Looking for MPEG-1 codec

[Graham Meredith]

Does anyone know where to find an MPEG-1 codec? I need it so I can save AVI's captured in VirtualDub straight to .mpg files or MPEG-1 files with an .avi header.
I know I can use Virtual dub to frameserve to other compressors such as Tsunami but it'd be simpler if I could do it directly from VirtualDub. I've looked at places like Codec Central but don't seem to be looking in the right places. I have been told it exists. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Graham

[Dr Mordrid]

MPEG encoders don't come as codecs for licensing reasons. They usually come as features built into other products or as freestanding encoders.

For what you want to do you should check out VideoStudio4 (<$100 USD), MediaStudio6 (~$450) or VideoWave4 (<100 USD). They can all capture direct to MPEG-1.

In addition there are a few freestanding capture progams with dedicated MPEG capability. An example is the Honestech MPEG-1 Recorder;

http://www.honestech.com/recorder.htm

$69 USD list.

Dr. Mordrid


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Asus P3B-F 6 PCI
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Gigabyte GA-6R7+ slotkey
Matrox G400/Flex3D
Matrox RT-2000
256 megs RAM
Promise SuperTrak100 (4 x 60g IBM 75GXP: 240g RAID0)
AWE64 Gold
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[This message has been edited by Dr Mordrid (edited 14 December 2000).]

[Anatoly Neverov]

There are some freeware mpeg stand-alone encoders. For example, BBMPEG:
http://members.home.net/beyeler/bbmpeg.html

Visit this site, you'll find some more there:
http://www.digital-digest.com/dvd/do.../encoding.html

Anatoly.

[Graham Meredith]

Thanks for the info, doc, if it's a licencing issue, I can understand now that it may be difficult to get the actual codec separate from the encoders themselves. I just wonder if it is floating around out there somewhere, like the Microsoft MPEG-4 codec that, at this point in time, is separate from dedicated encoders. I wonder what licencing arrangements will befall it, in light of the licencing of the MPEG-2 codec and the demise of the wonderful Tsunami encoder

Thanks, Anatoly, for those links, I already have those encoders, though they are great gear to have for others out there also - it's all FREEEEE!!! My problem is that I want to do encoding within VirtualDub, and so not have to use those outboard encoders, so as to save number crunching.

Graham

[wkulecz]

I thought the Dariam (spelling??) MPEG1 encoder was implimented as a codec. This was one of its selling points, however its quality was generally considered to be the worst amoung Panasong, Ligos, bbmpeg, and Xing.

--wally.

[Dr Mordrid]

On the topic of freestanding freeware MPEG encoders let's not forget the King-of-them-all: TMPGEnc. Its at;

http://www.jamsoft.com/tmpgenc/

Just remember to download the English resource and the VFAPI resource as well. Get version 12a.

Dr. Mordrid

[Graham Meredith]

wkulecz
I found the encoder/codec you mentioned! It's called the Darim DVMPEG5 encoder
http://www.darvision.com/

under the downloads section.

It provides the MPEG-1 codec as well, (and MPEG-2!!)so you can choose to save your edited videos in VirtualDub directly as an .mpg (or mp2) file by choosing the DVMPEG5 compression option that will appear in VirtualDub. You can then specify an audio compression as well - such as mp3 - so long as you have an mp3 codec installed. How cool is that - an MPEG-1 video with mp3 sound! (You can do this in Tsunami - but you can't edit an AVI to begin with like you can in VDub)

Here's the catch - it's a demo version, crippled to only output up to 250 frames. You have to buy it and register it if you want to do anything useful with it. It also comes up with audio settings errors something like it couldn't find the audio source - I have to sit down and try different settings when I have time.
If I, or anyone else, can get it to work in Virtual Dub, and provided that it can produce as good quality MPEG-1's as, say, Tsunami, then this will save an enormous amount of rendering time and fiddling about - the complete capture, edit and MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 compression can be done all within Virtualdub!!

Graham

[Biker]

Doc you say get tsunami version 12a.

VBut only 12b is avilable from his/her website. Is this better or worse, it staes it only support Win98 onwards. Does 12a support Win95?

By the way the new website url is at - http://www.tmpgenc.com/e_main.html

Cheers

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[Flying dutchman]

12a has been discontinued for licensing reasons. 12b lacks the mpeg-2 option. It's only a matter of time and the same thing will happen to BBMpeg.

[Biker]

Hi Flying Dutchman
Re: It's only a matter of time and the same thing will happen to BBMpeg.

I think it already may have. The website has moved. It says something about that. And i am fairly sure the version i was allowed to download was an old one - BUT i am not certain.

Question - Why will my PC not play back ANY mpg2 files? Isnt media player ment to do it?


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[Graham Meredith]

Biker,
You can still get the Tsunami TPMEnc 12a (shhhhhh!) from
http://go.to/doom9/
http://doom9.net
http://www.doom9.org

in the downloads section.

You can either get it by itself, (and it needs the English patch with it), or with the "SVCD pack part 2" where it comes as the already-patched English 12a, along with some other tools and goodies

Better hurry "while stocks last" and they replace it with 12b also.