EggXpert

Well, I recently updated a machine to use in my home theater and had a quick question about storing DVDs digitally. I was wondering what's the best way to archive my DVD collection while conserving space and quality. I guess I'm looking more for a good compression method that still looks good and preserves the 5.1/DTS sound, but doesn't take up a heap of space. I've got a RAID0 configured right now with ~300GB of space and a lot of DVDs I would like to throw on there. I've always thought it would be really cool to just select a movie to watch instead of having to search through all my massive cases for the disc I'm looking for.

 PS: I'm projecting onto a 110" screen, so if the compression sucks it'll be really noticeable.
 

If you got the horsepower, take a look into x264.. The only problem with it is it requires quite a bit of CPU power to both compress and decompress... But if you got the horseys for it, then it's a great codec to use..

 Awesome codec comparsion between x264, DivX, XVid..

I would say encode them to XVID AVI's.

The easiest way to do this would probably be to use AutoGK.

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I agree to Ironman 77. encode them to XVID AVI's! You use a 300GB hd to collect them, i guess you must have collected a lot of good DVDs. I also like to collect DVDs.

Although XVid is the best ASP codec around, ASP codecs are quickly becoming obsolete..   x264 can make files at a higher quality and smaller filesize and are far more suited for high definition and high resolution encoding..(If you read the link above that I posted) I'll post the conclusions again here

And a far more technical article here with conclusions here 

I'm probably going to try out x264. The Doom9 comparison was excellent. x264 looked way better than XVID. So, what kinds of encoding software do you recommend? I've been trying AutoMKV, but the DVDFab keeps crashing on me.

By the way, thanks for all the response!
 

bluebomb:

The Doom9 comparison was excellent. x264 looked way better than XVID.

As far as which encoding software works best for x264, I really wouldn't know.   

I haven't really played around with them a lot.. But you do have quite a few options..

I'd suggest figuring out which one works best for you..   GordianKnot should be very good except that it tends to be a bit too complex for most people.

Below is a list of x264 players and encoders. You can also get the x264 codec and use it with Windows Media Player or others.

Software using x264

• Avidemux
• ELDER
• ffdshow
• ffmpeg
• GordianKnot
• Handbrake: a multi-platform, multithreaded DVD to MPEG-4 ripper/converter.
• LiVES
• MeGUI
• MEncoder
• pspVideo9
• RealAnime
• StaxRip
• TCVP
• VLC media player: a cross-platform video player and streaming solution.
  
  

 Source: http://www.videolan.org/developers/x264.html

x264 is excellent! Encoded a full DVD down to around 1GB and the quality is still really good. It takes a long time. A couple hours to rip, prepare, and encode, but that's my only complaint. I'm using MeGUI with DVDDecrypter along with the guide linked below. It's very to follow.

 http://www.digital-digest.com/articles/MeGUI_H.264_Conversion_Guide_page1.html

LOL, funny to hear you say 'a couple hours' as a long time for encoding.

Up until now people who could do it in less than 8 hours (overnight) were the select few. Technology has really opened the process up to the mainstream (and mid-budget).

IronMan77:

I would say encode them to XVID AVI's.

The easiest way to do this would probably be to use AutoGK.