Confused .... need to convert ts to mpeg4

[xtal_01]

So, I am confused (nothing new).

I have a .ts video.  I have a new "smart" tv.  It will not play TS videos but it seems it will play MPEG4 videos.

So I downloaded Avidemux and installed it.  I loaded my ts video into it .... so far so good.

Now, I need to choose 1) video output 2) Audio output and 3) output format  .... way too many chooses!

I read up on the different formats ...great but it still does not tell me which is better or which has a better choose of being "compatible" with the rest of the world ( including my "smart" tv)!

Is there any advice someone can give me on which setting I should choose .... and why?

I was going to choose MPEG4 AVC (x264) .... I "think" this is the standard I see most often.

Audio, I am lost on this ..... I was guessing MP3 but I really am guessing ( don't know why there is two chooses for AAC and AC3) .

Output format ... mp4 ir mp4v2 .... not sure of the difference.

As I said, I'm lost ..... help please!

Thanks ....... Mike

[Jan Gruuthuse]

Your smart tv manual should give you some idea what is usable or not.

Create some test video files (10 to 30 seconds in duration) from a loaded mpeg-ts video.
- Load mpeg-ts video in to avidemux.
- Use keyboard up arrow only to select start of new video. (keyframes)
- Click [A ]
- using keyboard up arrow only again, forward 10 seconds.
- Click [ B]
You should now have a 10 seconds marked clip
- Leave Video Output and Audio Output to Copy.
- Now select Output Format
-- Avi Muxer and save name.avi
-- Mp4 Muxer and save nameMp4.mp4
-- Mp4v2 Muxer and save nameMp4v2.mp4
-- Mkv Muxer and save name.mkv

Test these 4 newly saved video clips to see what works best on your smart tv. This would give you a possible solution without need to re-encode the video (time consuming)

Most common audio tracks used on digital tv transmissions (DVB-(T/S/C)(2))

AAC is the default or standard audio format for YouTube, iPhone, iPod, iPad, Nintendo DSi, Nintendo 3DS, iTunes, DivX Plus Web Player and PlayStation 3. It is supported on PlayStation Vita, Wii (with the Photo Channel 1.1 update installed), Sony Walkman MP3 series and later, Android and BlackBerry. AAC is also supported by manufacturers of in-dash car audio systems

source: Advanced Audio Coding (AAC)

AC3 increases fidelity over its previous surround sound standard, Pro-logic, with independent tracks for each of the 6 speakers, a 16bit sampling at 48khz rate compressed by 10- 12 times, making for a total bit rate of 384kbps.

source: AC-3 (Dolby Digital)

[xtal_01]

Awesome!

I actually tried the manual first ... it just said "mp4"

I have the same problem on my  Roku 3 .... did not play ts format but says it will play "mp4"

I tried to read up on it. 

I "think" I understand ... MP4 is the "folder" with and audio and video file within the folder.

It is just odd that they would say it plays MP4 ( which is the folder or  package ) but not say what format the audio and video must be within that package.

Thanks ..... Mike

[Jan Gruuthuse]

I "think" I understand ... MP4 is the "folder" with and audio and video file within the folder.

More like box (.mkv, .mp4, .ts, .avi) where you allowed to put in video, audio, subtitles, ...
Some has more restrictions then the other. Use only .avi if nothing else works, has the most restrictions.

Be aware: mpeg-ts can contain more then one audio track. If no sound: could be AC3 track is the 1st audio track. Just switching the order of audio track could solve that issue. Below example exchanging content track 1  & 2
With loaded video Menu -> Audio -> Select Track: In Audio Tracks Configuration:
Track 1 [v] enabled [Track 0 from video (AC3, ....)] click on this, select track (0,1,2,3)
Track 2 [v] enabled [Track 1 from video (AC3, ....)] click on this, select track (0,1,2,3)

[pchristy]

I've got a Panasonic "smart" TV that plays MP4 video from a USB stick. However, I've discovered it will also play *.ts as long as you rename them to *.mts! Its actually better at playing the *.mts files than *.mp4, as it doesn't suffer from the audio sync problems that seem to plague mp4!

So try simply renaming your *.ts files to *.mts - you might be surprised!

[xtal_01]

Thanks for the responses .... Think I got the idea but a new problem.

Let me start from scratch and see if it helps .....

I wanted a copy of a PBS video ( just for myself ... not to sell or publish ).  It was not available for purchase so from another forum, I was told how to download it.

Great so my file is called: HEFO0000_mezz16x9-16x9-hls-2500k.ts

I need to covert it to MP4

So after doing research on the web, I downloaded and installed Avidemux.

I  open the video and when I hit the "info" button I get video: H264 and Audio AAC

This seems to be great.  From what I can tell, if I use my Roku for example, it plays H264 and AAC but in an MP4 format.  All I need to do is change the container.

So I left video output and audio output on copy.

I set the output format to "mp4".

When I "save" the file... it runs for till about 11% and gives me an error "video appears too short"

I then get this error over and over.

I then tried the same thing but with an output format of "mp4v2"

It runs fine.

I try to play it on Windows media player ( roku and tv are down right now ).  The original ts video plays fine (slightly pixelated at time times .... large blocks appear on the screen) but very watchable.  Then I try playing he new MP4 video.

Problem .... video is terrible.  Very choppy.  Watching is like going from still to still to still picture with audio.

So ... what did I do wrong?

Also .... totally different question ....

I am trying to migrate myself off windows.  I have installed Linux Mint onto my machine ( dual boot ).  I want to put Avidemux onto Linux.  I tried the " software manager " ( which is the only way I have installed software in Linux ) and it came up with a very old version.  I then started to look at how to install the newest version (2.6..... something beta) ... wow, lost.

Is there an "easy way" to install this program in Linux ( maybe a web site that shows step by step how )?

Thanks again ...... Mike

[Jan Gruuthuse]

Trying to comprehend your issue?
You are capturing pbs video HLS 2500k 16x9 and converting to mpeg-ts doing so?
Why don't you use directly: MP4 2500k 16x9
source: https://projects.pbs.org/confluence/display/coveapi/COVE+Video+Specifications
My guess currently: you could have
- bandwidth issues
- transcoding issues
- combination of these 2 above
this could/would produce a mpeg-ts with errors. (like you would have similar to transmission breakage)

google: "pbs MP4 2500k 16x9" could probably help on your quest.

If you could upload a sample video with these issues (10 - max 60 seconds in duration)
Use a free dropbox account or similar webservice (free public access, without registration to download your uploaded video) thank you.
Time permitting: dev(s) could have a look @ the video and tell what is going on exactly

[xtal_01]

Sorry, my post is probably confusing .... most likely because I don't know what I am doing and not describing things well.

When I captured ( or downloaded ) the file, it came in as a TS file.  I was not able to capture or download it as a mp4 file (would have made this all unnecessary).

Within the ".ts" container, I see it has video as H264 and audio as AAC

From what I can tell, I want to keep the content the same but change the container from "ts" to "mp4"

As I said, the "ts" file is very "watchable" on Windows media player.  Once in a while I get large blocks ( pixelate ) but only at certain points in the video.

When I use Avdemux to try changing the container from ts to mp4 is where I get the problems.

As I said, I get an error right away when I put the settings to mp4 ( it says "video too short ) and fails at about 11%

When I use mp4v2 it goes through the process but when I play the new file, it plays the audio fine but the video jumps so it looks like I am looking at a series of still pictures.

I obviously can't post anything on the failed conversion.

I will try to cut a section of the one that did convert and post it.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Mike

[Jan Gruuthuse]

Once in a while I get large blocks ( pixelate ) but only at certain points in the video.

that could be the indication of errors/interferrence in the video (similar to transmission breakage)
if you google the suggested search, you should come up with a reference: "PBS Download"
There would be some explanation on how to achieve that (adapt the url, I believe)
Or search title of video with MP4 2500k 16x9