alex-free.github.io

Video2DreamcastDisc

By Alex Free

Video2DreamcastDisc is a complete suite of programs that can convert any video file (30 fps or lower) for playback on a Sega Dreamcast console using the Sofdec video format (used by in-game FMVs). You can convert media files to a self-booting, auto-playing, Sega Dreamcast .cdi file that can be burned to a CD-R for playback of said media on Mil-CD exploitable consoles.

Video2DremacastDisc can also be used as a modern replacement for the Sega Dreamcast Movie Creator in a workflow for creating Sofdec FMV files.

Table Of Contents

Downloads

The Linux builds are portable, although they do require wine to be installed to work due to a few remaining windows-only programs needed in the conversion process.

Version 1.1.4 (8/13/2023)

Changes:

About previous versions.

Usage

Video2DreamcastDisc is driven a command line interface provided by the vid2dcd.bat script (Windows) or the vid2dcd.sh script (Linux), which are found in each release. These scripts accept only one argument. You can Drag n’ drop a video file into the vid2dcd.bat script on Windows to provide said argument. You can also do this with the vid2dcd.sh script on most Linux distributions. Alternatively on Windows, you may open cmd.exe, and execute vid2dcd.bat with an argument like vid2dcd.bat myhuge.mkv. On Linux, you may also do this by opening the Terminal and executing ./vid2dcd.sh with an argument like ./vid2dcd.sh somerandom.mp4.

With a media file as the only argument to these scripts, an option select menu will be displayed. Select an option by typing the corresponding number.

Option 1

Create a video.cdi file in the Video2DreamcastDisc directory and burn that file automatically to a blank CD-R, all in one go.

Option 2

Create a video.cdi file in the Video2DreamcastDisc directory that can be burned to a CD-R for Sega Dreamcast playback.

Option 3

Create a video.sfd file in the Video2DreamcastDisc directory.

Option 4

Split an existing video file into multiple segments that are each limited to a maximum amount of minutes per segment specified by you. This means you can take a very long video file and split it into i.e. 25 minute segments so that each part of the video can be it’s own video file which individually fis on it’s own CD-R. A movie could be split like this to be converted by Video2DreamcastDisc afterwards for playback via multiple CD-Rs.

Option 5

Set the speed at which the CD-R will be burned with. This setting is 1 by default, which will use the slowest speed your drive supports.

Option 6

Set the video bitrate in kilobits per second. 1000-2800 is the recommended range.

example 1 windows

example 1 linux

example 2 linux

example 2 windows

example 3 linux

example 3 windows

example 4 windows

If you select option 1 on Linux, you’ll need to enter your account password to allow Video2dreamcastdisc access to burn the CD-R:

example 4 linux

example 5 linux

Video Specifications

Software Suite

Video2DreamcastDisc itself is released into the public domain, (licenses/video2dreamcastdisc.txt). The vid2dcd.sh and vid2dcd.bat scripts use the following software:

FFprobe

Use: Displays media file info for option 4.

Versions: 2023-08-07-git-d295b6b693 ffmpeg-git-full, pre-built static binaries from https://www.gyan.dev/ffmpeg/builds (Windows), 20230721 ffmpeg-git-amd64-static pre-built static binaries from https://johnvansickle.com/ffmpeg/.

License: GNU GPL v3 (licenses/ffprobe.txt).

FFmpeg

Use: Does the initial conversion from the source file into WAV audio and MPEG-1 video, which are then usable by adxencd.

Versions: 2023-08-07-git-d295b6b693 ffmpeg-git-full, pre-built static binaries from https://www.gyan.dev/ffmpeg/builds (Windows), 20230721 ffmpeg-git-amd64-static pre-built static binaries from https://johnvansickle.com/ffmpeg/.

License: GNU GPL v3 (licenses/ffmpeg.txt).

Adxencd

Use: This converts the WAV file previously converted from the source file with FFmpeg to an ADX audio file.

Version: 1.0.

License: Released by dcswat.ru from leaked Dreamcast SDK…

LegalADX

Use: This program was written by me in C to do one thing, convert the audio ADX file output from adxencd.exe to one that work with Sfdmuxapp.

Version: 1.0.

License: 3-BSD (licenses/legaladx.txt).

Sfdmuxapp

Use: Created by Zench, released on July 15th 2008. This is a command line program that interfaces with the Sfdmux.dll from the Sega Dreamcast Movie Creator which allows for command line automated conversion to the SFD format. This uses the output of legaladx and the MPEG-1 video track as input to convert it to SFD format.

Version: 1.0.

SFD_Player

Use: Released all the way back in 2000, this Sega Dreamcast program automatically plays the movie/BUMPER.SFD file on the disc it is burned to. I have updated the original release using the ECHELON method for self-boot so that it does not require the Utopia Boot Disc!

Version: 1.0.

License: Apparently the original (lost?) source code to SFD_Player itself is based on an example found in the leaked Dreamcast SDK…

MKISOFS

Use: Makes ISO image which is then used by cdi4dc to make the self-boot CDI image.

Versions: Cdrecord-ProDVD-ProBD-Clone 3.00 (Linux), Cdrecord-ProDVD-ProBD-Clone 2.01.01a36 (Windows).

Licenses: GNU GPL v2 and CDDL, (licenses/mkisofs-gpl3.txt and licenses/mkisofs-cddl.txt).

CDI4DC

Use: Created by Sizious, this builds the CDI file.

Version: 0.3.

License: GNU GPL v3 (licenses/cdi4dc.txt).

CDIRip

Use: Created by DeXT/Lawrence Williams, cdirip extracts the CDI file built by cdi4dc for burning with cdrecord

Versions: 0.6.3 (Windows), 0.6.4 (Linux).

License: GNU GPL v2 (licenses/cdirip.txt).

Cdrecord

Use: Burns CD-R.

Versions: Cdrecord-ProDVD-ProBD-Clone 3.00 (Linux), Cdrecord-ProDVD-ProBD-Clone 2.01.01a36 (Windows).

Licenses: GNU GPL v2 and CDDL (licenses/cdrecord-gpl3.txt and licenses/cdrecord-cddl.txt).

MKVMerge

Use: Splits MKV files.

Versions: v78.0 (Windows), v65.0 (Linux).

License: GNU GPL v2 (licenses/mkvmerge.txt).