VLC conversion creates green artifacts (.ts to .mp4)

[whome]

(similar topic)
Test file, transport stream, 54MB

I record .ts files using ProgDVB dvb viewer. If I convert recording to a h264 file I get green artifacts in the beginning. Video is played fine in VLC and MSMediaPlayer. But playing it in Playstation3 breaks an audio-video sync. Inspecting the sync its lagging about the same length green artifacts in the beginning.

After trying everything(?) to avoid green artifacts I came up with the following solution. It takes quite a time and requires both VLC and FFMPEG scripts.
* run ffmpeg two-pass converstion from video.ts to videoA.mp4 (h264/aac)
* run vlc conversion from videoA.mp4 to videoB.mp4 (h264/aac)
-> no green artifacts and quality is a rather good for a tv recording use. Video is played fine in Playstation 3.

Question: Can anyone see and/or test a testfile if VLC could create a working file from the start?
Working file is a h264/aac, no green artifacts in the beginning, works in VLC, MSMediaPlayer, Playstation 3.

Here is scripts I use at the moment. It takes some time to run one recording through two separate conversion.

script 1: ffmpeg script

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@REM FFMPEG two-pass conversion from .ts to .mp4 (h264/aac) @REM increase bitrates for better quality SET vidbitrate=1024kb SET bittolerance=1024kb SET audchannels=2 SET audbitrate=128kb SET level=41 SET filei=video.ts SET fileo=videoA.mp4 ffmpeg.exe -y -i "%filei%" -an -pass 1 -vcodec libx264 -b %vidbitrate% -me_method hex -cmp +chroma -flags +loop -flags2 +dct8x8+brdo+mixed_refs -level %level% -coder 1 -bt %bittolerance% -rc_eq blurCplx^(1-qComp) -qcomp 0.6 -qmin 10 -qmax 51 NUL.MP4 ffmpeg.exe -y -i "%filei%" -acodec libfaac -ac %audchannels% -ab %audbitrate% -request_channels 2 -async 1 -f mp4 -pass 2 -vcodec libx264 -b %vidbitrate% -me_method hex -cmp +chroma -flags +loop -flags2 +dct8x8+brdo+mixed_refs -level %level% -coder 1 -rc_eq blurCplx^(1-qComp) -qcomp 0.6 -qmin 10 -qmax 51 "%fileo%" pause

script 2: vlc script

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rem VLC conversion to h264/aac SET VCODEC=h264 SET VB=1024 SET ACODEC=mp4a SET AB=128 SET VLCEXTRAOPS=--sout-x264-level 41 SET CODECEXTRAOPS=channel=2,audio-sync,deinterlace SET filei=videoA.mp4 SET file0=videoB.mp4 vlc.exe %VLCEXTRAOPS% --sout=#transcode{vcodec=%VCODEC%,acodec=%ACODEC%,%CODECEXTRAOPS%}:std{access=file,mux=mp4,url=%fileo%} %filei% vlc:quit pause

My environment:
WinXP-sp3, vlc0.8.6f, Playstation 3, MSMediaPlayer 11, ffdshow rev 1926, Haalisplitter, Illiminable
ffmpeg:
libavutil version: 49.6.0
libavcodec version: 51.55.0
libavformat version: 52.13.0
libavdevice version: 52.0.0
built on Apr 20 2008 19:10:34, gcc: 4.2.3
FFmpeg SVN-r12910, libavutil 3212800, libavcodec 3356416, libavformat 3411200, libavdevice 3407872

[VLC_help]

If you tested with nightlies also, then fill a bug report to trac.

[whome]

I have run the latest VLC0.8.6h, no changes. I have never used trac but will see what I can do. Here is a post about the current situation and a (temporary) solution.
edit: ok, just found nighlies download. I have edited results at the end of this post (it did not work at all).

test .ts file

Use h264/mp4a transcoding codecs. Resulting .mp4 file has 0.5sec green artifacts in the beginning. Image quality is good.

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c:test> "C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe" --sout-x264-level 41 --sout=#transcode{vcodec=h264,acodec=mp4a,ab=256,channel=2,audio-sync,deinterlace}:std{access=file,mux=mp4,url="C:\test\video-vlcx264.mp4"} "C:\test\video.ts" vlc:quit

Use mp4v/mp4a transcoding codecs. Resulting .mp4 file has 0.5sec green artifacts in the beginning. Image quality however is bad.

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C:\test>"C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe" --sout=#transcode{vcodec=mp4v,acodec=mp4a,ab=256,channel=2,audio-sync,deinterlace}:std{access=file,mux=mp4,url="C:\test\video-vlcmp4v.mp4"} "c:\test\video.ts" vlc:quit

Both vlc scripts have problems running in Adobe Flash 9.x and Playstation 3. Flash does not display video and audio breaks. PS3 plays video out-of-sync. And green artifacts in the beginning.

My current solution, use ffmpeg
I use FFMPEG.exe script which can produce a good image quality, no green artifacts, videosync is fine in all VLC, MSMediaPlayer, Playstation 3 and Adobe Flash 9, fileformat is h264/aac level 4.1.

This script can provide me all this, but takes a really long to run file (3 min video takes 10min in 1.6Ghz laptop).

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REM 2-pass conversion to mpeg4 (h264/aac) set RUN_FFMPEG=c:\FFmpeg-svn-13778\bin\ffmpeg.exe set SRC_VIDEO_FILE=c:\test\video.ts set DST_VIDEO_FILE=c:\test\video-ffmpeg.mp4 set vidbitrate=1024kb set bittolerance=1024kb set audbitrate=256kb set audchannels=2 set audsamplerate=48000 set level=41 set args= set args=%args% -flags +loop -cmp +chroma set args=%args% -partitions +parti4x4+partp8x8+partb8x8 -flags2 -dct8x8-wpred set args=%args% -me_method epzs -subq 1 -trellis 0 -refs 1 -bf 3 -b_strategy 1 set args=%args% -level %level% -coder 1 -me_range 16 -g 250 -keyint_min 25 -sc_threshold 40 -i_qfactor 0.71 set args=%args% -bt %bittolerance% -rc_eq blurCplx^(1-qComp) -qcomp 0.6 -qmin 10 -qmax 51 -qdiff 4 %RUN_FFMPEG% -y -i %SRC_VIDEO_FILE% -an -pass 1 -vcodec libx264 -b %vidbitrate% %args% NUL.MP4 set args= set args=%args% -request_channels %audchannels% -pass 2 -vcodec libx264 -b %vidbitrate% set args=%args% -flags +loop -cmp +chroma -partitions +parti4x4+parti8x8+partp4x4+partp8x8+partb8x8 set args=%args% -flags2 +bpyramid+wpred+mixed_refs+dct8x8+brdo -me_method umh set args=%args% -subq 7 -trellis 2 -bidir_refine 1 -refs 5 -bf 3 -b_strategy 1 -level %level% set args=%args% -coder 1 -me_range 16 -g 250 -keyint_min 25 -sc_threshold 40 set args=%args% -i_qfactor 0.71 -bt %bittolerance% -rc_eq blurCplx^(1-qComp) -qcomp 0.6 -qmin 10 -qmax 51 -qdiff 4 %RUN_FFMPEG% -y -i %SRC_VIDEO_FILE% -acodec libfaac -ab %audbitrate% -ac %audchannels% -ar %audsamplerate% %args% %DST_VIDEO_FILE%

I have only one problem left with this and its a (un)famous .WMV video file with wmapro audio codec. VLC script can trancode wmapro to h264/aac but files have others problems mentioned earlier. FFMPEG script creates a perfect file from other file sources but .wmv with wmapro audiocodec give an unsupported format -error message. I have read miscellaneous comments about ffmpeg may support it in the latest builds but have not found new enough windows binary yet.

VLC use a variable framerate?
Inspecting ffmpeg.mp4 and vlc.mp4 results I see vlc uses variable frame rate option. Never seen it before. ffmpeg uses a constant frame rate. Don't know if that anything to do with Flash,PS3 playback issues. Could not find options to force VLC use a constant frame rate in an output file.

Use nighties VLC build vlc-0.9.0-git-20080620-0050\vlc.exe
Trying to convert same .ts test file did nothing. I used the same commands listed earlier (x264 and m4v codec versions). Looking at the vlc messages window actually gives strange error messages.

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main info: Running vlc with the default interface. Use 'cvlc' to use vlc without interface. access_output_file error: cannot open `' (No such file or directory) stream_out_standard error: no suitable sout access module for `file/mp4://(null)' stream_out_transcode error: cannot create chain main error: stream chain failed for `transcode{vcodec=h264,acodec=mp4a,ab=256,channel=2,audio-sync,deinterlace}:std{access=file,mux=mp4,url="C:\test\video-vlcx264.mp4"}' main error: cannot start stream output instance, aborting

I appreciate all comments and/or tryouts if someone is brave enough to try same scripts.

[VLC_help]

Variable bitrate should work with Flash and with PS3.
access_output_file error: cannot open `' (No such file or directory) indicates either bug with VLC command line parsing or script syntax error. If you could try little older nightly builds, you can prolly figure out the issue.

[Goble]

I tested the attached sample TS mpeg2 conversion to h264 mp4 format using following VLC command line:

vlc.exe --codec=ffmpeg --sout-x264-level 41 --sout=#transcode{vcodec=h264,vb=1024,acodec=mp4a,ab=224,channel=2,deinterlace,hq}:std{access=file,mux=mp4,url=c:\media\tiktak.ts} c:\media\tiktak_h264.mp4 vlc:quit


VLC 0.8.6c: I can confirm that this version produces green artifacts in the beginning of the output h264 file and audio sync is off in Windows MediaPlayer and PS3. VLC plays the file in sync. This version also creates Mh264 mp4 file using "variable FRAME rate". That is FRAME RATE also variable, not only bit rate.

Latest FFMPEG.exe command line produces perfect file from the same source. But knowing that VLC uses ffmpeg under the hood I decided to upgrade my VLC to the latest offical version. See below the result.


VLC 0.8.6h: The very same command line shown above produced h264 mp4 file without green artifacts in the beginning AND h264 file has constant FRAME rate 25.000. This file plays fine in VLC (synchronized), but in Windows Media Player audio and video is still not in sync (goes slightly off sync later in the video).

No green artifacts when played with VLC0.8.6h but video freezes for couple seconds in the beginning so could be that ProgDVB TS files have something weird in the beginning which causes this problem. VLC seems to know how to recover from that problem but WinMediaPlayer and PS3 goes out of audio sync.

Nightly VLC build 20080630 failed to convert this video (general protection failure or something like that).


Btw. I used http://mediainfo.sourceforge.net/en MediaInfo tool to see the details of those video files (frame rate, bit rate, etc). This tool is MUST HAVE for everyone transcoding, converting, analyzing video and audio files. It shows "everything" you need to know about the internals of video file (especially when used with Debug|AdvancedMode option).

ffmpeg.exe cmdline tool (release 13712 for windows) produces "perfect" file and audio is in sync in Windows MediaPlayer and PS3 if I use "-async 1" ffmpeg command line option. Without that option the audio goes out of sync also (more visible later in the video).

Maybe this async=1 is the missing option in VLC producing this out-of-sync issue with TSmpeg2->h264 conversions in WinMediaPlayer and PS3. Does anyone know how to define the same async=1 option in VLC command line?

I recorded other live-tv dvb-t mpeg2 with ProgDVB app to see if the problem is in this sample Tiktak.ts only. The same result with all TS transportstream stored ProgDVB recordings and VLC mpeg2->h264 conversions. Direct use of ffmpeg.exe cmdline and -async 1 option fixes that problem.

[VLC_help]

Sorry that I misread VFR as VBR. You should fix TS DVB captures with ProjectX before doing any conversions/editing.