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DVD to Apple TV question - PC

H

HotRodGuy

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jan 28, 2008
106
0
Huntington Beach, CA -> Raleigh, NC
I've been using videora....when I convert using their 720P profile the picture doesn't fill up my whole TV. The settings are setup to do it at 1280 x 720 but it leaves black bars on both sides (not top bottom, left right). I'm very happy w/ the picture quality this provides...but the bars on the side are driving me nuts.

Any tips? I can't tell if the picture is scrunched or if it's just my eyes. If it's a videora issue...is there a relatively cheap software I can purchase that will fix this issue?



Also, any tips for how to download TV episodes from a DVD?
 
HotRodGuy said:
I've been using videora....when I convert using their 720P profile the picture doesn't fill up my whole TV. The settings are setup to do it at 1280 x 720 but it leaves black bars on both sides (not top bottom, left right). I'm very happy w/ the picture quality this provides...but the bars on the side are driving me nuts.

Any tips? I can't tell if the picture is scrunched or if it's just my eyes. If it's a videora issue...is there a relatively cheap software I can purchase that will fix this issue?



Also, any tips for how to download TV episodes from a DVD?
Click to expand...

Is the original DVD in widescreen?
 
Handbrake and AnyDVD on the PC work in tandem very well (AnyDVD unlocks the movies, and Handbrake encode it). I use two pass encoding at 2000kbits and end up with movies between 1.5 and 2.5 gigs in size that are very enjoyable.
 
HotRodGuy said:
Can I use Handbrake w/ DVD Decrypter?
Click to expand...

Yes, though HB will usually rip the DVD's fine w/o needing DVD Decrypter. HB on the Mac looks waaay nicer but the PC version is functional and produces the same results, and to my knowledge is the only tool to easily convert DVD's with 5.1 to Dolby Pro Logic II.
 
HotRodGuy said:
I've been using videora....when I convert using their 720P profile the picture doesn't fill up my whole TV. The settings are setup to do it at 1280 x 720 but it leaves black bars on both sides (not top bottom, left right). I'm very happy w/ the picture quality this provides...but the bars on the side are driving me nuts.

Any tips? I can't tell if the picture is scrunched or if it's just my eyes. If it's a videora issue...is there a relatively cheap software I can purchase that will fix this issue?



Also, any tips for how to download TV episodes from a DVD?
Click to expand...

Why are you attempting to transcode a standard definition DVD (480p) to HD resolution (720p)?

That may very well be part of your problem. The other problem may be the DVD...

If the DVD is hard-matted, you'll get matte bars no matter what on a widescreen TV.

If it's anamorphic, upscaling should work but I still would not upscale a 480p DVD to 720p.
 
in all honesty, I wasn't even aware that was what I was really doing. I just assumed it meant I was upgradeing to the best quality to fit on my big ass TV


I'll mess around a little more tonight.......see if I can bump the KBS on the standard files and see if it works
 
HotRodGuy said:
in all honesty, I wasn't even aware that was what I was really doing. I just assumed it meant I was upgradeing to the best quality to fit on my big ass TV


I'll mess around a little more tonight.......see if I can bump the KBS on the standard files and see if it works
Click to expand...

Wait, wait, wait...

Take a step back for a minute. What exactly is your goal? Before you start trying to get from point A to point B, it would help us help you if we knew what you're starting with and where you're trying to go. Then we can tell you exactly how to get there instead of a lot of aimless tinkering (bumping up Kbps isn't necessarily the answer... It appears you have an aspect ratio problem, not a resolution problem).

Please answer these questions as succinctly as possible:

1. Do you have an HDTV or Standard definition TV?

2. Do you have a DVD player or HD-DVD/BluRay player?

3. Are you trying to make it so that your DVD files when transcoded fit properly to the frame and edges of your screen? Yes or no.
 
I have a 56" Sammy 1080P DLP

My comp doesn't have a Bluray/HD drive so i'm not expecting to convert those disks (I have my PS3 to play those on).


basically what i'm trying to do is backup all of my DVD's (300+) onto a harddrive so I can play them on my Apple TV.

I don't really care about size, I won't mind having 2-4 GB files if i'm getting good quality (as close to DVD quality as possible). Of course if I can get them to like 1.5 gb's that'd be awesome.


I would like them to fit FULL SCREEN on my TV when played.





Now, when I was using the standard profiles provided in Videora I wasn't pleased w/ the quality. That's when I found this 720P profile. The quality was GREAT, but the picture then developed this aspect ratio problem where it didn't fit on the screen properly, which wasn't there w/ the other profiles



So:

1) HDTV
2) I have both, but i'm not trying to convert my Blu Ray stuff
3) Yes

I'm wondering if I should be messing w/ one of the other profiles and bump up the quality (through KBS, etc)



Thanks bud :)
 
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