Converting PAL DVD to an NTSC DVD at DVinfo.net

Adam Folickman · September 27th, 2006, 08:56 PM

Maybe somebody can help.

I bought some PAL DVDs when I was in Europe.

What tools can I use to convert them to NTSC so they will play clearly on my NTSC television ? Hopefully they won't be too expensive.

Thanks.

Douglas R. Bruce · September 28th, 2006, 12:48 AM

If you are working on a PC, rip the DVD to your hard drive.

Download a small utility (Freeware or maybe Shareware) called IfoEdit.

Use IfoEdit to edit the IFO files....changing the PAL information to NTSC.

Burn back the ripped files to a DVD and you have a DVD which will playback on most NTSC systems.
You can use IfoEdit to do the reverse too (NTSC to PAL)

It doesn't change the encoding...only the information to the player.....

Adam Folickman · September 28th, 2006, 02:30 AM

Thanks.

I am going to give that a try.

I found the program at http://www.ifoedit.com/index.html and the doc at http://www.ifoedit.com/guides.html

So you are saying that I wouldn't really need to change the encoding. Hmmm, I didn't know that was the case.

Douglas R. Bruce · September 28th, 2006, 06:08 AM

Sounds amazing..... but it works for me - on the occassions when I get a PAL video from home and I want to watch it on NTSC equipment.

Just make sure you read the instructions on the site.

Biggest mistake that is made is that after changing the "flags" in the IFO files...that you forget to save them.
Make sure you find all the IFO files.
Also scroll down the file info to make sure that there are not more than one "flag" in the IFO file.
When you get used to the programme you can switch a PAL to NTSC or vice versa in about 30 seconds! (The time consuming part is the ripping and reburning)

Good luck.

George Ellis · September 28th, 2006, 07:26 AM

If that does not work, I recoded one using Pegasys Tsunami and redid a simple menu.

Douglas R. Bruce · September 28th, 2006, 09:21 AM

The beauty of IfoEdit is that the VOBs and file structure etc. are all intact.
I have never had problems playing the edited DVD on any of the players I have access to.
However I have read that sometimes a player may not recognise the new flags placed by IfoEdit.

But, of course, re-encoding with Pegasys TmpgEnc or Canopus Encoder etc. is the usual alternative.

Ervin Farkas · September 28th, 2006, 12:17 PM

Hmmm... I have several DVDs from Europe and they all play fine in my NTSC player as long as they are "region zero" (region free). Is my Philips player special? I bought it as regular player, and not as a region-free one...

Can anyone explain this?

Douglas R. Bruce · September 28th, 2006, 05:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ervin Farkas

Hmmm... I have several DVDs from Europe and they all play fine in my NTSC player as long as they are "region zero" (region free). Is my Philips player special? I bought it as regular player, and not as a region-free one...

Can anyone explain this?

While I still lived in Europe (over 6 years ago) almost all standard DVD players could play NTSC DVDs on a PAL TV screen (it was known then as "quasi NTSC"). Usually the cheaper the player the bigger the chance it would do this.
PHilips is/was a Dutch company and therefore I can imagine some of the models it exports to the USA may be able to do the reverse.

As far as I know (anyone with better knowledge on this, please correct me) DVD players can all play all regions and NTSC/PAL in their basic manufactured form. Then by programming the chip they can be changed to have various region restrictions.

Here in Japan they tend to be very strict about keeping the machines set to Region 2/NTSC only. But cheaper machines from other Asian countries usually have no problem playing all DVDs.

Adam Folickman · September 28th, 2006, 05:27 PM

Ervin,

PAL DVDs will play fine in the DVD players I have (a Panasonic with a tray that hold 5 discs, and a Panasonic portable), but the problem comes with the television. Unless the TV supports PAL or both PAL and NTSC, you can't watch a PAL encoded DVD and see a clear picture. The TVs here in the USA are NTSC unless you go out and buy a special TV that supports both PAL and NTSC.

I am hoping to find a cheap solution so if IfoEdit works, that will be great (I haven't tried it yet).

I heard about Canopus ProCoder Express and talked to Canopus about it and they said it will work for me . The cost is about $55 (not really too expensive).

I have not heard of Pegasys Tsunami before.

Thanks everybody....

Sharyn Ferrick · September 28th, 2006, 07:18 PM

The cheapest solution is a dvd player that will do the convert for you, and they will work with Ntsc ONLY tv's these are widely available, and quite inespensive, and certainly a lot less time consuming than ripping the dvd, converting it and then re encoding the dvd. Depending on the system you use it can take quite a bit of time do a standards conversion.

Since this board does not like non sponsor links, it is best to just do a google search.

Sharyn

September 27th, 2006, 08:56 PM	#1
Adam Folickman Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: New Hampshire, USA Posts: 125	Converting PAL DVD to an NTSC DVD Maybe somebody can help. I bought some PAL DVDs when I was in Europe. What tools can I use to convert them to NTSC so they will play clearly on my NTSC television ? Hopefully they won't be too expensive. Thanks.

September 28th, 2006, 12:48 AM	#2
Douglas R. Bruce Regular Crew Join Date: May 2006 Location: Kumamoto City, Japan Posts: 136	If you are working on a PC, rip the DVD to your hard drive. Download a small utility (Freeware or maybe Shareware) called IfoEdit. Use IfoEdit to edit the IFO files....changing the PAL information to NTSC. Burn back the ripped files to a DVD and you have a DVD which will playback on most NTSC systems. You can use IfoEdit to do the reverse too (NTSC to PAL) It doesn't change the encoding...only the information to the player..... __________________ I was produced in Scotland, edited in Sweden, and am now showing in Japan. http://www.gaijin-eyes.com

September 28th, 2006, 06:08 AM	#4
Douglas R. Bruce Regular Crew Join Date: May 2006 Location: Kumamoto City, Japan Posts: 136	Sounds amazing..... but it works for me - on the occassions when I get a PAL video from home and I want to watch it on NTSC equipment. Just make sure you read the instructions on the site. Biggest mistake that is made is that after changing the "flags" in the IFO files...that you forget to save them. Make sure you find all the IFO files. Also scroll down the file info to make sure that there are not more than one "flag" in the IFO file. When you get used to the programme you can switch a PAL to NTSC or vice versa in about 30 seconds! (The time consuming part is the ripping and reburning) Good luck. __________________ I was produced in Scotland, edited in Sweden, and am now showing in Japan. http://www.gaijin-eyes.com

September 28th, 2006, 09:21 AM	#6
Douglas R. Bruce Regular Crew Join Date: May 2006 Location: Kumamoto City, Japan Posts: 136	The beauty of IfoEdit is that the VOBs and file structure etc. are all intact. I have never had problems playing the edited DVD on any of the players I have access to. However I have read that sometimes a player may not recognise the new flags placed by IfoEdit. But, of course, re-encoding with Pegasys TmpgEnc or Canopus Encoder etc. is the usual alternative. __________________ I was produced in Scotland, edited in Sweden, and am now showing in Japan. http://www.gaijin-eyes.com

September 28th, 2006, 12:17 PM	#7
Ervin Farkas Inner Circle Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Atlanta/USA Posts: 2,515	Hmmm... I have several DVDs from Europe and they all play fine in my NTSC player as long as they are "region zero" (region free). Is my Philips player special? I bought it as regular player, and not as a region-free one... Can anyone explain this? __________________ Ervin Farkas www.AtlantaLegalVideo.com

September 28th, 2006, 02:30 AM	#3
Adam Folickman Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: New Hampshire, USA Posts: 125	Thanks. I am going to give that a try. I found the program at http://www.ifoedit.com/index.html and the doc at http://www.ifoedit.com/guides.html So you are saying that I wouldn't really need to change the encoding. Hmmm, I didn't know that was the case.

September 28th, 2006, 07:26 AM	#5
George Ellis Trustee Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Suwanee, GA Posts: 1,241	If that does not work, I recoded one using Pegasys Tsunami and redid a simple menu.

September 28th, 2006, 05:27 PM	#9
Adam Folickman Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: New Hampshire, USA Posts: 125	Ervin, PAL DVDs will play fine in the DVD players I have (a Panasonic with a tray that hold 5 discs, and a Panasonic portable), but the problem comes with the television. Unless the TV supports PAL or both PAL and NTSC, you can't watch a PAL encoded DVD and see a clear picture. The TVs here in the USA are NTSC unless you go out and buy a special TV that supports both PAL and NTSC. I am hoping to find a cheap solution so if IfoEdit works, that will be great (I haven't tried it yet). I heard about Canopus ProCoder Express and talked to Canopus about it and they said it will work for me . The cost is about $55 (not really too expensive). I have not heard of Pegasys Tsunami before. Thanks everybody....

September 28th, 2006, 07:18 PM	#10
Sharyn Ferrick Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Sitka Alaska Posts: 128	The cheapest solution is a dvd player that will do the convert for you, and they will work with Ntsc ONLY tv's these are widely available, and quite inespensive, and certainly a lot less time consuming than ripping the dvd, converting it and then re encoding the dvd. Depending on the system you use it can take quite a bit of time do a standards conversion. Since this board does not like non sponsor links, it is best to just do a google search. Sharyn