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Home > FAQs > Mpeg/Mov/RMVB/Divx/AVI to DVD/VCD/SVCD Questions

Question 1 - What is 'AVI to VCD / DVD'?

Question 2 - OK, I have encoded my files, how do I get a VideoCD out of it?

Question 3 - I made a VideoCD, but my DVD player cannot play it.

Question 4 - I get a "FATAL ERROR: Could not retrieve video frame xxxx" error".

Question 5 -  I get  ''can't initialize avi file" error

Question 6 - What's a codec?

Question 7 - Where do I get a codec?

Question 8 - Why is 'AVI to VCD / DVD' so slow?

Question 10 - When I encode a video the resulting mpeg is larger than the source?

Question 11 - When I encode an avi file that use the Cinepak (or other codec, the resulting mpeg is very "blocky".

Question 12 - Whe I encode a screen capture sequence, or a computer generated animation, the resulting mpeg is not very clear.

Question 13 - Why in the conversion window and preview  show the vedio upside down?.

Question 14 - When I play back the resulting mpeg, the video occasionally freezes, or it plays like a slide show with a new still frame every few seconds while the audio continues.

Question 15 - 'AVI to VCD / DVD' will not encode the video from my mjpeg capture card?

Question 16 - I'm having problems encoding videos captured from my DV Camcorder.

Question 17 - Adaptec's Easy VideoCD Creator says the mpeg produced by 'AVI to VCD / DVD' is not "Whitebook" compliant?

Question 18 - The VideoCD creation program I use "Brand X", does not accept the  output of 'AVI to VCD / DVD'. What can I do?

Question 19 - How to add subtile file into my vcd or dvd file with pro version?

 

Answers
Question 1 - What is 'AVI to VCD / DVD'?
 

'AVI to VCD / DVD' is a Windows based program to encode avi files to VCD/DVD/SVCD compliant mpeg files for recording to VCD with a VCD creation program. The resulting VCD/DVD/SVCD can be played on VCD players, and many DVD players.

 

Question 2 - OK, I have encoded my files, how do I copy them to a VCD/DVD/SVCD?
 

'AVI to VCD / DVD' is just the file encoder. You will still need a CD recording application which can create all the required structures required for a VCD/DVD/SVCD, as well as write the mpeg files to individual tracks on the VCD/DVD/SVCD. There are several such packages out there such as NTI CD Maker, the full (Deluxe or Platinum) version of EZ CD Creator, InstantVideo, Nero, etc. YOU CAN'T JUST RECORD THE MPEG TO A CD AND EXPECT IT TO PLAY IN A DVD PLAYER! If your CD recording application can create VCD/DVD/SVCD's, there will be an explicit setting for creating a VCD/DVD/SVCD. Check your manual. For  example, with Easy CD Creator, you need to use the EZ VCD Creator application which comes with it. For InstantCD, you need to use the  InstantVideo selection in the startup menu.

 

Question 3 - I made a VCD, but my DVD player cannot play it.
 

Not all DVD players can play VCDs. Some DVD players that can play commercially stamped "silver" VCD's cannot play VCD's on CD-R. You need to try both CD-R and CD-RW media. I have found that even different brands of CD-RW get different results.

 

Question 4 - I get a "FATAL ERROR: Could not retrieve video frame xxxx" error".
 

If the frame number is 0, then you either do not have a properly installed codec for the compression method this video uses, or the codec in question is not accessible from DirectShow or Video-for-Windows, and cannot be used with 'AVI to VCD / DVD' . You might also need to upgrade the version of DirectX installed on your system.
If the frame number is higher than 0:  Most likely either your video is corrupted (the video frame in question is "damaged") or the codec has a bug. 'AVI to VCD / DVD' tries to skip over the corrupted frame to the next good frame (it will skip up to 15 bad frames for most codecs, or 60 frames for Divx, where this is much more common
a problem). This is most usually caused by downloading video from the net, and having the download fail. When you restart the download where it left off, often the video is corrupted at the point of resumption. If this is the case, you need to re-download the avi in one single, unbroken session.

 

Question 5 - I get  ''can't initialize avi file" error
 

We recommend that you install kazaa codecs package, you can download it from here.  Of course, if you can be sure the decode of your avi file, you  also can go here to download the codec you needed.
If failed again, could you please send your avi log file to us? Please click "check log" button after you open your avi file, the avi log file will pop up automatically.

 

Question 6 - What's a codec?
 

Codec stands for "COmpressor/DECompressor". Every compressed video file uses a codec to decompress the individual frames for playback. There are a great many codecs. Some come with Windows, others must be downloaded and installed before you can play back the video. Some codecs are not compatible with DirectX, which is what 'AVI to VCD / DVD' uses to decode the video frames, in which case you will not be able to encode the video using 'AVI to VCD / DVD'. Try getting the latest version of the codec, it might work with 'AVI to VCD / DVD'.

 

Question 7 - Where do I get a codec?
 

There are a lot of codecs, and as many places to get them as there are codecs. If you downloaded a video from the web, and you don't have the codec it requires, check the website you downloaded the video from for information on where to get the codec. We recommend that you goto http://www.free-codecs.com/download/Codec_Pack_All_in_1.htm to download the codec package all in 1.You also can go here  to download some normal codec, but not all.

 

Question 8 - Why is 'AVI to VCD / DVD' so slow?
 

Depending on your computer system, you may experience anywhere from 1 to 10 frames (more or less) encoded per second. Some systems will be slower, some faster. This means it might easily take from 3 to 30 hours to encode 1 hour of video to mpeg. Mpeg encoding is a computationally intensive, and slow, process. The characteristics of the video also have an effect. If your video is 720x480, for example, 'AVI to VCD / DVD' needs to resize each frame to 352x240 (or 352x288 for PAL), which adds to the time required. Some codecs are also slower than others.

 

Question 9 - I lost my register code , how to get it again?
 

Please goto http://support.cucusoft.com to retrieve your registe code and the latest full version.

 

Question 10 - When I encode a video the resulting mpeg is larger than the source?
 

The resulting mpeg will always be 176400 bytes x # of seconds in source video. This is a result of the VCD standard

 

Question 11 - When I encode an avi file that uses the Cinepak (or other) codec,the resulting mpeg is very "blocky".
 

The encoded mpeg can be no better than the original source file for video quality, in fact it is usually significantly worse. This applies to all codecs. To obtain maximum quality, you must use a high quality original video that is only slightly compressed, or not compressed at all. Simply encoding miscellaneous avi's you may have lying around will probably not work very well. The encoder is paricularily sensitive to noise, if the source avi has visible noise in the picture (as from VHS video tape), it will not encode well

 

Question 12 - When I encode a screen capture sequence, or a computer generated animation, the resulting mpeg is not very clear.
 

Mpeg was intended to compress real world video images, not artificial computer generated images

 

Question 13 - Why in the conversion window and preview  show the vedio upside down?
 

Please have the checkbox of "Flip vertical" checked.

 

Question 14 - When I play back the resulting mpeg, the video occasionally
 

freezes, or it plays like a slide show with a new still frame every few seconds while the audio continues.  Try turning your screen saver off completely before starting the encode. Many users have reported this solves the problem for them, though I have never experienced it myself. Also make sure you have the latest version of DirectX and the codec your video uses. The DIVX codec exhibits this behavior on many PC's. This is a bug in the Divx codec. Divx is aware of the problem and expects a fix in the next release of the divx codec. (Current version  of Divx codec as of this writing, 5.05).

 

Question 15 - 'AVI to VCD / DVD' will not encode the video from my mjpeg capture card?
 

Some mjpeg capture cards use a hardware based codec which is not compatible with the DirectShow component of DirectX. Some software mjpeg codecs are also not compatible with DirectX. You should first make sure you have the latest version of the codec. If that still does not work, then the only other thing I can suggest is to contact the manufacturer and request a DirectShow compatible version of your codec. Also make sure you have the latest version of DirectX installed on your system

 

Question 16 - I'm having problems encoding videos captured from my DV Camcorder
 

Generally, there are no issues with encoding Type 2 DV avi files, and if your DV capture program gives you the option, you should choose Type 2 DV instead of Type 1. However, if you attempt to encode Type 1 DV avi files, you may experience the following error message:  "Error attempting to read audio from Type 1 DV .avi file Re-render video with video editor and try again!"  This occurs when DirectShow reports to 'AVI to VCD / DVD' that a Type 1 DV file with 48KHz audio has 32KHz audio! Usually this occurs when you try to encode a Type 1 file directly after capture from a DV camera. If this file is first edited with an video editor (such as Media Studio Pro) then re-rendered to a Type 1 DV file, 'AVI to VCD / DVD' can usually encode this fine. I have not been able to correct this problem as yet, but I am still working on it. In the meantime, it does not affect most individuals since generally avi files are edited after capture and before encoding.  A simple workaround for the above issue is to set your camcorder to 32KHz, 12 bit audio. This seems to works fine even with Type 1 DV files.  Some camcorders work better during capture if they are powered through the
AC adapter rather than the battery. Check your owner's manual. Sound quality: If you experience poor quality audio, generally described as noise, when encoding Type 1 DV files, try rerendering your DV file to Type 2, or use 32KHz audio.  Pinnacle DV500 Owners:  Make sure you upgrade to Version 8.1 of DirectX (or later) and get the
Version 4.0 (or later) DV 500 driver from the Pinnacle web site.

 

Question 17 - Adaptec's Easy VCD Creator says the mpeg produced by 'AVI to VCD / DVD' is not "Whitebook" compliant?
 

Start up VCD creator, go to Help - > About. What does the dialog box say next to "MCI Mpeg Video Driver:"? If it says something other than "DirectShow" or "ActiveMovie", for example "QI Cinemaster DVD", than that's likely the problem. Easy VCD Creator uses the default MCI MPEG driver
to determine the source mpegs characteristics. Many DVD software players replace the DirectShow MCI Driver with their own, which may not properly
identify the mpeg file characteristics to Easy VCD Creator. All I can suggest is that you remove whatever software installed the new MCI driver and try again. You should also request a fix from the manufacturer of the software which caused the problem

 

Question 18 - The VCD creation program I use "Brand X", does not accept the output of 'AVI to VCD / DVD'. What can I do?
 

Make sure you are using the latest version of the program. If that still does not work, send me an email with the name, version, and a web location
where I can download an evaluation copy of the program in question. I will attempt to resolve this for the next version. If an evaluation version is
not available, I will contact the software company and see if they are willing to help

 

Question 19 -  How to add subtitle file into my vcd or dvd file with pro version?
 

1.Please install the vobsub software,You can goto http://www.cucusoft.com/codec.asp to download it.
2.Put your avi file and subtitle file under the one folder, please be sure they are the same name. For example, the name of avi file is XXX.avi, the subtitle file is XXX.srt or XXX.sub.
3.Then run our program, have the checkbox of "add subtitle" check, click the convert button.

 

 

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