DVD to SVCD on a Macintosh Using Forty Two

Note: This tutorial is using Forty-Two v.1.5.x.  With the recent addition of Forty-TwoDVD-VX ill be making a new tutorial shortly.

 

  1. Open Forty-Two.
  2. Insert your dvd into your mac, letting it load fully into Apple Dvd Player.  Once this is done, simply quit the apple dvd player application.
  3. Drag your DVD icon from your desktop to the Forty-Two application window where it says Drag DVD here. The program now scans your dvd to ensure that everything is suitable for future conversions.
  4. Next, ensure that SVCD is clicked.   Standard Custom Rate for SVCD is 2500kb/sec.   If you just want to make a standard SVCD click start and the process will begin after you choose a save location.   However, since you will most likely want to keep this DVD to 2 SVCD disks, I have outlined a simple way to calculate your Custom rate.

 

Calculating a custom rate to ensure that Forty-Two is going to make a 2 disk SVCD. 

  1. Open FFMPEGX
  2. In the Video tab, you will see a Bitrate Calculator
  3. You will see        (------ min keep in)    Fill in the duration of your dvd video in min in this area.  If you don’t know, visit www.imbd.com and look your dvd up and you can find the film length.
  4. Next choose 2 cd’s  (or how ever many you want)
  5. Next choose 80 mode-1
  6. Next click the RATE button, and you will get the best rate to ensure your SVCD is not over 2 disks.  Generally speaking, I round down a bit to the nearest number ending in 0.    Example:  result is 1956, I would run 1950.    result is 2568, I would run 2560.
  7. Now, remember that number and go back to Forty-Two, click Custom Rate and enter that rate. 
  8. Then push Start.

 

The newest FFMPEGX also allows you to choose bitrate by size.  I have not done this but im assuming you could type in 1590megs (the max size of 795 megs of .mpeg2 video per disk for a 2 disk SVCD) then click SIZE and it would give you the exact bit rate you would need for a video of your length)

Play around a bit and see which works best for you.   Most likely it will be under 2500 kb/sec no matter how you look at it, but the highest bitrate that keeps it in 2 cd’s is what you want.

 

  1.  When this process is complete you will end up with .bin/.cue files in the BURN WHATS IN HERE FOLDER.  (It’s known that at this release of Forty-Two you may or may not have anything in this folder.  If you don’t, look to the temp folder you set during the save process and you will find a large .mpeg file.  This is the SVCD in a single .mpeg.   It only needs to be split (using MPGTX) and then compiled into .bin/.cue files with VcdToolsX   (see way below for this how to)
  2. Burn the .bin and .cue files using either Missing Media Burner or Firestarter FX.  
    1. Missing Media Burner.  Choose VIDEO, use the pulldown menu to select .bin/cue buring and then choose your .cue for the 1st .bin file.
    2. Firestarter FX..  Choose VIDEO, then drag your .cue file of the 1st .bin to the drop here window

 

 

What to do when Forty-Two doesn’t give anything in the Burn What’s In Here Folder

 

1.      Locate the large .mpeg file that’s in the temp folder you designated as them during the save process.

2.      Open MPGTX and click SPLIT, and type in 2 for the number of chunks.   Choose the .mpeg file that you have recently located, and click SPLIT

3.      This will put two files named CHUNK1.mpg and CHUNK2.mpg into the same folder that the source .mpeg file is in

4.      Open VcdToolsX, click on the button that says CREATE .BIN/.CUE and then select your CHUNK1.mpeg file.   Choose a save as location, and then ensure SVCD is clicked.   Push start.

5.      Repeat for the 2nd .mpeg file

6.      You will notice there are now .bin/.cue files that you can burn using the same process described above in step 10.