Okay... I THINK I have a method for ripping and encoding BR into a usable media for Final Cut Pro on Mac. I haven't tested this for any other program so your guess is as good as mine. I've only experimented with a short clip but it worked unlike previous attempts. While I work on a full two hour movie I figured I'd post this here for others to experiment with and try. If the full version works for me I may write up a full guide. The goal is to keep everything in the proper frame rate and resolution... especially frame rate!
You WILL need access to Windows, so either boot up in Boot Camp on your Mac or purchase one of the virtualization programs out there. I have VMWare Fusion.
One final warning: this process will take
days. Here is an breakdown of the approx. times: Demux: 1-2 hours. Remux to MP4: 12-14 hours. Convert MP4 to Apple ProRes: 45-50 hours. Grand total: 58 hours MINIMUM.
1.) [WINDOWS/MAC] Rip the M2TS file to your hard drive using AnyDVD HD (Window) or Pavtube (Windows/Mac) or some other ripping program.
2.) [WINDOWS/MAC] Demux the M2TS file with
tsMuxeR. This program is available for Windows and Mac, but if you use it on a Mac be aware that there is currently no Snow Leopard support. I tested it and it crashes.
To demux simply add the M2TS file to tsMuxeR. Select ONLY the video track (should be #1) and the AC3 audio track (probably #3). Do NOT use the DTS-HD audio as it will cause an a/v sync issue later. Deselect everything else.
Choose Demux for the Output and select a destination. Click Start Demuxing. This will probably take at least an hour but could take longer, so sit back and relax.
3.) [WINDOWS] Once the demux is done you will have two files: a .264 video file and a .AC3 audio file. We now need to put this in a container that Quicktime will like. For this we need
RipBot264.
Start RipBot264. Click Add. In the New Job window enter the path to your recently demuxed .264 file. Make sure the Profile is set to HIGH 4.0 HD - Blu-Ray. If it demuxed properly you should see the FPS as 23.976. Choose 2-Pass Mode and set the KBPS to your liking. For fan editing I suggest 6144 or 8192.
In Audio navigate to your .AC3 file. For now just go with 2.0 CT AAC-LC 128 kbps.
Choose where you want to Output file to go. Save as a .MP4. Click Done. Click Start.
Sit back and pray you don't suffer a crash or power outage.
4.) [Mac] Start Compressor and drop the MP4 file into it. Select Apple ProRes 422 and leave all the default settings alone. Choose a destination and hit Submit. Again, pray you don't have a crash or a power outage.
Once that's done you should have a working MOV file that can be edited in FCP.
