[Norseman]

Does anybody know what settings to use for this app?? I'm extremely frustrated with it!

I started out optimistic that I could rip DVDs into .3gp format for my 8300, but could never get it to work.

This is where I'm at now (after much trial and error):

I used DVD Shrink to "Re-Author" some Sopranos DVD's to extract only the ceratain episodes I wanted and I burned each episode to its own disc.

Next I used Blackberry Video Creator to extract/re-encode the .VOB files for the episodes into .avi format. now I have 3 files that are approx. 180MB each.

I thought I'd try rendering these down some more using Super C, but no matter what combination of Video Output Container and Codec; and the Audio Codec seems to work.

I've read over their site several times now ...I'm about to give up. Hopefully one of you awesome people can help me figure this out : )

Thanks,
Norseman

[akosnitzky]

I hope my response will add traffic to your thread. I have the same issues with the program. I am amused by the error reading which provides you with more possibilities than the side effects on a prescription bottle. It would be more helpful, if they provided more specific directions for specific situations.

[Norseman]

Thanks for posting ...I don't feel so alone now ...lol

I hope somebody helps out with this because I only have 400MB left on my card and I want more video on there ; )

[srotman]

You can do a number a different things.

Look at the top row of the program:

First choose which container you want. Either 3GP (either of the two) or MPEG-4 will work.

Second you choose an output codec which should be either H.263 or MPEG-4.

Third you choose your audio. Anything there should work.

For the video box, scale it to no larger than 320:240 (the max resolution of the 8800/8300, or lower depending on your model - look to RIM for specs on your phones resolution). And I personally set the aspect to 1:1. You can slo play with the frame rate. Keep in mind this is a phone, not a portable DVD player, so the higher you go, the more lag you may experience. Play around. Sometimes 15 or lower will be needed. Other times 25 will be fine. You can also lower bitrate to affect this. And uncheck "Hi Quality" and pretty much anything else on the far right of the video box because I feel it's too much for the BB to handle.

Audio should be fine as is, or you can dumb it down to save space in the final file.

That's it. Enjoy!

[Norseman]

Thanks Srotman ...I'll give it a try ...again!

I've done this probably 20 times on 2 different laptops with no luck.

The last time I tried I chose the "Play last rendered file" button in the bottom right and it opens up in Windows Media Player and starts playing. I then used MM to copy it over to my BB and then when I try to watch it on the BB, it says "Error - file cannot be played" ...or something to that effect.

I'm going to try one more time with the 2nd .3gp choice. I don't know if I've tried that one yet.

I'll post back soon.

Thanks!

[Norseman]

Ok I tried the 2nd .3gp and it kind of worked (.5*!)

The video quality isn't as good as the .avi BUT ...the file size is down to 80megs.

The sound is horrendous, though. I'll keep tooling around with it ; )

Thanks again.

[akosnitzky]

Originally Posted by srotman

You can do a number a different things.

Look at the top row of the program:

First choose which container you want. Either 3GP (either of the two) or MPEG-4 will work.

Second you choose an output codec which should be either H.263 or MPEG-4.

Third you choose your audio. Anything there should work.

For the video box, scale it to no larger than 320:240 (the max resolution of the 8800/8300, or lower depending on your model - look to RIM for specs on your phones resolution). And I personally set the aspect to 1:1. You can slo play with the frame rate. Keep in mind this is a phone, not a portable DVD player, so the higher you go, the more lag you may experience. Play around. Sometimes 15 or lower will be needed. Other times 25 will be fine. You can also lower bitrate to affect this. And uncheck "Hi Quality" and pretty much anything else on the far right of the video box because I feel it's too much for the BB to handle.

Audio should be fine as is, or you can dumb it down to save space in the final file.

That's it. Enjoy!

Thank you for the post. From my experience so far, my best response is "easier said than done."

[srotman]

Easier said than done is pretty correct. If you're new to the game of video encoding, for whatever reason (DVDs, for your cell, etc.) then of course there's a learning curve.

If you expect to just have it done by snapping your fingers then I'm sorry to say that you WILL be disappointed. Although I hear the new Roxio Media Suite that comes with the new BB DesktopManager does a pretty good job and is fairly easy.

If you're going to stick with Super, then play around. Use SMALL video files so you can experiment much more quickly rather than wasting so much time on DVD sized files and having to go at it 5 times before you're happy.

A bit of advice:
MPEG-4 is better quality than 3GP
I personally find MP3 to be better sound than AAC
Play with bitrate of both sound and video to drop some file size weight and maintain relatively the same quality.

Good luck guys.

[akosnitzky]

Any luck with itunes video?

[srotman]

iTunes video? There's no such thing my friend.

If you're referring to a podcast that you subscribe to from within iTunes to watch there and you want to encode it for your BB, then you're going to have to find the downloadable version from the creator of the video. Most podcasters will also provide direct links to download their videos should you not wish to watch it streaming right through iTunes. This video is almost always in .mp4 (which means it was encoded using h.264 most of the time) format which Super can read and re-encode.

If you're talking about actual movies or TV episodes you bought through iTunes, then the video will also be encoded using h.264 with a .mp4 file extension, HOWEVER there is DRM protection on the file to deter you from playing around with it (to protect those bullies at the RIAA and MPAA!). I personally have not tried playing with such files, but keep in mind that Google is your best friend and there are always ways to get things to work for you if you have the will

This is not to say that these DRM'd files won't work with Super, but I have to consider the possibility.

[ARHYTHMATIK]

Why not just shrink the videos down to .avi files? Those are extremely small, but still give a good quality video.

[akosnitzky]

Yes. You are two steps ahead of me.

The free video podcasts are easy to convert.

It those dredded tv shows that you legitmately pay for that are the issue.

I can use the torrents which work well but they have there own issues.


When you refer to google, I assume you mean that I should utilize their search engine.

I was naive to think that you can burn cds for the itunes video. Wrong assumption on my part.

[srotman]

Torrents have no issues. Not that I would know... :p

But yes, DRM'd iTunes files can be a pain. Just one more reason why I don't see the reason to pay for them. If you pay for the video, legitimately of course, then I don't see how they can justify where and how you watch them. So they won't get any money from me.

If you're willing to experiment with torrents, there's a VERY interesting setup you can use (again this will require Google, and yes, I meant using the search functions to help you find your way) that will let you use a simple torrent client called uTorrent, then subscribe to RSS feeds for TV torrents.

Essentially your computer will be told what TV shows you watch, and every time a new episode comes out, it will automatically download and when the download is done it can automatically convert the episode to a format more compatible for whatever device you're using (BB, video iPod, PMP, etc.).

Yes, it's more complicated, but once you've got it setup, you'll have nothing further to worry about.

[akosnitzky]

Thank you. I do use the utorrent client. It seemed much faster than the other clients. The download speed seems actually faster than itunes. It does hog my machine a bit more.

I have been able to put the completed download directly through Roxio with no problem. As far as setup, it was easy because they offered very few options, which is conducive for someone of my level. The quality of video and sound are outstanding.

You can find most of the shows but not all compared with Itunes and visa versa.