How to successfully create a Blu ray format DVD?

Russell1967

Senior Member Location: Kissimmee, Fl USA Joined: Aug 10, 2013 23:35 Messages: 165 Offline

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Jan 01, 2014 18:24

I know it's possible to create a Blu Ray format DVD (that plays on a Blu Ray player) because I've done it before with another program, but I'll be darned if I can successfully do it with PD12. The created disk starts to play the menu intro (first play) and then locks up the Blu Ray Player. Windows Media Player says the disk was created in a manner it doesn't support and VLC player can't read it either.

The idea of a Blu Ray DVD is that Blu Ray disks are expensive, and so if the data will physically fit on a cheap DVD-R/RW why not use it instead?

I've also tried creating an AVCHD disk, but with the same results.

Now, I recently bought a program called "Phantom Drive" for about $20US that creates virtual blank DVD-Rs (and just about any other kind of disk you can name) and then mounts them in a virtual drive. Programs, including PD12, see this as a blank DVD-R (or whatever) and can burn to it - Sure beats making drink coasters out of your blank DVD-Rs when you have a mistake in your PD12 project, etc! If it is a bad project you can delete it and start over - no harm done and no wasted disk! If you like the results you can just copy it to a physical disk.

Well, if I create a "blank" virtual 4.7GB DVD-R with this program and burn a regular DVD format project to it, everything works great. (As you can imagine, the burn speed is staggeringly fast, since it is on your hard drive). But if I create a virtual BD-R and burn even a normal HD project to it, Windows Media Player and VLC once again can not recognize the format. I don't have a physical Blu Ray burner yet. (Windows Explorer can see the created virtual disk and all of its files and folders, so something else is wrong)

Are there any known issues with Blu Ray burning, whether it be on 25GB Blu Ray disks or 4.7GB DVDs?

Thanks!
Russell1967 System specs: Windows 7 Professional x64; Gigabyte Z77-DS3H motherboard with i5-3579K 3.8Ghz processor with 32GB RAM; Zotac GTX 760 w/4GB; 1xWestern Digital 1TB 10,000RPM HD; 1x Samsung 840 Pro SSD System Drive

GGRussell

Senior Contributor Joined: Jan 08, 2012 11:38 Messages: 709 Offline

Jan 01, 2014 20:32

What you are you calling a Bluray DVD? Are you talking about AVCHD video burned to a DVD disc?
or do you mean can you burn a regular Bluray disc?

I had no problem doing both with PD11. Just purchased PD12 so haven't had a chance. Intel i7 4770k, 16GB, GTX1060 3GB, Two 240GB SSD, 4TB HD, Sony HDR-TD20V 3D camcorder, Sony SLT-A65VK for still images, Windows 10 Pro, 64bit
Gary Russell -- TN USA

James1

Senior Contributor Location: Surrey, B.C., Canada Joined: Jun 10, 2010 16:20 Messages: 1783 Offline

Jan 01, 2014 20:44

Hi,
Nlue ray disks are mot the same as DVd disks, the files structure is completely different as is the capacity. You can burn your project to a Folder instead of disk (either blu ray or standard DVD) then use a third party program (imgBurn is free) to burn that folder to either a standard DVD or a Blu ray disk ( I bought some Bluray re-writable disks ) for testing.
Jim Intel i7-2600@3.4Gz Geforce 560ti-1GB Graphic accelerator, windows 7 Premium 12GB memory

Visit GranPapa64's channel for your YouTube experience of the day!

Russell1967

Senior Member Location: Kissimmee, Fl USA Joined: Aug 10, 2013 23:35 Messages: 165 Offline

Jan 01, 2014 23:19

What I'm talking about is the structure of a Blu Ray, but burned onto a DVD-R instead. Yes, it can be done, because I've done it (but not with PowerDirector). Perhaps this is what a AVCHD disk is? (AVCHD is the codec developed by Sony and others for HD video).

Anyway, I'll just keep trying different methods until something works. If you think about it, why should a Blu Ray player care what kind of disk you have your movie on as long as it's in the correct Blu Ray format? Mind you, the DVD disk I'm talking would NOT be able to play in a DVD player but most Blu Ray players are capable of reading DVDs.

Russell1967 System specs: Windows 7 Professional x64; Gigabyte Z77-DS3H motherboard with i5-3579K 3.8Ghz processor with 32GB RAM; Zotac GTX 760 w/4GB; 1xWestern Digital 1TB 10,000RPM HD; 1x Samsung 840 Pro SSD System Drive

GGRussell

Senior Contributor Joined: Jan 08, 2012 11:38 Messages: 709 Offline

Jan 01, 2014 23:31

AVCHD has a similar disc structure as Bluray. it's not so much the kind of disc, but how the files are written to that disc like UDF 2.5 instead of UDF 1.02.

If you can't get AVCHD to work, just try burning your MP4 or mts files to a DVD data disc. My LG Bluray player has no problem. it just shows large icons with filename. I select a file and press play on the remote. I use data discs a lot as backup or if I get lazy. LOL Personally, I don't need a fancy menu. Those menus take up precious disc space. Intel i7 4770k, 16GB, GTX1060 3GB, Two 240GB SSD, 4TB HD, Sony HDR-TD20V 3D camcorder, Sony SLT-A65VK for still images, Windows 10 Pro, 64bit
Gary Russell -- TN USA

Carl312

Senior Contributor Location: Texas, USA Joined: Mar 16, 2010 20:11 Messages: 9090 Offline

Jan 02, 2014 09:26

How to burn a AVCHD disk in Powerdirector.
1. put your HD video on the timeline.
2. Go to the Create Disk Module.
3. Click the 2D Tab
4. Select AVCHD. The dropdown gives more options, you can choose a DL DVD here (8.5GB).
5.On the bottom Right, click Burn in 2D.
6. Enter a disk label, Check Burn Disk
7. Put in DL DVD disk, Click Start Burning Button.
8. Wait until you get message "Burning Successful".

Carl312: Windows 10 64-bit 8 GB RAM,AMD Phenom II X4 965 3.4 GHz,ATI Radeon HD 5770 1GB,240GB SSD,two 1TB HDs.

GGRussell

Senior Contributor Joined: Jan 08, 2012 11:38 Messages: 709 Offline

Jan 02, 2014 10:44

I followed Carl's instructions using the Nature.wmv HD file in PD12. The AVCHD disc was created and it played fine on my LG Bluray player.

According to the online manual for your LG Player, it should be able to play AVCHD.

In the burn dialog box, try UNchecking x.vcolor and hardware acceleration. See if that helps. Intel i7 4770k, 16GB, GTX1060 3GB, Two 240GB SSD, 4TB HD, Sony HDR-TD20V 3D camcorder, Sony SLT-A65VK for still images, Windows 10 Pro, 64bit
Gary Russell -- TN USA

Heavytiger

Contributor Joined: Jun 21, 2008 10:16 Messages: 474 Offline

Jan 02, 2014 21:21

Hi Carl

I am still using pd 11. About 6 months ago posted a question about burning to bluray disc. What I wanted to do was burn AVCHD to a bluray disc but that wasn't possible. In PD 11 AVCHD can only be burned to a standard single layer or double layer DVD. There was no option to burn AVCHD to bluray. I was forced to convert AVCHD to mpeg2 before I could burn to bluray.
Can PD 12 burn AVCHD to a bluray disc?

thanks,
Windows 10 professional
HP Omen Obelisk DT 875-1131
Intel Core i7(3.6GHz)
Eight Core
Memory 32 GB
GPU Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super
Power supply 750 Watt

Using PD 11 ultimate build 11.0.03026

Heavytiger

Russell1967

Senior Member Location: Kissimmee, Fl USA Joined: Aug 10, 2013 23:35 Messages: 165 Offline

Jan 02, 2014 21:52

GGRussell: I'll give that a try and see what happens.

Thanks all!
Russell1967 System specs: Windows 7 Professional x64; Gigabyte Z77-DS3H motherboard with i5-3579K 3.8Ghz processor with 32GB RAM; Zotac GTX 760 w/4GB; 1xWestern Digital 1TB 10,000RPM HD; 1x Samsung 840 Pro SSD System Drive

Carl312

Senior Contributor Location: Texas, USA Joined: Mar 16, 2010 20:11 Messages: 9090 Offline

Jan 02, 2014 22:03

Quote: Hi Carl

I am still using pd 11. About 6 months ago posted a question about burning to bluray disc. What I wanted to do was burn AVCHD to a bluray disc but that wasn't possible. In PD 11 AVCHD can only be burned to a standard single layer or double layer DVD. There was no option to burn AVCHD to bluray. I was forced to convert AVCHD to mpeg2 before I could burn to bluray.
Can PD 12 burn AVCHD to a bluray disc?

thanks,

No, it cannot.

The specification for AVCHD and BluRay prevent the creation of AVCHD format on a BluRay disk.
You can burn a BluRay disk with AVCHD content, but the disk will not play in standard BluRay Players.

AVCHD only has BDMV folder in the root of the disk. There are sub-folders in that folder.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu-ray_Disc#AVCHD

A Bluray disk has these folders in the Root:
BDMV
CERTIFICATE

BDMV has sub-folders.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu-ray_Disc#Software_standards

If a Bluray player sees a BluRay disk, it looks for the two folders in the root, Since a AVCHD format does not have the CERTIFICATE folder, the player says Disk Error.

So if you are going to put HD content, you may as well use the correct format, BluRay for a BluRay Disk. It is the same HD video content.

AVCHD was invented to be able to put HD content on a cheaper DVD disk. The disadvantage is the lessor capacity of the DVD 8.5 GB vs. 25 GB

BluRay disks are available in up to 128 GB sizes. Common sizes are 25 GB and 50 GB.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at Jan 02. 2014 22:05

Carl312: Windows 10 64-bit 8 GB RAM,AMD Phenom II X4 965 3.4 GHz,ATI Radeon HD 5770 1GB,240GB SSD,two 1TB HDs.

GGRussell

Senior Contributor Joined: Jan 08, 2012 11:38 Messages: 709 Offline

Jan 02, 2014 22:11

Quote: Can PD 12 burn AVCHD to a bluray disc?

When PD creates as Bluray Disc using 'Created Disc', the video is burned using the AVC codec. As Carl pointed out, folder structures are different, but the video content is similar (other than time limit).

Other codecs can be used to burn a Bluray like MPEG2 HD and VC1, but I've never seen PD use either of those.

This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at Jan 02. 2014 22:15

Intel i7 4770k, 16GB, GTX1060 3GB, Two 240GB SSD, 4TB HD, Sony HDR-TD20V 3D camcorder, Sony SLT-A65VK for still images, Windows 10 Pro, 64bit
Gary Russell -- TN USA

Carl312

Senior Contributor Location: Texas, USA Joined: Mar 16, 2010 20:11 Messages: 9090 Offline

Jan 02, 2014 22:38

You can burn BluRay disks in Powerdirector using either MPEG-2 or H.264. There is a selection in Create disk when you select 2D > Bluray. Drop down under Select video format and quality.

H.264 creates smaller content on the disk. Carl312: Windows 10 64-bit 8 GB RAM,AMD Phenom II X4 965 3.4 GHz,ATI Radeon HD 5770 1GB,240GB SSD,two 1TB HDs.

Heavytiger

Contributor Joined: Jun 21, 2008 10:16 Messages: 474 Offline

Jan 03, 2014 19:12

Which is sharper video? AVCHD converted to mpeg2 or to H.264? Since AVCHD is in the some family as H.264 maybe there would be less quality loss in the conversion process to H.264. Also since H.264 takes less space more video could fit on one blu ray disc.

thanks, Windows 10 professional
HP Omen Obelisk DT 875-1131
Intel Core i7(3.6GHz)
Eight Core
Memory 32 GB
GPU Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super
Power supply 750 Watt

Using PD 11 ultimate build 11.0.03026

Heavytiger

James1

Senior Contributor Location: Surrey, B.C., Canada Joined: Jun 10, 2010 16:20 Messages: 1783 Offline

Jan 03, 2014 19:23

Hi,
I prefer AVCHD i think is the sharpest (personal opinion) MPeg-2 is DVD standard but the Blue rays are more to Hi def videos, but you need a BDplayer. H.264 is also hi def quality.
Jim Intel i7-2600@3.4Gz Geforce 560ti-1GB Graphic accelerator, windows 7 Premium 12GB memory

Visit GranPapa64's channel for your YouTube experience of the day!

GGRussell

Senior Contributor Joined: Jan 08, 2012 11:38 Messages: 709 Offline

Jan 03, 2014 20:59

IMPO for sharpness, you can't beat MPEG2 simply because there is less compression especially around text if you used. Granted you can used a higher bitrate with MP4/AVC to get better image, but that also creates a larger file.

Best to stay with the camcorder's original format. Intel i7 4770k, 16GB, GTX1060 3GB, Two 240GB SSD, 4TB HD, Sony HDR-TD20V 3D camcorder, Sony SLT-A65VK for still images, Windows 10 Pro, 64bit
Gary Russell -- TN USA

Heavytiger

Contributor Joined: Jun 21, 2008 10:16 Messages: 474 Offline

Jan 04, 2014 09:16

Hi

I am going to rephrase my question. My camcorder shoots in AVCHD but to put the video on Blu ray I have to either convert to mpeg2 or .H264. Which is the better choice? If they are equal in quality at the proper bit rate then I may as well choose the one that uses the least amount of space.

thanks Windows 10 professional
HP Omen Obelisk DT 875-1131
Intel Core i7(3.6GHz)
Eight Core
Memory 32 GB
GPU Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super
Power supply 750 Watt

Using PD 11 ultimate build 11.0.03026

Heavytiger

GGRussell

Senior Contributor Joined: Jan 08, 2012 11:38 Messages: 709 Offline

Jan 04, 2014 09:21

AVCHD and h264 are almost identical. I would stick with that. Intel i7 4770k, 16GB, GTX1060 3GB, Two 240GB SSD, 4TB HD, Sony HDR-TD20V 3D camcorder, Sony SLT-A65VK for still images, Windows 10 Pro, 64bit
Gary Russell -- TN USA

Russell1967

Senior Member Location: Kissimmee, Fl USA Joined: Aug 10, 2013 23:35 Messages: 165 Offline

Jan 04, 2014 19:45

It all depends on bitrate and other quality factors. For a given resolution and bitrate, though, h.264 will have a better quality picture than mpeg2, and h.265 (being tested and refined now as x.265) will up the ante even more with finer possible detail and more.

4k resolutions (and whatever comes after that!) demand better and better codecs. The pinnacle, to me, will be when totally lossless and deep (30, 33 or 36 bit color depths) video is feasible. FLAC does well for lossless audio, so we just need to take that extra step for video.

Russell1967 System specs: Windows 7 Professional x64; Gigabyte Z77-DS3H motherboard with i5-3579K 3.8Ghz processor with 32GB RAM; Zotac GTX 760 w/4GB; 1xWestern Digital 1TB 10,000RPM HD; 1x Samsung 840 Pro SSD System Drive

Heavytiger

Contributor Joined: Jun 21, 2008 10:16 Messages: 474 Offline

Jan 05, 2014 14:36

I would like to experiment converting AVCHD to both H.264 and mpeg2 in the produce setting of powerdirector and then burn to a blu ray disc to compare quality.
I have never created a custom setting. H.264 and AVC are in the same tab. Can someone give me the steps to creating a higher resolution mpeg-4 produced file than 16mbps default. My AVCHd is a bit rate of 17mbps 60i. So I suppose I need a custom bit rate that is at least that. Also there are other settings beside bit rate that I don't understand. Do I need to change them?
What rate would I use for mpeg2?

Again my goal is to make the highest quality video I can play on a blu ray player hooked up to a new wide screen high def TV

thanks,

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at Jan 05. 2014 14:58

Windows 10 professional
HP Omen Obelisk DT 875-1131
Intel Core i7(3.6GHz)
Eight Core
Memory 32 GB
GPU Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super
Power supply 750 Watt

Using PD 11 ultimate build 11.0.03026

Heavytiger

Russell1967

Senior Member Location: Kissimmee, Fl USA Joined: Aug 10, 2013 23:35 Messages: 165 Offline

Jan 05, 2014 17:25

Well, one problem is that although mpeg-2 can have very high bitrates (greater than 30mbps - HD territory), not all players will support this maximum. I'm pretty sure that the DVD standard allows for a maximum of about 8mbps, but that's rarely used (most top quality DVDs are around 6mbps) and this is for standard definition resolutions and framerates (720x480@29.97fps or 720x576@25fps if I remember correctly).

For playback on a Blu-ray player, mpeg-2 is not the most efficient codec to use, nor is it the most supported for HD playback (it has been superceded by mp4/h.264). You should be fine using h.264 at around 25mbps and 1920x1080@30p, but it's always a good idea to test your prototype disks on an actual Blu-ray player (more than one, if possible - cheapo and higher quality players) just to make sure.

Russell1967 System specs: Windows 7 Professional x64; Gigabyte Z77-DS3H motherboard with i5-3579K 3.8Ghz processor with 32GB RAM; Zotac GTX 760 w/4GB; 1xWestern Digital 1TB 10,000RPM HD; 1x Samsung 840 Pro SSD System Drive