]

I currently use Womble Mpeg Video Wizard to do editing and fixing of files.

I am trialling VRD and have a couple of questions

This is what I have tested at the moment.

1. I recorded a TV programme on a standalone DVD recorder in VR mode - the reason for this is so I don't have to keep finalizing and unfinalizing the disk when I want to re-use it

2. I copied the .VRO file onto the hard-drive of the PC

3. I ran the file though QSF to create a clean mpg file

4. I used VideoReDo to create a 5 minute segment as mpg and VOB

5. I used Womble Video Wizard to edit the .VRO file and save the same 5 minute segment as a .VRO file and as mpg (Womble took longer to convert the 5 minutes to mpg than VRD took to QSF the whole file !!?? - interesting)

6. I then used NeroVisionExpress 4 to create a DVD from all the different versions.

There was no noticeable difference between any of the versions and I think not much difference to the original DVD from the DVD recorder. All the mpg files were roughly the same size.

From this I conclude that Womble and VideoReDo are producing roughly the same quality files and so either will do the job I want.

My question is this - What is the advantage or the point of saving as a VOB file when you can't write this directly to a DVD and it has to be re-encoded by Nero when adding to a project? It did the same thing it would do if I import a DVD-RAM format disk directly.

Are there other DVD authoring programs which would take the VOB file directly without re-encoding?

I think I have read elsewhere that Nero re-encodes stuff when it doesn't need to?

Any advice greatly appreciated

PS - I am probably going to buy VideoReDo anyway, I like the interface much better than Womble and you can configure everything you want.

 

[phd]

If you save as a VOB you can author using the freeware program dvdauthor and its offshoots DVD Styler and GUIfor dvdauthor without reencoding.

Nero can reencode video even when it is not necessary

 

[laserfan]

Are there other DVD authoring programs which would take the VOB file directly without re-encoding? I think I have read elsewhere that Nero re-encodes stuff when it doesn't need to?

Yeah Nero does that some times (all the time?) and the ONLY time it SHOULD or NEEDS TO is if the program is in a non-standard resolution for DVD.

But if the program is of DVD-standard resolution & audio, another way to get from VRD+ to a DVD is by Saving As "Elementary Streams". Then making a DVD (actually a VIDEO_TS folder) is by importing to MuxMan (do a search here).

One advantage to this method is that w/VRD+ you can, concurrently with your editing/output activity, tell VRD+ to make a Chapters.txt file, and then your finished DVD (VIDEO_TS w/VOBs & IFOs) will also have Chapter markers in them so you can skip from scene-to-scene. VRD makes it trivial to mark these, or even will make markers at a time interval of your choosing, automatically.