High Quality DVD Copies with HandBrake

January 25, 2009 by chrisdpratt

I recently set out on a mission to convert all my season box sets and other DVDs to compressed video files that I can stream to my TV through my Mac Mini turned media server.

This is certainly not the first time I’ve done such a thing. I’m an old pro at ripping DVDs. I even got past the encryption on the Dark Knight DVD, but that’s another tale. (Pirating DVDs is wrong. Don’t do it kiddos. However, you are allowed by law to make a copy of any DVD, Music CD, software, etc. that you own, as a backup. Aren’t disclaimers fun?).

Anyways, this time, I wanted to ensure I got a near DVD-quality rip while still conserving file size. Any compression format is going to be lossy, sure, but you can get awfully close to the original, and that’s what I was looking for. That’s also what I had no idea how to do. I use HandBrake religiously but it’s not always obvious what presets or options to use for any given case. So, I turned to my old friend, Google, and started researching.

After a fair amount of work, I finally came across a thread in the HandBrake forum that gave me the info I needed. One of the developers of HandBrake suggested that the AppleTV preset in HandBrake with the quality slider bumped up to 62% gives a near perfect encode. What the thread didn’t mention is that you’ll need to uncheck “Large file size”, as well, since this is only for encodings where the produced mp4 will be greater than 4GB and breaks compatibility with most software and devices when enabled.

I gave it a whirl, and I have to say that it definitely does the trick. The mp4 produced is virtually identical in quality to the DVD, at least to my eyes (YMMV).

It also seems to be a relatively quick encode. On the low-end model Mac Mini (1.8Ghz, 1GB RAM), I get about 12-14 fps converting directly from DVD to an external hard drive over USB2.0. It usually takes twice as long, roughly, as real-time, so a 2-hour movie would equal a 4-hour encode.

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  • Let us finish this! I have never heard about this, but sure thing you must know better!
  • I did find out that handbrake setting will not work for my iPhone3G, though.
  • I feel lucky can read this useful news. Now I find something what i want to know.
  • great post! the only problem with handbrake is that it cant convert copy-protected DVDs , you have to use some other tool first to decrypt the protection. DVD Decrypter and DVD 43 are free tools for doing that.
  • In the latest version of Handbrake (0.9.5 at this time) I've been using the Apple Universal preset as my base settings, then using either an RF of 18 (DVD only) or ABR 3200kbps (Blu-ray), but adding the following to the string in the Advance section ":qcomp=0.8:aq-strength=1.2"

    This setting has reduced the blocky effect in low detail and dark areas. I came accross it on this thread:

    https://forum.handbrake.fr/vie...

    I previously used AVS Video Converter, but it takes a lot longer to run, even when you have 2 x Quad Core Extreme processors under the hood like I do.

    I have had some audio sync issues, but I work them out by adjusting the bitrate or RF setting.
  • M1k3h0nch0
    when you talk about the quality slider, where is that? the only thing i find close is the constant quality slider that is a scale from 0 to 51
  • So I have been using the AppleTV 2 preset for HTPC, is this the highest quality I can get when backing up my dvds? Also if I am using mac the ripper to get a VOB file and then converting to a mp4 with Handbreak's AppleTV 2 preset am I lossing quality that I could be saving some how using a different workflow?
  • This post is a little old, notably older than the AppleTV 2. The AppleTV 2 preset in Handbrake now should be your best bet, though. The quality slider can still be bumped up a little if you're seeing fragments in the picture, but at that point it becomes a disproportionate trade-off between picture quality and file size: file size goes up dramatically for only slightly better quality.

    As far as ripping a DVD goes, the ripping process itself does not degrade the quality of the source. However, the VOB files that DVDs are natively composed of are themselves compressed MPEG2 streams, so you are inevitably ending up with a final MP4 file that is lesser quality than the DVD source and especially the original film reel. It's all about acceptable compromises. Just as an MP3 is never CD quality, most people cannot hear any difference. It's the same here. The goal is to get a picture that 99% of people would say is indistinguishable from the DVD with far less hard drive bloat.
  • Roger
    What if I'm not concerned about filesize, but I just want a single file (instead of VOB) that I can drop on my new media player device to stream to my PS3 with 99% quality of the original DVD?
  • I heard a lot about on Handbrake but haven't use it yet, does it really get around on DVDs that is optimized by a copyright protection schemes? Well, that's for me to find out anyway.
  • By itself, no. For direct encoding from DVD, HandBrake depends on VLC. VLC decrypts the DVD stream as it would if you were to simply watch the DVD in you computer.
  • parisian.goldfish
    thanks for writing this! might be really useful for me. However before I start compressing, I just wanted to know if you'd found anything better, as this was written last year!
  • Yes and no. I still start with the Apple TV preset, but Handbrake has made a few changes. The quality slider works differently now, so I actually bump it up to 62.5%. I believe it's actually set this way by default in the Apple TV preset, but I also set two audio tracks: AAC Dolby Pro Logic II at 160kbps and AC3 Passthrough. Those settings will give you surround sound on virtually an device that supports 2.1 or more channels. For picture settings, I make sure it's set to Anamorphic Loose with Auto Cropping. That gets rid of any hardcoded black bars, and allows the video to stretch whichever way it can to fill the maximum amount of the screen. Also, if you make your own preset from this, be careful of the Picture Settings option. You need to choose "Current" for Picture Settings when adding the preset, or it will try to force fit every movie into the box set by the movie you had in the encoder when you created the preset. (Counter-intuitive, I know)
  • GSP
    Using these settings with the latest version of Handbrake I'm getting a bit over 100 fps average. I can get around 120 with the normal preset. This is encoding on my main rig, i7 920 processor (overclocked to 4.1 GHz, Hyper Threading enabled) and 6GB of DDR3 1600 RAM.

    I had previously just tried this preset on 1 chapter and it looked great, This is my new custom preset :P
  • GSP
    Technically ripping a CD you just purchased at Wal Mart is illegal, yet iTunes does it automatically. You could do such a thing with an FBI agent standing behind you and they cannot do a thing. The company would have to hire a lawyer and bring it into the court system. There just aren't enough lawyers in the world for that. Another thing is, do the companies really care about Billy Bob encoding a movie to stream it to his shiny new Apple TV when there are people downloading terabytes worth of copyrighted material illegally? I don't think so.

    I am not a laywer, This is not legal advice, I am not a pirate. I am not responsible for any actions you may or may not make based upon said statements; said statements are opinions only!

    ^That's called covering your [self-censor]
  • detroitrec
    is the mp4 better than the h.264
  • h.264 *is* mp4; it's simply an mp4 encoding method, and by far the best mp4 encoding method.
  • pmshah
    You are right but playing them on I might say 95 % of standalone media players is rather difficult if not impossible. I also find - perhaps due to my hearing loss with age - AC3 volumes are low and I have to re-encode the audio portin with anywhere from 3 to 5 db gain on Avidemux. Unfortunately the h264 video produced by handbrake is not recognized by even the latest version of Avidemux.

    So there you have it. It all depends on your needs.
  • SJB
    You are not allowed "by law" to make fair-use (backup, or archival) copies of DVDs. Copying DVDs for any reason is currently illegal under the Digital Millenium Copyright Act, which prohibits the circumvention of encryption technologies, such as the CSS on DVDs, in order to make a copy. Just fyi.
  • hmm good answer, keep it up dude.
  • Incorrect. Fair Use allows you to make copies of any software, music, DVDs, etc. that you own. The DMCA, only says that it's unlawful to crack the CSS protection if it exists on those items. Therefore, at its heart DMCA would only exclude media with copy-protection mechanisms. But, even there, who is truly doing the "cracking" of the CSS? The end-user or the developer of the software the user makes use of.

    The DMCA, plain and simply, is a legal trainwreck, the language of which is often contradictory and clearly in violation of previous legal pronouncements (i.e. Fair Use). Whether it's illegal or not under the DMCA, I'll leave to the law professors. But, as none of them can agree on anything, you're not going to see a court case for CSS-decrypting for Fair Use purposes.

    The only law that is clear on this particular issue is Fair Use and thus holds precedent.
  • FOXEO
    Hi Chris. Actually, last I read about copyright law and according to my most recent conversation with IP lawyers, you are indeed *not* allowed to make backup copies of DVDs, whether you own them or not. Some areas of copyright law are vague and contain a lot of gray area, but apparently this is pretty clear.

    Fair Use is the least "clear" of any copyright law IMO. It is the most niched area of the law and contains a lot of murky waters that even expert IP lawyers have trouble navigating. Fair Use is the most overrated aspect of copyright law, and I would guestimate that 99% of the time, when someone mentions Fair Use as their defense it is plainly wrong usage of the law.

    It may be possible to fight the "no backup" rule for DVDs on the grounds that this restricts Fair Use rights. And while we're at it, we should fight the encryption methods too, since it also impedes the right to Fair Use (despite how little that actually is properly used). Australia is a world leader in this realm, fighting for consumer's rights over the power of media moguls demanding more control over their content.

    The "Pirate Bay" concept of copyright is plainly wrong and gives far too much power to the consumer, but the RIAA and the "Hollywood" concept of copyright law gives far too much power to the producers of this content.
  • Your comments just go to further demonstrate that these are murky waters no one cares to tread. Regardless of individual interpretations of the laws, I again state with reasonable certainty that you will never see an individual dragged to court over creating backup copies of their DVD collection. First, in order to even bring a lawsuit, the plaintiff would have to demonstrate some financial detriment from the user's act. Since the DVDs were purchased, the suit would never survive summary judgement. This whole issue is entirely separate from pirating music and movies from torrent sites like TPB, and shouldn't be viewed in the same light as cases brought against users in those scenarios. This is Fair Use at its core.
  • Dave
    Great replies Chris.  Just stumbled upon your thread as I'm switching to my new quad core iMac to back up my DVD library because it rips the DVDs in half the time than my old dual core HP does.  
    Until the movie companies offer a free exchange program for a ruined DVD, then I will *legally* back them up.  
    While others may choose to interpret the laws as what I'm doing as illegal, it is clearly an act of a reasonable person that is worried about the fragile nature of DVDs.  Verbiage of a law that conflicts with another matters not.  That's what judges are for.  To protect us from the absurdity of powerful lobbies that would prefer you repeatedly buy the same DVD title over and over.
    Once upon a time, after watching Monsters Inc. once, my son promptly sunk his teeth into it.  Since that wasted $20, I've been a guilt free ripper.  

  • Matt
    These days with digital download media providers like iTunes that allow you to purchase your content online and re-download it without the need to re-purchase it, surely one can argue that ripping a DVD IS an illegal act because you have chosen to purchase your media on a DISC that has the potential to spoil/break. If you want *true* guilt free media storage, then I would recommend purchasing your media from a digital provider not on a physical medium. The copyright warning at the start of a disc is written for a reason.
    If Paramount, Universal and the other big (now) Big 4 studios really wanted to see remuneration for the content they create they would provide ALL their content on digital media providers, AND globally release all their content. (Seriously, why do they continue to think they make any headway by releasing a show to one country and then waiting a year to distribute it elsewhere?)Until that day, it is up to the individual to make the right choice based on the available options - regardless of whether the content creators have got their butts into gear.
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