DVD super 8 authoring

Post by **mr.jordan** » Thu Feb 26, 2004 4:46 am

a quick question...
i am compiling alot of my films onto DVD format and my burner came with really crappy menu software.
-what is the best dvd authoring software that i could buy under ~$200?
i want to be able to do close to anything with the menu.
thanks
8)

Post by **schematic2** » Thu Feb 26, 2004 11:30 pm

TMPGenc has alot for your money.

Post by **LastQuark** » Fri Feb 27, 2004 5:09 am

DVD Authoring. That should be Sonic ReelDVD. They had it on sale for just about $300 at one time. The other option is Pinnacle Impression DVD Pro for about $200. Adobe Encore DVD will be a bit more at $500.
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Post by **mattias** » Fri Feb 27, 2004 8:49 am

schematic2 wrote:TMPGenc has alot for your money.

i disagree. it works, but that's it. if you "want to make close to anything" with the menus it's pretty much useless. however i did author the sisten i ÃƒÂ¤r en skit dvd's on it, since there's a free tryout period available and it's the only one that runs on win95 which is the only windows version i have.

(the mpeg *encoding* in tmpgenc is top notch though)

/matt

Post by **schematic2** » Fri Feb 27, 2004 11:59 pm

Hi mattias

Sorry to disagree. Although the menu structure takes a little getting used to, the program will do most anything you want. You need to select custom menu's and build your own. I have used most softwares out there, and yes, there are some that are more friendly, but the prices are high. The only shortcome in TMPGenc is that you can't easily add background music to the menu. It does most anything else.....

What did you need that it wouldn't do?

Post by **mattias** » Sat Feb 28, 2004 1:47 pm

schematic2 wrote:What did you need that it wouldn't do?

nothing. it did everything i needed it to. i didn't need it to do "everything" though, like the original poster. the main lacking feature is of course that there's no support for track selection if you have multiple languages, subtitles, encodings (pcm, ac3, dts) and so on. also its hierarchic, so you can't really build a linear, circular or more complex menu structure.

(one thing that you could help me with: how on earth do you remove the "play all" button present in all the templates? i'm sure it's possible and i surely don't want it there) ;-)

/matt

YouTube · Post by **Andreas Wideroe** » Sat Feb 28, 2004 2:04 pm

What would be the best tool if we say price doesn't matter?

I have used Adobe Encore which is nice, but it crashes too often when building the DVD - atleast on my and my friend's machine.

/Andreas

Post by **Forever on DVD** » Sat Feb 28, 2004 2:42 pm

awand wrote:What would be the best tool if we say price doesn't matter?

Well, if price is no object then Sonic Scenarist is the best DVD authoring software available. Pricing starts around $15 000 USD and goes up to over $30 000 USD depending on how you configure the system.

As a cheap alternative, what about DVD-lab? I've never used it myself, but I've heard good things about it.

http://www.mediachance.com/dvdlab/

Kindest regards,

Shawn

*************************************
Shawn Kimmel
shawn@foreverondvd.com
http://www.foreverondvd.com
Forever on DVD
4125 Wolfe Point Way
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1V 1P4
(613) 822-9930
Toll free: 1-8mm-onto-dvd (1-866-668-6383)
Ultra-high quality digital film transfers
Video and film archiving - DVD Productions
*************************************

Post by **schematic2** » Sat Feb 28, 2004 6:01 pm

mattias

To get rid of the "play" button, simply go to the edit menu screen and shrink its size by dragging its corner. Then just pull it of to the side. It will totaly hide in the overscan. It does do PCM and AC3. It also has the best burning engine I've seen.

awand

I feel your pain. I haven't had much luck with Adobe products. I spent hours learning Premiere Pro only to find it unstable with intense editing. Vegas has been a breath of fresh air.

DvDlab is fine. I did find myself distracted by all its options though. Ulead works well too but highly overpriced for what you get.

The short of it is: If you want easy chapter placement, motion menus, and single language audio, TMPGenc coupled with TMPGenc encoder are the best bang for buck bar none.

just my humble opinion for what its worth.. .

Post by **downix** » Sat Feb 28, 2004 8:41 pm

I like iDVD and BurnIT Pro, but you need a PowerPC for those.

Post by **christoph** » Sun Feb 29, 2004 12:46 am

downix wrote:I like iDVD and BurnIT Pro, but you need a PowerPC for those.

... and if you have a PPC anyway you might consider shelling out a bit more for DVD Studio Pro which is hard to beat in its price range (499$ with discounts on packages)

++ christoph ++

Post by **mattias** » Sun Feb 29, 2004 2:20 pm

schematic2 wrote:To get rid of the "play" button, simply go to the edit menu screen and shrink its size by dragging its corner. Then just pull it of to the side. It will totaly hide in the overscan.

doesn't work. it doesn't show but it's still there, which of course is an even bigger problem for the user who tries to navigate and the cursor suddenly disappears off screen (which is also where it starts since the play all is always the default) and it can still be selected.

It does do PCM and AC3.

it does pcm *or* ac3. you really should check out the features of a real authoring program. you'll be amazed.

If you want easy chapter placement, motion menus, and single language audio

agreed, but is that what you thought he meant by "the best dvd authoring software that i could buy" and "i want to be able to do close to anything with the menu"? :-)

/matt

Post by **schematic2** » Sun Feb 29, 2004 5:45 pm

what is the best dvd authoring software that i could buy under ~$200?

Post by **schematic2** » Sun Feb 29, 2004 6:09 pm

doesn't work. it doesn't show but it's still there, which of course is an even bigger problem for the user who tries to navigate and the cursor suddenly disappears off screen

This has never been an issue for me. I don't like a motion menu obscured when the menu comes up. What I do is simply label each chapter as "Press#1" "Press#2" etc. People find this easier to navigate then struggling with some undersized remote buttons. . .

I'm not going to BS you. There are way better authoring programs out there. But in all honesty, you'll be hard pressed to find one as good as TMPGenc in its price range.

Post by **mattias** » Sun Feb 29, 2004 7:01 pm

schematic2 wrote:you'll be hard pressed to find one as good as TMPGenc in its price range.

for sure, that's why i use it. i'm just trying to point out its shortcomings for those who require more.

/matt