What is a .tp file?

[radioouman]

Why are the files from VideoReDo so much smaller than the original .TP files?

Yep, I'm working with the trial right now. Neat program. I'll post back after I try the "elementary streams"

[jebbbz]

BeyondTV simply writes the entire digital TV transport stream to your hard drive. If a broadcaster uses the entire bandwidth in a channel to transmit a maximum definition Hi-Def program there will be little difference between what BTV stores to your drive and what VRD saves after you use it -- about 8.5 gigs per hour.

A broadcaster, however, may transmit more than one program in a transport stream. For example, my local PBS station typically transmits a high definition program that uses, oh, 70% of the bandwidth, a standard definition program (that may be different from the high definition one or which may be a standard definition version of the same content), a sub-channel of music, and a sub-channel of still-picture coming attractions. The main program is (here) 1081, the SD version is 1082, the music is 1083, and the adverts are 1084. My local NBC affiliate broadcasts a high-def sub-channel and a (useless) weather sub-channel.

VideoReDo and BTV Streamsnip in post-recording strip away all the sub-channels except the one you chose to record. Thus, the main channel might wind up as 6 gigs after VRD or Streamsnip gets done while the second sub-channel might be only a couple of gigs. Also, broadcasters may choose to broadcast a "high-def-lite" program and pad the transport stream with null packets that VRD will strip out. Before you process the file you can actually switch among the sub-channels in BTV by using the "[" and "]" keys. VideoReDo has a menu selection (Tools/Select Stream) to choose the stream you want to work on. Sometimes VRD "guesses" wrong about what you want to work on and you have to manually select the correct stream.

[radioouman]

Interesting... this explains why some of my captures have been of the wrong "channel"....

Going back to HDTV2MPG for a minute, how does it guess which stream contains the right data? Is there any way to find out what each stream contains? I'm wondering if it is guessing incorrectly about which stream contains the audio, and that's why I'm ending up with MPGs that don't have any audio when I use that program.

[bits]

Originally Posted by radioouman

Interesting... this explains why some of my captures have been of the wrong "channel"....

Going back to HDTV2MPG for a minute, how does it guess which stream contains the right data? Is there any way to find out what each stream contains? I'm wondering if it is guessing incorrectly about which stream contains the audio, and that's why I'm ending up with MPGs that don't have any audio when I use that program.

As I suggested before, try using VideoReDo to view each of the video streams. When you open the video file in VRD go to the 'Tools' tab and from the pull down menu choose 'Select Stream'. It will show you the PID information(video plus associated audio). Once you select a stream you can view it to be sure you have the one you want. You now know the correct identifiers for the video you want and you can use that information in HDTV2MPG.

[radioouman]

Ahhh.. yes I missed that. Thank you.

[mlomker]

Originally Posted by bits

VRD is a must piece of software, especially for cleaning up tp/ts files and for cutting commercials but it does not create compliant mpeg2 files from non-compliant tp or ts files.

You can do a Save As and save a .vob file as the output. Vob files aren't used for anything other than DVD's, are they?

As I mentioned, I use ConvertXtoDVD. It isn't free but you can also import a TP file directory into it if you want and it'll create menus and all that good stuff. A single .vob file from VideoReDo would have to be the only thing on the DVD if you burned it directly.