My Blu-Ray Movie Burning Experiences... - Page 33

I believe so. A little bit off topic, but Canon HDV pro cams like the XL-H1 and XH-A1 output in a format called 24F. There's been a lot of confusion about that since the beginning because some NLE's would not recognize it. But basically what it is, is 24 progressive frames laid to stream, with repeat flags added. That's really pretty nice because it intercuts with 60i on the same timeline, plays equally well when output as 24p or 60i. Some NLEs and mpeg editors see and use the flags, and report the 24F output as 60i (59.94). Others ignore the flags and report the stream as 24p. So some people have been arguing that it has no 3:2 pulldown frames, and that's true. Some argue that 24F doesn't have the flags because either their NLE doesn't use them, or because 1080p24 is true progressive and wouldn't ordinarily have them, whereas 480p24 are progressive frames segmented into 60 fields with pulldown. But my editor says that 24F Canon does have the flags. And it intercuts with 60i on the same timeline, no problem.

So I'm going to climb out on a limb and say that I think an AVCHD/mpeg2 authored red laser disk will play 1080p24 progressive, if the stream contains pulldown flags like the Canon 24F.

Some other cams from Sony and Canon use either progressive segmented frames, or true 24p frames as well. Whether they play friendly on the AVCHD/mpeg2 authored red laser disk, I haven't tested.

Once again, alluringreality is right. Canon 24F authored onto the hybrid AVCHD/mpeg2/Ulead/TSRemux/DVD5 will not output at 1080p24 on my PS3.

The native mpeg2 program stream will output at 1080p24 from the USB flash stick. But in all honesty, it looks horrid. It plays back with less judder at 1080i60 from the AVCHD hybrid disk.

Has anyone else had the observation, that everything plays back better from these AVCHD hybrid disks? To me they do! It's as if internally, the PS3 is using a different codec or processor on the Blu-Ray streams than on the other video medias.

On 1080i60, it's a very subtle difference, but on the 1080p plasma, you can observe a slight amount of twitter on the mpeg2 streams played back from USB flash or the hard drive. But it's totally absent, the same stream authored to the hybrid AVCHD/mpeg2 disk.

My observation about the PS3, had been that 1080i playback of my HDV video was fractionally less sharp due to that twitter, than the same stream played back on the Toshiba A2 HD DVD player. But once the stream is authored to the AVCHD/mpeg2 hybrid disk, the playback is absolutely perfect, 100% to the A2 Tosh.

There is no file size limit on the optical disc, I have more than 20 movies 1080i MPEG2 PS burned as data on 2 disc set 8.5GB, they play just fine on my PS3.

Well,

I started at 11am this morning, and I just gave up...I really want to try this workflow, but I ran into a HUGE snag.

ULead MovieFactory 6 Plus won't work for me. I spent all day uninstalling, cleaning the registry, and reinstalling. I posted on a Ulead forum, and I also contacted their tech support. I'm trying the trial version, which is supposed to be fully functional.

Basically, when I click "Add Video Files"...the mouse arrow sits there, then has an hourglass, then goes back to a plain mouse arrow...eventually the app just closes with no message at all. I never see the dialog where you browse to choose a file.

If I ran the app from the launcher, when this problem happens, MF6 closes and the launcher re-appears.

I tried dragging and dropping video into the timeline...same results. I tried clicking on "Create a Slideshow"...same results.

I've read posts in the ULead forums about possible codec conflicts, etc. I don't think I have anything left on my system that could be conflicting with it. I took off ffdshow, all my versions of DivX, TVersity, and some other stuff.

I never have this problem when using MovieFactory 5. I'm able to add video with that program no problem. Although, there was a time when the program would hang when I would select certain MPG PS files in the "open" dialog box, but that hasn't happened for a while.

I'm getting the impression (especially from the ULead forums) that this program is NOT very robust at all. Ugh. I really wanted this to work.

Chris

Chris,

Trial version will not do anything for you because there is no trial version of HD pack. So, even you manage to install it, you will not have Blu-ray and AVCHD option for you project.

Thanks for the correction.

Hi Tom, and everybody, thanks much for figuring out this new approach. Following the methods here I did manage to get a stuter free HD stream to play on PS3, with all the functionalities. But the sound track is NOT 5.1 AC3, it becomes stereo coming out of the PS3 (from optical output). It may sound silly to ask, but have you or Brajesh put your ear right next to the center and rear speakers to see if there is any sound coming out of those? The season is that the stereo sounded so good that I didn't realize three channels were missing until I checked it.

If that is indeed the case, only stereo from PS3, then we know we are back to square one, because even from day one PS3 could play transport stream with only two channels stuter free.

What firmware do you have? Latest 2.10 fixed that and it plays with 5.1 surround sound.

My stubborness paid off...

I noticed Dr Watson was running when the program was crashing. Looked at the logs, did some more searching, and found others who renamed divx_ul.dll to prevent it from being loaded. Shazam..."Add Video Files" button works. Who knows what I lost by renaming that DLL, but I don't care.

Once that worked, I felt confident in buying the software and the HD power pack. I was able to follow Brajesh's steps and create a disc that plays great in the PS3, with 5.1 sound (I have 2.10 firmware on my PS3).

For this kind of authoring, ULead definitely wants a Transport Stream, not a Program Stream...wonder why? HD-DVD authoring with MF5 required a Program Stream. Oh well.

And wouldn't ya know, my first experiment was on a 1088i cap. I used HDPatch to directly patch the original TS files...it allowed me to do that and it didn't complain. But then I had to save the TS edits from VideoReDo as Program Streams first, since trying to save the edits as TS files directly caused VideoReDo to generate a muxer error...don't know why. Then I had to load the edited Program Stream in VideoReDo and convert it BACK to a TS. This is similar to the back-and-forth Tom had to go through. All this so ULead can have its happy Transport Stream.

No re-encoding of the video was done at any step...my PC is so damned old, it would take probably 20 hours to re-encode this stuff!

A minor point...the FF and REV were not so silky smooth for me. The timegauge on the PS3 display would move appropriately, but I didn't see too many updates of the actual movie image...it was hard to know where I would end up when I hit 'play'. Not a huge deal.

Thanks to all...I am SO tired, but I think I have to stay up now and watch the AVCHD disc I just authored.

Chris

Congratulations.


Quote from dmz:

I need one more post to hit 300.

Done!

Yeah, I had edited my original post to clarify. Ulead MF5 used Program Streams for HD-DVD authoring. I haven't tried MF6+ for HD-DVD authoring.

No biggie that Blu-Ray authoring wants Transport Streams. Easy enough to convert back and forth...

As I follow the workflow and do the TSRemux step, I notice that not many files in the TSRemux-generated directory structure change between the instant TSRemux is kicked off and when it finally finishes the remuxing of the TS file.

Perhaps it's possible to merely start TSRemux, then abort it...and use some of the files it generates at the beginning, plop those in a previously completed TSRemux directory structure (you could use the same one over and over as a "template") and eliminate the bulk of the time TSRemux takes to run.

I may try it at some point...just trying to reduce the total time needed...

Chris

If I am not mistaken the firmware was downloaded only three weeks ago, I think its 2.11. I am not by the PS3 now.

I wonder it had anything to do with the red laser media.

Actually, I have put my ear next to the center and rear speakers. The sound is coming from all of them. Also my audio receiver reports 5.1 on the display.

Good going Chris! You have to be persistent!

That's right. I should have mentioned that. I haven't recycled the previously generated outer structure, but I have cancelled the TSRemux process before its completion without problem.

When you think about it, if we just knew what to change in the file headers to make it spoof the PS3 into thinking it's AVCHD, we could just use the Ulead generated structure, and then have chapters at the scene changes instead of just arbitrarily at some time interval.

The Senior member of VideoRedo forum said that they will include an output option for PS3 in mid feb 2008 in the next software update, so my guess it will be probabely much faster than Ulead rendering option.

Has anyone tried to burn a blu-ray or hd dvd straight to a standalone dvd recorder like people do from a dish receiver? This could be useful to make a backup of movies that you already own, because not everyone has a high def player in their bedroom.

This is off topic.

When I start moving up to bigger HD video files I start getting an error message when Ulead remuxing the TS file to the hard drive at about 6% of the progress bar:
"there is an internal error in the DVD engine" isn't that weared??

Tom, Brajhesh, and others...

I just can't win.

So I stayed up late last night watching the 2 discs I'd burned. Each was about 45 minutes of a 90 minute movie.

Disc 1 froze in a couple places...I could hear the PS3 drive making noise, and then playback would resume...but I missed about 10 seconds of the movie during each freeze. Disc 1 also froze at the last 5 seconds. Disc 2 froze in one place in the midst of the movie, as well as the last 5 seconds.

It's a new burner, so I tried my old reliable burner. Disc 2 doesn't freeze in the same place in the midst of the movie, but I haven't watched the whole 45 minutes to verify if there are different freezes in new places. BUT...disc 2 still froze during the last 5 seconds. I've found a small smattering of people on the internet mentioning hangs at the end of AVCHD clips on the PS3.

Have you guys experienced this at all? Have you watched from start to finish the discs you've tried thus far?

I'm burning on Verbatim DVD-Rs, which I've always trusted and have worked fine for HD-DVD burning.

Edit: I ran some quality scans on the discs I burned in the new burner...AWFUL. I have a feeling that accounts for the glitches within the midst of the movie. I'm reburning both discs and gonna watch the whole thing again. I think I will still see the freeze at the end of each disk (last 5 seconds)...I'll report back later.

Chris

Yeah, so slap my hand for buying a cheap burner. After re-burning both discs on my old reliable Sony burner, and watching them through, I had no problems during the midst of the movie. FF and REV are still a bit shaky; sometimes the PS3 seems to hang, but it's not too bad...

Still the same issue, though, at the end of each disc. Once it gets to the last 4 or 5 seconds, the video grinds to a halt, the audio drops out, yet the PS3 on-screen display time bar still shows progress. Then the video starts over...another minor annoyance.

If anyone else can play the end of their AVCHD discs and let me know what you experience, it would be very helpful.

I suppose this could be cured by putting some "blank"/"black" footage at the end of the clip. In Ulead would be easier, but if each "clip" on a disc suffers from the freeze at the end, then the blank footage would need to be integrated into the TS file, at the VideoReDo stage, before feeding the TS file to Ulead.

Chris

I try to use Scenarist 4.2 to create Blu-ray Discs from transport streams (AVC video / AC3 audio) captured from television.

When I load the demuxed AVC stream into the MUI Generator and press the "Create Files" button, everything seems to run fine. But when the progress bar has reached 100%, I get the message "ERROR: This stream needs the SPI file" - and no files are created.

It doesn't matter whether or not I "repair" the transport streams, and it doesn't matter if I use xport, TSRemux or XMuxer Pro to demux the transport streams - always the same result.

What does the error message "This stream needs the SPI file" mean? The Scenarist manual doesn't include any information about this message ...

All the same, it's almost definitely a Scenarist problem. Have you tried looking for Scenarist discussion forums online? That was helpful to me when I was having problems with ULead MovieFactory.

The title of the topic is "My bluray BURNING experiences". My question is in regards to burning. Would you rather me open up a separate thread?

Fixed.

Thanks! I'll give it a try!

Not sure if you're including satellite, like Dish, but I've gotten AVC caps from Universal HD for instance to work just fine on my PS3. This is after I ran it thru TSRemux w/M2TS output. No re-encoding involved. Blu-ray output option resulted in stutters. But, I still need to try having the cap go thru Ulead to see what happens, similar to how I/Tom/MozartMan got MPEG2-TS to work.

Hey Chris,
I just found that if I abort the TSRemux before it finishes, the burned disk halts playback, probably at about the point where the abort was initiated.