Vion Pulse Video Converter

A powerful and user-friendly video conversion application built with Python and PyQt6, leveraging FFmpeg for high-quality video processing.

Features

• 🎥 Batch Processing: Convert multiple videos at once
• ⚡ Hardware Acceleration: Supports NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel hardware acceleration
• 🎨 Video Settings:
  • Multiple video codecs (H.264, HEVC, AV1, VP9, etc.)
  • Quality presets and custom bitrate/CRF controls
  • Resolution scaling and aspect ratio adjustments
  • Deinterlacing options
  • Frame rate conversion
• 🔊 Audio Controls:
  • Multiple audio tracks support
  • Volume normalization (peak and EBU R128)
  • Audio codec selection
• 🖼️ Subtitle Support:
  • Subtitle extraction and burning
  • Multiple subtitle tracks handling
• 🖥️ Modern UI:
  • Dark/Light theme support
  • Progress tracking with time remaining
  • Detailed logging
• 🛠️ Advanced Features:
  • Two-pass encoding
  • Multi-threading support
  • Custom FFmpeg parameters

Requirements

• Python 3.8+
• FFmpeg (must be installed and in system PATH)
• PyQt6
• Other dependencies listed in requirements.txt

Installation

1. Clone this repository:

   git clone https://github.com/yourusername/video-converter.git
   cd video-converter

2. Install the required Python packages:

   pip install -r requirements.txt

3. Make sure FFmpeg is installed and available in your system PATH.

Launch

Run the application with:

python main.py

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Quick start (2 minutes)

1. Add input files

• Click “Add Files” (left panel) or drag & drop videos into the window.
• Optional: Use the “Disc / ISO Import” tab to scan a folder or ISO and add found media.

2. Choose output folder

• Click “Select Output Directory”, confirm a writable folder.

3. Pick a container and basic settings

• “Output Format” (MP4/MKV/…)
• “Video” tab: choose codec (H.264/HEVC/AV1/VP9), preset speed, resolution/framerate.
• “Audio” tab: choose codec/bitrate, track selection, optional normalization.

4. Optional preview

• On the right, click “Update Preview” to see how output will look with your current settings.

5. Start

• Click “Start”. Progress, time remaining, and logs are displayed.

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UI tour and where features live

Left panel (main workflow)

• Input / Output
• Input list: add/remove/clear files; per‑file settings can be saved with “Save Settings for Selected”.
• Output Directory: shows the currently selected folder.
• File info: duration, size, bitrate, resolution, codec (auto‑probed).
• Output Format
• Container selector (MP4, MKV, AVI, MOV, WebM, …). Sensible defaults are applied when you change formats.
• Settings tabs
• Video
• Video Codec: H.264, H.265 (HEVC), VP9, AV1
• Conversion Speed (preset): Ultrafast … Veryslow (speed vs quality)
• Resolution: Original or common targets
• Frame Rate: Original or specific values (and Framerate Mode: Same as source, Constant, Peak variable)
• Deinterlace (bwdif) and Auto‑detect toggle
• Audio
• Codec (AAC/MP3/Opus/Vorbis/Copy), channels, bitrate, sample rate
• Track selection: Auto (first) or All tracks
• Volume slider and Loudnorm (normalization)
• Advanced (sub‑tabs)
• Hardware: pick encoder (Software CPU, NVIDIA NVENC, Intel QSV, AMD AMF), optional hardware decode/scale
• Encoding: Quality Mode (CRF / Average Bitrate / VBR), CRF value, bitrate fields, Two‑Pass toggle, Threads, Extra FFmpeg params
• Size & Misc: Desired output size estimator (suggests video bitrate) and “Preserve cover art / attached pictures”
• Subtitles
• Lists detected subtitle streams. For each stream you can include it and choose a method: Copy, Burn‑in, Convert to SRT.

Right panel (tools and diagnostics)

• Output Preview (top): click “Update Preview” to render a quick still reflecting crop/scale/deinterlace settings.
• Tool tabs
• Cropping: Auto/Custom cropping to remove black bars; detected values appear and can be edited.
• Scaling: Resolution limit (Original/Custom/4K/1440p/1080p/720p/480p), anamorphic options, allow upscaling.
• Audio Analysis: Generate waveform and EBU R128 stats; optional EBU normalization target.
• Log Output (bottom): detailed FFmpeg/log messages.

Top tabs

• Video Converter: main workflow shown above.
• Disc / ISO Import: scan a folder or ISO for media, optionally extract to a destination, then add to queue.

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What features do

• Video codec & preset
• Preset controls speed/quality trade‑off. Faster = lower quality/efficiency, slower = better quality/efficiency.
• Resolution/Framerate
• Downscale to a target height or keep Original; set constant framerate if needed (e.g.,30 fps for compatibility).
• Deinterlacing
• Uses high‑quality bwdif. Enable manually or let the app auto‑detect interlaced content.
• Quality modes
• Constant Quality (CRF): best for software encoders (libx264/libx265). Lower CRF = higher quality (larger files). Typical H.264 CRF18–23.
• Average Bitrate (kbps): target average bitrate.
• Variable Bitrate (VBR): target/max/min control.
• Two‑Pass
• Improves quality predictability for bitrate‑based modes (ABR/VBR). Slower; not needed for CRF.
• Audio
• Choose codec/bitrate/channels; normalize with loudnorm or basic volume; select tracks (auto/all).
• Subtitles
• Copy: remuxes existing subtitles when container supports it.
• Convert to SRT: re‑encodes text subs to SRT (or mov_text for MP4 automatically).
• Burn‑in: renders text onto video; slows encode; not removable.
• Preserve cover art
• When enabled and using MP4, tries to apply cover art from the source (or a fallback still) to the output.
• Threads & Extra FFmpeg params
• Leave Threads =0 for auto. Extra params are appended as‑is for advanced users.

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Greyed‑out and auto‑adjust behaviors

• CRF controls are disabled when a hardware encoder (NVENC/QSV/AMF) is selected (most HW encoders don’t use CRF).
• Two‑Pass is only enabled for bitrate‑based modes (Average Bitrate or VBR). It’s auto‑unchecked when not applicable.
• When you change container, invalid codec combinations are auto‑corrected and warnings are logged (e.g., MP4 prefers H.264/AAC; WebM requires VP9/AV1 with Opus/Vorbis).
• For MP4, SubRip/SRT subtitles are converted to mov_text automatically if you choose Copy/Convert.

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Best practices and recipes

Fastest conversion (good quality, hardware accelerated)

• Format: MP4
• Hardware tab: NVIDIA NVENC (or Intel QSV / AMD AMF)
• Video tab: H.264, Preset: Fast/Medium (mapped to HW preset), Resolution: Original, Framerate: Original
• Advanced > Encoding: Quality Mode = VBR or Average Bitrate, Single‑pass (Two‑Pass off)
• Audio: Codec = AAC, keep original bitrate/channels, avoid normalization
• Subtitles: Prefer Copy or none (avoid Burn‑in)

Smallest size with good quality (software x264/x265)

• Hardware = Software (CPU)
• Quality Mode = Constant Quality (CRF)
• H.264 CRF ~20–23; H.265 CRF ~22–28
• Preset = Slow/Slower for better efficiency (slower)
• Optional downscale (e.g.,1080p →720p) to reduce size

Target a specific size

• Advanced > Size & Misc: set Desired Output Size (MB) and click “Estimate Video Bitrate”.
• Switch to Average Bitrate (kbps) and use the suggested value; consider enabling Two‑Pass for more consistent results.

When to enable deinterlacing

• Only for interlaced sources (broadcast/DVD). Keep “Auto‑detect” on; manual “Deinterlace” forces it for all inputs.

Subtitles guidance

• Burn‑in makes text part of the video (always visible, slows encoding).
• Copy preserves switchable subs when container supports it. For MP4, SRT → mov_text automatically.

General tips

• Leave Threads at0 (auto). Avoid unnecessary filters for speed.
• Use “Update Preview” to validate crop/scale/deinterlace before running a long encode.
• Logs may include absolute file paths—redact before sharing publicly.

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Disc / ISO Import

• Source: choose a folder or .iso and click “Scan Source”.
• ISO: select a destination folder, click “Extract & Add to Queue”.
• The files will be added to the main queue for conversion.

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Troubleshooting

• “FFmpeg Not Found”: install FFmpeg and ensure ffmpeg/ffprobe are on PATH.
• “Permission Denied”: choose a writable output folder.
• No progress/time remaining: ensure input probes succeeded; see logs for errors.

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License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please open issues/PRs with clear steps or proposed changes.