VTS files (DVD)--Why do they not join properly?

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Gringo557
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VTS files (DVD)--Why do they not join properly?

Post by Gringo557 »

Can anybody shed some light on this issue?

I note several prominent forum users are still using VTS files, which are fine for an 18-minute video but beyond that they truly suck. Why are there always jumps at the join spots? It happens when I just play the VTS files and it happens when I try to convert them to another video format. I've bought bootleg DVDs hoping they were better than one I had downloaded, but same thing. ERRRR!

I'm working on a new mac laptop with the current system. Thanks in advance!
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Ziggy C
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Re: VTS files (DVD)--Why do they not join properly?

Post by Ziggy C »

Are you taking the VTS files out of the VIDEO_TS folder and dropping them individually into your player? That'd cause a gap or a stop & start as you go from file to file. The VTS files can be thought of as roughly 18 minute individual tracks. There's a gap between songs in a playlist, just as there are gaps between vts files in a playlist. Leave the VIDEO_TS folder intact for best results.

Whether a VIDEO_TS folder, or an .iso file of a DVD, you can take the entire folder, or the entire .iso and drop it into the VLC player where it will play like a DVD with none of the gaps.
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Re: VTS files (DVD)--Why do they not join properly?

Post by Gringo557 »

Hmmm, I'd have to test that out. The VLC application is great playback but I don't usually sit around watching videos on a laptop. And I'm way past using DVDs; I usually ditch all the extra files that come with the DVD folder and just work with the files that have content. So if you have, say, just the files VTS_01_1, VTS_01_2 and VTS_01_3 what can I do when converting (to mp4 or MVK for example) to them to prevent them from not joining properly?
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Lord Reith
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Re: VTS files (DVD)--Why do they not join properly?

Post by Lord Reith »

You can turn the multiple VOB files into a single VOB file or a single mkv file. See my instructions here:

viewtopic.php?f=30&t=255&p=3938&hilit=xmedia#p3938

It'll only take as long as it takes to copy the files.
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Re: VTS files (DVD)--Why do they not join properly?

Post by Gringo557 »

Good info, however I'm on a mac laptop with the current system . . .
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Re: VTS files (DVD)--Why do they not join properly?

Post by Ziggy C »

I'm sure there's "something" out there for Mac, too. I'm on a Mac Powerbook. Yes, I watch pretty much all content streamed from my laptop through an HDMI into my AV system.

If you've eviscerated the VIDEO_TS folders and saved only the parts that have viewable content then you may be paddling up a steep creek to restore a playable DVD. All those other files in the VIDEO_TS are there for a reason. I don't know the specifics, but they're probably online if you really want to put yourself to sleep....

What LR has provided is a means (probably on a PC platform) to make lossless video file containers. But it seems that an intact VIDEO_TS folder is needed as a starting point. I may be wrong as I only read his initial post in the thread. Follow it wherever it may lead. It's all in pursuit of getting the most out of this stuff.
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Re: VTS files (DVD)--Why do they not join properly?

Post by Lord Reith »

Okay, but VOB files are not meant to be played on their own. They are referenced through the IFO file so you need an app that can open VIDEO_TS.IFO files and then it will load the entire video without jumps.

But then, Big Sur is just the latest way apple try and prevent you from using anything they don't have a share in. So there probably is something, but it costs $200
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Re: VTS files (DVD)--Why do they not join properly?

Post by Doug »

I use MPEG Streamclip on my iMac. It's a free program which can easily open the VOB files and export them as a single MPEG file (or other formats, if you wish).
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Re: VTS files (DVD)--Why do they not join properly?

Post by Ziggy C »

You can also (on a Mac) Use Quicktime player to open the individual files and then, one by one, starting with the last one, paste them in front of each other, creating one single file. You can then go in and excise any unwanted gaps. Then you can export that. The only drawback is that the file may end up compressed.
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Re: VTS files (DVD)--Why do they not join properly?

Post by Lord Reith »

What Doug said. :)
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