I have about 30 video files from a conversion project. They are all 6-8 gb in size and I need to split then to file sizes under 4 gb. Lets say I wanted to simply cut them all in half. Is there any tool that does this without re-rendering? I have plenty of NLE choices but was hoping to find something that may allow me to do this faster.

Thanks all.

What's the video format, if I may ask ?

Just a plain SD MPG file

Have no direct experience to recommend, but if you Google "video file splitter" you'll find a bunch of offerings, some are freeware....this site has some reviews that may help you: http://www.techsupportalert.com/content/best-free-software-cut-split-or-merge-video-files.htm

This program sounds like the kind of thing you are looking for, akthough I have no experience with it: http://www.boilsoft.com/videosplitter/ There is a free trial download.

I was hoping you'd say DV or another AVI format.

The thing about MPEG-2 is that the cut has to be made on I-frames, and even then there can be issues - a lot depends on the GOP structure (Open vs Closed).
If you don't mind scrubbing through the footage to set cut points, your best bet (for freeware) is probably AVIDemux:

Avidemux - Main Page (http://fixounet.free.fr/avidemux/)

Here are the sections of the guide on cutting:

using:cutting [Avidemux] (http://www.avidemux.org/admWiki/doku.php?id=using:cutting)

using:cutting_mpeg_files [Avidemux] (http://www.avidemux.org/admWiki/doku.php?id=using:cutting_mpeg_files)

If that doesn't work for you, I could ask around on some of the forums I frequent. A bit too late tonight though....the wee hours here. In which case it would be helpful to know how/with what the MPEG2 files were encoded, and ideally the encoding settings and file extension - MPEG, TS, M2T etc. Otherwise, you could get the video file information with MediaInfo:

https://mediaarea.net/en/MediaInfo

Would ffmpeg work?

FFmpeg: How to split video efficiently? - Stack Overflow (http://stackoverflow.com/questions/5651654/ffmpeg-how-to-split-video-efficiently)

That ffmpeg command is for AVI, which is straightforward. There are ways to go about it with ffmpeg but I figured that anyone who knows how to use ffmpeg wouldn't be asking the question and I got the sense that Darryn was looking for an easy to use tool with a GUI. AVIDemux itself uses elements of ffmpeg (libavcodec).

But, like I said, it would helpful to know a bit more about the mpeg2 source to suggest the right tool for the job. A number of the video cutters/splitters listed on the site Battle linked to, for example, purport to do 'smart cutting' of mpeg-2 and h264 streams - 'smart' implying that these tools are able to analyze the GOP structure around a cut and/or splice and re-encode only those frames necessary to maintain GOP continuity, but some do it rather better than others....and some, from my experience, are liable to make a hash (sic "hack") of it. Cutting to produce file segments that are (hopefully) playable (with audio insync) is one thing - ensuring that they can be joined again or used for further editing/transcoding is another.

Of those I have tried in the past, my personal recommendation would be Pegasys (TMPGenc) Smart Renderer 4. I used to use it for basic cut editing when I was shooting HDV. But it's not free, and the trial version will place a water-mark on the re-encoded frames:

Best MPEG Video Editor Software | TMPGEnc MPEG Smart Renderer 4 (http://tmpgenc.pegasys-inc.com/en/product/tmsr4.html)

Aha, yes, here's a tool that might be just the ticket - DGSplit - a GUI binary file splitter that works on arbitrarily large files.

You can find it here, under Tools and Utilities:

My Tools and Utilities (http://rationalqm.us/mine.html)

Just tried it with an HD MPEG2 clip that I had to hand and it worked fine and it was created back in the SD era so it should work equally well with your SD MPEG2 files. Simple ,standalone GUI and you can specify whatever split size you want. All of Donald Graft's (Neuron2) tools are top notch.

Those (AVIDemux, DGSplit) are the best suggestions I can make without further information on the source MPEG2 files.

I guess a solution was found ?

Sorry guys, was not getting emails. I found the easiest solution...Double Layer DVD's :)

Well ya didn't say it was for storage. 30 Double-Layer DVD's ; that's a lot of burnin'

Still think the DGSplit tool would have worked for you though.......then it would have been just 60 x SL DVD's

Sheeesh

...... I found the easiest solution...Double Layer DVD's :)

Good luck with getting those to work reliably! ....

If you really want to store long term on 'burnt' discs then I agree with Bryan's suggestion of splitting and using single layer DVDs. And use good quality blanks.

But based on my own experience of failing 'burnt' DVDs only a few years old, I would think twice about using optical discs for reliable long term storage. (Commercial pressed discs seem OK though)

Add to that the likelihood of optical disc players going the same way as VHS, DV and audio cassette players - and in the not too distant future - I would think HDD, solid state or cloud storage is a more 'future proof' option for archiving your mpg2 files..

I looked very briefly at the DGSplit software and split a file with it.

It seems like a useful tool.

Sorry if I'm missing something obvious in the list, but does he also have a binary file joiner to put the parts back together later on?

What software do you recommend as a safe download to rejoin the parts?

I use MTS File Joiner to combine segmented .MTS files from long video recordings so I'm familiar with the basic process but what would you recommend for other file types?

EDIT: I downloaded a generic binary file joiner and it seems to work fine to put the pieces back together.

I looked very briefly at the DGSplit software and split a file with it.

It seems like a useful tool.

Sorry if I'm missing something obvious in the list, but does he also have a binary file joiner to put the parts back together later on?

What software do you recommend as a safe download to rejoin the parts?

I use MTS File Joiner to combine segmented .MTS files from long video recordings so I'm familiar with the basic process but what would you recommend for other file types?

EDIT: I downloaded a generic binary file joiner and it seems to work fine to put the pieces back together.

Glad you found a solution that works. I don't profess to be an expert in this area, and it's been a while since I worked with MPEG-2.

I was going to suggest AVIDemux again, but having just tested it with a couple of DV>MPEG2 transcodes that I had archived, I encountered some issues when it came to re-joining multiple (100-150 Mb size) segments created with DGSplit. I was thinking to raise the subject on the authors (Donald Graft) video tools support forum to see what he suggests. I likewise could not see a tool for re-joining cut segments on his Tools & Utilities webpage.

On the other hand, TMPGenc SmartRenderer 4, which I mentioned above, was able to join the segments without any problem.

What was the binary file joiner that you sourced, out of interest?

I admit I only tried splitting and rejoining a large .WAV file because that was all I needed to work on at the moment,

I didn't try rejoining more complex video files.

I used the file from here:
File Joiner - Easy .001 Joiner (http://www.igorware.com/file-joiner)

It didn't seem to cause any problems with my computer, but I don't make any guarantee for it. Use caution as you would for any download.

Since the joiner software downloaded as a .RAR file I also needed a free extractor and used the Free RAR Extract Frog from Philipp Winterberg.
Philipp Winterberg - Downloads: Freeware, Screensaver, Tools, Wallpaper, Source Codes... (http://www.philippwinterberg.com/downloads.php)

Thanks.

Just tried it with the SD mpeg2 file that I cut up previously with DGSplit and it rejoined the segments without any problems. Obviously you need to add the file extension (.mpg in this case) to the output file name.

I also ran the rejoined file through Smart Renderer 4 which is really strict on standards compliance and will re-encode any video frames (and audio segments) it sees fit to, around splice points particularly. The integral Smart Rendering Analyzer marked no frames or audio (AC3 in this case) for re-encoding, giving it a 'clean bill of health'.

It played perfectly well also, with audio in sync.

Excellent. Good find. I'll add it to my utilities collection

I had scanned the downloaded RAR file with MSSE and Malwarebytes, before and after unzipping, and it was clean. I always use 7Zip for opening ZIP/RAR files btw.

Good to know! Thanks for checking the rejoined file thoroughly and for scanning the software too.

You're welcome.

Standard DVD-R or +R are *not* an archive format!

The issue is that the aluminum layer (the silver-colored layer) will oxidize over time. 5 to 10 years is about it.

There is an archival DVD-R disk that works really well - up to several hundred years. It uses a gold reflective layer. Mitsui MAM-A. These disks cost significantly more than standard DVDs.

On the other hand, if 5-10 years provides what you want out of archive storage...