Question on video formats

• Kuyt

  7 Sep 06, 11:27

  I have recently started to record TV programmes on my computer.
  
  All recordings were done in MPEG format and for a 1 hr show, it's typically 2-3GB....thats way too much storage...
  
  I was just wondering if recordings done in other formats will decrease the amt of storage needed...eg. if i convert the recordings from MPEG to WMV or AVI or RM etc..
  
  Anyone in the know?
• ditzy

  7 Sep 06, 11:31

  Yes, it'll be reduced definitely, but that also depends on its encoding, like whether you want quality stereo audio, framerates, or video bitrate.
• Kuyt

  7 Sep 06, 11:35

  great...so what are the usual formats being used..
  
  and what are the converters ( preferably free) around that i could use?
  
  Thanks!
• ditzy

  7 Sep 06, 11:40

  Originally posted by Kuyt:

  great...so what are the usual formats being used..
  
  and what are the converters ( preferably free) around that i could use?
  
  Thanks!

  Usually avi (divx, xvid). Check out free-codecs.com.
• abao

  7 Sep 06, 12:07

  XviD for video compression http://www.koepi.org/xvid.shtml
  
  VirtualDub for frameserving, GUI for video compression...
  http://forum.doom9.org/forumdisplay.php?f=22
  
  lame mp3 codec for music compression
  http://www.rarewares.org/mp3.html
  
  please use stable codecs to avoid crashes or other problems
  
  but if u go forum.doom9.org, they will tell u to use meGUI x264.nl and X264 codec. But meGUI is a pure GUI, u need to find all the other codecs yourself and link them to meGUI.
• chenc

  8 Sep 06, 02:54

  While avi format with divx codec is a very effective way to reduce data size, real media will be a better format to convert to. It offers better quality with smaller size.
  
  However, there are a number of dvd and vcd players that could not read rm formats and will have to be play on computer. Also, many commercial third-party rm converters out there really sucked.
• ditzy

  8 Sep 06, 02:56

  rvmb is only good, if you already planned not to do anything else with it.
• missqi

  8 Sep 06, 02:57

  offtopic.
  go where n dl tv programmes ah?
  
• rathcycle

  8 Sep 06, 02:58

  total video converter
  it's free and user friendly.
• rathcycle

  8 Sep 06, 03:00

  Originally posted by missqi:

  offtopic.
  go where n dl tv programmes ah?
  

  cannot dl la
  all those ppl is get from tv card and record from there
  ip u want
  see which kind soul upload 4 u lor
  its friggin huge lor..
  you need 1 day to download a full 1 hour vid.
• missqi

  8 Sep 06, 03:01

  Originally posted by rathcycle:

  cannot dl la
  all those ppl is get from tv card and record from there
  ip u want
  see which kind soul upload 4 u lor
  its friggin huge lor..
  you need 1 day to download a full 1 hour vid.

  WAH.
  i rather download movie sia.
  
  
• chenc

  8 Sep 06, 21:39

  Originally posted by missqi:

  offtopic.
  go where n dl tv programmes ah?
  

  Well well, lets see, heard of the thing called torrents?
  
  And with a bit of skills in google to look for the right torrent, you can get anything free.
• troublemaker2005

  8 Sep 06, 23:21

  Originally posted by Kuyt:

  I have recently started to record TV programmes on my computer.
  
  All recordings were done in MPEG format and for a 1 hr show, it's typically 2-3GB....thats way too much storage...
  
  I was just wondering if recordings done in other formats will decrease the amt of storage needed...eg. if i convert the recordings from MPEG to WMV or AVI or RM etc..
  
  Anyone in the know?

  Your case seems bad!
  
  Okay maybe you have been recording the clips from TV at DVD or SVCD format (i.e the resolution e.g 720x480 for DVD format etc)
  
  I am doing the same but for a 1 hour (60 min) clip @ 480x360, i have it at abbout 570MB. If its a short clip thenn its cool but if its a long movie i skip the commercials and let the clips as they are or join them up later. @480x360 when i write them onto a CD-r or DDVD-r and play them over the TV, i notice no losses or difference as when i watch the programme over the same TV set.
  
  Of course some programmes and encoding software recommended by the posts above are okay to use and they may have the choice to compress the original video clip down by a little without ompromising too much losses in quality.