[mythtv-users] Transcoded files larger than source?

[Nate Carlson]

I've seen this posted a couple times, but never seen a resolution.

I'm recording in MPEG2 with the bitrate set to ~2300-~3000 (IIRC), and 
then have a MPEG2->MPEG4 transcode set up with a bitrate of 1400. I don't 
auto-transcode; I start it from the frontend interface for the shows I 
want to run it on. Most of the time, I end up with a filesize that's ~2/3 
the size of the original, but occasionally, I end up with a file that's 
5-10 times the original size. For example, I transcoded Law and Order 
episode that was 1.2gb originally, and it ended up being 11gb.

First, is there any way to figure out what's causing this?

Second, would it be possible to get an option added to the transcoder that 
will cause it to fail (ie, say transcoding failed, not overwrite the 
original, and remove the new file) if the original is smaller than the 
output? I realize this probably shouldn't be the default, since people may 
want to go MPEG4->MPEG2 for DVD, but it'd be nice to have that feature.

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| nate carlson | natecars at natecarlson.com | http://www.natecarlson.com |
|       depriving some poor village of its idiot since 1981            |
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