Best file format for videos.

[Pkiely]

They are containers. It entirely depends what you put in the box which defines the box, does it not?

 

[Sash]

I use this.
I currently have 1.25Tb in this format. Roughly 1gb / hour of video.

I do like me some H.264

 

[Explicit]

There's some confusion in this thread.

There's a difference between containers and codecs. Codecs are what compress the video/audio. MKV, AVI, MP4...are all just containers. The compression comes from the codecs.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Container_format_(digital)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_container_formats

Example video codecs:
MPEG4 Part 10 aka H.264 (x264 is a popular open source implementation of H.264),
MPEG-4 Part 2 (xvid/divx are a software implementations of MPEG4 Part 2)
MPEG2 (the standard used for DVDs)

Example audio codecs:
AAC,
MP3.

I recommend using x264 (for video) with AAC (for audio) in a Matroska container.

 

[Rozzy85]

In terms of storage space MP4s vs AVIs etc what is smaller?

I basically wanna try and load this HDD with as much of my 100s of DVDs as possible lol

It's more to do with the codecs used rather than the container (AVI, MP4, MKV, OGM, etc). AVI is one of the oldest and is mainly used for compatibility but compared to more modern containers lacks in certain features and can have some overheads. More modern containers like MKV will allow you to use a larger array of codecs and have nicer features but aren't supported as much.

The most common combination to use is AVI and encode with Xvid and MP3 but it depends on how you intend to playback the films afterwards.

 

[V4NT0M]

x264 /thread

 

[eXor]

The most common combination to use is AVI and encode with Xvid and MP3 but it depends on how you intend to playback the films afterwards.

Some DVD players have 'USB IN' and can play DivX / Xvid avis.

Don't know if they can also play MKV ( The recent Western Digital box can ).

 

[Sash]

I will be hooking it up to the laptop then into a TV and using VLC media player to play them.

 

[eXor]

I will be hooking it up to the laptop then into a TV and using VLC media player to play them.

In that case, you're spoilt for choice. Experimentation is key.

 

[The Mad Rapper]

I recommend using x264 (for video) with AAC (for audio) in a Matroska container.

Why?

What software creates that container? I've never heard of it

 

[wannabedamned]

Why?

What software creates that container? I've never heard of it

Its MKV, and as nice as it is, its not very versatile out side the PC world. So if the OP wants to play it else where(On consoles) it causes problems

 

[V4NT0M]

Why?

What software creates that container? I've never heard of it

Matroska is MKV

And as I already said I agree on the x.264, H.264 is brilliant, x.264 is better.

 

[QlimaxUK]

.AVI (DivX) only!

its a compressed DVD Quality video file (bit like an MP3 for music)
a common filesize for this about 700MB so you can even fit a DVD onto CD

 

[Mattus]

You want to encode to x264. Providing you use the right settings, a 1GB DVD rip in x264 will be pretty good quality as long as you're not particularly picky. It's significantly more efficient than DivX.

You can put that in an MKV (Matroska) or MP4 container. MKV has better features but MP4 has better compatibility with software (e.g. iTunes) and portable devices.

Handbrake is a good program to do it.

Also, ripping DVDs to x264 takes a lot of CPU power if you do it on the highest quality settings. My overclocked Q6600 takes a few hours to do one.

 

[Explicit]

Why?

What software creates that container? I've never heard of it

Because x264 is offers very good compression at lower bitrates than most other codecs. AAC is similar in that it offers better compression than MP3. The result is smaller filesizes with quality equal to, if not better than, traditional Xvid and MP3 combination.

The container is a personal choice.

Matroska is MKV. As for software, I use MeGUI as it gives you lots of settings to play with. You can really get your hands dirty if you want to, or you can stick to presets. There are also other programs like StaxRip or Handbrake.

Read some user reviews here:
http://www.videohelp.com/tools/MeGUI
http://www.videohelp.com/tools/x264_Encoder

 

[Sash]

Thanks for the tips guys and to the mods for leaving it open. I have handbrake on my pc so will have a play about with this when i get back in the house. Does this do x.264?

 

[Mattus]

Thanks for the tips guys and to the mods for leaving it open. I have handbrake on my pc so will have a play about with this when i get back in the house. Does this do x.264?

It does, yeah. If you use the 'high profile' preset, the quality will be much better but it'll also take much longer.

 

[lopkinfop]

from my experience if you use xvid in .avi's 350mb is reasonable quality (and the standard size for a 42 min show) a similar quality using x.264 in an mkv will be about 120mb.

you could use a higher bitrate for a better quality but it depends on what size screen you are watching it on

 

[Mattus]

120MB is watchable for TV shows but it's going to spoil your enjoyment of a movie, especially if you want a 5.1 soundtrack as well. You want at least 600MB for a movie.

 

[lopkinfop]

120MB is watchable for TV shows but it's going to spoil your enjoyment of a movie, especially if you want a 5.1 soundtrack as well. You want at least 600MB for a movie.

ofcourse you adjust the size for the length, i.e. 60mb for a 20 min show etc

 

[asim18]

Matroska is MKV

And as I already said I agree on the x.264, H.264 is brilliant, x.264 is better.

H.264 is a video compression format.

x264 is software for encoding to H.264 video.