[mythtv-users] Mytharchive errors

Rod Smith mythtv at rodsbooks.com
Sun Dec 14 16:31:46 UTC 2008


On Sunday 14 December 2008 08:32:12 am Harry Devine wrote:
> Rod Smith wrote:
> > On Thursday 11 December 2008 11:10:42 pm Harry Devine wrote:
> >> I was able
> >> to transcode the file to an mpg file, but when I play it, I don't have
> >> any sound.
> >
> > If midentify is reporting
> > correct data, then my first guess is that the audio data IS present, but
> > that your MythTV configuration is having problems playing it back.
...
> OK, when I run midentify on the mpg file, I get 128, 8192, and a52 for
> ID_AUDIO_ID, ID_AUDIO_FORMAT, and ID_AUDIO_CODEC, respectively.  I can
> play the mpg file using mplayer and it works.  The sound seems to be
> slightly behind the video though. I'll try making a DVD of it later. 

If your DVD ends up with out-of-sync sound, you can use the audio delay option 
in my script (the final option) to adjust it. You'll need to measure or 
guesstimate how much it's off and enter the appropriate option. 
Unfortunately, this may take some trial and error, and you'll be starting 
over from scratch. This will go much quicker if you can create a small test 
file (just a minute or so in length).

For this and other reasons, I recommend you create a DVD ISO file WITHOUT 
burning the image to disc. You can then test the file on MythTV and, if you 
need to make any adjustments, do it without wasting a blank DVD.

Note that if MythTV has problems playing the AC3 audio in a recorded file, 
there's a good chance that it'll have problems playing the AC3 audio in a 
DVD. (The vast majority of DVDs, particularly in the US, use AC3 audio, so 
this isn't just an issue with MythArchive-created DVDs.) You should 
definitely fiddle with your audio options until you get proper playback of 
your AC3 audio in MythTV. If you need advice, I suggest you first check the 
mailing list archives, since audio issues are a common topic. If you can't 
find any appropriate old threads, start a new thread with an appropriate 
title (say, "AC3 audio playback problems"). Post details about your audio-out 
configuration and describe the problem.

> When I do, will Mytharchive try and use the nuv file and, if so, how can
> I tell it to use this mpg file that I transcoded using mencoder?

You need to point MythArchive at the right file. Typically I do one of two 
things:

1) Back up the original MythTV recording, rename the transcoded file to the
   original recording's name, and point MythArchive at the recording. (Note
   this means you'll be renaming the transcoded .mpg file with a .nuv
   extension. This will still work fine.) This has the advantage that the
   original recording information (title, subtitle, and program description)
   will appear on the DVD menu, depending on the DVD theme you select.

2) Place the transcoded .mpg file in your MythTV videos area and tell
   MythArchive to create a DVD from a video rather than from a recording.
   If you do this, though, you won't get the original recording data (title,
   etc.) unless you manually re-enter that information in the video database.

In either case, when you're completely done, you'll need to delete two files 
rather than just one -- one via the MythTV recordings interface and the other 
either manually at a command line or (possibly, for option #2 only) via the 
MythTV videos interface.

-- 
Rod Smith


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