Mpeg capture edit out ads

[Easier Way?]

I have put this post off for a long time, this is a really elementary query.

I want to edit out ads from captured tv mpegs (leadtek capture card). I am used to .avi and virtualdub and can do cuts and save the edited .avi under direct stream copy or divx but cannot do the same with virtualdub-mod and mpeg, saving as mpeg (can vd-mod be forced to use the capture mpeg codec?).

I have vd-mod, ulead video studio7 and tmpgenc. I cannot understand the ulead software and anyway it always crawls with the hard disk light on (athlon 2500 and 133/7200 hard disks) and tmpgenc seems to only allow splitting of an mpeg.

Is direct stream copying possible with mpeg or does all the software re-encode the data? That would surely cause a big drop in quality because of lossy to lossy conversion.

[reboot]

You need something like Womble mpeg-vcr/wizard, Cuttermaran, or VideoReDo.

[tigerman8u]

I usually do as "reboot" stated. Sometimes I do cut out the sections in Tmpgenc dvd Author when I author my mpeg/s.

[LT. Columbo]

easier way

'I want to edit out ads from captured tv mpegs "

i just did this about an hour ago....i used tmpgenc "merge cut" feature. very simple.....

[anonymez]

i use two programs:

"cuttermaran" - completely free and supports high definition, is lossless, handles ac3 audio

"tmpgenc mpeg editor" - costs money, doesnt handle ac3 audio unless you want to pay extra, and doesn't handle high definition video very well (changes the colour of my videos to a purplish hue )

[Easier Way?]

Thank You All,
Will look up all the suggestions.
Is editing mpeg lossy compared to editing uncompressed avi?

[reboot]

If you can use GB-PVR for your capture card, there's two plugins.
Comskip and Xvert.
Combined, they write a project file that you can directly import into Womble mpeg-vcr and it will automatically cut the commercials for you.
If interested, check the forums at www.gbpvr.com

[anonymez]

cutting an mpeg can be losless (no quality lost at all), while editing (resizing, cropping, deinterlacing, etc) are lossy (some quality loss, even if it is unnoticable).

if all you are trying to do is cut out ads, the program will not touch the parts of the video you want

[Easier Way?]

Thanks again, I've downloaded cuttermaran and found some info on how to use it. Great forum!

[anonymez]

glad we could be of help

[tigerman8u]

you're welcome

[LT. Columbo]

good luck, let us know of your success

[Easier Way?]

Hi All, You were very kind to help me out. Tried cuttermaran and found that my typical mpeg demuxes (tmpgenc) have audio about 1 sec/hour longer than the video. I also stuck with and sussed out some of Ulead Videostudio 7. Cuttermaran is much faster than Ulead Videostudio 7 but it is no better at doing audio in synch. What is odd is that I can play all my mpeg captures in synch (Win DVD, Zoom, Media Player) but cannot edit them in synch.

Nothing new about that so I'll use huffyuv/avi for anything that will be kept. For mpeg I tried to capture at max pal quality ie 704X576 at 8000 bit rate variable, audio at mpeg1 layer II (no alternatives) at 224 but often get multiple reports in virtualdub-mod something like; "MPEG: Anachronistic or discontinuous timestamp found in videostream 0 at byte position 10098706, from 925346 to 1118007. This may indicate an improper join." I have been using the bundled leadtek Winfast PVR and the nvidea NForce audio on an abit motherboard.

I get the impression from the forum that mpeg capture is frequently troublesome.

Are there any freeware mjpeg codecs?

Again Thanks.

[setarip]

I'm at a loss to understand why your going through this trouble, when you already have "TMPGEnc".

TMPGEnc>>File>>MPEGTools>>Merge&Cut...

[Easier Way?]

Hi Setarip, Because my new capture card saves its compressed video as mpeg wheras my old asus combi saved its compressed captures as ".avi" even though it was a form of mpeg.
I was well used to virtual dub for avi editing and when I could not do similar direct stream copy editing with vb-mod for mpeg I acquired the mistaken belief that mpeg cutting requires recompression and is therefore inherently lossy. The very helpful replies above have shown me the true facts.
Tmpgenc cuts still have audio problems (demuxes have longer audio), straight (non-demuxed) mpeg cuts have audio synch errors. I intend to stick with .avi and virtual dub, mjpeg would offer me hopefully about 4-5 hr captures on my biggest (video use only) 160Gb hard disk using full frame pal settings.
Being mean I was hoping someone knew a source of freeware mjpeg codec!