halc

Hi

Is there a better way of converting VBR audio to CBR than using the Radium/Lame MP3 codec with virtualdub (extracting audio to WAV then recompressing at CBR)?

Because although most of the movies I deal with fall within the codec's CBR values (usually 112, 128, 160, 192, etc), a lot of the eps have way more irregular bitrates... like 142kb/sec or something.

Obviously recompressing with these CVR values results in A/V sync issues... so is there a way you can specify a CBR value ? I like this method with VirtualDub as it has always worked with nicer bitrates.

Cheers

DiiZzY

You wont get any sync errors if you do it properly.
Why do you want to do it in the first place?
//Danne

halc

I'm using another encoding progam (EO video), and it handles CBR audio so much better...

Besides, I need to convert to CBR audio for easier manipulation in VirtualDub; chopping off ads at the beginning/shortening credits/etc

So isn't there an easy way to recompress with these obscure audio bitrates?

DiiZzY

Never had any issues using vbr in VirtualDubMod.
Regarding your trancoding question, no there is no easier way afaik.
//Danne

Daemonicus

Nandub handles VBR audio as well, same program as VD and VDMod.
If you still want to convert VBR to CBR, probably the easiet solution would be to use BeSweet with the BeSweet GUI.

halc

I got BS GUI but it gives me so many errors about missing packages/codecs/filters/etc and took me ages to get even slightly working...

I am still looking for a way to convert irregular VBR audio (e.g. 141.5 kb/s) to CBR if anyone can help :|
Chickenman!?

I think this is the ONLY way to make EO handle some of my TV episodes. IF no-one can help with the audio stream conversion, can someone recommend a good batch program that spits out MPG's and can deal with these odd audio bitrates?

DiiZzY

Demux to mp3 using VirtualDubMod
Decompress using WinAMP, (Diskwriter plugin) to PCM (WAV uncompressed)
Use LAME to encode back to mp3 and mux in VirtualDub.

You can probably write a simple bat file that decompresses and recompresses automatically
//Danne

ChickenMan

I would demux the audio out using Nandub (or VirtualDUBMod), set Audio to Direct Stream Copy if it is not and then in Save, hit Save WAV but name the file as ????.MP3. Then load it into Goldwave, hit Save As and select what ever sample rate & bitrate you want. Mux it back into the AVI.

__________________
Cheers,
CM

Please don't PM me with technical questions, use the Forum, that's what it's here for.

DiiZzY

Forgot that LAME can decompress MP3s too =)
//Danne

halc

When you mux it back with virtualdub you still have to select an audio CBR? So you're still restricted to those common bitrates (128, 160, 192, etc) ?

Where abouts in Goldwave is the option to re-do the bitrate? Can you specify precise bitrates then? Stuff like 157.1?

Thanks!

ChickenMan

Sorry if you miss understood, but it will only save it in the standard 96, 128, 160,192, etc bitrates. Its in the bottom Attibutes box in the Save As window.

__________________
Cheers,
CM

Please don't PM me with technical questions, use the Forum, that's what it's here for.

halc

So what about the nonstandards?!

JefeQuicktech

I have actually found the _older_ version of MusicMatch Jukebox (v. 7.10.1070) to be the most convenient conversion tool for VBR to CBR. Go to the menu and choose File > Convert. You can batch convert several at a time.

LeeC

Hey all, I just want to note ive had similar problems too. I have tried this so far though (to no avail):

Please note I'm a complete newbie, and I might be choosing the settings completely wrong

Plain VDub (ignoring the message):
This method so far seems (for me) to produce an almost acceptable WAV output. In that it goes in and out of sync, but not too badly.

VDub Mp3:
Although this tool didn't complain about VBR, the output wav was atrociously out of sync with my avi. Even more so then ordinary VDub. Unlike VDub however, the audio didn't even re-sync later in the video!

Nandub & VDub Mod:
These tools seemed to produce the same wav output as ordinary VDub.

MusicMatch 10:
I have gone out and purchased MusicMatch 10, and tried the file conversion method mentioned. So far the WAV audio output is exactly the same time length as that in the AVI. Though I'm not sure if it has just done what plain VDub would have done anyway (rewrite the audio headers with standard CBR) so i am unsure about this method.

Analogue Recording / [Not Ripping] ?
I am wondering, if its not just possible to do it the 'ol fashion way'. Hit play on the software divx player on my PC [Media Player], and literally record the audio output as it comes using a software audio capture method. Would that work and be in sync perfectly with the video when i encode it using the same fps on mpeg output ?

What can i do ?
Can someone assure me which is the best possible way (analogue, digital, or what else) to perfectly get this dam VBR audio into CBR audio for TMPEG to encode with ? I have unsuccessfully trial and error'd everything good old Google good throw up on the related subject.

TimC

I'd probably extract it from the avi file with goldwave or cool edit pro.

ExpertTech

I'd convert the VBR to WAV first, then mux it in Virtualdub.

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I only use the decompress function in virtual dub with vbr mp3 audio to save it as wav for further mpeg2/dvd encoding.

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LeeC

Well thanks for you response everyone

Though I had found my own solution after more trials and errors. This was what I did to create my new synced mpeg. All the video/audio techies will probably tell me, your doing it all wrong! but it seems to work fine for me. People you should note, I do not know what I'm doing, I have guessed my way through all of these procedures.

You will need the following:
VirtualDub
MusicMatch 10 (Seems to perfectly convert the VBR to CBR WAV)

Step 01:
Open the file in VirtualDub (plain VirtualDub). Then choose "Audio", "Direct Stream Copy". Then choose "File", "Save WAV". In filename, change .WAV to .MP3, then save it somewhere.

Step 02:
Launch MusicMatch, then choose "File", "Convert Files..",
Check the settings are as follows:
Source Track Type: [mp3],
Convert Selected Tracks to: [wav]

Then point the source frame to the place you saved your file from VirtualDub. Then it will list all the available mp3s it can convert, choose "Start". To let it do so, then it will create a huge WAV file.

PS: Don't get scared by the size of the WAV, this will not normally affect the overall size of the final encoded MPEG.

I hope this works for you as well as it works for me.

doo524

Avi with vbr audio to avi with cbr audio keeping it in sync with the video using vdub

Overview: I use vdub twice to get non-skewed cbr audio/video.

I have an avi that has low-level sound with loud distortion; it is a left/right channel balance problem. It is a cam so the audio is hi fi instead of full stereo. I can emulate the sound repair if I click open the volume control in the task bar area of the desktop and move the slider to the left to skew the sound balance towards the left channel speaker. This allows me to check the sound sync on the vdub renderings. I want to get a pcm wave file demuxed so that I can use Diamond Cut 5 to fix the audio – Using DC5 I will either decrease the right channel volume by 1 db or I will make the left channel into mono and then use dc5 to change this mono to stereo using the left channel for both. Either way will give me a good audio that I can then mux back into the avi as pcm wave.

The original avi is vbr audio which when converted directly to pcm with vdub skews the video and the audio out of sync. If the original was in mp3 cbr it would stay in sync when it was converted to pcm wave. I use vdub to do this by:

1 Open the vbr avi in vdub, getting sync skew warning message which I ignore.
2 I set video to direct stream copy and audio to full processing mode, audio to interleaving (in the drop down menu) and click OFF enable audio/video interleaving and then click OK. I then click in the audio drop down menu, audio, compression lame mp3 44100 hz, 128 kbps cbr, stereo, 15 kbs. Gspot had the original at 129 kbps. Then I save the avi.
3 This give you an avi file that Gspot shows as the audio = mp3 iso/mpeg, I then open this avi in vdub and convert it again; the audio to full processing mode, compression to mp3 lame 128 (again). The result when I save the conversion will be audio 128 mp3 mpeg l layer 3 CBR with sync OK which is the desired result.
4 I then open this avi in vdub again and change the mp3 compression to pcm wave. I save the wave for processing in Diamond Cut 5.

doo524

Convert avi Ac3 to cbr mp3 in sync

Overview:

Vdub doesn’t do this, it will be out of sync, I use a free program called Super C, and this is the site:

http://www.erightsoft.com/SUPER.html

Original Avi:

717430 kb.avi

video = xvid,640x272 (2.35:1), bit rate = 1139 kbs, 23.97 fps
audio = ac3 (0x2000)dolby, 384 kbs 6ch cbr, 48000 hz

After converted with Super C:

1,091,721 kb.avi

video = xvid, 640x272 (2.35:1), 738 kbs, 23.97 fps
audio = pcm 16, 1536 kbs - stereo, 48000 hz

Super C Setup:

Avi, xvid, wave ( pcm ), mencoder, no change, 23.98 fps, 2016 kbps bit rate, hiqual,stretchit, other opts = CK ON Deinterlace ( this is the default ), 48000 hz, 2 ch, 1536 bit rate, default lang.

You will notice that I leave the values as close as possible to original.

Rh clk Super C and specify the output folder. Drag the original avi file into Super C, it will show as checked. Click on encode and wait long time - 2 hours.

When finished play on Window Media player and it will be in sync, you can demux the pcm wave from the result with vdub. When you mux the fixed pcm audio file back into the avi you can vdub convert it to lame mp3 320 cbr. You can play this avi on Windows Media Player and you will see it is in sync. This xvid will not play on my Phillips 642 so at this point I convert it with vdub to Divx 5.05 or mpeg4 video codec compressor v3 or the codec of your choice. I find these two will keep the quality of the video. The v43 will play on the Phillips 642 DVD player.

doo524

New on Forum


Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 21 Re: VBR audio to CBR?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Convert non standard audio rates and keep in sync as cbr mp3

Overview:

Vdub doesn’t do this, it will say it is unable to find codec, I use a free program called Super C, and this is the site:

http://www.erightsoft.com/SUPER.html

Original Avi:

717430 kb.avi

video = xvid,640x272 (2.35:1), bit rate = 1139 kbs, 23.97 fps
audio = ac3 (0x2000)dolby, 384 kbs 6ch cbr, 48000 hz

After converted with Super C:

1,091,721 kb.avi

video = xvid, 640x272 (2.35:1), 738 kbs, 23.97 fps
audio = pcm 16, 1536 kbs - stereo, 48000 hz

Super C Setup:

Avi, xvid, wave ( pcm ), mencoder, no change, 23.98 fps, 2016 kbps bit rate, hiqual,stretchit, other opts = CK ON Deinterlace ( this is the default ), 48000 hz, 2 ch, 1536 bit rate, default lang.

You will notice that I leave the values as close as possible to original.

Rh clk Super C and specify the output folder. Drag the original avi file into Super C, it will show as checked. Click on encode and wait long time - hours.

When finished play on Window Media player and it will be in sync, you can demux the pcm wave from the result with vdub. When you mux the fixed pcm audio file back into the avi you can vdub convert it to lame mp3 320 cbr. You can play this avi on Windows Media Player and you will see it is in sync. This xvid will not play on my Phillips 642 so at this point I convert it with vdub to Divx 5.05 or mpeg4 video codec compressor v3 or the codec of your choice. I find these two will keep the quality of the video. The v43 will play on the Phillips 642 DVD player.

doo524

doo524

re last post, this is the same procedure that i use for ac3 and i should have corrected the audio rate to show and avi to 112kbs instead of the ac3 384 kbs. sorry for the correction. the procedure will work for not normal avi rates as well as ac3 input.

Garot

I've done it ^^
I simply used MediaCoder to catch audio from video to >> Lame Mp3 >>>ABR<<<
Next... i added this file (mp3) to stream list ;]
Direct Stream Copy... Save As... and ok ^^

Sry for my poooor english

I had much problems with this stupid huge wav's and with bad streams ;/
I hope this help you