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HTPC Stuff... was AC3 AVI vs AAC MP4 LOL

zeppelinrox

zeppelinrox

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Since I've recently converted a couple of DVD fanedits to avi, I was wondering whether an mp4 with AAC autio would be better.
The reason being is that I like to make the best conversion possible at a decent sized download
Any body know?

Say, would AAC audio sound just as good as AC3 but using a lower bitrate than the AC3 file?
 
aac audio can be pretty good at a small bitrate, that's all I know.
 
zeppelinrox said:
Since I've recently converted a couple of DVD fanedits to avi, I was wondering whether an mp4 with AAC autio would be better.

Say, would AAC audio sound just as good as AC3 but using a lower bitrate than the AC3 file?
Click to expand...

I would say yes to both. For my money, if you are downmixing surround sound to stereo, AAC sounds better.

As boon says, it sounds good with a lower bitrate, so you can devote a greater proportion of the file sze to video. This is definite bonus IMO, especially if you are planning to upload some of those fanedits. :smile:

PS3 supports AAC 5.1. Xbox 360 only supports AAC stereo.

My ideal SD download is a decent (2CD-ish) sized MP4 h.264 with AAC stereo. AVI is yesterday. Its only advantage IMO is that more people can play it.
 
aac will be higher quality at all bitrates, it is just that they are much less supported by hardware players. nowadays filesize is not as important as compatibility.
 
joebshmoe said:
aac will be higher quality at all bitrates, it is just that they are much less supported by hardware players. nowadays filesize is not as important as compatibility.
Click to expand...
I concur. Most players nowadays support xvid/divx with mp3 or ac-3 sound. Anything else is still exotic and will only play on a computer for most people.
 
Oh, I thought AAC was a more universal format on digital players.
 
For AAC you need a PS3, Xbox 360, computer or HD media player. Why more people don't buy media players is beyond me, but there you go.

In spite of the similarity of the two, a number of players can play DixX, but not Xvid. I actually don't know anyone who owns a DVD player that can play Xvid.

I wish AVCHDs could support AAC but they can't. :(
 
I love my media player. Supports about everything and plays with an awesome quality on my HD TV.
 
DivX without XviD support is rare or encoder (user) error. And we talked about these format topics long ago... until h264 is more supported, stick with XVID & AC3 5.1 in AVI container for your "non-DVD" format.

PS3 as media player is killer, btw. Just setup mediatomb and am streaming my pics/video/music to the PS3 and really really enjoying it... wirelessly, too!
 
I was just playing with the AvP Outbreak just converting sound.
AAC sounds incredibly crisp and clear!
I think the AAC @ 160kbps sounds better than the original 448 AC3. :shock:
It is definitely louder for some reason. Maybe that's why it sounds better. I dunno.

But still, it sounds solid. Nice reverbs and distinct sounds.
 
well... lossy audio (and especially lossy transcoded audio) can never be BETTER than the original, but it has been shown that in many tests people prefer MP3s to the original - go figure.

it probably has a lot to do with our hearing (sucks) and 128kbps MP3 being the majority of audio that most listen to (NOT ME! FLAC!!!)
 
boon23 said:
I love my media player. Supports about everything and plays with an awesome quality on my HD TV.
Click to expand...

Indeed! Which player do you have, boon? I have a WD HD media player. It's great for so cheap a player, but I am thinking of getting a slightly more expensive one soon.

joebshmoe said:
DivX without XviD support is rare or encoder (user) error. And we talked about these format topics long ago... until h264 is more supported, stick with XVID & AC3 5.1 in AVI container for your "non-DVD" format.
Click to expand...

Nonetheless, according to the specs, my blu-ray player plays DixX, but not Xvid. I have never in fact tried it with either.

Personally, I think everyone who is serious about fanedits should invest in a good cheap media player of some description. I see no reason why h.264 shouldn't replace Xvid, and soon.
 
I have a WD HD player as well and am not thinking about an upgrade any time soon. :) It plays everything, from avi over wmv, quicktime, to mp4 (including mkv).
 
boon23 said:
I have a WD HD player as well and am not thinking about an upgrade any time soon. :) It plays everything, from avi over wmv, quicktime, to mp4 (including mkv).
Click to expand...

Yes; the lack of DTS decoding is a little annoying though. I currently convert some files on my laptop before playing them back. I stilll sometimes find a few MKVs that do not work though, which is why I am thinking of an upgrade at some point.
 
you millionaires out there should go with the oppo bluray player. they've even ADDED to their supported media formats with MKV support.
 
Damn! I knew I should have waited before buying a player! :smile:

Seriously though, the WD HD media player is pretty darn cheap. It does a great deal for less than the cost of most decent DVD players.
 
Captain Khajiit said:
Damn! I knew I should have waited before buying a player! :smile:

Seriously though, the WD HD media player is pretty darn cheap. It does a great deal for less than the cost of most decent DVD players.
Click to expand...

I assume its like a hard drive basically with player functionality? whats the storage capacity? this thing sounds tempting.
 
ThrowgnCpr said:
I assume its like a hard drive basically with player functionality? whats the storage capacity? this thing sounds tempting.
Click to expand...

No; it's just a player. You plug into your TV via HDMI. Then you connect your external HD to it, so you don't have to disconnect it from your TV and connect it up to your PC every time you want to tranfer. You just move your HD.

WD want you to use it with their Passport range of external HDs, but you can use any. It has no DTS decoding at the moment, but the next model will have it, and it is not a big deal.
 
joebshmoe said:
you millionaires out there should go with the oppo bluray player. they've even ADDED to their supported media formats with MKV support.
Click to expand...
yeah, if I were to buy a set top player, that would be the one.
But my xbox is still doing a great job of streaming movies from all pcs on the home network to my big screen.

When the time comes though, I'm just gonna build a HTPC with blu ray and a DTS/Dolby sound card.
 
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