avi file too long for DVD, how can this be solved?

rayprince wrote on 2/3/2010, 3:55 PM

Hi there

I have tried to create a DVD for the first time using Architect v3. The problem I have is that when preparing the avi file it has said that it is too large for the DVD. I'm confused as when I created the avi in Vegas the file length was 1:50, so I presumed I was within the 2 hr limit for the DVD.

The process I used was:

- make movie in Vegas (PAL format, I'm in the UK)
- avi format
- once done, i opened Architect and chose 'insert media'
- i then did 'save as project'
- then 'make DVD'

It is indicating that the file length is over 3 hrs, hence the confusion...

Any help is greatly appreciated as this is our wedding video and the wife is expecting it to be done asap!

Thanks

Ray

Comments

bStro wrote on 2/3/2010, 5:49 PM

It is indicating that the file length is over 3 hrs, hence the confusion...

Could you check that message again? DVD Architect doesn't care one bit about how long your video lasts, so I suspect that's not what the message said. What DVDA would care about is how much space the file takes, which is a result of 1) how long the video is and 2) the bitrate at which it is encoded.

DVDs don't have a "time limit" -- they have a space limit. A standard single-layer DVD holds 4.7GB (or 4.37GB, depending on how how you define a gigabyte). The more bytes per second you allow the encoder, the fewer seconds you'll get out of that 4.7GB. Conversely, the fewer bytes you allow (meaning, the lower a bitrate you use), the more you'll squeeze onto it. I've made single layer DVDs upwards of three hours -- I just wasn't concerned about how good those particular DVDs looked. ;)

If you're giving it an AVI, then DVD Architect has to encode it as an MPEG2, the required video format for DVDs. And if you haven't changed the default bitrate, DVDA is going to try to encode it at 8Mbps, which -- for a movie almost two hours -- would be too high in order to get the final project to fit on a single layer DVD (4.7GB).

If that AVI uses a not-so-lossy codec (like Lagarith, Huffyuv, or [best case] PAL DV), then just go to File > Optimize, and hit the Fit to Disc button. DVD Architect will calculate a good bitrate to get your movie down to size without losing too much quality. (It's unavoidable -- MPEG2 was created to get more video in less disc space -- sacrifices must be made.)

If, on the other hand, it was encoded using Divx, Xvid, MPEG4, or something like that, then go back to Vegas and re-render your project. Use either AVI with one of those codecs I mentioned last paragraph or choose MPEG2, a DVD Architect video stream template, and hit Custom to choose a reasonable bitrate. Assuming that 1:50 minute movie (and a menu or two) is all you're putting on the disc, an average bitrate of 5300 should do nicely. Note that this template produces a video only file, as DVD Architect prefers. After that's done, go back and do a second render for the audio file -- choose WAV or Dolby Digital AC-3 (preferred) for that. If you save it to the same folder and with the same name (other than the extension) as your video, DVD Architect will find it automatically when you load the video file.

If you're using DVD Architect Studio, then you'll have to go the AVI route. It doesn't allow for customizing MPEG2 encodes.

Hope this helps. And if that message you saw did say something about time, I'd love to see a screenshot. I can't recall ever seeing such a message from DVDA.

Rob

TOG62 wrote on 2/4/2010, 12:03 AM

A couple of small quibbles.

Could you check that message again? DVD Architect doesn't care one bit about how long your video lasts, so I suspect that's not what the message said.
Although the heading said too long the message said too large.

If you're using DVD Architect Studio, then you'll have to go the AVI route. It doesn't allow for customizing MPEG2 encodes.
I think you mean Vegas Movie Studio, not Architect Studio.

Mike

rayprince wrote on 2/7/2010, 11:57 AM

thanks guys, of course I did mean too large apologies for my 'novice language'!

i have compressed the file in Architect and it's processing now - will take up 4.5GB of the disc.

your help has been invaluable and appreciated!

Ray

Bob N wrote on 2/14/2010, 3:56 PM

I would like to hitch hike on this thread with a related question. I am using Vegas Movie Studio 8 and DVD A 6. I had always made DVDs from AVI files, and after reading this thread I decided to Make a Movie (select button) and chose MPEG-2 and the DVD NTSC template. When it had completed 1.5 hours later I discovered two things. First, the sound track was included, whereas bStro said the audio would need to be rendered separately. Second, the mpg was woo large for the dvd, and the Optimize/Fit to Disk had no effect.

Is the limitation of the "Studio versions" that you can't set the bitrate and the audio gets included in the single process? If so, is there any noticeable advantage to rendering a shorter version of the AVI to mpeg2 and using it in DVDA 6? Or is it better to use the original AVI from Vegas and let DVDA do its own optimization to fit the file to disk?

musicvid10 wrote on 2/14/2010, 4:19 PM

-- There is no such thing as DVDA 6. It hasn't been released. Or are you some kind of secret beta tester who just spilled the beans?

-- In Vegas, there are DVD templates and there are DVD Architect templates. You used a DVD template, and not a DVD Architect template. If you use a DVD Architect template, then you would render the audio separately as AC-3, so it doesn't get rendered again when you prepare your DVD. The video rendering bitrate is not customizable in Vegas Movie Studio, so if it doesn't fit, you are stuck using a different method, such as DV-AVI import, or Fit to Disc recompress.

Bob N wrote on 2/14/2010, 5:49 PM

Senior moment... <g> I have DVDA 4.5. Aha. So there is a difference between DVD template and DVD Architect template, but the bitrate is not customizable in either. Thank you for the clarification.

donnier wrote on 3/30/2010, 6:51 PM

Using Vegas Movie Studio and an MPEG-2 DVD NTSC with a movie that is 1:55 long results in a file that DVD Architect says is 120% of a 4.7 GB DVD. Going to Optimize DVD and clicking FIt to Disk results in a message saying my file is too large.

Can anyone help me?