Dazzle DVD Complete at DVinfo.net

Tom Voigt · December 29th, 2002, 12:28 PM

I just tried this and it seems to be very full featured for $99.

I had initially rejected it because it failed importing MPEGs created by Ulead. (This was under Win98).

With my new WinXP setup, Ulead gave me some grief (probably an install problem, it was trying to convert everything to PAL!!), so I gave Dazzle another shot.

The MPEG generator is blazing fast! I converted a 33 minute AVI to MPEG2 in less than 20 minutes!! (Athalon XP 2000+)

Rick O'Brien · December 29th, 2002, 05:58 PM

Encoder-
How is the quality?
R

Tom Voigt · December 30th, 2002, 12:47 AM

Rick,

A very good question for which I don't have an answer.

I have three encoders available to me now - Dazzle (Ligos), Ulead (Ligos also?), and Vegas Video (Main Concept). I guess I will have to encode a minute of dance footage with each and burn them to a DVD and see if I can tell any difference, or a difference with the original footage off the cam.

I would like to also experiment with lower maximum bitrates. I suspect that that may make for better media-player compatibility.

Up to now I have not been able to see any differences between original footage and the Ulead DVD versions. That may say something about the quality of the original footage.......

But don't hold your breath waiting for me.

Rob Lohman · December 30th, 2002, 04:03 PM

I personally don't like the Ligos engine too much. That might be
a personal thing though...

Rick O'Brien · December 30th, 2002, 04:33 PM

Thanks I'd be interested in that comparison.
R

Tom Voigt · January 10th, 2003, 06:52 PM

OK, I burned the same project twice, once using Dazzle DVD Complete, and once using the Vegas Video Main Concept MPEG generator and then into Dazzle to structure the DVD.

(I originally took the Main Concept MPEG into Ulead DVD Movie Factory, but it told me it wasn't a legal DVD file - go figure).

I used the default settings on Main Concept and it produced a 2.417G MPEG2 file. 80 minutes of letterboxed AVI took 100 minutes to encode 1.25 to 1 ratio. (Athalon XP 2000+). (This is also comparable speed to Ulead DVD Movie Factory - also a Main Concept encoder?)

I used the default settings in Dazzle and it produced a 3.081G DVD image file (don't know how much overhead is included in that). It took 50 minutes to encode the same 80 minute AVI file, a .59 to 1 ratio - twice as fast. This is a Ligos encoder.

I've looked closely at the footage both on the TV and using Media Player on the computer, and I can't tell the difference between the two. Not to say that there aren't differences, just my footage and equipment (and eyes) aren't good enough to tell.

Dazzle is fast, easy to use, and has a whole lot of options for structuring your menus. And it costs less than $100.

Two caveats:
- One of my clients says she gets no audio from a Dazzle encoded DVD-R. A player problem or a Dazzle problem?
- The Dazzle burner has a nasty little trick. When your monitor goes into screen saver mode, if you hit the space bar to bring it back while Dazzle is burning it says it has been interrupted and toasts the disk.

Ulead has released DVD Movie Factory 2.0 which addresses some of the limitations in version 1. So I will download the demo, and decide whether Movie Factory or DVD Complete is my cheap DVD authoring solution for the future

Dan Holly · January 10th, 2003, 11:36 PM

>>>>>When your monitor goes into screen saver mode, if you hit the space bar to bring it back while Dazzle is burning it says it has been interrupted and toasts the disk.<<<<<<

That's the exact reason why I disable all those types of options on any of my editing boxes. e.g screensaver, monitor sleep are the 1st that come to mind.

Rob Talley · January 15th, 2003, 12:56 PM

FWIW:
Dazzle DVD Complete

APM and other "green" features (power management/screen savers) have been known to cause problems from time to time.
Whilst according to the devleopment staff the encoding is deterministic, you'd be amazed at how much impact these supposed "features" impose on the machine.

Also, the DVD Complete package is the child of OEM DVDCre8, Inc.
http://www.dvdcre8.com

It does have two flavors, the primary difference being in the encoder epmloyed. The retail version now employs the Main Concept encoder while the ESD version uses the Ligos encoder.

With the addition of the DCL Scripting Manual and a user contributed "Theme Editor" the system is quite capable of being manipulated.

The User forums for DVD Complete and other Dazzle products can be found at http://dazzleforum.infopop.cc/6/ubb.x

December 29th, 2002, 12:28 PM	#1
Tom Voigt Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2002 Posts: 92	Dazzle DVD Complete I just tried this and it seems to be very full featured for $99. I had initially rejected it because it failed importing MPEGs created by Ulead. (This was under Win98). With my new WinXP setup, Ulead gave me some grief (probably an install problem, it was trying to convert everything to PAL!!), so I gave Dazzle another shot. The MPEG generator is blazing fast! I converted a 33 minute AVI to MPEG2 in less than 20 minutes!! (Athalon XP 2000+)

December 29th, 2002, 05:58 PM	#2
Rick O'Brien Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 36	Encoder- How is the quality? R __________________ Rick O'Brien -Multimedia Producer See the NLE Motherboard configuration site. www.2behold.com/NLE.htm -Stable working systems motherboard configurations-

December 30th, 2002, 04:03 PM	#4
Rob Lohman RED Code Chef Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Holland Posts: 12,514	I personally don't like the Ligos engine too much. That might be a personal thing though... __________________ Rob Lohman, visuar@iname.com DV Info Wrangler & RED Code Chef Join the DV Challenge \| Lady X Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Buy from the best: DVinfo.net sponsors

December 30th, 2002, 04:33 PM	#5
Rick O'Brien Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 36	Thanks I'd be interested in that comparison. R __________________ Rick O'Brien -Multimedia Producer See the NLE Motherboard configuration site. www.2behold.com/NLE.htm -Stable working systems motherboard configurations-

January 10th, 2003, 06:52 PM	#6
Tom Voigt Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2002 Posts: 92	No Quality Difference I Can See OK, I burned the same project twice, once using Dazzle DVD Complete, and once using the Vegas Video Main Concept MPEG generator and then into Dazzle to structure the DVD. (I originally took the Main Concept MPEG into Ulead DVD Movie Factory, but it told me it wasn't a legal DVD file - go figure). I used the default settings on Main Concept and it produced a 2.417G MPEG2 file. 80 minutes of letterboxed AVI took 100 minutes to encode 1.25 to 1 ratio. (Athalon XP 2000+). (This is also comparable speed to Ulead DVD Movie Factory - also a Main Concept encoder?) I used the default settings in Dazzle and it produced a 3.081G DVD image file (don't know how much overhead is included in that). It took 50 minutes to encode the same 80 minute AVI file, a .59 to 1 ratio - twice as fast. This is a Ligos encoder. I've looked closely at the footage both on the TV and using Media Player on the computer, and I can't tell the difference between the two. Not to say that there aren't differences, just my footage and equipment (and eyes) aren't good enough to tell. Dazzle is fast, easy to use, and has a whole lot of options for structuring your menus. And it costs less than $100. Two caveats: - One of my clients says she gets no audio from a Dazzle encoded DVD-R. A player problem or a Dazzle problem? - The Dazzle burner has a nasty little trick. When your monitor goes into screen saver mode, if you hit the space bar to bring it back while Dazzle is burning it says it has been interrupted and toasts the disk. Ulead has released DVD Movie Factory 2.0 which addresses some of the limitations in version 1. So I will download the demo, and decide whether Movie Factory or DVD Complete is my cheap DVD authoring solution for the future

December 30th, 2002, 12:47 AM	#3
Tom Voigt Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2002 Posts: 92	Rick, A very good question for which I don't have an answer. I have three encoders available to me now - Dazzle (Ligos), Ulead (Ligos also?), and Vegas Video (Main Concept). I guess I will have to encode a minute of dance footage with each and burn them to a DVD and see if I can tell any difference, or a difference with the original footage off the cam. I would like to also experiment with lower maximum bitrates. I suspect that that may make for better media-player compatibility. Up to now I have not been able to see any differences between original footage and the Ulead DVD versions. That may say something about the quality of the original footage....... But don't hold your breath waiting for me.

January 10th, 2003, 11:36 PM	#7
Dan Holly Major Player Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Anchorage, Alaska Posts: 336	screen saver >>>>>When your monitor goes into screen saver mode, if you hit the space bar to bring it back while Dazzle is burning it says it has been interrupted and toasts the disk.<<<<<< That's the exact reason why I disable all those types of options on any of my editing boxes. e.g screensaver, monitor sleep are the 1st that come to mind. __________________ Dan Holly Anchorage, Alaska

January 15th, 2003, 12:56 PM	#8
Rob Talley Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Orlando, FL Posts: 27	fwiy on Dazzle DVD Complete FWIW: Dazzle DVD Complete APM and other "green" features (power management/screen savers) have been known to cause problems from time to time. Whilst according to the devleopment staff the encoding is deterministic, you'd be amazed at how much impact these supposed "features" impose on the machine. Also, the DVD Complete package is the child of OEM DVDCre8, Inc. http://www.dvdcre8.com It does have two flavors, the primary difference being in the encoder epmloyed. The retail version now employs the Main Concept encoder while the ESD version uses the Ligos encoder. With the addition of the DCL Scripting Manual and a user contributed "Theme Editor" the system is quite capable of being manipulated. The User forums for DVD Complete and other Dazzle products can be found at http://dazzleforum.infopop.cc/6/ubb.x