Video editing software...


DAP

Member
Joined
Aug 29, 2008
Messages
432
Can you recommend some open source video editing software which will allow me to cut & splice video without re-encoding the video? Every tool I've tried seems to want to re-compress the video to a different resolution and compression level than the original.
 
I think I can answer for him :)
You'll need to reencode the video. Most video codecs use interframe compression, which means your frames aren't complete for the most parts. Some are full JPEG images, assuring the picture quality from time to time, but most only contain the difference between the prior frame and the current one.
That is why you don't need 600GB to store an hour of HD content. But you can't edit it without the need to decode it first, and even if you could, then it would be a nightmare to re-encode, because the order in which complete and incomplete images are stored follows a pattern, which breaks during editing.

If you're interested in temporal compression, you can find more about it here.
 
VirtualDUB, though I think it's Windows only. You don't need to re-encode the video using this
 
i use trim with ffmpeg and concat to put things together. very low level, so i have to use mplayer to see where i want to cut.

https://stackoverflow.com/questions...deos-based-on-start-and-end-time-using-ffmpeg
i'll probably make a script for this soon, as it's annoying to remember the details, but it looks like you can do it in place.

concatenate (may require things to be .mp4 files, but haven't checked outside that case):
Code:
#!/bin/bash
if [ "$#" -lt "2" ]
then
    echo "concat [video1] [video2] ..."
    exit 1
fi

echo "file '$1'" > .concat.tmp
shift
for var in "$@"
do
    echo "file '$var'" >> .concat.tmp
done
ffmpeg -f concat -i .concat.tmp -codec copy out.MP4
rm .concat.tmp
 
Oh no one recommend AviDemux?
Its free,for Windows and Linux and i
use this for Freeing my recorded Videos from Commercials without reencoding all.

Avidemux can simply change the Containerformat without encoding the Video new.
Its Great for Cutting Videos and work here
with my Dvb-C Receiver Files wonderfull.

Work even my decrypted Sky Movie Records :D

With my Samsung 950 Evo M.2 Hdd i can write a freed a HD Movie in around 30 Seconds with it.
And i can Change the Ts4 Format to Mkv without new encoding.

A Bonus for me is that i can free Videos from unused Second or Thirth Audiotracks. :D
 
Can you recommend some open source video editing software which will allow me to cut & splice video without re-encoding the video? Every tool I've tried seems to want to re-compress the video to a different resolution and compression level than the original.

Virtualdub can do it. Just select direct stream copy for video and audio then trim as needed.
 
Virtualdub is out, it is windows only, and I run Linux.

The basic problem I am trying to solve is that my camera, a Sony DSC-RX100 has some nasty habits regarding video. In spite of using EXFAT file system on the SD cards, the camera breaks the videos into 2.1 GB files. Also, to avoid taxes, Sony programmed the camera to stop recording video after about 30 minutes. On top of this, the camera will overheat while recording and stop. And sometimes I need to change the battery during recording.

My previous attempts to splice those files together resulted in an audio dropout of several seconds, and the picture freezing for about 8 frames, and the frames that should have been there completely missing.

Sony claims that using their software (which only works on Windows, Mac and PS3) will correctly combine the files without dropouts. I don't have either a Windows or Mac machine, but I do have a PS3. The problem with the PS3 is that it does not support any file system more modern than FAT32, so it can not even read the EXFAT SD cards, let alone join the files, or once joined, transfer them to any other media.

The format I have the files in is .MTS

Edit: I did some experiments, and it seems that I can just use cat to string the files together where the camera split the file but did not stop recording. If I try this on the files where the camera stopped recording, it will play, but the player has no idea how long the video is, and won't show the time in the progress.
 
Last edited:
My Technisat Dvb-C Receiver do splitting Files too.

With this Avidemux i can merge the Files fine into one File without any rekognations in the Movie.
And manualy free it from Commercials.

But i recommend it to cut not per Frame...
..do cut it per Keyframe and you should not have more this Audio Delay then.

It a TS and TS4 Transport Stream.
Maybe on your Camera is a Type of Transport Stream too.

I stay @ it...try AviDemux.
Realy my Videosoftware Number one here.
And it support nearly all Formats.

Good Luck

Edit:
When you open your Video without the Timeline and save it as new File with AviDemux..
..a new Timeline should be automatic created.
 
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