Issues & Missing Options in UniFab vs. DVDFab 12 Video Converter

[kevinfritz]

I just installed DVDFab 13 and found that the video converter module, which is mostly what I use from DVDFab has been replaced by UniFab. While I'm happy that my DVDFab lifetime license covers UniFab, I have quickly discovered some shortcomings with UniFab that will keep me using the video converter module from DVDFab until UniFab has been expanded to address these issues.

These are some of the issues and shortcomings compared to the DVDFab 12 video converter:

1. The "Copy" functions for video and audio are missing. My regular conversions in DVDFab were to convert MP4 PAL 25 fps video to NTSC 29.97 fps video, while keeping the original AAC sound stream. This is not possible in UniFab. The sound MUST be converted in some way, i.e., a different bit rate. There were a few times where I also needed to keep the original video while converting the audio, i.e., from AAC to AC3, and not this isn't possible. It also seems that the "pass-through" options of DVDFab aren't available in UniFab.

2. The "Bits/Pixel" option is missing in UnFab. This was my preferred method of controlling video quality. In UniFab I must now attempt to calculate a bitrate to control video quality.

3. The "Additional Parameters" options don't work in UniFab. I successfully used the following additional parameters in DVDFab for H264/AVC video conversions and it always created "High@L4.1" profile MP4 files, but in UniFab these options create "Main@L3" profile MP4 videos, as verified by MediaInfo. These are the options that worked properly in DVDFab 12's video converter:

--profile high
--level-idc 4.1
--high-tier

4. The "Deinterlacing" option is missing in UniFab.

5. The ability to force “software only” encoding seems to be missing in UniFab. In DVDFab this was under the “Common Settings, A/V Codec, Disable all GPU codes for decoding and encoding” option. I found this option was necessary to maximize quality of my videos in DVDFab 12, and I think that is because software encoding allows 2-pass encoding, while GPU enabled encoding only could only be done with 1-pass encoding. 1-pass encoding creates unwanted video artifacts that don’t occur with 2-pass software encoding. While UniFab allows me to use 2-pass encoding, I can see GPU graph indicates that the GPU is being used, so I’m assuming that means it is not using “software encoding and decoding.” Recommend adding some of these detailed options that exist in DVDFab to UniFab.

UniFab looks nice, but the loss of control that existed in DVDFab is not desirable. Please move the full functionality from DVDFab to UniFab, or make the DVDFab 12 style of video conversion available in DVDFab 13. Yes, the end user could keep using DVDFab, but then any improvements or bug fixes won't be available in the future.

[KOR]

You have the same post as me, this Version is should be avoided there is everywhere a bug, and like we say many options are missing.
I have stoped to use it and I continue to use DVDfab12 until them not fix it.
If there was a QC then this guy who did it should be fired.

[Mountainbeef]

I also have some of the problems described here, especially the first point, which (among other errors) makes this version completely unusable for me.

With other problems, such as the installation in the Program folder, I could still arrange, but this version is so buggy that I will first continue to use the version 12 of DVDFab.

P.S. I had already opened a post about this two days ago, but it is still marked "unapproved" and therefore can't be seen by anyone?

[ThunderVamp9]

Yeah, I have to echo all this sentiment.

Unifab really does not seem to be an improvement over DVDFab Converter.

Let's look at some issues:

Here we've got DVDFab 12 Converter. Loading in a file loads all the info after scanning, just like Unifab so far, although note the toggle on the right. That's handy. You'll see later.
I can Choose my format by hitting that dropdown by the image, and have some frequently used ones pre-selected, or I can choose to use another profile. When I choose another, I get a whole host of options:

14 options in MP4 alone, including 10bit options for non-4K, etc. I don't need to tweak some of these, I can just select them.

By comparison, let's look at Unifab:

8 options for MP4. That's it. Same with MKV. And so on. If I want say, H265, I'll need to edit that in settings AFTER selecting a format.

In DVDFab, I can save my profiles and it'll be in the list of them:

The flaw with this one is it tends to NOT use the bitrate I set for the profile. I mean, why create a profile, including bitrate, if it won't USE the settings I saved? But anyway...

I also want to echo the sentiment above about Bits/Pixel slider.

The "Bits/Pixel" option is missing in UnFab. This was my preferred method of controlling video quality. In UniFab I must now attempt to calculate a bitrate to control video quality.

In Unifab, I had set my profile the way I wanted it, but when choosing Personal? Not even there the next time I loaded the app:


I had to choose one of the Video profile presets, then choose "Settings" and edit it to the way I wanted again.


Then I saved. And oh, wait:


Oh really? And yeah, it's definitely already saved. More than once:


After saving (again), it's now in the list of Personal profiles, until I close the app and restart it later. Then nothing is in Personal anymore. But they are still saved as shown above.


So now I go ahead and start the conversion.

In DVDFab, when it's completed, it has a popup and the task view remains also.


After you acknowledge the main window still retains the file. Note the toggle on the right side of it? Now it's off? I can review the file I made. If I'm not satisfied with it, I can click that toggle, make adjustments and Start the conversion again.


In Unifab, not the same at all. When you click start, it moves the project to the Workspace


When it's completed, it is ONLY in the workspace. If you go back to the Converter tab, it's now empty:


If you need to re-do it for whatever reason, you can't drag it back to the converter tab. You need to re-open and re-scan the file, then choose profile again, etc etc.

Occasionally in DVDFab when converting a 4K HDR file to a lower bitrate to reduce file size, the conversion doesn't work. When playing it starts off with green splotches and the video will have issues from graphical glitches to the image stopping while the audio continues. Going into A/V settings allows me to turn off Lightning Shrink and set it to Software, but there are obviously other options you can make here:


In Unifab, every single time I have done this type of conversion so far, it has resulted in a bad conversion requiring me to change the setting. But in Unifab, the options are much more limited:


I've also tested the Unifab's Enlarger AI to upscale a video from 576p to 1080p. The resulting file was not smooth, kind of jittery to watch. I tested multiple options to see if I could clear that up, and no matter what options I selected, from bitrates, to fps, and everything in between, the resulting video had the issues.

I've also noticed that Unifab never really seems to use my GPU for conversions. All load seems to be CPU. As shown above, it clearly detects my 4070ti, but conversions never seem to show any usage while CPU percentage is shown. As such, conversions seem slower.

DVDFab would remember the last profile I was using with each new run of the program. So I only had to select a profile if I wanted to convert to a different format.
Unifab makes me choose the profile with every run.

Lastly, nothing in the licensing indicates if it's the Unifab Video Converter or Unifab Video Converter Pro that I got with my license. So many features were missing from DVDFab vs Unifab that I thought the license I was given with my upgrade was only regular, so I wound up paying $105 after taxes yesterday for the Pro version, just find it was exactly what I already had. If that's the case, I'd like my $105 back.

If I want the HDR Upscaler or Audio Upmix I have to buy each of those separately. Was the HDR upscaler part of those original 14 profiles in DVDFab, that are now down to 8 profiles in Unifab, and none of which list HDR on the 1080 profiles?

And lastly?

Like my complaint about the custom profiles in DVDFab Video Converter not using the bitrate I set in my custom profile and overriding it to whatever? I've already seen Unifab do the same thing. My bitrate set to 1394, and when loaded, it changed it to 1382. As I complained about before, what is the point of being able to set these if your program is just going to ignore them and do what it wants?

[gomno]

Just checked out Unifab 2.0.0.0 today since it is what you have to use as a video converter with DVDfab 13. The main reason I used DVDfab 12 was to convert 4k HDR videos to 1080p SDR videos. I don't see that capability available in Unifab.

Seems to be a giant step backward. What a disappointment!!!

[KidJoe]

Within the video settings you can adjust in UniFab, there is no option to check/uncheck for De-Interlace like there was with Video Converter DVDFab.

I have some older 1080i camcorder videos that de-interlacing doesn't look good, so I don't want to de-interlace.

[KOR]

Mona

When we get a clean Version and not this Beta version of UniFab ?
Did you have fired the guy who made the QC of UniFab ? if not, you should.

[Beyil]

we really need an import profiles from DVDFab12 option on install / update or even in the settings pages.. the missing profiles and options in UniFab vs DVDFab12 is the main hold up for a lot of us. so far UniFab is doing a lot better at not giving random green screen frames using GPU encode/decode, and in using the selected hardware.. the difference is enough to cause me to wonder if the AI is really worth the cost just to see if the AI enlargement will work properly or if I'll end up with a green screen garbage or over a blurry CPU conversion like I did with DVDFab 12..

[ThunderVamp9]

UniFab is doing a lot better at not giving random green screen frames using GPU encode/decode, and in using the selected hardware.

Is it? Because I'm getting that with every 4K conversion I've done with Unifab so far. Every single one. I re-do them in DVDFab 12 and they come out fine each time.

[Beyil]

DVDFab 12 with an AMD RX6600. AI enhance on a 1.5 hour video from 640x480 to 1080P I would get constantly 3 video frames then 21 solid green frames... to re-encode from h264 to h265 using both encode and decode 3 seconds of green screens randomly placed through out... using software decode and hardware encode no issue... so with UniFab using hardware decode/encode and no green screen frames is an improvement in the right direction..

[roblee]

I don't have as many issues as ThunderVamp9 lists in their post, but one thing they said that I also find is a really glaring omission is:

DVDFab would remember the last profile I was using with each new run of the program. So I only had to select a profile if I wanted to convert to a different format.
Unifab makes me choose the profile with every run.

Having to re-select my preferred output format Every. Single. Time. is hugely aggravating - the Converter in DVDFab 12 would remember the choice from the previous session, why not provide the same functionality in UniFab?

[ThunderVamp9]

How about this:

Converting a TV show MKV file.
Original file size is 3.5GB

I use a profile that sets the bitrate to 1394kbps at h265 with 2 pass encoding which drops file size to about 700MB, while keeping very good quality.

It shows the file size expected in Unifab

I run it: Resulting file: 1.5GB in size, and not the correct bitrate at all

Run the same file in DVDFab 12, and it comes out correct everytime.

When doing these in bathces, I find I wasted an hour converting a series season only to have to groan in frustration and do it again in DVDFab.

[ThunderVamp9]

At this point I'm stopping using Unifab. While DVD has the issue that frustrated the hell out of me, often not using a bitrate set in custom profile and setting it to whatever, but if I manually set that bitrate each time, it worked properly every time.

Unifab to me is just useless. It seems to do whatever it wants, even if bitrate is manually set every time. It rarely works right compared to DVDFab 12.

Unifab is just a failure for me.