making DVD?

buckaroo wrote on 1/17/2007, 9:35 AM
I have just finished my film within vegas which has been great!

But before i even render etc, can someone tell me how i make a dvd? the film footage in the project is a mixture of .avi and .mpg files as well as .wav files for the music.

I also have DVD Architect 4.0a which i have never used before so am completley new to the render/mixdown process of making a dvd!

Whats the best render for DVD? and would this file tyoe include the music also? as its all lined up and in sync..

Then can you tell me how i use DVDA and what render setting for a DVD disc

Many thanks for your time..

Comments

MPM wrote on 1/18/2007, 10:15 AM
It's hard to answer your question because there's just too much info re: DVDs to include in a single post -- strongly suggest you do a bit of reading at places like videohelp.com, doom9.org, http://www.thedigitalbits.com/officialfaq.html, http://www.dvd-replica.com & so on....

That said, any DVD authoring software places mpg2 video, in your case probably ac3 audio, & optional subs in files with the extension .VOB which is just a container -- .IFO files contain all the instructions for the DVD player. Things like intro video, menus, interactivity are all optional, but can get involved.

If your Vegas project is complete, the next step is to render ac3 audio using either the stereo or 5.1 templates for DVDA. Place markers for chapter points in the video as/if appropriate, and render to mpg2 using the DVDA template that applies (4:3, 16:9) setting the bit rate and field order etc as needed.

Very generally, 1.5 hours of video will fit on a single layer DVD using default template bit rates -- lower the bit rates (or use DL blanks) for longer play. You can get a quick idea of the final size by taking the mpg2 file size in Windows Explorer, the % done in the progress window, & using calculator. For a single layer DVD the max is 4.35 gig, you should already know the size of your rendered audio, so finding the max mpg2 size is easy. I usually target just over the max size and then use Shrink or Recode as necessary to use the entire available disc space at the highest quality, meaning highest bit rate.

For original content sync in DVDA shouldn't be an issue -- just import the files, add menus if you wish, and write a burnable DVD layout to hdd.
Paul Mead wrote on 1/18/2007, 1:13 PM
Based on your post I'm guessing you want the simplest/easiest way to do it.

If your video is an hour or less in length then I suggest you get in to Vegas and simply click "Make Movie", select "Burn it to DVD.", let Vegas render it to MPG and WAV files, run DVDA, customize the DVD menus however you want, and click "Make DVD". If you don't care about menus then select "New" from the file menu and click on the "Single Movie" icon to get a DVD with no fancy extras.

If your movie is much more than an hour then you probably should have Vegas render to AVI by selecting "Make Movie" and then "Save it to your hard drive." When you run DVDA, after you have done your menus or whatever select "Optimize DVD" from the file menu, click the "Fit to disc" button, and then click "OK". Then click "Make DVD".

I've glossed over a few things (well, a lot of things), but those are the basic steps for a simple video. Spend a few minutes in the docs and you should be on your way. If you want do be fancier then you really should plant yourself in front of the docs for awhile to learn how to put together menus, scene selection lists, trim video, etc.

DVDA has a lot of features -- way to many to summarize in a forum post. If you have specific questions that you don't feel are answered by the docs then feel free to post them here.
buckaroo wrote on 1/21/2007, 5:17 AM
Ok thanks!

So rendering as a .mpeg2 in Vegas then, thsi will capture all the audio as well as the picture?

I have seen some editors saying that you need to render as MPEG2 and the do the Audio as AC3? - surely the MPEG2 render captures the audio too right?

Thing is that i have DVD Architect on the pc which i can get the DVD ready but my pc has no DVD Writer! so i would have to transfer over to MAc OSX and Toast Titanium 7!

I know this makes things a little complicated, but am i best to to do this in DVDA and then send to my mac for the final burn? or should i just send my finished MPEG2 render to the mac and burn from there?
ScottW wrote on 1/21/2007, 6:51 AM
If you use a DVDA template to render the video from Vegas, the audio will not be part of it. You must render the audio as a seperate step. DVDA always wants the audio seperately.

Sorry, can't help with the MAC issue except to say it would probably be easier on the overall workflow to simply purchase a DVD writer for your computer. You may need some burning software like Nero or Copy2DVD depending on whether DVDA recognizes your burner.

--Scott
MPM wrote on 1/21/2007, 7:44 AM
"So rendering as a .mpeg2 in Vegas then, thsi will capture all the audio as well as the picture?"

As Scott writes, render two streams separately...
Mpg2 is a video format -- audio can muxed (contained in the same file) with it -- usually the difference is noted by the extension .m2v (video only) vs. .mpg (video + audio). For DVDs the mpg2 video and separate audio are put into a different kind of file (.VOB) -- AFAIK all DVD authoring apps require separate audio & video, though some will separate them for you.

"...have to transfer over to MAc OSX and Toast Titanium 7!"

Create your DVD layout in DVDA on your hard drive -- then transfer that *layout* to your MAC for burning. If you can't connect the two (if they aren't networked) then you'll likely have to spend $20 - 30 US for a DVD burner for your PC.

"should i just send my finished MPEG2 render to the mac and burn from there?"

Unless your DVD player will play plain mpg2, & most will not, you'll have to create a DVD layout, either on your PC or on your MAC. If you want to skip making a DVD layout, probably your best bet is rendering to DivX, burning to CD, and hoping your DVD player can handle it - or spend $20 - 30 for one that can.